Posted in Bootleg Theater on September 2nd, 2013 by JJ Koczan
The hits keep coming from London stoner rock upstarts Steak, who follow the announcement that Napalm Records will release their two to-date EPs on vinyl with a new video for the track “Glanshammar.” The track takes its title from a small section of Örebro, Sweden, which also happens to be where Steak recorded the second of those aforementioned EPs, Corned Beef Colossus, from whence the track comes, with Oskar Cedermalm and Niklas Källgren of Truckfighters. Perhaps unsurprisingly, there’s a good bit of snow to be found in the clip.
Filmed and edited by James Haggerty, “Glanshammar” was captured in Austria, where much snowboarding did ensue. In addition to the video, Steak have been announced as taking part in the first Up in Smoke fest this fall in Switzerland. More info on that (courtesy of Sound of Liberation) follows “Glanshammar” below.
Enjoy:
Steak, “Glanshammar” official video
*** UP IN SMOKE – BREAKING NEWS ***
SOUND OF LIBERATION & Z7 KONZERTFABRIK are thrilled to announce STEAK is now confirmed for the UP IN SMOKE FESTIVAL in Pratteln on October 5 !
STEAK is meatier, mightier and full of stoner protein… a 4-piece shit kickin band from London, UK. Gritz lovin, shore hoppin’ mud slingin’, if you want fuzzed up stoner grooves, then you want a piece of STEAK…
Listen to STEAK if you find you are becoming jaded with our old friend stoner rock, you’ll start to see why it’s still as valuable a genre as any. Dismissed by some as a flash in the pan musical style, STEAK have proved here it is alive and well’.
STEAKhave achieved a considerable status playing at this years DesertFest London and various Snowboard events throughout Europe. Their much celebrated Eps “Disastronaught” and “Corned Beef Colossus” will be released for the first time on vinyl on Sept 27th viaSpinning Goblin /Napalm Records,and with their debut album due for the start of 2014, they are now busy working on new material, so keep an eye on them !
Posted in Whathaveyou on July 25th, 2013 by JJ Koczan
Big congratulations to London-based riff purveyors Steak on the announcement of their newly-inked deal with Napalm Records/Spinning Goblin Productions. Among others, the foursome now get to refer to the noble likes of Vista Chino, Monster Magnet and My Sleeping Karma as “labelmates.” Steak‘s second and latest EP, the most righteously titled Corned Beef Colossus (review here), was released earlier this year to well-earned acclaim.
One more time, well done, gentlemen. Here’s the official word for your perusal:
Spinning Goblin / Napalm Records is proud to announce the worldwide signing of UK’s Stoner/Fuzz Rocker Steak!
STEAK have achieved a considerable status playing fuzz dripping Stoner Rock at this years Desertfest London and various Snowboard events throughout Europe.
The band’s first two comic book artwork gatefold Vinyl EP´s will be released later this and will be simply mind-blowing! Welcome to the family!
“We are totally blown away to be part of Napalm Records, and sharing a label with bands such as Vista Chino, Monster Magnet and The Sword is an amazing honour. With our debut album due for the start of 2014 followed by a European tour, we are busy working on new material in the studio. We hold up an ice cold one and say thanks for opportunity Napalm, you obviously know a good thing when they hear and we respect that!!” – Reece
When last we left them, London-based stoner rockers Steak were fighting an evil slave baron named Lazarus. At least that was the setup from the four-piece’s 2012 debut EP, Disastronaught (review here), an engagingly heavy and righteously fuzzed first outing from the band, who made no bones about who they were or what they wanted to be musically, embracing the desert roots of Kyuss and the subsequent expansion of the style by European outfits like Dozer and Truckfighters. The latter act plays a pivotal role on the follow-up to Disastronaught as well, since the five-track, why-would-anyone-else-ever-try-to-top-this-title Corned Beef Colossus EP was recorded and mixed in Sweden by Truckfighters’ own Oskar Cedermalm and Niklas Källgren at their Studio Bombshelter in Örebro, and Källgren even donates some lead guitar to the opening cut, “Black Milk.” Steak toured with Truckfighters last year in support of the first EP, so that their stamp would show up isn’t necessarily a surprise, but what’s most encouraging about the self-released Corned Beef Colossus – aside from that title, which wins whatever contest you want to put it in – is how much Steak emerges sounding like themselves, playing off influences rather than playing to them. The new collection also picks up the comic book-style narrative of the prior release, which, in keeping consistent with the last review, I present here in its full text:
As the darkness deepens in Cyclone City, its oppressed people languish under the control of the evil Lazarus.
