Posted in Features on July 10th, 2024 by JJ Koczan
Hi. I’m in Budapest, Hungary, from now through the first week of August, with my family.
As always, I will write as much as I can, when I can. The parameters of that may not be the same as they are when I’m home and things are running as normal. If there are two posts a day, one, or none, I’m sure nobody will blink, but I wanted to put this here just so that if you were wondering or didn’t see it mentioned on social media — whatever — there’s some record of what’s going on at this time. Plus, when I look back on it later, I’ll be able to say, “oh yeah, that’s why there were only five posts that week.”
This is the longest trip my wife, daughter, dog and I have undertaken to anywhere, ever, and in addition to being distracted, a good portion of my attention will need to be in that direction as we get settled and adjust to a new place, even for just a couple weeks.
Bottom line is I thank you for reading, for your continued support of this site, and for in some ways making this trip with us. I haven’t decided if or how much I’m going to write about the travel/city itself — I certainly had a few things to say about Zagreb; check in on Friday — but I’m going to play it by how imperative it feels in my brain, which is about the only standard I ever apply.
Once again, thanks. If you’re seeing this, I hope it finds you well. I’ll be back in NJ in August. If you need me for anything in the meantime, the contact form is there or you can probably get me on the aforementioned socials. If you’re sending/following up on music, please be patient and consider ‘as much as I can when I can’ above.
This post is going to stay here for the duration. New posts will appear underneath.
Whether or not it actually was for the band themselves — and we’ll get to why in a minute provided I don’t get sidetracked by sweet tonal resonance — it’s arguable that Nomadic Pursuits (review here) was a new beginning for Californian desert rock progenitors Yawning Man. True, it’s their second LP. Prior to its release in 2010 through Cobraside Distribution, the three-piece of guitarist Gary Arce, bassist Mario Lalli and drummer Alfredo Hernandez had offered their debut in 2005’s Rock Formations (discussed here) and companioned that with the Pot Head EP, and the two would be coupled into the compilation Vista Point in 2007, but by the time three years had gone by, all three of those discs were pretty difficult to come by. Nomadic Pursuits brought the instrumentalist trio a new degree of professionalism in terms of sonic character and depth, and presented what was by then a band more than two decades old as having a fresh perspective on the aural niche they helped create. The richness of its sound, whether that’s Lalli‘s fleet low-end in “Sand Whip” and “Far-Off Adventure” or Arce‘s lightly melancholic reverb in “Camel Tow” (also “Camel Tow Too,” later), the circles around which they instrumentalist trio seem to be running around at the culmination of “Sand Whip” or the indie quirk underlying closer “Laster Arte,” set a balance between serenity and heft that in some crucial ways has been a defining aspect of their work since.
On the most basic level, the band — through various Arce-led incarnations — has done much more after 2010 than they’d done prior. Never ones to shy away from reissues, Yawning Man‘s The Birth of Sol: The Demo Tapes (discussed here) collected early recordings (put on actual cassettes, mind you) from their early days circa 1986 and arrived in 2009, also through Cobraside, but the album, EP, and two comps comprised the entirety of Yawning Man‘s studio output for nearly a quarter-century before Nomadic Pursuits. In the 14 years since, in addition to regular international touring, Arce and company — my understanding gleaned from social media is the band currently features the founding guitarist alongside a recently-stepped-back-in Lalli on bass and likewise-returned drummer Bill Stinson, and that they’re recording with Jason Simon of Dead Meadow guesting in some capacity, but they’re fluid in personnel as well as craft, so don’t quote me on any of that — have done four studio LPs, two live albums, a crucial 2013 split with Fatso Jetson, and overseen a full series of catalog reissues, including for Nomadic Pursuits, through Italian forerunner imprint Heavy Psych Sounds. As regards productivity, they’re much more of a band now than they were when they were starting out as kids jamming in the Californian desert.
Maybe that’s just the way of things. Maybe it takes a while sometimes to realize when you have something special going on and you’re a part of it, or maybe Yawning Man‘s own legacy was bolstered as a result of the on-internet proliferation of the generator-party desert rock narrative, like sandy Southern California in the late ’80s and early ’90s was peopled by roving bands of stoned teenaged marauders worshiping the god of (I believe) Larry Lalli‘s gas powered generator, rogue hillside and defunct skatepark trespass concerts becoming the stuff of hyper-romanticized legend. The sound of freedom in a particularly dirty-footed American heavy-hippie ideal. I don’t know if that’s how it went and the truth of history is it doesn’t matter if that’s what’s become the narrative, but by 2010, Yawning Man were ready to be more than just that band Kyuss covered that one time and to get some fraction of their due as essential to the shape of what their microgenre became. More than just an obscure band people talked about in the past tense.
