Well, we know Roadburn works in extremes, and we know Becky loves her some Cave In, so seeing them lead the pack here along with the likes of Imperial Triumphant and White Ward seems like fair game. It is, as ever, an off-the-wall, all-over-the-place lineup announcement from Roadburn for 2023, bringing 18 different acts total in just about 18 different styles. This might be the last announcement of the year for the fest, but it will by no means be the last overall. Saturday tickets are sold out, and one expects the rest of the tickets for the four-day fest will go too. Then you’ve got the pre-show, side-programme, maybe the odd entire jazz festival on the side. You never really know except to say there’s more coming.

So hey, there’s more coming. “Redefining heaviness” is hard work but somebody’s gotta do it.

To wit:

Roadburn announces 18 new names – including Boy Harsher and Cave In

Roadburn has added 18 new names to the 2023 line up today, including the Roadburn debut of dark electro duo Boy Harsher, the return of Cave In for two special shows, a new commissioned performance, and the first Artist in Residence. Roadburn will take place between April 20-23, 2023 in Tilburg, The Netherlands. Tickets are on sale now.

Roadburn Artistic Director, Walter Hoeijmakers comments:

“We’re grateful that ticket sales for Roadburn are off to a good start and we are equally happy that the line up is shaping up very nicely as well. As we welcome Roadburn luminaries we are also focusing on bringing new and exciting acts into the fold – all of whom will push boundaries and defy genre expectations. We have also invited several bands to perform multiple shows over the weekend, showcasing different facets of their artistry. It’s our intention to make sure Roadburn 2023 all about exploration and creativity.”

—
New Line Up Additions

Darkwave connoisseurs, BOY HARSHER have been confirmed for two sets at Roadburn 2023 – one is a full live performance, and the other is a DJ set with live elements. Making their Roadburn debut, anticipation is high for when they take over the stage (and turntables) for these special performances.

CAVE IN will return to the main stage at Roadburn for two sets in April. The first carries the title Interstellar Mixtape – the contents of which will remain largely a mystery until they take to the stage. The second set will be a front to back run through of their latest studio album, Heavy Pendulum.

WHITE WARD were scheduled to appear at Roadburn 2020, but fate intervened. Now they will head to Tilburg to perform their latest album, False Light in full..

Also pulling out the stops for an album performance will be IMPERIAL TRIUMPHANT. They will be performing Spirit of Ecstasy in full, with additional accompanying musicians.

WAYFARER will perform two conjoined, career spanning sets titled A High Plains Eulogy. The sets will dive into their back catalogue, as well as preview brand new as-yet-unreleased material.

CIRCUIT DES YEUX will make their Roadburn debut. The project of musical mastermind Haley Fohr, CIRCUIT DES YEUX will return to Europe on the back of the stunning album, -io.

JERUSALEM IN MY HEART will also make their first appearance at Roadburn – the core duo of producer and multi-instrumentalist Radwan Ghazi Moumneh, and film-maker Erin Weisgerber will bring their audio visual display to Tilburg.

Following on from the release of the spellbinding album for you who are the wronged KATHRYN JOSEPH will perform at Roadburn, bringing her sparse and ethereal missives that detail both intimate vulnerabilities and the strength of the human spirit.

The Netherland’s own BROEDER DIELEMAN will perform, putting a distinctive liturgical twist on Americana-style storytelling.

PUPIL SLICER will make their Dutch debut, bringing the promise of chaotic energy and the potential for new material with them.

AD NAUSEAM will perform Imperative Imperceptible Impulse in full, presenting their take on death, black and experimental metal.

The Dutch underground will be thoroughly represented by OSSAERT, SHAGOR and DEATHLESS VOID who will each bring their own take on extremity to Roadburn.

JUDASZ & NAHIMANA will bring their atmospheric, ceremonial performance to Roadburn as they present their album Récits d’outre-monde.

ARTIST IN RESIDENCE:

The first of Roadburn’s artists in residence to be announced for 2023, SANGRE DE MUÉRDAGO will be performing three sets over the course of the festival, highlighting different elements of their creativity. This collective of musicians channels their Galician heritage into immersive folk music of the most distinctive kind, and will do so with additional musicians and their usual flair.

