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Friday Full-Length: Red Giant, Ultra-Magnetic Glowing Sound

Red Giant, Ultra-Magnetic Glowing Sound (1998)

Next year will make it a full 20 since the release of Cleveland heavy rockers Red Giant‘s blazing second album, Ultra-Magnetic Glowing Sound. If you were a denizen of the Emissions from the Monolith Festival, held in Youngstown, OH, between 2000 and 2004, you’re probably already familiar with the record and its Derek Hess classic-pulp-sci-fi cover art, but otherwise you might be forgiven. Issued by Tee Pee Records in 1998, it’s a strikingly effective blend of post-Fu Manchu heavy groove with elements of punk, unmitigated stoner rock riffing and space-bound psychedelia brought to bear over the course of a 66-minute runtime that now seems unmanageable but was indicative of the (about to be waning) CD era in which it was released. The band, led by guitarist/vocalists Alex Perekrest and Damien Perry — the former lead vocals and the latter lead guitar — trace their roots back to 1990 and self-released their debut full-length, Psychoblaster and the Misuse of Power, in 1995, and while I admit it’s been a while since I last heard that one, the second record is where it’s at.

Marked out by the guitar interplay between Perry and Perekrest — whose shared taste in hairstyling always made them look like brothers on stage, as I recall — and the fluid drum work of Chris Gorman, the 12-track Ultra-Magnetic Glowing Sound showed no hesitation in its approach, whether it was in taking on the cosmic-grunge riffery of “Saturn Missile Battery” or getting positively cacophonous in “Pervert” ahead of the fuzzy deep-dives that followed in “.865 (The Battle for Longitude),” the nine-minute “Ring of the Acid Pope” and the seven-minute roller “Devils of the Fall,” which hit in immersive succession and built on the molten impression of opener “1960 Starchief,” drawing on influence from classic heavy rock as much as its of-the-day practitioners on the West Coast like Nebula and the aforementioned Fu Manchu, but adding a decidedly Midwestern crunch beneath that keeps its feet on the ground even as songs like “Blue-White Supergiant” and “When Sirius Rises” seem to issue a call well outside the stratosphere. Raw in its production in a way that would probably be lush if it was recorded today, Ultra-Magnetic Glowing Sound is in part an artifact of its era, but stands out all the more for that since aside from the likes of the sludgier Rebreather and arguably the more post-hardcore Disengage, there were very few acts in Ohio at the time playing heavy rock at all in the fashion that Red Giant were.

That’s evident in the drifting “Floor Girl” as much as the sample-topped winding peak of “Ring of the Acid Pope,” as Red Giant‘s scope expanded despite a feeling of impatience in their execution that worked to unite the material. Compared to the scorching solos of “Saturn Missile Battery” earlier, “When Sirius Rises” turned out to be a relatively straightforward affair, but as Ultra-Magnetic Glowing Sound pushed onward through the far-ranging “Thread” and the Zeppelin-styled, acoustic-inclusive “Kill for Condors” toward its finish with the righteously stomping “Another Dying Admiral” (plus a hidden track), their breadth steadily kept growing, such that what began an hour earlier showing itself as a multifaceted, hook-laden but immersive heavy rocker lived up to that promise and then some, rewarding those whose attention span, whether through natural inclination or chemical assistance of one sort or another, allowed for Ultra-Magnetic Glowing Sound‘s complete unfolding front-to-back. Not a minor undertaking, but not without justification for its stretch either.

If it was being made today, again, it would likely be a much different record. That’s part of the appeal though, and I note how long Ultra-Magnetic Glowing Sound is in relation to modern, made-for-vinyl 38-minute full-lengths and keep in mind that Red Giant‘s last album, 2010’s Dysfunctional Majesty (review here) — you’ll see it’s the same character on the cover art, though the later LP’s execution is tackier, much as I love Alex von Wieding — was also 67 minutes. Part of that might have been the fact that it had been six years since Red Giant had released their third offering, Devil Child Blues, as their debut on Small Stone, though that album was only 49 minutes and it had been more than half a decade since Ultra-Magnetic Glowing Sound as well. Maybe some bands just want to make 2LPs. Fine. At this point, seven years after Dysfunctional Majesty, I wouldn’t argue with another hour-plus from these cats.

To that point, there’s been no indication of a fifth album from Red Giant one way or another, but they have continued to play shows over the last several years, working as the four-piece of PerekrestPerryGorman (who was out of the band for a while, then back) and bassist Brian Skinner, and they have one booked for the Agora in Cleveland on Oct. 14 with The Great Iron Snake with an event page on Thee Facebooks here for anyone who might be able to make it. So while they’re still active, I guess one never knows until one shows up to the gig whether or not they might have something brewing.

