Much like the elusive Theory of Everything in physics, with Hills‘ universal psychedelic premise is underlined by almost unaccountable gravity. Released in 2011 through Intergalactic Tactics and Transubstans Records following a 2009 self-titled debut, Master Sleeps basks these 10 years later in its breadth of influence and establishes its aesthetic on a per-track basis, presenting two vinyl sides of resonant, spaced-out intergalactic fare with an awakened nature that’s nothing if not contradictory to the title. It’s a record about which much was said at the time by the in-the-know-telligencia, and that’s cool, because it’s cool, and, hey man, cool, but any and all past hype aside — it’s amazing how the years turn these things into wisps of recollection; the fervent talking-up of records fading to echoes even as attention spans are criticized for their shortness; hypocrites to a hyperlink, everyone — it’s a cool record and to deny it is to deny oneself the pleasure of a 35-minute, mostly instrumental outward journey of jams and in-on-it-early-next-gen heavy psych. Suffice it to say, if this shit was due in June instead of a decade gone, you’d still see as much desperate preening of feathers in order to curry its vaunted favor. And fair enough.

I have the CD, which was the Transubstans version, that I apparently picked up later in 2011, but I’ll be damned if Master Sleeps doesn’t hold up. It was ahead of the game on vinyl structuring, presaging the larger-platter-as-format-of-record (pun absolutely intended) explosion by a year or two, and each of its two sides brought three tracks in a nearly even break of structure to what seems to be utterly fluid throughout the listening experience, opener “Rise Again” and closer “Death Shall Come” creating a loop from one to the other that feels all the more geared to encourage multiple listens in a kind of sonic reincarnation. Accordingly, the more you hear Master Sleeps, the more you hear in it. First? Swirl. “Rise Again” fuzzes and unfolds a careening spaciousness that calls out early space rock and psych drift with shoegaze vocals buried in the mix à la The Heads where you wonder if anything’s really being said or you’re just imagining it and does it really matter anyway. I don’t know.

True to the band’s moniker, the air gets thinner the higher you climb, both into “Rise Again” and across side A and B as a whole, ascending from longer tracks to shorter toward the middle of the record — the two shortest cuts, “Claras Vaggvisa” and “The Vessel,” close side A and open side B, respectively — then longer again at the finish. In case, the sick hypnosis of “Rise Again” holds firm even as Hills wander elsewhere, “Bring Me Sand” tapping Mideast scales and rhythmic patterns in classic fashion, a marked turn from the preceding opener but that’s the point. There’s a heavier burst in the middle — watch out for it — but they’re never so volatile as to lose control, and the far-off-ness of “Claras Vaggvisa,” which an organ line as its most forward factor backed by some quieter but foreboding tom hits and vague, manipulated voice echoes, is intentionally drifting and atmospheric and, yes, weird. Delightfully, delightfully weird. Weird as means and end both, but golly that’s fun.

Even more when “The Vessel” kicks into action, bringing that organ up in volume and putting a reignited kosmiche thrust behind it, the drums still having a chance to swing as they nonetheless push forward amid the channel-shifting, amorphous-sounding guitars. Next time someone asks you what “molten” sounds like, it sounds like Hills playing “The Vessel” on Master Sleeps. There’s a sample there, who knows what, but the point is the jam, and the jam sounds like they took a regular song and melted it into so much lysergic goo. True, they find some shape in the second half, coalescing around a dreamy guitar figure to cap, but the breaking-down-of-elements had to come first. The finish in “The Vessel” makes a suitably right-on lead-in for the soft-boogie drum foundation of “Master Sleeps” itself. Guitars, bass, organ all follow the bounce those drums lay out, grooving casual-like through the initial section of the longest piece of the album that shares its name, and as they jam through, they seem to acknowledge the funk they’re making — a bit of cowbell here, a bit of wah there, some easy-soul vocals, all very deep in the procession, all very spacey, very improv-feeling. And yeah, this sounds like what’s next, still. A band and a record out of time, maybe, leaving everybody else to chase their warp trail around the other side of the planet where some trap or other is set but our sensors can’t get a reading, Cap’n.

That’s right. It’s the kind of record that might make you lapse into fan-fic. No regrets. There’s nothing missing from “Master Sleeps,” and for those Stateside, one might find its inherent swagger similar to the always-off-the-cuff musings of Endless Boogie, but there’s a personality at work here too, and the band are having fun exploring almost in spite of themselves. Thus the drones and chants of “Death Shall Come” arrive to put not just a memento mori on the party they just incited, but an end to the LP as a whole, a patient unfurling across the song’s first half leading to a surprise of a crash about three minutes in as guitars intertwine in loosely mystical fashion and the dirge truly comes together, hitting an apex still somewhat undersold but nothing less than it needs to be to highlight just how individual each part of Master Sleeps is and likewise just how intensely the pieces feed the whole.

Rocket Recordings picked up Master Sleeps in 2013 and likewise stood behind the band’s 2015 outing, Frid, and their 2017 Alive at Roadburn LP, captured the year before at the festival where I’d been lucky enough to see them (review here). The band aren’t so much active at this point, but Rocket has newly issued a debut outing from psych-jazz outfit Djinn, which boasts membership from Hills and sibling purveyors Goat. And that’s not nothing, as you can hear on Bandcamp.

