Ufomammut Announce Hidden LP Out May 17; “Leeched” Video Posted

Posted in Whathaveyou on March 18th, 2024 by JJ Koczan

ufomammut

Italian cosmic doom progenitors Ufomammut have always believed presentation matters and they’ve got the closely-associated Malleus visual arts studio to prove it, but I can’t remember them ever quite going so deep into that notion as to manifest an album’s concept in the actual piece of plastic to which it’s pressed. Yeah, they’ve done special editions and on-theme colors, but Hidden takes that another step as you can read in the just-got-here PR wire info below. See also the sense of crushing weight and consuming atmosphere that’s defined most of their output over the course of the last two-and-a-half-plus decades. That seems to be well intact too, as demonstrated in their new animated video for “Leeched,” the first single from what will be their 10th full-length, out May 17 through Neurot Recordings and their own Supernatural Cat imprint.

Newfomammut is always good news as far as I’m concerned. Last Fall, they offered a sneak peak at Hidden‘s direction in the Crookhead EP (review here), the title-track from which features as the new record’s opener. “Leeched” finds the three-piece digging into the heart of their approach with clarity and efficiency across its five minutes, but if the other nine Ufomammut albums — the last of which was Fenice (review here), released just in 2022 — have taught us anything, it’s that you never know all the places the band will explore until you’re actually in the whole record itself. Even then sometimes you might lose track of where you’re at. Don’t worry, that’s part of the thing too.

Something to look forward to:

ufomammut hidden

UFOMAMMUT: Italian Psychedelic Doom Trio To Release Tenth Album, Hidden, On Neurot Recordings/Supernatural Cat Records On May 17th; Animated Video For “Leeched” + Album Details And Preorders Posted

Italian psychedelic doom metal trio UFOMAMMUT celebrates their 25th Anniversary in 2024 including the release of their massive tenth studio full-length, Hidden. Today, the band confirms the album for May release on Neurot Recordings/Supernatural Cat Records, unveiling the cover art, track listing, preorders, and an animated video for the song “Leeched.”

Rising from the ashes of their prior band Judy Corda, UFOMAMMUT formed in the late 1990s by Poia (guitars, effects) and Urlo (bass, vocals, effects, synths), together with Vita (drums). With Levre taking over on drums in 2021, the band has undergone a rebirth, culminating in the release of the 2022-released Fenice LP, and on Halloween 2023, the Crookhead EP.

Over the course of two-and-a-half decades, UFOMAMMUT has developed a unique sound that combines heavy, dynamic riff worship with a deep understanding of psychedelic tradition in music, which has resulted in a cosmic, futuristic, and technicolor sound that fully immerses listeners. They’ve produced a wide spectrum of albums, EPs, live albums, a box set, compilation tracks, and covers – including a track on the Superunknown Redux Soundgarden tribute album.

Now, in 2024, as they celebrate their quarter-century milestone, UFOMAMMUT is set to release their tenth LP, Hidden. This album marks a shift in the band’s musical composition, aiming for a more intense and heavy sound, as they have displayed over the prior two releases. The title, Hidden, reflects the concept of the presence of everything in our existence and the ability to bring to light what lies within us. With Hidden, the band delves into a sonic journey that traverses vast expanses of space and time. From the crushing heaviness to the hauntingly melodies, from the textured compositions to the otherworldly atmospheres, Hidden testifies to the never-ending evolution of UFOMAMMUT and their mastery of creating immersive sonic experiences: a fitting celebration of their 25 years of sonic exploration and experimentation.

Like any good psychedelic trip, the music of UFOMAMMUT has always been inextricably intertwined with visual art. Poia describes longer compositions, “like a painting,” as if to reinforce the relevance and importance of visual art in their music. And as always, the artwork, videos, and all visuals/graphics for Hidden were created by Malleus Rock Art Lab, the rock/music graphic design collective of which Poia and Urlo are part of with Lu.

Hidden was recorded at Flat Scenario Studio in Piemonte, Italy, with Lorenzo Stecconi handling the mixing and mastering, and Luca Grossi overseeing vocal tracking.

With the lead single, Poia writes, “‘Leeched,’ the first song from the new full-length album Hidden, perfectly represents the new direction of UFOMAMMUT, which began with the album Fenice and continued with the EP Crookhead and reiterates once again that there are no failures or hesitations in our sonic research.

The fusion between heaviness and psychedelia, an obsession of the band since the beginning, takes on a new, changing form in ‘Leeched.’”

Hidden will be released on CD, LP, and digital on May 17th, in North America through Neurosis’ Neurot Recordings, the vinyl pressed on a Silver Nugget variant in a gatefold jacket. In Europe, the band’s Supernatural Cat Records will release it, a standard version on 180-gram Marbled Purple And Black variant, and a limited version of 500 copies on 180-gram Crystal Clear variant crafted by hand using photosensitive colors that are activated by sunlight, bringing the concept of the album to life, with multiple bundles and options.

Find US preorders/presaves at Neurot Recordings HERE: https://music.neurotrecordings.com/hidden.OPR

EU preorders at Supernatural Cat HERE: https://www.supernaturalcat.com/home/hiddenpreorder/

Hidden Track Listing:
1. Crookhead
2. Kismet
3. Spidher
4. Mausoleum
5. Leeched
6. Soulost

UFOMAMMUT will be touring regularly in support of Hidden, with a long list of tour dates already announced across Europe and the UK through all of May and into June, with much more being plotted. See the current 25 Years Anniversary Tour listings at the band’s website HERE: https://www.ufomammut.com/site/

UFOMAMMUT:
Poia – guitars
Urlo – bass, vocals, effects, synths
Levre – drums
Ciccio – soundlord

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https://ufomammut.bandcamp.com
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https://www.supernaturalcat.com

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Ufomammut, “Leeched” official video

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Quarterly Review: Megaton Leviathan, Merlin, Stonerhenge, Guiltless, MR.BISON, Slump & At War With the Sun, Leather Lung, Citrus Citrus, Troubled Sleep, Observers

Posted in Reviews on March 1st, 2024 by JJ Koczan

The-Obelisk-Quarterly-Review

So this is it, but before we — you and I, not at the same time but together nonetheless — dive into the final 10 records of this well-still-basically-winter-but-almost-spring-and-god-damn-I-wish-winter-was-over Quarterly Review, how about a big, deep breath, huh? There. In occupational therapy and other teach-you-how-to-keep-your-shit-together circles, deep breathing is spoken of like it’s a magic secret invented in 1999, and you know what, I think it was. That shit definitely didn’t exist when I was a kid. Can be helpful though, sometimes, if you need just to pause for a second, literally a second, and stop that rush in your brain.

