Posted in Whathaveyou on March 29th, 2022 by JJ Koczan
With a European tour announced already to take place beforehand, Elder have now followed up with a round of US touring set to begin Aug. 3, include a stop at the Psycho Las Vegas pool party, and wrap up on Sept. 10 in the band’s once-totally-native-and-still-partially-residence Massachusetts.
These will be the band’s first US dates in support of 2020’s Omens (review here), and I wouldn’t expect their next album to be out by the time they happen, though of course anything’s possible. Nick DiSalvo is pretty clear in the quote below about wanting to give Omens its due. And fairly enough so.
All openers are badass.
Fresh off the PR wire:
ELDER ANNOUNCE NORTH AMERICAN TOUR
BAND’S FIRST TOUR IN SUPPORT OF OMENS
Elder have announced their first North American tour dates since the stunning album’s release, with the trek kicking off on Aug. 3 in Brooklyn.
“For a band like Elder that normally spends about half of every year on the road, the past few years have been hard on us – but have far from broken our spirit,” offers Nick DiSalvo. “We’ve been productive, making new records and preparing for a triumphant return. Our upcoming US run has been a LONG time coming, having not been back since selected shows in 2019! We’ve been massively looking forward to both performing tracks from our last album Omens live (for the first time since its release!) alongside older tracks from the Elder universe, revamped and reworked for maximum sonic immersion. Looking forward to seeing you out there!”
Tickets for the six-week tour are on-sale now. Ruby The Hatchet opens from Aug. 3 to 17, with Bezlebong taking over the direct support slot as of Aug. 22. Dreadnought appears on all dates.
Elder North American tour dates:
August 3 Brooklyn, NY Elsewhere August 4 Philadelphia, PA Underground Arts August 5 Pittsburgh, PA Mr. Small’s Funhouse August 6 Baltimore, MD Metro Gallery August 7 Charlottesville, VA Championship Brewing August 8 Raleigh, NC The Pour House August 9 Atlanta, GA The Earl August 10 Orlando, FL Will’s Pub August 12 Houston, TX White Oak Music Hall August 13 Austin, TX The Ballroom August 14 Dallas, TX Tulips August 16 Albuquerque, NM Sister Bar August 17 Phoenix, AZ The Rebel Lounge August 18 Las Vegas, NV Psycho Swim * August 22 Boise, ID Neurolux August 23 Portland, OR Dante’s August 24 Seattle, WA Substation August 26 Oakland, CA Starline Social Club August 27 Los Angeles, CA Catch One August 28 San Diego, CA Brick by Brick August 31 Denver, CO Hi-Dive September 2 St. Paul, MN Turf Club September 3 Chicago, IL Reggie’s September 4 Detroit, MI Sanctuary September 5 Toronto, ON Velvet Underground September 6 Montreal, QC Les Foufounes Electriques September 7 Quebec City, QC L’Anti September 8 Portland, ME Geno’s Rock Club September 9 Brattleboro, VT The Stone Church September 10 Boston, MA Middle East/Downstairs
Ruby The Hatchet opens Aug. 3 to 18 Belzebong opens Aug. 22 to Sept. 10 Dreadnought opens on all dates *=Festival performance, no opener
Elder European tour dates (previously announced):
April 30 London, UK Desertfest London May 4 Bremen, DE Tower May 6 Nijmegen, NL Sonic Whip Festival May 7 Essen, DE Café Nova May 8 Osnabrück, DE Bastard Club May 10 Poznan, PL Klub Pod Minoga May 11 Gdansk, PL Drizzly Grizzly May 12 Riga, LV Melnã Piektdiena May 13 Talinn, EE Sveta Baar May 14 Vilnius, LT Narauti May 21 Wroclaw, PL Akademia May 22 Krakow, PL Klub Zascianek May 29 Berlin, DE Desertfest Berlin May 31 Dresden, DE Chemifabrik June 1 Nuremberg, DE Z-Bau June 2 Guebwiller, FR Le Caveau des Dominicains June 3 Martigny, CH Les Caves du Manoir June 4 Winterthur, CH Heavy Psych Sounds Festival June 5 Salzburg, AT Rockhaus June 7 Linz, AT Stadtwerkstatt June 8 Graz, AT Orpheum June 9 Innsbruck, AT PMK June 10 Munich, DE Backstage Werk June 11 Galzignano, IT Antiteatro del Venda June 12 Turin, IT Spazio 211 June 13 Bologna, IT Freakout Club June 15 Clermont-Ferrand, FR La Coopérative de Mai June 16 Chalon-sur-Saône, La Péniche June 17 Clisson, FR Hellfest June 18 Netphen, DE Freak Valley Fest June 19 Karlsruhe, DE Jubez July 1 Helsinki, FI Tuska Festival
Elder is Nick DiSalvo (guitar, vocals, keyboards), Jack Donvan (bass), Michael Risberg (guitars, keyboards) and Georg Edert (drums).