A fight back is taking place led by the band of brothers known as Steak. The unlikely heroes are heading up an underground resistance to take on the might of Lazarus and his army of Doom Riders and are proving to be a thorn in the side of this repressive machine.
Back in his lair, the evil Lazarus and his villainous Professor Griz have been using the flesh of human slaves to create his sickest killer yet, The Corned Beef Colossus. Finding Steak in one of their favoured illegal drinking dens, the Colossus unleashes his might in an epic battle.
Have Steak met their meaty match? Will Large pull through and is this four armed stranger here to stay?
The story continues…
The line “Will Large pull through,” would seem to be a reference to now-former drummer Dan Kinsey, who’s been replaced by newcomer Sammy, who seems to be unrepresented in the artwork. Nonetheless, Sammy joins the returning lineup of vocalist Kippa, guitarist Reece Tee (also of DesertScene and the Desertfest) and bassist Cam, all three showing a clear development sonically from where they were a year ago. Bolstered by the richness of its production, Corned Beef Colossus excellently balances tonal weight and motion of groove, and where Disastronaught was a strong opening statement, the tracks “Black Milk, “Liquid Gold,” “Glanshammar,” “Whiskey Mule” and “Acid Dave” affirm the band as finding their own niche within the current, crowded sphere of British heavy rock and emerging as one of their scene’s most satisfying acts.
So yes, “The story continues,” but it also keeps in some degree to the same parameters as last time out. While Steak have unquestionably grown within their sound, they haven’t made an attempt to fix what wasn’t broken from last time out, and as a companion piece to Disastronaught, Corned Beef Colossus maintains the straightforward structural sensibility of its predecessor. The cuts here also continue a lot of the charm present in the material last time out, songs working efficiently to maximize their impact over the course of the EP’s relatively-quick 26 minutes. “Black Milk” and “Liquid Gold” make a particularly effective opening duo, each with a distinct mood and feel, but a consistent strength in its hook – Kippa’s vocals reinforcing the rhythms set forth by the guitar but beginning to show some melodic breadth of their own, especially on “Liquid Gold” – while the guest lead from Källgren adds further distinction to the leadoff on “Black Milk.” His tone should be readily recognizable for anyone who heard Truckfighters’ last outing, 2009’s Mania, but he sits in well alongside Reece and Cam in the second half of the song, rejoined by the vocals for a final chorus toward the conclusion. Though it’s working in a mood if its own, somewhat darker, with the vocals further back in the mix, “Liquid Gold” is perhaps the most tonally satisfying track on Corned Beef Colossus, proffering a near-overdose of bass from Cam as an undercurrent of low end for the drums to slice through en route to punctuating and, eventually, driving, the groove in the chorus. Reece seems to be taking cues from Källgren in the final minute’s solo, but it works well in the fade-out ending, which leads to the Kyuss-derived centerpiece “Glanshammar,” also the shortest cut here at 3:26 where everything else hovers between five minutes and the 6:34 of “Liquid Gold.”
If one thinks of life as a quest for the perfect title, then London heavy rockers Steak have already won. The four-piece will issue their new EP, Corned Beef Colossus, on May 24.
You might like to take a second and let that sink in — perhaps close your eyes and contemplate the sandwich that could inspire such a title. Well, don’t take too long, because Steak (who killed at this year’s Desertfest) have a video for the track “Liquid Gold” from the EP, which is the follow-up to last year’s sci-fi/comic-themed Disastronaught(review here). If the snowboarding tricks — impressive as they are — are anything to go by, Steak seem to have let some of the futuristic narrative slide, but with a recording job by members of Truckfighters at their studio in Sweden, a crisp, profuzzional sound makes sure “Liquid Gold” leaves an impression anyway.
Corned Beef Colossusis out May 24. Enjoy “Liquid Gold”:
