Posted in Whathaveyou on December 9th, 2019 by JJ Koczan
Some pretty grim artwork, and a heavy-ass show to go with it. The first-ever Doom City Fest is set for Feb. 22, 2020, in Mexico City, and it presents some immediately impressive international pull. Amid national acts 33, Fumata, Satánico Pandemonium and Malamadre, you’ll note that a significant portion of the top of the bill comes from abroad. European post-metal forerunners Amenra, from Belgium, will headline, and Germany’s Mantar, Canada’s Tekarra and America’s The Obsessed and -(16)- will round out the nine-band all-dayer lineup. It’s a pretty striking assemblage, and at least within the more weighted end of the sonic spectrum, wants little for variety.
For the many festivals that populate the planet at this point, putting one together — even one that’s only a single day — is no minor task in terms of coordination and presentation, who needs to be where, what’s it going to look like and sound like and all the rest of it. Getting nine bands from your neighborhood on the same lineup is hard enough. To have a bill where the majority are coming across borders to play? And it’s your first one? I tip my hat to Doom City Fest 2020.
Info and ticket links, as per the social medias:
Doom City Fest 2020 – Feb. 22 – Mexico City
Arriving in Mexico City: Doom City Fest with a strong and fine selection of exponents of underground music in genres such as Doom Metal, Sludge, Post-Metal, Stoner and other aspects of heavy music.
The first edition of this festival will take place in Sangriento, one of the most interesting venues in the northern part of the Mexico City necropolis located in the ruins of an old factory.
? Limited tickets in early bird phase already on sale at $750.00 mxn Until December 31TH OR SOLD OUT ?http://bit.ly/Doom-City-Fest.
An initiatory rite in the maelstrom of abysmal riffs, convulsive amplitudes and entheogenic frequencies.
Posted in Whathaveyou on December 9th, 2019 by JJ Koczan
Blastoff is pretty immediate in the teaser for Swedish space rock demons Yuri Gagarin‘s new album, The Outskirts of Reality, which is due out Jan. 31 through Sound Effect Records in Greece and Kommun 2 in Sweden itself. Some teasers, they give you a minute of a single song, or maybe even less than that. Some have 30 seconds of ambient nothing and kind of leave you feeling like a sucker for hoping for some substance. Yuri Gagarin, on the other hand, present nearly five minutes of an album that as far as I’m concerned can go on as long as it likes given what I’m hearing so far.
The Outskirts of Reality will comprise five tracks — one fewer than its predecessor, 2015’s At the Center of All Infinity — and I don’t hear a bummer note at all in the teaser as it gives a sampling of each of those pieces. I’m assuming “Laboratory 1” is the drone-sounding piece, if only because its title sounds like something a band might call an experimental track like that, but otherwise, Yuri Gagarin sound like they’ve got their intermix chamber aligned to the proper matter/antimatter ratios and are ready to punch it to warp seven the second they leave drydock. You got a list of albums you’re looking forward to in 2020? I do. Yuri Gagarin are on it.
Info about the record is pretty minimal at this point, apart from the tracklisting, the audio in the teaser, and the righteous gatefold cover art by Påhl Sundström — so not nothing, I guess — but I’d keep an eye out for perhaps more details to come later this week as they launch preorders on Dec. 13. If I was gonna, say, put out a whole track and the full album details to follow-up the teaser, that’d probably be the day to do it. Not trying to tell anyone to run their publicity campaign or anything.
Here’s what’s out there so far:
Yuri Gagarin – The Outskirts of Reality
Here’s a teaser for our new full length album: The Outskirts Of Reality. The artwork is made by Swedish artist Påhl Sundström.
It will be available on LP and CD on Kommun 2 Records and Sound-Effect Records January 31.
Pre-sales will be available December 13. More info coming soon.