And what is a nomadic pursuit if not exploration? The 42-minute seven-tracker bears that out in the unfolding of “Far-Off Adventure” — the longest inclusion at 8:28 — as well as the peacefully expansive centerpiece “Blue Foam,” with Arce‘s guitar looped or layered or its-14-years-later-and-I-still-don’t-know-how-it’s-talking-to-itself-across-channels-like-that, or the more rhythmically restless “Ground Swell,” on which Hernandez goes full-on with a jazzy showcase, and “Camel Tow Too,” which takes a different route from the same central progression as the opener and becomes more than a simple reprise for it. Emblematic of their approach generally, there’s more happening across Nomadic Pursuits than simple hit-record-and-go jamming. They’re following a structure, even if it’s not always obvious, or at very least they have some idea in mind of where they’re headed before they get there, however nebulous that might be. But the material throughout is an exploration of atmospheres and moods and different textures and energies, the shifts in pacing and broader activity level between “Sand Whip” and “Blue Foam” representative of a dynamic that’s only grown more encompassing in the years since.
It would be that aforementioned split with Fatso Jetson — which was issued concurrent to say-hi-to-the-next-generation appearances at Desertfest London 2013 (review here) that also included a set from Yawning Man offshoot Yawning Sons in a landmark one-two-three succession — that pushed further in cementing Yawning Man as a influential and veteran outfit to a new listenership, but I’ll gladly maintain that Nomadic Pursuits is the work that allowed that to happen in the first place, and that its value in listening holds up as more than preface for what they’d do afterward across the 2010s and into the tumultuous first half of this decade. As they approach a 40th anniversary since their inception, Yawning Man are more reality than legend, which considering the legend involved should be read as a compliment, and as both an entity unto themselves in sound and a nexus point around which numerous other Arce-involved projects orbit, whether that’s Yawning Sons, already noted, or Yawning Balch, Big Scenic Nowhere, the forthcoming SoftSun, and so on. Like the joshua, their family tree is an expanding fractal of branches and constant new growth.
I already mentioned they’re working on new recordings. Their latest album, Long Walk of the Navajo (review here), was released last year on Heavy Psych Sounds. If you’re looking for where to head next, that’d be a good stop to make.
In any case, I hope you enjoy, and thanks for reading.
—
As will happen, I had been stuck on trying to find a record with which to close out this week, and it wasn’t until I was taking the dog around the block at quarter-to-six this morning that Nomadic Pursuits came to mind. Part of why it did was because in 2010 when I originally reviewed it, my wife and I were spending a summer month — it was the two of us and the little dog Dio back then — at a cabin in Vermont. She was working on her Ph.D. dissertation. I was writing stories that would become part of my graduate thesis. We’d write early in the day then pop down the hill for a beer — I still drank then — and once or twice a month I popped back down to NJ for band practice like the four-hour ride was no big deal.
Easy to romanticize that trip now. No question life was less complex before we had a kid in ways I can hardly appreciate most of the time from the deeply frustrating trenches of parenthood. But I read the photo caption in that review and found I was bitching about the heat — something I was doing not two weeks ago here as well; I’d like to flatter myself into thinking I’ve become more grateful for what I have, or at least presenting myself that way; this may be and more likely is a delusion; you’d have to ask The Patient Mrs. probably when I’m not in the room — and was reminded that while looking back can often put a sepia-toned spin on one’s experiences, there are ups and downs to everything while you’re living through it.
I write this as my wife and daughter argue in the next room about eating yogurt for breakfast. The kid, picking up from yesterday’s obnoxious without losing the beat of contradictory impulse that makes so many of our days and doings brutal. Now whimpering for something or other. Ugh. Our niece, 15, flew into town yesterday and The Pecan has been turbocharged as a result. This morning’s derailing, not unexpected, has proceeded in pinches, bites, punches, kicks for my wife and I. I look forward to being nostalgic about this era, to whatever else I might be blinded as a result. Maybe in middle age I’m less committed to remembering the reality of a thing. Fine.
I hope I forget being the less preferred parent. I hope I forget the way I get ignored when I ask my kid to do something, or tell her, or do anything other than threaten to end whatever kind of fun she’s having at the moment, or yell at her to finally do it because I feel helpless and like that’s the only way I can actually get her to acknowledge I’m speaking. I hope I forget feeling like a failure all the time, that I failed before I started and I’ve been failing since, here, at home, everywhere. I hope in the years to come I can whitewash all of it into a succession of the positive memories, of her creativity, her intelligence and cleverness, her four-dinensional thinking and the positive manifestations of her excited spirit, all of which are as much a part of her as the rest that is so crushing and overwhelming.
My time is up. Great and safe weekend. Thanks for reading. Brant Bjork Trio plays A38 in Budapest on Monday. Look for a review Tuesday, and I’m halfway through a Worshipper album review that I hope to finish at the nearest opportunity. Until then, then.