Posted in Whathaveyou on March 29th, 2022 by JJ Koczan
Freak Valley Festival 2022 has announced that Baroness and Planet of Zeus will play on the added-this-year Wednesday night of the fest, taking the place of Monster Magnet, whose European tour plans have been canceled owing to a back injury. Obviously that’s a bummer for Monster Magnet fans, and I am one, but you can hardly argue with the bands taking their place. Baroness are huge, and Planet of Zeus are killer, so yeah, I expect this news will go over with a “ah hell,” and then a distinct sound of life moving on. Obviously, back injuries or whathaveyou, there’s a lot of leeway for canceling shows at this point in human existence.
Normally I would’ve written this announcement, but I dropped the ball on this one. Sorry to the fest, but they seem to have done just fine without me, not at all to my surprise. I still need to book my flights and figure out where I’m staying, but yes, I’m planning on being at Freak Valley this June.
From socials:
FREAKS!
We are overjoyed to present you another highlight for our Freak Valley Festival. Please welcome the mighty and Grammy-nominated Baroness!
They will join us with their most ambitious work to date, fifth album Gold & Grey. Set for release on the band’s own Abraxan Hymns, Gold & Grey spills triumphantly past genre barriers, their anthemic alt-metal hooks ricocheting between the circuitous twists of prog and jazz, the moody swirls of space-rock and noise, and the hypnotic pulses of trip-hop and 20th Century minimalism. “This is the most clear representation of the artistic vision I have for the band that we’ve ever done,” says Baroness vocalist, guitarist and founder John Baizley. “I’m surprised that we got as far with it as we did.”
Another addition to our Wednesday-Lineup are the greek Heavy rockers Planet of Zeus who will grace us for an alive and kicking party full of heavy riffs, gritty melodies and foot stomping grooves. “How was the heavy rock scene in Greece” you ask, before Planet of Zeus made their debut at the dawn of the third millennium? A band that needs no introduction, for its enviable success and indisputable chemistry on stage are nothing short of becoming part of Greek Mythology.
Freak Valley Festival // No Fillers – Just Killers
Posted in Whathaveyou on March 29th, 2022 by JJ Koczan
The gradual return to activity of Swedish heavy rockers The Awesome Machine continues with Daredevil Records‘ inclusion of the band in a series of demo reissues that captures the early days of modern heavy rock in Europe. The first installment in the aptly titled Demo Series was fellow Swedes Boogieman with their demo from 2002, and for The Awesome Machine, the label digs back further, to 1998. Consider that this followed less than a year after the Kyuss/Queens of the Stone Age split, or a year before Acid King put out Busse Woods. More locally, Dozer were issuing demos around the same time. This is early days of what we now think of as stoner and heavy rock, and The Awesome Machine were right there.
As previously announced, in addition to this, Ozium Records will in May issue God Damn Rare, a collection of previously-unreleased and off-album tracks spanning the band’s career, which capped in 2006. More info on that is here.
Goes without saying maybe, but I’m curious as to whether this is all leading, if and when, to some more proper return on the part of the band, be it shows or a new album or both. Nothing on that yet, but golly their early days did rock.
Enjoy:
DEMO SERIES VOLUME 2 : THE AWESOME MACHINE – doom, disco, dope, death and love DEMO 1998
1998 – 2002 were fantastic times for the new growing Stoner Rock scene. So many bands hit the earth and so many bands never got the chance to release an official album. But a lot of demos are flying around since that period. We try to bring some of those bands with their great demo recordings back and give that influential sounds a wider attention.
The Awesome Machine was one of the most important bands in the early 2000s. After their great demo, released 1998, and their contribution on the legendary Burn the Street Vol. 1 Compilation (1999) and different split and compilation releases, they conquered the scene with their excellent 10″ in 1998. This 10″ is still one of the early Stoner Rock masterpieces! After that the band signed a record deal with PEOPLE LIKE YOU Records and became one of their leading bands. 2000 they released …IT `S UGLY OR NOTHING and 2002 the groundbreaking UNDER THE INFLUENCE before their masterpiece THE SOUL OF A THOUSAND YEARS saw the light of day. The band broke up in 2006.
