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I Promise, This is the Last “…of the Year”-Type Post

Posted in Features on December 31st, 2009 by JJ Koczan

After this, we’re done with 2009, but before January gets here and we all step one day closer to armageddoom, there are a couple experiences I want to share/rehash one more time, since they turned out to be defining moments of the year. There were a bunch of great shows and festivals, good times were had, but there was little that compared with Roadburn and Planet Caravan.

Flying to The Netherlands for the first time was cool enough in itself, but going with a purpose — specifically to see the Saint Vitus reunion — made it all the better. And bearing witness to acts like Ufomammut, Colour Haze (for the second time), Cathedral, Church of Misery, Wino, Firebird, Neurosis and about a million others only added to the excitement. But really, it was the communion with the gods that motivated me to get off my ass and finally get over there, and I can honestly say that Roadburn 2009 was the pinnacle of the year. I’ve mentioned it more times than I can even think of in reviews and interviews with bands, and it has shaped every opinion of shows I’ve been to since — usually to their detriment. Even seeing Vitus in Brooklyn, as killer as it was, didn’t stack up to seeing them at 013 in Tilburg.

By contrast, I drove 10 hours solid to get to Asheville, North Carolina, for Planet Caravan. The vibe was much more American, even though the bands weren’t necessarily — Orange Goblin being a notable import for the occasion — and although it couldn’t really compare to Roadburn in its inaugural state, there were no shortage of incredible acts to check out: Zoroaster, Clutch, Burst, Wino again, Kylesa and Pentagram all ruled, but it was YOB who, like Vitus, got me off the couch. Admittedly, a close second was catching the legendary awesomeness of Pentagram for the first time (I’d missed those shows they did in NYC), and knowing it was probably the only time I’d ever get the chance to see Burst made that all the more special. But true enough to what I expected going into it, YOB destroyed all in their path. Worth pulling out the earplugs for, worth the hearing loss residual.

I’ll stop short of waxing poetic or intellectual about the meaningful nature of these sets since, as Devin Townsend reminds us, “It’s just entertainment, folks,” but there’s something to be said about what you do with your time and the memories you make as you go along. Actually, there’s a lot to be said about it, but I think it’s mostly implied. In any case, of all the places I managed to put myself in 2009 — grad school, this chair (a lot), numerous record stores, etc. — I know as long as I remember anything, I’ll remember Planet Caravan and especially Roadburn.


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Bison B.C. Interview with James Gnarwell: In Memory of The Blue Bitch

Posted in Features on December 3rd, 2009 by JJ Koczan

Fisheye rock. (Photo by Schmitty)As far as I’m concerned, one of the highlights of this year’s inaugural Planet Caravan festival was getting the chance to see Bison B.C. at what was essentially a club show. Just down the block at The Orange Peel was the main stage, but at Mo Daddy’s, the vibe was less festival and more killer bar night. Since Bison are from Vancouver, it’s not like they get to Jersey much, and after grooving on their 2008 Metal Blade debut, Quiet Earth, the tectonic riffage and beery/beardy good times were most welcome in Asheville.

A short while ago, it was brought to my attention that the four-piece — James Gnarwell and Dan And on vocals/guitar, Masa Anzai on bass and Brad MacKinnon on drums — are currently in the studio working on the follow up to Quiet Earth, and it seemed like a cool idea to check in with them to get some quick thoughts on the new material and how everything was/is coming together. Gnarwell was kind enough to field the email interview, and the resulting Q&A is after the jump. Enjoy.

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This is Here Because it is Awesome

Posted in Bootleg Theater on September 29th, 2009 by JJ Koczan

…And because awesomeness is its own excuse for being:

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I Hope You Enjoy this Orange Goblin Interview Because it Took Me all Damn Day to YouTube It

Posted in Features on September 24th, 2009 by JJ Koczan

OG Mach 2 in training.Seriously, this whole afternoon, and to be perfectly honest, I’m not even sure it’s done right.