Posted in Whathaveyou on July 26th, 2024 by JJ Koczan
The new Duel album, Breakfast With Satan, came out earlier this month on Heavy Psych Sounds, and to no surprise whatsoever, the Austin-based purveyors of heavy charge will waste no time getting out to support it. If you’ve never seen the four-piece live — or if you have, for that matter — and are presented with the opportunity, you’d be doing yourself a favor by doing so. I won’t say a bad word about their records, unless you want to count “fuck yeah” and make me put a coin in the imaginary swear jar, but they’re a stage band all the way. The grit and grime and just-barely-on-the-rail-seeming shove of their studio work, hand-delivered with metallic vitality right to your waning eardrums. They’ve got a couple fests on this Euro jaunt starting Aug. 6, but most of it is club shows, which is a context in which they shine. Not that ringing or over an open European field doesn’t also work, but there’s something electric about their sound bouncing off the back wall to club your skull while on the other side your face is being melted.
Good band? Yeah, that’s pretty much what I’m saying. Here there be tour dates, as posted by their label, the esteemed Heavy Psych Sounds:
Europe!!! Duel will be coming your way next month so don’t miss them!!! And be sure to pick up their new LP Breakfast With Death from us at www.heavypsychsounds.com
TU 06.08.24 DE MANNHEIM – ALTER WE 07.08.24 DE JENA – KUBA TH 08.08.24 DE DRESDEN – CHEMIEFABRIK FR 09.08.24 DE MARIENTHAL – HOFLÄRM SA 10.08.24 DE MUNSTER – RARE GUITAR SU 11.08.24 DE TÜBINGEN – NULL8-15 MO 12.08.24 IT VERONA – FINE DI MONDO TU 13.08.24 IT SEZZADIO – CASCINA BELLARIA WE 14.08.24 IT SAN ZENONE – VILLA ALBRIZZI TH 15.08.24 IT FRANCAVILLA – FRANTIC FEST FR 16.08.24 FR CHAMBERY – BRIN DE ZINC SA 17.08.24 FR ***OPEN SLOT*** SU 18.08.24 FR CARHAIX – MOTOCULTOR FEST TU 20.08.24 FR PARIS – SUPERSONIC WE 21.08.24 BE BRUSSELS – LA SOURCE TH 22.08.24 UK BRIGHTON – THE GREEN DOOR STORE FR 23.08.24 UK LONDON – BLACK HEART SA 24.08.24 UK MILTON KEYNES – CRAUFURD ARMS SU 25.08.24 UK SHEFFIELD – COSMIC VIBRATION
DUEL is Tom Frank – lead vocals & guitar Jeff Henson – lead guitar & backing vocals Patrick “Scooch” Pascucci – Drums Drew Potter – bass & backing vocals
Posted in Whathaveyou on July 26th, 2024 by JJ Koczan
I guess it would’ve been silly for him to call the album ‘Darken’, but as Jerry Cantrell follows up his 2021 solo album, Brighten, with I Want Blood due out this Oct. 18 through Double J Records, that seems to be the vibe the Alice in Chains guitarist and reluctant grunge figurehead (could there be another kind?) is shooting for anyhow. In the parlance of probably-not-our-times-anymore, I’m here for it.
Solo output from Cantrell — who’s a no-brainer to rate among the best rock songwriters of his generation, as well as an accomplished guitarist and vocalist — has been a mixed bag over the course of his career. Brighten mostly left me cold, whereas 2002’s Degradation Trip (discussed here) features what’s for my money some of the best work he’s ever done in or out of his central band. I haven’t heard I Want Blood and so can’t comment on how the lead single/opening track fits in with the overall spirit of the release, but certainly it’s fair to say the initial impression here is more aggressive and, indeed, darker than last time out. Throw in a depressive cut or seven and that’s a wheelhouse in which it’s well established Cantrell can thrive.
I look forward to hearing more, and I’m glad Cantrell‘s collaboration with Greg Puciato is continuing, as the The Dillinger Escape Plan) singer’s voice was a striking complement in harmony with Cantrell‘s own from all the live footage I saw supporting Brighten. Cantrell also has summer tour dates upcoming — I don’t think Puciato will join, but I also don’t know that he won’t — and he’ll be out with Bush, which would be a great show to get there early and leave early, because that band has always sucked.
From the PR wire:
JERRY CANTRELL ANNOUNCES NEW ALBUM I WANT BLOOD, OUT OCTOBER 18 VIA DOUBLE J MUSIC
FEATURING GUEST PERFORMANCES FROM DUFF MCKAGAN, ROBERT TRUJILLO, MIKE BORDIN AND MORE
Jerry Cantrell, one of rock music’s most distinctive musicians, returns with I Want Blood, an album brimming with Cantrell’s signature vocals and guitar-driven melodies, on Oct. 18 via Double J Music.
