Seems a fair guess that between Wino and Conny Ochs, it’s the latter who brought the idea of covering Chris Whitley to the table. The relatively underappreciated singer-songwriter, who passed away in 2005 from lung cancer, had a discography of more than a 10 full-lengths to his credit by the time he died at the age of 45, and of course more have surfaced since. “Hotel Vast Horizon” is the title-track from the Texan’s ninth LP, released in 2003, and in performing it on their US tour, it’s Ochs who takes the initial lead vocally in the video below, backed by Wino as the song progresses.
Wino & Conny Ochs were on tour at the time supporting their debut, Heavy Kingdom (review here), after beginning with a European tour to herald the Exile on Mainstream release. Their second album, the more crisply produced Freedom Conspiracy (review here), came out earlier this year, and while most of the time when I post about the two-piece, it gets a response I’ll generously call “minimal,” as the Wino Wednesday series pushes toward its conclusion with #200, I’d be remiss if I didn’t include a Wino & Conny Ochs track, because screw it, I like that stuff a lot. Can’t be Spirit Caravan all the time.
Along with “Hotel Vast Horizon,” the video includes the next cut in their set at The Satellite in Los Angeles on Aug. 8, 2012, which was “Green Speed.” Taken from Wino‘s 2010 solo acoustic debut, Adrift (review here), its careening central progression and faster pace manage to show heavy roots no matter how they’re played, plugged or not, and it makes a fitting companion for “Hotel Vast Horizon” here, demonstrating what each player brings to the Wino & Conny Ochs collaboration.
Two more Wino Wednesdays after this one, which is getting increasingly hard to believe. Hope you enjoy:
Wino & Conny Ochs, “Hotel Vast Horizon” & “Green Speed” Live in L.A., Aug. 8, 2012
Posted in Whathaveyou on August 26th, 2015 by JJ Koczan
More details have started to come out about the second album from the they’re-a-supergroup-whether-they-like-it-or-not West Coast outfit Vhöl, which boasts in its formidable lineup members of Hammers of Misfortune, Amber Asylum, Agalloch and YOB. Super as fuck, that group. Anyway, as announced last month, the new record is called Deeper than Sky and will be out Oct. 23 on Profound Lore. Newly released are the cover art by Brandon Duncan and the tracklisting. Both are righteous — I wouldn’t mind hearing what a song called “Red Chaos” put together by these players sounds like — but we’re still a little bit off from audio coming out. Probably next month you’ll see things like track premieres and album trailers starting to surface.
But, you know, take what you can get, right? Looks like you can get some art and text, so dig in:
VHÖL: Psychedelic Thrash Unit To Unleash Deeper Than Sky Full-Length Via Profound Lore This October; Artwork + Track Listing Revealed
This Fall, Profound Lore Records will unveil the sophomore full-length from psychedelic thrash unit, VHÖL. Titled Deeper Than Sky, the record finds the band — vocalist Mike Scheidt (Yob), guitarist John Cobbett (Hammers Of Misfortune, ex-Ludicra), bassist Sigrid Sheie (Hammers Of Misfortune, ex-Amber Asylum) and drummer Aesop Dekker (Agalloch, Worm Ouroboros, ex-Ludicra) — at their most absorbing. The seven-track follow up to 2013’s self-titled debut was captured at Light Rail Studios and mastered at Trakworx Studio, both in San Francisco, and boasts the cosmic cover creation of Brandon Duncan which unites some of Cobbett’s sketches and concepts with Duncan’s original art, the results of which accurately encapsulate the mind-altering vibe of the music contained within.
“We recorded this album at Light Rail Studios, in a huge room on a beautiful 1970 Trident console onto Jerry Garcia’s 2″ tape deck. One cannot escape the Grateful Dead in San Francisco recording studios — their gear is all over town,” elaborates the band of the recording process. “The mixing was rather primitive with no plug-ins and all effects were done by old pedals, tape echo, and large reverb plates. Another thing that was large and huge during recording was our bass player who was eight-and-a-half months pregnant at the time.”
Deeper Than Sky Track Listing: 1. The Desolate Damned 2. 3AM 3. Deeper Than Sky 4. Paino 5. Red Chaos 6. Lightless Sun 7. The Tomb
With Deeper Than Sky, VHÖL picks up from their debut crafting something totally next level, pushing their already-singular sound to the outer-realms of sonic exploration within the paradigm of old school speed metal. VHÖL’s Deeper Than Sky will be released via Profound Lore on October 23rd, 2015 with preorders and teaser tracks to be revealed in the weeks to come.
