Posted in Whathaveyou on January 31st, 2023 by JJ Koczan
This looks utterly doable. You get into London maybe Friday morning, find your way to Hackney and the Oslo venue in time for the start, check out a few killers on Friday, then spend Saturday and Sunday fully immersed in the front-to-back, digging on the variety mostly of London’s own heavy underground, but certainly from some outside as well. I kind of feel like every time Slomatics book a show at this point I end up writing about it one way or the other — they mostly play fests, so it’s almost true — but along the top line here with them is Gnome — as seen on many 2023 lineups — Conan and Esoteric. That’s a strong argument already, but with the likes of Josiah and Desert Storm and Old Horn Tooth further down the bill there’s more to dig into than headliners to be sure. If you haven’t heard Goblinsmoker yet and want a tutorial on UK sludge, they’re glad to offer.
If I had more money than gawd and fewer responsibilities than I do, this would be the kind of thing I’d pop over to hang out at. It’s not about big bands or any kind of pretense or whatever. It’s just a killer assemblage playing out over what’ll be a good weekend for those fortunate enough to see it. Some familiar, some newer acts, just the way it should be. Nothing more to ask.
Tickets are available, and the venue’s right by Hackney Central train station and there’s a Travelodge there and a Tesco down the road, so if you’re looking to set up shop coming in from out of town, it’s doable. Full lineup follows:
We’re back in the ring to take another swing!
London Doom Collective are proud to bring you the best of the underground doom/stoner/sludge with Master of the Riff II
Posted in Whathaveyou on April 30th, 2021 by JJ Koczan
It’s good to see you again, Desertfest London. The 2022 lineup of the esteemed British edition of Desertfest brings some returning presences who were to have been at the 2020 edition, then the 2021 — both of course gone the way of corona. But we see Electric Wizard, Shellac and Witchcraft in headlining spots, while Corrosion of Conformity will bring their delayed 25th anniversary of Deliverance to Camden Town, and returning kingpins Orange Goblin will play, along with YOB, Truckfighters, Earthless, My Sleeping Karma, Mos Generator, Conan, The Obsessed, the reunited Josiah, Lowrider come for a Refractions victory lap well earned, along with Elephant Tree, Elder, Steak, Deathrite and a ton from the UK’s own ever-blossoming underground scene — Blind Monarch, The Brothers Keg, King Witch, the more established Alunah and Trippy Wicked, and so on and so many.
Note Slomosa. Note Wolftooth. I would expect both to be touring Europe around this time. Green Lung too, for that matter.
There’s no way this isn’t going to be one to remember and it is my sincere hope to be there for it. Maybe I’ll see you there. Maybe we can hug.
Kudos and thanks to the Desertscene crew — Sarika, Jake and Reece — on and for a job well done.
Here’s looking forward:
DESERTFEST LONDON ANNOUNCE FULL LINE-UP FOR 2022 ·
A DECADE IN THE DESERT CELEBRATING TEN YEARS WITH THE BIGGEST & MOST DIVERSE LINEUP YET
EXCLUSIVE UK PERFORMANCES FROM WITCHCRAFT (FIRST UK SHOW IN OVER A DECADE) and SHELLAC
As the home for all the things truly heavy, leading independent UK festival Desertfest have announced their full line up for 2022, which will take place in Camden, London from Friday 29th April – Sunday 1st May.
Celebrating their tenth year, next year’s festival promises to be their biggest and most diverse yet. Covering six venues across the heart of Camden and now including a full line up at The Roundhouse on both Saturday 30thApril and Sunday 1st May.
Founding owner of Desertfest Reece Tee comments, “Desertfest is 10 years old! I’m so proud that our independent festival has stood the test of time. What we have created is special, a decade of great bands, great friends and amazing memories. This year’s line up is a true reflection of how diverse Desertfest has become and with such a loyal audience, Desertfest can champion the underground for decades more to come.”