“This record is a serious piece of work. It’s a motherfucker,” Cantrell says of the infectious collection. “It’s hard, no doubt, and completely unlike Brighten. And that’s what you want, to end up in a different place. There’s a confidence to this album. I think it’s some of my best songwriting and playing, and certainly some of my best singing.”
A preview of I Want Blood comes with today’s release of “Vilified”. The album opener showcases an energy that rivals any of Cantrell’s previous work – powerful, nuanced, and electric – setting the tone for the 45-minute album.
“‘Vilified” travels a lot of places in just four and a half minutes,” Cantrell continues. “It’s got a ferocity and really aggressive vibe to it.”
I Want Blood, co-produced by Cantrell and Joe Barresi (Tool, Queens of the Stone Age, Melvins), was recorded at Barresi’s JHOC Studio in Pasadena, Calif. The album also features contributions from bass heavyweights Duff McKagan (Guns N’Roses) and Robert Trujillo (Metallica), drummers Gil Sharone (Team Sleep, Stolen Babies) and Mike Bordin (Faith No More), and backing vocals from Lola Colette and Greg Puciato (Better Lovers, ex-Dillinger Escape Plan).
I Want Blood track list:
1. Vilified 2. Off The Rails 3. Afterglow 4. I Want Blood 5. Echoes Of Laughter 6. Throw Me A Line 7. Let It Lie 8. Held Your Tongue 9. It Comes
Album pre-orders, which include CD, digital and multiple 2LP variants are available here: https://bio.to/JerryCantrell.
Exclusive to the 2LP vinyl versions of I Want Blood are atmospheric, spoken word versions of each song on the album.
Jerry Cantrell kicks off a North American tour this evening, joining Bush for a seven-week trek across the continent:
July 26 Bend, OR Hayden Homes Amphitheater July 27 Airway Heights, WA BECU Live July 31 West Valley Utah, UT Utah First Credit Union Amphitheatre August 1 Greenwood Village, CO Fiddler’s Green Amphitheatre August 3 La Crosse, WI Copeland Park August 4 Indianapolis, IN Everwise Amphitheater at White River State Park August 6 Cedar Rapids, IA McGrath Amphitheatre August 7 Chicago, IL Huntington Bank Pavilion at Northerly Island August 9 Nashville, TN Nashville Municipal Auditorium August 10 Maryland Heights, MO St. Louis Music Park August 13 Cleveland, OH Jacobs Pavilion August 14 Cincinnati, OH Riverbend Music Center August 16 Sterling Heights, MI Michigan Lottery Amphitheatre at Freedom Hill August 17 Lewiston, NY Artpark Amphitheater August 19 Toronto, ON Budweiser Stage August 21 Holmdel, NJ PNC Bank Arts Center August 23 Atlantic City, NJ Hard Rock Live at Etess Arena August 24 Boston, MA Leader Bank Pavilion August 26 Charlotte, NC Skyla Credit Union Amphitheatre August 27 Raleigh, NC Red Hat Amphitheatre August 29 Jacksonville, FL Daily’s Place August 30 Davie, FL Hard Rock Live (Seminole Hard Rock Hollywood) September 1 Atlanta, GA Cadence Bank Amphitheatre at Chastain Park September 4 San Antonio, TX Freeman Coliseum September 5 Houston, TX 713 Music Hall September 7 Durant, OK Choctaw Casino & Resort September 8 Dallas, TX Dos Equis Pavilion September 11 Las Vegas, NV Bakkt Theater September 13 San Diego, CA Cal Coast Credit Union Open Air Theatre September 14 Phoenix, AZ Talking Stick Resort Amphitheatre September 15 Los Angeles, CA The Greek Theatre
Posted in Whathaveyou on July 26th, 2024 by JJ Koczan
Massive Hassle‘s 2023 debut, Number One (review here), wasn’t short on charm offered through the harmonies and classic-style rock, blues, soul and shuffle from brothers Bill Fisher and Marty Fisher, and as Unreal Damage opens up for my first listen with “Crap is Your Life,” I see not much has changed in that regard over the mere months since the first record. So much the better for the mellow rockers, both also of Church of the Cosmic Skull and Dystopian Future Movies, both formerly of Mammothwing, etc., and so much the better for anyone who’d seek vibe without pretense or sacrifice of songcraft and performance. Plus fuzz, which also helps.
The first single from the eight-track outing is called “Walk of Shame” and you can hear its bluesy guitar line and sleek melody advising you to “take it slowly” for yourself at the bottom of this post (at least I hope so, if the timing on the post works). It’s a fitting introduction into things to come, and the notice to get ready for it is welcome since Unreal Damage is out in just a couple weeks. Aug. 16 is the release date, if you missed it in the headline. And if you did, that’s okay too.
Info follows as per the PR wire:
Massive Hassle announce the release of their second album ‘Unreal Damage’ out on Friday 16th August via Septaphonic Records.
