Originally set to come out today, June 30, the new Earthling Society full-length, England Have My Bones, will be out in August on Riot Season Records. The album, which is the band’s eighth in a decade, boasts an Alice Coltrane cover and is loaded with sonic imagery far more colorful than the industrialized artwork would have you believe. It’s two tracks per side on the vinyl or tape — both available now to preorder — as the space rockers bliss out in classic exploratory fashion in a mode they’ve solidified across their sundry records, most of which have shown up on Nasoni.

That affiliation is usually enough on its own for me to want to check out a band, but if you haven’t heard Earthling Society before, dig the take on “Journey in Satchidananda” below for some time well spent:

Earthling Society are a Kosmische quartet that in the main hail from of of the most un-Kosmische areas of North West England, Fleetwood. A town so bleak you literally can’t drive through it; sticking out of the British Isles like a crippled dick into the the murkiest part of the Irish sea.

Here, Earthling Society built there lo-fi studio in an old deserted glass factory and since 2004 have recorded a number of albums under the influence of mushrooms, cheap speed and cheaper beer. Hoping for a few minutes to transport themselves from the reality of were they really live. Along they way they have hitched rides with Julian Cope, Hawkwind, Damo Suzuki, Guru Guru and Blue Cheer. England Have My Bones is their latest album of fuzzy space rock offerings with a dedication to their Coltrane idols in a freaked out version of ‘Journey in Satchidananda’.

artist: EARTHLING SOCIETY
title: England Have My Bones
label: Riot Season
formats: Vinyl LP & Download
catalogue # REPOSELP040
upc: 6 66017 27691 5
release date: August

Tracklisting:
A1. Aiwass (11:10)
A2. Tortuga (8:36)
B1. Journey In Satchidananda (15:16)
B2. England Have My Bones (4:30)

https://www.facebook.com/EarthlingSociety/
http://www.earthlingsociety.co.uk/
http://riotseason.bigcartel.com/
http://www.riotseason.com/

Earthling Society, “Journey in Satchidananda”

It is deceptively hard to get a handle on where Luleå, Sweden, rockers Lightsabres are coming from. Their debut tape, pressed and then re-pressed in limited edition by 808 New York (mine is #50 of 80), is called Demons, and while it’s quick at about 17 minutes long, and blown out in the lo-fi sense, it’s not to be mistaken for a demo. Eight tracks are presented four on each side, both sides start with an intro piece — “Fangs” and “Teeth,” respectively — and there’s cohesion and flow enough in what Lightsabres do that even if they weren’t working with a label to release it (there’s also vinyl out on Hink Inc.), to call it a demo would be selling it short. From the psychedelic ambience they pull off in the intros and side two’s closing “Demons,” the distorted stonery of side one opener “Black Hash,” and the stripped down punkish sneer of its side two counterpart “Born to Die,” Lightsabres tie together disparate elements with natural-sounding ease and come out of the release with a highly individualized garage-grunge that makes the memorable songwriting of “Fly Like a Bird” seem like fortunate happenstance.

Maybe it is, I don’t know. Maybe the members of Lightsabres — evidently content to remain nameless — showed up, pressed record, and that’s what came out. Either way, the heavy-pop bounce of that track is something most bands would have to work at. It’s as accessible as they go and well placed at the end of side one, following the rawer push of “Eyez,” on which the vocals come across even rougher than “Black Hash.” An unexpected turn, but one they pull off with apparent ease, and side two’s more psychedelic vibing affirms that Lightsabres have a broad creative range to go along with the effectiveness of their presentation. Post-rock guitar wisps begin “Teeth” only to be joined by air-moving bass fuzz, and while “Born to Die” strips away some of the prettier, melodic aspects, its half-time drums and noisy lead wash later on can’t cover up a basic heavy rock feel. Perhaps the most punkish moment of Demons is the first half of the Ty Segall cover “Caesar,” which breaks just before the first of its two minutes into manipulated, floating notes moving backwards and forwards in hypnotic motion toward the closing title-track, which takes a more minimal, spacious approach and finds dual vocal layers coming together for a moment of crooning before flipping the whole thing backwards to maximize an experimental, anything’s-possible sense of uncertainty.