Recorded at Hot Dog Stand Studio, Kortedala, Sweden August 1998 Engineered by Paul Vahala
The Awesome Machine: Guitar: Christian Smedström Bass: Anders Wenander Drums: Tobbe Bovik Vocals: Lasse Olausson
Having offered their willfully double-slashed debut EP, Dogma//Clairvoyance (discussed here), in 2020 and signed to Copper Feast Records at the beginning of this year, Melbourne instrumentalist heavy psych trio Fuzz Meadows have set a May 6 release date for their first full-length, Orange Sunshine. If the title sounds familiar, you may be thinking of the underrated Dutch rockers of the same name, or indeed that it was the original moniker of Blue Cheer, taken for the name of another kind of LSD. Whatever the particular source, I think you get the idea. The title-track “Orange Sunshine” is streaming now, and hell’s bells if it doesn’t apply itself to that standard. In representing the three-piece of guitarist Domenic Evans, bassist Louis Smith and drummer Prince Jayasundera, it doesn’t quite speak to the full dynamic brought to bear across the entire album, but it certainly makes an impression, and that’s pretty clearly the idea.
Fuzz Meadows come across as schooled in the ways of sans-vocals heavy psychedelia, and where at the outset with “You Are the Void,” they seem to specifically exude a pastoral serenity born of Yawning Man-style jamming, by the time they get to “Benji” at the finish, it’s not a surprise to find them diving into the more weighted end of heavy post-rock, casting a spaciousness with guitar that feels all the more launched for the low end residing beneath. Shades of Russian Circles, Pelican, even Monolord show up in that 14-minute last cut by the time it’s halfway through, but even that doesn’t cover the sweeter drift in the back end of the song; an experiment that calls to mind what might’ve been had Sungrazer kept going but in context is still just a part of what Fuzz Meadows do, echoing the manipulated howls early in “Reach” and the build that ensues, willing to push into harder-hitting terrain than a lot of acts in the style — ready, in other words, to crush as well as space out.
And more, the shifts from one moment to the next are dizzying in light of the hypnosis the band cast. Orange Sunshine is not just a question of volume trades back and forth, but of graceful transitions that capture the listener’s attention on their own and then turn into something else, sometimes sweeping, sometimes gently letting go. As the title-track crashes in — one of the album’s most largesse-minded moments — the expanse that’s been set up through the first two pieces is brought to a new stage for the centerpiece, and they make it move. Again, some of the lead guitar rings out à la Yawning Man, but the rhythm that accompanies is more strictly progressive, like Colour Haze with more shimmer. Goes without saying this is all excellent stylistic company to keep for an act making heavy psychedelia, and just to emphasize the point, Fuzz Meadows never seem to fail to bring these influences and others into the breadth of their craft. “Orange Sunshine” becomes a head-all-the-way-under wash before setting itself to a final minute-plus of effects drone, and feels intended to complement the more straight-ahead riffing that emerges from the foreboding open of the subsequent “Death Echo.”
Even here, Fuzz Meadows find another level of heft, and in the case of “Death Echo,” pace, as the song hits into a thrust of groove that could be cast as a brief homage to Karma to Burn, but it’s just one more movement consumed by the overarching flow of Orange Sunshine in its entirety. And that’s seemingly how the album was intended to be heard — in full, its five songs and 41 minutes running one into the next, feeding and building off each other such that the momentum established by “Death Echo” en route to “Benji” is a payoff not only for itself or the title-track before it, but everything prior. True, on vinyl the last two tracks answer back as a side B unto themselves, but they remain in conversation with the first three, and “Orange Sunshine” resounds gracefully in letting its minimalism give way to the silence of a side split, something not quite echoed but not quite not by “Benji” at the culmination of side B. The closer is less patient in its final-final-final measures, but still adds plenty of scope to the procession of the record and its feeling of outward growth still to come.
Under the player below, you’ll find the release announcement, relatively fresh off the PR wire, as well as the all-important preorder link. The stream of the title-track is also available at the bottom of the post.