Either way, I hope you enjoy Ultra-Magnetic Glowing Sound, and thank you as always for reading.

It’s coming up on six in the morning as I write this and prepare to wrap up the week. I’ve got the back door of my kitchen open to outside, where it’s not yet reached the 150 degrees kelvin it’s supposed to be this afternoon, and the birds are chirping as the sun is up. I missed most of the sunrise, but that’s cool. It happens on the other side of the house. If I was in Connecticut and not Massachusetts this weekend, I might be bummed about not having caught it.

I’m not in Connecticut this weekend though. The choice basically became whether to spend the money on gas to get there or groceries for the next week, so yeah, we’re home this weekend. The good news is I got approved to take photos on Sunday at Clutch and Primus in Boston. It’ll be the first non-fest show I’ve been to in I don’t even know how long, and to say I’m very much looking forward to it is an understatement. I’ve been very, very anxious about going out to gigs basically since my ankle was screwed up and I’ve fallen out of the habit. The drives seem longer — the drive into Boston being particularly miserable and taking upwards of 90 minutes at any hour doesn’t help — and between knowing fewer people here, worrying about being early enough to get up front and take pictures, shitty lighting at just about every Boston venue except Royale (which should have a photo pit and doesn’t), being sober, and the massive effort and little reward of putting together live reviews afterward, I’ve chickened out of more shows than I can count. I missed The Atomic Bitchwax and Mirror Queen last week. I’ve missed The Obsessed a couple times. Lo-Pan. The list goes on. I get bummed out about it, but the truth is I miss New York.

Still, I’d like to get a couple shows in before The Pecan arrives in October — you should see The Patient Mrs.’ bump; I’ve yet to say so out loud, but I’ve taken to calling it Sleep’s Holy Mountain because she’s also tired all the time — and Clutch and Primus is a cool way to come out of hibernation. I bought the last Primus album, Green Naugahyde, shortly after it came out in 2011, because I’ve been a fan since I was like 10 years old, but never really dug into it. Will give an extra listen before Sunday, and there are some new Clutch songs floating around on the YouTubes as well that I’ve been digging on. I’m excited to see the gig. It’s been a while since I felt that way. I’ll probably get there and have no credentials at the box office. Ha.

The Patient Mrs. is coming with me too for that. I’m counting it as The Pecan’s first show. Extra stoked on that level. Hopefully the classy bass licks of Dan Maines and the funky punch of Les Claypool reverberate in his still-forming brain and lead to a lifetime of appreciating how utterly essential quality low end is to rock and roll. That would be nice.

But that’s Sunday. In a little while, The Patient Mrs. will get up and we’ll head to the grocery store and start the day for some early productivity. Not much on tap in terms of big plans for the day; she’s out later for a thing, so I’ll watch PBS NewsHour and Mystery Science Theater 3000 this evening to pass time, maybe put together a podcast this afternoon while checking out last night’s Yankees game, if only because they won and it was on too late to see live. We’ll see.

It’s a full week next week though already. Here’s what’s in the notes, subject to change as usual:

Mon.: Clutch & Primus live review; Snail video from The Obelisk All-Dayer.
Tue.: The Judge review/track premiere; maybe podcast.
Wed.: Radio Adds; Marius Tilly video premiere.
Thu.: Bees Made Honey in the Vein Tree review; Six Dumb Questions w/ Tim Granda about Planet of Doom; ZOM announcement.
Fri.: Youngblood Supercult review.

Like I said, pretty jammed. Monday and Tuesday are also just about full for news as well, so yeah. Space and time are at a premium these days, and each week seems to bring more six-post mornings and afternoons. Not gonna complain about it. I’m going to do as much as I can, when I can. Same as always.

I’ve gotten some right-on records to review in the last couple weeks of things that are coming out this Fall. Paradise Lost, Monolord, that Slomatics live album, Argus, Pagan Altar, The Quill, another one from an East Coast band that I can’t really name yet, plus Blues Funeral, Ruby the Hatchet, and so on. Really killer stuff. The next few months are going to be fun as I rifle through all of it for coverage. I look forward to it and hope you do too.

And of course I hope you have a great and safe weekend as well. Rock and roll, have an awesome time whatever you’re up to, and we’ll see you back here Monday for more shenanigans. Please check out the forum and radio stream, and thanks as always for reading and listening.

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