Posted in Whathaveyou on March 21st, 2022 by JJ Koczan
They say there’s more to come and given the scope of past editions of Monolith on the Mesa, one expects that’s the truth. It’s a different universe since the last time the El Prado, New Mexico-based festival was held, and I’d be remiss if I didn’t note — as you can read below — that this is the first Monolith on the Mesa to be held without co-founder Dano Sanchez, who passed away last Fall. Fellow founder Roman Barham, along with Ashley Sanchez and the Taos Mesa Brewing director Jayson Wylie have continued forward in collaboration, and the first lineup announcement is a celebration of the underground deep and high. Mars Red Sky, WarHorse, The Obsessed, The Otolith, Duel, Love Gang, and Red Mesa are the initial cohort, and that’s an admirable grouping on the levels of style and geography alike, representing West Coast, East Coast, in between and Europe in the span of seven bands. Right on.
I’m glad this festival is moving forward with Monolith on the Mesa 2022, and I’ve no doubt it’ll be a party.
To wit:
MARS RED SKY, THE OBSESSED, WARHORSE, THE OTOLITH, DUEL, RED MESA, LOVE GANG, AND MORE SET TO PLAY MONOLITH ON THE MESA: MUSIC AND ART FESTIVAL IN TAOS, NEW MEXICO
SEPTEMBER 16-17-18, 2022
located at Taos Mesa Brewing The Mothership the festival is open air
Monolith on the Mesa takes the cosmic opportunity of the vernal equinox to announce its return to Taos Mesa Brewing The Mothership, after the forced two year hiatus due to the global pandemic. Dates are set for September 16th, 17th, 18th, 2022. The festival is proud to share part of the line-up today including Mars Red Sky, The Obsessed, Warhorse, The Otolith, Duel, Love Gang, Red Mesa and visual magicians: Mad Alchemy Liquid Light Show.
The line-up remains “true to concept” and will focus on heavy riff-rock acts from across multiple sub-genres including stoner rock, heavy psych, doom metal, sludge, drone, and retro rock. The festival will once again be billed as “a truly singular and mystical experience. A weekend of live music heaviness blasting onto the high desert mesa in full view of the Sangre de Christo mountains.”
This past September the festival lost visionary co-founder, Dano Sanchez. In a statement Monolith on the Mesa producers Ashley Sanchez and Roman Barham, together with brewery director Jayson Wylie, say: “the festival experience is dedicated to our dearly beloved, fallen brother, and co-founder Dano Sanchez. Dano’s contribution has influenced only great times, as summed up in his signature phrase: “Hey bud, let’s party!” We’ll honor Dano by putting on an amazing festival featuring specialty crafted beers from Taos Mesa Brewery (served in reusable cups to reduce single use plastic), interactive art installations in conjunction with Revolt Gallery, and some of the best bands from around the world.”
This year the festival will be open air and focused around the “earthship” amphitheatre which holds 1,500 people. Upcoming festival announcements will detail efforts to make the event more eco-friendly, with less single use plastic and other disposables.
DATES AND TIMES: September 16th, 17th, 18th, 2022 Doors at 12:00 pm. Bands start at 1:00 pm.
VENUE: Taos Mesa Brewing The Mothership 20 ABC Mesa Rd, El Prado, NM, 87529 https://www.taosmesabrewing.com/mothership
TICKET INFORMATION: Monolith on the Mesa will honor tickets and other arrangements purchased in 2020 and 2021. Tickets will be rolled over to this year’s Will Call list.
