Posted in Whathaveyou on September 12th, 2019 by JJ Koczan
Austin duo Monte Luna are getting closer to the Oct. 4 release for their new album, Drowners Wives, which will be out through Argonauta Records, and as they wrap up a couple live dates this week alongside Serial Hawk — who also have a new LP out — they’ve just announced a run to Europe that will begin next month and go into November. The tour will begin after the album is out, so that’ll give them something to promote, and even as they get ready to go, they add further intrigue to the impending by unveiling a new video for “Man of Glass.” Like the prior-posted “The Water Hag” it’s on the shorter side of the spectrum, but still gives a sense of what it’s all about, which is to say, riffs and murder at Stonehenge. So, yeah, right on.
I haven’t heard the album yet or I’d probably be talking about it right now, but what I’ve heard so far bodes well, and Monte Luna are putting their time in on the road in such a way that makes me think they have designs well outside their hometown — though given their hometown, that’s plenty in itself — over the longer term. More power to them. Go forth and sell shirts, young men.
Here’s where they’ll be, and that new video:
Our European tour has been announced! We head across the pond in October!
Your eyes are dazed and heavy.
Upcoming Monte Luna Tour Dates September 13 – Atlanta Georgia – 529 * September 14 – Raleigh North Carolina – Slims Downtown * * w/ Serial Hawk
Monte Luna European Tour 2019: 25.10.19 Italy, Turin 26.10.19 Italy, Lecco 29.10.19 France, Volmerange-Les-Mines 30.10.19 Belgium, Antwerpen 31.10.19 Belgium, Gent 01.11.19 Netherlands, Zwolle 02.11.19 Germany, Koblenz 03.11.19 Germany, Bremen 05.11.19 Denmark, Copenaghen 06.11.19 Denmark, Aalborg 09.11.19 Sweden, Stockholm 10.11.19 Sweden, Gothenburg 12.11.19 Germany, Dresden 13.11.19 Germany, Munich 14.11.19 Switzerland, Le Chaux du Fonds 15.11.19 Italy, Pavia 16.11.19 Italy, Vigone
Posted in Whathaveyou on September 11th, 2019 by JJ Koczan
Finnish heavy rockers Lowburn have been trickling out info and audio for their second album, Phantasma, for a while now, including a lyric video for the single “Cloud Valley” that you can stream below, but getting the release date, tracklisting and album art is obviously a big step along the way to the actual arrival. Phantasma will see release on Oct. 25 through Argonauta Records — no preorders yet, but they’ll get there — and boasts eight tracks, one of which has the honor of being called “Urban Funk Campaign.” I don’t know what it sounds like, as I haven’t heard the record yet, but I know I want to find out.
Until then, the cover art is striking in its vague orbital iconography and big-eyes skeleton whatnot, so yeah, dig in. The PR wire sent all all the everything:
Fuzz Doom collective LOWBURN, featuring ex-members of Battlelore, reveals full album details!
Phantasma coming this October on Argonauta Records!
After Battlelore went on hiatus, Tomi Mykkänen and Henkka Vahvanen formed a heavy fuzz rock and doom fusion, Lowburn, in 2012. The Finnish music collective and heavy sounds veterans have been hard at work for their forthcoming and hotly anticipated full length, which will be seeing the light of day on October 25th with Argonauta Records!
Phantasma is featuring eight fuzzy, hard rocking, punkish to heavily psychedelic tracks, that will invite you to a trip into a universe of diverse soundspheres. Earlier this summer, Lowburn shared a first single to the track Cloud Valley, listen HERE!
Phantasma tracklisting: 1. My Doom Dealer 2. Freaks 3. Cloud Valley 4. Walking on Thirds 5. Song of a Preacher 6. Ghosts 7. Urban Funk Campaign 8. Hypnopomp
With a pre-order to start soon with Argonauta Records, Lowburn have announced to not only share many more details plus tunes, but also upcoming live dates with us soon. The band released a critically acclaimed debut EP back in 2013, followed by a split-7″ with fellow band Church of Void to date, live shows of Lowburn have been rare so far. Finally, the Fall of 2019 will see them return to the scene, a news that will surely make every stoner punk and doom rock- heart beat faster. Stay tuned for many more news to be revealed in the days ahead!