[NOTE: Press play above to hear the full stream of Carousel’s 2113. Thanks to the band, label and PR for letting me host the premiere.]
Don’t let its minimalist cover fool you, Carousel‘s 2113 is brimming with life. The Pittsburgh four-piece’s second offering through Tee Pee Records after a raucous debut two years ago with Jeweler’s Daughter (reviewed and streamed here), the nine-song/46-minute collection also marks the arrival of guitarist Matt Goldsborough, who doubles in labelmates The Skull. His addition to the lineup with returning guitarist/vocalist Dave Wheeler, bassist Jim Wilson and drummer Jake Leger, is even more noteworthy because, while Goldsborough is is perhaps best known for his stint replacing Victor Griffin a couple years back in Pentagram, Leger also doubles as the drummer for reunited heavy rockers Bang, so more than most who work in the style, Carousel can claim direct lineage to the classic form from which they take inspiration.
Accordingly, 2113 makes for some of the most seamless ’70s modernization I’ve heard since Stone Axe, songs like “Man Like Me” and the talkbox-infused “Photograph” digging deep into a ’70s-sytle aesthetic and rhythm without necessarily needing the vintage production trappings that others sometimes take on. As was the case with Jeweler’s Daughter, Carousel work smoothly as a two-guitar foursome, this time around Wheeler and Goldsborough finding harmonies right from the start with opener “Trouble” that reinforce the timelessness that Thin Lizzy once so readily tapped. It’s a party vibe early, but the bulk of 2113 isn’t so easily caged into one mindset or another, much to the benefit of the album as a whole.
Wheeler‘s frontman presence is a major force throughout, but ultimately it’s his and Goldsborough‘s guitars both that lead the charge, while Wilson and Leger lock in alternately swinging and driving grooves to push songs like “Photograph” forward at an efficient but not at all rushed-sounding clip through its several included solos. The shift in approach between that cut and the subsequent “Buried Alive in Your Arms” — which almost beats the listener over the head with its hook and thus proves among the more immediately memorable inclusions — signals a sense of structural variety that continues throughout the record, but wherever they wind up, Carousel keep 2113 sounding consistent and largely effortless, swagger perhaps the album’s most unifying theme.
Fitting enough, Wilson gives a highlight bass performance on “Jim’s Song,” and the shortest track (at 2:54) winds up smartly placed to hold onto the momentum the band have thus-far built leading into the centerpiece of the tracklisting, “Highway Strut,” which is about as close as Carousel come to a mission statement on the record. Elsewhere, on “Buried Alive in Your Arms” or the later “Man Like Me,” or on the bonus track Joe Walsh cover “Turn to Stone,” one finds tales of loves lost and found, but “Highway Strut” feels like it’s in the middle for a reason. Also likely the opener of the vinyl side B, it’s a classic road song in the Grand Funk tradition of the sort that Dixie Witch once did so well, and while by the time it comes around, Leger has already broken out the cowbell once on “Photograph,” it couldn’t be more appropriate than it is highlighting the titular strut of the centerpiece.
“Strange Revelation” is about as close as Carousel get to psychedelia, with some added spaciousness in the guitar, but the prevailing vibe remains more boozy than druggy. Starting quiet, it trades back and forth for the first couple minutes until locking itself in around the halfway point through its seven-minute run, building to a satisfying apex that prefaces the title-track soon enough to follow “Man Like Me,” which like “Jim’s Song” on side A, is smartly located where it is. In this case, its straightforward thrust, dual leads and catchy chorus not only stand on their own, but act as a buffer between “Strange Revelation” and “2113.” If you want to go one farther, one can hear a touch of Joe Walsh in the guitar progression as well, tying the original song to the finale cover, but most importantly, “Man Like Me” is strong enough to sound like more than just an interlude between 2113‘s two longest tracks, the latter of which checks in at 7:42 well spent between AC/DC chug and some more of that highway strut they noted earlier.
As ever, Wheeler and Goldsborough affirm the forward position of the guitars, a layer of acoustics adding a sentimental touch to the second half of the track, which is entirely instrumental and topped with interwoven solos prior to a long fadeout. I don’t know whether “Turn to Stone” is included on the vinyl edition of the album — I’d assume not, but one wouldn’t want to feign certainty — but they fit the cut by the former Eagles/James Gang frontman smoothly into the overarching flow either way, even if after the fade of “2113,” there’s not much left that really needs to be said. It’s a quick listen, with or without “Turn to Stone” at the end of it, and Carousel‘s second makes a more than suitable answer to their debut, finding them as players working in more nuanced ideas without losing the natural spirit so essential to what they do.