Single Day Pass $60 ticket link: https://holdmyticket.com/event/preview/event/be9b80e802fe934571af2d383f254a67
Two Day Pass $100 ticket link: https://holdmyticket.com/event/preview/event/a2d1bf3d2a361e7df590738ee74e72c4
Three Day Pass $150 ticket link: https://holdmyticket.com/event/preview/event/79c197fd39ff30a21f68fc545f003cb1
Posted in Whathaveyou on March 11th, 2022 by JJ Koczan
I wanna go to Freak Valley 2022 so bad I can taste it. There’s so much to see here — this time adding Duel, Toundra, Psycholona and Kosmodome to the mix — and between Slomatics and The Midnight Ghost Train and Geezer, IAH, Temple Fang, Green Lung, Pelican, Supersonic Blues and Elder, never mind any of the actual headliners — fucking MONSTER MAGNET — it’s never been so urgent, my need to go to Siegen, Germany, this June. That’s three months from now. I’m working on it. I’m doing my best.
Talk about once-in-a-lifetime lineups. I’ve got friends playing this and people I’ve never actually met but have spoken to for over a decade. I’ve got a logo on the poster! Doesn’t that count for something. It’s The Obelisk and Rock Hardmagazine and Rockpalast. These people are fucking legends. I feel like I should be outside rattling the gate, begging my way in.
It may yet come to that. I wrote this announcement below, and there was originally another band included that got nixed last minute owing to some uncertainty, but still. Fuck this looks awesome. Let me go just this once. Let me get away with something.
To wit:
Freaks!
The world turns, the sky burns and we step up to bring you new additions to Freak Valley Festival this June!
We’ve been working diligently behind the scenes to bring you a safe and special fest to make up for our lost time together and we know you’ll dig the latest. Here goes:
Toundra
Marking their 15th anniversary in 2022, Spanish progressive instrumentalists Toundra will come back to Netphen with January’s ‘Hex’ album in tow. Released through InsideOut Music, the new record finds them as-ever honing their atmospheres between heavy post-rock and heightened-consciousness psychedelia. They’re not quite like anyone else, and we know they’ll be welcome on our stage.
Duel
These marauding Texans return by popular demand after having hit Freak Valley in 2019 on their European tour. After experiencing last year’s In Carne Persona, however, we couldn’t be more stoked to have Duel back. We already know their live sets are rippers – exclusively – and they’ll be here in June with their most ferocious batch of songs yet. This is the kind of band you should be telling your friends about.
Psychlona
Speaking of, Britain’s continually emergent Psychlona were among the slew of acts originally booked for 2020. We’ve known ever since they did their livestream with us that they’d be back in-person as soon as possible, and we’re proud today to make it official. They’ve made their bona fides by word of mouth in classic fashion, and we can’t wait to get weird when they play.
Kosmodome
The end of the year is always crazy, but if you missed the self-titled record Norway’s Kosmodome released in December, it’s by no means too late to dig in ahead of checking them out at Freak Valley 2022. The duo from the proggy hotbed of Bergen hold fast to classic melodies and mindsets, but you’re never calling anything but forward-looking. We can’t wait to have them here for the first time.
And first or not, we can’t wait to welcome you all back to Freak Valley Festival in June! If it feels like it’s been forever, that’s because it has been.
Much love, Your FVF Crew
Still more to come!
Freak Valley Festival // No Fillers – Just Killers
Posted in Whathaveyou on February 22nd, 2022 by JJ Koczan
More than five years after their initial incursion, and with plenty of others along the way, Austin, Texas, riffy miscreants Duel will be overseas once more come this June. They’ve still got a couple dates open — I note specifically that June 15 is the first day of Freak Valley 2022 and they’ve got that listed as a TBA show in Germany — but with stops already confirmed at two Heavy Psych Sounds festivals in Switzerland and Austria, and a spot booked on Hellfest in Clisson, France — that big tent always seems to be a career highlight for bands, at least if the resultant from-the-side-of-the-stage pics are anything to judge by — it’s a significant run just the same, with club shows besides.
One curious to know with whom they’ll be headed out, whether it’s someone else on the Heavy Psych Sounds roster or just a slew of locals, but one way or the other, Duel play kick-your-ass classic-style heavy rock and roll, exclusively, and with last year’s In Carne Persona (review here) as the record they’re supporting, it’s all the more worth showing up to experience that in person.