As always, I hope you enjoy.

—

Distractible, so the internet is probably the worst place for me to be. So it goes. Those eight-year-old SNL clips aren’t gonna watch themselves when I should be writing.

This week… was a thing that happened? I guess the highlight was when I talked to Genghis Tron and they weren’t jerks. I really like that record. Stick around in the interview long enough and you’ll hear me tell them it’s my album of the year so far, and it is. I know there’s a lot to come from some big names, but it’s a high standard just the same, and they’ve set it, and yeah, it’s just always a relief to talk to someone you haven’t interviewed before (actually I’m not 100 percent that I never interviewed them back in the day, but close enough) and they don’t ruin the record by being a dick. That hasn’t happened to me in a while, for which I’m thankful.

Next week I’m doing a cool thing. On Monday. I’m already kind of nervous about it. I’m also interviewing Tommi Holappa from Greenleaf in a couple hours — also quite cool — and I’m kinda nervous about that too, but I know damn well already he’s a good guy based on copious past experience, so no actual worries there other than the usual I’m-talking-to-a-human-being type. Need to send him the Zoom link. I’ll get there.

But the cool thing Monday. Can’t talk about it. Very cool though. Hoping to post about it Tuesday, but timing might be weird, so it may be Wednesday before I get there. So Monday looks like a Snail album review with a video premiere — hey that’s pretty cool too! — and then Tuesday will either be Cool Thing or the Greenleaf interview, and Wednesday is whichever of those two didn’t run on Tuesday. I’ve also got two premieres lined up for Thursday and one for Friday, so the week’s spoken for in its entirety, and that takes us through the end of April. Time both drags and flies. Nothing makes any sense.

Far out.

The Pecan starts tee-ball tomorrow for the first time. We bought him a glove last week, then this week we bought him a glove he can actually squeeze closed, though he hasn’t quite worked out the mechanism of doing so yet. That kid fucking hates me. Oof. Rough week. Everything’s a fight. Everything. The Patient Mrs. comes down the stairs and it’s like he flips a switch and is good to go. She goes back to work and he’s back to whining and bitching about fucking everything. All week. Dude does not believe in union breaks. I’m hoping it’s a phase but I’ve seen zero evidence to-date that it might be. To wit, I couldn’t stand my father pretty much from the outset and now he’s dead, so there you go. Find me a point to anything.

I’d like to record some vocals this weekend for nascent-project, but I’m not sure I’ll get the chance. The weekends lately are the worst. I end up with less time than the weekdays because there’s no preschool in the morning. What a wreck. Sundays are awful, and I still refuse to do anything on Saturday because god damn, give me a day, but then I spend half of Saturday thinking about all the crap I need to get through on Sunday and it’s just a waste anyway and then Sunday’s still a pain in the ass. I guess if you have two kids, or, god forbid, more, you just cancel the rest of your life and that’s what you do. One kid, there’s still some semblance of an existence beyond that kid, so you’re kind of struggling to keep yourself sane. Or you’re negligent as fuck, and certainly there’s an appeal to that as well.

I don’t know anything. I’d like to write a book of essays about it and call it Daddy Issues, but I’m sure that’s taken.

I’ll go shower. That will help.

Have a great and safe weekend. Hydrate, watch your head, all that fun stuff. Back Monday.

The Obelisk Forum

The Obelisk Radio

The Obelisk merch

I was fortunate enough to catch a few of these bands at Roadburn 2016, among them Hills, Blind Idiot God and Peter Pan Speedrock (seen above). As an American traveling abroad — though I’ll say that eight Roadburns deep, there’s a big part of me that feels like going to Tilburg in April is a homecoming as much as foreign travel — it was particularly thrilling to watch Dutch natives Peter Pan Speedrock round out my second night of the fest (review here), their boot-to-the-ass thrust seeming to be in direct contradiction to their stated intent to retire. From Sweden, Hills‘ jammy psychedelics were also thoroughly welcome and somewhat less performative than Goat, which is made up in some measure or other of the same players.

And what to say about Blind Idiot God? Performance art. I might liken it to the first time I saw Cynic after they got back together in that the New York trio were so utterly assured of what they were doing that they managed to carry the audience in the revamped Green Room along their bizarre, oddly-timed path. It was jazz with metallic arrangement, essentially, but the people in front of the stage to see it were rapt the entire time and the level of appreciation was palpable and well justified. They were nothing short of incredible.

Of course, the same could be said for Roadburn 2016 as a whole. “Incredible” is just kind of how it goes. This latest round of streams also featured Behold! the Monolith, Blood Ceremony, a solo set from CHVE of Amenra and Of the Wand and the Moon.

Please enjoy:

Behold! the Monolith – Live at Roadburn 2016

Blind Idiot God – Live at Roadburn 2016

Blood Ceremony – Live at Roadburn 2016

CHVE – VERMAPYRE – Live at Roadburn 2016

Hills – Live at Roadburn 2016

Of The Wand and The Moon – Live at Roadburn 2016

Peter Pan Speedrock – Live at Roadburn 2016

Thanks as ever to Walter for letting me host the streams. To hear the first batch of Roadburn 2016 audio streams, click here, to hear the second one, click here, to hear the third one, click here, and for all of this site’s coverage of Roadburn 2016, click here.