Headlining the Friday will be Swedish heavy rock masters Witchcraft, with a UK exclusive performance and their first UK show in over a decade. Saturday’s headliners are none other than Chicago’s Shellac, who in another UK exclusive will be bringing their experimental post-hardcore sound to the Roundhouse. Fronted by the iconic Steve Albini, Shellac are one of those bands we all need to experience live, at least once. Whilst closing the festival on Sunday will be UK doom legends Electric Wizard, whose heavy sound encompasses the spirit of Desertfest.
Other acts confirmed include the likes of Corrosion Of Conformity, Orange Goblin and Truckfighters who all played the festival in its debut year in 2012 and there are further UK exclusive performances from hardcore-punks Integrity and the Ukrainian psych space rock trio Somali Yacht Club.
The festival will also see desert legends Brant Bjork and Nick Oliveri’s new band Stoner, who will be playing the Electric Ballroom and doomed heavy metallers Khemmis making their UK debut at The Underworld.
Please see below for the full Desertfest 2022 line up / stage splits. Tickets are on sale now and are available at www.desertfest.co.uk
NEW TICKETS FOR 2022 Weekend Ticket (all venues) – £132 +fees Friday Day Ticket (all venues) – £45 +fees Saturday Day Ticket (all venues) – £50 +fees Sunday Day Ticket (all venues) – £50 +fees Saturday Roundhouse only – £35 +fees Existing ticket holders from 2020’s postponed event have a number of options as the festival is now larger, with an added Roundhouse line-up on Saturday 30th April & Sunday 1st May.
EXISTING WEEKEND + DAY TICKET HOLDERS OPTIONS Full refund Weekend roll-over to 2022 without Roundhouse upgrade (access only to Electric Ballroom, Underworld, Black Heart & The Dev) Weekend roll-over to 2022 with Roundhouse upgrade – £15 +fees Day ticket holders can upgrade to a full weekend ticket – £92 + fees – or will be issued a refund. Upgrade options only available until May 7th ’21. For any ticketing enquiries please contact sarika@desertscene.co.uk
Desertfest 2022’s artwork is hand drawn by legendary artist Arik Roper who has created illustrations for the likes of Sleep, Earth, Sunn O))), High on Fire, Kvelertak, Windhand and many more. As always, posters and other merch will be available to buy at the festival.
Posted in Whathaveyou on September 10th, 2020 by JJ Koczan
A band playing a release show might not ordinarily be news, but this is 2020. Note that The Brothers Keg‘s celebration of their debut album, Folklore, Myths & Legends (review here), is taking place at London’s famed The Black Heart venue, and that it’s limited capacity, small-group seating only. 45 people get to go. I’ve been lucky enough to be in that upstairs room at The Black Heart where they do shows, and it’s by no means big, but I’d guess it holds about 150 when they’re crammed in, so 45 I guess is about right for these days. The show is put on by Desertscene — also known for Desertfest — and will feature The Grand Mal as well.
I don’t know how The Black Heart will work it with the bar downstairs and upstairs, and stuff like that, but I assume there will be copious mask-age involved, and maybe even some of those plastic faceshields. If you’re in that part of the world and thinking about going — having recently attended a live performance myself, it was spiritually refreshing in the extreme — maybe you just want to go all out and get a welding mask. Whatever it takes. I also just read about the UK locking down on social gatherings of more than like six people starting next Monday, so I don’t even know how that will affect this. Could be REALLY limited capacity, I guess. Like two people in the crowd, which would make it like heavy rock shows in the early ’00s.
But the show’s sold out its 45 spaces, by the way, as one might expect. Good luck, you intrepid pavers of the way. I hope the gig happens.
Desertscene posted the following:
***DESERTSCENE – THE BROTHERS KEG – NEW SHOW ANNOUNCEMENT*** FOR 2020!
We’re very excited to be teaming up with our friends at The Black Heart to dip our toes back into the world of non-virtual, actually in a room with other human beings, live music events. Next Thursday we will be bringing you a limited capacity, socially distanced album release show from The Brothers Keg, with support from The Grand Mal. The current capacity for this show is 45 people and seated tickets will be available in groups of 2, 3 or 4 only – with some tasty Stone & Wood Brewing + ticket combos to boot.