Or my brain. Because I’m definitely talking about me and I’ve come to understand in time not everyone’s operates like mine, even aside from whatever I’ve got going on neurologically, sensorially, emotionally or in terms of mental health. Ups and downs to that, as regards human experience. There are a great many things that I’m useless at. This is what I can do, so I’m doing it. Put your head down, keep working. I can do that. 10 records left? Easy. You might say I did the same thing yesterday, and that was already my busiest day, so this is gravy. And gravy, in its various contexts, textures, tastes, and delivery modes, is delicious. I hope you heard something new this week that you enjoyed. If not yet, there’s still hope.

Quarterly Review #41-50:

Megaton Leviathan, Silver Tears

Megaton Leviathan Silver Tears

I’ll confess that when I held this spot for groundfloor now-Asoria, Oregon, dronegazers Megaton Leviathan, I was thinking of their Dec. 2023 instrumental album, Magick Helmet, with its expansive and noisy odes to outsider experimentalism of yore, but then founding principal Andrew James Costa Reuscher (vocals, guitars, synth, bass, etc.) announced a new lineup with the rhythm section of Alex Wynn (bass) and Tory Chappell (drums) and unveiled “Silver Tears” as the first offering from this new incarnation of the band, and its patient, swirling march and meditative overtones wouldn’t be ignored, however otherwise behind I might be. Next to Magick Helmet, “Silver Tears” is downright straightforward in its four-plus minutes, strong in its conveyance of an atmosphere that’s molten and maybe trying to get lost in its own trance a bit, which is fair enough for the hypnotic cast of the song’s ending. The lesson, as ever with Megaton Leviathan, is that you can’t predict what they’ll do next, and that’s been the case since their start over 15 years ago. One assumes the new lineup will play live and that Reuscher will keep pushing into the ether. Beyond that, they could head anywhere and not find a wrong direction.

Megaton Leviathan on Facebook

Megaton Leviathan on Instagram

Merlin, Grind House

merlin grind house

They put their own spin on it, of course, but there’s love at heart in Merlin‘s take on the classic “Let’s All Go to the Lobby” jingle that serves as the centerpiece of Grind House, and indeed, the seven-song late-2023 long-player unfolds as an intentional cinematic tribute, with “Feature Presentation” bringing the lights down with some funkier elevator vibes before “The Revenger” invents an ’80s movie with its hook alone, “Master Thief ’77” offers precisely the action-packed bassline and wah you would hope, “Endless Calamity” horror-soundtracks with keyboard, “Blood Money” goes west with due Dollars Trilogy flourish, and the 12-minute “Grindhouse,” which culls together pieces of all of the above — “Let’s All Go to the Lobby” included — and adds a voiceover, which even though it doesn’t start with “In a world…” sets its narrative forth with the verve of coming attractions, semi-over-the-top and thus right on for where Merlin have always resided. Interpreting movie music, soundtracks and the incidental sounds of the theater experience, isn’t by any means the least intuitive leap the Kansas City four-piece could make, and the ease with which they swap one style for another underscores how multifaceted their sound can be while remaining their own. If you get it, you’ll get it.

Merlin on Facebook

Merlin on Instagram

Stonerhenge, Gemini Twins

stonerhenge gemini twins

After what seem to have been a couple more group-oriented full-lengths and an initial solo EP, Minsk-based heavy rockers Stonerhenge seem to have settled around the songwriting of multi-instrumentalist Serge “Skrypa” Skrypničenka. The self-released Gemini Twins is the third long-player from the mostly-instrumental Belarusian project, though the early 10-minute cut “The Story of Captain Glosster” proves crucial for the spoken word telling its titular tale, which ties into the narrative derived Gemini myth and the notion of love as bringing two halves of one whole person together, and there are other vocalizations in “Time Loop” and “Hypersleep,” the second half of “Starship Troopers,” and so on, so the songs aren’t without a human presence tying them together as they range in open space. This is doubly fortunate, as Skrypničenka embarks on movements of clear-eyed, guitar-led progressive heavy exploration, touching on psychedelia without getting too caught up in effects, too tricky in production, or too far removed from the rhythm of the flowing “Solstice” or the turns “Over the Mountain” makes en route its ah-here-we-are apex. Not without its proggy indulgences, the eight-song/46-minute collection rounds out with “Fugit Irreparable Tempus,” which in drawing a complete linear build across its five minutes from clean tone to a distorted finish, highlights the notion of a plot unfolding.