I’ve said it before: all Duel do is be a killer band. That Hellfest show is gonna rule, and I’m keeping my fingers crossed for Freak Valley as well, in terms of both them and I being there.
From the PR wire:
Heavy Psych Sounds to announce DUEL EUROPEAN TOUR 2022 !!!
Austin, Texas occult rockers DUEL are super heavy, tripped out 4 piece old school stoner metal. Steeped in the more sinister sounds of dungeon-esque early 80’s heavy metal, Proto metal of the 70’s and late 60s psych. Their tunes spin dark tales of ritual horror, occult sex and Apocalyptic doom. Exploring alternate realms, and the depth of infinite space with a head full of mushroom tea. Dueling Thin Lizzy esque guitars with the aggression of Motorhead meets the MC5. Dealing their own brand of dark boogie
They have earned a reputation with their beer soaked high energy live performances, relentless touring, writing and recording schedule. Since 2016 the band have released 4 albums with a 5th LP “In Carne Persona” released on Heavy Psych Sounds Records in 2021. DUEL is about to embark on their sixth extensive European tour once again hitting many of the major festivals and venues that they have in the past.
*** DUEL EUROPEAN TOUR 2022 *** 01.06.2022 CH DAVOS – CHALET VELO 02.06.2022 DE KEMPTEN – 13TH FLOOR 03.06.2022 CH OBERENTFELDEN – BÖRÖM 04.06.2022 CH WINTERTHUR – GASWERK HPS FEST 05.06.2022 AT SALZBURG – ROCKHOUSE HPS FEST 06.06.2022 AT GRAZ – EXPLOSIV 07.06.2022 CZ BRNO – BAJKAZIL 08.06.2022 PL WROCLAW – KLUB AKADEMIA 09.06.2022 DE LEIPZIG – BLACK LABEL 10.06.2022 DE **OPEN SLOT** 11.06.2022 DE DRESDEN – GOCKELSCREAM 12.06.2022 DE **OPEN SLOT** 13.06.2022 DE TÜBINGEN – HAUSBAR 14.06.2022 CH ZÜRICH – DYNAMO 15.06.2022 DE TBA 16.06.2022 FR **OPEN SLOT** 17.06.2022 FR NANTES – SCENE MICHELET 18.06.2022 FR CLISSON – HELLFEST 19.06.2022 FR **OPEN SLOT** 20.06.2022 ES BARCELONA – SIDECAR
DUEL is: Tom Frank – Guitars / Vocals Shaun Avants – Bass / Vocals Justin Collins – Drums Jeff Henson – Guitars / Vocals
Posted in Whathaveyou on February 2nd, 2022 by JJ Koczan
Well this looks pretty great. Heavy Psych Sounds-branded festivals are a regular feature across the regular-featuresphere in Europe, but far rarer in the US. The Rome-based imprint has teamed with SubliminalSF and SOS Booking to put on two nights in two cities presented as Heavy Psych Sounds Fest California 2022, and the names included are serious gosh darn business. Dead Meadow, Weedeater, Bongzilla, Nebula, The Atomic Bitchwax. Fucking a. You got Danava and 16 and heck I hope they play back-to-back just because that would be amazing. Imagine that for a second.
The bill doesn’t stop there with the righteousness, which if you know if you either heard the Kadabra debut album last year or watched Mountain Tamer‘s ‘Live in the Mojave Desert’ stream. Remember that? Yeah you do. Someone needs to tell Ryan Jones it’s time for season two.
This was my entire social media feed the other day, the lineup and poster. The Bitchwax and Weedeater are the new adds to finish out the lineup, and I wouldn’t be surprised if they announced tour dates together out west to get to CA. I don’t know that, mind you, but the two East Coast veteran acts have toured together before and it’s not outside the realm of possibility they’d do so again. Just a thought. Hell, let ’em bring High Reeper too.