More details about the social distance guidelines & on-the-day protocols can be found via the event page or ourblackheart.com. We really hope you’ll join us in trying to kickstart our scene back into action!
London heavy rockers The Brothers Keg will release their debut album, Folklore, Myths & Legends, through APF Records on Sept. 18. The album follows behind a well received 2017 demo of similar title, Folklore, Myths & Legends of The Brothers Keg (review here), and runs a gamut from the brash rock of “No Earthly Form” and largesse of “Introducing the Brothers Keg” to the prog-style ambience and narration of “…From the Records of Arthur Shnee” and “The Ice Melteth” and “From the Battle of Castle Keg” to the wink at The Beatles‘ “Within You Without You” in the 12-minute space-doomer “Brahman,” with the brazen sludgy shouts in the culminating “Castle Keg” and the spare guitar and aptly-titled spoke “Epilogue” at the end for good measure.
With the nine-minute “Moorsmen” at the outset, it is something of a dizzying back and forth array, but what it works out to is each ‘song’ song is followed by a companion interlude, with the exception of “Introducing the Brothers Keg” and “Brahman” in the album’s midsection, and “Moorsmen” begins with an introductory sample/spoken part as well, so clearly the storyline is a major factor in what The Brothers Keg are bringing to their first record. It’s an ambitious 43 minutes presented across the nine total tracks by bassist/vocalist Paul Rosser, guitarist/vocalist Tom Hobson and drummer Tom Fyfe (the latter two also of Stubb), and while the sound of the album has raw aspects — the shouts, the crackly speech, the pop of the snare drum — that does not take away from the atmosphere the three-piece are able to conjure. It is fitting that “Moorsmen” should be the first audio to make its way to public ears from Folklore, Myths & Legends, since it functions much as a closer otherwise might in terms of summarizing the proceedings that follow, from its angular and sludgy earlier riffs all the way to its spacious and headspinning solo later on.
Ultimately, with “Moorsmen,” The Brothers Keg charge into the story the telling of which consumes the rest of the album, but rest assured, it well earns each of its nine minutes. The video is suitably over the top and features not only elements of the plotline, but also a bit of lightning coming off Rosser, Hobson and Fyfe for good measure. That too is only appropriate as throughout their debut, The Brothers Keg make their enjoyment of what they’re doing as up front as their riffs. It’s a willfully peculiar record, but has a certain charm for that, and it’s clear that The Brothers Keg were going all-in on the recording and bringing their ideas to life. You can dig as deep into it as you like, or you can just enjoy the grooves and the figurative (and literal, in the case of the video) lightning. It’s really up to the listener, but the record works either way.
I’m happy of course to host the premiere of the “Moorsmen” video, which you’ll find below, followed by APF‘s announcement of the record and a choice quote from Hobson, the all-over-the-place-all-over-the-top nature of which sums up the record more beautifully than I ever could.
Please enjoy:
The Brothers Keg, “Moorsmen” official video premiere
Sometimes, heavy isn’t purely about brutal riffs and gut-wrenching, despair-invoking themes; often, heaviness shines through when it’s filtered through jam-invoking psychedelic tightness. The Brothers Keg fall into that latter side of heavy, and in their few short years have become one of the finest examples of it in the whole of the UK.
Made up of the rhythm section of psych / stoner scene mainstays STUBB – with Tom Fyfe on drums and Tom Hobson switching out his bass for guitar / vocal duties – as well as Paul Rosser, who completes the trio on bass / vocals, The Brothers Keg have been kicking up an avalanche of the finest elements of stoner-doom as well as grunged-out psychedelia since their formation in London in 2018.
