Sweet, new Katatonia. That’ll be a reliable bet to take, as the long-running Swedish melancholic doom innovators are set to issue their new album, Sky Void of Stars, on Jan. 20. I’ve been through like 15 iterations of the title trying to type it right because in my head, it’s close to something similar from Star Trek even though, as I look it up, I’ve got that wrong too. If you see it wrong anywhere here — it’s called Sky Void of Stars, remember — Sky Void of Stars. Sometimes the mind plays tricks on you.

Sorry to derail, but hey, we know what’s coming a little bit here, right? And I don’t necessarily think that’s a bad thing. Katatonia‘s track record is 12 albums deep. There’s gonna be a reliably downer aesthetic and atmosphere — as seen above and below — and maybe moments with a bit more crunch to keep the headbangers happy along with the more melodic and heavy-progressive moments to show that they’re keeping themselves interested after passing the 30-year mark. I’m not saying it can’t be the album of their career. What I’m saying is the very worst it’s probably ever going to be is really good.

If you can make it scrolling past all their upcoming tour dates on various continents, you’ll find Katatonia‘s new video below for “Atrium.” The song rules.

From the PR wire:

Melancholic Metal Masters KATATONIA Announce New Album, Sky Void of Stars, Scheduled for Worldwide Release on January 20, 2023 via Napalm Records

Now Available for Pre-Order HERE: https://lnk.to/KAT-SkyVoidOfStars

Official Music Video for First Single, “Atrium”, Revealed

Meritorious masters of melancholic metal KATATONIA carry on their legacy of rearranging the order of the heavy music universe, proudly presenting their hauntingly beautiful next studio album, ‘Sky Void of Stars’, out January 20, 2023, via Napalm Records.

Founded in 1991, KATATONIA have continually embraced the dark and the light alike and, living through genre evolutions beyond compare, ripened their own particular form of expression. From doom and death metal to soul-gripping post rock, they’ve explored endless spheres of the genre, accumulating only the very best aspects. After signing with Napalm Records, the entity around founding members Jonas Renkse and Anders Nyström is ready to showcase its brilliance and illuminate the void in the scene once more with ‘Sky Void of Stars’.

With the first single, “Atrium”, KATATONIA hit with highly energetic atmosphere, holding a gloomy ambience with epic sounds and poetic lyrics to get lost in. The heartfelt piece of sound goes in line with a gripping music video, underlining the exceptional atmosphere the five-piece is creating with every single note. “Atrium” is now available via all digital service providers worldwide.

KATATONIA on the new album, ‘Sky Void of Stars’:

“Our 12th album, ‘Sky Void of Stars’ is a dynamic journey through vibrant darkness. Born out of yearning for what was lost and not found, the very peripheries of the unreachable, but composed and condensed into human form and presented as sounds and words true to the KATATONIA signum. No stars here, just violent rain.”

Sky Void of Stars track listing:
1 Austerity
2 Colossal Shade
3 Opaline
4 Birds
5 Drab Moon
6 Author
7 Impermanence (feat. Joel Ekelöf)
8 Sclera
9 Atrium
10 No Beacon to Illuminate Our Fall
11 Absconder (Bonus Track)

Sky Void of Stars is now available for pre-order in the following configurations here: https://lnk.to/KAT-SkyVoidOfStars

Ltd. Deluxe Wooden Box (incl. Mediabook + Digipack Atmos Mix BluRay + Crow Pendant + Star Chart Artprint + Pin) – Napalm Records exclusive
Die Hard Edition 2LP Gatefold Ink Spot / FOREST GREEN (incl. Slipmat, Patch, 12 pages poster) – Napalm Records exclusive
2LP Gatefold DARK GREEN – Napalm Records exclusive
2LP Gatefold MARBLED TRANSPARENT/DARK GREEN – OMerch exclusive
2LP Gatefold MARBLED CRYSTAL CLEAR/BLACK – OMerch exclusive
2LP Gatefold BLACK
1CD Ltd Mediabook (incl. Bonus Track)
1CD Jewelcase
Digital Album