Massive Hassle is a two-piece rock band from Nottingham England, featuring brothers Bill & Marty Fisher (Mammothwing, Church of the Cosmic Skull, Dystopian Future Movies and many more), combining fuzz-rock, soul, doom-metal, jazz, blues, country, and more with meticulous two-part vocal harmony.
‘If Otis Redding and Tony Iommi made a 70s rock record with meticulous two-part vocal harmony, while deep in the throes of a dangerously expansive mental health crisis. The second album from the brothers Fisher sees them quest hither and yon into the depths of sweet soul music and heavy fuzz indulgences, apropos achieving surround sound. Discarding all previously proclaimed credos, the freedom of the studio environment elevates these eight brand new and select recordings to vertigo-inducing heights of sound and colour. Get peace, stay sound’ – Mike Failing
Hailing from Nottingham England, Brothers Bill Fisher and Marty Fisher (Mammothwing, Church of the Cosmic Skull, Dystopian Future Movies) launched this new project in 2023 with the celebrated debut ‘Number One’, recorded and filmed entirely in live takes, with videos for every song.
Continuing their experiment with vocal-harmony-laden fuzz-rock / soul / doom-metal / jazz / blues / country, the second release sees the brothers take a wider, tighter, studio-orientated approach, while maintaining the authentic minimalism of the two-piece format.
Posted in Whathaveyou on July 26th, 2024 by JJ Koczan
Okay, so if you’re going to put me in a corner and force me to admit it, I will say that perhaps Norwegian folk-influenced atmospheric post-rock isn’t going to be universally relatable. Not everyone who hears it is going to be like, “Oh shit that rules!” and set their preorder with an eye toward securing a good time while they can. The vibe here is more melancholic, more introverted despite the expansive melodies of Lindy-Fay Hella‘s vocals — accompanied by spoken parts from Kristian Espedal (ex-Gorgoroth, Gaahls Wyrd, Trelldom, etc.), guest fiddle, and so on — and fluid in a different way. It’s not a party. Don’t expect a party. But if you’re in just the right kind of contemplative, looking-for-something-obscure-in-style-but-emotionally-resonant spirit, there’s resonance in the video for “Vi finnes” to be had. It’s there waiting for you if and when you feel like you’re ready to find it.
If the involvement of Espedal piqued your interest coming from a more extreme metal side, I’ll note as well Hella‘s work in Wardruna, Ronny “Valgard” Stavestrand also having been in Trelldom and Iver Sandøy‘s status as drummer/vocalist in Enslaved in addition to drumming for Relentless Aggression, Trinacria and recording and playing with scores of others. It’d be a contradiction in mood to call them a supergroup, but nobody here is lacking in pedigree.
And if this turns out to be a note to myself later to check out the album when the time comes, I’m satisfied with that too. Certainly the reason I’m posting “Vi finnes” here is because it made me want to hear more.
From the PR wire:
WHISPERING VOID reveal first video single ‘Vi finnes’ and details of forthcoming debut album “At the Sound of the Heart”
The collective of renowned musicians from Norway’s west coast henceforth known as WHISPERING VOID is releasing their first ever video single ‘Vi finnes’ (‘We Exist’) taken from their forthcoming debut full-length “At the Sound of the Heart”. The album has been slated for release on October 18, 2024.
WHISPERING VOID comment: “The main lyrics in this song are in Norwegian, more specifically in an Eastern dialect of Norwegian, and this creates a slippery and almost untrustworthy character”, vocalist Kristian Espedal writes. “The title, ‘Vi finnes’ means ‘we exist’, but the lyrics are about us never existing. The words are about the morning, which is an opportunity, and about the hours, which are the repetition of everything that happens all the time but is never the same. There is much hopefulness in this song, and at the end even a bit of suffering. When the lyrics move into English, they steer into a different direction. Ferrucio came up with the idea for the video. The lady in this film is observing life from the past. I like the very subtle connection to the lyrics.”
Lindy-Fay Hella adds: “I love the vibe of the video”, the vocalist enthuses. “I like that there is a connection with the song’s lyrics, but it also adds a new dimension to it. The haunted house in this video is situated in my neighbourhood and the lady in the video is one of my best friends. She really fits this song. I feel somewhat reminded of the fairy tale ‘Goldielocks and the Three Bears’.”
