Posted in Bootleg Theater on October 13th, 2014 by JJ Koczan
This one hit me like a punch directly in the demographic. I remember well playing Zelda II: The Adventure of Link for NES, and having no idea of what was actually happening in the game. Back in the day, an RPG would just basically tell you “go here and get this thing and try not to die on the way” and that was the game. Turn-based battle was the shit, and Final Fantasy always had that over Zelda in my book, but no question the Zelda series has some of the best games ever made in it, between A Link to the Past for SNES and The Ocarina of Time for N64. Classic stuff.
Much to the credit of Wisconsin heavy rockers Romero, who released their debut LP, Take the Potion (review here), last year, the plotline of their 8-bit-style video for the title-track actually makes more sense than did the actual plotline of Zelda II. Drummer/vocalist Ben Brooks goes on an adventure with zombies and a stash of reefer and gradually builds an army of the undead — whose sole purpose, by the look of it, is to party — and eventually saves the Princess with a magic potion made of the last of his stash and whatever else, thus becoming “a real hero.” All the while we cut periodically back to the band — Brooks, guitarist/vocalist Jeffrey Mundt, bassist Patrick Hotlen and guitarist/organist Tim Consequence — who are rocking out “Take the Potion” in, what else?, a dungeon.
As videos go, “Take the Potion” is a lot more fun and a lot more creative than four dudes rocking out in a room, and it goes a long way in conveying Romero‘s unpretentious vibe, the band not taking themselves too seriously as they bust out what’s still a killer track from the album that shares its name. The clip comes with a promise of new music soon, so that’ll definitely be one to watch for. In the meantime, enjoy:
They only made 50, and when I was in the process of writing up Romero‘s new album, Take the Potion(review here), I stumbled on the band’s prior cassette single — yes, a cassingle — dubbed Couch Lock/In the Heather. Released through Triceratrax Records last year, the limited pressing comes complete with red tape, a 7″ x 14″ foldout (the kind that would normally house a 7″ record) with 3D graphics and 3D glasses to see them. Sorry, but that’s frickin’ awesome.
Both the included tracks on the tape, “Couch Lock” and “In the Heather,” were re-recorded for Take the Potion, but neither is wanting for production on the single either, even if they’re somewhat rawer than they’d wind up. I’ll admit when I shelled out the cash for the tape (I think it was five bucks), it was the packaging that drew me in — the art is by Miranda Martin and guitarist/vocalist Jeffrey Mundt — but it’s not like the Wisconsin trio put all this effort and detail into a practice tape.
And speaking of detail, even the inside of the tape liner — the J-card, as I learned this week that they’re called because of their bend — has a 3D design:
But the righteousness of the design goes further than just the 3D stuff. The layout of the lyric sheet on the inside of the foldout poster (designed by drummer Ben Brooks) is also well thought out and stylized, not to mention hand-numbered:
Of course, there’s good news and bad news. Taking latter first, the pressing of 50 is sold out. I bought the last tape even before I was done with the album review. So unless Romero decide to do another round somewhere down the line, it’s a goner. The good news, however, is that Couch Lock/In the Heather is still up for a pay-what-you-want download, so if you’re thinking of hitting it up, there’s still some opportunity. They’ve even got the 3D images up in case you have a spare pair of glasses around.
Posted in Reviews on March 22nd, 2013 by JJ Koczan
There are few lines drawn in heavy underground rock that Madison, Wisconsin, three-piece Romero don’t cross on their debut full-length, Take the Potion. Fluidly touching on heavy rock, crashing into doom and caustic sludge while keeping an eye toward the pop melodies of Torche, the post-hardcore threat of later Akimbo and leaving room for a Sleep-derived riff-out at the end, the seven-track collection is perhaps most surprising in how well it’s all held together. Worth noting in that regard that for a band putting out their first album, Romero aren’t lacking for experience. Guitarist/vocalist Jeffrey Mundt drummed for Naked Aggression in the ‘90s, among others, and Take the Potion (released by Grindcore Karaoke) follows two preliminary singles, Couch Lock and Solitaire +1 (more on them here), so it’s not unexpected that Romero would come into their full-length debut with a decent sense of how they wanted to sound. Indeed, both sides of Couch Lock – those being “Couch Lock” and “In the Heather” – show up on Take the Potion as well, the latter as the closer. What surprises is the level of cohesiveness the three-piece harness throughout the songs, working in a variety of structures and with a swath of influences beyond those noted above, so that the oncoming rush of opener “Compliments and Cocktails” gives way to a catchy stoner verse and chorus before opening to a midsection of tom-heavy beefy hardcore shouts, like all of a sudden Pro-Pain showed up at the studio as Romero were 2:57 seconds into the 6:22 track and decided to take over. Maybe that’s a stretch, but it’s to the band’s credit – the rhythm section of bassist Steve Stanczyk and drummer/vocalist Benjamin Brooks alongside Mundt — that they’re able to transition so smoothly back into the more melodic verse and chorus. “Compliments and Cocktails” is a solid beginning in that it sets up the listener to never quite know what turn Romero might make within a song – after conveying monotony in the opener’s chorus without actually becoming monotonous, they even throw in a little organ near the end – and the rest of Take the Potion doesn’t fail to catch off guard, whether it’s the creeping initial build of second track “Couch Lock” or the stomp that shows up later in the yelling stretch of “Wheeling Deervish” on side B. Throughout, Romero, who recorded and mixed over the course of last year in cooperation with Mark Whitcomb (Phillip Cope of Kylesa mastered), distinguish their methods and showcase a powerful approach that sounds natural even as it melds genre elements often thought of as being at odds.
