Posted in Features on September 5th, 2013 by JJ Koczan
I’m going to go on a limb here and say that while it wasn’t their first choice and something that was brought about through a lawsuit from former bandmates, the name change that turned Kyuss Lives! into Vista Chino was a good thing. My reasoning is simple. Kyuss is a set entity. It’s in stone. It’s done. It’s been done for over 15 years now. There’s a legacy born out of the California desert that’s influenced thousands upon thousands of bands, and without Kyuss, that just doesn’t happen. They were an integral part of setting forth a movement in heavy rock that continues to this day.
The difference is they were and Vista Chino are. Even if vocalist John Garcia, bassist Nick Oliveri, guitarist Bruno Fevery and drummer Brant Bjork — who toured and wrote songs together as KyussLives! — had been able to continue using that or just the straight-up Kyuss name, they’d be setting themselves up to fail, because even if original guitarist Josh Homme — who along with former bassist Scott Reeder brought the lawsuit that was settled with the moniker switch– had returned to the fold and they’d worked with the same lineup that resulted in 1992’s Blues for the Red Sun, it never would’ve been the same. It may have been conflict that birthed it, but with the Napalm Records release this week of Peace (review here) as the first Vista Chino studio album, Garcia, Bjork and Fevery (Oliveri having left after recording his bass parts) are moving forward in a way Kyuss wouldn’t have been able to do.
It’s a question of freedom, ultimately, and where any output under the Kyuss banner would’ve resulted in an endless stream of comparisons set to the impossible standard of a decade and a half of lionization, Vista Chino are free to progress, both on a career level and creatively. Peacefinds Bjork taking lead vocals on “Planets 1 & 2,” something that never happened in Kyuss (though certainly it’s happened plenty since), and works off a different, new instrumental chemistry and playing style from Fevery. The record isn’t about capturing something that used to exist and doesn’t anymore, and at its heart, that’s why it succeeds. I’m not sure Peacewould’ve worked as a Kyuss album, but for Vista Chino, it stands not only as an excellent debut but a potential-filled sign of things to come. It makes the listener look forward to what could be and not back to what was.
So while it may have been plenty ugly getting to this point and of course no one knows what days ahead might bring, Peace establishes Vista Chino as a band with both a past and a future. In the interview that follows here, Brant Bjork discusses some of those prospects, particularly as relates to bringing in bassist Mike Dean from C.O.C. to fill the position vacated by Oliveri and held for a brief stretch by Billy Cordell, and also creating music for the first time alongside Fevery, the legal tribulations that made Vista Chino who they are, his relationship to Vista Chino as opposed to Kyuss, when he knew that Kyuss Lives! would result in new material, the group’s plans after the US tour they’ll soon start and much more. As he spoke, I could hear a desert wind come through the line in the background.
Posted in Whathaveyou on September 3rd, 2013 by JJ Koczan
With North American tour dates kicking off this week and a European run to follow, Vista Chino today mark the release of their debut album, Peace, on Napalm Records. Even if you start the clock at Garcia Plays Kyuss performing live at Roadburn in 2010, this has been years in the making, and whatever tumult they’ve had as that group became Kyuss Lives! and subsequently Vista Chino, once the record’s out, it’s out. Peace(review here) arrives with no shortage of drama behind it, but at least it arrived. Gotta get my hands on the bonus tracks with the deluxe edition. Figure even if it’s just jams or whatever (and I don’t know that it is or isn’t), that’s still worth a couple extra bucks.
The PR wire makes it official:
VISTA CHINO’s Peace Available Today on Napalm Records
VISTA CHINO the band formed by John Garcia and Brant Bjork that continues the legacy of Kyuss, right where it left off are weeks away from the release of their album Peace. Peace has been released today via Napalm Records. The artwork for the album was created by the renowned California art collective The Date Farmers.
Drummer Brant Bjork commented on the release:
“It’s been a long, heavy road to Peace… but we made it. This was an important record for us. Its exactly what we intended to do. Its an honest rock record…desert style. Peace is here now and Its time to go out on the road in north america and celebrate. If you’re scared and you’re a hater…..stay home and snivel. If you’re down and love is your style…meet us at the VC show and we’ll rock some old Kyuss classics and some Peace.”