Stonerhenge on Facebook

Stonerhenge on Instagram

Guiltless, Thorns

GUILTLESS Thorns

Guiltless make their debut with the four songs of Thorns on Neurot Recordings, following on in some ways from where guitarist, vocalist, noisemaker and apparent-spearhead Josh Graham (also ex-Battle of Mice, Red Sparowes, Neurosis visuals, etc.) and guitarist/more-noisemaker Dan Hawkins left off in A Storm of Light, in this case recording remotely and reincorporating drummer Billy Graves (also Generation of Vipers) and bringing in bassist Sacha Dunable, best known for his work in Intronaut and for founding Dunable Guitars. Gruff in the delivery vocally and otherwise, and suitably post-apocalyptic in its point of view, “All We Destroy” rumbles its assessment after “Devour-Collide” lays out the crunching tonal foundation and begins to expand outward therefrom, with “Dead Eye” seeming to hit that much harder as it rolls its wall o’ low end over a detritus-strewn landscape no more peaceful in its end than its beginning, with subsequent closer “In Radiant Glow” more malleable in tempo before seeming to pull itself apart lurching to the finish. I’d say I hope our species ultimately fares a bit better than Thorns portrays, but I have to acknowledge that there’s not much empirical evidence to base that on. Guiltless play these songs like an indictment.

Guiltless on Facebook

Neurot Recordings website

MR.BISON, Echoes From the Universe

mr.bison echoes from the universe

The latest check-in from the dimension of Italian four-piece MR.BISON, Echoes From the Universe is the band’s most realized work to-date. It’s either their third LP or their fifth, depending on what counts as what, but where it sits in the discography is second to how much the effort stands out generally. Fostering a bright, lush sound distinguished through vocal harmonies and arrangement depth, the seven-song collection showcases the swath of elements that, at this point, has transcended its influence and genuinely found a place of its own. Space rock, Elderian prog, classic harmonized melody, and immediate charge in “The Child of the Night Sky” unfold to acoustics kept going amid dramatic crashes and the melodic roll of “Collision,” with sepia nostalgia creeping into the later lines of “Dead in the Eye” as the guitar becomes more expansive, only to be grounded by the purposeful repetitions of “Fragments” with the last-minute surge ending side A to let “The Promise” fade in with bells like a morning shimmer before exploring a cosmic breadth; it and the also-seven-minute “The Veil” serving as complement and contrast with the latter’s more terrestrial swing early resolving in a an ethereal wash to which “Staring at the Sun,” the finale, could just as easily be referring as to its own path of tension and release. I’ve written about the album a couple times already, but I wanted to put it here too, pretty much just to say don’t be surprised when you see it on my year-end list.

MR.BISON on Facebook

Heavy Psych Sounds website

Slump & At War With the Sun, SP/LIT

slump at war with the sun split

You’d figure with the slash in its title, the split release pairing UK sludge upstarts At War With the Sun and Slump, who are punk-prone on “Dust” and follow the riff on “Kneel” to a place much more metal, would break down into two sides between ‘SP’ and ‘LIT,’ but I’m not sure either At War With the Sun‘s “The Garden” (9:54) or the two Slump inclusions, which are three and seven minutes, respectively, could fit on a 7″ side. Need a bigger platter, and fair enough for holding the post-Eyehategod disillusioned barks of “The Garden” and the slogging downer groove they ride, or the way Slump‘s two songs unite around more open verses, the guitar dropping out in the strut of “Dust” and giving space to vocals in “Kneel,” even as each cut works toward its own ends stylistically. The mix on Slump‘s material is more in-your-face where At War With the Sun cast an introverted feel, but you want to take the central message as ‘Don’t worry, England’s still miserable,’ and keep an eye to see where both bands go from here as they continue to develop their approaches, I don’t think anyone’ll tell you you’re doing it wrong.

At War With the Sun on Facebook

At War With the Sun on Bandcamp

Slump on Facebook

Slump on Bandcamp

Leather Lung, Graveside Grin

leather lung graveside grin

They know it’s gonna get brutal, the listener knows it’s gonna get brutal, and Massachusetts riff rollers Leather Lung don’t waste time in getting down to business on Graveside Grin, their awaited, middle-fingers-raised debut full-length on Magnetic Eye Records. An established live act in the Northeastern US with a sound culled from the seemingly disparate ends of sludge and party rock — could they be the next-gen inheritors of Weedeater‘s ‘ I don’t know how this is a good time but it is’ character? time will tell — the 40-minute 11-songer doesn’t dwell long in any one track, instead building momentum over a succession of pummelers on either side of the also-pummeling “Macrodose Interlude” until “Raised Me Rowdy,” which just might be an anthem, if a twisted one, fades to its finish. I’ve never been and will never be cool enough for this kind of party, but Leather Lung‘s innovation in bringing fun to extreme sounds and their ability to be catchy and caustic at the same time isn’t something to ignore. The time they’ve put in on EPs and touring shows in the purpose and intensity with which they execute “Empty Bottle Boogie” or the modern-metal guitar contortions of “Guilty Pleasure,” but they are firm in their purpose of engaging their audience on their own level, and accessible in that regard. And as raucous as they get, they’re never actually out of control. That’s what makes them truly dangerous.

Leather Lung on Facebook

Magnetic Eye Records store

Citrus Citrus, Albedo Massima

citrus citrus albedo massima

A new(-ish) band releasing their first album through Sulatron Records would be notable enough, but Italy’s Citrus Citrus answer that significant endorsement with scope on Dec. 2023’s Albedo Massima, veering into and out of acid-laced traditions in what feels like a pursuit, like each song has a goal it’s chasing whether or not the band knew that when they started jamming. Drift and percussive intrigue mark the outset with “Sunday Morning in the Sun,” which lets “Lost It” surprise as it shifts momentarily into fuzzier, Colour Haze-y heavy psych as part of a series of tradeoffs that emerge, a chorus finish emphasizing structure. The Mediterranean twists of “Fantachimera” become explosively heavy, and that theme continues in the end of “Red Stone Seeds” after that centerpiece’s blown out experimental verses, keyboard drift building to heft that would surprise if not for “Lost It” earlier, while “Sleeping Giant” eschews that kind of tonal largesse for a synthier wash before “Frozen\Sun” creates and fills its own mellow and melancholy reaches. All the while, a pointedly organic production gives the band pockets to weave through dynamically, and melody abides. Not at all inactive, or actually that mellow, Albedo Massima resonates with the feel of an adventure just beginning. Here’s looking forward.