Roadburn’s website

Marcel Van De Vondervoort on Thee Facebooks

Set for Aug. 13 and 14 in Geel, Belgium, Yellowstock X is sort of where the summer festival season meets the fall festival season in Europe, thus reinforcing the notion that there is at this point no such thing as a festival season at all, and awesome shows are just a year-round occurrence. Either way, the lineup for the 10th edition of the fest is a striking international assemblage, from Kadavar confirmed to headline to the psych jams of Hills, The Midnight Ghost Train‘s bluster-blues, Zone Six‘s space rock triumphs, Greenleaf‘s hard-driving choruses and on and on.

With bands from Russia to the US, as well as Belgian acts like Flying Horseman, the why-would-you-call-your-band-this Kiss the Anus of a Black Cat, Tangled Horns and The Glücks, it looks like a well-curated mix of groups and should make for a great precursor to the busy autumn ahead.

Complete lineup and headliner announcement follow, courtesy of the fest:

The Line-up is complete!!! We are siked to have the almighty KADAVAR to headline Sunday August 14th at Yellowstock Festival 10th Anniversary Edition!!! These retro rockers combine the finest 70’s Rock with enough Psychedelic & Stoner grooves to let y’all band or move!! IF you don’t know’m yet make sure to check’m out!!

Spread the words boys & girls; mothers & fathers; Psychedelic MoFo’s and all the rest!! See you at Yellowstock 2016!!!

TICKETS available now at: http://bit.ly/1prkFxW

EARLY BIRD TICKETS: SOLD-OUT!!!

ALL BANDS CONFIRMED
KADAVAR (Ger)
MICHAEL ROTHER plays NEU!, Harmonia and selected solo works (Ger)
HILLS (Se)
GREENLEAF (Se)
THE OSCILLATION (Uk)
THE MACHINE (Nl)
K-X-P (Fin)
SIENA ROOT (Se)
ZONE SIX (Ger)
THE FLYING EYES (Usa)
FLYING HORSEMAN (B)
PAUW (Nl)
THE MIDNIGHT GHOST TRAIN (Usa)
TERMINAL CHEESECAKE (Uk)
BIRTH OF JOY (Nl)
KISS THE ANUS OF A BLACK CAT (B)
LAY LLAMAS (It)
THE GRAND ASTORIA (Rus)
BLOWN OUT (Uk)
THE GLÜCKS (B)
MANTRA MACHINE (Nl)
TANGLED HORNS (B)

https://shop3.ticketscript.com/channel/html/get-dates/rid/4BHR9KMQ/eid/297973/language/nl
https://www.facebook.com/events/118832615129683/
https://www.facebook.com/YellowstockConcerts/

Kadavar, “Filthy Illusion” official video

04.16.16 — 00:40 — Hotel room, Tilburg

When I got in from the show last night, I triumphantly tore my wristband off in accomplishment of having put down day one of Roadburn 2016. Then I looked at the thing and saw it was for all four days. So first thing this morning, obviously enough, was to get a new pass. Needless to say, sheepish grins abounded, but as ever, the Roadburn crew was nothing but delightful and accommodating in the extreme. For the hours of fretting I did about it, was done in about five seconds, then off the finish putting together the second issue of Weirdo Canyon Dispatch, which you can read here.

That process was less smooth, but better than yesterday, and I got excused from folding pages in time to catch the beginning of Hexvessel and Arktau Eos‘ collaborative set at Het Patronaat. On the Main Stage, it was the Lee Dorrian-curated ‘Rituals for the Blind Dead Pt. 1,’ but that wouldn’t be starting up for a while yet, so Hexvessel & Arktau Eos felt like it was snuck in as a bonus for anyone who showed up early. Plenty of people did, and were greeted by robe-donned, incense-burning ritualism, the group performing a special set called “Mirror Dawn” in honor of Arktau Eos‘ debut album, Mirrorion, and Hexvessel‘s debut album, Dawnbearer, from which it drew its source material.

Flourishes of ritual bowls, keys, violin, acoustic and electric guitar, synth, various bone-looking rattlers and percussion instruments, a carved horn of some sort, but the shrouded Arktau Eos, it was a deeply ambient beginning to the day, patient on the cusp of droning but with stronger currents running under the still-seeming waters. It was clearly a work of passion — I’d be interested to hear it recorded; will attend the hopeful arrival of the audio stream — and distinct completely from what Hexvessel brought to the Main Stage with their set yesterday (review here) in a way that only made it more engrossing to witness. Something special for Roadburn to start the afternoon.