Party hearty. Or hardy. Whatever. Just party and keep doing that:
Weedeater, The Atomic Bitchwax, Duel and more join Heavy Psych Sounds Fest California 2022 lineup; tickets on sale now!
Heavy Psych Sounds (in association with SubliminalSF and SOS Booking) announce the final names to join the 2022 edition of HPS Fest California, to take place on May 28-29th in Los Angeles and San Francisco. Grab your ticket now!
Sludge metal legends Weedeater and heavy rock stalwarts The Atomic Bitchwax join the lineup, alongside Heavy Psych Sounds bands Duel, Crypt Trip, Hot Lunch, The Freeks, Kadabra, Disastroid, Mountain Tamer and High Tone Son Of A Bitch.
The festival will take place over the Memorial Day weekend as an indoor event at 1720 Club in Los Angeles, and as an open-air event at Thee Parkside venue in San Francisco.
LOS ANGELES – 1720 club SAN FRANCISCO – Open Air at Thee Parkside
FEATURING: DEAD MEADOW WEEDEATER BONGZILLA NEBULA THE ATOMIC BITCHWAX DANAVA 16 DUEL HIGH REEPER HIPPIE DEATH CULT CRYPT TRIP HOT LUNCH THE FREEKS KADABRA WARLUNG MOUNTAIN TAMER DISASTROID HIGH TONE SON OF A BITCH
Posted in Reviews on December 15th, 2021 by JJ Koczan
Okay. Day Three. The halfway point. Or the quarter point if you count the week to come in January. Which I don’t. Feeling dug in. Ready to roll. Today’s a busy day, stylistically speaking, and there’s two wolf bands in there too. Better get moving.
Quarterly Review #21-30:
Duel, In Carne Persona
Duel seem to be on a mission with In Carne Persona to remind all in their path that rock and roll is supposed to be dangerous. Their fourth album and the follow-up to 2019’s Valley of Shadows (review here) finds the Austin four-piece in a between place on songs like “Children of the Fire” (premiered here) and “Anchor” and the especially charged gang-shout-chorus “Bite Back,” proffering memorable songwriting while edging from boogie to shove, rock to metal. They’ve never sounded more dynamic than on the organ-inclusive “Behind the Sound” or the tense finale “Blood on the Claw,” and cuts like “The Veil” and the particularly gritty “Dead Eyes” affirm their in-a-dark-place songwriting prowess. They’re not uneven in their approach. They’re sure of it. They turn songs on either side of four minutes long into anthems, and they seem to be completely at home in their sound. They’re not as ‘big’ as they should be by rights of their work, but Duel serve their reminder well and pack nine killer tunes into 38 minutes. Only a fool would ask more.
Fading in like the advent of something wicked this way coming until “The Hiss” explodes into “Fail,” Hull exports Mastiff tap chug from early ’00s metalcore en route to various forms of extreme bludgeonry, whether that’s blackened push in “Beige Sabbath,” grind in “Midnight Creeper” or the slow skin-crawling riffage that follows in “Futile.” This blender runs at multiple speeds, slices, dices, pummels and purees, reminding here of Blood Has Been Shed, there of Napalm Death, on “Endless” of Aborted. Any way you go, it is a bleak cacophony to be discovered, purposefully tectonic in its weight and intense in its conveyed violence. Barely topping half an hour, Leave Me the Ashes of the Earth knows precisely the fury it manifests, and the scariest thing about it is the thought that the band are in even the vaguest amount of control of all this chaos, as even the devolution-to-blowout in “Lung Rust” seems to have intent behind it. They should play this in art galleries.