Citrus Citrus on Instagram

Sulatron Records webstore

Troubled Sleep, A Trip Around the Sun & Solitary Man

troubled sleep a trip around the sun

Two initial tracks from Swedish newcomers Troubled Sleep, released as separate standalone singles and coupled together here because I can, “A Trip Around the Sun” and “Solitary Man” show a penchant for songwriting in a desert-style sphere, the former coming across as speaking to Kyuss-esque traditionalism while “Solitary Man” pushes a little further into classic heavy and more complex melodies while keeping a bounce that aligns to genre. Both are strikingly cohesive in their course and professional in their production, and while the band has yet to let much be known about their overarching intentions, whether they’re working toward an album or what, they sound like they most definitely could be, and I’ll just be honest and say that’s a record I’ll probably want to hear considering the surety with which “A Trip Around the Sun” and “Solitary Man” are brought to life. I’m not about to tell you they’re revolutionizing desert rock or heavy rock more broadly, but songs this solid don’t usually happen by accident, and Troubled Sleep sound like they know where they’re headed, even if the listener doesn’t yet. The word is potential and the tracks are positively littered with it.

Troubled Sleep on Facebook

Troubled Sleep on Bandcamp

Observers, The Age of the Machine Entities

observers the age of the machine entities

I’m not sure how the double-kick intensity and progressive metal drive translates to the stately-paced, long-shots-of-things-floating-in-space of Kubrick’s 2001: A Space Odyssey, but Observers‘ debut, The Age of the Machine Entities, is sweeping enough to bridge cynical headscratching. And of course there were the whole lightspeed freakout and we-invented-murder parts of Arthur C. Clarke’s narrative as well, so there’s room for All India Radio‘s Martin Kennedy, joined by bassist Rich Gray, drummer Chris Bohm and their included host of guests to conjure the melodic wash of “Strange and Beautiful” after the blasting declarations of “Into the Eye” at the start, with “Pod Bay Doors” interpreting that crucial scene in the film through manipulated sampling (not exclusive to it), and the 11-minute “Metaphor” unfurls a subtly-moving, flute-featuring ambience ahead of the pair “The Star Child” and “The Narrow Way Part II” wrap by realigning around the project’s metallic foundation, which brings fresh perspective to a familiar subject in the realm of science fiction.

Observers on Facebook

Observers on Bandcamp

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Guiltless to Release Debut EP Thorns Feb. 23

Posted in Whathaveyou on January 11th, 2024 by JJ Koczan

GUILTLESS

The irony behind Guiltless is in the near-universal complicity of humans in the climate crisis. It’s familiar enough thematic ground for Josh Graham, who’s been sounding a tragically-still-relevant environmentalist alarm at least since his days with Red Sparowes in the mid-aughts, never mind the work he’s done with A Storm of Light in that regard. Or, you know, his art.

Guiltess is a new band that brings Graham together with Intronaut‘s Sacha Dunable, as well as fellow A Storm of Light alumni, guitarist Dan Hawkins and drummer Billy Graves, and they’re streaming one of the four tracks from their debut EP, Thorns, now ahead of a Feb. 23 release through Neurot Recordings.

Angular contemplations of riff and time, aggressive vibes put to despondent use. “All We Destroy” is also the name of a Grayceon record that once upon a time made my life way better, but from Graham and company it becomes a churning, angular insistence, dense in low end, sprawling and bleak.

If you were on board with A Storm of Light, there’s little barrier to entry here apart perhaps from a grimness of mood, but one would hardly call that unjustified given the subject matter. It used to snow in December here in New Jersey where I live. Now we get rain in January. Let’s all go fill our gas tanks and see what happens.

From the PR wire:

GUILTLESS Thorns

GUILTLESS: New Band From A Storm Of Light, Intronaut, Generation Of Vipers, Battle Of Mice Members To Release Thorns Debut February 23rd On Neurot Recordings; “All We Destroy” Single + Preorders Posted

A new voice steps forward to put our concerns and frustrations into words; that voice is GUILTLESS. The band will release their debut EP, Thorns, February 23rd on Neurot Recordings, today sharing the cover art, track listing, preorders, and the lead single “All We Destroy.”

Picking up where A Storm Of Light left off, GUILTLESS was born from a love of experimental rock, noise rock, early industrial, sludge, and doom. The band is embodied by Billy Graves (Generation Of Vipers, A Storm Of Light) on drums, Dan Hawkins (A Storm Of Light) on guitar and noise, Sacha Dunable (Intronaut) on bass, and Josh Graham (A Storm Of Light, Battle Of Mice, Neurosis’ former visual artist) on guitar, vocals, and noise. Together they present a stripped down, visceral reaction to modern life; angular yet straight to the point, self-aware, surreal, and occasionally sarcastic.

Human singularity, a third world war, scorching deserts, rising seas – it’s all coming for us. The slow grind is already in motion, pushing concrete, bodies, Teslas, skyscrapers, shacks, banks, and Bitcoin into a collective abyss. Piles of discarded trash will inherit the earth. It’s anyone’s guess as to what happens next. Is this the end of the world? Who knows. Who cares? Stand by with the rest of us and watch it burn. We’re all guiltless. We’re all blameless.

GUILTLESS creates apocalyptic soundscapes in their imaginings of the surreal return to proto-human society, as well as what life might be like for the survivors of the next mass extinction event on Thorns. The opening track, “Devour-Collide,” is a song which addresses the decline of civilization, leaving time and space for the earth to heal, the band shouting, “Embrace the ruin, devour – collide, when the beasts dissolve, the meek revive.” There’s the bleak gut-reactional “All We Destroy,” the barren landscape conjured in “Dead-Eye,” and the EP ends with “In Radiant Glow,” a description of the unfolding of a hostile new world, post-extinction event. The conclusion of this narrative comes with the purgation of burning everything down to the ground and starting again.