As always, I hope you enjoy:
Fuzz Meadows, “You Are the Void” track premiere
FUZZ MEADOWS /// Oz Rock’s Rising Psych Instrumentalists to Release Debut Album this May
Orange Sunshine, the debut album by Fuzz Meadows is released May 6th on Copper Feast Records
Primed and ready to breach the Northern Hemisphere, and to take on the world full tilt, Fuzz Meadows are a commanding psychedelic rock trio, and an act that has already made sizeable waves across the underground in recent years.
Hailing from Melbourne and featuring members of other local favourites The Black Heart Death Cult, Silurian and Ninety Ninety Hate, the band will release Orange Sunshine – their long-awaited debut album – on Sydney/London-based label Copper Feast Records, this May.
Having spent several years touring and honing their sound, the band put out a limited run of tapes for their debut Dogma//Clairvoyance EP in 2020, a release which quickly caught the attention of psych collectors across the US and Europe.
Drawing from a unique well of inspiration, Fuzz Meadow’s instrumental sound is one that’s embedded in the imposing and cinematic scope of post rock, the gorgeously crafted vistas of psychedelia and shoegaze, and the earth-shaking magnitude of metal. Heavy, beautiful, buzzing with energy; it’s the kind of devastating symphony that only truly comes alive, when played by three close friends exchanging riffs and ideas into the early hours.
TRACK LISTING: 1. You Are The Void 2. Reach 3. Orange Sunshine 4. Death Echo 5. Benji
Recorded at Vagabond Studios, June 2021 Produced by Fuzz Meadows, Engineered, mixed and mastered by Josh Bills Artwork by Louis Smith with waterfall photo taken by Niyanta Sharma in Kere Kere, New Zealand
FUZZ MEADOWS: Domenic Evans – Guitar Prince Jayasundera – Drums Louis Smith – Bass
Like so many pretty flowers at your feet, cool breeze, clean air — hospitality — the opening riff of Kyuss‘ uber-classic track “Green Machine” is a familiar clarion to the converted. In the hands of Quebecois heavy rockers Sandveiss, it is wielded as if to tell you you’re among friends. In 2020, the band based in la ville de Québec — in Woodland Studio as well as their respective home studios, set themselves to the task of recording a Black Sabbath covers LP that was released this past December under the banner of Sandveiss Bloody Sandveiss as the follow-up to their 2019 sophomore full-length, Saboteur. I guess when they were done with those covers, there must’ve been a collective shrug as to what to do next before someone said, “Uh, ‘Green Machine?'” and about four minutes later they’d nailed it, recorded audio and video and were ready to pack up for the day.
That’s certainly how it seems in the clip, anyhow. Immediate kudos to Sandveiss guitarist/vocalist Luc Bourgeois for carrying the John Garcia vocal part paying homage to the original while adding his own personality to the mix. That’s a hard balance to walk, especially with something so landmark as this song, which it’s kind of reasonable to expect the viewing/listening audience to be able to hear in their heads before they even press play, while he and guitarist Shawn Rice, bassist Maxime Moisan and drummer Dominic Gaumond likewise nail the swinging punk-born groove of Brant Bjork‘s riff-that-launched-a-thousand-ships. There’s no pretense here as to where they’re coming from. Dudes are Kyuss fans. This is very clearly not the first time they’ve attempted to do play “Green Machine,” and they seem wholly comfortable with it, even in a studio setting, running through it live with the cameras rolling.
Sandveiss, according to Sandveiss, have a third long-player in progress now. I don’t know what the recording circumstances are — presumably the reason half of Sandveiss Bloody Sandveiss was made at home was lockdown-related, but they’re back in-person now — or when it’ll be out, but consider this a fun stopgap along the way to that, and go into the video expecting a casual, come-as-you-are-style (the ethic, not the Nirvana track) welcome, because that’s exactly what you get.
Enjoy:
Sandveiss, “Green Machine” live video premiere
Sandveiss is a four-piece rock band from Quebec City, Canada. Here they are covering Kyuss’s Green Machine. Recorded during the Sandveiss Bloody Sandveiss (tribute to Black Sabbath) sessions from 2020 by Broil. After releasing Scream Queen (2013) and Saboteur (2019), Sandveiss are recording their 3rd full length album as we speak.
Sandveiss’ live session of Kyuss’ Green Machine. Recorded at Woodland Studio.