COMMISSIONED MUSIC:

Trounce performing The Seven Crowns and Arias of the Empty Room

Roadburn has been commissioning artists to create and perform original compositions at the festival since 2018. 2023 will see an array of such commissioned projects – this year with a particular focus on giving a platform to underground artists.

Our second commissioned project to be announced is rooted in the Swiss underground – specifically the scene that has blossomed around Hummus Records (home to Coilguns, Rorcal, Emilie Zoé and more). Uniting several artists connected to the label under the banner of TROUNCE, this collective of musicians will bring the best of their homegrown underground to Roadburn.

More information on these artists can be found HERE. They join previously announced artists including Deafheaven, Wolves In The Throne Room, Giles Corey, Chat Pile and more.

Tickets for Roadburn 2023 are already on sale; Saturday tickets are sold out, but weekend tickets, Thursday, Saturday and Sunday tickets remain. 4-day tickets will be priced at €244, 3-day tickets at €214, and single day tickets at €79 (all costs inclusive of fees and service charges). Accommodation options are also available to purchase. All information can be found on Roadburn.com

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http://www.roadburn.com

White Ward, False Light (2022)

In some ways, it’s comforting to see an announcement coming from the camp of Roadburn Festival — this year putting forth the virtual Roadburn Redux owing to circumstances that need not be recounted here for the thousandth time — and to find it completely overwhelming. Roadburn, in years past, has meant hard choices. You can only be in one place at one time. Do you leave in the middle of one set to catch the beginning of another? Do you REALLY need to take a break for dinner? Certainly not. Such human weaknesses.

I don’t know how Roadburn Redux will be organized/presented. Is it an artsy-looking website with a bunch of streaming embeds or links? A sort of choose-your-own-adventure excursion into a weekend of mindbending screentime? I am deeply curious to find out, and I suspect I’m not alone in that. My ignorance, however, isn’t preventing me from looking forward to the thing, which in festival tradition is set for next month. There will be a Weirdo Canyon Dispatch, the daily ‘zine. I was instructed to work on a new name for it. Might go with ‘Dispatch Redux,’ we’ll see.

Here’s the announcement from the PR wire:

ROADBURN REDUX: New additions for 2021 edition

Redefining heaviness with exclusive performances and premieres – wherever you are in the world.

Following on from last month’s announcement launching Roadburn Redux, this month sees another line up of exclusive performances and commissioned music. Always seeking to redefine heaviness and champion bands from a multitude of interconnecting underground scenes, Roadburn Redux will deliver cutting edge content available to be experienced digitally from anywhere around the world.

Artistic Director, Walter Hoeijmakers, comments: “I’m delighted to be able to continue our relatively new tradition of commissioned music this year. Having already heard some of what’s in store – I can confidently say that there are going to be many reasons to tune in for Roadburn this year, with unmissable performances and exclusive new music premiering across the weekend. We may be apart this year, but the spirit of Roadburn is alive and well!”
Roadburn Redux will take place online between April 16-18. Roadburnredux.com for more information.
New Additions

COMMISSIONED MUSIC: Mizmor presents Wit’s End
We were due to welcome Mizmor back to Roadburn in 2020 – a reunion and a celebration of this wonderful and ever-evolving creative outlet for one of our favourite, forward thinking musicians. But life had other plans and that got put on ice. However, we’re delighted to announce that A.L.N agreed to work on a specially commissioned piece of music that will premiere during Roadburn Redux.
Titled Wit’s End, this brand new, fifteen minute track will make its debut accompanied by an original video made specially for the release by Zev Deans. The track will make an appearance on an upcoming Mizmor release via Gilead Media later this year, but for now details of that remain under wraps.

COMMISSIONED MUSIC: Primitive Man
We’re thrilled to announce that we commissioned Primitive Man to compose and record all-new, original material to make its debut during Roadburn this April. Having made their mark in such an unforgettable way with each release so far, we have no doubt that the material we have the honour of presenting this April will follow suit.

Primitive Man’s Ethan Lee McCarthy comments:

“We have spent the last year writing these songs in spite of everything that has been going on. We have no other choice but to be tougher than the darkness that surrounds us. And these songs reflect not only times of extreme darkness but the need to persevere. Long live extreme music, long live friendship and long live Roadburn.”