Through this cycle of destruction and rebirth, GUILTLESS believes that art and music can give us solace or help us exercise our demons. GUILTLESS can be that cathartic release.

The first GUILTLESS single arrives as “All We Destroy.” Josh Graham writes, “‘All We Destroy’ is the song that set the tone of the band overall and defines a large portion of this first release. It’s a stripped-down arrangement compared to the other tracks but has a clarified pummeling energy/driving force. Lyrically bleak, it feels like the current state and trajectory of our planet, and is influenced by the short story by Margaret Atwood, Time Capsule Found On The Dead Planet.

Stream GUILTLESS’ “All We Destroy” at THIS LOCATION and find the song on all streaming services now.

Thorns will be released on CD, cassette, and digital formats through Neurot Recordings on February 23rd, with 12″ vinyl to follow in June. All physical formats are spray-painted, hand-stamped, hand-numbered, with special paper elements; each copy is unique. Find preorders for all formats and merch HERE: https://neurotrecordings.ffm.to/thorns_ep

Thorns Track Listing:
1. Devour-Collide
2. All We Destroy
3. Dead-Eye
4. In Radiant Glow

https://guiltless.band
https://www.youtube.com/@Guiltlessband
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https://suspendedinlight.bigcartel.com/category/guiltless-merch

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Guiltless, “All We Destroy” official video

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Neurosis Respond to Scott Kelly Domestic Violence Admission

Posted in Whathaveyou on August 29th, 2022 by JJ Koczan

The remaining members of post-metal progenitors Neurosis have responded to guitarist/vocalist Scott Kelly’s admission of years of familial abuse and domestic violence. Guess they more or less had to.

They leave it open as to what they may or may not do as a band, and yeah, Neurosis as you knew it before this weekend is probably done. And the band says so, Kelly said so in his widely-regarded-as-manipulative-bullshit statement this weekend, and I agree that this is bigger than a band. But also, Neurosis, this group of people, have influenced quite literally thousands of other artists. The ripple effect will be significant, aesthetically, economically, and within this particular creative niche, culturally.

The betrayal here is multi-tiered and visceral. As a fan, someone who supported Neurosis fiscally and promoted their work to others, I feel angry and, to the use the band’s word, disgusted, and I don’t know what to say about the statement below, about the timing on who knew what when and all that. They’re quick to distance themselves from Kelly, of course, but things are rarely ever so cut and dry, and the trust that was there, that what you were hearing on a Neurosis album was the truest representation of these artists as people is simply gone.

I would like to tell you I’ll never talk about this again, fuck this guy, he’s done, move on, but that seems optimistic.

Here’s what the band had to say:

neurosis logo

A STATEMENT FROM NEUROSIS

We cannot overstate the level of disgust and disappointment we feel for a man who we once called Brother.

As a band, we parted ways with Scott Kelly at the end of 2019 after learning about severe acts of abuse he committed towards his family over the previous years. In the past, Scott had disclosed his marital difficulties and acts of verbal abuse, as well as his intention to get help and change his behaviors. The information we learned in 2019 made it clear Scott had crossed a line and there was no way back. We did not share this information out of respect for his wife’s direct request for privacy, and to honor the family’s wish not to let their experience become gossip in a music magazine. With Scott’s Facebook post of August 27, 2022 disclosing much of this information publicly, we can finally say what we believe needs to be said.

For the last twenty years we have lived far apart from one another and only saw Scott when meeting up to work on music or play shows. We had no idea what the reality was for his family when we were not around. By Scott’s own admission, his abuse was intentional, targeted, and a closely guarded secret – even from those of us closest to him.

Once we learned of his abuse it was difficult to reconcile the horrible information with the person we thought we knew. It’s not surprising he hid the abuse for so long because it is a betrayal of our ethics as bandmates, partners, parents, and human beings.

Since 2019, we have made numerous attempts to contact Scott. We wanted to have an honest talk about the status of the band and find out how he and his family were doing, but he has refused to speak with us for three years. And, in what we now see clearly to be a pattern, Scott refused to take responsibility for his actions. Having been through so much with someone for more than 35 years, one would expect some amount of closure, or at the very least a response.

Now, without returning any of the calls, texts, or e-mails of his bandmates and friends, Scott has made a public post about the situation. To us, this decision seems like another attempt at manipulation, another opportunity for his narcissism to control the narrative. Don’t allow Scott to make this about himself, it’s about the abuse his family has suffered.

Usually, we would view public openness and honesty about mental illness as brave and even productive. We just don’t believe that is the case here.

There is nothing brave about systematically abusing your wife and children.

There is nothing brave about confessing wrongdoing when you have not done the work to change your behavior.

There is nothing brave about refusing to speak honestly, or speak at all, with one’s closest friends and bandmates, people who have supported you and stuck by you for most of your life.

Compared to the impact of Scott’s actions on his family, the impact on our band pales in significance. Nevertheless, with the heartbreak and horror we also grieve for the loss of our life’s work and a legacy that was sacred to us.

Again, our primary concern is for the safety and well-being of Scott’s wife and children, as well as anyone else in a similar situation. If someone you know is experiencing domestic violence or abuse, please reach out to one of the many local or national resources available. One national resource is:

National Domestic Violence Hotline 1-800-799-7233 www.thehotline.org

If you or someone you know is suffering from mental health issues that could make you a danger to yourself or others, please get help before you hurt yourself or the people you love. One resource for that is:
www.988lifeline.org

This is the only statement we plan to make about this issue. In due course, when it’s appropriate, we will provide more information about our future musical endeavors, but that time is not now.