Melody and a flair for the grandeur of classic NWOBHM-style metal take prominence on Wolftooth‘s Blood & Iron, the follow-up to the Indiana-based four-piece’s 2020 outing, Valhalla (review here), third album overall and first for Napalm Records. As regards trajectory, one is reminded of the manner in which Sweden’s Grand Magus donned the mantle of epic metal, but Wolftooth aren’t completely to that point yet. Riffs still very much lead the battle’s charge — pointedly so, as regards the album’s far-back-drums mix — with consuming solos as complement to the vocals’ tales of fantastical journeys, kings, swords and so on. The test of this kind of metal should ALWAYS be whether or not you’d scribble their logo on the front of your notebook after listening to the record on your shitty Walkman headphones, and yes, Wolftooth earn that honor among their other spoils of the fight, and Blood & Iron winds up the kind of tape you’d feel cool telling your friends about in that certain bygone age.
Another argument to chase down every release Prophecy Productions puts out arrives in the form of Illudium‘s second long-player, Ash of the Womb, the NorCal project spearheaded by Shantel Amundson vibing with emotional and tonal heft in kind on an immersive mourning-for-everything six tracks/47 minutes. Gorgeous, sad and heavy in kind “Aster” opens and unfolds into the fingers-sliding-on-strings of “Sempervirens,” which gallops furiously for a moment in its second half like a fever dream before passing to wistfully strummed minimalism, which is a pattern that holds in “Soma Sema” and “Atopa” as well, as Amundson brings volatility without notice, songs exploding and receding, madness and fury and then gone again in a sort of purposeful bipolar onslaught. Following “Madrigal,” the closing “Where Death and Dreams Do Manifest” finds an evenness of tempo and approach, not quite veering into heavygaze, but gloriously pulling together the various strands laid out across the songs prior, providing a fitting end to the story told in sound and lyric.
Ascia takes its name from the Italian word for ‘axe,’ and as a solo-project from Fabrizio Monni, also of Black Capricorn, the 20-minute demo Volume 1 lives up to its implied threat. Launched with the instrumental riff-workout “At the Gates of Ishtar,” the five-tracker introduces Monni‘s vocals on the subsequent “Blood Axes,” and is all the more reminiscent of earliest High on Fire for the approach he takes, drums marauding behind a galloping verse that nonetheless finds an overarching groove. “Duhl Qarnayn” follows in straight-ahead fashion while “The Great Iskandar” settles some in tempo and opens up melodically in its second half, the vocals taking on an almost chanting quality, before switching back to finish with more thud and plunder ahead of the finale “Up the Irons,” which brings two-plus minutes of cathartic speed and demo-blast that I’d like to think was the first song Monni put together for the band if only for its metal-loving-metal charm. I don’t know that it is or isn’t, but it’s a welcome cap to this deceptively varied initial public offering.
France’s Stone From the Sky, as a band named after a Neurosis singularized song might, dig into heavy post-rock aplenty on Songs From the Deepwater, their fourth full-length, and they meet floating tones with stretches of more densely-hefted groove like the Pelican-style nod of “Karoshi.” Still, however satisfying the ensuing back and forth is, some of their most effective moments are in the ambient stretches, as on “The Annapurna Healer” or even the patient opening of “Godspeed” at the record’s outset, which draws the listener in across its first three minutes before unveiling its full breadth. Likewise, “City/Angst” surges and recedes and surges again, but it’s in the contemplative moments that it’s most immersive, though I won’t take away from the appeal of the impact either. The winding “49.3 Nuances de Fuzz” precedes the subdued/vocalized closer “Talweg,” which departs in form while staying consistent in atmosphere, which proves paramount to the proceedings as a whole.