What you’ll find enclosed in the following two YouTube clips is the interview I conducted this past weekend at the Planet Caravan Festival with UK doom lords Orange Goblin. It was with the whole band and we all sat in the backstage area at The Orange Peel while Taddy Porter‘s set came through the walls. Sorry about the background noise. You can kick me in the jimmy when next we meet and hopefully that’ll make up for it.

My initial plan for today was to sit down with the recorded interview (actually it was the plan for Tuesday, but that’s a different story entirely) and transcribe it all out, but I’m sure once you listen to 30 seconds of the first half of the interview and then stop it out of impatience you’ll understand why that didn’t work out. Not the best quality ever. Mostly I blame Taddy Porter. Then myself. In that order.

But it was my goal to have a beer with Orange Goblin, and I accomplished that. Planet Caravan being their only US show this year and their new album not due until 2010 — which is the future! — basically we just shot the shit for a little while about what it’s like to be in Orange Goblin, what they’ve got in store going forward and how Planet Caravan compares to Roadburn and the dearly-missed Emissions from the Monolith.

Enjoy. Oh, and any Solace fans might want to start with pt. 2, wherein Ben Ward calls them fucking scumbags. Classic.


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No More Dodging the Caravan

Posted in Reviews, Whathaveyou on September 22nd, 2009 by JJ Koczan

I feel compelled to do a wrap of the last day of Planet Caravan in this space, though the longer review will be posted sooner or later over at Brooklyn Vegan and that pretty much covers it. Even so, I humbly offer this quick rundown of the night for anyone interested. Thanks for tolerating the lack of photos here and updates these last several weeks as there’s been a major shift in the amount of available time I have to devote to reviews, interviews and whathaveyou. Rest assured I’m in no way finished with this experiment.

So, Saturday, Sept. 19, Asheville, NC:

The Pentagram Interview: Never happened. Kind of a shitter, but after hearing Bobby Liebling talking on the stage later in the night, maybe it’s for the best.

The Orange Goblin Interview: Did happen. I walked in and found Ben Hogg having a beer with them before any of the bands started. Ben Hogg is a Southern drinker, and I say that with the utmost respect. Interview was with the whole band, and it took a little time to get going, but was good and once I mentioned I knew the dudes from Solace, things were friendly. I should have it up around here one of these days.

Orchid: It’s saying something when even a room full of drunken doomers is laughing because of how blatantly you’ve ripped off Black Sabbath.

Taddy Porter: I missed most of them because of the Orange Goblin interview, but they were crazy young and all kinds of bluesy. They were on at The Orange Peel while Batillus played Mo Daddy’s next door. I don’t know who drew more people because, again, I was otherwise occupied.

Astra: A big bowl of noodles. Also the skinniest band of the festival. San Francisco hipster prog that was disappointing live after somewhat digging the record. I was back and forth between them and Salome and neither really did it for me.

Salome: Had expensive amplifiers, a heavily bearded drummer and a little blond girl doing death growls on vocals. No bass. Needless to say they’ll probably be the biggest thing in the world come two weeks from now.

YOB: Are the reason I made the trip. After waiting for more than half a decade to see them live, I can honestly say it was worth it by the time they were halfway through set-opener “Quantum Mystic.” Everything else was cake. Easily the highlight of the weekend. It was the first time I’d stood up front for a band because I actually liked them in a long while. Also met Mike Scheidt after the set (for not the first time) and he was a super-cool guy.

The Gates of Slumber: They played Mo Daddy’s and I watched from outside in the rain because the entire crowd who had been watching YOB ran over to catch the last 15 minutes of their set. Was worth it to see Karl Simon soloing.

Orange Goblin: Don’t know how to do anything other than kick ass, so that’s what they did. Covered “Into the Void” and still didn’t sound as much like Sabbath as Orchid did. Ben Ward is a monster who eats the souls of children.

Hull: Had a tough slot opposite Orange Goblin, but did their best and were helped by their time on the road. Congrats to guitarist Nick Palmirotto on his newfound sobriety as well. After this weekend I’m considering a dose of that for myself.