Video Director: Paul Di Giacomo Cameraman: Paul Di Giacomo Editing: Paul Di Giacomo
Music Produced by Sandveiss Recorded by Raphaël Malenfant (Broil) Mixed and mastered by Raphaël Malenfant
SANDVEISS is: Luc Bourgeois: Vocals, Guitar Dominic Gaumond: Drums Maxime Moisan: Bass Shawn Rice: Guitar
Posted in Features on March 28th, 2022 by JJ Koczan
This session was originally supposed to happen two weeks ago, but Geezer’s recording plans were derailed by drummer Steve Markota contracting what was apparently a mild case of Covid-19. It turned him into a newt, but he got better. In any case, I was invited to come hang out — because it’s not weird unless I’m there to make it that way — and I wasn’t about to say no to watching the Kingston heavy jam/psych/blues trio lay down even just the basic tracks for their next full-length after mid-2020’s it’s-okay-that-it’s-a-miserable-year-we-can-still-dance-a-little-bit Groovy (review here) as their debut on Heavy Psych Sounds who, one assumes, will also be releasing this one sometime in 2022.
Fostering that supposition is the fact that Geezer are already booked to return to Europe — a second appearance at Freak Valley has been confirmed and I’ve heard murmurings of more shows besides — so I don’t know if there’s a hard deadline for the new record, since it’s not like they got to tour the last one, but in talking to Geezer guitarist/vocalist Pat Harrington over the summer, he expressed some urgency to get it out. Can’t blame him or them. Gotta do something.
A rainy day did little to lessen my appreciation for the scenery on the way up here. Drive was about 90 minutes, a 60-mile shot up the NY Thruway to Exit 19, and by then the sleepy Catskills were lording over the sides of the road like forgotten gods, and the landscape was pockmarked alternately by lived-in-the-woods-forever, stare-long houses, escape-from-the-city money, ski facilities and, because it’s how it goes up here, plenty of artist studios and places like Applehead Recording, which is a beautiful, pro-shop with a 32-foot ceiling in the live room. Apparently Markota was the one who argued to record here, which, given the drum sound in that room, is easily understandable.
I’m here for two days. Here are some notes from the first.
12.18.21 – 12:39PM – Applehead Recording – Woodstock, NY
“Mercury Rising”
Got here maybe an hour ago, had some coffee, settled in, took a couple pictures, gonna take some more. Bassist Richie Touseull was getting sounds when I came in, Harrington was next. It’s almost 1PM and engineer Chris Bittner — who co-owns Applehead with Michael “Mike Boom” Birnbaum and opened here in 2013 — has them sounding tight, full and killer through the board mix. Listening in the room now to a jam they did maybe 10 minutes ago, just shaking off the dust, and… well, it’s not a room sound I’d fuck with.
It is apparently the biggest, most studio-ish of the studios Geezer has recorded in, and I’ll agree: this couch I’m on is like a Neve console for my ass right now. I’ll be perfectly happy if I can stay here for the duration, and if the rest of my afternoon is hearing Touseull’s bass tones and the band jamming — if that’s what the process of “basic tracks” is — I’ll be perfectly happy to have spent the time. Shit sounds tight. Of course, nothing ever sounds so good as in the studio monitors, but still.
Best case is Geezer come out of the next two days with 10 songs done. “Mercury Rising” to loosen up, then I guess hit it for real.
A couple songs in, Bittner suggests Marokta lose the click in the midsection of whatever song this is. It is the right suggestion. Continuing through “Mercury Rising” with a couple quick punch-ins on drums and bass, then a doubled guitar solo. Also the right choice. Bassline is killer. Mellow opening, more driving verse, some killer drum jabs as moves between parts, a couple starts and stops.
Printing the song after it’s done, bouncing it down, makes it feel complete.
12.18.21 – 2:39PM – Applehead Recording – Woodstock, NY
“Logan’s Run”
I think the cab in the isolation room next to the control room is humming. It’s a kind of relaxing backing drone. With “Mercury Rising,” the band are moving on to “Logan’s Run,” trying it first with the click track, then probably without again as they get together a take. Vibe in the studio is pretty chill. Sometimes you get into a place like this — especially a nice studio — with a band and it’s a gotta-go-gotta-go-time-is-money kind of thing. Sometimes you get in and everybody’s stoned and/or not there.
This is in between. The band loaded their gear in last night and clearly some sounds were gotten last night as well ahead of starting work properly this morning. Smart not to waste that time this morning. It’s real easy to lose four hours on some minor thing, and better that happens when you’re not trying to also make an album before the day is over.
But Appelhead is gorgeous. There’s a stream in back. I pulled in the wrong driveway the first time, but once I made it here, following the little ‘Studio’ signs on the trees of the long pull-in, it’s clearly designed as a getaway kind of spot. Stream in back, woods out front. Bittner’s house is next door.