Whenever you’re ready to get weird, The Brackish will meet you there. The Bristol troupe’s fourth album, Atlas Day brings six songs and 38 minutes of ungrandiose artsy exploration, veering into dreamtone noodling on “Dust Off Reaper” only after hinting in that direction on the jazzier “Pretty Ugly” previous. Sure, there’s moments of crunch, like the garage-grunge in the second half of “Pam’s Chalice” or the almost-motorik thrust that tops opener “Deliverance,” but The Brackish aren’t looking to pay homage to genre or post-thisorthat so much as to seemingly shut down their brains and see where the songs lead them. That’s a quiet but not still pastoralia on “Leftbank” and a more skronky shuffle-jazz on “Mr. Universe,” and one suspects that, if there were more songs on Atlas Day, they too would go just about wherever the hell they wanted. Not without its self-indulgent aspects by its very nature, Atlas Day succeeds by inviting the audience along its intentionally meandering course. Something something “not all who wander” something something.
Formerly known as Wolfgang, Elverum, Norway’s Wolfnaut offer sharp, crisp modern heavy rock with the Karl Daniel Lidén mixed/mastered III, the three-piece of guitarist/vocalist Kjetil Sæter (also percussion), bassist Tor Erik Hagen and drummer Ronny “Ronster” Kristiansen readily tapping Motörhead swagger in “Raise the Dead” after establishing a clarity of structure and a penchant for chorus largesse that reminds of Norse countrymen Spidergawd on “Swing Ride” and the Scorpions-tinged “Feed Your Dragon.” They are weighted in tone but emerge clean through the slower “Race to the Bottom” and “Gesell Kid.” I’m going to presume that “Taste My Brew” is about making one’s own beer — please don’t tell me otherwise — and with the push of “Catching Thunder” ahead of the eight-minute, willfully spacious “Wolfnaut” at the end, the trio’s heavy rock traditionalism is given an edge of reach to coincide with its vitality and electrified delivery of the songs.
Having released their debut full-length, TTBS, earlier in 2021 as their first outing, it shouldn’t come as a surprise that Lincoln, Nebraska’s Trillion Ton Beryllium Ships still seem to be getting their feet under them in terms of sound and who they are as a band, but as the 34-minute-long Rosalee EP demonstrates, in terms of tone and general approach, they know what they’re looking for. After the thud and “whoa-oh” of “Core Fragment,” “Destroyer Heart” pushes a little more into aggression in its back end riffs and drumming, and the chugging, lurching motion of “URTH Anachoic” brings a fullness of distortion that the two prior songs seemed just to be hinting toward. It’s worth noting that the 16-minute title-track, which closes, is instrumental, and it may be that the band are more comfortable operating in that manner for the time being, but if there’s a confidence issue, no doubt it can be worked out on stage (circumstances permitting) or in further studio work. That is, it’s not actually a problem, even at this formative stage of the project. Quick turnaround for this second collection, but definitely welcome.
Their persistently irreverent spirit notwithstanding, Closet Disco Queen — at some point in the process, ever — take their work pretty seriously. That is to say, they’re not nearly as much of a goof as they’d have you believe, and on the quickie 16-minute Stadium Rock for Punk Bums, the Swiss two-piece-plus, their open creative sensibility results in surprisingly filled-out tracks that aren’t quite stadium, aren’t quite punk, definitely rock, and would probably alienate the bum crowd not willing to put the effort into actively engaging them. So the title (which, I know, is a reference to another release; calm down) may or may not fit, but from “Michel-Jacques Sonne” onward, bring switched-on heavy that’s not so much experimentalist in the fuck-around-and-find-out definition as ready to follow its own ideas to fruition, whether that’s the rush of “Pascal à la Plage” or the barely-there drone of “Lalalalala Reverb,” which immediately follows and gives way to the building-despite-itself finisher “Le Soucieux Toucan.” If these guys aren’t careful they’re gonna have to start taking themselves seriously. …Nah.
Posted in Whathaveyou on November 8th, 2021 by JJ Koczan
The first Heavy Psych Sounds Fest in Salzburg, Austria, will take place June 4 and 5, 2022 with Elder, Mondo Generator, Black Rainbows, Duel, Ecstatic Vision, Giobia, Acid Mammoth, Geezer, 1782, Hazemaze, Sleepwulf, Tons, Deadsmoke, Ryte and Oreyeon playing. Because shit, I guess if you’re gonna do a thing, make it count.