COMMISSIONED MUSIC: Many Blessings
As well as fronting the formidable Primitive Man, Ethan Lee McCarthy has another outlet for his creativity in the form of Many Blessings. Understandably sharing much of the same DNA as Primitive Man, Many Blessings offers a goosebump-inducing ominous atmosphere.Always hungry for more of those foundation-shattering creations, we commissioned Ethan to create new Many Blessings material that will premiere during Roadburn Redux.

PARADOX PRESENTS: AUTARKH III
Having already announced an Autarkh performance for Roadburn Redux, we’re thrilled to announce a second, very different performance from this up and coming Tilburg-based band, under a slightly different guise: Autarkh III. The trio consists of Autarkh-members David Luiten (vocals / guitars), Michel Nienhuis (vocals / guitars) and Tijnn Verbruggen (live electronics) and aims to represent an alternative timeline of Autarkh’s debut album Form In Motion.

Gallops
Back in 2018, Gallops made their debut at Roadburn Festival – the Welsh trio brought the party to Het Patronaat with a late-night showcase of pulsating electronica and sweeping experimental rock. Now they’re back for Roadburn Redux, and will be beaming their out-there beats to wherever you are in the world with a virtual live performance.

SVART SESSIONS: Haunted Plasma
Teased last month we can now reveal the secret project that will be part of the Svart Sessions at Roadburn REDUX. The phantoms at the beating nucleus of this unearthly machine are Juho Vanhanen (Oranssi Pazuzu, Grave Pleasures), Timo Kaukolampi (K-X-P, Op:l Bastards) and Tomi Leppänen (Circle, Aavikko, K-X-P), transmitting a music form evolved from a life of redefining sonic boundaries in their respective projects. Also featuring guest vocals from Mat McNerney (Hexvessel, Carpenter Brut, Beastmilk) and Ringa Manner (Ruusut, The Hearing) Haunted Plasma promises an extraterrestrial experience from some of the foremost contemporary musicians at the heart of the Finnish heavy and avant-garde musical underworld.

Inter Arma Covered in the Compound: Live at Chesterfield East
Being fans of Inter Arma in any and every guise, we’d booked them to perform Sulphur English in full for the ill-fated Roadburn 2020 – and now we’ve asked them to perform a covers set at Roadburn Redux. Although we’ll not be able to experience it up close and personal, if anyone can communicate an after-party vibe through the airwaves and in pixel form, it’s these guys.

Maggot Heart
Maggot Heart made their Roadburn debut back in 2018, and despite only having one EP, 2017’s City Girls, to their name at the time, they drew in the masses who were eager to see what this exciting new project had in store. Maggot Heart didn’t disappoint – getting the packed-out Green Room grooving to their raucous late-night show. Latest album, Mercy Machine, will provide the material for their Roadburn Redux set, filmed at Urban Spree in Berlin; we can’t wait to welcome Maggot Heart back to Roadburn in this digital format.

Offermose
Craving tidal waves of shape shifting sounds that open wide the hidden portal of the mind and the twisted trails to the distant light within thyself? Look no further – from the bottomless depths of murky forest lakes to the unfathomable reaches of primordial cosmos, Offermose will rise with yet another dark ritual of sacrifice, this time exclusively for Roadburn Redux.

ALBUM PREMIERE: Regarde Les Hommes Tomber performing Ascension
There’s no denying that Regarde Les Hommes Tomber’s Ascension left a mark on us and the wider Roadburn community. We’re thrilled that they’ll be performing the whole thing for us in its entirety, their intoxicating amalgam of genres brought to life especially for Roadburn Redux.

ALBUM PREMIERE: The Devil’s Trade performing The Call of the Iron Peak
A little way outside of Budapest you’ll find the Tárnok Quarry – a place that has been the source of many fruitful and historic endeavours over many centuries. Now this magical location will host The Devil’s Trade – for a very special performance of The Call of The Iron Peak recorded specially for Roadburn Redux. We’re thrilled to be the conduit for such an evocative and unusual performance.