When I left Patronaat, it was to begin a succession of one band into the next that would define the better part of a remarkably busy day. Mondo Drag were going on in the Green Room. Diamanda Galás would follow shortly after on the Main Stage, so I headed across the alley to the 013 and hit the Green Room on the quick to get a feel for what Mondo Drag were up to, and was struck almost immediately by the clarity of their tones, but the weight they still carry. I felt fortunate to have been familiar with their new RidingEasy album, The Occultation of Light (review here), since it features the current lineup of keyboardist/vocalist John Gamino, guitarists Jake Sheley and Nolan Girard (the latter also synth), bassist Andrew O’Neil and drummer Ventura Garcia, and the live versions of songs like “The Eye” and “Out of Sight” mirrored the chemistry the band as they are today showcased on the record.

It’s almost like a second debut for Mondo Drag in that, but as they melded those cuts with “Zephyr” and “Plumajilla” from last year’s self-titled LP (review here), there was no less ownership of that material, which featured on record what would become the rhythm section of Blues Pills when it was recorded in the Midwest, where the band lived before moving to the West Coast. Either way, Mondo Drag have clearly worked out their niche sound-wise and are engaged in the process of developing that in the textures of the dual guitars and keys and the classic feel of their songwriting. I’d see a lot of psychedelia as the day went on, but catching Mondo Drag for the first time was a thrill for sure. They sound like a band that is going to keep growing.

During the latter portion of their set, I popped over to the Main Stage to bear witness to Diamanda Galás. The grand dame of the avant garde has a few ground rules for playing. They included: No photos (signs were posted), no bars open (they even turned off the lights), and no leaving until the song in progress was finished. Far more free-thinking in her creative spirit, Galás took the stage alone, with a baby grand piano and proceeded to tear gaping holes in sonic convention, her astonishing range matched only by her will to push it to its limits, pulling elements from folk-blues and moving into and out of language for roughly 70 experimentalist minutes. It may have been one of the bravest sets I’ve ever seen at Roadburn — or at least the bravest since Wovenhand in 2011 (review here) — but she kept an impressive portion of the crowd with her for the entire hour-ten, while others waited for the song to end so they could switch out with those waiting on the other side of the door.

I myself went back and watched Mondo Drag finish their set, visited the merch area again when they were done, and still made it back in time to catch the end of Diamanda Galás. All of this was done in anticipation of the next stage in the afternoon/evening’s back and forth, which would see me push from Repulsion to Death Alley to With the Dead to Hills with nary a breath between before catching some of G.I.S.M. and closing out my night with Black Moon Circle and Peter Pan Speedrock, one into the next. There were moments of respite between some sets, but most of it was right in a row. Beats stopping, I guess. No regrets, in any case, though I did sacrifice catching solo sets from Neurosis‘ own Steve Von Till and Scott Kelly in the process, but I saw Kelly in Chicago back in November (review here) and I did some quick math and decided I’d be way likelier to run into Von Till again before Repulsion, so went that way.

Bassist/vocalist Scott Carlson was kind enough to let me have a look at the setlist, which consisted almost entirely of cuts from Repulsion‘s 1989 debut, only album and mega-classic, Horrified. You know why? Because when you fucking have Horrified, you don’t need anything else. Repulsion was most definitely not closing any bars. In fact, I think a few new ones opened as they tore into the fleshy bits of classics like “Eaten,” “Slaughter,” “Six Feet Under,” “Repulsion,” and “Horrified” itself. Carlson remarked from the stage that Horrified was recorded 30 years ago (in 1986), and he and guitarist Matt Olivo seemed to relish the opportunity to bring them out again. Does it still count as nostalgia when the songs are about cannibals? These and many more important questions were answered.

With Chris Moore (formerly of Magrudergrind, among others) on drums, Repulsion was as filthy and raging as one could’ve possibly hoped, Carlson noting before “Bodily Dismemberment” that he and Olivo wrote the song in Death guitarist/vocalist Chuck Schuldiner‘s bedroom while Evil Chuck was out working at Del Taco. Easily the best story I heard from the stage today. When they were done, it was time for Death Alley in the Green Room, which was probably my most anticipated set of the day, foremost because I so very much dug their debut LP, last year’s Black Magick Boogieland (review here), but also because it was billed as Death Alley + Friends, which signaled to me a high potential for some psych weirdness to go with their driving heavy rock and proto-thrash. Add to that the fact that the first time I saw the band was at the Hardrock Hideout in 2014, and basically I wasn’t missing them for anything.

After a line check with all six parties on stage, they started the set with just the core four-piece lineup — vocalist Douwe Truijens, guitarist/backing vocalist Oeds Beydals, bassist/backing vocalist Dennis Duijnhouwer and drummer Ming Boyer — and dove headfirst into their cover of Hawkwind‘s “Motorhead” (premiered here) to begin a kinetic thrust that would only increase in energy as it went along. They were fucking awesome, flat out. I could go on and on in overindulgent language about how righteous Death Alley‘s take on heavy has become, and how expansive, in the two years since I last saw them, but it boils down to the same thing. After the title-track from Black Magick Boogieland, “The Fever” and “Stalk Eyed,” they brought out guitarists Ron van Herpen (also of Astrosoniq, formerly of The Devil’s Blood, currently of ZooN) and Jevin de Groot, who was a bandmate of Duijnhouwer‘s in the wildly underrated — remind me sometime to tell you about how frickin’ underrated they were — cosmic doom outfit Mühr.

