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The Eye of the Stoned Goat 3 Coming to Brooklyn in July

Posted in Whathaveyou on March 14th, 2013 by JJ Koczan

Presented by Snakecharmer Booking, Small Stone Records, the Electric Beard of Doom podcast and yours truly once I manage to track down my hi res Obelisk logos, the Eye of the Stoned Goat 3 is set to take place July 27 at The Acheron in Brooklyn. It will have only been months since Eye of the Stoned Goat 2 suckerpunched Delaware upside its still-bragging-about-being-the-first-state head (review here), but with a lineup that includes Lo-Pan, Gozu, Supermachine, Black Black Black, Borracho, Wizard Eye, Lord Fowl, Geezer and Wasted Theory, I’m not about to complain.

As I’ll be helping present the damn thing, expect much more to come, including interviews with the artists, reviews and updates on their whathaveyou and maybe even a giveaway if I can square it with the powers that be. Till then, stare at the preliminary flyer below marvel at the wonders summer will bring:

More info at the Thee Facebooks event page, and the Eye of the Stoned Goat website.

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Black Black Black Come to Life with “Redeath” Video

Posted in Bootleg Theater on January 17th, 2013 by JJ Koczan

The day’s wearing on and I was just starting to drag a bit ago when along came this brand new video from Brooklyn’s own Black Black Black for the song “Redeath” from their self-titled album (sort of reviewed here and also here) to wake my ass up and get me through the rest of the day. Black Black Black (which boasts ex-members of Disengage) will release the aptly-named Black Black Black on Aqualamb Records, and just as soon as I stop hemming and hawing over every single fucking letter of every single fucking question, I promise I’ll get a Six Dumb Questions email interview going with them because the album kicks ass. Also hope to see them live at some point in the near future, so keep an eye out for much more to come either way.

In the meantime, here’s the clip for “Redeath,” which will probably take you less time to watch than it took to read the paragraph above:

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Nice Package: Black Black Black’s Black Black Black Artbook

Posted in Visual Evidence on January 4th, 2013 by JJ Koczan

Ahead of the Aqualamb Records release of Black Black Black‘s self-titled debut on Feb. 5 (details here), the label was kind enough to send a promo of the NYC-based heavy/noise rock band’s album. Included as well in said promo was a copy of the limited 40-page artbook designed by vocalist Jason Alexander Byers (ex-Disengage), also a visual artist who’s had gallery showings in Miami, his native Ohio, and current residence in Brooklyn as well.

One of the most impressive aspects of Black Black Black‘s Black Black Black (review here) is how widely the band’s personality varies between tracks, whether it’s the strong hooks of “Wisdom, Knowledge and Fucked,” or the raging NY-style noise of “Pentagram ON,” on which Dave Curran from Unsane contributes guest vocals, or the later despondency of “Lexipro Devil,” memorable for its melody even as it feels detached from reality in a manner befitting its chemical allusion. Elsewhere, chugging riffs like that of “Night Moves” and the even-more-plodding “Light Light Light” give a modern heavy sensibility offset by touches of ’90s alt rock, but no matter which angle you try to approach it from, Black Black Black shows little interest in easy categorization.

So it goes as well with Byers‘ work in the artbook, which ranges from horror schlock to the target-minded interpretations that form the basis of a lot of his style and indeed, the band’s logo above, which draws the eye toward the center and the heart of the work. Also including the liner notes credits, a table of contents and thanks, pages are broken up by each song, with lyrics handwritten over culled and distorted images:

“Pentagram ON”

“Mishandled Cult Funds”

“Soar Like a Spider”

You can see in the sample shots above that the mood is pretty dark across the board, but that the images themselves vary, and I’d say that’s true of the album as well. If nothing else, the book makes an excellent companion to the tracks on the record — which aren’t exactly lacking atmosphere on their own but are made even more vivid all the same. This being Black Black Black‘s first full-length, I hope the blend of aural and visual is something Byers and his bandmates, Jacob Cox (guitar), Johnathan Swafford (bass) and Jeff Ottenbacher (drums) continue to experiment with, since it offers a level of engagement with the material rarely seen in these days of digital minimalism.

Black Black Black‘s Black Black Black is due out Feb. 5 on Aqualamb Records. For more on the band, check out their Thee Facebooks or the label’s site, and for more of Byers‘ art, his website is here.

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Black Black Black Self-Titled Debut Due Feb. 5

Posted in Whathaveyou on December 5th, 2012 by JJ Koczan

Previously On the Radar-ized Brooklyn noisemakers Black Black Black will release their self-titled full-length on Feb. 5, 2013 — the future! — on Aqualamb Records. Strictly speaking it’s somewhere between a reissue and an official pressing, but good for the band either way.