VISTA CHINO will embark on a North American headline tour in support of Peace. Support on the tour will come from the Portland Oregon rock outfit known as Black Pussy. The tour kicks off this Friday September 6th in Calgary, Alberta and runs through September 28th in Columbus, Ohio.
Rising from the desert sands that birthed Kyuss Lives, VISTA CHINO’s sound is instantly familiar. With the trademark soulful vocals of John Garcia, the songwriting and production of Brant Bjork (drums) and the fuzz-laden riffage of imported guitarist Bruno Fevery, VISTA CHINO’s debut is one of the year’s most anticipated heavy rock albums. A new band born of a storied past, right now it’s about these players playing these songs.
VISTA CHINO North American Tour: 9/6: Calgary, AB @ Flames Central 9/7: Edmonton, AB @ Starlite Ballroom 9/9: Vancouver, BC @ Commodore Ballroom 9/10: Seattle, WA @ El Corazon 9/11: Portland, OR @ Hawthorne Theater 9/12: San Francisco, CA @ Slims 9/13: Los Angeles, CA @ Echoplex 9/14: Anaheim, CA @ House of Blues 9/16: Denver, CO @ Summit Music Hall 9/18: Minneapolis, MN @ Fine Line Music Café 9/19: Chicago, IL @ Metro 9/20: Pontiac, MI @ Crofoot Ballroom 9/21: Toronto, ON @ Phoenix Concert Theater 9/23: Montreal, QC @ Corona Theater 9/24: Quebec, QC @ Dagobert 9/25: Ottawa, ON @ Ritual Night Club 9/26: New York, NY @ Bowery Ballroom 9/27: Philadelphia, PA @ Underground Arts 9/28: Columbus, OH @ Alrosa Villa
VISTA CHINO European Dates: 10/18: Turku, Finland @ Klubi 10/19: Jyvaskyla, Finland @ Lustakko 10/20: Helsinki, Finland @ Nosturi 10/22: Stockholm, Sweden @ Debaser Strand 10/23: Gothenburg, Sweden @ Tragarn 10/24: Oslo, Norway @ Rockefeller 10/25: Copenhagen, Denmark @ Loppen 10/27: Osnarbruck, Germany @ Rosenhof 10/28: Hamburg, Germany @ Docks 10/30: Manchester, United Kingdom @ Ritz 10/31: Birmingham, United Kingdom @ Institute 11/1: Bristol, United Kingdom @ O2 Academy 11/2: London, United Kingdom @ Roundhouse 11/4: Glasgow, Scotland @ Garage 11/5 Nottingham, United Kingdom @ Rock Ctiy 11/6: Newcastle, United Kingdom @ O2 Academy 11/8: Erfurt, Germany @ HSD 11/10: Berlin, Germany @ Huxleys 11/11: Dresden, Germany @ Alter Schlachthof 11/14: Salzburg, Austria @ Rockhouse 11/15: Preatteln, Switzerland @ Z7 11/16: Milan, Italy @ Live Club 11/18: Augusburg, Germany @ Kantine 11/19: Frankfurt, Germany @ Batschkapp 11/20: Koln, Germany @ Live Music Hall 11/22: Tourhout, Belgium @ De Mast 11/23: Eindhoven, Netherlands @ Kolokgebouw Speedfest
Vista Chino has been a curious proposition from the start. As far as reunions go, I think even the members of Vista Chino would have to admit the circumstances that have led to their studio full-length debut, Peace(Napalm Records) have been convoluted and probably far less than ideal. What began as a Kyuss revitalization in the form of the John Garcia-fronted Garcia Plays Kyuss at the 2010 Roadburn festival and gradually morphed into tours with former Kyuss bassist Nick Oliveri (also Queens of the Stone Age, Mondo Generator) and drummer Brant Bjork (also Brant Bjorkand the Bros., Che) with guitarist Bruno Fevery under the moniker Kyuss Lives!, Vista Chino wound up becoming Vista Chino as a result of a lawsuit that had former Kyuss guitarist Joshua Homme (who went on to bone fide rock stardom in Queens of the Stone Age) and bassist Scott Reeder as its plaintiffs. In this context, it’s just as easy to read the album title Peaceas a desperate plea as a relieved exhale. Perhaps it’s both. Whatever the case, this multi-tiered clusterfuck born out of the original reunion spearheaded by Garcia, initially on his own with members of European acts (including the Belgian-born Fevery), has led to new band Vista Chino — Garcia, Fevery, Oliveri (who plays on the album but has been replaced live by C.O.C. bassist Mike Dean) and Bjork — making their first record as the inheritors of the Kyuss legacy, which presented in the massive influence of the three studio albums after their 1991 Wretchdebut — Blues for the Red Sun(1992), Welcome to Sky Valley(officially a self-titled; 1994), and the ominously-titled …And the Circus Leaves Town(1995) — is indisputably the largest in the genre of desert rock. This is no small challenge, but whatever else Peaceis able to accomplish over the course of its 49 minutes and 10 tracks split just about evenly time-wise to allow for vinyl sides, it maintains an element of consciousness throughout of the context in which it arrives. Then it sidesteps it and rocks out with abandon.