The edit on the tape of “Demons” is different than that on the digital version, and the download also has an extra track, “Red Light,” that serves as a centerpiece between the two sides, so if cassettes aren’t your thing, Lightsabres still have something to offer for your pay-what-you-will. There’s also reportedly a follow-up to Demons called Spitting Blood due out shortly, and the band seems to have some shared membership with psych rockers Tunga Moln, so expect to hear more from this promising outfit one way or another.

Lightsabres, Demons 

Lightsabres on Thee Facebooks

Lightsabres on Bandcamp

Now, if you read the interview that went up last Tuesday with C.O.C. bassist/vocalist Mike Dean, or at least took a look at the comments, you probably figured out it was Bl’ast and Brant Bjork that Corrosion of Conformity would be touring with on the West Coast, but it’s always nice to have confirmation anyway, and as the PR wire informs, Portland death-sludgers Lord Dying will be opening for the trek. C.O.C.‘s new album, IX (short review here), is out tomorrow on Candlelight after a manufacturing delay pushed  back the original June 25 release date.

The legendary North Carolinian trio also head to Australia and New Zealand in July. All dates and info below:

CORROSION OF CONFORMITY: North Carolina Crossover Icons Announce North American Live Assault

With the official release of their new full-length, fittingly titled IX, now just days away, North Carolina crossover icons, CORROSION OF CONFORMITY, are very pleased to announce their first North American live assaults in support of the offering. The near two-week run will commence on August 20th in Spokane, and come to a close in Vancouver on September 1st. The band will be joined by Bl’ast!, Brant Bjork & The Low Desert Punk Band and Lord Dying!

The trek follows the band’s live takeovers next month in New Zealand and Australia. “We are really fired up to bring COC back to New Zealand and Australia for the first time in over a decade,” says vocalist/bassist Mike Dean. “I’ve been with Vista Chino and had a great experience on Soundwave and the shows on the side. Our set is shaping up to include songs from IX, Deliverance, the self-titled, and Animosity.”

CORROSION OF CONFORMITY:
7/18/2014 Kings Arms – Auckland, NZ
7/19/2014 Valhalla – Wellington, NZ
7/20/2014 Churchills – NZ
7/24/2014 Crowbar – Brisbane, AUS
7/25/2014 NSC – Sydney AUS
7/26/2014 Reverence Hotel – Melbourne AUS
7/27/2014 Enigma Bar – Adelaide AUS

w/ Bl’ast!, Brant Bjork & The Low Desert Punk Band, Lord Dying
8/20/2014 The Hop – Spokane, WA
8/21/2014 In The Venue – Salt Lake City, UT
8/22/2014 Summit Music Hall – Denver, CO
8/23/2014 Sister – Albuquerque, NM
8/24/2014 Club Red – Mesa, AZ
8/26/2014 Brick By Brick – San Diego, CA
8/27/2014 The Roxy – Los Angeles, CA
8/28/2014 DNA – San Francisco, CA
8/29/2014 Catalyst – Santa Cruz CA
8/30/2014 Dante’s – Portland, OR
8/31/2014 El Corazon – Seattle, WA
9/01/2014 The Rickshaw Theater – Vancouver, BC

Captured by the band alongside long-time friend and colleague John Custer, writing for IX commenced in the early months of 2013 with demoing and recording starting by Summer’s end. Completed in January, IX clocks in at nearly forty-five minutes. Sludge, doom, punk… it’s all in the grooves that fans have come to expect from CORROSION OF CONFORMITY.

The planned June 24th release date of IX was moved to July 1st with the 180-gram vinyl pressing expected later in the month. Fans that preordered the CD directly from Candlelight should be finding their copy in post boxes now as the eleven-song digipak continues to garner glowing reviews critics nationally.

http://www.coc.com
http://www.facebook.com/corrosionofconformity
http://www.candlelightrecordsusa.com

Corrosion of Conformity, “On Your Way” from IX (2014)

For a band to bring together members from four different nations is complicated enough, but Blues Pills, who seem to have settled in Swedish retro/heavy rock hotspot Örebro (home to Truckfighters, Witchcraft, etc.), make a fluid debut with their self-titled. The record is set to land on North American shores on Aug. 5 via Nuclear Blast (July 25 in Europe), and it follows the Devil Man EP and a Live at Rockpalast recording issued on the label last year, a buzz having more or less build around the four-piece since their demo surfaced in 2010 and their first single arrived in 2011.

