Posted in Bootleg Theater on January 27th, 2022 by JJ Koczan
This Saturday, Sussex, UK, weirdos Codex Serafini bring their otherworldly oddity mélange to Lewes Psych Fest alongside The Lucid Dream and Melt Plastic Group, among others. The far-far-gone troupe issued their four-song Invisible Landscape EP (review here) in 2021, and if sugar rots your teeth then I’m pretty sure Codex Serafini melt your brains. The band, originally from Saturn, dig themselves a temple in the alien dirt of Earth on “Organismic Thought” and the partially-mellowed-out-but-still-volatile “Crawling Space,” imbuing kosmiche vibes with existential threat and an experimentalism that comes across like it’s working from a plan, you just don’t speak the language the plan was written in. Because, chances are, you’re not from Saturn.
They say that if you put Saturn in a giant bucket of water, it would float. Well, “Mendoza’s Memory” does a bit of that as well, but its ritual grows more winding and chaotically percussed in short order. It’s hard to know where one instrument ends and another begins — no question that’s intentional — and though I could fill your head with pitter-patter drip-dropout gobbledygook about the exploration, the otherworldly ambience and the presence of mind if not personhood within it, and I might even have fun doing so, it’s really the band’s job. As “Mendoza’s Memory” spins in 10 precise circles and hands itself off to “Time, Change and Become,” all rumblefuzz and shouts, a final cacophony built in paean to who knows what gods, the Invisible Landscape has never felt more of either. Or both. Or whatever.
You can fill your head and feast your eyes at the fest if you’re lucky enough to be in that part of the multiverse this weekend. For the rest of us, the clip right down there for “Mendoza’s Memory” is like a well-earned shiner around the eye of what you used to think songs could do.
Posted in Questionnaire on January 26th, 2022 by JJ Koczan
The Obelisk Questionnaire is a series of open questions intended to give the answerer an opportunity to explore these ideas and stories from their life as deeply as they choose. Answers can be short or long, and that reveals something in itself, but the most important factor is honesty.
Based on the Proust Questionnaire, the goal over time is to show a diverse range of perspectives as those who take part bring their own points of view to answering the same questions. To see all The Obelisk Questionnaire posts, click here.
Thank you for reading and thanks to all who participate.
The Obelisk Questionnaire: Yanni Papadopoulos of Stinking Lizaveta & Wail
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How do you define what you do and how did you come to do it?
I am a Rock guitarist. It’s taken me a lifetime to come to terms with that identity. I had no intention of ending up with this dubious title, but it is accurate. Although I dabble in other idioms such as jazz, funk, and classical, rock is what I am most comfortable in, and what I can pass on to others. I am also a rock musician, with a recording and touring career. Stinking Lizaveta is the name of my band.
Describe your first musical memory.
When I was a child I was in love with my mother’s old 45s. She had some Elvis singles that just sounded otherworldly. The music inspired me to write a tune that went “Damn it, wham it, I just can’t stand it. Damn it, wham it and sweet roses”. I think I was five.
Describe your best musical memory to date.
The most epic musical experience I have had with Stinking Lizaveta was playing at Check Point Charlie’s in New Orleans on Halloween. We played our set once, then the bar owner told us to do it again. Maybe we even did it a third time, then saw the sun rise. This gig continued annually for many years until Katrina broke the chain.
When was a time when a firmly held belief was tested?
When I first started a band, I naively thought that if we played shows and put out records, our reputation would grow steadily over the years. I thought of the scene as a meritocracy, where good musicianship and creativity would inevitably be rewarded.
Sometimes I think I was terribly wrong, but sometimes I think I might have been right.
Where do you feel artistic progression leads?
The artist has the perilous task of filling the void they perceive in their community. This gives them the odious task of being the bad conscious of their scene.
How do you define success?
I like the idea of success being the opportunity to practice your art on your own terms.
What is something you have seen that you wish you hadn’t?
Sexism.
Describe something you haven’t created yet that you’d like to create.
A rock opera of Blade Runner.
What do you believe is the most essential function of art?