This tells us a few things about the European touring circuit for next summer, some of which we knew, some not so much. That Geezer would head abroad again was unveiled with their last Heavy Psych Sounds Fest announcement, but to see others pulled not only from the US — Duel, Ecstatic Vision, Mondo Generator — but with a meet-in-the-middle vibe from north and south in Europe as well — Sleepwulf and Acid Mammoth, Tons and Black Rainbows, etc. — is enough to make me think that the Rockhouse Bar in Salzburg that’s set to host the two-dayer will be a significant centerpoint for the label’s summertime activities. Maybe not all of these bands will be doing full European tours, but some of them definitely will. Mix and match your favorite combination. See how many killer shows you can make out of this single, also killer festival.
I don’t even remember what I was gonna post before this came down the PR wire, but I guess whatever it was can wait.
Because here:
*** HEAVY PSYCH SOUNDS FEST SALZBURG ***
Heavy Psych Sounds Records & Booking will smash Salzburg with their highly acclaimed mini festival-series, the HEAVY PSYCH SOUNDS FEST!
In cooperation with Rockhouse Bar, today Heavy Psych Sounds has announced the dates and full bands line-up of the first HEAVY PSYCH SOUNDS FEST – SALZBURG.
The HPS Fest Salzburg will be taking place 4th and 5th of June, 2022 at the Rockhouse Bar in Salzburg !!!
HEAVY PSYCH SOUNDS FEST – SALZBURG @ Rockhouse Bar, Salzburg June 4th and 5th 2022
feat. ELDER MONDO GENERATOR BLACK RAINBOWS DUEL ECSTATIC VISION GIÖBIA ACID MAMMOTH 1782 GEEZER HAZEMAZE SLEEPWULF TONS DEADSMOKE RYTE OREYEON
We’ll have 50 early bird tickets online and 50 more early bird that will be sold at the Dome of Rock festival at the Rockhouse from 2nd to 4th December 2021.
Posted in Whathaveyou on July 20th, 2021 by JJ Koczan
Not going to sit here and pretend I know what the next year will bring. Or the next 15 minutes. Shit, I live with a three year old. Every day is a new reality to face down. Maybe announcements like this are grasping at straws for a life that’s gone now. I don’t know. But isn’t it worth it, especially in light of the universe of bullshit that has unfolded over the last year and a half — and don’t fool yourself, is still unfolding — to err on the side of optimism?
So yeah, Heavy Psych Sounds is announcing lineup info for its fest next year in Winterthur, Switzerland, at the famed Gaswerk venue. High on Fire, Elder and Duel (who had a recent song premiere here) are the first three names, and that’s awesome. It’s a two-day event, and probably one of at-least-several-if-not-many the Italian label will unveil in the coming months, and though the chances of my being there are approximately nil, it still makes me feel good to think this might happen, so I’m posting about it. That’s all. I just want to actively think positively about a thing.
Here goes:
HEAVY PSYCH SOUNDS RECORDS announces HIGH ON FIRE, ELDER and DUEL for HPS FEST SWITZERLAND 2022!
After last year’s cancellation, Heavy Psych Sounds Records is proud to finally reveal the first bands for their Swiss edition of the renowned HPS Fest- series, taking place between June 3 – 4, 2022 at the Gaswerk in Winterthur!