KATATONIA – 2022 North American Tour
w/ The Ocean Collective and Cellar Darling
11/09/22 – Washington, DC / Black Cat
11/1022 – Worcester, MA / Palladium
11/11/22 – New York, NY / Sony Hall
11/12/22 – Philadelphia, PA / Underground Arts
11/13/22 – Harrisburg, PA / Harrisburg Midtown Arts Center
11/15/22 – Quebec City, QC / Impérial Bell
11/16/22 – Montreal, QC / Le Studio TD
11/18/22 – Toronto, ON / Opera House
11/19/22 – Pittsburgh, PA / Thunderbird Music Hall
11/20/22 – Chicago, IL / Metro
11/22/22 – Denver, CO / Oriental Theater
11/23/22 – Salt Lake City, UT / Soundwell
11/25/22 – Portland, OR / Hawthorne Theatre
11/26/22 – Vancouver, BC / Rickshaw Theatre
11/27/22 – Seattle, WA / The Crocodile
11/29/22 – Roseville, CA / Goldfield Trading Post
11/30/22 – San Francisco, CA / Great American Music Hall
12/02/22 – Los Angeles, CA / 1720
12/03/22 – San Diego, CA / Brick by Brick
12/04/22 – Mesa, AZ / Nile Theater
12/06/22 – Austin, TX / Come and Take It Live (+Soen as direct support)
12/07/22 – Dallas, TX / Amplified Live (+Soen as direct support)
12/09/22 – Atlanta, GA / Hell at The Masquerade
12/10/22 – Tampa, FL / The Orpheum

KATATONIA – 2023 UK & Europe Tour
w/ Sólstafir and SOM
20.01.23 FI – Tampere / Tampereen Tullikamari (Pakkahuone & Klubi)
21.01.23 FI – Helsinki / Kulttuurital
22.01.23 EE – Tallinn / Helitehas
24.01.23 PL – Warsaw / Klub Stodoła
25.01.23 DE – Berlin / Huxleys Neue Welt
26.01.23 DE – Cologne / Essigfabrik
27.01.23 DE – Stuttgart / LKA Longhorn
28.01.23 CZ – Prague / ROXY Prague
29.01.23 AT – Vienna / Arena Wien
31.01.23 HU – Budapest / Akvárium Klub
01.02.23 DE – Munich / Backstage Werk
02.02.23 CH – Zurich / Komplex 457
03.02.23 IT – Milan / Live Club
04.02.23 FR – Lyon / Ninkasi GERLAND
06.02.23 ES – Madrid / Kapital
07.02.23 ES – Barcelona / La Salamandra
08.02.23 FR – Toulouse / Le Metronum
10.02.23 GB – London / O2 Forum Kentish Town
11.02.23 GB – Manchester / O2 Ritz Manchester
12.02.23 GB – Bristol / Marble Factory
13.02.23 GB – Glasgow / The Garage
14.02.23 GB – Wolverhampton / KK’s Steel Mill
16.02.23 DE – Frankfurt Am Main / Batschkapp
17.02.23 NL – Haarlem / Patronaat
19.02.23 FR – Paris / Le Trianon
20.02.23 LU – Luxemburg / Rockhal
21.02.23 BE – Antwerp / Muziekcentrum Trix
22.02.23 DE – Hamburg / Gruenspan
23.02.23 DK – Copenhagen / Amager Bio
24.02.23 NO – Oslo / Rockefeller Music Hall
25.02.23 SE – Stockholm / Fryshuset Arenan

KATATONIA – 2023 Latin American Tour
17.03.23 MX – Guadalajara / C3 Stage
18.03.23 MX – Monterrey / Cafe Iguana
19.03.23 MX – Mexico City / Cafe Auditorio
22.03.23 CH – Santiago / Club Chocolate
24.03.23 AR – Buenos Aires / El Teatrito
25.03.23 BR – Sao Paulo / Carioca Club

KATATONIA are:
Jonas Renske – Vocals
Anders Nyström – Guitars
Roger Öjersson – Guitars
Niklas Sandin – Bass
Daniel Moilanen – Drums

https://www.instagram.com/katatoniaband/
https://www.facebook.com/katatonia
https://twitter.com/KatatoniaBand
https://katatonia.com/

https://www.facebook.com/napalmrecords
http://label.napalmrecords.com/

Katatonia, “Atrium” official video

Don’t get me wrong, there’s precious little in this world for which I’d trade the acid-drenched psych and cosmic explorations of Lamp of the Universe, but damn, when Craig Williamson hits into a riff, fuzz on, amp loud, drums behind, bass under, you gotta just let that groove ride. Dead Shrine — a solo-project for the Hamilton, New Zealand, songwriter, multi-instrumentalist, singer and producer — is an extension of impulses previously shown in Arc of Ascent and Datura in the long-long-ago, and “The Formless Soul,” which you can and should hear at the bottom of this post, is the opening track and one of the eight appearing on The Eightfold Path, the debut full-length that’s due out next year through Kozmik Artifactz.