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Ufomammut Announce Fall European Tour

Posted in Whathaveyou on July 21st, 2022 by JJ Koczan

Ufomammut (Photo by Francesca De Franceschi Manzoni)

One does not need an excuse to see Ufomammut. One simply shows up and receives a pummeling from the outer reaches of the known cosmos as expanded by the James Webb Space Telescope and is thankful for the experience. The long-running Italian trio already did a stretch of dates this Spring to support their new album, Fenice (review here), and UrloPoia and post-hiatus drummer Levre will again hit the road this Fall. They were previously announced for Keep it Low in Munich, and they’ll also be at the 25th anniversary celebration of Orange Factory in Belgium.

There are a couple dates TBA on the poster, and you’ll have to forgive me for assuming there’s something there that’s yet to be revealed rather than just empty slots. Worse to worst, Ufomammut, you’re always welcome by me and I’m just like a nine-hour flight from Denmark, so feel free to pop over for a day or two.

The band posted these dates on social media:

UFOMAMMUT tour

So stoked to announce our Fenice Fall Tour!
We will be touring Europe this September and October and we’re looking forward to meet you all again.

Thanks to Sound of Liberation for making this happen and Neurot Recordings and SUPERNATURALCAT for supporting our music.

20.09 – Lyon (FR) – Rock’n’Eat
21.09 – Nantes (FR) – Le Ferrailleur
22.09 – Paris (FR) – Backstage
23.09 – Tourcoing (FR) – Le Grand Mix
24.09 – Leuven (BE) – 25 Years Orange Factory – Het Depot
26.09 – Dortmund (DE) – Junkyard
27.09 – Hamburg (DE) – Knust
28.09 – Malmö (SE) – Plan B
29.09 – Stockholm (SE) – Hus 7
30.09 – Gothenburg (SE) – Valand
01.10 – Oslo (NO) – Kulturkirken Jakob (Høstsabbat presents)
02.10 – Copenhagen (DK) – Loppen
04.10 – TBA
05.10 – Leipzig (DE) – Ut Connewitz
06.10 – TBA
07.10 – München (DE) – Keep It Low Festival
08.10 – Linz (AT) – Stadtwerkstatt

Art by Malleus ROCK ART LAB
Photo by Francesca De Franceschi Manzoni

UFOMAMMUT are:
Poia – Guitars and Fxs
Urlo – Bass, Vocals, Fxs and Synths
Levre – Drums & Fxs
Ciccio – Sound lord

www.ufomammut.com
www.facebook.com/ufomammutband
twitter.com/ufomammutmafia
www.instagram.com/ufomammut

http://www.neurotrecordings.com
http://www.facebook.com/neurotrecordings
https://neurotrecordings.bandcamp.com
https://twitter.com/OfficialNeurot

http://www.supernaturalcat.com

Ufomammut, Fenice (2022)

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Album Review: Ufomammut, Fenice

Posted in Reviews on June 15th, 2022 by JJ Koczan

Ufomammut Fenice

For something so fluid in the listening experience, there are an awful lot of angles from which one might view Ufomammut‘s Fenice. Issued in continued association with Neurot Recordings, it is the ninth full-length from the groundbreaking Italian three-piece, whose Poia (guitar, synth) and Urlo (bass, vocals, synth) double as part of the visual arts collective Malleus, so long as one counts 2012’s two-part Oro: Opus Primum (review here) and Oro: Opus Alter (review here) as a single work.

It is also the band’s first album since declaring a perfectly timed indefinite hiatus in early 2020 and returning in April 2021 with new drummer Alessandro “Levre” Levrero, a longtime associate brought into the fold after the departure of Vita (now in Sonic Wolves), which was just the second lineup change Ufomammut have undergone in their 20-plus years of existence. And never mind that Ufomammut are responsible for no small part of the shape of what has become cosmic doom over the years of their tenure. Their blending of synthesizer/keyboard spaciousness, crushing riffs, atmospheric drones and a general sense of chaos — despite having a plan all the while — is singular.

While their influence has been present in the works of many who’ve come along since, Ufomammut remain unto themselves in sound, and Fenice is essentially the process by which they revamp and revitalize what that singularity is. Across the assembled six tracks and 38 minutes, the three-piece of Urlo, Poia and Levre set themselves to the task of remaking Ufomammut in the image of who they are today. Much of that will be recognizable to longer-term listeners or even those who took on 2017’s we’re-telling-you-this-is-definitely-our-eighth-record, 8 (review here), but from the energy with which cuts like 10-minute opener and longest track (immediate points) “Duat” and what follows are delivered, as well as the starkness with which they move back and forth between atmospheric experimentalism and drone and their rib-crunching low-end plunder, there’s a clear, refreshed sensibility to what they’re doing. The time away did them well, and among Fenice‘s strengths in production value and creative reach is the core desire to push themselves forward that has made Ufomammut so crucial and influential in the first place. No two Ufomammut records are the same — even the Oros had their own personalities — and the next one will be different from this. That should be comforting, whether you’re familiar with the band’s past work or not.

“Duat” spends its first three minutes world-building around curious depth charges, but by the time Ufomammut are another two deep, they’ve unfurled the full-bore tonal density with which they’ll work — Lorenzo Stecconi, who engineered, mixed and mastered, has been a mainstay presence of their output and his familiarity serves them well in these new songs and in their own new incarnation; that is to say, they had enough change to deal with going into the studio — and it continues to grow massive as it goes, with the on-the-beat punctuation of Levre‘s snare both along for the ride and propulsive in its own right in helping establish the overarching flow which will carry directly into the shorter drone piece “Kepherer” and on from there, weaving through the rest of the material.