Primarily, this shit is heavy, and heaviness seems to be its main concern. That is, I don’t imagine Romero sat around in smoking jackets and plotted out second by second how they were going to tie different pieces of heavy rock together to create their own sound from them. More likely they just focused on writing good songs, which however impressive the other achievement might be is at the root of what makes it so. “Couch Lock,” re-recorded and cleaner-sounding than it was on the single, starts slow and arrives at a massive lumber signaled by Brooks’ drums, the plod soon topped with layers of shouting from the drummer and Mundt. Just when it seems they’ve exhausted the part, about two minutes later, they pick up the pace and shift into a faster, driving groove no less heavy but rife with energy and inviting swagger, riding the part out until the final hits recall the stomp from whence they emerged. Two tracks in, and already Romero’s Take the Potion has convinced me to do just that – I’m on board to follow them wherever they might go – and the psychedelic opening of “One Means Four,” some chime added for percussive ethereality, proves easy enough to follow. Stanczyk’s bassline holds the intro together, so that when the track kicks into the shouting verse and cleaner chorus, it makes an eerie kind of sense, gang shouts coming on near the midpoint to foreshadow a surprising rush in what turns out to be a deceptively linear build, breaking here, swarming there, never quite fully playing its hand until the last minute, when it brings back those shouts for another go. By the time you’ve caught up to it, Romero have moved onto the shorter (4:00, the shortest on the album) title-track, a centerpiece that casts off the long-intro ethic of “Couch Lock” and “One Means Four” in favor of immediate pummel with its verse riff. Brooks works a groove out on his ride while the trio crafts momentum out of what’s otherwise a familiar stoner progression, mounting effective stops in the chorus, Mundt’s guitar leading one riff cycle into the next. A solo after the chorus leads to a quieter break, still in motion and bouncing in Stanczyk’s bass, but topped with quick spoken word that leads to crashes that to my ears are enough to justify the Akimbo comparison above. That burst of energy transitions smoothly into the early shuffle of “Distraction Tree,” marking the movement into a second half of Take the Potion no less seamless than the first.
Posted in Whathaveyou on January 9th, 2013 by JJ Koczan
The future kinda sucks. You know it and I know it. We were promised hoverboards, Martian colonies, kickass robots, Freejack and a bunch of other stuff, and all we’ve got is an even shittier version of iTunes than the last one. Thanks for nothing, existence.
One good thing to come out of, oh, the last 30 years of human development has been live streaming shows, and Wisconsin-based riff slingers Romero will take advantage of that technology for upcoming Jan. 18 gig on Red Dragon TV. The band (On the Radar’ed here) are about to release their debut full-length, Take the Potiondigitally on Jan. 29 through Grindcore Karaoke and have launched a Kickstarter to help fund a vinyl release. More on that here.
Details follow:
ROMERO “Take The Potion” LP will be released on Tuesday, January 29, 2013.
ROMERO Live Performance & Webcast! January 18, 2013 @ 7pm (US Central standard time) The band will be playing songs from the “Take The Potion” LP and doing a short interview for the cameras of Red Dragon TV in Madison, WI. The show will be broadcast LIVE on the net through the Red Dragon TV website, Ustream & BlogTV, simultaneously. Our friends and supporters from all over the world will finally be able to see & hear ROMERO play live and will have the opportunity to chat with us on-the-air. Get more information fromhttp://reddragontv.tv/or stay tuned to our FACEBOOK page for updates.
LIVE on Inna Godda Davida! w/ Studio Audience & live broadcast on the net!
Show Details 7:00-7:20 Host Greeting and Introduction. Performance 7:20-7:25 – Short Break, station id etc 7:25-7:35 Interview 7:35-7:37 Short Break, Station Id etc 7:37-8:00 Performance.
There is a suggested donation of $5.00 for all guests. These funds go to the Red Dragon TV Cultural Center.
ROMERO Tour in March? Maybe. More details sooner than later.