Lowburn is: Henkka Vahvanen – drums Antti Vesikko – bass Tomi Mykkänen – guitar and vocals Tommi Lintunen – guitar
Posted in Whathaveyou on September 5th, 2019 by JJ Koczan
Gotta figure two one-man bands traveling together cuts down on costs, if nothing else. Plenty of room in a 13-passenger van, even with gear, when it’s just two dudes. I’m not sure, however, that it is just two dudes, as I know Texas’ Red Beard Wall and Virginia’s Thunderchief have both used live drummers in the past, so maybe upwards of… four… people involved between the two groups, such as they are? Still seems like a pretty efficient trip to me.
Thunderchief — aka Rik Surly and sometimes Erik Larson — have a couple singles out as of last year, while Red Beard Wall — aka Aaron Wall and sometimes George Trujillo — released the full-length The Fight Needs Us All earlier this year on Argonauta Records. Rest assured, whether it’s them alone or not, whatever the shows lack in personnel, they’ll make up in volume. Neither act is fucking around when it comes to that.
Dates and info from the PR wire:
Red Beard Wall & Thunderchief Tour Dates
Thunderchief teams up with Red Beard Wall for one of 2019’s most anticipated tours! Sacrament of the Ninth Order Tour 2019!
This super-heavy doom/sludge hybrid tour begins October 17 in Dallas, TX, wrapping up in the Mecca of Doom, Frederick, MD, on Nov. 2, 2019. This pair of ultra-heavy sonic titans are quite unique, as they are both one-man bands, with walls of amps and NO drum machines!
Thunderchief, of Richmond, VA, will be performing their crushing new upcoming album in its entirety, and Red Beard Wall, of Lubbock, TX (Argonauta Records), will be belting out melodic heaviness from their current European release, The Fight Needs Us All.
Both bands have been seen opening for Eyehategod, Weedeater, Backwoods Payback, Shadow Witch, among many others, and this tour is not slacking on killer regional touring bands!
Oct. 17 Dallas TX Tradewinds Social Club Oct. 18 Austin TX Dozen Street Oct. 19 San Antonio TX Faust Tavern Oct. 20 Lafayette LA Freetown Boom Boom Room Oct. 21 New Orleans LA Poor Boys Oct. 23 Birmingham AL Upsidedown Plaza Oct. 24 Raleigh NC Slim’s Oct. 25 Wilmington NC Reggie’s Oct. 26 Asheville NC Static Age Oct. 27 Nashville TN Betty’s Grill Oct. 28 Louisville KY Highlands Tap Room Oct. 29 Youngstown OH Westside Bowl Oct. 30 Canton OH Buzz Bin Nov. 1 Kingston NY The Anchor Nov. 2 Frederick MD Guido’s
Posted in Whathaveyou on September 3rd, 2019 by JJ Koczan
A few years ago, I tried to go to Sweden on a fellowship to study its heavy rock and metal underground to write a book. It didn’t work out. This year, I tried to set up an Obelisk All-Dayer in Stockholm for next summer, then Truckfighters announced they’d hold a festival at the same venue a couple months later and that was basically the end of that. Will I ever get to that magical Scandinavian land from whence so much crucial heavy has emanated over the decades since the advent of distortion? I honestly don’t know.
Start naming Swedish melodeath bands off the top of your head and it won’t be long before you get around to Dark Tranquility. Their founding guitarist, Niklas Sundin, has newly signed his solo-project to Argonauta Records to release a debut album next year, and that’s a big deal both because it’s one more creative outlet from Gothenburg and because it’s a killer get for Argonauta, the Italian imprint whose signing spree now seems just to be a matter of course rather than a splurge, it’s gone on so long. No complaints. Seven years later, they’ve amassed a catalog that just about anyone would have to call enviable.
And growing.
