Apparently Black Skies released an EP called Hexagon last year through I’m Better Than Everyone Records on vinyl only, which explains why I never heard it. Nonetheless, the Chapel Hill natives are headed out on tour and it seems the very least I can do to post the dates. Just because you have no idea who they are doesn’t mean you shouldn’t go see them. Live a little. Check out their MySpace if you have to be prepared for everything.

This just off the PR wire:

North Carolina disciples of doom, Black Skies, are set to embark on a US tour throughout the month of July. Founding members Kevin Clark and Michelle Temple will be joined by ex-Des Ark drummer/Kevin’s former roommate Tim Herzog. Black Skies‘ new material retains the heaviness of their earlier work, with more dynamic song structures and a psychedelic edge creating a more interesting overall sound. Following the tour, the band will begin preparations for recording what they hope to be their best release to date.

Says guitarist Kevin Clark of the upcoming trek: “We’ve had our share of ups and downs over the past 12 months, but getting out West last year was without a doubt one of the better moments. We are thrilled to be heading out there again this summer, seeing the faces and places that made it such a blast. We played with a lot of great bands and met a lot of awesome souls with a true love and hunger for music. Those people are a big part of the drive for us to continue doing what we love to do, and we are eternally grateful for them.”

Black Skies tour dates:
6/27/2010 Local 506 – Chapel Hill, NC (pre-tour kick off show)
7/01/2010 The Smiling Moose – Pittsburgh, PA
7/02/2010 The Summit – Columbus, OH
7/03/2010 Cobra Lounge – Chicago, IL
7/04/2010 The Frequency – Madison, WI
7/05/2010 Blue Moose Tap House – Iowa City, IA
7/06/2010 TBA – Lincoln, NE
7/07/2010 3 Kings Tavern – Denver, CO
7/08/2010 Burt’s Tiki Lounge – Salt Lake City, UT
7/09/2010 Rocky Canyon – Boise, ID
7/10/2010 The Comet – Seattle, WA
7/11/2010 Rotture – Portland, OR
7/12/2010 TBA – Ashland, OR
7/13/2010 The Hemlock Tavern – San Francisco, CA
7/14/2010 The Stork Club – Oakland, CA
7/15/2010 TBA – Cayucos, CA
7/16/2010 Relax Bar – Los Angeles, CA
7/17/2010 The Rogue Bar – Scottsdale, AZ
7/18/2010 Rio Grande Satanical Gardens – Albuquerque, NM
7/19/2010 TBA – Oklahoma City, OK
7/20/2010 Red 7 – Austin, TX
7/21/2010 TBA – New Orleans, LA
7/22/2010 The Nick – Birmingham, AL
7/23/2010 The Buccaneer Lounge – Memphis, TN
7/24/2010 Springwater Supper Club – Nashville, TN

Looks like the upcoming Slow Southern Steel documentary is going to see a DVD release via the till-now vinyl-only I’m Better than Everyone Records. The PR wire has the story:

Coming in 2010: One of the most comprehensive southern metal documentaries in history! Appropriately dubbed Slow Southern Steel, the 80+ minute film is executive produced by Karim Khan (I’m Better than Everyone Records) and directed by Rwake vocalist guitarist CT and David Lipke with the additional and integral assistance of George Hancock, Alix Petrovich and Beer WolfChristian Sweeney (who will be releasing a paperback version of the production) among many others.

Slow Southern Steel peers into the world of true southern metal/doom through live footage and personal interviews; CT‘s devout commitment/knowledge/love of the topic at hand bringing the movie to life in a way few first-time directors can. Said CT about the laborious undertaking: “I knew there were things I could get out of these bands that other film makers could not.” Added Khan, “There’s just something very appealing to me about taking unyielding heavy songs and adding a strong southern element to them.”

At press time, the film was still being shot and thus far, featured bands will include (in alphabetical order): A Hanging, ASG, Baron Grod, Beaten Back to Pure, Beer Wolf, Black Skies, Black Tusk, Blackblood Division, Blood of the Sun, Collapsar, Colossus, Cough, Dark Castle, Deadbird, Dead-I-On, Dixie Witch, Doomsayer, Eyehategod, Flesh Parade, Haarp, Hawg Jaw, HOD, Hope and Suicide, Hostile Apostle, House of Lightning, In the Lurch, Jucifer, Ketea, Khann, Kylesa, Mala Suerte, Music Hates You, Parasytic, Queen Beast, Royal Thunder, Rwake, Seahag, SeaWitch, Sourvein, Speedealer, Spickle, Suplecs, Subrig Destroyer, The Devil and the Sea, The Dumps, The Roller, The Unbeheld, Vessel of the Divine, Weedeater, Withered and Zoroaster.

Slow Southern Steel will make its debut at the renowned Little Rock Film Festival in May of 2010 where many of the bands featured will be in attendance (stay tuned for further details). Additional festival previews will follow.

The DVD edition is slated to be released in 2011 via fast-growing, vinyl-only (and now DVD) Chicago imprint, I’m Better than Everyone Records.

From their Pac-Man-inspired name to the Tom Denney t-shirt art and sound that blends elements of High on Fire, Torche, Neurosis, Unsane and Mastodon, Shreveport, Louisiana trio Power Pellut hit just about every mark for modern underground metal. Their self-titled debut, released vinyl-only by I’m Better than Everyone Records, offers such high-minded cuts as “Corky’s Revenge” and “If Only I Could Reach My Utility Belt…” and the use of Sunn amps by guitarist/vocalist Lonnie was so obvious that on my first listen, I picked it out without even seeing a picture of the band.

Fine. So they take the ever-emulated “Stones from the Sky” riff (the Helen of Troy for the post-metal movement; the riff that would launch a thousand bands) and transpose it onto Power Pellut opener “Black Molly.” Big deal. They play fast, thick metal that’s doom more in aesthetic than actuality, and though we all know expensive equipment does not a good band make, an angular track like “Rabbit Hole” has a sub-tech plod that seems to point out the behemoth doth stride. I’d be lying as well if I said “Corky’s Revenge,” with its deeply concerned screaming repetition of the lyric “March of the retards!” didn’t have a certain charm.

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