Tracks: QSO Oneironaut Crystal Dunes Laboratory 1 The Outskirts Of Reality
Posted in Whathaveyou on December 6th, 2019 by JJ Koczan
Monterrey, Mexico-based doom rockers Spacegoat will issue their debut full-length, Superstition, on vinyl through Electric Magic Records. That’s a not-insignificant endorsement for the four-piece, coming as it does from Samsara Blues Experiment guitarist/vocalist Christian Peters. The album was originally released digitally in 2016, so it should be long enough to count as a reissue, but it is the first LP pressing so far as I know, so if you want to count it as that, that’s fine too. I’m not sure anyone pays attention to that kind of thing anymore, anyhow. I try not to, for sure. Makes my head hurt.
“I’m just a caveman…” and so on.
All Saturday Night Live references that draw from probably before anyone in this band was born aside, the record is name-your-price on Bandcamp now, and if you haven’t had the opportunity to dig in before, then an impending vinyl version seems like it should be more than enough to get you in for that. If that’s still too far to go, it’s streaming at the bottom of the post here. See how the capital-‘f’ Future we live in makes it so easy to spend money?
Have at it:
SPACEGOAT – SUPERSTITION – EMLP13
Mexican Spacegoat’s “Superstition” will finally be released on vinyl. Those who know, know already… those who don’t, check them out via https://spacegoatmx.bandcamp.com/
Says the band: “We have great news as our album ¨Supertition¨ will be finally released on Vinyl format, under the German label Electric Magic, We are very happy about it and we want to thank Christian Peters from Samsara Blues Experiment for making this possible!”
The album will be released on 300 Limited Purple Vinyls exclusively through Electric Magic. A must-have-heard (not just) for fans of Acid King, Windhand, Jex Thoth etc.
Tracklisting: 1. Doomensional 04:37 2. Transmuta 03:39 3. As we land 04:27 4. Superstition 06:21 5. Purple sand 06:06 6. Astral 05:49 7. The wooden path 03:38 8. Erase the sun 07:12 9. Sacred mountain 03:39 10. Sleeping hours 06:48
Release is set for March 2020!
Spacegoat are: Gina Ríos – Vocals & Guitar Miguel Ríos – Lead Guitar Rey Fraga – Drums Rigo Vigil – Bass
Posted in Whathaveyou on December 6th, 2019 by JJ Koczan
Even as Rifflord made a triumphant debut on STB Records last year with their 7 Cremation Ground / Meditation LP (review here), the band not only acknowledged it had been a long time since their debut — as evidenced as well by the fact that it was a totally different lineup around founding guitarist/vocalist Wyatt Bronc Bartlett — but that the first record was a hell of a legacy to live up to. Well, 26 Mean and Heavy is out there if you want to and can afford to chase it down, but STB Records is standing behind a one-time reissue of the album with preorders going up tomorrow and that seems to me to be a much more convenient option on the whole. The imprint based in my beloved Garden State has a knack for turning on-sale dates into events, and this one, it would seem, is no exception. Hey, good record, new master. I get it.
I was asked to write the PR for it, and yeah, I did. You’ll find that press release I wrote, some exclusive Rifflord pics from the era courtesy of the band, and a teaser video below:
RIFFLORD – 26 Mean & Heavy Preorders On Sale Dec. 7 @ 12PM EST
Mark your calendar, set your alarm — do whatever you have to do to be ready for Dec. 7 at 12PM EST, because once these are gone, they’re gone. New Jersey-based STB Records and Sioux Falls, South Dakota, amplifier worshipers Rifflord have aligned to remaster and reissue a one-time-only vinyl pressing of the band’s 2010 debut album, 26 Mean and Heavy.
Founding guitarist/vocalist Wyatt Bronc Bartlett brought in Mike Dresch of Cathouse Studios on the new master, and those who’ve tried for years to chase down original copies of 26 Mean and Heavy will find the sound refreshed and all the more vibrant in its delivery of weighted Southern-style groove, classic in form and gorgeous in its purpose.
“What’s interesting about this remaster is that the original audio files were a mix that wasn’t released on vinyl or digitally,” informs Bartlett. “It was supposed to be released and our guitarist and founding member Tom Davoux did a last-minute remix and master to it. So these haven’t been heard. Vocals and instruments are leveled out differently throughout the album. We had it remastered by Mike Dresch of Cathouse Studios specifically for vinyl.”