If you’ve hung around here a while, chances are you’ve heard me at some point or other going on about how fucking righteous this dude’s work is. And not to toot my own horn there, but I’m only correct in doing so. The Eightfold Path plays out like a heavy rock and psychedelic bonfire, rolling through two sides of epic nod on the way to the absolute blowout that is “Incantations Call” at the back end. I hate to be all “if you know you know,” because the truth is you know way more than I do about basically everything, but god damn, what a record this is. No bullshit, it’s the first name on my best-of-2023 list, which, yes, I’ve started.

From YouTube and Williamson direct:

DEAD SHRINE – The Eightfold Path

Release date: Late February 2023 on Kozmik Artifactz and Astral Projection (Vinyl/CD/Digital)

The new album, and “band” as I like to call it has been a long running idea I’ve had since the Datura days, and that was to continue to play in a heavier 70s acid rock way on my own… in Datura and especially in Arc of Ascent I’d write the songs, produce them, record parts … even extra guitars, percussion and keyboards on the albums… so really, its been a natural progression to starting the Dead Shrine thing. I guess mostly it’s a return to a more rock thing as I used to do 20 plus years ago in Datura, still heavier, still with the Psych overtones…

https://instagram.com/dead.shrine
https://www.facebook.com/deadshrinenz
https://deadshrinenz.bandcamp.com/

http://kozmik-artifactz.com/
https://www.facebook.com/kozmikartifactz

Dead Shrine, “The Formless Soul”

[Click play above to stream Brant Bjork’s Bougainvillea Suite in its entirety. Album is out Friday through Heavy Psych Sounds.]

Cheers to whatever circumstances in the universe resulted in the usually-on-drums Ryan Güt getting an organ. Bougainvillea Suite is by somebody’s count the 14th studio album by Brant Bjork, and perhaps more crucially, it is the first since May 2020’s Brant Bjork (review here), an interim in which the multi-instrumentalist, vocalist, songwriter and desert rock figurehead has released two long-players as guitarist/vocalist as part of the trio Stöner with fellow Kyuss alum Nick Oliveri (also Mondo Generator, Dwarves, etc.) and the aforementioned Ryan Güt (on drums) in 2021’s Stoners Rule (review here) and 2022’s Totally… (review here). Because Stöner have been touring since about three months before it was actually safe for things to open up, Bougainvillea Suite — the thorny bougainvillea vines depicted on its cover art by Bjork and Mario Lalli (Yawning Man, Fatso Jetson, lately of Mario Lalli and the Rubber Snakecharmers, which is basically Stöner plus himself and vocalist/performance artist Sean Wheeler) — arrives as something of a surprise.

Led off by the cool start-stop bounce of “Trip on the Wine,” finished by the jamming Bo Diddley cover “Who Do You Love” (Quicksilver Messenger Service also did a version and George Thorogood made it a radio hit), with no shortage of hooks and Bjork‘s charismatic cool laced into the masterfully fuzzed “Good Bones,” the later “Ya Dig,” and so on, Bougainvillea Suite runs eight tracks in a relatively unassuming 41 minutes, and is fairly Stöner-adjacent in terms of sound and style. Güt may be on organ and percussion instead of drumming — Bjork handles vocals, guitar, bass, drums, and other percussion; co-produced with Yosef Sanborn at The Rad Cabin in Joshua Tree — and Oliveri may be relegated to an appearance on guitar and backing vocals on the song-for-our-times, finally-someone-saying-screw-it-let’s-get-high-in-a-way-that-isn’t-somehow-fascist “Bread for Butter,” but “Good Bones” and the subsequent “So They Say” have the laid back swing and swagger that are hallmarks of Bjork‘s work over the last 20-plus years of his solo career, and are composed in such a style that it feels like they could easily have been brought to a Stöner jam and turned into that band’s songs. Ditto “Ya Dig,” which actually it wouldn’t surprise in the slightest if it turned up on a third Stöner album, even more than “Bread for Butter,” which, again, has Oliveri singing on it.

This, however, is nothing to complain about, and while I’ll recognize that ‘Hey, Brant Bjork is writing songs that sound like Brant Bjork‘ isn’t exactly universe-defining insight, there’s no question he’s got a sound. For the last two years, that’s been channeled into getting Stöner going, and Bougainvillea Suite steps aside from that, but it’s largely inarguable, and with Güt on keys, these songs make a distinct impression whether it’s in comparison to the band in which Güt and Bjork also play or Bjork‘s solo catalog as a whole (did I mention 14 albums?). The organ is right there after the first drum fill in “Trip on the Wine,” and it runs a thread through the jabby-snare verses of “Good Bones” and fills out beneath the clever lyrics and telltale wah of “So They Say” before adding to the easy-motion twist of “Broke That Spell,” no less crucial an element than the guitar itself as it plays off the central riff and, especially in the latter, takes its own casual saunter of a progression as a preface for “Who Do You Love” still to come.