The band features Jason Alexander Byers, formerly of Disengage, on vocals and Black Black Black was recorded by Andrew Schneider, whose studio took a hit from Hurricane Sandy and could use your support here.

As always, the PR wire informs:

BROOKLYN DEATH ROCK BAND BLACK BLACK BLACK’S SELF-TITLED DEBUT OUT FEBRUARY 5 ON AQUALAMB RECORDS

FEATURES MEMBERS OF DISENGAGE

The self-titled debut from Brooklyn-based death rock group Black Black Black is due February 5 via Aqualamb Records. Produced by Andrew Schneider (Unsane, Converge, Pelican, Cave In), the album will be available digitally on iTunes as well as via www.aqualamb.org alongside a vinyl LP and limited-edition 40-page art booklet designed by Black Black Black frontman and former Disengage vocalist Jason Alexander Byers. The record also features a guest vocal performance by Unsane’s Dave Curran on the track Pentagram On. Please see below for full tracklist, album art is attached.

Black Black Black consists of Cleveland ex-pats Jason Alexander Byers (vocals), Jacob Cox (guitar), Jeff Ottenbacher (drums) and Johnathan Swafford (bass).

Black Black Black, the new clan of Brooklyn-by-way-of-Ohio doomsters offer up a big, nasty salute to gas tanks and goat hooves on their self-titled debut that’s ridiculously fun and gritty.

BLACK BLACK BLACK

1. Séance for a Sucker
2. Pentagram On
3. Wisdom, Knowledge & Fucked
4. Light Light Light
5. Mishandled Cult Funds
6. Night Moves
7. Redeath
8. Fever Is Law
9. Soar Like a Spider
10. Lexipro Devil
11. Drum 0)))))))
12. Son of Bad

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On the Radar: Black Black Black

Posted in On the Radar on July 20th, 2012 by JJ Koczan

One thing about getting a phone call from Lo-Pan‘s Jesse Bartz is that the dude is almost always going to have a band recommendation, and generally speaking, it’s a tip you want to follow. Most recently, Bartz put me onto Brooklyn rockers Black Black Black, who feature in their ranks former Disengage vocalist Jason Alexander Byers and guitarist Jason CoxCox also handles Rhodes throughout Black Black Black”s self-titled debut full-length, which was self-released digitally through their Bandcamp page and as a download that comes with an accompanying art book — presumably of Byers‘ work, since he’s a noted visual artist who’s had gallery shows in New York, Ohio and Florida.

The band is rounded out by drummer Jeff Ottenbacher and bassist Johnathan Swafford, but for anyone who encountered Disengage, especially either as they were on 2000’s Obsession Become Phobias or 2005’s Application for an Afterlife swansong, at least some elements remain consistent in the new band. Songs are short and vary in intensity levels but remain consistently intelligent no matter the musical context, and bolstered by Andrew Schneider‘s production and guest appearances from Dave Curran (Unsane) and others, tracks like the catchy earlier cut “Pentagram On” or the later, punkier “Soar Like a Spider” (which boasts one of the record’s best choruses) have substance to back their crisp presentation.

“Pentagram On” opens with a kind of punker shuffle, and the ensuing “Wisdom, Knowledge and Fucked” reminds in its melodicism of some of what made Red Fang‘s Murder the Mountains so potent hook-wise, but the post-doom crashing of “Light Light Light” is coupled with a subdued verse melody and very quickly it becomes apparent that Black Black Black are not looking to be limited sound-wise. “Mishandled” takes the Andrew Scheider drum sound and pairs it with a bassline from Swafford that brings to mind the evocative tidalisms of Akimbo‘s Jersey Shores, and the album wraps with the strong closing trio of “Lexipro Devil,” “Drum 0)))))))” — which, yes, is a drum solo, but an awesomely named one — and “Son of Bad,” which adds Moog and organ to an already potent melody in the guitar and vocals.

As hard as that kind of thing always is to pin down, there are some grunge-type melodies in “Son of Bad,” which “Lexipro Devil” also works to set up with minor key progressions in its intro from Cox and restrained vocals from Byers throughout, which even with the malevolent churn in the bridge is a far cry from the 1:23 punch of “Redeath,” but even that is followed by the bass-heavy “Fever is Law,” the verse of which seems to nod at Arc of Ascent. Clearly it’s a pretty wide breadth they’re working with, and as the record was released in March, I thought I’d pass on Bartz‘s tip in case anyone else wanted to check it out. Here’s Black Black Black, courtesy of the Bandcamp stream:

Black Black Black on Bandcamp

Black Black Black on Thee Facebooks

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