The resulting sextet incarnation of Death Alley brought extra fullness of sound and all-out swirl to two cuts that seemed newer, “II’s On” an “Feeding the Lions,” before rounding out with a triumphantly spacious rendition of “Supernatural Predator,” the band three-guitar, pull-the-earplugs-out psych-jamming their way farther out and out and out into the cosmos, utterly hypnotizing the Green Room as they went, Beydals, Truijens and Duijnhouwer sharing the vocal duties that Farida Lemouchi performed on the record — before, with nothing more than a few snare hits from Boyer, they masterfully turned the jam on its head and dug back into the space-rocking-push of the song’s central riff to finish out. A surge of electricity went through the room. They’d wind up being my band of the day, hands down, and the really good news is they play another set on Sunday, closing out the fest where it all began, at Cul de Sac.

As Death Alley were spacing out in the Green Room, With the Dead took the Main Stage for what I think was their third show ever, the four-piece including the day’s curator Lee Dorrian, of Rise Above Records and Cathedral fame (to start with) as well as new drummer Alex Thomas (ex-Bolt Thrower), and new bassist Leo Smee (formerly of Cathedral) in addition to guitarist Tim Bagshaw, whose tone was as grime-coated as I recalled it being when I saw him with Ramesses here in 2011. They played the bulk of their 2015 self-titled debut (review here), including “Living with the Dead” and “The Cross” and “Nephthys.” Come to think of it, it might’ve been the whole record. They had an hour and only have the one album, so, you know, you have to make the most of the time.

Even apart from their pedigree — and I’ll readily admit that it’s difficult to separate these guys from their pedigree — With the Dead‘s material is devastatingly heavy, and Dorrian‘s sneer was as true to the dirt coming from Bagshaw and Smee‘s amps as the riffs were raw and oppressive. Seemingly on the other end of the spectrum entirely, but really only back in the Green Room, after Death Alley finished with the aforementioned jam, Sweden’s Hills followed-up with ultra-groovy heavy psych of their own. The poorly kept secret is that they’re the same band as Goat (though whether all or in part, I don’t know), but if it’s Hills‘ brand of laid back kosmiche or Goat‘s afrobeat-inspired costumed throb, I’ll take the former every time. Sans pretense, they were in a fully molten state by the time they got around to the title-track from 2011’s Master Sleeps, having brought out Svensk Psych Aften label owner and promoter Sven Kruppa for a guest vocal spot earlier in the set that felt kind of random, but in such an open context could hardly be considered out of place.

There was a lot to dig about them, from the trance-inducing aspects to the custom visuals, but it was the peace-through-jam serene atmosphere they proffered that most struck me. At the same time, they weren’t quiet — or at least not all the time — and they had energy in their delivery. A lot to dig, but sadly no merch to buy. I was hoping to pick up a CD of last year’s Frid, which is sold out online, but no dice. Apparently you can believe what you read on the internet. While a take-home version of their mesmeric, pulsating and still definitively laid back space rock wasn’t forthcoming, the vibe they set was enjoyable in the moment, though it would soon enough be back to extremity as I got a sampling of G.I.S.M. on the Main Stage.

Granted, it was somewhat obligatory. G.I.S.M. were formed 35 years ago and this marked first show in 14 years and their first show ever outside their native Japan. Showing up wasn’t really optional. I didn’t have quite the same nostalgia factor as I did for Repulsion, but many, many others certainly did, and I watched as G.I.S.M. showcased punk extremity that underscored just how broad Roadburn‘s spectrum has become. I was waiting to close out the night with Black Moon Circle, at Extase, and Peter Pan Speedrock in the Green Room, so I went up to the balcony in the Main Stage room and sat back for the end of G.I.S.M., which of course was no less furious than the start had been.

I knew I was missing Pentagram, and that’s not nothing. But every Roadburn means hard choices, and since Black Moon Circle are Norwegian and Peter Pan Speedrock are playing their last shows — allegedly — ever on their current European tour, priority was given. No regrets. With Roadburn regular Scott “Dr. Space” Heller joining the trio, Black Moon Circle were a more grounded answer to Hills, but still plenty jammy when it came down to it. Dr. Space, whose synth is a swirl factory in itself, always helps in that regard — one recalls his set with Carlton Melton a couple years back — and while I was only there for a short while, and I spent a goodly portion of that trying to get my camera to focus in the mostly darkened Extase, which turned down its lights to allow for Black Moon Circle‘s psychedelic oil lightshow, as well as thinking about how I need to get a review up for their new album, Sea of Clouds, they were a pleasure to watch. I had a hard time pulling myself away.

Motivation in the end, though, was that Peter Pan Speedrock, the Eindhoven trio who’ve been blasting out mission-in-the-name heavy punk for over 20 years, are preparing to retire. They’ve got fest dates booked into the summer and more shows in the fall announced, so I don’t know when they’re actually doing that, but from what I hear, it’s true nonetheless. I’d never seen them before, but in about 20 seconds, the sprint was at full speed and guitarist Peter van Elderen seemed to be out to earn the two-decades of reputation again as quickly as possible, manic in his motion from front to back of the stage, foot up on the monitor, standing on the barricade to play directly to the audience, whatever it might’ve been as drummer Bart Nederhand and bassist Bart Geevers locked in grooves with no room left for questions.