STB’s vinyl treatments have become the stuff of legend, and 26 Mean and Heavy will be given a full multi-edition run:
Die Hard Edition – Limited Edition of 75 Units Opaque Gold Vinyl Remastered, Repackaged and comes with Chapter 1 of the RIFFLORD Story in book form.
Pinwheel Edition – Limited Edition of 100 Black and Gold pinwheel style vinyl variant. Remastered, Repackaged and comes with Chapter 1 of the RIFFLORD Story in book form.
Not So Standard Edition – Limited Edition – 125 Black and Gold vinyl swirl variant Remastered, Repackaged and comes with Chapter 1 of the RIFFLORD Story in book form. 25 Will be available via Kozmik Artifactz and 25 will be available via All That Is Heavy
As to the Rifflord story, Bartlett doesn’t give away too many details, but admits, “As people we were young, naive and pretty wild during this era. It was the Salad Days of RIFFLORD and I feel that rawness and sincerity really comes through on this record. It was recorded in a basement and took us over a year to record and mix it with primitive tools.
“The band has changed a lot over the years and continues to do so. The core idea though has always remained the same. Guitar worship, big amps, heavy organ and loud drums. We’ve been at this since 2007. On “26 mean and heavy” we had a truly special line up. Dan Nissen our drummer was a power house behind the kit and his brother Mike Nissen was a classically trained pianist on the organ. Dave Duffet was our bassist with somewhat of a legendary persona among the Midwest circle. Lastly Tom Davoux was the guitarist, producer, mixer and tracker of the album, truly a phenom.”
Rifflord followed 26 Mean and Heavy with the long-awaited 7 Cremation Ground / Meditation in 2018 (also on STB Records), but their debut has remained a sought-after piece for collectors and fans of righteous fuzz alike. With the album about to hit 10 years since its first release, this may be the last chance to get it, and rest assured, they’ll go in no time.
Dec. 7. Noon EST.
Rifflord is now: Lead Guitar and Vocals: Wyatt Bronc Bartlett Guitar: Paul Pinos Bass: Matthew Mcfarland Keys: Tory Jean Stoddard Drums: Tommy Middlen
Posted in Whathaveyou on December 6th, 2019 by JJ Koczan
As Rome’s Fvzz Popvli round out what was a pretty successful year supporting their 2018 album, Magna Fvzz (review here) — most recently on a Fall tour produced by Heavy Psych Sounds — they’re announcing a new label home for what will be their third full-length. Pootchie Popvli & Co. will take their fuzzly — or is that fvzzly? — ways to Retro Vox Records, based out of Parma, in Italy, after taking a bit of time to catch their breath after touring and what was a pretty whirlwind couple of initial years for the band. I think their records were sleepers compared to some of Heavy Psych Sounds‘ higher profile releases, but they both delivered, the second even more than the first. No matter which outlet has its stamp on there, the third one will be something to look forward to, whenever it will happen along.
Retro Vox — who have worked in the past with countrymen Gorilla Pulp, Caronte, Whiskey Ritual, Da Captain Trips and others — and Pootchie both offered comment on the alliance:
Fvzz Popvli sign with Retro Vox Records!!!
Pootchie of Fvzz Popvli on the signing:
“After 2 albums, 10 European tours, 50.000km and more than 200 shows in 11 EU countries… We must say STOP! Now it’s time to rest and have a bit of time for ourselves… But the best thing is that a new adventure is coming, we gonna enter in the studio for our 3rd album in the end of January! We are very excited to announce our new label for this release: RETROVOX RECORDS an Italian based Rock’n’roll label, Bye Heavy Psych Sounds, thanks for all you did! More news soon! “
Carlo Izzo, A&R Retro Vox Records on the signing:
“I met Mr. Pootchie at Duna Jam years ago and soon was a blast. We had a lot of fun. Even if the band was under licence with another label I always try to help ’em with booking and with suggestions on production. That’s why I think this is a sort of natural transition.”