Now we are finally able to unleash The Brothers Keg’s debut album “Folklore, Myths and Legends of The Brothers Keg” upon you. Recorded at Bear Bites Horse Studio in London (Green Lung, Terminal Cheesecake, Opium Lord and many others), producer Wayne Adams has expertly extracted the esoteric essence of the project, and the spirit of the KEG flows freely in full force. The album, as the title suggests, follows the origin story of ‘The Brothers Keg’ – three ancient folk characters which the band is named after.
Tom Hobson: “We imagined the record as akin to a fantasy film soundtrack, with cinematic voiceovers and a nod to sci-fi classics. Expect heavy riffing psyched-out sci-fi doomageddon. HP Lovecraft meets Queen’s Flash Gordon listening to Jeff Wayne’s War of the Worlds at the wrong speed smoking a medieval spliff dipped in poppers.”
Tracklisting 1. Moorsmen 2. …From the Records of Arthur Shnee 3. No Earthly Form 4. The Ice Melteth 5. Introducing the Brothers Keg 6. Brahman 7. From the Battle of Castle Keg 8. Castle Keg 9. Epilogue
The Brothers Keg are: Tom Hobson – Guitar/Vocals Paul Rosser – Bass/Vocals Tom Fyfe – Drums
Posted in Whathaveyou on October 8th, 2019 by JJ Koczan
Desertfest London 2020 has made its first lineup announcement, with nine acts serving as the foundation of the fray set to take place May 1-3 next year. This one happened a bit ago, concurrent I think to the Desertfest Berlin first announcement, but, well, life happens I guess. Either way, the two festivals will share an artwork theme for the first time, which feels only appropriate — one hopes Desertfest New York does the same next September, if only because I’d like to buy a poster on this theme — as well as a few acts in the likes of Masters of Reality, Corrosion of Conformity, Brant Bjork, and Orange Goblin.
They may end up sharing more than that, of course, between the bands that each has thus far revealed. There’s always a bit of stagger between one and the other as they add locals — The Brothers Keg and Green Lung and Black Orchids come to mind here — to distinguish themselves and each offer something of its own to attendees. I wouldn’t be surprised, for example, if The Picturebooks and Possessor wound up playing Berlin too, but that hasn’t been announced yet if it’s going to happen at all. You get the point.
The point is Deserfest London 2020 already looks awesome, and if you can make it, you should go. I should go too. We should all go. And hang out. It’ll be fun.
Mark your calendar:
MASTERS OF REALITY, CORROSION OF CONFORMITY, ORANGE GOBLIN + 6 MORE ANNOUNCED AS FIRST ACTS FOR DESERTFEST LONDON 2020
For their first UK appearance in five years, Masters Of Reality – Official will make their Desertfest debut as 2020 headliners next May. One of the most influential bands in desert rock history, with the genres very own Godfather at the reins, Masters is the brainchild of legendary producer Chris Goss (Welcome to Sky Valley, Rated R, Blues for The Red Sun, Songs for The Deaf). Their effortless combination of hard-rock blues with an experimentally progressive tinge makes no apologies for not sticking within the stylised box listeners would assume, yet simultaneously provides the perfect lesson in the musical ethos and story-telling of the Palm Desert scene.
Joining them on the bill will be North Carolina favourites Corrosion Of Conformity whose unmistakable Southern stomp is always a welcome addition, OG’s of the Desertfest family Orange Goblin will celebrate 25 years of relentless riffs and the desert daze continues as living legend Brant Bjork is set to bask in psychedelic sunshine.
Elsewhere we see high-octane German party duo The Picturebooks, London based psychedelic doom devotees GREEN LUNG show just why they are on our ones-to-watch-list and more home-grown talent comes in the form of space sludge stalwarts The Brothers Keg, the unhinged ferocity of Possessor and a journey of groove and reflection with the other-worldly soundscapes of Black Orchids.
Weekend tickets are now on sale and with dozens more bands to still be announced we implore you to pick up a ticket sooner rather than later!