They’ll play the Totem Psych Fest on July 25 in Italy, will play other fests all summer and have tour dates booked this fall around appearances at Desertfest in Belgium and the Up in Smoke and Keep it Low fests in October. More to come, I’m sure. Here’s the album info off the PR wire:

Multicultural Rock Band BLUES PILLS to Release Self-Titled Debut August 5

Örebro, Sweden-based blues rock force BLUES PILLS will release its debut LP Blues Pills on August 5 via Nuclear Blast Records. The stunning young American-Swedish-French quartet, featuring vocalist Elin Larsson, drummer Cory Berry, bassist Zack Anderson and 17- year-old guitar phenom Dorian Sorriaux, are wise beyond their years, creating unique, intense and extraordinary rock music fueled by the timeless greats. The highly-anticipated follow up to 2013’s Devil Man EP, Blues Pills was recorded in Gothenburg, Sweden with producer Don Alsterberg (Graveyard, Horisont) and is advanced by the release of the blowback lead single “High Class Woman”.

Led by sensational Swedish songstress Elin Larsson, whose powerful, versatile and emotionally direct voice could enliven the raunchiest blues as well as the subtlest love songs, BLUES PILLS is a true musical experience; one we thought was long gone, lost forever in time. Larsson’s incredible, soul-filled vocals and siren-like presence recalls Hall of Fame heroines such as Etta James, Nina Simone, Aretha Franklin and Tina Turner, impressively guiding and corralling the group’s deep dynamics; driving bass lines, tasty, fiery guitars and overarching hard edge that call for comparison to early hard rock and heavy metal greats such as UFO, Rainbow, Fleetwood Mac, Cream and the kingly Led Zeppelin.

Simply stated, BLUES PILLS create a beautiful and powerful mix of both old and new, mashing the sounds of legendary rock and soul pioneers while incorporating their own distinctive marks. The end result is impeccable, nearly-timeless blues-based power rock. Hearing is believing!

The album’s cover art was created by world renowned artist and musician Marijke Koger-Dunham, hailed as the mother of psychedelic art. Koger-Dunham designed clothing for The Beatles and Cream, created custom-painted instruments for John Lennon, Eric Clapton and George Harrison, printed posters sold at the counter culture shops of the day and was commissioned as a muralist to exercise her talents in large format for The Beatles’ Apple Boutique on Baker Street. Her striking artwork was chosen by the band because, in their own words, “it is a representation of the balance of life, as shown in all the symbolism of natural duality such as darkness and light, sun and moon, life and death. It shows how opposite forces are interconnected and compliment each other to form a whole. Besides that, it looks absolutely amazing!” Can you dig it?

Track listing:
1.) High Class Woman
2.) Ain’t No Change
3.) Jupiter
4.) Black Smoke
5.) River
6.) No Hope Left for Me
7.) Devil Man
8.) Astralplane
9.) Gypsy (Chubby Checker cover)
10.) Little Sun

Blues Pills is available for pre-order purchase now at this location.

http://www.bluespills.com/
http://instagram.com/bluespills
https://twitter.com/BluesPills
https://www.facebook.com/BluesPills

Blues Pills, “High Class Woman” from Blues Pills (2014)

I’m not sure what prompted Dallas trio Wo Fat to produce an instrumental version of their latest and fifth album, The Conjuring (review here), taking away the vocal work of Kent Stump and Michael Walter to leave just their guitar and drums, respectively, and the bass work of Tim Wilson, but if you want to apply the old stoner rock cliché, it definitely fits: “It’s all about the riffs, man”

That’s been the case, more or less, all along for the heavy fuzz-rocking three-piece, but this instrumental take on The Conjuring brings into focus more than ever before just how righteous Wo Fat‘s nod is, how fluidly they roll from groove to groove. Even a shorter song like the just-under-seven-minute “Read the Omens” — which in its vocalized incarnation is among the record’s catchiest pieces — works smoothly as an instrumental moving between its riffs. Wo Fat have developed their jammy side particularly over the course of their last two albums, 2012’s The Black Code (review here), which was also their debut on Small Stone, 2011’s Noche del Chupacabra (review here), but whether it’s an airy Stump lead, smooth fill from Wilson or perfectly placed crash from Walter, the instrumental The Conjuring highlights just how dynamic and powerful a trio they’ve become.