FVZZ POPVLI ARE: FRANCESCO “POOTCHIE” PUCCI – Guitar and Voice (BEESUS,The Wisdoom) DATIO PALATIO – Bass (The Anthony’s Vinyls) George – Drums
Austin, Texas, heavy Americana psych/post-rockers (vague enough for you?) Lord Buffalo will release their sophomore album, Tohu Wa Bohu, through Blues Funeral Recordings sometime in the early going of 2020. Though the four-piece will likely draw immediate comparisons to Rochester, NY, trio King Buffalo, if only for the similarity of their monikers, the 40-minute eight-tracker shows a diversity of influence from All Them Witches brooding, bluesy moon-howling atmospherics in its early going on “Raziel” or “Halle Berry” to some of Young Hunter‘s sneaky guitar bounce and nuance in the title-track and flourish of piano and strings prefaced in “Dog Head” that finds realization across the final trio of “Kenosis,” the relatively brief “Heart of the Snake” and closer “Llano Estacado No. 2,” executed with a build and airy fluidity of presence that reminds of Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds tripping on Wovenhand‘s often-severe point of view.
It is a heft of ambience as much as tone, but there’s no shortage of rhythmic impact as well, as even the lumber of “Dog Head” shows, vocals and violin sweeping up in a melodic wash punctuated by a thick-sounding snare that brings its crescendo down and locks in the more immediate thump-on-a-can of “Tohu Wa Bohu” itself, the title-track manifesting the highway-at-night vibe that the single’s accompanying cover also portrays. Lord Buffalo are no less comfortable in stark reaches than they are in their moments of fuller arrangement, and “Tohu Wa Bohu” transitions from one to the other with a hypnotic flow that would seem to lead off the immersion of side B of the vinyl, which of course only runs deeper as the subsequent tracks play out, culminating in “Llano Estacado No. 2,” with its repetitive string line and post-apex plays toward abrasion on a long fade capping. The standout line of the record and certainly of the song itself belongs to the title-track’s “Come show me how to feel,” which is delivered with due implore, but at no point is Tohu Wa Bohu cloying. Its songs are patient and often beautifully constructed, and whatever elements exist that might invite comparisons to the work of others, they’re used in such a way as to hone a persona belonging to the album itself.
Those who want to take the drive will find “Tohu Wa Bohu” premiering below, followed by comment from Lord Buffalo, as well as Blues Funeral, and the signing and release announcement. It’s a lot to pack into one post, but I have faith you’re up for it.
Please enjoy:
Vocalist/guitarist Daniel Pruitt on “Tohu Wa Bohu”:
As a band, we get booked on all kinds of bills. We’re often the loud band on a quiet bill or the quietest band on a heavy bill, and we can do both. We like a lot of different music, but it’s all pretty dark, and that has been our guiding light.
“Tohu Wa Bohu” is the title-track from our new record, and it’s a good example of what we’re going for, starting tight and sparse and building into something large and wide open. We wanted to try to use the rhythmic elements as the drone. It’s this pulsing, repetitive wave of bass and drums that makes a bed for the guitar and violin and builds into a huge vocal chant.
Jadd Shickler of Blues Funeral Recordings on the signing:
Lord Buffalo is a departure from our more familiar stoner/doom output, but we have broad tastes and know our listeners do, too. We’ve been fans of bands like 16 Horsepower, Son Volt and Godspeed You! Black Emperor for decades, and Lord Buffalo’s atmospheric ghost-town Americana captivates us in much the same way that those bands do. We saw them at the inaugural Monolith on the Mesa festival, where they absolutely decimated on a bill alongside tons of traditionally heavy bands. We’ve got no doubt that they’ll land for fans of bands like Dead Meadow, WovenHand, and Calexico, and can’t wait to release their new record.
Album Release Info:
America’s vast ocean of rolling prairie, brutal in its rhythmic repetition and sameness, can be unsettling to take in. The plains force a communion with the open sky, the endless landscape turning one’s eye inward.
