The only real surprise about Wino’s Punctuated Equilibrium (Southern Lord) being on this list is that it’s not in the top five, top three, or top one. Being the nerd I am for the work of guitarist/vocalist Scott “Wino” Weinrich, even I expected a higher showing from this first “solo” album. Weinrich, along with Clutch drummer Jean-Paul Gaster and Rezin’s Jon Blank (since deceased) on bass, crafted a rock album that was both emotionally gripping and full of the kind of mind-boggling guitar work the cult of Wino has come to expect.

Songs ranged from the fast and aggressive title track to the sunnier “Smiling Road” and the doomier “Eyes of the Flesh,” always maintaining the natural flow that Weinrich has brought to the songwriting in bands like Spirit Caravan and The Hidden Hand. As a vehicle for him to shine, in Wino, he did.

So what’s the deal? Why isn’t Punctuated Equilibrium higher on the list? Well, if this was some feigned effort at impartiality — that is, if I was going to do a would-be definitive list; inevitably a work of bullshit — it probably would be higher. As it is, though, Weinrich appeared on another album this year that I wound up listening to more than this one (we’ll get there, don’t worry). It has nothing to do with the value of either record, just the way it happened, and it would be dishonest of me to act according to anything else.

In the end, although I feel a little guilty about its placement, the fact that Punctuated Equilibrium came out on Jan. 20 and is still up front in my consciousness as regards rating albums should say something about the lasting quality of the work. This is one that, after I’ve put other albums away over the course of their novelty having worn off, I’ll go back to. True to his character and track record, Wino proved once more why he’s earned so many followers over the course of his decades in this genre.

They don’t announce the support acts in this Blabbermouth story, but savvy Obelisk attendees will recall guitarist/vocalist Karl Simon of The Gates of Slumber revealing in his interview there’s a good chance it might be them. Here’s hoping that works out. No matter who’s on the bill, though, if it’s Saint Vitus, it’s guaranteed to kick ass. Here are the dates from Blabbermouth:

American doom legends Saint Vitus have announced the first of the confirmed dates for their upcoming February 2010 European tour featuring places that the band has never played or has not played in a very long time. A support band has not been chosen yet, but the preliminary dates are as follows:

Feb. 04 – Essen, Germany - Turock
Feb. 05 – Leipzig, Germany – Conne Island
Feb. 06 – Wurzburg, Germany – Posthalle
Feb. 07 – Rotterdam, Netherlands – Baroeg
Feb. 10 – London, England – Scala (w/ Orange Goblin)
Feb. 15 – Wien, Austria – Arena
Feb. 17 – Berlin, Germany – Columbia Club
Feb. 18 – Hamburg, Germany – Markthalle
Feb. 19 – Copenhagen, Denmark - Loppen
Feb. 20 – Oslo, Norway – Betong

Additional dates and support acts will be named soon.

In other news, Saint Vitus will play Los Angeles and San Francisco for the first time since 1988. Dates with openers Saviours are as follows:

Jan. 28 – Key Club – Los Angeles, CA
Jan. 29 – DNA Lounge – San Francisco, CA

No, the fact that Saint Vitus has announced three dates on the East Coast in no way makes me regret flying to The Netherlands specifically to see them. If anything, it makes me even gladder I did. Now I know the kind of kickassitude I’m getting into by buying my tickets for the Brooklyn show. See you there.

Saint Vitus tour dates:
Oct. 16: Brooklyn, NY – Club Europa
Oct. 17: Worcester, MA — Palladium, with The Misfits, Type O Negative
Oct. 18: Baltimore, MD — Sonar

Fucking rule.

Tack an hour onto the Parkway ride to Atlantic City because it was July 3 and you get me arriving at the Showboat Casino literally two minutes before my scheduled interview with Clutch guitarist Tim Sult (coming soon), rushing up the escalator to find the main room of the House of Blues and promptly sitting for 25 minutes while the band finished their sound check. When The Patient Mrs., who had dropped me off and gone to park the car, came into the building, told her via phone from the backstage kitchen to just cross the rope and walk in like she knew what she was doing. She did and when my interview was done, we met up and went to grab a slice of crappy boardwalk pizza before the show started.

Monster Magnet was supposed to play, which would have at least been convenient since I elected to stay home the rainy Saturday night in May when they hit Starland Ballroom in Sayreville, but for reasons unknown, it was not to be. Speculation, rumor and innuendo was all the explanation I was able to get out of anyone at the show. Massachusetts‘ Shadows Fall somehow became the fill-in for the middle slot, and their fit betwixt Clutch and opening trio Wino (featuring their namesake guitarist/vocalist and Clutch’s J.P. Gaster on drums) was awkward to say the least, but they made a go of it and did their thing nonetheless. I was one of many late 20-somethings in the crowd who gave a perceptible “Oh yeah, this song,” when they played “Crushing Belial.” It had been a while since I heard that.

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If adventure is his destiny, as doom legend Wino asserts on “Smilin’ Road” from his first-ever solo record, Punctuated Equilibrium (Southern Lord), then we’re all just lucky to be along for the ride. With songs from as far back as his days in The Obsessed in 1979, one of the genre’s most potent personalities and most seminal artists crosses creative paths with his past in bands like Spirit Caravan, The Hidden Hand and even Saint Vitus. Joined by Clutch drummer Jean Paul Gaster, it’s a once-in-a-decade kind of release. And I’m still fighting over whether or not it should be number one on this list, even as I type.

Despite the shadow cast over the album by the recent and untimely death of bassist Jon Blank (Rezin), the spirit of the music elicits a transcendent joy that is simply too powerful to be ignored. Even at its heaviest moments, as on the speedy title track, there is a humility and wonder in the performances bound to bring a smile to the face of anyone with ears and half a brain. Punctuated Equilibrium, with explanatory liner notes penned by Wino himself, is a special release in an amazing discography. There is only one Wino.

While I can’t imagine there are any interested parties who haven’t yet heard this record, here’s opening cut “Release Me” from Punctuated Equilibrium. One listen and you’ll be hooked.

NOTE: Nothing went according to my evil plan. The post below is from Friday. I scheduled it to go up while I was gone (along with two others that now need to be rewritten) and nothing happened. Stupid internet, making me look like a jerk once again. This was saved as a text file, and this video rules so I figured no one would mind, even two days later.

If all (or at least some) goes according to my evil plan, by the time you read this I’ll be well on my way to spending a weekend with some family friends just outside of Baltimore, Maryland. Via recommendations I spied on StonerRock.com, I’m planning on hitting up The Sound Garden in Fell’s Point, so hopefully I’ll come back with a decent bit of buried treasure. In the meantime, to honor this most crabtacular of states, I present this live Spirit Caravan video from 2006 — and here I thought they were broken up by then.

In case you forgot, the trio is Wino on guitar and vocals, bassist Dave “Sherm” Sherman (whose band Earthride is playing Krug’s Place in Fredericksburg Saturday night with Ol’ Scratch and Admiral Browning; unfortunately I won’t be there) and drummer Gary Isom, who just did those shows with Pentagram and has been in Valkyrie and countless other bands. Cool shit. Here’s “Cosmic Artifact.” Enjoy your weekend.

Yeah, this video has been around for a while, I know, but it rules and deserves to be the first clip posted on this site. Filmed on May 16, 1986, at the sunny Palm Springs Community Center — it’s Wino’s first show on vocals. As if that wasn’t enough, listen to Dave Chandler’s guitar wail 3:40 in. Godly. Life doesn’t get much better than this.