Some right on rumble and bassy vibrations in “Kepherer” — those might be drums, actually — offset by high feedback and effects manipulation, and in just under three minutes, Ufomammut emphasize the hypnotic side of their approach in a way that may well be informed by some of Urlo‘s solo work in the multimedia experimental project The Mon, but “Psychostasia” brings those transcendental waveforms back to ground soon enough, Levre‘s drums and the far-back strum of Poia‘s guitar creating an open space for Urlo‘s melodic, dreamy-echo vocals. It’s further trance creation until about four and a half minutes in, then the guitar comes forward for a lead and, at 4:48, the move toward pummel begins in earnest.

Ufomammut (Photo by Francesca De Franceschi Manzoni)

They’ll get there step by step, here letting the drums go faster, there pulling back on bass, but at 5:31, they let it loose and the vocals return, and the sweep is a triumph of the promise of Ufomammut‘s aesthetic. A synth freakout is a quick bridge back to the onslaught, and as they crash into the ending of “Psychostasia” and into the beginning of the likely-autobiographical-on-some-level “Metamorphoenix,” a sample and the wash of synth noise again make the going immersive bordering on claustrophobic. As heavy as Ufomammut can get, sometimes it’s their quieter stretches that seem to most pull the air out of the room.

Just past two minutes in, “Metamorphoenix” introduces its central guitar figure, but it’s buried. Barely there, like a sumbliminal message. It’s not until the wash recedes — leaving the maybe-backwards spoken sample that accompanied behind — that “Metamorphoenix” seems to find the ground beneath it. There’s a build taking place, but the band have done this long enough that they won’t be rushed even for themselves, and each measure that ensues has a purpose of its own in feeding the forward movement.

By the time they’re seven minutes into the song’s 7:41, the tension is palpable to a near-skin-crawling degree, and it’s up to “Pyramind” to pay it off, which it does with an almost immediate turn into doomly crashes and out-the-airlock synthesizer, a lumbering that consumes the first two minutes of “Pyramind”‘s also-seven, and though they mellow out after two minutes in, the drums and bass under the heavy-but-floating guitar provide assurance there’s more to come. This part of “Pyramind” has vocals in layers — Ufomammut have never been a particularly singer-minded act, but I won’t take away from what Urlo does here or elsewhere in their catalog — and that covers the establishing a resurgent intensity of tone and riff, and at 5:36 into the 7:04, they move back to the nod and the crash that seem at first to be an apex for Fenice as a whole but with the turn to the 2:48 closer “Empyros” become just another stage of the setup.

There’s a stop, but on the next beat, “Empyros” is there and the impact is immediate, and Ufomammut finish this maybe-ninth record with a vital heavy groove, almost raw in its unfolding, but so clear in its message of riff worship as to be unmistakable. Synth swirls around, and there’s one change — at 1:43, into the next unbridled bit of skull-stompery. There are a few shouted lines, but they wrap Fenice on the relative quick and leave the listener to wonder how they managed to pack that much magnitude into a single LP. The answer to that, of course, is that they’re Ufomammut, and that’s what they do.

Whatever your level of experience with Ufomammut, whether you know them or don’t, whether you’ve been on board since 1999 or if Fenice is the first thing you’ve heard them, there are elements in these songs that have become staples of their style. They’re still two-thirds the same band, after all. But as much as Ufomammut have reaffirmed the progressive aspects of their past and remained loyal to themselves as songwriters, Fenice sounds like a new beginning too. That’s obviously not a coincidence.

Ufomammut, Fenice (2022)

Ufomammut, Fenice Interview with Urlo

Ufommammut website

Ufomammut on Facebook

Ufomammut on Twitter

Ufomammut on Instagram

Neurot Recordings website

Neurot Recordings on Facebook

Neurot Recordings on Bandcamp

Neurot Recordings on Twitter

Supernatural Cat website

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Video Interview: Urlo from Ufomammut on the Old and New of Fenice and More

Posted in Bootleg Theater, Features on May 6th, 2022 by JJ Koczan

ufomammut

Today, May 6, marks the release of Ufomammut‘s new album, Fenice, on Neurot Recordings. From where I sit, that’s enough of an occasion to fire up the webcam and have a chat with bassist/vocalist Urlo (also keyboards) about making the record and so on. But the story here isn’t so straightforward as band-has-new-album.

After celebrating their 20th anniversary in 2019, the Italian cosmic doom forebears announced in Jan. 2020 — perfect timing — they were taking an indefinite hiatus, which, honestly, felt well enough earned. Ufomammut didn’t owe anyone anything. Since 1999, they built and tore down huge walls of stylistic innovation, blending spaced-out synth, ambience, space rock and stretches of gloriously crushing riffs both in the studio and on tour, developing an aesthetic all their own and extending it even to their alter-ego visual arts concern, Malleus, and standing behind their own work and that of others with their Supernatural Cat imprint while also releasing through labels like NeurotRocket RecordingsThe Music Cartel and Beard of Stars, reaping massive acclaim on the way and influencing a subsequent generation of interstellar destroyers in their wake. What the hell more would you want from a band? Touring the world? Well they did that too.

In April 2021, they posted they were back with founders Urlo and guitarist Poia joined for the first time by a new drummer in Alessandro “Levre” Levrero, who on Fenice steps into the position formerly held by Vita — who now is just one of the two former members Ufomammut have had in their 23-year stretch — for a six-song collection the 38 minutes of which both bear signature hallmarks of who the band have always been but hold an unmistakably shifted dynamic, finding a different path to walk than they’ve ever had before. Maybe that’s just what Ufomammut needed. Judging by how alive Fenice sounds on a creative level — shit, judging by “Psychostasia” alone — that’s precisely the case.

With the album out today, I’m thrilled to post this recent chat I had with Urlo about the changes in the band over the last couple years, their prospects for hitting the road on tour again, how he feels about their past and what might come in the future.

Please enjoy:

Ufomammut, Fenice Interview with Urlo

Fenice is available now through Neurot Recordings. More info at the links.