Lord Buffalo’s second LP, Tohu Wa Bohu, is just that: the outward gaze forced inward, where the unknowable lingers on the blurred horizon between land, sky and mind.
In the Torah, “tohu wa bohu” refers to the formless void; the shape of things before the act of creation.
In thinking about writing the album, Lord Buffalo wanted to embrace unformed space and resist the instinct to control the process.
With only some basic arrangements in place, they entered Good Danny’s studio in Lockhart, Texas. As the tape rolled, they aimed to catch moments of new creation, the spirit hovering over the surface of the deep.
The end result is an elusive animal, equally at home under yellow street lights and purple desert skies. Tohu Wa Bohu is a heavy/quiet record that plays across genres, taking cues equally from Morricone and Badalementi as Sabbath and Swans. In sum, its thirty-nine minutes play more as a continuous movement than a collection of songs, a ride through open plains and melancholic midwestern imagery under a storm-threatening sky.
Tohu Wa Bohu will be available worldwide on LP, CD, and digital via Blues Funeral Recordings in early 2020.
Lord Buffalo are: G.J. Hellman P.J. Patterson Yamal Said D.J. Pruitt
Posted in Whathaveyou on December 5th, 2019 by JJ Koczan
We can probably still be friends if you can’t get down with tape reissues of Ruby the Hatchet‘s discography, but as your friend, I’d probably want to sit you down and pull your head out of your ass. The Philly/Jersey natives launch a tour with Germany’s Kadavar this very evening — T-O-N-I-G-H-T — and in addition to the tapes out tomorrow and available to order now through Brutal Panda Records, they have a new Uriah Heep cover of “Easy Livin'” they’ve debuted in a video. I recognized part of the footage from Roadburn, which was fun, and it was awesome to see that photographer-of-whom-I’m-constantly-in-awe Dante Torrieri filmed the studio portions as well. That dude gets around.
Ruby the Hatchet do likewise, and the tour dates to prove it are below, as well as the video, links and all that happy whatnot. I mean, if you’re not down, it’s okay, but seriously. Come on. Listen to that cover. Hell, go back and listen to the albums. You want those tapes. It’s okay to admit it. I think we all want those tapes.
The PR wire adds clarity:
RUBY THE HATCHET: Release Uriah Heep Cover; Set to Kick off Tour with Kadavar
Cassette Discography to be Released by Brutal Panda Records
Philadelphia psych rock quintet RUBY THE HATCHET has premiered a cover of Uriah Heep’s 1972 “Easy Livin’” via a new music video HERE. A staple of their recent live sets, the band recorded the cover at Retro City Studios in NJ. The group commented on the cover:
“Uriah Heep is a band favorite and still an unsung hero of sorts in our opinion. Many of their songs make our karaoke cuts, but Easy Livin’ was especially fun to figure out now that we have been toying with live three part harmonies. All of the high notes in our cover are vocally supported by Johnny, and of course Owen…still trying to put a mic in front of Lake. Plus, when you have someone like Sean playing organ, a Heep cover is a must.”
RUBY THE HATCHET will kick off an upcoming North American tour with Kadavar this Thursday December 5th in Atlanta, GA. The tour runs through December 21st and a full list of dates is available below.
Additionally, RUBY THE HATCHET will release their three full-length albums and EP on limited edition, colored cassette via Brutal Panda Records. The cassettes will be available on December 6th and can be ordered at this LOCATION.
RUBY THE HATCHET are currently writing their follow-up to 2017’s celebrated album Planetary Space Child. A 2020 release is expected with more info to follow.