Songs came and went in short, intense bursts, and if this, as my first indoctrination to Peter Pan Speedrock live, is also to be my last, then I’m glad at least I got to see the band once. I was clearly in the minority in that, by the way. Granted, Eindhoven’s only a few towns over from Tilburg, but between singing along to the Hank Williams track that served as their intro to starting a mosh pit in the Green Room, it was abundantly clear that the majority in attendance were more experienced than I when it came to seeing the band. Fair enough for the near-hometown heroes. The last shows I saw booked for them are in November. Never say never, but if they are done, that’s a loss.

Hardly a bummer ending to the night, though. They were far too upbeat and kick-your-ass for that. There was more going on afterwards, but I needed to get back and get writing, so I made my way through the crowd and out, down a busy Weirdo Canyon and back to the hotel. Tomorrow starts bright and early and ends dark and late, but promises plenty of incredible sights and sounds between. Fortunately I kept my wristband on this time.

More pics after the jump. Thanks for reading.

Read more »

This year’s Yellowstock festival is set for Aug. 13-14 at Bogaard in Geel, Belgium. 2016 marks the 10th anniversary of the fest, which has in years past featured lineups gathering a particular slice of European and American heavy psychedelia, and it looks like this incarnation of the fest is no different. It’s up from one day in 2015 to two now, so I’d expect more than a few lineup additions are still to come, but they’re off and running with the likes of Michael Rother, Greenleaf, Hills, The Flying Eyes, The Midnight Ghost Train, The Machine, The Grand Astoria and so on in their initial announcement.

Enough so that upon being made available this past weekend, early-bird tickets sold out quickly. There’s still time before August gets here if you happen to be near Geel or otherwise ready to travel, but it’s one to keep an eye on. The first Yellowstock was in 2007, and since then the fest has continued to flourish and build its own community in an increasingly crowded heavy scene.

I’ll do my best to keep up with announcements as they come out, but here’s the initial word from the fest itself, as seen on the social medias:

Yellowstock Festival 10th Anniversary Edition!

TICKETS available now at: http://bit.ly/1prkFxW

EARLY BIRD TICKETS: SOLD-OUT!!!

August 13 – August 14
BOGAARD Diesteweg 135 B-2440 Geel Belgium

First bands confirmed!
Michael Rother plays NEU!, Harmonia and selected solo works (Ger)
HILLS (Se)
GREENLEAF (Se)
THE OSCILLATION (Uk)
K-X-P (Fin)
THE MACHINE (Nl)
THE FLYING EYES (Usa)
THE MIDNIGHT GHOST TRAIN (Usa)
TERMINAL CHEESECAKE (Uk)
KISS THE ANUS OF A BLACK CAT (B)
LAY LLAMAS (It)
THE GRAND ASTORIA (Rus)
BLOWN OUT (Uk)
THE GLÜCKS (B)
+ many more soon!

We are back with 2 full days of music!! Campsite!! and lots more coming soon!!

Cross the dates in your agenda!

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Greenleaf, Rise Above the Meadow (2016)

At this point, you almost expect that sooner or later in the lineup-addition stage of any Roadburn, you’re going to have to throw your hands up in the air and say, “Fucking hell, Roadburn,” because the roster of bands has become that ridiculous and/or the scope of the thing has just become so overwhelmingly righteous that you’re pretty much left with no alternative beyond staring in awe. Seems early in the season for it, but that’s me, right now. Fucking hell, Roadburn.

Tickets are on sale today.

Before I get into how stoked I am on the Finnish takeover, let me say how awesome I think it is that Tau Cross will play — an exclusive, mind you — set on the same day as Amenra and Neurosis. Seems like maybe a similar feel that brought Enslaved into Wardruna into Skuggsja this year, the vibe building as the day goes on, leading to an inevitable apex that speaks to the whole and expands on it. I hold my breath and hope I get to go back, because that apex will be Neurosis celebrating their 30th anniversary in 2016.

Lee Dorrian adds Pentagram and Galley Beggar. Fucking a. Roadburn continues its affinity for creative black metal, adding Iceland’s Misþyrming as what seems like a particularly daring artist-in-residence. Fucking a. Swedes Hills and reactivated German psych-jammers Zone Six get added, and I start to feel like the universe is doing me favors.

AND THEN we get around to the Finnish takeover. Dark Buddha Rising still haunt from the last time they played Roadburn. Hexvessel were already announced, but I’m particularly stoked at the mere possibility I might get to catch MPH — Mr. Peter Hayden — again or see Atomikylä, whose blown-out blackened psych extremity seems to be a direct summary of a lot of what Roadburn is about these days. Very cool band that I think have thus far flown under a lot of people’s radar. Obviously not that of Roadburn 2016.

Like the headline says, it’s a massive update. Have at you:

Further additions to ROADBURN FESTIVAL ahead of ticket launch

TAU CROSS to play their first European show at Roadburn 2016

PENTAGRAM and GALLEY BEGGAR are the first bands confirmed for Lee Dorrian’s curation.