Before they start playing, there’s some adjustment with the rack tom. It’s all good though. I’m so into this vibe. Everyone’s tone sounds right on. I hear Touseull with some fuzz on in there and Harrington noodling around while Markota’s drums are adjusted. It all sounds warm and killer and these guys know what they’re doing and they know the songs and they’re here to hit it and have a good time. They’ve got some Sabbath swing going now that I can only hope is actually part of this song and not just something they’re playing to get sounds.
2:48PM, rolling. Bittner takes notes while the band plays, Markota decides quick not to use the metronome. Indeed the swing is the core riff of “Logan’s Run.” Classic stoner janga-janga shuffle. Can’t argue. Evens out to a smooth hook and builds weight as it goes. Harrington crushed vocals for “Mercury Rising” on the quick. I wonder what he’ll do with the pulled-note sections here ahead of the solo, if anything. Song is somewhere in the neighborhood of five minutes long. Another banger.
They do another take the dampener off the snare. Kill it. Listen back to confirm. Yup, it’s dead. Or not. One more take to get the second verse, and then another to punch it in. A few more punch-ins. Pat wants to double the solo again — one doubts it’ll be the wrong choice this time either — and there was a wah-bass part, which, well, yes obviously that’s going to work. Riff is pure stoner rock in how it builds to a finish. “Hole in the Sky,” or Blues-era Kyuss even. Thicker though.
Some more dug-in work on this one, but everybody’s still pretty relaxed.
12.18.21 – 4:47PM – Applehead Recording – Woodstock, NY
“Atomic Moronic”
Talk of dinner leads to pizza. I’ll get a salad and because I’m embarrassed at my own dietary preferences — low carb, no sugar, no pork, etc. — I offer to place the order. Seems the least I can do.
Another speedier boogie, “Atomic Moronic” comes together pretty easily, or at least seems to. Lead lines peppered in, a bit of sass toward the end. Scorched. Could hear on “Mercury Rising” Pat’s pushing himself vocally.
Steve nailed drum punch-ins while I was on the phone with the pizza place. Richie next with one or two bass fills. Pat next with a fix on the solo, then guide vocals I guess for later. Very much a pre-dinner affair, but a fun one. There was some discussion as to whether or not to do a more complicated song before eating. Arguments in favor of “pizza power” won out against implied hangry. I’m glad I could contribute there and bring my homemaker skills to bear in another context. The answer is eat first and do the hard thing after.
Lines “Ignorance is sacred/Crucify the truth/Gotta let it burn/Burn baby burn/Put your faith in stupid/Self-inflicted wound.” Clearly Geezer aren’t going into their first true release of the pandemic era with blinders on to the world around them, and fair enough. Most of these riffs apparently come from lockdown time, so maybe it makes some kind of sense that the three songs I’ve heard so far are all movers in terms of tempo. I’m not sure that makes more sense as a channel for energy than anything else — that is, if they were diving headfirst into jams, it would be easy enough to frame the narrative of pandemic-effected creativity the same way — but when Geezer write songs, they make it count.
This one apparently might start the record. There is some talk of adding a gong, but I don’t think it’s serious. You never know.
The gauntlet is thrown down at two more songs tonight. If they all go as smoothly as “Atomic Moronic,” or even “Logan’s Run,” that’s probably possible, unless the next one is a real burnout deal, I don’t know. I don’t get told these things.
Ate dinner to the soundtrack of a Metallica/Huey Lewis mashup. “It’s Hip to be the Sandman” or some such. When civilization collapses, I hope the mashups are the only piece of modern culture that survives so that future archeologists can be like, “Wow, these people sure liked screwing around with shit. Also they killed the planet.” Guess that’ll be a double-edged sword. Also the archeologists are hypersentient dolphins, or octopuses, or pigoons or some such. Definitely not people. Gotta figure by then humanity will have long since “burned it down.”
12.18.21 – ~7:05PM – Applehead Recording – Woodstock, NY
“Eleven”
Everybody’s cruising post-dinner. Harrington warns that “Eleven” has a part where they might, probably will get hung up. So be it. I drink a bottle of water. Brought a whole gallon with me but it’s in the car. Saving for tomorrow. I’m a firm believer in hydration.
“Eleven” feels shorter, but I’m not sure that was the full song. Going through again. Boogie riff, still uptempo, but feels a little brighter in its turns, if that makes any sense and I’m not sure it does. Steve, Pat and Richie seem pretty locked in, and the bass in this room sounds amazing as Harrington takes a quick solo.