However a Kyuss reunion might’ve played out in a perfect world, Vista Chino, who recorded Peaceat Thunder Underground in Palm Springs, handled the task before them the only way they could; they wrote a collection of honest songs that didn’t outwardly try to recapture what Kyuss was in its heyday, but invariably showed flashes of that owing to the involvement of Bjork, Garcia and Oliveri and the effect that being in Kyuss has had on their lives, better and worse. Perhaps most pivotal to the album’s ultimate success, nobody throughout Vista Chino‘s debut is doing an impression either of Homme‘s tone or his songwriting methodology. If anything, the name change brought on by legal mandate has allowed the group to begin the establishment of a new musical identity, and though Fevery‘s tone is rife with desert-styled fuzz, his manner of play particularly in the leads here and his handling of the riffs throughout is his own. Maybe that new identity wasn’t what Vista Chino were looking to do when they started out as Kyuss Lives!, but it’s where they ended up all the same. The closest Vista Chino comes to directly referencing Kyuss on Peace is probably in the central riff of “Planets 1 & 2,” which seems to be nodding at “Green Machine” from Blues for the Red Sun — but even there,the band finds personality of its own as Bjork steps in to share vocal duties with Garcia, something that, though he contributed to the songwriting all along while he was in Kyuss (he left prior to the last album), he never did before. Likewise, songs like “As You Wish” and the sweetly open-spaced “Barcelonian” showcase a laid back heft that, though Kyuss touched on at times and one could easily argue had a hand in pioneering, is more mature in its presentation and sense of purpose than the members of Vista Chino could’ve been at a younger age. The inevitable tradeoff is that it’s not new anymore and that Vista Chino inherently cannot instantly show up and invent desert rock the way Kyuss is often credited with doing (of course the reality is more complex than the narrative; see also “Black Sabbath invented heavy metal”). It’s already been done.
How do you, in putting tracks together, ignore that and proceed to make a record? I don’t know. And I don’t know what the division of songwriting labor on Peacewas between Bjork, Garcia, Fevery and Oliveri, how much of the album was written separately as opposed to together in a rehearsal space or in the studio, but at some point, these players stopped looking back at what Kyuss was able to spearhead and started looking forward at what Vista Chino might be able to do to make a mark on the form. That could be something as simple as the jam from which the shuffle of the later “Dark and Lovely” resulted, maybe. What matters is, it happened, and however a given listener might feel about the circumstances by which Vista Chino became Vista Chino, it’s to the ultimate benefit of Peacethat they did. To call these Kyuss songs would be to set a standard in the mind of anyone hearing them with a clue as to who Kyuss was that they invariably couldn’t meet. Peaceprobably wouldn’t work as a fifth Kyuss outing. As the first Vista Chino, it not only affirms the relevance in the craft and performance of the band, but it gives them a starting point from which they can expand on subsequent outings should they choose to do so, free of the restraints that an idea of “what Kyuss should sound like” might otherwise place on them. Had Garcia, Fevery, Oliveri and Bjork started out under the new name, it wouldn’t even be a matter of discussion. It’s fascinating to think of that as the feedback intro “Good Morning Wasteland” gives way to the driving “Dargona Dragona,” which is Peace‘s first impression on the listener. An album that only gets stronger and more complex as it plays out, “Dargona Dragona” provides Peacea mostly straightforward beginning, Fevery, Oliveri and Bjork starting out instrumentally before Garcia joins on vocals. When he does, his voice is more blown-out sounding than anywhere else on the record, presented with a kind of compression that cuts through the otherwise natural-sounding tones for the “ooh-ahh” chorus and seems high in the mix as a result. Though on the subsequent “Sweet Remain,” he pushes his range to what seems like as high and as guttural as it will go, on “Dargona Dragona,” the vocals are almost abrasive, even as the swirl and richness of fuzz the rest of the band creates is just beginning to establish itself.