Of course, I’d be remiss if I didn’t mention the 17-minute closing title-track, “Dreamwalker,” which feels all the more open without the verses or chorus to ground it, but of particular note as well is the centerpiece “Pale Rider from the Ice,” which, without its bluesy intro, launches with a solid 90 seconds of right-on tone, an utter wash of fuzz courtesy of Stump, before moving into a heavy psychedelic flow that, while satisfying on the regular edition, is an utter highlight here, and all the more so moving into the swaggering “Beggar’s Bargain.”

It’s not an official title or anything, but I’ve been referring to it as The Voiceless Conjuring. So, if you’ve ever wanted to do Wo Fat karaoke — I’d be lying if I said I hadn’t — The Voiceless Conjuring is your chance. Fuzz on:

[mp3player width=480 height=350 config=fmp_jw_widget_config.xml playlist=wo-fat-the-conjuring-instrumentals.xml]

Wo Fat‘s The Conjuring was recorded at the band’s own Crystal Clear Sound in Dallas and is available now on Small Stone Records. The band recently returned from a European tour alongside Mothership that included a stop at Freak Valley. More info and updates at the links.

Wo Fat on Thee Facebooks

Wo Fat’s website

The Conjuring at Small Stone’s Bandcamp

Small Stone Records

Asteroid, Asteroid (2007)

I didn’t hear the 2007 self-titled debut from Swedish fuzz rockers Asteroid until two years later, but even half a decade after that, it remains a record I’ve gone back to over time when the situation calls for something brilliantly laid back, heavy, fuzzed out and catchy. There’s a band now from Ohio called Doctor Smoke; the closing track on this album is where they got their name. And while at nearly an hour long, the Örebro trio made their first outing a considerable undertaking, that song makes an excellent place to wind up as the journey rounds out.

And it is that. For all its stoner rocking charm, Asteroid‘s debut has a psychedelic flow underlying that would come more to the fore in 2010 with the delightfully jammy II (review here), but can be heard in the funky groove in the verse of “Panoramic Telescope,” and elsewhere of course. One of the album’s chief strengths, however, is its sense of flow, how easy the material leads you along the full-length course, how smooth Asteroid sound. Impressive for a band of any experience, let alone for a debut. On summer nights, I’ve sat and looked at the stars with this album, and I’ve used it like a blanket in winter. There’s no time that “The 13th Witching Hour” doesn’t feel just right.

Asteroid released a 7″ late in 2012 (review here), and word got around last year they had signed to Small Stone, but nothing has surfaced as yet. I consider myself lucky to have heard them jam out some of this material at Desertfest London in 2012, and though Fuzzorama, who initially released both albums, just put out a new pressing of the second one, hopefully it’s not too long before Asteroid‘s jammy take gets another studio installment. Got my fingers crossed.

—

Also my eyes are crossed, but that’s just from being tired. I doubt it’s been a major consideration in your life either way, but if you were wondering at all where I’ve been the last two days, I’ve been getting ready to move. Yesterday, The Patient Mrs. and I closed on a condo in East Bridgewater — 16 minutes away as I timed the trip last night. We went there yesterday to start taking some stuff over and to clean. We’ve been packing for the better part of the last 10 days. Today was cleaning all day, from morning to night, and getting the internet set up. We’re back at the other place now, in Abington, and I’m pirating signal off one of the neighbors. Thanks and sorry to whoever it is.