Colour Haze are my that band. You know that band. There’s some resonance there that goes deeper than the average listening experience. I have a couple that bands – YOB, Neurosis, etc. – but in my 15 years of following the Munich trio’s work – which makes me Johnny Comelately when set against the fact that their first album, Chopping Machine (discussed here), came out 23 years ago – I’ve only seen them three times prior. One was Roadburn 2009 (discussed here), another Desertfest London 2013 (review here), and to go way back, Emissions from the Monolith in 2006, which to-date remains the only show they’ve ever played on US soil. I’ve said so before, but that was a moment that genuinely changed my life.
So it was my last night in London before flying back to the US Eastern Seaboard and facing the reality check of bills, stacks of mail – my mail log was on my stolen laptop; whoops – laundry, grocery shopping, and so on, so you’re god damned right I was going to see Colour Haze as they happened to be in town on a tour that brought them to midsize club The Garage for what would be the first non-fest set of theirs I’d ever seen. On my way to the show, I was thinking of what it might bring, for what the room would be like, what the gig would be like, how many people would be there, all that stuff mixed into an anxiety and excitement that lasted pretty much until I walked in the door and saw The Brothers Keg on stage opening the three-band bill.
With Tom Fyfe on drums — also of Stubb – The Brothers Keg made their debut with a demo (discussed here) late last year and played material from that and then some, proffering a blend of heavy, desert rock, shouty sludge and psychedelia that someday, probably years from now, some clever critic is going to dub the “London sound.”
It speaks to Kyuss and Iron Monkey alike, but definitely came of age with some grunge influence, and isn’t unaware of the UK’s massive psychedelic legacy either. At least The Brothers Keg weren’t. They had some bearings to straighten out in terms of overall direction, but as with the demo, their potential was writ large in their live set and they made an excellent opener for the night, tying in some elements that each of the next two acts would share.
Trevor’s Head also had some of that “London sound” to them, but it was more of an undercurrent to an overarching layer of prog-metal weirdness. Fronted by guitarist Roger Atkins they played material from their new album on APF Records, Soma Holiday (review here) and a few older songs from 2016’s Tricolossus. Obviously familiar to the crowd, who sang along as the band rolled through, Trevor’s Head‘s three-vocalist approach allowed them to bring the same variety to their live performance as they brought to the record, and three mics on stage meant that at any given point, any one of Atkins, bassist Aaron Strachan and drummer Matt Ainsworth might be breaking the balls of the others. Elephant Tree had a bit of that going too the other night, albeit with one fewer mic. Call it another London thing. Dudes being dudes and whatnot.
They’re an interesting band, though. All three have significant stage presence in the making, and they play with three discernible personalities, with Atkins the frontman despite being in a level line at the front of the stage with the others, Strachan lost in the world of his five-string, and Ainsworth amiably busting chops between songs while seated behind his kit. Again, they knew people in the crowd, but I think even as others started to show up ahead of Colour Haze, Trevor’s Head represented the coterie of Desertscene — who booked this gig and also runs Desertfest London — with sonic purpose and a bit of the tongue-in-cheek persona that helps define who these groups are.
I was fortunate enough to talk to Colour Haze guitarist/vocalist Stefan Koglek for a bit before they went on, and he mentioned this was their 12th show in as many nights. The night before, they were in France. They’d already been to London once, as well as Porto, Madrid and up to Scotland, etc. That’s not an insignificant run for a band of 20 year olds, let alone a group of veterans who’ve influenced a generation of heavy psychedelic rockers and whose first album, Chopping Machine (discussed here), came out in 1995. And though this was my first time seeing them outside festival confines, I was not at all surprised to find they made a two-hour set seem far too short. They were amazing. I’m speaking literally. I stood there and was amazed.