Art puts Humanity on display. It is that thing that makes us more than animals, more than dirt.
Something non-musical that you’re looking forward to?
I really enjoy watching The Avatar animated series over and over again with my two daughters.
Posted in Whathaveyou on January 26th, 2022 by JJ Koczan
I’m kind of on the fence about these guys. On the one hand, Melbourne’s Dr. Colossus are pretty straight-up novelty — a heavy rock band with songs about The Simpsons. And hey, I’m a dude of a certain age who remembers when that show was at its best and it seemed like it was a filter through which to understand not only one’s own dysfunctional family dynamic, but the world around it, but there’s a part of me that feels like a band playing off The Simpsons as a theme is almost too on-the-nose. Like, yes, obviously. Someone had to do it eventually. Inevitable.
At the same time, Dr. Colossus‘ wildly referential 2021 outing, I’m a Stupid Moron With an Ugly Face and a Big Butt and My Butt Smells and I Like to Kiss My Own Butt, is a really good record. It of course got a lot of hype last year because it was fun and everybody’s miserable, but it’s impeccably put together, the songs are tight, performances sharp, production right on. By all accounts, a killer album. Certainly deserves a vinyl pressing provided you can fit the title on the cover.
Is it me? Am I anti-fun? Probably. I feel like I’m missing the party and like my inability to get on board is less about what they’re doing than my own joyless experience of the universe. To put it in Simpsons terms, I’m like a broke version of Mr. Burns, still trying to block out the sun.
A vinyl release date for the album is still TBD, but here’s the signing announcement:
Greetings from the Farm!
So stoked and honoured to announce that Melbourne’s Simpsons-themed Doom Metal band (and Victoria’s best heavy act award winning band) Dr. Colossus has joined the Black Farm records roster!
Get psyched, as our collaboration will see the vinyl reissue of their long sold-out second album “I’m a Stupid Moron With an Ugly Face and a Big Butt and My Butt Smells and I Like to Kiss My Own Butt”.
Posted in Whathaveyou on January 26th, 2022 by JJ Koczan
London heavy rockers Steak release their new album, Acute Mania, on April 1 through Ripple Music. It is the third full-length from the UK four-piece, and with its arrival, the video premiering below for “Papas Special Custard,” and especially the advent of the Steak: Mad Lord comic book that will be included with the vinyl and the accompanying short film Mad Lord, the band seem to be tying all the pieces together for where their interests and ambitions have led them all along, from Chris “Kippa” Haley reminding of Nick Cave‘s Grinderman as guitarist Reece Tee leads bassist James “Cam” Cameron and drummer Dean Deal (ex-Magna Saga/Crystal Head) through a fluid, All Them Witches-style build on “Last Days,” to the samurai visual thematic seen in “Papas Special Custard” and in other videos still to come. By the time Acute Mania arrives, Steak will be bordering on five years since 2017’s No God to Save (review here), and while I don’t know the actual circumstances of the writing or recording for this eight-track/47-minute collection, if you wanted to apply the ‘probably had more time to work on their songs because they couldn’t tour’ pandemic narrative that’s been so gosh darn popular these last couple years, true or not, it would fit.
That is to say, Acute Mania is the most complex and the broadest-ranging work Steak have done to-date. I’ll spare you a review, but in songs like “Frequencies,” the aforementioned “Last Days” and closer “Mono” with a guest vocal spot from Vodun‘s Chantal Brown, their songs are patient in a way they’ve never been before. “Dead Meat” seethes rather than rushes. “System,” with Tom Cameron on vocals, manages to resonate its urgency without hitting full throttle in a way that feels like Steak have grown up. “Ancestors” is still the kind of hook that might define a record, and the lads might still, say, title a song something like “Papas Special Custard,” but Acute Mania is a more mature vision of who they are, building on what they’ve accomplished in the last decade since 2012’s Disastronaught EP (review here) introduced them to the world.