Pentagram: Were exciting more in theory than practice, though Bobby Liebling is a madman and Gary Isom killed it on drums. Was a sight to see when Victor Griffin came out and played on the encore of “When the Screams Come.” “Forever My Queen” kicked ass as well, and Liebling announced a new album called Last Rites to be released next year. Should be interesting.

That’s it. The entirety of Sunday was spent driving home nursing some serious heartburn after ouevos rancheros at The Laughing Seed, a vegetarian restaurant in Asheville. I guess now I know what that seed finds so damn funny. I missed the SunnO)))/Eagle Twin show in Philly owing to timing, and will sadly miss them again in Brooklyn tonight due to prior commitments. Bummer all around. Yesterday I spent recovering, doing class work and at my orthopedist. In many ways, I still feel like I’m traveling even though I’m back in the valley at long last and for most of the day today.

Thanks for reading.

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Ashes to Asheville

Posted in Reviews, Whathaveyou on September 19th, 2009 by JJ Koczan

Day One of the Planet Caravan fest was last night, and a fest it was indeed, though I could see why they cut ticket prices as the go date drew closer. Even as the evening wore on and it got more crowded, there was still plenty of milling-about room. The bands ruled: highlights were Burst‘s set (despite technical problems), Bison B.C. doing “These are My Dress Clothes” over at Mo Daddy’s next to The Orange Peel, Clutch (of course) and Kylesa riffing out “Running Red” and sounding more massive than I’ve ever heard them. Last time I caught a set of theirs was in Austin, TX, a couple years ago and their two drummers played on an open trailer while the rest of the band stood on a back yard. That was cool, this was better.

Sourvein canceled, which was a shitter since they were kind of the sludge representatives for the day. Zoroaster are doomy, don’t get me wrong, but I was looking forward to seeing T-Roy and Co. tear it up in their native habitat. My sorrows I drowned in beer. Finally met Ben Hogg, who didn’t realize he knew me, toasted Ben Ward from Orange Goblin, whom I’m supposed to be interviewing in a scant couple hours, and fists with the guitarist from Zoroaster, whose set I missed entirely. Classy.

The plan for today: Shower shortly, go back to the Early Girl Eatery for another black bean and cheddar cheese omelet (holy shit that was good), kill a couple hours by any means necessary, then meet up with the Pentagram dudes for a sitdown interview. Then a beer with Ben Orange Goblin and probably finish with that in time to catch Taddy Porter about whom I know absolutely nothing. My mission for the show tonight is to make it through Pentagram‘s set. Hardly lofty aspirations, but I’m old and lame. Need better pacing on the hooch intake. First night’s always the roughest.

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…I Thought They Knew How to Rock in Bristol

Posted in Whathaveyou on September 17th, 2009 by JJ Koczan

Hippie Town. Gonna get me some new sandals.Holy shit, the post page on this laptop is ridiculously small. I made it alive to Asheville, and starting tomorrow, will have reports on the Planet Caravan fest over at Brooklyn Vegan, who were kind enough to let me cover this for them even after I did Roadburn earlier in the year. Some people never learn.

In any case, if you get a chance, please check out the posts over there because, well, the more hits they get, the more likely the site is to let me do more stuff for them. It’s self-interest, I’ll be honest. Doesn’t mean you shouldn’t check out their digs though. And what lovely digs they are. If I could maintain a blog half that bloggy hip, I’d be a god damned internet rockstar. Meantime I’m just drunk in North Carolina. So take that, everything.

More tomorrow.

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Orange Goblin Come Back to Take the Living

Posted in Bootleg Theater on September 9th, 2009 by JJ Koczan

Just getting myself psyched up for the long drive next week down to the Planet Caravan festival, which Brooklyn Vegan has generously allowed me to cover for them. It’s a killer bill, with Pentagram, Clutch, YOB and a ton of others, but there are few I’m looking forward to seeing as much as the UK‘s Orange Goblin, who flat out destroy live. Here’s a video of “They Come Back” filmed in 2007 in Italy to illustrate my point.

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