Like much of what persists throughout Bougainvillea Suite, that extended closing jam isn’t necessarily new ground for Bjork in terms of aesthetic or methodology, but in context it emphasizes the masterful hand with which he is able to guide the listener through the span of a classically constructed full-length; casual, funky and cool as ever, but not at all unconsidered. Side B, accordingly, is an expansion on the moves and tones established on side A, with “Bread for Butter” both the closest Bjork comes to Stöner and the most outward in terms of social commentary, though the comment is less political — Bjork has never shied away from speaking as a person of color through his music; see 2014’s Black Power Flower (review here), among myriad other examples; there is no sense of whitewash here either — than personal, an almost aspirational reminder to keep one’s head amid the onset of the various apocalypses of the last few years.

Sound advice, and if perhaps that same impulse is behind the willful mellowness that’s happening across Bougainvillea Suite, it would make sense, but Bjork has said that much of the ‘bittersweet’ spirit in these songs comes from his own ups and downs, and that after a stretch that might legitimately be defined as an era of his output, he’ll no longer be making records at the same studio in Joshua Tree. If “Bread for Butter” is trying to take that in stride too, well, it would be in character as well as on theme, and it works in the context of the album itself as well, since Bjork‘s laying out of options, “The Beatles or the Stones,” prefaces the bit of devil-sympathy that shows itself in the acoustic strum and hand percussion of “Let’s Forget,”  a sweet and familiar refrain about the “beauty of now” with the title-line nestled into, “please let’s forget about yesterday.”

In terms of execution, the closing duo of “Let’s Forget” and “Who Do You Love” are clearly shooting for different vibes, the former wistful, the latter a blues jam built on top of cyclical tom runs, but they both bring into emphasis how much Güt is contributing here. “Let’s Forget” is peppered with melodic notes of what might be a Rhodes or at least Rhodes-ish sounds — if you told me it was guitar I’d just throw up my hands and say whatever; there are plenty of other examples to cite throughout the record in making the same point — and while it seems to be obscured before the song is really allowed to come apart following its here’s-another-channel-of-guitar solo (no complaints), the organ in “Who Do You Love” is as essential to defining the personality there as it is to “Trip on the Wine” or “Good Bones” back at the rockers-up-front outset. He’s the secret weapon in Stöner too. Should be used to it by now. While we’re talking about it, I’ll also note that few and far between are the artists who would allow someone else to have such an impact on a ‘solo’ record, and that is something to appreciate.

There’s some amount of reassurance to Bougainvillea Suite in that it reaffirms Bjork‘s commitment to the work he does under his own name even as Stöner continues to tour and will presumably have another LP coming barring disaster — the two so far and subsequent tours seem to have been well received — and its somewhat melancholy spirit speaks both to the times and the personal landmark that it is for Bjork as an artist. In a career more than 30 years deep that has likely seen peaks and valleys enough to make the Rockies blush, the greater comfort one derives from Bougainvillea Suite is knowing that whatever comes, Bjork will figure it out, keep making music, keep going. Longevity, creativity, his own style of craft and performance have made him desert rock’s most formidable ambassador. All of these elements, and more, are present here in ready supply.

Brant Bjork on Facebook

Brant Bjork on Instagram

Brant Bjork website

Heavy Psych Sounds on Facebook

Heavy Psych Sounds website

Heavy Psych Sounds on Bandcamp

The first Isaak release of the decade will be a new full-length album set to arrive next year on a yet-to-be-announced label. The Genova, Italy, four-piece were last heard from with a 2019 split they shared with Chron Goblin (review here), and their most recent album is 2015’s Sermonize (review here), which was issued on Heavy Psych Sounds.

There’s no audio or anything like that at this point — one assumes there will be announcements of announcements before we get there; such is the way of things in the world of need-to-make-content-to-exist, not that I’d know — but the band posted an update saying they’d finished the mastering and I chased them down for a little bit more of what they can say at this point, so at least we know there’s a cover that’s longer than “Yeah” by Kyuss, which leaves it pretty open, and the album was done with Fabio Palombi in Genoa. And they took a snazzy picture.

As to what it might sound like, you’d be forgiven for needing a refresher since it’s been seven years at this point — might be eight before the next record’s out — since Sermonize was released. If you’d like to know how they do, both of the above-mentioned outings are streaming at the bottom of this post.

Here’s what they had to say:

HEY

Album rec. done!

Mastering done!

High fashion photoshoot 2022/2023 by @davide_colombino done!

Now it’s the turn for the IRREPLACEABLE master of ceremonies @solomacello (#128420#) Can’t wait!