If this is Steak marking their own status as veterans, consciously or not, then fair enough. Their sound is no less physical than it has been, and their progression in style has been both marked from release to release and well earned both in songwriting and in slogging it out on tour when able, but they present their material in a way that comes across as more thoughtful, more dynamic, and able to shift in ways that, when plowing straight ahead, aren’t necessarily possible. “Papas Special Custard,” which is the longest cut on Acute Mania at 8:29, demonstrates this well, with a break in its midsection that’s cleverly built back up to a solo-topped crescendo for the album and story alike. The video, which gives a preview of the comic book with illustrations by Rhys Wootton, with whom the band has worked all along, has graphic violence and some nudity, so if you want to call it NSFW, that’s probably reasonable, but you should quit your job anyway because life’s too short for that shit and you know it. I’m not advocating going out in a blaze of cartoon geisha boobage (nor would I advocate said boobage to start with), but anyhow, quit your job. The track’s killer. Rock and roll.
Next stop: A box set of action figures. Oh yeah, and the album release.
Steak — who got booted off their Facebook page because it was hacked and had to start all over and could use a ‘Like’ if you’d want to throw one their way — will be appearing at Desertfest London and Desertfest Berlin 2022 this Spring, and recently took part in Glory or Death Records‘ Bow to Your Masters Vol. 2 tribute to Deep Purple. One expects that, conditions permitting, more tour dates will follow.
Below, you’ll find the video as well as art, the album preorder links and credits.
London’s premier stoner rockers, Steak, return with their latest full-length album for Ripple Music – “Acute Mania” – scheduled for an April 1st release (No April Fooling here, folks)
Take a gander and open up your ears for the first taste of the upcoming album – this is the animated music video for “Papas Special Custard.”
All songs written and performed by Steak Guest vocal and lyrics’ System’ by Tom Cameron Guest vocal and arrangement on ‘Mono’ by Chantal Brown Recorded by JB Pilon at Buffalo Studio Mixed by JB Pilon and credit to Simone Lomardi Mastered by Karl Daniel Lidén at Tri-Lamb Studios Album art by Schoph Schofield and Rhys Wootton
Brazilian heavy rockers Stone House on Fire will release their third full-length, Time is a Razor, on Jan. 28 through Electric Valley Records. The classic-minded four-piece issued their Neverending Cycle (discussed here) album late in 2016 though Electric Valley and an assortment of other labels, and they answer back these years later with six new tracks for an utterly manageable, solidly executed, vibe-ready 33-minute run.
Things start off like the group — guitarists Kleber Mariano (also vocals) and Marcus Oliveira, bassist/vocalist Leonardo Moore and drummer Andre Leal (who also sat in with Gods & Punks) — caught a mean case of Graveyard‘s Hisingen Blues on the boogie-laced opener “Bitter Times” and the wah-informed “Despite,” but as side A wraps with the longer, percussion-inclusive jam in “Waterfall,” deftly bringing back the verse in its second half and ending in a tripped-out hypnosis of psychedelic spaciousness, still underlined by that fluid rhythm amid some thicker riffing, it’s clear that there’s more going on here that neo-vintage worship or a fuzzy boogie-down. Although, frankly, if Stone House on Fire wanted to throw together about half an hour of shuffle like on “Bitter Times,” I doubt they’d meet much argument.
“Uzumaki” reminds of earlier Masters of Reality in its chorus, “You shouldn’t harm the crows/’Cause crows never forget,” but the song surges forward on a winding course of lead guitar and fuzzy push, less retro-minded than either “Bitter Times” or “Despite,” but thoroughly grooving just the same, and it brings about “White Canvas,” which merges heavy blues and more atmospheric breadth, taking an earlier boogie — I’m not sure if that’s Mariano or Moore on vocals, but they’ve got Joakim Nilsson just about nailed — and using it as a departure point for a mellow, flute-laced stretch of Latin percussion and guitar exploration before they eventually crash back into the verse for the last third of the song. They save going-out-and-no-return for closer “The Weight,” as one might expect, but offer dynamic volume shifts in between, sounding organic all the while in their trades and arrangement.