ROADBURN’S Artists in Residence are confirmed as Icelandic pioneers MISÞYRMING

Plus even more bands announced ahead of tickets going on sale today – October 2nd.

TAU CROSS
TAU CROSS, the veteran punk / metal collective, revolving around Amebix bassist/frontman Rob Miller, Voivod drummer Michel ‘Away’ Langevin, and members of cult crust outfit Misery, will be playing a one off show at Roadburn 2016, along with Neurosis and Amenra, on Saturday, April 16th at the 013 venue in Tilburg, The Netherlands.

“TAU CROSS are delighted to announce that we have been invited to play at the 2016 Roadburn Festival. This will be our only upcoming European show, we are all looking forward to playing at this very special event” – Rob Miller.

Having TAU CROSS on the main-stage is causing us joy of unbridled proportions. Miller and Langevin are not only mutual admirers and peers, but their bands have been a huge influence on all things Roadburn. With all of the seminal bands and great musicians taking part on Saturday, it’s guaranteed to be epic.

To find out more about TAU CROSS at Roadburn, click HERE

LEE DORRIAN’S FIRST CURATED BANDS
When Lee was asked to curate part of Roadburn 2016, there was an expectation of great things. And his first choices do not disappoint.
On his choice to add the legendary PENTAGRAM – who will perform a special “best of” set – to the line up, he comments:

“They have been one of my all time favourite bands since first hearing them back in the mid 80’s. I became an obsessive fan covering my old apartment with flyers and intensely collecting as many live tapes, videos, photo’s and whatever else I could get my hands on back then.
I’m am completely honoured that they agreed to accept my invitation to appear at my curated event, Rituals For the Blind Dead! This greatest hits performance will be a big party in celebration of the bands long and treasured career. With Victor back flying out those riffs like flaming balls of fire it’s going to be so relentless, I simply cannot wait.”

Dorrian’s second addition is London’s GALLEY BEGGAR. The six-piece acid folk troupe released their third album earlier this year – a record that is sure to feature in Roadburn’s album of the year lists. He comments:

“They are one of very few bands around today that understand the timeless beauty of acid-tinged folk-rock. In the true spirit of classic era Fairport, Trees, Spriguns, Mellow Candle and other contemporary kindred spirits their gentle, yet melancholic will act as the perfect refrain from all the dark, beastly heaviness surrounding the event.”

To find out more about PENTAGRAM click HERE, and GALLEY BEGGAR click HERE

ARTISTS IN RESIDENCE: MISÞYRMING
Historically speaking, Roadburn’s Artist in Residence is usually an older, established act or musician, one who’s spent decades honing their skills and cultivating a worldwide reputation, but this year will be different. In 2016, Roadburn will welcome a new, young band that has exploded onto the international stage with the force of a neutron bomb, thanks to a crystal-clear, forward-thinking vision and the impeccable quality of their work.

During their residency, Misþyrming will play three shows at Roadburn.The first, Algleymi, (Thursday 14 April) will see the band debuting highly-anticipated new material. The second and most transcendent appearance is Úlfsmessa (Friday 15 April) Joined by the Icelandic black metal and black metal-influenced ritual drone bands Naðra, NYIÞ and Grafir, Misþyrming will present an intense, immersive collaborative performance, ten members strong, that will both reaffirm and redefine any devotee’s commitment to black metal supremacy. The final chapter of their residency will be Söngvar elds go óreiðu (Saturday 16 April) which will comprise a performance of their earth-shaking first album in its entirety.

To find out more about MISÞYRMING (with thanks to Kim Kelly and Noisey) at Roadburn, click HERE

THE FINNISH TAKEOVER.
With a clutch of such definitive and inventive bands all hailing from Finland, it’s no surprise that we’re giving over a corner of Roadburn to the amazing artists hailing from this beautiful country.

We recently announced HEXVESSEL to the Roadburn 2016 bill, but we’re now excited to announce a second show. They will be joined on Friday 15 April on stage at Roadburn by the archaic elementals of Arktau Eos for a one-off performance of a rite featuring music and themes from Hexvessel’s debut album Dawnbearer, and Arktau Eos’ debut Mirrorion (which celebrates its tenth anniversary). Arktau Eos will also perform their own set on Thursday 14 April.

To find out more about HEXVESSEL & ARKTAU EOS, click HERE.

The other Finnish bands taking over Roadburn 2016 are:
Dark, droning psych-lords DARK BUDDHA RISING on Friday 15 April.
Experimental black metal innovators ORANSSI PAZUZU on Thursday 14 April.
Psych drone purveyors feat. members of Dark Buddha Rising and Oranssi Pazuzu – ATOMIKYLÄ will perform at Roadburn on Saturday 16 April.
Again featuring members of Dark Buddha Rising and Oranssi Pazuzu, ABYSSION are a coarse mix of punk, black metal and even post punk, they play on Thursday 14 April.
Specialising in dramatically drawn out cosmic doom – MPH play on Sunday 17 April.