The new album will consist of 10 tracks + one cover, ok not funny like the last one (we had covered “YEAH” by KYUSS if you remember) but certainly longer ahahah. It’s been 7 years more or less since our last work and like many other bands these have been really difficult years, surely the lyrics and the “intensity” of the songs have been influenced a lot by these past years.

We are very happy about what we have done, this new collaboration with Fabio Palombi (Blackwave studio in Genoa Italy) has given us the new energy we were looking for.

Will it be a purely stoner record? will it be metal? will it be rock? will it be POP? Who knows? ahahahha

For sure it will be our usual sound or “soul” that someone once defined: Riffalicious fastforward Stoner Rock

We really can’t wait to share it!

The album will be out in the first half of 2023 for sure but we cannot give further details yet :(

Isaak

https://www.instagram.com/isaakmusic/
https://www.facebook.com/isaakband
http://isaakmusic.bandcamp.com/

Chron Goblin & Isaak, Split (2019)

Isaak, Sermonize (2015)

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: Filip “Fitz” Hajdarovic of Drone Hunter

—

How do you define what you do and how did you come to do it?

What we do is we play instrumental riff worship rock ‘n’ roll music. To the layman this must be an abstract term, but for people into this kinda shit it’s pretty much self explanatory. We came to do it in a pretty classic fashion – I responded to Rus’ (the drummer’s) ad saying he was looking for someone to start a band with and once we got together and exchanged ideas that’s when we invited Klen (bass) to join us and pretty soon we realized that this power trio formation works best without a vocalist involved. And so it’s been that way going on 11 years now.

Describe your first musical memory.

Well when you think about it it’s kind of silly. My parents and I went to some musical event here in northern Croatia when I was about five or six. I can’t remember any of the performers but it was in a sports hall and featured a ton of the biggest pop stars in mid-’90s postwar Croatia. The music must have been terrible, but I remember watching the big stage and the lights and the crew and thinking ‘this must be a very cool thing to do with your life’. Then I had absolutely no interest in music until I was about fourteen. You know, the classics – GNR, Zeppelin, Black Sabbath etc. And then I thought ‘might as well give this a go since I’m no good at sports’ and started saving money to buy a guitar.

Describe your best musical memory to date.

There are so many but I’ll describe a couple. About a decade ago I became friends through social media with Edgar Livengood of Jucifer. So when they were touring here in Europe he was like ‘’Wanna spend a couple days on tour with us?’’ At that point I was still in college and had all the time and freedom you can imagine so naturally, I went. It was real awesome to share a van with these people from halfway across the world and realizing that you’re into the same kind of stuff just because when you were a teenager you heard a guitar riff and have been obsessed with it since.

Another musical memory I am very fond of happened in July 2016. I was doing a roadtrip in the US all by my lonesome and visited my friend Jeff of the band Duel in Austin. We went to see legendary country music performer Dale Watson at the world famous Continental Club and then out of nowhere a tall drunk guy is being escorted into the crowd by personal security. The guy asks Dale if he could play a few songs, Dale says ‘’sure’’ and who climbs the stage? – None other than Jeff Bridges a little bit inebriated but still able to play some of his solo stuff and the stuff he sang in the movie Crazy Heart. This was huge for me as I am a fan of his and having seen him perform in such an intimate environment with Dale Watson’s band was simply out of this world. I am a classic country and bluegrass buff and can’t help it.

When was a time when a firmly held belief was tested?

This happens virtually daily. That is, if you don’t let your ego get the best of you. I read a quote a long time ago that went something like ‘’A man who never changes his mind loves himself more than he loves the truth.’’ And I couldn’t agree more. So shit happens every day when you find yourself thinking ‘’Oh well, guess I was wrong about this or that.’’ I think it’s a pretty healthy approach to life since none of us are gonna be here forever.

Where do you feel artistic progression leads?

Well, in Drone Hunter we’ve never had the habit of calling ourselves artists. We are a rock n’ roll band. But I can see why someone else might call it art. I don’t really know what art is, but I look at it as a trade. If you were a blacksmith, your first horseshoe is probably not gonna be as good as your hundredth or millionth. So in my humble opinion it leads to a better understanding of what you’re doing. If you’re doing it with other people like us bands do, it leads to a better understanding of your fellow bandmates and rediscovering the common thread between members that actually kept the whole thing alive for an entire decade in our case. This is from a technical aspect of artistry. There is also the emotional one which is individual. I can’t feel the same feelings as you or anybody else. And that is perfectly fine. When you read a book and paint a scene in your head, chances are it’s not gonna be the same as mine. This is probably the most thought I’ve ever given towards art in my life. Thanks for the question, JJ.

How do you define success?