Bassist Philipp Rasthofer and drummer Manfred Merwald might be the tightest rhythm section I’ve ever seen. It sounds like hyperbole, but I’m being honest. Their smooth shifts in meter, groove and progression were a joy to watch from the start of set-opener “She Said” through pre-encore set-closer “Transformation” — both taken from 2012’s She Said (review here) — and they played with such class both between themselves and in kind with Koglek and keyboardist/synthesist Jan Faszbender that as they made their way through the title-cut of 2006’s Tempel (discussed here), there was funk in their sound, as well as jazz and still enough rock to tie it all together. Merwald drove the linear builds forward as his kit faced sideways on the stage to put him head-on with Faszbender, and in classic fashion, as Rasthofer provided the foundation, it left Koglek‘s guitar free to wander. And it did. Gloriously.
And the tones. My god. The crowd — increasingly drunk, increasingly dancing — cheered from the first note Koglek played, and rightfully so. His and Rastofer‘s tones both are a guiding principle for Colour Haze, and standing in The Garage as the sound bounced off the back of the room and came around again at max volume, it was like swimming in warm water. Running “Skydancer” and “Skydance” from last year’s righteous In Her Garden (review here) together into one ahead of “Überall” from 2015’s To the Highest Gods We Know(review here), they built momentum and brought immersion to a level that I doubt I’d have been able to resist if I’d tried. “Aquamaria” had been an early representation, and along with the encore finale “Love,” it was remarkable what Faszbender — on tour for the first time with the band — brought to the arrangements of material new and old.
In addition to bringing another melodic presence, the keys and synth fleshed out transitions between the songs and worked as much with Koglek as with Rasthofer. “House of Rushammon,” which first appeared on their lost 1998 second album, Seven (discussed here) and later showed up on their 2004 landmark self-titled (discussed here), led off the encore with “Love” behind it, and before they kicked into the latter, Koglek noted from the stage that in these times of increasing nationalism and everything going on in politics, it was something of which the world needed more. From that start, they executed a final swirling build that consumed the crowd to the point that people were jumping up and down in excitement, and one could only pull out one’s earplugs and give in. I won’t say I jumped, but it was one of several points in the set where I just closed my eyes and let go. At one point I turned to The Patient Mrs. — who had had a prior obligation earlier but showed up for the headliner like the proverbial boss she is — and told her I hadn’t felt so good in a year. It was true.
This trip, with its lows and highs, couldn’t have had a better finish. I have packing to do so I’ll keep this short, but between getting robbed and the subsequent support I received, the killer shows I saw, the little bit of record shopping I got to do yesterday (maybe more on that later), seeing good friends and embracing the magic that is British fish pie, I feel like seeing Colour Haze was exactly the kind of summary for how special this time has been. I’m lucky to have experienced it, and incredibly grateful for having the opportunity to do so.
Posted in Whathaveyou on November 14th, 2017 by JJ Koczan
After painstaking hours of keen-eyed detective work, I’ve concluded that the central mission behind the newly-issued two-song Folklore, Myths and Legends of The Brothers Keg by London trio The Brothers Keg is to introduce the band to their audience. How did I come to this resounding realization? Well, the first track on the thing is called “Introducing the Brothers Keg.” There’s that. Also it’s nine minutes long — so I had some time to think about it. That helped too.
Hey folks, it’s a process.
One might recognize guitarist/vocalist Tom Hobson and Tom Fyfe as the current bassist/vocalist and drummer for the soul-rocking trio Stubb. In The Brothers Keg, the transmutated rhythm section brings aboard bassist/vocalist Paul Rosser and with “Introducing the Brothers Keg” and its also-nine-minutes-long companion-piece “Castle Keg,” they hit immediately into a righteous sonic gamut that’s as comfortable basking in the King Buffalo-esque spaciousness of the first song as the post-Sleep roll of the latter, both captured to their fullest in the mixing and mastering job helmed by Chris West (Landskap).
At just under 19 minutes total, it’s not a minor sampling of what The Brothers Keg can do at this point, and while one might expect them eventually to veer away from some of the gruffer aspects they present here in favor of a more melodic approach particularly to the vocals, they use that edge well in these tracks and give a clear signal of where they might be headed and, sure enough, a right and proper introduction.
Check it out:
Download our new demo for free through the link below. Cheers.