Posted in Whathaveyou on August 26th, 2015 by JJ Koczan
Two aggressive-as-hell Londoner outfits teaming up to, as they put it, “beat the shit out of Europe?” Yeah, I’d say the pairing of Gurt and Diesel King makes sense. All the more so since both bands have material recently out. Gurt issued their latest EP, D.I.Y.M.C.A. (get it?), back in April, and in June, Diesel King unleashed a free download single, beefing up Toto‘s “Hold the Line” with their particular brand of dudely extremity. Whether or not they’ll take that cover on the road, I don’t know, but it’s almost worth showing up to find out, even without the rest of the show.
You know the deal. Info and audio? Yes. Info and audio:
GURT + DIESEL KING // EURO TOUR 2015
Dead Pig Entertainment & When Planets Collide present : GURT & DIESEL KING
Beating the shit out of Europe for the first time together…
GURT take the blues and groove of 70s rock and drag it backwards through the swamps of Louisiana. The drums are thunderous, the vocals demonic and the guitars down-tuned, down-tempo and down-right sexy. This is not doom, this is not sludge, THIS IS GURT.
Diesel King play aggressive & abrasive music which has been described from sludge to hardcore to death metal. The London mob have been on various tours and have supported bands such as Corrosion of Conformity, Eyehategod, Entombed and many others. Playing in the UK and Europe and featuring on various high profile festival bills such as Bloodstock, their live shows are likened to being punched in the face repeatedly. With 2 Eps under their belt the band are set unleash their debut album in 2015 “Concrete Burial” and look to continue their dominance in the UK metal scene.
03.09 : UTRECHT (NL), dB’s 04.09 : get in touch 05.09 : SALZBURG (AT), Stonerhead Fest 06.09 : get in touch 07.09 : PARIS (F), Stoned Gatherings Klub 08.09 : LILLE (F), Le Biplan 09.09 : BRUXELLES (BE), Magasin 4
Posted in Whathaveyou on August 25th, 2015 by JJ Koczan
Stomping, plodding doom, caked equal shares in feedback and loathing, pervades the debut EP from Seattle-based Phemüt. Titled The Memory of Spring, the four-song collection takes its cues from tonal massiveness brought to bear by the familiar presence of Aaron D.C. Edge, who the last time we heard from him had fractured a vertebra in his back mountain biking and was attempting to cover even more medical expenses incurred beyond those resulting from his ongoing treatment for M.S. — not a minor financial commitment.
He’s joined in the new project — I believe that’s a milestone band #87 for Edge — by vocalist Cole Benoit of Dead Again and percussionist Penny Keats (Keeper), and much growing, deathsludge ensues, but it would be hard for a 16-minute cut like “Of Bones and Ash,” which hits second after opener “The Symbology of Ruin,” to sustain itself without a corresponding sense of atmosphere, and the EP as a whole winds up with plenty of that to go with its encompassing morass, in that song as well as “Beneath the Embers,” which follows, loud/quiet tradeoffs set the tone. Admittedly, loud wins, but that’s about right for what Phemüt are aiming at, which is destruction. “Only Death is Forever” rounds out on a suitably downtrodden note, and as it straddles the line between EP and LP, The Memory of Spring offers little by way of hope for warmth in its crushing roll.
Info and audio follow:
Phemüt: with members of Lumbar, Keeper and Dead Again…
a studio project featuring: cole benoit (dead again), penny keats (keeper), and aaron edge (lumbar and iamthethorn) credits released 20 August 2015
electronic kit recorded by jacob lee at the doom cupboard guitars and bass recorded by aaron edge at myelin studio vocals recorded by russell white at the secret location mixed by aaron edge and cole benoit mastered by cole benoit design by cole benoit “hooded figures” illustration (1970) by nicholas monro
The last one was so late, it seemed only fair to get back on track and do this one early. Not that you’re sitting and waiting with baited breath for the next podcast, I know — not deluding myself to think otherwise — but it keeps me sane to stick to some imaginary/arbitrary feeling of timeliness that changes more often than not, so I’ll just say up front that I appreciate your indulgence. Wow. Sometimes these imaginary conversations get pretty heavy.