To me this is pretty simple – dying with a smile on your face and a clear conscience. Being cool with who you are, recognizing your flaws and working on them constantly. Just living a life worth living. If you’re into getting as rich as possible, fine. If you wanna run a marathon, fine. If you wanna travel the world, fine. If you wanna play music, fine. Just try not to hurt people along the way and don’t be an asshole.

What is something you have seen that you wish you hadn’t?

Witnessing a parent going through a multi year battle with cancer which they ultimately lost is something no one should experience, especially during their formative years.

Describe something you haven’t created yet that you’d like to create.

Our tours are mostly weekend gigs and when we do a full tour it’s maybe 11 or 12 gigs at a time tops because of our work obligations. It would be nice to be able to take at least a month off work and just play gigs every night for 30 straight days. At the moment this is all just wishful thinking, but who knows what the future brings. Also, having our records on vinyl would be awesome. That’s as far as the band goes. In my personal life, I’d like to eventually buy a small cabin in our town’s surrounding hills and live there with my cat, chickens and goats. I would also like to own a live music venue just so I can decline every single cover band booking request hahaha.

What do you believe is the most essential function of art?

I think its main function is to make you forget about the real world for a short while. Whether it’s a song, a painting, a movie, a play, whatever.

Something non-musical that you’re looking forward to?

Yes! I am looking forward to this summer’s vacation. First we’re doing a little weekend getaway with the boys. After that a combination of mountains and beach with my lady friend. Our coastline is pretty cool in a sense that you can go for a hike in the morning and go for a swim in the afternoon. Meeting our friends and family in different spots, camping in the woods and just not giving a rat’s ass about what’s going on in the world. Basically my summers are really outdoorsy. Gotta get that vitamin D.

https://www.instagram.com/dronehuntercro/
http://www.facebook.com/DroneHunter
https://dronehuntercro.bandcamp.com/

Drone Hunter, In Gear (2022)

Kind of a surprise here. Davy Boogaard‘s departure from Dutch heavy trio The Machine — who’ve done the jam thing, done the noise thing, and are soon enough to unveil their next album, which puts a neat bow on all of it while still kicking ass — leaves David Eering (guitar/vocals) as the lone remaining original member. Former bassist Hans van Heemst departed following 2018’s Faceshift (review here), and has since been replaced by Chris Both (also Sepiroth) after a stint with Sander Haagmans (ex-Sungrazer) filling in. Somehow, for a band who had so much chemistry between them for so long, losing another original third feels big, even as Eering and Both are committed to keeping it going.

Boogaard will play one more show with The Machine on Nov. 16 and will appear on the aforementioned next album as his final act with the band. Eering and Both are accepting submissions for drummers now — you can see their email below if you want to reach out — and at least from where I’m sitting that seems like a really good gig to drum your way into. The stream of Faceshift is at the bottom of this post if you doubt me, and there’s the rest of their Bandcamp linked, though if you need more convincing you might not want to apply anyway.

And in case it needs to be said, best wishes to Boogaard, who seems to be leaving on good terms. All the best to him in future endeavors and thanks for the rock and roll these last 15 years.

From social media:

Hear here, a message from David & Chris.

Davy will be leaving the band. He managed to ride it out for 15 years, but at one point you’ve just got to go with the flow. Thanks for all the good times brother! Davy’s personal statement about his departure is in the comments.

Just to be clear: The Machine will continue. 100%. Our upcoming show at @effenaar Club Void @intothevoidfestival (Nov 16) with @samavayo will be Davy’s farewell show. There’s an already finished new album waiting for its turn to be released. That will be Davy’s final output with the band. We will be able to share details on the album’s release during the months to come. It’s our best one by the way and there’s a new record label for this one.

We are now obviously challenged with a vacancy. If you are or know a hard hitting and super tight drummer with the right amount of feel and experimental tendencies, take a chance and get in touch directly. Drop us a DM or use david@themachineweb.com. We have our rehearsal room in Sliedrecht, 25 mins drive south of Rotterdam.

This puts us at the dawn of a new era of the band. The only way is forward!

Dear all,

With a heavy heart I regret to tell you that I will quit being the drummer of The Machine. After having played with great pleasure for over 15 years, I call it quits. I’d like to spend more time on other important aspects of my life, especially my kids and family.

I enjoyed all the years spent with this band. I went to countries & cities I otherwise would have never seen, played fantastic stages and met a lot of wonderful people. I should thank a lot of people but I’d honestly don’t know where to begin. Thanks to all of you! Thank you to everyone that has supported the band, friends, family… it all meant and means a lot to me.