Mitochondrial Sun‘s first album will be out early next year, as the PR wire informs. There’s a teaser for the first single at the bottom of this post:
Dark Tranquillity’s NIKLAS SUNDIN signs worldwide deal with Argonauta Records
Debut album by Sundin’s solo-project MITOCHONDRIAL SUN coming in early 2020!
Rising powerhouse label Argonauta Records is celebrating its 7th anniversary while adding one of the most prestigious, newest signings to their eclectic artist roster: Mitochondrial Sun, the solo-project by Dark Tranquillity’s Niklas Sundin, has signed a worldwide deal with the Italian record company!
Argonauta Records will release the debut album of Mitochondrial Sun in early 2020. Niklas is best known as a founding member and guitarist of Dark Tranquillity, the Grammy nominated Swedish metal band that for nearly three decades has helped carve out an entire subgenre and inspired musicians all around the globe. After 15 albums as a metal guitarist, Mitochondrial Sun is Sundin’s first public foray into different musical realms: Created with support from the Swedish Arts Council, the self-titled debut album is a diverse offering of atmospheric and darkly cinematic music where the songs differ wildly in expression and sonic aesthetics.
“I’m very pleased and excited to announce that the debut LP/CD of my MITOCHONDRIAL SUN project will be released on Argonauta Records early next year. The album has been a long time in the making, with some of the melodies and chord progressions dating back to the mid ’90’s, so it’ll be great to finally have it out in the open.“ Sundin comments.
“I first got in touch with Argonauta when creating the cover artwork for one of their bands and found them to be an enthusiastic and hungry label that’s not afraid to venture outside of the conventional borders. In other words, a perfect match for an experimental electronic album that covers a lot of ground and that’s hard to pigeonhole into any specific genre. This is my first solo venture in nearly 30 years as a musician, and even if I know that this style of music might not fit every metal fan, I think and hope that people will find it an interesting listen.”
Musically speaking, the Mitochondrial Sun album is largely instrumental and features everything from Dead can dance-like tribal atmospheres to futuristic sci-fi soundscapes. Among the guest musicians appearing are Dark Tranquillity’s Martin Brändström and renowned cello player Annika Blomfeldt. The album was mixed and mastered by Anders Lagerfors (who also contributed grand piano to some tracks) at Nacksving Studio in Gothenburg, Sweden.
The album is based around evolution and the passing of time. Juxtaposing electronic and decidedly synthetic elements with organic sound textures and the presence of real cello and grand piano, Mitochondrial Sun is an exploration of contrasts. Lush and cinematic passages collide with harsh distortion and massive futuristic soundscapes. Some songs have a traditional feel, invoking ghosts and patterns from our distant past, some are urban and desolate and some glance outward towards a future among the stars. In addition to being a musician, Niklas is also a prolific graphic designer. This visual emphasis is transferred over to to the Mitochondrial Sun project, where each song will be accompanied by an animated video further enhancing the experience and providing context. The first single and video, “Nyaga” – whose title is inspired by a little known sci-fi novel by the Swedish astronomer and writer Peter Nilsson – will be revealed in full in October, but you can already dive into a first teaser of the track HERE!
Additional singles will be released before the full length album arrives in early 2020. Featuring ten songs with lots of stylistic differences, Mitochondrial Sun’s debut album is by no means an easy listen, or one designed for instant gratification – but the patient listener will be rewarded!
Posted in Whathaveyou on August 28th, 2019 by JJ Koczan
Here’s a word to the wise: anytime you run into a band that ever put anything out on 12th Records, that’s a band you want to hear. In the case of Sweden’s Ocean Chief, it was their album Tor in 2006, and sure enough, they’re a band you want to hear if you like your doom spaced out and massively weighted in kind. Fast forward some 13-plus years and the four-piece are newly inked to Argonauta — also not a trustworthy source as far as taste goes — and getting ready to issue what upon its release in 2020 will be their first LP in six years, as yet untitled. Their last outing, 2014’s Universums Härd, was like morbid tales told in a garden of unearthly delights, if you catch my drift, and with more than half a decade to put the new one together, I’d expect no less this time around. Would be a good time to get on board.