To bottom-line it for you, it’s not a hard record to dig. Given the very nature of their aesthetic, one wouldn’t call what Stone House on Fire are doing revolutionary, but in a style where chops and chemistry are the foundation — you can’t groove if you can’t groove — they groove. The themes in the lyrics might not exactly be uplifting, which is fair, considering, but it’s the kind of album you’re gonna want to be friends with, and fortunately also the kind that makes friends easily.
Put on your dancing shoes:
Stone House on Fire on Time is a Razor:
“‘Time is a Razor’ goes deeper into darker waters: a reflection of what we have seen these times that really have bloomed into music, a taste of the late ’60s and ’70s sounds, heavier bluesy influences, and always flirting with the unusual to achieve the unique, the exciting, the trippy. It’s an invitation to a closed eye dive and let yourself sink into an unforgettable experience.”
Electric Valley Records will release the upcoming STONE HOUSE ON FIRE album, Time is a Razor, on 28 January 2022. Stone House on Fire can be best described as a Brazilian late ’60s/ early ’70s throwback rock band with unique contemporary twists. The group creates its own identity by mixing heavy psychedelic elements, Latin spices with classic fuzzy guitars, some blues, and live jam performances.
An active live band that relies heavily on jams and experimentation, Stone House on Fire has toured across Brazil with several psychedelic/doom bands. They frequently played gigs arranged by Abraxas (Brazil’s biggest label on the scene), including appearances on Abraxas Festivals as a supporting act for The Flying Eyes and Mars Red Sky. During their European tour, they shared the stage with Samavayo and Atavismo, and played venues in Switzerland, Germany, France, and the Czech Republic.
Produced by Stone House on Fire. Recorded at Estúdio Jukebox Mixed and Mastered by Andre Leal and Kleber Mariano. All songs written, arranged, performed and produced by Stone House on Fire. Percussion on “Waterfall” Marian Sarine. Percussion on “Waterfall” and special fx on “White Canvas” by Leandro Tolen. Artwork by Dovglas Leal.
Available Formats: – 250x LTD White Vinyl – 220x Side A/B Red/Blue Vinyl – 30x Ultra LTD “Razor Edition” – Digital
Lineup: Kleber Mariano – Guitar/Vocals Marcus Oliveira – Guitars Leonardo Moore – Bass/Vocals Andre Leal – Drums
Posted in Whathaveyou on January 26th, 2022 by JJ Koczan
Europe’s Spring festival season would seem to be on the rebound this year, and a delayed Sonic Whip fest in Nijmegen, the Netherlands, is set for May 6 and 7 as a part of that process. With poster art by the esteemed Maarten Donders, the festival has announced that Elder, Elephant Tree, Kal-El, Kryptograf, Hey Colossus and Supersonic Blues are going to play, which is some pretty killer adds alongside the already confirmed likes of Motorpsycho, Earthless, Slomosa, and so on.
Among the things to dig about the bill’s international reach is the presence of more Norwegian acts than one might’ve seen even just a couple years ago. Motorpsycho‘s place among headliners is, of course, well earned, but you can see too in Kryptograf and Slomosa an up and coming generation of rockers, and in Kal-El the kind of act they might want to grow up to be. It’s cool to see Norway’s underground become immersed in the broader sphere of European heavy. They’ll do well here alongside other groups from the Netherlands, Denmark, Sweden, Germany, the US, UK and so on.
There are apparently more announcements to come. Fine, but if Sonic Whip was like, “Nah this is it,” it’d still be good fest.
Here’s the info:
NEW ADDITIONS SONIC WHIP 2022
We are pretty stoked to announce that Elder, Elephant Tree, Hey Colossus, Kal-El, Kryptograf and Supersonic Blues will be part of Sonic Whip 2022 – Official!
Already confirmed for 6 & 7 May are Motorpsycho, Earthless, Stöner, Rotor, SACRI MONTI, MaidaVale, Mythic Sunship, a/lpaca, POLYMOON, Slomosa and KALEIDOBOLT. This is going to be wild! And that is not all, there is still more to follow…
Saturday daytickets are sold out, only Friday and a few weekend tickets remaining. Tickets are available here:https://bit.ly/SonicWhip-2022
The beautiful artwork created by the talented Maarten Donders.
