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Melvins Lite, Ufomammut, Amenra and More to Play Asymmetry Festival in May

Posted in Whathaveyou on March 26th, 2013 by JJ Koczan

Crossing genre lines over a course of three days in Wroclaw, Poland, the fifth annual Asymmetry Festival is set to take place at the Centennial Hall from May 2 to May 4. The lineup includes native Polish acts — even Vader get a slot — alongside a host of others from around Europe and the US, from Ufomammut to Melvins Lite, Agalloch to razor-happy Norwegian black metallers Shining. I don’t know how many people reading this are going to make it to Wroclaw for the fest when it kicks off, but sometimes I just like to post about stuff happening in other places to remind myself it’s a big world and awesomeness isn’t relegated to any one geographic region or other.

Dig the Malleus poster and fest info below:

Asymmetry Festival 5.0

The 5th edition of Asymmetry festival will run from Thursday May 2 to Saturday May 4 2013, at the Centennial Hall in Wroclaw, Poland,
marking 3 days with some of the bravest and most influential artists in heavy music.

Legendary and genre-defyning acts like MELVINS, MAYHEM and CULT OF LUNA are only some of the highlights of the diverse main stage program, also featuring oppressive sludge/noisecore of Belgian cult AMENRA, hypnotic gloomy cinematic excursions of THE KILIMANJARO DARKJAZZ ENSEMBLE, black metal undertones of SHINING and the almighty death metal of Polish fame VADER, just to name a few. 2 other stages will present bands that are highlights of the modern European scene. Above all it’s the music quality that is at the heart of the festival philosophy.

Taking place in an incredible venue – monstrous monument of modernism – Asymmetry Festival provides fans of alternative music with one-of-a-kind music and visual experience and amazing atmosphere. This is where fans and connoisseurs of heavy/experimental/noise music from east and west meet to enjoy unpretentious and relaxed vibe of real underground.

We aim to keep the spirit of alternative way of thinking alive by encouraging an open dialogue about art, music and its role in modern culture.
Wroclaw itself is a beautiful city full of attractions, bars clubs and great parks to get some rest after the hyper loud concerts. It also offers countless possibilities of reasonably priced accommodation. All these makes Asymmetry and ideal gate away destination. It’s a chance to discover different, less commercial and more focused festival experience.
This festival is organized be people who above all love music and want to create an event that brings music and fans together on a new, more experiential level.

Festival program:

02.05.2013 | main stage:
Nevesis, Balázs Pándi , Agalloch, Mayhem, Matadorem, Vader.

03.05.2013 | main stage:
IconAclass, The Kilimanjaro Darkjazz Ensemble, Shining, Cult of Luna, Astronautalis.

04.05.2013 | main stage:
Von Magnet, Matallic Taste of Blood, Amenra, Melvins Lite, Ufomammut.

Tickets:

Festival pass (3 days) ticket – 50 euro
Single-day ticket, 1st day (02.05.2013) – 24 euro
Single-day ticket, 2nd day (03.05.2013) – 24 euro
Single-day ticket 3rd day (04.05.2013) – 17 euro

Festival Pass and Single-day tickets are available at www.asymmetryfestival.pl and at Ticketpro, Eventim, eBilet oraz Ticketportal sale points.
The prices will change after May 1st, check our website for actual prices.

The purchase of a ticket will grant the attendants various discounts around Wroclaw, including selected hotels and other accommodations, museums, art galleries, cafeterias, restaurants and other recreational spots.

For more information:
www.asymmetryfestival.pl
www.konwent.asymmetryfestival.pl
www.facebook.com/Asymmetry.Fest

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Melvins Lite, Freak Puke: Proving the Melvins are the Melvins, Even When They Aren’t

Posted in Reviews on March 8th, 2012 by JJ Koczan

The thing about the Melvins — nearly 30 years into their career and too many releases to count when you factor in live records, compilations, splits, tour-only specials, elaborately-presented box sets, etc. – is that you can really only compare them to themselves. And even that’s not fair, because their progression over all this time has been relentless — and never mind the fact that guitarist/vocalist Buzz Osborne and drummer Dale Crover have for a long time anchored a fluid lineup of bassists, second drummers, outside collaborators and other contributing artists — studying the path of those two alone is fodder enough for a two-year Masters program in the sludgy arts. They are among the most influential active bands in the heavy underground the world over, and they boast a cult of followers like none other, ready at a moment’s notice with hyperbole and open wallets for whatever brilliance the Melvins are able to churn out next at a rate that continues to be astoundingly prolific. Their latest outing – a full-length complemented by a Scion-sponsored EP called The Bulls and the Bees – comes under the moniker of Melvins Lite, and finds Osborne and Crover partnered with bassist Trevor Dunn for a collection of 10 tracks charmingly titled Freak Puke.

Dunn is no stranger to the Melvins. He’s played with them before, and both he and Osborne were members of the much-revered Mike Patton-fronted avant garde outfit Fantômas. Dunn also traces a pedigree back to Mr. Bungle (also with Patton), and has worked with the likes of John Zorn, Secret Chiefs 3 and his own Trevor Dunn’s Trio-Convulsant. What’s unique about his appearance here alongside Osborne and Crover is that the band took the time to signify that Freak Puke (released, as most of their records are these days, through Ipecac Recordings) is separate from the ongoing lineup Melvins lineup of the two mainstays and bassist Jared Warren and drummer Coady Willis. Indeed, that four-piece Melvins incarnation appears on The Bulls and the Bees, so is clearly ongoing, and one might look at Melvins Lite as a side-project still under the umbrella of the band’s output. In that way, it’s not so different from Melvins past collaborations with Lustmord or Jello Biafra, separated mostly from them by the name – which seems more suited to any number of the bands the Melvins have influenced along their way than to their own output in whatever form it might come. Whatever shifts in the band’s songwriting processes may have come into play with Dunn’s involvement, there are still a few characteristically Osborne riffs on display, from the sleepy groove of opener “Mr. Rip Off” to the single-worthy album highlight “A Growing Disgust,” on which Dunn seems to have switched from the bowed upright of the earliest cuts to a more standard rock approach.

He makes his presence felt early, though, and maintains it throughout, standing up every bit to Crover’s percussive mastery and the personality that always seems to ooze from whatever Osborne touches. Introduced with a big rock crash, “Inner Ear Rupture” is essentially two minutes of Dunn freaking out with his bow that’s led into excellently by the finish of “Mr. Rip Off.” The two tracks don’t run one right into the next (at least not on the promo download), but work well together in establishing Freak Puke’s breadth early. It’s the Melvins, even if the “Lite” in the moniker refers to their being a trio and not a four-piece, so they could and do take the album anywhere they damn well please, but it’s still good to make that clear at the outset, even if some of the strongest moments on the record are the most straightforward. To that end, “Baby, Won’t You Weird Me Out” seamlessly integrates Dunn’s bass runs with a righteously fuzzed solo from Osborne and handclap-ready snare hits from Crover before a chorus revival leads to a rhythm section-only showoff. Crover and Dunn are paired well, and the rocking stomp at the beginning of “Worm Farm Waltz” further shows the variety they’re capable of, moving from riff-led chugging into a more open chorus and back again before the titular waltz aspect kicks in. Dunn leads the charge amid double-layered vocals and tom hits from Crover, and if it sounds odd, well, that’s pretty much the point. Welcome to the Melvins.

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