The announcement came down the PR wire:
Swedish psychedelica doomsters OCEAN CHIEF sign with Argonauta Records
Hailing from the contemplative province of Mjölby, Sweden, their music in contrast speaks volumes. Psychedelic doom heavy weights OCEAN CHIEF have signed a worldwide deal with Argonauta Records, who will release the band’s sixth studio album in early 2020!
OCEAN CHIEF was formed in 2001 by Björn Andersson and Tobias Larsson. Over the years the band has experimented in a diverse field between the psychedelic and doom, evolving their sound to perfection in long tracks combined with electronic ideas. Their latest album “Universums härd“ was released 5 years ago and is the only album to date that includes more than four songs.
”Ocean Chief are very happy to announce this collaboration with Argonauta Records from Italy!” the band comments. ”As friends we make this deal and that’s the way we like it. No bullshit, just love for music and a positive approach. Enjoy this heavy ride and keep on supporting the underground!”
After a few line-up changes and more than five long years in the making, in early 2020 OCEAN CHIEF will return with their forthcoming epos, that may likely see them going back to their sound roots, but with a crisp approach and a new hunger! Stay tuned for many more details and tunes to follow soon.
Ocean Chief is: Tobias Larsson Björn Andersson Christian Sandberg Magnus Linhardt
Posted in Whathaveyou on August 16th, 2019 by JJ Koczan
Of course there’s The Riff, but the real test of any cover of The Stooges‘ ‘I Wanna Be Your Dog’ that’s trying to be reasonably loyal to the original is the word ‘here.’ The cloying, seething, sex-starved desperation in Iggy Pop‘s vocal just on that one word was like a siren of hormonal charge going off 50 years ago that can still be heard echoing today. Much to the credit of Shadow Witch frontman Earl Walker Lundy, he nails the “here” and thus the song as a whole, capturing the spirit of the original while bringing it into the band’s own sonic context of dark heavy rock.
Released as a free download, the single is intended as a precursor to Shadow Witch‘s new LP, which is expected in November through Argonauta Records. Gotta keep that momentum up.
Lundy offered some comment on the selection via the PR wire:
All set to go for the new album “Under the Shadow of the Witch” by U.S. Heavy Psych Doomers Shadow Witch, all details to be revealed in the next days!
To shorten the wait the band just releases today an exciting cover song of THE STOOGES classic “I Wanna Be Your Dog” you can listen to here: https://shadowwitch.bandcamp.com/track/i-wanna-be-your-dog
About this song, Earl Walker Lundy, the bands vocalist, says:
“It actually started as a joke ! I was in the middle of this really intense affair, and all the songs we were writing started to be about that, about that girl, that obsessive all-powerful romance. Our drummer thought it would be funny to play a cover that related to the situation. We all love The Stooges, so even though people might not think Stooges when they hear Shadow Witch, it really is an influence. Anyway, when we were recording the album we thought “hey, why not ?!? “ We’d been playing it, and it felt kind of ironic and a bitter-sweet reference to what the album is all about ~ love/obsession/addiction. Also we just want to tease y’all a little; not give away too much just yet.”
The album was recorded with 40 year industry veteran Paul Orofino, who has recorded everyone from “classic rock” stalwarts Mountain, Foghat, Golden Earring, and Blue Oyster Cult to the extremes of Immolation.
Earl says “We really wanted this record to be a big step up sonically from our last, and working with Paul was an incredible opportunity to make that happen. He’s truly a master of his craft, and brought ideas to the table that became integral to the production of the album. I think it’s our strongest work yet.”
Posted in Whathaveyou on August 14th, 2019 by JJ Koczan
I was at the big Neurosis show the other night, and on my way out the door afterward, I happened to see Witchkiss guitarist/vocalist Scott Prater and drummer/vocalist Amber Burns hanging out. I don’t really know them, but I did go up and say that I had enjoyed their set at Maryland Doom Fest (review here), and that I hoped to see them again. Lo and behold, here’s a tour announcement providing opportunity to do precisely that. I won’t be able to make the trip into Brooklyn for this gig, as I’ll be out of town, but that’s hardly their fault or the fault of Temple of the Fuzz Witch, with whom they’re touring. I guess it’s my fault. Ah, to be raised Catholic. So much guilt.