Friday 6 May 2022 Elder, Sacri Monti, Mythic Sunship, Kal-El, Kryptograf, Kaleidobolt, Supersonic Blues and more to be confirmed.
Saturday 7 May 2022 Motorpsycho, Earthless, Stöner, Elephant Tree, Rotor, Hey Colossus, Maidavale, Slomosa, Polymoon, A/lpaca and more to be confirmed.
Posted in Whathaveyou on January 25th, 2022 by JJ Koczan
New Alunah single sounds pretty huge, huh? Festival-ready. One imagines it’ll do well too when the band hits stages in their native UK alongside decades-running doomlords Paradise Lost for a few shows of that band’s tour. Plus Desertfest, naturally. Strange Machine marks the first appearance of new guitarist Matt Noble alongside vocalist Siân Greenaway, bassist Dan Burchmore and drummer/founding member Jake Mason, and even as 2019’s Violet Hour (review here) was the debut of Greenaway on a full-length Alunah release, it sounds like more changes in sound are taking place on the new outing as the Birmingham four-piece continue to move beyond their forest-worshiping early work.
So be it. I haven’t heard the record yet, so I can’t speak to how it might blast out psych to coincide with its trippy cover art, but the single is streaming at the bottom of this post, and makes a vibrant showcase for Greenaway‘s powerful delivery, so they’re making an impression either way. I’m intrigued to hear where the rest of the songs take them.
From the PR wire:
UK hard rockers ALUNAH return with new album “Strange Machine” this April 15th on Heavy Psych Sounds; preorder and stream first track now!
Birmingham’s hard rock pillars ALUNAH announce the release of their new album “Strange Machine”, due out April 15th and available to preorder now on Heavy Psych Sounds Records. Listen to the title track!
ALUNAH’s frontwoman Sian Greenaway about the song: “Our title track is full of groove, blues, psychedelia, ferocity and we are so excited for our fans to have a taste of this cosmic cocktail. This single encapsulates the experimentation and growth the band has seen over the past 2 years. We may have been lockdown due to the pandemic but we’ve allowed our musicality to be well and truly free. The wait is finally over, so come and take a ride with us on the Strange Machine.”
Hailing from Sabbath City, ALUNAH continues to tread their own path in 2022. Their latest album “Violet Hour” marked a new beginning with a drastic change of lineup, and opened up a world of doom-infused hard rock with little regard for outside trends.
Returning to Foel Studio in October ’21 for the follow-up to their Heavy Psych Sounds debut with producer Chris Fielding, the nine tracks span the epic majesty of “The Earth Spins” featuring guest guitars from Shane Wesley (Crowbar) to the groove of “Dead Woman Walking”. From the West Coast psychedelia of “Psychedelic Expressway” to the swagger of the title track, this is the sound of Alunah cutting loose and free. Welcome to the “Strange Machine”. Artwork by Mariano Peccinetti.
“Strange Machine” is not just the title of the new ALUNAH album but a summary of surviving the last two years. Written and rehearsed during the pandemic whilst overcoming numerous personal struggles, “Strange Machine” shows ALUNAH in their most diverse yet focused light.
ALUNAH New album “Strange Machine” Out April 15th on Heavy Psych Sounds.