Wayfarer
Wayfarer will be making an appearance at Roadburn this year with a virtual live set, where the Denver-based quartet will perform tracks from their latest album A Romance With Violence for the very first time. Wayfarer’s Shane McCarthy comments:
“We are honored to be invited by Roadburn to take part in this event. We’ve been eager to bring material from ‘A Romance With Violence’ to the stage, and as the insanity of the world rolls on there is no better place to do so than here. Roadburn have always set a high water mark for creativity, innovation and connection through music – and it is great to see them continue to do so even as this whole industry is in tumult. We look forward to kicking off the performing cycle for ‘Romance’ on your screens this April.”

TICKETS & INFO
Roadburn Redux will be available to access between April 16-18 with a full programme of content online for free (or pay what you like).

Already announced is commissioned projects from Die Wilde Jagd, Dirk Serries, GOLD, Jo Quail, Neptunian Maximalism, Of Blood And Mercury, Radar Men From The Moon, Solar Temple, TDC Inc, and The Nest, plus album premieres from Autarkh, Die Wilde Jagd, Emptiness, Plague Organ and Wolvennest, and a series of sets recorded under the banner of The Svart Sessions – highlighting the best of the Finnish label’s roster.

Roadburn Redux has been made possible due to the support from Brabant C, Gemeente Tilburg, Fonds Podiumkunsten, Provincie Noord-Brabant, Bavaria 8.6, Ticket to Tilburg.

https://www.roadburnredux.com/
https://www.facebook.com/events/1081424195382564/
https://www.facebook.com/roadburnfestival/
http://www.instagram.com/roadburnfest
http://www.roadburn.com

Inter Arma, Garber Days Revisited (2020)

Extra credit for Tube Cult Fest 2019 not making a single joke about this being the edition that ‘goes to 11.’ Way to play it with class. The Italian festival headed by Davide Straccione of Skeptic Events is indeed in its 11th incarnation this April, with Zaum, Coltsblood, Wayfarer and Entropia serving in headliner roles and killer Italy natives like Oreyeon, Sherpa and Tuna de Tierra, among others, obviously, rounding out the bill. I’m generally a fan of writing/daydreaming about fests in far-off (to me) places, but I feel compelled to add there are a few bands here I don’t know, and given the quality of the names that are more familiar, posting the full lineup here is as much a note to myself about homework to do as it is anything else. Like a to-do list. “Don’t forget to check out The Marigold,” and so on. I have little doubt I’ll be glad I did.

The full announcement from the festival follows here, courtesy of the PR wire:

Tube Cult Fest is a true celebration of the Underground, an amp-worshipping ritual based in the coastal city of Pescara in the heart of Italy, delving deep into the realm of Heavy Psychedelia since its inception in 2008. The festival has seen a consistent growth throughout the years incorporating Stoner Rock, Doom, Sludge, Drone, Psych Rock, Post Metal as well as some of the most experimental and atmospheric forms of Extreme Metal, while keeping the same original spirit unchanged. In the previous 10 editions this little city on the Adriatic Sea has been touched by the likes of Weedeater, Ufomammut, Samsara Blues Experiment, Monkey3, 1000mods, Belzebong, Karma To Burn, Los Natas and many more.
Chapter 11 will be once again split in the two tiny venues Scumm and MamiWata, hosting 14 bands in 2 days:

Friday 19 April
WAYFARER (USA)
ENTROPIA (PL)
IMPURE WILHELMINA (CH)
THE MARIGOLD (IT)
OREYEON (IT)
THE BLACK CANVAS (IT)
DRESDEN WOLVES (MEX)

Saturday 20 April
ZAUM (CAN)
COLTSBLOOD (UK)
SHERPA (IT)
GORILLA PULP (IT)
S A R R A M (IT)
TUNA DE TIERRA (IT)
KATASTAH (IT)

DJ Aftershows by Moos (https://www.facebook.com/volksradiomoos666) and La Peligrosa (https://www.facebook.com/liathepeligro)

A juicy Free Entry Warm-Up is scheduled for Thursday 18 April always at Pescara’s Scumm with the Philadelphia Stoner-Doom Rockers HIGH REEPER.