Speaking of heavy — and speaking of masterful segues! — the new podcast has plenty of it. The second hour actually gets pretty pummeling, what with the Ahab track and all, so I made sure a little extra psychedelic stuff got in at the front. Dig that Red Mountains track. Their album’s coming out on Nasoni, which should be all the endorsement you need. I’m also very much into the Pyramidal space jam, and if you get to hear it, that Brian Ellis & Brian Grainger record (El Paraiso is putting it out) is a gem. Think a more psychedelic Six Organs of Admittance, all instrumental.
Some killer samplings to be had here, so I won’t delay further. Hope you enjoy:
First Hour:
0:00:00 Tony Reed, “Still Born Beauty (Necromandus ’73)” from The Lost Chronicles of Heavy Rock Vol. 1
0:04:02 All Them Witches, “Dirt Preachers” from Dying Surfer Meets His Maker
0:07:43 Uncle Acid and the Deadbeats, “Waiting for Blood” from The Night Creeper
0:12:33 Red Mountains, “Sleepy Desert Blues” from Down with the Sun
0:19:58 T.G. Olson, “Heavy on Your Head” from The Boom and Bust
0:23:18 Pyramidal, “Motormind” from Jams from the Sun Split with Domo
0:33:30 Brian Ellis & Brian Grainger, “Treesmoke” from At Dusk
0:37:53 Vinnum Sabbathi, “Hex II: Foundation Pioneers” from Fuzzonaut Split with Bar de Monjas
0:45:18 Spelljammer, “The Pathfinder” from Ancient of Days
0:53:41 Derelics, “Ride the Fuckin’ Snake to Valhalla” from Introducing
Second Hour:
1:02:03 Ahab, “The Weedmen” from The Boats of the Glen Carrig
1:16:56 Lost Orb, “Low Ebb’s Lament” from Low Ebb’s Lament
1:34:10 Hotel Wrecking City Traders, “Droned and Disowned” from Split with Hey Colossus
Posted in Whathaveyou on August 25th, 2015 by JJ Koczan
If someone were to come up to you and ask you what is best in life, I’m relatively sure the answer would be, “Clutch talking behind-the-scenes about making records.” The band has unveiled the first three installments of a series of videos about the processes at work for their upcoming 11th album, Psychic Warfare. The full-length is out Oct. 2 on Weathermaker Music and in the videos, the band talks about writing — they jam like they play — working with producer Machine again after doing so for Blast Tyrant and Earth Rocker and the work that goes into the tracks.
I’d tell you more, but Clutch do it better anyway. Here’s this off the PR wire:
CLUTCH: THE MAKING OF “PSYCHIC WARFARE” BEHIND THE SCENES VIDEO SERIES POSTED
NEIL FALLON LYRIC INSIGHT SERIES CONTINUES
Clutch, the influential heavy rock band from Maryland, have posted “The Making of Psychic Warfare” Segment 1: Creation, Production, and Speculation via their Facebook page,facebook.com/Clutchband.
These video clips shot by David Brodsky and his company My Good Eye: Music Visuals, will give fans an unprecedented view into the studios, as well as insight into the thoughts and ideas behind the making of the new Clutch album “Psychic Warfare”. The footage in Segment 1 consists of interviews taken as the band started pre-production with Machine, who recorded, mixed and produced the record. Band members and Machine talk about the pre-production process while the album was being developed in Frederick MD.
The series will have 3 segments. The 2 upcoming segments, Segment 2: Austin Calling (September 14th) and Segment 3: Doom Saloon (September 28th) will continue to document with behind the scenes footage, the recording process as the band moves to Austin,Texas to record at the Machine Shop, to the last segment ending up with the band back in Frederick, MD putting the finishing touches to the record.
In addition to posting “The Making of Psychic Warfare” video series on the recording process, on alternating weeks, vocalist Neil Fallon will be posting his comments on the lyrical content and explain the meaning behind several songs off “Psychic Warfare” on Clutch’s facebook page.
Neil Fallon lyric commentary series: The Affidavit & X-Ray Visions A Quick Death In Texas Firebirds Sucker For The Witch Decapitation Blues Noble Savage
“Psychic Warfare” is the band’s eleventh studio album and will be released worldwide October 2nd via their own label Weathermaker Music. The album was produced by longtime producer Machine (Lamb Of God, Every Time I Die) and consists of 12 new tracks. Pre-order is available at Clutch’s official website pro-rock.com now. “The title ‘Psychic Warfare’ is taken from the first track, and first video we did for the record ‘X-Ray Visions” states singer Neil Fallon. “It’s a tale about an unnamed protagonist who is forced to seek refuge in a flop house motel. He is hiding from several nefarious psychic forces, the worst of which is his own sleep deprived paranoia.” The album cover was designed by renowned photographer Dan Winters.