Headquartered in Rome, Italy, Heavy Psych Sounds specializes in presenting the best artists in the global heavy psych, doom, fuzz blues, sludge and space rock realms such as BRANT BJORK, NEBULA, NICK OLIVERI, YAWNING MAN, STÖNER, BLACK RAINBOWS, ACID MAMMOTH, BELZEBONG, WEDGE, THE SONIC DAWN among many more, and their festival- series shows no exception, spotlighting the ever-growing label’s dedication to its craft. While the first HPS Fests were held in Italy, the label has since extended its live reach into the UK, Belgium, Germany, France, the Netherlands, Austria and even the USA: The underground cult label is not only THE adress for all heavy rock record collectors, but has also become an essential part of the live scene with a brisk participation from heavy music fans all over the world. More than a long year without live shows, today Heavy Psych Sounds announced the first big names for their Swiss 2022- edition, and have confirmed metal icons HIGH ON FIRE, progressive psych rock overlords ELDER, and Texas‘ heavy rockers DUEL to play HPS FEST Switzerland!
“We are so stoked to finally get back on the road with our HEAVY PSYCH SOUNDS FESTs !“ Says Heavy Psych Sounds staff member Rajko Dolhar. “After bringing our heavy psych vibes in the EU and the USA in recent years, we wanted to take on Switzerland too. Last year the pandemic put a hitch in our giddy up but we are pretty sure that in 2022 we will succeed. The lineup is one of the best so far with HIGH ON FIRE, ELDER, DUEL and many more yet to come, so grab your tickets and see you soon in front of the stage again !!”
Austin, Texas, heavy rockers Duel are ready to roll out their fourth album, In Carne Persona. The Lone Star purveyors have done precious little since debuting with 2016’s Fears of the Dead (review here) beyond kick ass and take names, in the studio and on the road, and of course as there was that whole thing about the plague last year, In Carne Persona arrives following their longest time off tour in the last five years. They had Europe booked for Feb. and March last year, and, well, yeah.
But go ahead and get you some of “Children of the Fire” — an appropriate-enough title for a burner — with its dual-guitar classicism and unbridled shove-that-swings and tell me they’re not ready to party. Four records deep, they sound like they know who they are and what they want to do, and from the melody of the hook into the take-no-nonsense solo-plus-final-chorus, it’s four and a half minutes of organic efficiency that speaks only to the follow-up to 2019’s Valley of Shadows (review here) as one worth marking the calendar for.
Or preordering — and hey, wouldn’t you know, preorders are up as of right now. This very second.
Dig in. PR wire info follows the song:
Duel, “Children of the Fire” track premiere
Duel – In Carne Persona – Oct. 1
CHILDREN OF THE FIRE is the first single taken from the DUEL upcoming brand new album In Carne Persona. The release will see the light October 1st via Heavy Psych Sounds.
“In Carne Persona”, the upcoming fourth full length album from Texas heavy rockers DUEL, is more of what you have come to expect from the band. Nine new heavy riff soaked tracks from a dungeon in the desert. Written and recorded during plague lockdown, In Carne Persona has the feel of an album that takes its time and full attention to detail. Several upbeat classic guitar rockers in the vain of Thin Lizzy, early UFO, and the beginnings of KISS. A handful of old school NWOBHM anthems channeling early Judas Priest and Iron Maiden, tripped out stoner and proto metal soundscapes. Always pushing the barriers of their sound and offering up something new with the soul of the classic DUEL evil boogie.
SAYS THE BAND: “Children of the fire is the opening track from our new album. A sun scorched upbeat rocker with a killer dual guitar solo section. The vibe of this one we felt was reminiscent of the earliest DUEL songs like Fears of the Dead.”
Austin, Texas occult rockers DUEL are super heavy, tripped out 4 piece old school stoner metal. Steeped in the more sinister sounds of dungeon-esque early 80’s heavy metal, Proto metal of the 70’s and late 60s psych. Their tunes spin dark tales of ritual horror, occult sex and Apocalyptic doom. Exploring alternate realms, and the depth of infinite space with a head full of mushroom tea. Dueling Thin Lizzy esque guitars with the aggression of Motorhead meets the MC5. Dealing their own brand of dark boogie
DUEL is Tom Frank – Guitars / Vocals Shaun Avants – Bass / Vocals Justin Collins – Drums Jeff Henson – Guitars / Vocals