Tickets can be reserved by sending an email to tubecultfest@gmail.com

Friday 19 April= 10 €
Saturday 20 April= 10 €
2-DAY PASS = 15 €

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Zaum, Eidolon (2016)

[Stream Void Cruiser’s Wayfarer in full by clicking play above. Album is out Feb. 27 on Argonauta Records.]

Though they seem to operate solely under a spaced-out thematic — members credited with “low frequency engine,” “battering apparatus,” and so on — the actual stylistic range with which Finland’s Void Cruiser operate feels much broader. Rather than simply live by the “what would Hawkwind do?” ethic, the Helsinki four-piece’s second album, Wayfarer (also their debut on Argonauta Records), follows 2015’s self-released Overstaying My Welcome and 2013’s Motherload EP and lives up to its name in the kind of meandering path it takes between aesthetics. Space is a factor for sure, but as they play between longer-form pieces like “I Didn’t Lie but I Know Now that I Should Have” and closer “Maailman Kallein Kaupunki” and the quicker shots of “As We Speak” and “All over Nowhere,” Void Cruiser actively defy pigeonholing any more specific than catchalls like “heavy” or “atmospheric,” and set their course for variety over redundancy.

With seven tracks and a 46-minute runtime, Wayfarer is substantial but not unmanageable, and the lineup of guitarist/vocalist Santeri “S-Salo” Salo, bassist/backing vocalist Lassi “T-Hug” Tähtinen, guitarist/backing vocalist Vili “V-Salo” Salo and drummer Teemu “T-Bag” Rantanen bring considerable breadth and personality to the material, commanding the turns they’re making rather than being led by them. Further, because even songs like “Madonnas and Whores” and “Seven Years Late,” which are relatively straightforward in their structure, have a marked tonal largesse and sense of patience, Wayfarer ties together its diverse sonic proposals with an overarching spaciousness of production that makes it all the more immersive to the listener. Surprises abound, but none of the moves Void Cruiser make feel out of place in a way they’re not intended to be. Some, however, are very definitely intended to be.

The prevailing first impression is one of patience as they begin with the rumble and slow roll of the introductory “A Day on Which No Man was Born,” starting with a low-toned drone and moving into an instrumental progression of slow nod that runs over five minutes, setting the listener up for some of Wayfarer‘s more heavy psychedelic aspects as they continue to play out in the subsequent “I Didn’t Lie but I Know Now that I Should Have.” Cumbersome in its name, the second track is likewise patient in how it unfurls, blending grunge — particularly in Santeri‘s vocals — with a languid drift as it makes a chorus of its title-line in its first half before shifting post-midpoint into more of a jam, vocals and all, as they build toward a shouted apex à la Facelift-era Alice in Chains, the key difference being the depth of mix surrounding Void Cruiser and the wash of wah in the solo that proceeds to lead them out of the song over the next couple minutes.

That turn to belting it out is the first clue of Void Cruiser‘s sonic range, and “As We Speak” adds to it immediately with a classic stoner feel run through the aforementioned effects-driven spaciousness. The vocals indulge a scream that speaks to some underlying metallic influence, but “As We Speak” feels more like a Lowrider single played at two-thirds speed than anything aggressive, even in that brief moment, and at 3:32, the shortest track on Wayfarer boosts the forward push that’s been subtly working all along with its quicker tempo ending giving way to “Madonnas and Whores” as the centerpiece. Despite ultra-prevalent low end, the beginning of the seven-minute “Madonnas and Whores” still holds to some rhythmic swing, but plays out moodier through its early verses and choruses, and the hook almost has a tinge of Southern metal as it stomps into a bridge that cuts suddenly just past the four-minute mark into a psych-jam of steady rumble and guitar noodling that comes back around in time for a full-boar solo finish into some hit-stops that bring the song to a close before an obscure sample presumably draws down an intended vinyl side A.