Tracklist 1. Vinden vier 2. Vi finnes 3. Whispering Void 4. At the Sound of the Heart 5. Lauvvind 6. We Are Here 7. Flower
Recording by Iver Sandøy at Solslottet Studio, Bergen (NO) Additional recording by Ronny Stavestrand at Home Studio, Bergen (NO) Mix by Iver Sandøy at Solslottet Studio, Bergen (NO) Mastering by Iver Sandøy at Solslottet Studio, Bergen (NO) Artwork by Tor Ola Svennevig Layout by Øivind Myksvoll
Guest musicians: Ole André Farstad – guzheng, Indian slide guitar on ‘Vinden Vier’,’Lauvvind’ Matias Monsen – cello on ‘Whispering Void’, ‘At the Sound of the Heart’, ‘We Are Here’ Silje Solberg – Hardanger fiddle on ‘Vi finnes’, ‘The Vines’
Posted in Whathaveyou on July 25th, 2024 by JJ Koczan
Oh my goodness, yes. I gotta be honest with you, when Terry Gross‘ debut, Soft Opening (review here), came out through Thrill Jockey in 2021, I didn’t dare hope for a follow-up. Nobody in the expansive, melody-minded, super-duper-West-Coast cosmic-shove-boogie rocking San Francisco trio seemed to be lacking for other stuff going musically, and while I thought the record kicked ass like Earthless if they stuck a fork in an electrical socket and still do, it wasn’t ever super-hyped in terms of dudes drooling over it on social media or whatnot. I’m sure they got critical praise. Sometimes I forget I don’t actually read reviews.
But not only will Terry Gross have a new album out Sept. 20 (still on Thrill Jockey), and not only is it self-assessed as a Huge Improvement, but the leadoff track “Sheepskin City” is streaming now. “Sheepskin City” — you can see the sign on the LP’s cover below and read the story from the PR wire in the blue text — is one of four on the record, and it’s a burner the way you think of stars fusing hydrogen into helium atoms. I can’t wait to be obsessed with this album and to annoy my family by having it on constantly.
Here’s looking forward:
Terry Gross announce their exhilarating sophomore album ‘Huge Improvement’ out September 20th
Terry Gross is the beloved Bay Area rock trio featuring members of Trans Am, Oneida and the Fucking Champs, who also run San Francisco’s acclaimed El Studio (Moon Duo, Big Business, Wooden Shjips)
Terry Gross, the trio of drummer Phil Becker, bassist Donny Newenhouse, and guitarist Phil Manley (Trans Am) announce their exhilarating sophomore album with the typically self-deprecating title of Huge Improvement. Coming September 20th, the album was written and recorded at El Studio, the band’s studio where artists such as Moon Duo, Big Business and Wooden Shjips have worked. Huge Improvement captures the trio’s psychedelic excursions with granular precision.
We are pleased to share bracing new single “Sheepskin City” – a gallivanting ode to impermanence that runs at full-tilt, classic riffing pushed to sonic extremes and invoking prog-rock drum and guitar heroics. Named for the San Francisco business (also featured on the album’s cover art), “Sheepskin City” exemplifies the band’s balance between absurdist humor and a genuine concern for preservation.
“Sheepskin City was always a perplexing oddball place on a busy corner in San Francisco’s Mission district,” notes Becker. “They hung the same weathered ragged sheepskins out front daily. Was it a front for something else? Something about it just made you smile when you drove by it. If Sheepskin City is still there, things are alright. Then, one day, after decades of being there, it’s gone!” Newenhouse adds: “For us it became sort of an analog for the future and how technological advancements will most likely result in some sort of ultimate letdown.” Manley continues: “These are places in the neighborhood where we have our recording studio, El Studio, which is where we write, rehearse and record. It’s our home base. We were capturing a moment in time. Everything is temporary.”
The four mammoth slabs that make up Huge Improvement are driving rock adventures, taking on a rollicking joy ride. The record welcomes cathartic release peppered with humor, delivering their observations on the changes on community and specifically their Bay Area community with considerable humor. Terry Gross’s Huge Improvement is a welcome release in this time of change and uncertainty and yes, a subtle attempt to get to speak to a journalist they admire, Terry Gross.
Tracklisting 1. Sheepskin City 2. Sales Pitch 3. Full Disclosure 4. Effective Control
Terry Gross are: Phil Becker – Drums Phil Manley – Guitar/Vocals Donny Newenhouse – Bass/Vocals
Posted in Whathaveyou on July 25th, 2024 by JJ Koczan
When Hermano signed to Ripple Music in 2022, the word was a new 10″ would surface in addition to the program of catalog reissues that’s played out in the time since. Well, here we are, and here’s When the Moon Was High… (gotta have that ellipse in there). Set to release Oct. 4, the EP gathers two previously-unreleased studio tracks, the classic “Brother Bjork” that I think might be the same as appeared on the 2005 live record Live at W2 — I could be wrong; I’m sure there’s a story there either way — and three cuts from the band’s reunion set at Hellfest 2016.
As frontman John Garcia and the band’s other members have woven in and out of other projects and/or solo work, Hermano‘s 2007 offering, …Into the Exam Room (discussed here), offers just one example of them as a group who never got their due in terms of craft or the sheer kickassery they were about. A new album might do more to change that conversation than an unearthed-material EP, but if this is a step on the way or it isn’t, I’m not going to argue with a new Hermano outing to chase down. Take what you can get, in all that. Nothing overly new in heavy heads knowing what the rest of the world is missing.