I know from experience that nothing that’s ever come out of a studio has ever sounded as good as on the studio monitors, but the work they apparently did put in last night (I asked) getting sounds and preparing for today is paying off in the fact that they’ll be able to do five tracks before everyone’s too tired.
They break for a solo section, then turn it back around to what I think will be the chorus. It’s got some strut to it with Steve on the ride cymbal but still rolls over fluidly. They run through it again. And again. Change something with a drum fill in the back half. The song is now a beast.
As a producer, Bittner’s very diplomatic in his suggestions — “tell me to go fuck myself, but…” — but I’ve yet to hear him put something out there that didn’t make a song better. Which is the ideal. They’re riding that last verse groove now. I assume the track is named for how loud they’ll be playing it in a live setting.
Listening back, the pace is relaxed in picking out parts to punch in or redo altogether. It’s easy-peasy. Feel like I’m stepping into a situation where the band has done their homework and the studio has been prepped for them. Unless a ceiling caves in right now, I feel like this has been one of the smoother sessions I’ve sat in on, and at this point I’ve done a few.
Steve goes back in for a fill. Fixed. Richie punched in a transition. Pat’s over guitars. Onto vocals for the guide track. Lyrics some bit of stoner escapism. “What is real? And where do we go from here? Nothing is real.” Done.
One more for tonight.
12.18.21 – ~8:30PM – Applehead Recording – Woodstock, NY
“Stoned Blues Machine”
Maybe the title-track. Hell of a title to live up to. Thudding start into slower nod, drums crashing in a way a little more open, pulls up for what might be between-measure shifts, gives it a back and forth feel, but that center groove is a gut puncher and they know it because they keep going back to it. Trippy solo over a rolling bassline. I must be getting tired because I’m running out of ways to say something sounds cool.
Can hear the blues in “Stoned Blues Machine” as they progress. Geezer started out and to some extent has kept a heavy blues underpinning, but I can also hear the other stuff going on in their sound as it’s progressed over the last eight years or so. They hold out distortion at the end of “Stoned Blues Machine.” Noise and delay. First take is solid, but won’t be the last.
They do another take. Warmer. Closer. Pat floats an intro idea they’d apparently talked about. Tape, as it were, is rolling, so they feel it out and it sounds about as solid as something so purposefully molten could want to. Not sure if that’s a slide in there or just the delay making it sound like one, but I like not knowing so I’m not going to sit up and look. Oh, okay, I will. Yeah, it is.
This is the jammier side of the band coming out. Nothing to complain about. They bring it around on the quick to the rest of the song they played earlier and it seems to be a little slower this time, keeping some of that vibe going, though it’s been a long day at this point and that could completely be my imagination.
Harrington calls out “hits!” and some follow, shifting into what’s either another verse or bridge, hard to know until the vocals (or whatever) go over it, but pick up with more drive coming out of the solo and into the ending. They’ve put work in at this point — it’s after 9PM, I got here at 11:45 and they were already working getting sounds — but have a lot to show for it.
Come in to listen. There will be some parts to fix. Doesn’t matter. Everyone knows the day is wrapping up sooner than later and the mood remains as it was. Any fatigue I discern is probably just me projecting because if I was at home right now I’d have probably been in bed for the better part of an hour already.
Nah, everyone’s tired. Talking about doing one more instead of the fixes for this one, get the basics down.
12.18.21 – 9:30PM – Applehead Recording – Woodstock, NY
“Broken Glass”
Richie switches basses. Pat warms up on some chug and noodles. The song starts with snare hits, like death metal, only not at all. It’s a strutter, twisting around Hendrix leads, well punctuated by toms and kick drum. Fucking a. Easy to see why they thought they might be able to sneak this one in before the end of the night. It’ll probably work.
Two takes, in to listen. Second take is the one, but everybody wants a piece of the end again, so they decide to take it from somewhere in the solo ahead of the transition to the last run. They do. No drama.
Pat goes back in for vocals. “We gotta get up and dance/We gotta get up and go/But where are we going?”
This one’s a ripper. Pat fixes a guitar thing after. Quick. Steve has something quick at around 2:16, but he and Chris decide to leave it.