RUBY THE HATCHET TOUR DATES: 12.05 Atlanta, GA • The Earl 12.06 Nashville, TN • Exit/In 12.07 Asheville, NC • The Mothlight 12.08 Richmond, VA • Richmond Music Hall 12.09 Baltimore, MD • Metro Gallery 12.11 Pittsburgh, PA • Spirit Hall 12.12 Brooklyn, NY • Saint Vitus 12.13 Philadelphia, PA • Johnny Brenda’s 12.14 Boston, MA • Once Ballroom 12.15 Montreal, QC • Foufounes Electrique 12.16 Ottawa, ON • Cafe Dekcuf 12.17 Toronto, ON • Lee’s Place 12.18 Detroit, MI • El Club 12.19 Cleveland, OH • Grog Shop 12.20 Chicago, IL • Avondale Music Hall 12.21 Minneapolis, MN • Fine Line Music Hall
“Easy Livin'” recorded May 21st, 2019 by Joe Boldizar at Retro City Studios in Germantown, PA. Original song by Uriah Heep (1972).
Video directed and edited by Todd McConnell and Jillian Taylor.
Live studio footage and photography by Dante Torrieri (Germantown, PA). Roadburn live footage by Volksradio Moos (Tilburg, Netherlands). Live at the Echo footage by Arturo Gallo (Los Angeles, CA).
Posted in Whathaveyou on December 5th, 2019 by JJ Koczan
What’s funny about this is that whenever a press release like this one comes in, the impulse is to picture the band at that very moment recording the album. Like they’re all huddled over the board listening to the drums or basslines to make sure everything’s where it should be, and so on. “Enter studio” can mean a lot of things. Maybe they walked in that day, set up and walked out again. Maybe they’re in there for three days and out and that’s all the time they have. Maybe some are there and some aren’t. I don’t know. It’s a whole spectrum of possibilities. For example, I seem to recall last time the PR wire told me Enslaved were in the studio — beginning the process for what became 2017’s excellent E (review here), I had just hours before seen bassist/vocalist Grutle Kjellson walking around Roadburn in the Netherlands, which, if you know anything about geography, is not at all Norway.
However — and it’s a big however, which is why I put it in italics — “enter studio” does at least mean that work has begun on the next Enslaved album, and whoever has shown up to get things started and however productive their first day or days might be, that’s a step in the right direction. I don’t know how many steps that means between now and release day — April, maybe? — but steps just the same. I’ll take it for now.
2020 is looking pretty sharp already.
Dig:
ENSLAVED ENTER STUDIO TO RECORD NEW ALBUM
Norwegian metal avant-gardists ENSLAVED have some big news for their fans: the band have just entered the studio and are currently working on new material for their upcoming album. This new gem will be released once again via Nuclear Blast Records and has a tentative release date of May 2020.
Band founding member and guitarist Ivar Bjørnson stated about the recordings:
“The days are growing darker in the Northern hemisphere – and Bergen is covered in a blanket of frost. This sets the scene as we have entered the studio to record the new Enslaved album. Since our last album, we have a “new” drummer – in quotation marks, since he has been with us behind the scenes for more than a decade. Together with me (Ivar Bjørnson and Grutle Kjellson) he constitutes the production team on this new album – and as before we will record in Bergen in Duper Studio and next door at Iver’s Solslottet Studio. Before crossing the mountains eastwards to Örebro into Fascination Street where Jens Bogren will handle the mix.
The new material I feel is very powerful. The ENSLAVED signature is there, but there is a wild drive and a level of energy that makes me extremely excited. All five members have poured their dedication and souls into the preparations, and there are new sides to the band shown that will elevate this album. “
Just weeks ago, ENSLAVED renewed the bond with Nuclear Blast and re-signed to the label. With that, a successful collaboration lasting for more or less ten years continues. A collaboration that two years ago produced the universally lauded album E, in which the progressive metal masters once again reinvented themselves and brought ENSLAVED to a new level.
ENSLAVED also recently released a stunning new music video for their interpretation of ‘What Else Is There’ by Norwegian electropop band RÖYSKOPP. The song is featured as a bonus track on the digital version of their latest album, E.
ENSLAVED live 2020: 20.03. NL Eindhoven – Prognosis Festival 25. – 27.06. N Ekeberg – Tons of Rock 11. – 12.07. USA Moran, WY – Fire In The Mountains Festival 7. – 9.08. B Kortrijk – Alcatraz Festival