Ufomammut, Fenice (2022)

Ufommammut website

Ufomammut on Facebook

Ufomammut on Twitter

Ufomammut on Instagram

Neurot Recordings website

Neurot Recordings on Facebook

Neurot Recordings on Bandcamp

Neurot Recordings on Twitter

Supernatural Cat website

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Ufomammut Announce New Album Fenice Out May 6; “Psychostasia” Video Posted

Posted in Whathaveyou on March 16th, 2022 by JJ Koczan

Ufomammut (Photo by Francesca De Franceschi Manzoni)

New Ufommaut! Or as I like to call it as of right this second, newfomammut! While I ponder just how many times I’ve made that joke in the last 13-plus years — how many records have Ufomammut made that time? — you’ll want to note the May 6 release for Fenice through Neurot Recordings and Supernatural Cat for the first Ufomammut studio LP since  2017’s 8 (review here), the first they’ve done since marking their 20th anniversary with the boxed set XX EP (review here) and their first since both going on hiatus following the departure of drummer Vita (now of Sonic Wolves) and coming back together with Levre behind the kit.

In short, it’s a big fucking deal. New song “Psychostasia” has a video streaming below and on first impression it wields the band’s signature cosmic crush ably and sets it against what feels like some more straightforward heavy rock groove. One way or the other, if you’re not already listening to it and looking forward to this album’s arrival, I got nothing for you today.

Fresh from the PR wire:

Ufomammut Fenice

UFOMAMMUT Announce Their New Album, “Fenice”! Out On May 6, 2022 via Neurot Recordings!

Hear Their Bold New Sound On “Psychostasia”!

On May 6th Italian alchemists and power trio Ufomammut return with their ninth studio album, Fenice via Neurot Recordings and Supernatural Cat. But not as we’ve heard them before, now “more intimate, more free.”

For over 20 years, the band has combined the heaviness and majesty of dynamic riff worship with a nuanced understanding of psychedelic tradition and history in music, creating a cosmic, futuristic, and technicolor sound destined for absolute immersion.

Fenice (meaning Phoenix in Italian) symbolically represents endless rebirth and the ability to start again after everything seems doomed. The album is the first recording with new drummer Levre, and truly marks a new chapter in Ufomammut history.

“I think we lost our spontaneity, album after album,” says Urlo. “We tried to make more complicated songs and albums, but I think at some point we just ended up repeating ourselves. With Fenice, we were ready to start from zero, we had no past anymore – so we just wanted to be reborn and rise from the ashes..”

Whilst the band are well-known for their psychedelic travels into the far reaches of the cosmos, Fenice is a much more introspective listening experience. Fenice was conceived as a single concept track, divided in six facets of this inward-facing focus. Sonic experimentations abound in the exploration of this central theme; synths and experimental vocal effects are featured more prominently than ever before as the band push themselves ever further into the uncharted territory of their very identity.

The towering synths on the opening track “Duat” evoke an almighty machine rising from the depths of primordial ooze. There’s a shift to a frenetic garage-psych pace before mellowing out into a more familiar doomy stomp. “Kepherer” is a respite, albeit a slight one, returning to the pulsing rhythms of the album’s intro before plunging the listener into the menacing build and release of “Psychostasia” next.

The second half of the record brings with it an even greater sense of dynamic exploration. “Metamorphoenix” oozes with curious synth patterns and noises, before descending into sinister chords and an oddly choral chant. An explosion of emotion heralds the beginning of “Pyramind”, all-encompassing in its riff worship and quasi-religious climax of mantra-esque vocals. “Empyros” is groovy yet irregular, with rhythms interplaying and more chanting voices, bringing the records to its end with a sense of dedication and purpose.

Each oscillation of this extraordinary album feels inevitable – Ufomammut are after all, masters of their craft, and when it comes to creating enveloping sonic journeys into the unknown, it’s their uninhibited sense of exploration that breaches new sonic ground.

Fenice is the sound of a band whose very essence has been rejuvenated, and are welcoming the chance to create music in the way they know best; by unfolding carefully and attentively, by melding those extreme dynamics which render Fenice as a living and breathing creature – and by writing gargantuan riffs that herald their very rebirth.

Fenice shall be released on LP and CD formats via Neurot Recordings, with a limited edition LP version of 666 copies on Supernatural Cat.

Fenice Track listing:
1. Duat
2. Kepherer
3. Psychostasia
4. Metamorphoenix
5. Pyramind
6. Empyros

UFOMAMMUT are:
Poia – Guitars and Fxs
Urlo – Bass, Vocals, Fxs and Synths
Levre – Drums & Fxs
Ciccio – Sound lord

LIVE DATES:
07.05.22 – Alessandria (IT), Laboratorio Sociale – Album release party
14.05.22 – Mezzago (IT), Bloom
24.05.22 – Vienna (AT), Arena
25.05.22 – Karlsruhe (DE), Dudefest
26.05.22 – Bremen (DE), Tower
27.05.22 – Ghent (BE), Dunk!festival
28.05.22 – Groningen (NL), Vera
29.05.22 – Berlin (DE), Desertfest
30.05.22 – Dresden (DE), Chemiefabrik
31.05.22 – Salzburg (AT), Rockhouse
10.06.22 – Munich (DE), 17 Years Sound of Liberation Festival
11.06.22 – Piacenza (IT), Desert Fox Festival
24.06.22 – Wiesbaden (DE), 17 Years Sound of Liberation – Official Festival Warmup
26.06.22 – Clisson (FR), Hellfest
18.08.22 – Pescara (IT), Frantic Festival

www.ufomammut.com
www.facebook.com/ufomammutband
twitter.com/ufomammutmafia
www.instagram.com/ufomammut
http://www.neurotrecordings.com
http://www.facebook.com/neurotrecordings
https://neurotrecordings.bandcamp.com
https://twitter.com/OfficialNeurot
http://www.supernaturalcat.com

Ufomammut, “Psychostasia” official video

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