“Psychic Warfare” track listing: 01 The Affidavit 02 X-Ray Visions 03 Firebirds 04 A Quick Death in Texas 05 Sucker For The Witch 06 Your Love is Incarceration 07 Doom Saloon 08 Our Lady of Electric Light 09 Noble Savage 10 Behold the Colossus 11 Decapitation Blues 12 Son Of Virginia
CLUTCH: Neil Fallon – Vocals/Guitar Tim Sult – Guitar Dan Maines – Bass Jean-Paul Gaster – Drums/Percussion
Posted in audiObelisk on August 25th, 2015 by JJ Koczan
This past weekend, New Haven, Connecticut, pastoralists The Mountain Movers played the release show for their second album, Death Magic. Out this Friday, Aug. 28, through Safety Meeting Records, it’s their fifth long-player and first since 2010’s Apple Mountain, recorded by former drummer John Miller (Titles) and boasting a natural and subtly driving sound. Shoegazing and indie airiness pervade, and there’s a weighted undertone in Ross Menze‘s drums and the bass of Rick Omonte (ex-Crooked Hook) that meshes smoothly with guitarists Dan Greene (also vocals and artwork) and Kryssi Battalene (lead) to present an organic, at times understated psychedelia. Less space, more earth, but trippy all the same.
Opener “Short Life” does very little to hide its ’90s stylization, but by the time The Mountain Movers make their way to “Floating Holiday” two tracks later, the context has already widened considerably. It continues to do so throughout Death Magic, which builds tension and releases it in periodic bouts of fuzz and post-rocking dreaminess. “Dead Tomorrow” turns its title into a morose hook and seems to presage the immersive, slow-rolling swing of “Stray Cat in the Street,” which seems to be over before its really started at 2:20. Tempo and runtime seem to be playthings as much as the instruments on Death Magic, but the album lacks nothing for flow, pushing through the more jagged riffing of “I’ve Been Moved” and its near-seven-minute psychedelic thrust into the more peaceful but still discordant plod of closer “A Bird Flew in My Shed” in a manner suited to the vibe-intensive experience throughout.
At the center of Death Magic, one finds the seemingly companion “Nightsong of the Sea” and “I Watch the Sea.” The former lulls the listener to into a sort of semi-consciousness with its blissed-out lo-fi, but when it comes around, “I Watch the Sea” is immediately more abrasive, incorporating feedback Sonic Youth-style for purposeful abrasion even before it moves into its section of full-on jamming. Its six and a half minutes are among the rougher-edged on the album as a whole, but The Mountain Movers prove more than able to contain the fire they light, turning around in the last 30 seconds of the track in order to shift back to the chorus, like it ain’t no thing.
But it is, and you can find out for yourself by listening to the track on the player below, courtesy of Safety Meeting, which again, has the album out this Friday, Aug. 28. More info on the record follows the stream.
Enjoy:
Although five years have passed since Apple Mountain, the Mountain Movers’ last full length album, the band has been working steadily, releasing a half dozen 7” EP’s and cassettes. Over the last couple years their line-up has stabilized, one of incredible chemistry, and with every live performance the band’s interpretations of Dan Greene’s song writing have become increasingly direct, focused, and tonally powerful. The result is the highly anticipated new full-length album, Death Magic.
Many bands described as “lo-fi” only begin that way, and as the artist improves, so does the level of fidelity. But the Mountain Movers have upended the usual trajectory. After their ambitious and incredibly realized album Let’s Open Up The Chest (2008), a hi-fidelity studio production, subsequent releases were grounds for experimentation and home recording, resulting in a sound that some might call lo-fi. For the Mountain Movers, this experimentation was a quest for an elusive tone, a far-off texture, and anyone who has seen their live shows over the last few years has witnessed the Mountain Movers distill their formula into something organic, pure, and unmasked. To make this album, the band set up in the modest basement studio of former member John Miller, whose production is live, transparent, and captures the feeling of what may be Greene’s best song writing to date. Death Magic is not another over-produced, ultra-digital pile of overdubs and effects. Rather, these ten tracks document an inspired, unified performance—fuzzed out, pounding, and hypnotic.