That can, for the first several listens, be off-putting — or at very least, off-throwing; which may well have been Vista Chino‘s intent — but it’s easy enough to get used to, and both the verses and chorus are memorable enough that the quality of track outshines any puzzling aspects of its presentation. The aforementioned “Sweet Remain” follows with Bjork setting the beat on drums as Fevery joins with a layered riff and winding lead while Oliveri rumbles with characteristic and creative fills underneath and Garcia recounts through the chorus lyrics what reads like a direct reference to the band’s legal struggles — “And they lost their souls/When they lost their way/Yeah, we fight to the bone/But the spirit remains” (or thereabouts). After work in Slo Burn, Unida, Hermano and guest spots on countless other bands’ albums across the world, John Garcia sounds perhaps most at home in these songs as he has since Kyuss‘ initial run (though I’ll gladly champion his performances in the other acts noted as well). On “Sweet Remain,” he bleeds, and after a bouncing, gleefully insistent instrumental stretch, returns to ask, “And I wonder/Who’s fooling who/And I wonder/Who’s fooling you.” If nothing else, we glean that the sundry dramas surrounding the band are present on the minds of Vista Chino, and it was arguably much the same on Queens of the Stone Age‘s …Like Clockwork(review here) when it was released earlier this year. So be it. Following, “As You Wish” sticks to a similar lyrical thematic — the opening lines “Rise from ash/The phoenix comes” — but resides in a less hurried instrumental sphere, the bass prominent amid buzzsaw guitar and Bjork‘s drumming, which is subtly creative and periodically the glue holding the jams of Peacetogether. On a general level, “As You Wish” is more indicative of the spirit of Peaceoverall, laid back, heavy, ultra-grooved and jammed-feeling but given to moments of propulsive riffing, topped with Garcia’s inimitable vocals. Most immediate, it makes a fitting lead-in for “Planets 1 & 2,” which not only is one of the most enjoyable tracks on Peacebut also, for Bjork taking the fore vocally, one of the stretches in which Vista Chino most carves out its own personality, separate from the legacy of Kyuss.
Posted in Whathaveyou on July 9th, 2013 by JJ Koczan
Aside from the regular-type awesomeness that Vista Chino are going on tour in support of the upcoming full-length debut, Peace, the news below gets an added level of intrigue because the band will be joined for the US run by Mike Dean of C.O.C. on bass. Of course, C.O.C. are currently working on a new album as well, so how that scheduling will play in with him splitting time on the road with Vista Chino remains to be seen.
For now though, the good news is they’re touring. The bad news is there’s no Boston show and they hit New York and Philly the week of my wedding anniversary. Peace is due out Sept. 3 on Napalm. Dig it:
VISTA CHINO Announce North American Tour Dates
New Album Peace Available September 3rd in North America via Napalm Records
VISTA CHINO the band formed by John Garcia and Brant Bjork (formerly of Kyuss) are gearing up for the release Peace. The album will be released September 3rd in North America via Napalm Records. The artwork for the album was created by the renowned California art collective – The Date Farmers.
Following their much heralded debut North American performance as VISTA CHINO at the “Orion Music and More Festival”, the band have confirmed a North American headline tour in support of Peace. Support on the tour will come from the Portland Oregon rock outfit known as Black Pussy.The tour kicks off September 6th in Calgary, Alberta and runs through September 28th in Columbus, Ohio.
Drummer Brant Bjork cannot wait to showcase the new music for the fans:
“VISTA CHINO is super excited to bring the fresh VC rock to the American fans. We’ll be rocking songs from our new Vista Chino record “Peace” along with some Kyuss classics and the legendary Mike Dean from COC will be bringing the electric bass…so, be there or be square.”
The band debuted the “Dargona, Dragona” on their Facebook Page. When visiting the page, clicking the “like” button will enable the audio.