Alunah Live with Paradise Lost: February 5 – Leeds, England – The Warehouse 6 – Colchester, England – Arts Centre 7 – Norwich, England – Waterfront 8 – Brighton, England – Concorde 2 9 – Stoke, England – Sugarmill 13 – Wolverhampton, England – KK’s Steel Mill
ALUNAH lineup Siân Greenaway – Vocals Matt Noble – Guitar Dan Burchmore – Bass Jake Mason – Drums
Posted in Bootleg Theater on January 25th, 2022 by JJ Koczan
Denver three-piece Burning Sister set their own stakes and name their genre with the title of their debut full-length: Mile High Downer Rock. What exactly is that blend? Well, if we go with the eight-track/46-minute long-player as a guide, it’s a form of heavy that’s no less comfortable in the obscure sample cultistry that begins opener “Leather Mistress” than in the post-Om meditative low-end vibing of “Cloven Tongues” (video premiere below), tripping out riff-based fare with synthesized flourish on “Acid Night Vision” and “S.I.B.” while seeming to offer bridges from one movement to the next in the interludes “The Messenger” and “Seraphim,” the former a slow-burning spread of organ and bass that sets up “Cloven Tongues” and the latter a more grandiose sub-two-minute stretch that marks the arrival point at the closing salvo of “S.I.B.” and the fuzz-grooving “Stars Align.” It’s dirty and doomed on “Dead Sun Blues” and “Leather Mistress,” pushing somewhere between lo-fi atmospherics and grounded groove in the wah bass of Steve Miller (also keys and vocals) and the drums of Alison Salutz while guitarist Drake Brownfield ostensibly leads the Sabbathian jam overhead.
Got all that? The easier way to say it is probably that Mile High Downer Rock — in addition to a cheeky wordplay — is whatever Burning Sister collectively decide it is. Fair enough.
“Leather Mistress” welcomes the listener to the procession with a foreboding “The gate is open…” and a quick splurge of horror-noise before its riff kicks in. Groove, immediate. Tone, right on. Swing is classic but not retro. Easy to vibe with for experienced heads. Not quite post-Electric Wizard but has definitely rocked that before, possibly in an imbibing situation. The keys/synth/organ do a lot of work throughout Mile High Downer Rock to build off the riffs and add mood and melody alike around Miller‘s spacey, echoing vocals, but part of the album’s effectiveness stems also from its structure. Two longer tracks, interlude, two longer tracks, interlude, two longer tracks. One assumes that a vinyl edition would break down to four songs on each side, but listening through digitally, the experience changes and the shift between the dug-in finish of “Cloven Tongues” and the hypnotic start before the more swaggering kick of “Dead Sun Blues” begins in earnest with a drawl like half-speed Nebula is crucial, and manages to work both with and without a break before it. It feels extra quiet when I hit pause.
That’s a compliment to Burning Sister, who released their self-titled debut EP late in 2020. What will ultimately encompass their style is probably still to be determined. There’s growing to be done, hammering out their underlying power-trio chemistry while the songwriting solidifies around the elements at work across the span here, but for sure they’ve got the ‘mile high’ literally and figuratively set, they’ve got the ‘downer’ to be sure, and one listen to “Cloven Tongues” demonstrates that plainly enough, and they rock. So if their purpose in their debut full-length is to lay out the foundation from which they’ll work going forward, then the ambient pieces they include, the semi-lysergic texture of their mix and the overall reach of their material — I hear the air is clear up in the Rockies if you don’t get dizzy from the altitude — and their general awareness of where they’re coming from in sound are only going to be assets in their favor, as they already are.
Enjoy the clip for “Cloven Tongues” below, followed by some comment from Salutz:
Burning Sister, “Cloven Tongues” video premiere
Alison Salutz on “Cloven Tongues”:
“2022 seems like an appropriate time to release a song about the unavoidable and impending end of everything as we know it. So it may come as a surprise that this is one of the earliest songs we penned, dating to early 2018, far before the recent apocalyptic-like realities the world has dealt us. Appropriate to the theme, the song is a long plodding march to an end that simply is. Employing ample amounts of space, “Cloven Tongues” entreats us to play it slow and somber, gaining and growing until it ultimately tapers off, leaving us wondering if it’s all really over. Fuck it, its over.”
“Cloven Tongues” is the second single from Burning Sister’s forthcoming full-length album, ‘Mile High Downer Rock.’
*Recorded and mixed by Jamie Hillyer at Module Overload. *Mastered by Tad Doyle at Witch Ape Studio – Skyway Audio.
Burning Sister: Steve Miller – bass, organ, vox Drake Brownfield – guitars Alison Salutz – drums