Anyhoozle, after playing both Maryland Doom Fest and New England Stoner & Doom Fest earlier this year, Witchkiss will be making their way to Descendants of Crom in Pittsburgh as a part of this run, makes the last in a pretty impressive trifecta of Eastern Seaboard-ish festivity. They’ve got dates to add to this tour and I would expect their momentum to continue carrying forward into 2020, so will do as they advise and keep an eye out.
Behold:
WITCHKISS ANNOUNCE SEPTEMBER TOUR
New York doom band WITCHKISS are pleased to announce that they will be doing a short US tour in September.
The band commented ” We are super excited to be playing some new material! We will be joined by “Temple of the Fuzz Witch” on all of the shows except for our stop at the “Descendants of Crom Fest” in Pittsburgh on September 21st. Keep an eye out because it’s likely we will be adding a couple more dates in this run”
TOUR DATES: 9/19/19 ~ Mohawk Place ~ Buffalo, NY 9/20/19 ~ Buzz Bin ~ Canton, OH 9/21/19 ~ Descendants of Crom Fest @ Cattivo ~ Pittsburgh, PA *No TOTFW* 9/22/19 ~ Frankies ~ Toledo, OH 9/23/19 ~ Reggies ~ Chicago, IL 9/24/19 ~ Highlands ~ Louisville, KY 9/25/19 ~ Odditorium ~ Asheville, NC 9/26/19 ~ Tapp Room ~ Boone, NC 9/28/19 ~ Wonderland ~ Richmond, VA 9/30/19 ~ Ottobar ~ Baltimore, MD 10/4/19 ~ 13th Floor ~ Florence, MA 10/5/19 ~ Knitting Factory ~ Brooklyn, NY
Hey, look. It’s never happened to me, but yeah, I totally understand where sometimes you wake up in the alleyway around the side from ONCE Ballroom in Somerville, Mass., and go inside the venue to have a kind of acid-laced virtual reality religious experience. I mean, who hasn’t been there, right? Hello?
Fine.
This coming weekend, Boston heavy rockers Hey Zeus bid safe travels to guitarist Pete Knipfing, who’ll relocate to Tennessee, presumably for the relative proximity to the Stax Museum. They’re playing Great Scott with Cocked ‘n’ Loaded and Scissorfight to mark the occasion — event page here — and while it seems that Knipfing will continue to work remotely to stay involved with the band, even just the geographic loss of the former Lamont axeman is significant. Makes it way harder to book a weekender or pop over to O’Brien’s for a show. The change comes just about seven months after the release of their awaited debut album, X (review here), which was issued through Argonauta Records, and they’re a four-piece. It’s not like they have an extra guitarist just hanging around to pick up the slack.
Come what may, “I Don’t Want It” is indicative of the kind of infectious songwriting and energy that is writ large throughout X. I’ve had the pleasure of seeing Hey Zeus a couple of times — the lineup of Knipfing, vocalist Bice Nathan (also production and percussion), bassist Ken Cmar and drummer Todd Bowman — and the feeling of righteousness-in-riotousness that the studio versions of “I Don’t Want It” or the peelout-ready “Save Your” brought to beat had its foundations in what the band did together in a live setting. Was it Radio Bar where they covered Deep Purple twice in the same set? The entire room, hammered. What the hell ever happened to that place?
But maybe it makes all the more sense then that as the band says goodbye to Knipfing, they’re having a blowout. That’s kind of been their thing all along. If you’re in the area and reading this, you’re probably already planning to go, but if not, and if you haven’t given X its fair shot yet, the hook-driven energy of “I Don’t Want It” is a compelling argument in favor of doing so. And, of course, all the best to Knipfing on the big move.
Enjoy:
Hey Zeus, “I Don’t Want It” official video
“I don’t want it” by Hey Zeus Featuring Victoria Norton