The closing was originally supposed to be today. It’s good we bumped it up a day, with so much cleaning to do. People never vacuum. Fucking cruelty. It was hot over there and sleeping on an aerobed with two people sucks, and we still had more stuff to pack, so we came back here. Movers come in the morning. The Patient Mrs. leaves for Greece for a month tomorrow night at 10:45. Get ready for some classic “I miss my wife”-type shit, as I expect I’ll be there by the end of next week. No central air and no Patient Mrs. is gonna be a rough July, I expect.

But at least while I’m sitting in the new place all next week (and presumably the subsequent three weeks), unpacking, etc., at least I’ll have plenty of time to write, which I didn’t this week. Monday, look out for that Wo Fat instrumental stream. Was supposed to go up today, but there were 10 hours of vacuuming and dusting to do, so there you go. I’d also like to do a batch of radio adds, and I should be able to transcribe that Lowrider interview as well, so keep an eye out for that. It was a doozy.

So, moving tomorrow, more cleaning, saying goodbye to The Patient Mrs. for a month, etc., but hopefully things will be workable by Monday. Whatever you’re up to this weekend, I hope it’s a great time. It’s hot out there. Don’t forget to hydrate.

And please check out the forum and radio stream.

The Obelisk Forum

The Obelisk Radio

Yes, I am well aware these dates were posted on Monday when Pallbearer announced the run. I couldn’t care less. The press release from YOB gives me an excuse to post the live video of “Nothing to Win” — you’ll note the maddening drums from Travis Foster — shot at this year’s Roadburn fest, and that’s really all I need, if the sheer fact that it’s YOB isn’t enough.

YOB‘s new album, Clearing the Path to Ascend, on which “Nothing to Win” appears, is out Sept. 2 in the US on Neurot Recordings. One whole day before they start this tour in the Netherlands. Pallbearer‘s Foundations of Burden will be out by then as well.

Info follows, fresh off the PR wire:

YOB: Doom Metal Trio Announces Mammoth UK/European Tour In Support Of Clearing The Path To Ascend

Long-running Oregon doom metal conjurors and recent Neurot signees, YOB, will embark upon a massive overseas trek this Fall. Slated to commence on September 3rd, 2014 in Utrecht, the Netherlands, the band will levy their cathartic riff rituals upon twenty-eight cities, the tour coming to a close on October 11th, 2014 at Desertfest in Antwerp, Belgium. YOB will be joined by Little Rock doom bringers, Pallbearer.

The tour coincides with the release of the trio’s long-awaiting new full-length, Clearing The Path To Ascend. Recorded at Gung Ho Studio in Eugene, notorious for its reserve of vintage equipment, alongside longtime collaborator/iconic sound-sage Billy Barnett, and mastered by Brad Boatright (Sleep, Beastmilk, Nails) at Audiosiege Engineering, the four tracks comprising Clearing The Path To Ascend don’t simply offer a vacuous glimpse into the already riff-soaked doom genre; these songs demand the tandem attention of mind, body, and soul, etching a mark across a sound that finds YOB as formidable as they’ve ever been. True ascension requires a destruction of those barriers that prevent any movement forward. Unsurprisingly, YOB pummels any and all of these obstacles with absolute authority, clearing the way for a genuinely visceral listening experience and climbing upward into a realm that sets the band in a heavy metal place that has been and will always remain wholly their own.

YOB UK/EU Tour 2014 w/ Pallbearer:
9/03/2014 Tivoli de helling – Utrecht, NL
9/04/2014 The Fleece – Bristol, UK
9/05/2014 Roadhouse – Manchester, UK
9/06/2014 Audio- Glasgow, UK
9/07/2014 Brudenell Social Club – Leeds, UK
9/08/2014 The Underworld – London, UK
9/10/2014 FZW – Dortmund, DE
9/11/2014 Vera – Groningen, NL
9/12/2014 Atlas – Aarhus, DK
9/13/2014 Truckstop Alaska – Gothenburg, SE
9/14/2014 Hostsabbat @ Betong – Oslo, NO
9/16/2014 Tavastia – Helsinki, FI
9/17/2014 Slakthuset – Stockholm, SE
9/18/2014 Loppen – Copenhagen, DK
9/19/2014 Connewitz – Leipzig, DE
9/20/2014 Firlej – Wroclaw, PL
9/21/2014 Bi Nuu – Berlin, DE
9/23/2014 Klub 007 – Prague, CZ
9/24/2014 Arena – Vienna, AT
9/25/2014 PMK – Unnsbruck, AT
9/26/2014 Gaswerk – Winterthur, CH
9/29/2014 Le Romandie – Lausanne, CH
10/02/2014 Razzmatazz3 – Barcelona, ES
10/03/2014 Villamanuela – Madrid, ES
10/04/2014 Amplifest – Porto, PT
10/05/2014 ES ESonora – Erandio, ES
10/10/2014 Kyttaro Club – Athens, GR
10/11/2014 Desertfest – Antwerp, BE