Rising from the desert sands that birthed Kyuss Lives, VISTA CHINO’s sound is instantly familiar. With the trademark soulful vocals of John Garcia, the songwriting and production of Brant Bjork (drums) and the fuzz-laden riffage of imported guitarist Bruno Fevery, VISTA CHINO’s debut is one of the year’s most anticipated heavy rock albums. A new band born of a storied past, right now it’s about these players playing these songs.
VISTA CHINO North American Tour: 9/6: Calgary, AB @ Flames Central 9/7: Edmonton, AB @ Starlite Ballroom 9/9: Vancouver, BC @ Commodore Ballroom 9/10: Seattle, WA @ El Corazon 9/11: Portland, OR @ Hawthorne Theater 9/12: San Francisco, CA @ Slims 9/13: Los Angeles, CA @ Echoplex 9/14: Anaheim, CA @ House of Blues 9/16: Denver, CO @ Summit Music Hall 9/18: Minneapolis, MN @ Fine Line Music Café 9/19: Chicago, IL @ Metro 9/20: Pontiac, MI @ Crofoot Ballroom 9/21: Toronto, ON @ Phoenix Concert Theater 9/23: Montreal, QC @ Corona Theater 9/24: Quebec, QC @ Dagobert 9/25: Ottawa, ON @ Ritual Night Club 9/26: New York, NY @ Bowery Ballroom 9/27: Philadelphia, PA @ Underground Arts 9/28: Columbus, OH @ Alrosa Villa
VISTA CHINO European Dates: 7/25: Tienen, Belgium @ Suikerrock 7/26: Feldkirch, Austria @ Poolbar Festival 7/29: Vienna, Austria @ Rock Im Wald Festival 7/31: Pinarella di Cervia, Italy @ Arena 8/3: Lierpop, Holland @ Rock Planet 8/7: Munich, Germany @ Backstage (Free & Easy Festival) 8/8: Geneva, Switzerland @ Usine 8/9: Puttlingen, Germany @ Rocco del Schlako 8/10: Eschwege, Germany @ Open Flair Festival
Posted in Whathaveyou on June 6th, 2013 by JJ Koczan
Well, if Vista Chino (the former Kyuss Lives!) are going for a desert vibe in their artwork, it’s easy enough to imagine the cover of their forthcoming full-length debut, Peace, painted on the side of a chipped-away wall, so yeah, I guess they got there. The band are playing Metallica‘s Orion Festival this weekend in Detroit, and have announced some European dates, but the title and the art are the big news for the day, and presumably there’s more news to come before the release on Napalm Records.
So says the PR wire:
VISTA CHINO Announce Album Title, Unveil Artwork
First North American Performance This Weekend at “Orion Festival”
VISTA CHINO the band formed by John Garcia and Brant Bjork (formerly of Kyuss) have finished work on their new album. Today the band has unveiled the album title as well as the cover art for the record. The album is titled Peace and the artwork for the album was created by the renowned California art collective – The Date Farmers.
Drummer Brant Bjork commented about working with The Date Farmers:
“The Date Farmers are native to the desert where we are from. It is an honor to work together with such prolific artists!”
VISTA CHINO’s first North American performance will take place this Sunday June 9th at the “Orion Festival” in Detroit, MI curated by Metallica. VISTA CHINO will appear on the “Frantic Stage”. A full North American tour will be announced shortly
Recently the band debuted the “Dargona, Dragona” on their Facebook Page. When visiting the page, clicking the “like” button will enable the audio.
Rising from the desert sands that birthed Kyuss Lives, VISTA CHINO’s sound is instantly familiar. With the trademark soulful vocals of John Garcia, the songwriting and production of Brant Bjork (drums) and the fuzz-laden riffage of imported guitarist Bruno Fevery, VISTA CHINO’s debut is one of the year’s most anticipated heavy rock albums. A new band born of a storied past, right now it’s about these players playing these songs.
VISTA CHINO Live: 6/9: Detroit, MI @ Orion Festival 7/25: Tienen, Belgium @ Suikerrock 7/26: Feldkirch, Austria @ Poolbar Festival 7/29: Vienna, Austria @ Rock Im Wald Festival 7/31: Pinarella di Cervia, Italy @ Arena 8/3: Lierpop, Holland @ Rock Planet 8/7: Munich, Germany @ Backstage (Free & Easy Festival) 8/8: Geneva, Switzerland @ Usine 8/9: Puttlingen, Germany @ Rocco del Schlako 8/10: Eschwege, Germany @ Open Flair Festival