Special thanks to Matte, Lara and Kat (Sound of Liberation), a lot of gratitude for the energy you put in and the wonderful times we had together! Sander Haagmans, thanks for stepping in after Hans’ departure. You really helped David and me out on a moment where we were uncertain about the continuation of the band. You’re a fantastic musician and above all an amazing dude.

My biggest thanks go out to David, Chris and Hans. It was a pleasure to be able to play with you guys, thanks for the insane amounts of fun that we had on the road. It is impossible to write down in such a small piece how important you were to me (and still are). Love you guys. I wish David and Chris all the best in the future. This band will also carve its path without me, no doubt about it.

On the 16th of November at Effenaar (Club Void), I will play my final show with The Machine. I dread going and look forward to playing this show at the same time, but I’d like to share the stage with my brothers once more. Maybe I see you then, maybe I see you around another time.

Lots of love,
Davy

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The Machine, Faceshift (2018)

Vastly pedigreed drummer “Minnesota” Pete Campbell — known for his work in Pentagram, Place of Skulls, In~Graved, The Mighty Nimbus, Vulgaari, etc. — is inching closer to the release of his first-ever solo album, Me, Myself and I. The nine-tracker bears influence from the traditional doom upon which Campbell has cut his teeth over the last 20-plus years, but there’s exploration as well in a piece like the instrumental “Uryah vs. Elmo” and the spacey drift-rock of “You’re My Angel,” which is both structured and atmospheric in surprising and complementary ways.

The real-world-happening-now, no-BS sensibility could be traced either to doom’s upfront nature about liferism — that is, you can doom and have a life — and even “Lockdown Blues” finds Campbell operating in Hendrixian swing with the vocals far back and treated as another instrument, the hard groove at the foundation comes through with a sense of where the song is ultimately coming from. In any case, relatable. So too the acoustics of “Midnight Dreamin’,” which follows in out-for-a-walk meandering fashion. You can dig it.

Preorders for Me, Myself and I have been made available through Kozmik Artifactz, which will have the release out Nov. 18. Given Campbell‘s description below, I guess you can call it a pandemic project if you want, but it seems like it’s going to keep carrying forward either way, and either way, Me, Myself and I begins to establish Campbell‘s craft in its own right, separate from a full band or other collaborations. Oh, and Tony Reed mastered.

Art, info, links, audio:

MINNESOTA PETE CAMPBELL – ‘Me, Myself, And I’ preorder: http://shop.bilocationrecords.com/navi.php?suchausdruck=minnesota+pete

Minnesota Pete Campbell has been a warrior of the underground for over 25 years. With a resume of bands like Pentagram, The Mighty Nimbus, Sixty Watt Shaman, Place of Skulls, Gygax, Brathair, Buzzard, In-Graved, and the list goes on and on. “Me, Myself, and I” is the first solo effort of many to come!

“During the start of the pandemic I got the call that all our Pentagram shows were being cancelled then the whole world was shutting down and I was going crazy! So I decided to build a studio in my home just to stay busy and capture ideas. Literally everyday in a three-month period I sat downstairs and put down ideas and they became songs for this record. I’d walk upstairs and see my daughter and boom… new song! I’d hear about all the places closing and people freakin’ out and boom… new song. “Me, Myself, and I” is a time capsule of that moment in human kind and how I chose to make a negative into a positive with Rock n Roll, frustration, and love! This record is very personal to me and I hope you can feel it, put it on, and let the music do the talkin!”, MPC

VINYL FACTZ
– 300x 180g transparent orange
– 200x 180g white/black marbled (KOZMIK MAILORDER EDITION)
– plated & pressed on heavy high performance vinyl by Pallas Group in Germany
– deluxe 300gsm gatefold cover
– special vinyl mastering

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Minnesota Pete Campbell, “Starlight”

Minnesota Pete Campbell, “Lightbringer”

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: Bryan Reed of Doomsday Profit

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How do you define what you do and how did you come to do it?

In the context of Doomsday Profit, I’m a guitarist and vocalist. It still feels strange to use words like “guitarist,” “vocalist,” or “musician,” though, since I’ve spent the vast majority of my life interacting with music as a fan and critic rather than a performer.

I started writing about music for my college newspaper, The Daily Tar Heel, in probably 2005 or so. By the time I graduated, I’d moved on to freelancing reviews and profiles as much as I could manage. But beyond dabbling with some friends in high school, I’d never really been in a band of my own.

I don’t buy into the notion that “those who can’t do, criticize.” Writing and criticism are their own skills, and don’t seem to be affected all that much by whether you have experience on the other side of the process. But for me, playing was something I’d always wanted to do, so as I approached my mid-30s, I decided to give it another shot. I picked up guitar with more focused intent than I ever had, took some online lessons and started jamming with Ryan Sweeney (Doomsday’s bassist). Soon enough, we’d come up with a few riff ideas that we wanted to try to build upon. That’s where Tradd Yancey (drummer) and Kevin See (lead guitarist) entered the picture.