No songs out When the Moon Was High… yet, but preorders are up on Ripple‘s Bandcamp, which is where this info comes from:
“when the moon was high…” brings the moons of Hermano back into alignment. As we embarked on the remix/remaster/reissue Ripple series of our catalog, a new song emerged. During this process, we uncovered some valuable discoveries while revisiting tapes, drives, and cherished memories accumulated over our 26 years of friendship. We collectively thank our good friend Todd Severin for opening the door that brought “when the moon was high…” to life.
Breathe
Taking back claim to the territory they had charted years ago, Breathe, the upcoming limited-edition release from Hermano, features the first new music released by the band in fifteen years.
While the band had continued to write and perform on each other’s individual projects during the last decade and a half, Breathe showcases the sticky-sweet and heavy blues riffs and tones that are unique to these five musicians when they come together under the Hermano banner.
The title track, Breathe, travels back to the band’s first release, filled with the same swagger and heavy hand as the band’s initial offerings, reinforcing the impact the band has had upon modern heavy rock, stoner rock, and driving blues genres.
Written for the first Hermano sessions, Never Boulevard was tracked during the last few hours while recording in Cincinnati during the winter of 1998. Rediscovered while organizing the master tapes for the Ripple catalog reissues and utilizing the original core tracks, the band has finally brought the song to completion twenty-six years later.
Rounding out the limited-edition are four never-before-heard live tracks that again underline the unique place in heavy blues music Hermano occupies. Brother Bjork serves as more evidence to the band’s stellar performance at the Willem Twee Poppodium in 2004, a show that continues to be hailed as one of the finest the venue has ever hosted.
Taken from the last time the group came together to perform, Senor Moreno’s Plan, Love, and Manager’s Special all give a special glimpse into their lauded reunion at Hellfest in 2016. After eight years of not performing together, John, Dave, Mike, Chris and Dandy arrived a couple of days before the festival, rehearsed for a few hours, and came with a head of steam that left those who witnessed the event both touched and amazed. Breathe not only features a small sliver of that legendary performance, but also introduces the only existing audio recording of the band’s song Love.
“We are so incredibly thankful to be able to bring new music to both new fans and those who have followed Hermano for the last twenty-six years. We are looking eagerly forward to continuing this reissues and special editions journey with Ripple . . . so hang onto your hats because we have a lot more coming and a long way to go. Breathing new life into our catalog and having the opportunity to release special collections like Breathe, well, it is an especially ‘dream-come-true’ time for all of us. For that, and to all who have continued to stay interested, thank you.”
John, Dave, Mike, Chris, and Dandy
Tracklisting: 1. Breathe 2. Never Boulevard 3. Brother Bjork (Live @W2) 4. Senor Moreno’s Plan (Live @Hellfest) 5. Love (Live @Hellfest) 6. Manager’s Special (Live @Hellfest)
HERMANO line-up: John Garcia – Vocals Dandy Brown – bass Mike Callahan – Guitar David Angstrom – Guitar Chris Leathers – drums
Fargo, North Dakota, instrumentalists El Supremo are set to issue their third full-length, the four-tracker Signor Morte Improvvisa, this Friday through Argonauta Records. For drummer Chad Heille (who founded the band as a one-man project some 16 years ago), guitarist Neal Stein, bassist Cameron Dewald and organist/keyboardist Chris Gould, it is the second long-player as a complete four-piece lineup behind early-2023’s Argonauta-released Acid Universe (review here) and 2019’s proof-of-concept debut, Clarity Through Distortion (review here), and their most fluid display of chemistry to-date, marked by excursions into dug-in heavy psychedelia, classically bluesy swing given melodic flourish by the Hammond on the comparatively brief second cut “Gravecraft,” light-touch sans-pretense progressivism expressed through Stein‘s guitar, and groove a-plenty to suit the palette of those seeking a chill without having to give of heft either of tone or presence. While the title, which translates from Italian as ‘Mr. Sudden Death,’ might lend English speakers some impression of being improvised, the proceedings across the 33-minute long-player are jam-based rather than solely jammed, and from the 10-minute opener “Breadwinner” — a bookend with the closing title-track around “Gravecraft” and the subsequent “Solitario” — onward, the vibe elicited feels purposeful in the flow conjured within and between the songs.
It’s a record you can easily get lost in, and I’m not sure you’d be wrong or running counter to El Supremo‘s intention to do so. True, “Breadwinner” builds up around a bit of crash and jabby, emphatic fuzz riffs, but the nod is quickly established in early going, and Signor Morte Improvvisa isn’t shy about basking in it. Stein‘s guitar and Gould‘s organ do some of the ‘talking’ in the sense of carrying the melody that might otherwise come from vocals, but not having to structure the material around lines of lyrics has clearly let the band have that much more flexibility to flesh out parts as they will.