Perhaps the most unexpected transition on Wayfarer arrives in the form of “Seven Years Late,” which while consistent tonally with its surroundings takes on a goth-metal brooding that seems drawn directly from Type O Negative in its guitar work, in its play between slower and faster tempos, its low-voiced spoken part and the backing gang vocals that show up toward the end of its six-minute run. Void Cruiser telegraph the influence via the guitars early, so it’s not like they’re trying to get away with something, but while songs hint at metallurgy prior, the fuller dive of “Seven Years Late” kicks off side B with a genuine blindside punch that, as it gives way to the 4:38 thrust of the penultimate “All over Nowhere” barely has time to be as out of place as it feels like it should be and somehow isn’t. A rocker like “As We Speak” before it, “All over Nowhere” holds to the thickness of the album as a whole and has its context changed somewhat by “Seven Years Late,” but stands up to the task of re-centering Wayfarer in order that 10-minute finale “Maailman Kallein Kaupunki” can set resolutely to its charge of summarizing the record as a whole.

Unsurprisingly, the bassline helps a lot, especially early. Void Cruiser build through psych-grunge atmospheric rock, and top that low end with airy guitar work before solidifying around a forward progression, the lyrics in Finnish, that even seems to tip its hat toward the Type O Negative-ity of “Seven Years Late” as it rolls through its middle, eventually slowing to a nod that seems like it’s going to come apart entirely before eight minutes in, only to have a Kyuss-style desert riff take off at a sprint from the morass. The last push is one more surprise from an outing that’s offered plenty of them, and as they cut short and rumble their way out on a fade before hitting 10:00 flat, one almost can’t be certain there won’t be something else still to come.

Creating that feeling of unpredictability over the course of a single LP isn’t easy, and it’s commendable as a basic intention, but what makes Wayfarer stand out even more is how fluidly Void Cruiser navigate these aesthetic planes, pitting one element next to but not necessarily against the other in order to craft something more individual from them. This is a key factor in Wayfarer‘s success, but of course the occasional bit of rocking the hell out doesn’t hurt either.

Void Cruiser on Thee Facebooks

Void Cruiser on Bandcamp

Void Cruiser at Argonauta Records

Argonauta Records on Thee Facebooks

Originally set for issue this past Autumn, the sophomore full-length from Finland’s Void Cruiser has been given a firm release date of Feb. 27 through Argonauta Records. Preceded by the art and track info that you can see below as well as the cumbersomely-titled new single, “I Didn’t Lie but I Know Now that I Should Have,” the album is named Wayfarer and upon digging into the track, one finds an engaging blend of heavy psychedelia and grunge that seems to invite further inspection. A little bit the song brings Dwellers to mind, but is on an altogether more tripped-out wavelength, though how that might play across the whole release I don’t actually know. Haven’t heard it yet.

So it goes. In any case, at well over eight minutes, “I Didn’t Lie but I Know Now that I Should Have” is more than a snippet and should be plenty to dig into, so yeah, have at it. You’ll find the song under the info below, which came down the PR wire:

VOID CRUISER reveal cover artwork and first single from their anticipated new album

Finnish cosmonauts VOID CRUISER reveal cover artwork and first single from their new album “Wayfarer”. The song “I didn’t lie but I know now that I should have” is available at this address: https://youtu.be/s0n5zTSWpXs

The band says: “This single track release is a taste from the upcoming album “Wayfarer”. The song ‘I Didn’t Lie But I Know Now That I Should Have’ was among the first two composed songs for the record and it became benchmark for the rest of the song writing progress. People who have listened to our debut album will realise that this time we have cruised deeper into the sonic unknown and tamed some of the previously unencountered euphonious anomalies. We hope that this track, having such a deep meaning for us, will also be meaningful for all of you.”

VOID CRUISER “Wayfarer”, a massive Heavy Space/Fuzz related Metal work, will be released in CD/DD by ARGONAUTA Records and available from February 27th, 2017. Preorders run here: http://bit.ly/2iglk1d

TRACKLIST:
1. A day on which no man was born
2. I didn’t lie but I know now that I should have
3. As we speak
4. Madonnas and whores
5. Seven years late
6. All over nowhere
7. Maailman kallein kaupunki

www.facebook.com/voidcruiser
https://voidcruiser.bandcamp.com/
https://www.facebook.com/ArgonautaRecords/
www.argonautarecords.com

Void Cruiser, “I Didn’t Lie but I Know Now that I Should Have”