To find out more about the Finnish takeover click HERE

FURTHER ADDITIONS TO THE BILL
In addition to the above bands we have also confirmed:
Cinematic Italian doomers, ABYSMAL GRIEF – click HERE for more information
Fellow Italian’s EPITAPH – click HERE for more information.
Folk-tinged droners CRUMBLING GHOST – click HERE for more information.
Cosmic neo-krautrockers ZONE SIX – click HERE for more information.
Psychedelic Swedes HILLS – click HERE for more information.
Progressive black metallers TERZIJ DE HORDE – click HERE for more information.
Seven piece Texan metal horde – DEAD TO A DYING WORLD – click HERE for more information.

FURTHER TICKETING INFORMATION
Tickets to Roadburn Festival 2016 will go on sale October 2 2015. Ticket sales will start at 21:00 CET (20:00 GMT | 22:00 Finland, Greece | 3pm East Coast USA | 12pm West Coast USA). Three-day tickets will be available for 165 Euros (excl. service fees); four-day tickets will cost 185 Euros (excl. service fees). Sunday-only tickets will cost 39 Euros (excl. service fees). Camping tickets are also available through Ticketmaster.

Additional information for people who wish to buy their tickets in person: Sounds in Tilburg will be open for you to purchase tickets in person from 18.30 – 20.30, and showing your Roadburn ticket at the door will get you entry to two Roadburn-approved gigs in the city that evening.

Click HERE for all the details.

Roadburn Festival takes place at the recently upgraded, state of the art 013 venue, Tilburg, The Netherlands, between 14 – 17 April 2016. The line up this year includes Neurosis (30th anniversary), Paradise Lost (performing Gothic in full), curation by Lee Dorrian, Amenra, The Skull, La Muerte, Of The Wand And The Moon, and Green Carnation.

http://www.roadburn.com/
https://www.facebook.com/roadburnfestival
https://twitter.com/roadburnfest

Atomikylä, “Musta Kulta”

While I’m still up in the air as to whether or not I’ll actually be able to get there — I have a hotel room reserved but am considering building a raft out of unlistened-to pop-punk promos to offset the anticipated cost of a Transatlantic flight — the lineup for Roadburn‘s 2013 installment is beginning to take shape, and as ever, it seems the fest is the vanguard of underground creativity. Today, Swedish outfit Goat and Germany’s Hills join up. Tomorrow, who knows?

Dig it:

Goat and Hills Confirmed for Roadburn 2013

We are elated to announce that GOAT, one of the most obscure and original psychedelic groups in the world, have been confirmed for Roadburn Festival 2013. The band will play in Het Patronaat in Tilburg, Holland on Friday, April 19th.

Who are GOAT? Some claim they are undocumented immigrants dedicated to making music while hiding from the authorities in Gothenburg, Sweden. But where are they from? Haiti? West Africa? South America? There are stories about an inquisition, too! Allegedly, these goat-worshipping, non-Christians were persecuted by an army of God-fearing crusaders. Their village was burned to the ground, but they survived.

Or could there be truth to the rumor about an ancient voodoo tradition that can be traced back to Korpolombolo, a small and very remote settlement way up in northern Sweden?

Whatever the real story behind the enigma that is GOAT, the power of their voodoo rituals can be heard and felt on the highly sought-after Goatman 7?. In the meantime, a couple of clips have surfaced on YouTube that testify to the band’s fearsome hypnotic power.

A power that only will grow stronger, deeper and more palpable with the release of GOAT’s debut full length, World Music. The album will be out on Rocket Recordings on August 20th. From the tremendous Afro groove that defines the album to the killer fuzz wah guitars, Turkish rock, kraut repetition, astral folk, head-nodding psych and stonking afro percussion, this record will undoubtedly add to the group’s mystique. Call us worshippers! Call us insane! Skeptics, beware! GOAT will convert you! You will worship at the altar of the Goatman! There is no escape…

We’re also excited to announce that krautrocking experimentalists Hills have been confirmed for Roadburn Festival 2013 on Saturday, April 20th at the 013 venue in Tilburg, Holland.

Instead of relying on conventional songwriting structures, Sweden’s Hills takes inspiration from Coltrane’s jazz experimentation, the drone and repetitiveness of Velvet Underground and Can, adds the grimness of early death and black metal, and produces a throbbing wash of sound that rides wave after wave of heavily phased guitar, locomotive drums and insistent organ. In this largely instrumental soundscape, the occasional vocals become part of the rhythm section.

Heavily improvisational, Hills can go from electric, mantric and folky to utterly spaced out without any aural limitations. By turns, their Eastern influences come to the fore. Hills really do it to perfection, locking into an inescapable, all-encompassing, repetitive, hypnotic groove you never want to end. This is brilliantly captured on their sophomore album, Master Sleeps, which is nothing short of a contemporary masterpiece.

Hills are currently putting the finishing touches to their third album which will be released on Rocket Recordings early 2013. The album follows the grooved out psych kraut rock of Master Sleeps and mixes it with sounds reminiscent of the droned ragas of other Swedish greats like International Harvester and Parsons Sound.

Roadburn Festival 2013 will run for four days from Thursday, April 18th to Sunday, April 21st, 2013 (the traditional Afterburner event) at the 013 venue in Tilburg, Holland.