Posted in Whathaveyou on March 28th, 2022 by JJ Koczan
In this year of returned-so-far live music, and with the eternal asterisk looming overhead as a reminder to hold such things precious while one can, I’m very much enjoying posting about so many festivals taking place over the last few days/weeks, as well as the inevitable bit of daydreaming that always accompanies. To wit, seeing High on Fire, Geezer and Ecstatic Vision in Switzerland, or watching Duel and Black Rainbows back-to-back in Austria? Yes, that would be just fine.
And attending such a thing would be a great way to sample Heavy Psych Sounds‘ wares when it comes to European bands — Deadsmoke, Ryte, Hazemaze, 1782, Acid Mammoth, Giöbia, Tons, Sleepwulf, Oreyeon, and maybe even a look at something to come in Hellroom Projectors — as well as given headliners Elder.
The arguments in favor are myriad and though I won’t be there, I’m glad these things are happening, because you never know, maybe next time. Or, maybe not, in which case that’s all the more reason for this to happen where and when they can.
From the PR wire:
HEAVY PSYCH SOUNDS RECORDS Announces Final Day-Splits For HPS Fests in Switzerland & Austria!
Featuring ELDER, HIGH ON FIRE, MONDO GENERATOR, BLACK RAINBOWS, ACID MAMMOTH & many more high class live acts!
Headquartered in Rome, Italy, Heavy Psych Sounds Records represents some of the best artists in the global heavy psych, doom, fuzz blues, sludge and space rock realms such as Stöner (feat. former Kyuss members Brant Bjork & Nick Oliveri), Nebula, Yawning Man, Black Rainbows, Belzebong, Acid Mammoth, Alunah or The Sonic Dawn to name just a few. The underground cult label is not only THE adress for all heavy rock record collectors, but has also become an essential part of the live scene with a brisk participation from heavy music fans all over the world. Their festival-series shows no exception, spotlighting the ever-growing label’s dedication to its craft. While the first HPS Fests were held in Italy, the label has since extended its live reach into the UK, Belgium, Germany, France, the Netherlands, Austria and even the USA. Now, after more than 2 long years without any live shows, Heavy Psych Sounds Records has revealed the final day-splits for their upcoming HPS Fest editions in Winterthur, Switzerland as well as in Salzburg, Austria!
“We are so stoked to finally get back on the road with our HEAVY PSYCH SOUNDS FESTs !“ Rajko Dolhar of Heavy Psych Sounds recently commented. “After bringing our heavy psych vibes to many parts of Europe and the USA in recent years, we wanted to take over Switzerland and now Salzburg, too. Last year, the pandemic put a hitch in our giddy up but we are pretty sure that in 2022 we will succeed. The Line-Ups are some of the best we’ve ever put together so far, with HIGH ON FIRE, ELDER, MONDO GENERATOR, DUEL and so many more, grab your tickets and see you soon in front of the stage again!”
Taking place in both cities between June 3 – 5, 2022, with an eclectic line-up of high class bands such as psych rock kings ELDER, heavy masters HIGH ON FIRE, the desert punks of MONDO GENERATOR and many many more, the day-splits of the festival editions will read as follows.
Posted in Questionnaire on March 28th, 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: Heikki from Highwalker
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How do you define what you do and how did you come to do it?
I’m pretty sure I can speak on behalf of the whole band in saying that Highwalker is an expression of ourselves and the way we came to be together is simply due to the the fact that likeminded people are naturally drawn together. We started with another band but can now explore other sides of music that we fancy (with less blastbeats).
Describe your first musical memory.
Probably rocking out to Lion King soundtrack in my childhood home. Still works!
Describe your best musical memory to date.
Difficult to say, first gig, first tour, first album, just a bunch of firsts. Gotta add first gig with Highwalker after corona induced 2.5 year absence from stage.
When was a time when a firmly held belief was tested?
I’m trying to maintain faith that Batman is still a really cool guy even though he’s a billionaire.
Where do you feel artistic progression leads?
You basically become better equipped to reach unexplored territories.
How do you define success?
Well that’s pretty basic, do what you like without harming anyone and create rather than just consume.
What is something you have seen that you wish you hadn’t?
This is a tie between Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull and Star Wars Episode IX – Rise of Skywalker.
Describe something you haven’t created yet that you’d like to create.
Own novel, collection of short stories or a movie script.
What do you believe is the most essential function of art?
To bring forth something which we all feel and share, something about life and existence which could not be expressed in any other way. To form pieces of the “truth.”
Something non-musical that you’re looking forward to?
Summer and the start of the Finnish football season that comes along with it.