Clearing The Path To Ascend will be released on September 1st, 2014 in the UK and Europe and in the US on September 2nd, 2014 via Neurot Recordings.

YOB on Facebook
http://www.neurotrecordings.com
http://www.facebook.com/neurotrecordings

YOB, “Nothing to Win” Live at Roadburn 2014

Among desert rock “outsiders” — that is, those not actually living in the Californian desert from which the genre takes its name — Greek four-piece 1000mods have to be somewhere near the top in terms of accurately conveying the swing, the tonal weight and the focus on vibe that typify the style. Their 2011 full-length debut, Super Van Vacation (review here), announced their arrival as professionals in terms of their grip on the aesthetic, having refined the approach to that point over two EPs — 2006’s Blank Reality and 2009’s Liquid Sleep (review here) — as well as a 2010 split tape with similarly-intentioned German outfit Wight, and the follow-up long-player, Vultures, which also comes after late 2012’s Valley of Sand EP (discussed here), they continue to proffer classic stoner rock riffing. You could take the eight-track/39-minute The Lab Records outing as further evidence that fuzz knows no geographic boundaries, or you can simply approach Vultures as a killer heavy rock record. The latter makes for a more satisfying listening experience, I’ll admit, and for those who approach songs like “She” and “Horses’ Green” with the expectation of their traditionalist spirit, 1000mods will answer back with high-grade rolling grooves that cut to the same root influences Lowrider once embroiled themselves in to craft Ode to Io. One hears more than a little Kyuss throughout, but 1000mods make the sound their own both through the energetic charge of their swing and the memorable hooks around which their songs are based, pieces like “Big Beautiful” and “Modesty” running at full-speed while “Low” and the closing “Reverb of the New World” have a more spacious take.

They skirt the line here and there, particularly on the finale, the title of which derives from a Carl Sagan sample that also appears in the song, but 1000mods never quite tip over into heavy psychedelic jamming, holding instead to the structures around which their songs are based and keeping a sense of movement even in their most languid stretches. If they’re exploring, they’re exploring the impact of the riffs, rather than the riffs themselves. That’s not to say they never have an open feel — even before “Low” starts its laid back push, “She” caps off with an instrumental build that’s as wide a berth as anyone could ask — but there’s always a conscious purpose at work, and as the vibe is so loose of the album overall, it’s doubly impressive, the four-piece of guitarists Gianni and George, bassist/vocalist Dani and drummer Labros never lacking for direction even when they want to and succeed in sounding lost. Opener “Claws” probably could’ve closed Vultures just as easily as it leads off, but the in medias res feel of the guitar line that starts it makes the momentum all the more immediate, and with the speedier boogie of “Big Beautiful” — a lyrical reference to Queen‘s “Fat Bottomed Girls” in the line, “Big bottom woman, you can make a big boy out of me,” is a nice touch — following, 1000mods are almost into the thick of Vultures before the listener knows it, the Sky Valley-style opening of “She” giving way to one of the album’s biggest riffs, Dani‘s voice echoing and gruff over top. Groove is paramount on “She” as throughout, but the riffs, the crash, the groove all comes in service to the song, and even as “She” enters its reaches in guitar solo tradeoffs to make for as big a finish as possible — the ending of “Claws” seemed to come in movements, “She” is more linear — 1000mods waste nothing in conveying the intended atmosphere.

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