The other guys are all more experienced and skilled than I am, but we found a chemistry that seems to work for us, and we all like hanging out and playing together, so that’s what we’ve been doing and what we plan to keep on doing.

Describe your first musical memory.

Apart from, like, Disney sing-along video tapes and the James Taylor and Carole King tapes my parents played in the car growing up, I came to music kind of late. I was well into high school before I started discovering the punk bands that would reshape my mind as it relates to music. All the usual suspects: Minor Threat, Misfits, Ramones, The Clash. That stuff opened a whole world of possibility, and I more or less disappeared into the music-nerd wormhole from there.

In terms of first, though, I’ll have to go with the first CD I ever bought for myself: Seal’s self-titled album — the one with “Kiss From A Rose.” I was in probably fourth grade, and loved Batman Forever. That song stuck with me so I had to hear more. I think I bought that album and the Space Jam soundtrack (which also ruled, and which also has a Seal song) at roughly the same time.

Describe your best musical memory to date.

So much of my life has been spent in the thrall of records and shows, it’s honestly hard to pinpoint any one memory. A lot of them blur together, and there are still too many standouts. Some moments stand out just for being amazing, intense shows, like seeing Pig Destroyer at Gwar-B-Q. Some are hazy in detail, but vivid in recalling the bonds forged between certain friends and myself, like the first few Hopscotch Music Festivals in Raleigh. Discovering bands like Boris as a student and having my mind reshaped, yet again, by experiencing new sounds. These are all cherished memories.
As a band member, though, it’s much clearer. The first taste of validation for what Doomsday Profit would become was after one of our first practice sessions. Tradd, Ryan and I stopped off at the local brewery, Hugger Mugger, for a couple pints after jamming, and Tradd introduced us as “musicians.” As I said before, it’s still a label that feels awkward to use, but to hear it come from the mouth of someone I respect so much was immensely flattering.

When was a time when a firmly held belief was tested?

I don’t know about a single incident, but I feel like my whole coming-of-age was hugely affected by disillusionment with all of the major social institutions and organizations that we’re all taught to believe in. In my lifetime, I’ve seen endless war under dubious pretenses, utterly vile abuse and cover-ups committed by churches and academic institutions, and the absolute failure of our leaders to do anything to address persistent issues like gun violence, policing, drugs, and the climate crisis. All of the “generally accepted” beliefs that I’d love to have have been broken by the many betrayals committed by those figures of power.

Where do you feel artistic progression leads?

Hopefully artistic progression leads to some sort of self-improvement. I don’t mean that in an esoteric way. In the most literal sense, developing skills and techniques is artistic progression, so it should lead to more dexterity or a bigger arsenal of techniques to employ. For me, that’s a big part of it, but the skill is really in service of being able to articulate my ideas. I would imagine a lot of artists view their progression as a journey to better capture the sounds or visions that live in their heads.

How do you define success?

Success is having the freedom to operate on your own terms. There’s certainly a material component to that, but it’s a much broader concept for me. When I imagine what success looks like, it’s more about having the time to pursue my interests than in accumulating wealth. But, I mean, the bills still gotta get paid.

What is something you have seen that you wish you hadn’t?

On a road trip when I was 15, I was staring idly out of the backseat window when we passed the scene of either an accident or worse. Beyond the yellow tape and through the splashes of red and blue light, a dead and mangled body slumped against a tree on the side of the highway. It was only a moment as we passed, but I’ve never been able to forget it.

Describe something you haven’t created yet that you’d like to create.

We’ve been kicking around the idea of doing a goofy concept album, all based on a pun. It’s about beer, but because it’s Doomsday Profit, it’s also about the apocalypse. And now that I’ve put it in print, I guess we’re going to have to follow through on it.

What do you believe is the most essential function of art?

Communication. And especially communication that transcends words. Whether it’s a political message, or an emotional expression, or even something designed purely for entertainment and escapism, when art is effective, it’s communicating something. Even the most escapist, superficial art is creating a shared fantasy with its audience. As artists, we’re trying to express ideas that we can’t otherwise express. And as fans, we’re always looking for art that resonates on a personal level. It’s a bit of alchemy that is absolutely one of the best things about being human.

Something non-musical that you’re looking forward to?

I recently started skateboarding again after about 15 years away from it, and it’s been very humbling trying to relearn everything. So I’m looking forward to getting my ollie back, hopefully.

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Doomsday Profit, “Consume the Remains” video