This is something that “Breadwinner” lets the listener — newcomers to the band and returning parties alike — know early on as the intro unfolds organically into bluesy psych soloing before growing quieter and thereby plunging headfirst into its own vibe. Digging in, in other words. Exploratory in the guitar and keys, solidified by the rhythm beneath, it’s a familiar but welcome dynamic as the riff picks up at the midpoint, not so insistent as to be a sweep, but definitely encouraging an audience to come along, and very much in the spirit of a live show in that communication, despite the fullness of studio tone — that is, the production sound (Stein helmed Acid Universe; I’m not sure if he also produced here) is clear but not lacking in stage-style energy for that — that allows for a corresponding depth of mix.
The easy-going feel is maintained through a largely-consistent, rolling tempo that sticks through the ebbs and flows of “Breadwinner” until picking up with a push the finish when there’s about a minute left, and fair enough. That kick is a fitting lead-in for “Gravecraft,” which is almost purely about its own swing and Deep Purple-circa-’72 course; the most active El Supremo get in terms of bounce and maybe a little brash in relation to what surrounds, but not at all out of place for being either the shortest inclusion or the most straightforwardly structured.
A faster ending for “Breadwinner” helps the transition, sure, but the leap isn’t such a challenge to make into a more boogiefied range of blues, and as the eight-minute “Solitario” begins the second half of the tracklisting and serves as the presumed start of a vinyl’s side B, the mood shifts once again with Dewald‘s bass and Heille‘s ride cymbal slowly shaping a meditative outset that grows wistful with the entry of guitar and eventually organ, while holding fast to the patience of the build that’s subtly taking place. Fuzzy soloing intertwines with runs of organ lines, but while one might expect a surge to come, it simply doesn’t, and that feels like a conscious choice on the band’s part. The tradeoff is that “Solitario” comes about as close as El Supremo get to an improvised feel and is abidingly subdued for its duration. It’s never ‘sad’ in a performative way, but it’s easy to read an emotional crux into Stein‘s guitar or the come-forward organ line that rounds out, but that only makes the overarching impression stronger.
And when they get down to “Signor Morte Improvvisa,” it’s a get-down indeed. A swipe of what might be echo-laced harmonica weaves into the guitar-led intro, and when the drums arrive before the first minute is through, the forward movement is immediate. They’re not blowing it out, and they don’t, but “Signor Morte Improvvisa” is heavier and more plotted-feeling than “Solitario,” and that change in energy is palpable in its turns from quiet to loud and back again.
The harmonica stays as part of the march, and what turns out to be an essential part of the character of Signor Morte Improvvisa as a whole is unveiled after the four-minute mark as the guitar lead takes shape around a reference to Enrico Morricone‘s “The Ecstasy of Gold” (best known as the opening theme of Sergio Leone’s The Good, the Bad and the Ugly) around which the band vibes for a while before dropping to tom hits and sparser action and ultimately picking back up. Keyboard does the memorable vocal part starting at 6:30 to seal the deal, and that becomes the bed for a full-momentum crescendo that’s graceful and respectful of the source material on which it’s based but still allows El Supremo to make the moment their own in a way that feels like a payoff for the album on its own terms. That’s a hard balance to strike, which is something you would never know from the recording itself.
Once El Supremo lock in — and that happens early — they don’t let it go. This also gives Signor Morte Improvvisa a live-set feel, further bolstered by the title-track playing out as it does, and while decisively in the realm of the manageable at 33 minutes — which is not to say the record is short and imply it as a weakness when its brevity is very much the opposite thereof — it’s a set you’d be lucky to witness, and it reaffirms the persona of El Supremo as a band who very likely could offer a rigid showcase of technicality or staid prog rock, but are just too darn soulful to let that happen. I’m gonna call that a win, and it’s by no means their first in terms either of attitude or execution.
Signor Morte Improvvisa streams in its entirety below, followed by some background courtesy of the PR wire. The more you hear it, the more you’ll hear in it.
As always, I hope you enjoy:
El Supremo, Signor Morte Improvvisa (2024)
El Supremo was originally formed as a one-man project with Chad Heille playing all the instruments and handling recording/production. A self-titled full-length demo was released in 2008, with Tom Canning and Neal Stein contributing guitar solos to the recording.
Chad and Neal went on to play in the band EGYPT from 2012 to 2018. During that time, Egypt released three full-length records, a split LP, made numerous compilation appearances, reissued their first demo and toured 16 different countries playing several notable festivals.
After Egypt split, it was decided to revive the El Supremo name, whose sound today ranges from psychedelic and melodic to heavy and doomy. Influences are rooted in classic rock, stoner rock, blues, and old-school metal.
