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Some New (Not Really New) Godflesh and Crowbar

Posted in Buried Treasure on November 8th, 2010 by JJ Koczan

A quick reissue roundup for anyone who may have missed these:

Godflesh‘s 1989 über-classic, Streetcleaner, has recently been given a two-disc reissue by Earache Records that may or may not be timed to coincide with the announcement that the band will reunite for next year’s Roadburn festival in The Netherlands. Earache, who are the last of the “metal majors” to habitually send out physical promos of albums to press, have been on a spree for the last year or two in repressing landmarks from their back catalog, and Godflesh has been no exception, as the recipient of several boxed editions and multi-album compilations. Streetcleaner is Streetcleaner, though, so it stands on its own.

With the second disc offering unreleased mixes, live tracks from 1989-1990 and rehearsal and studio demos — all of which may or may not have been heard before — the 2010 Streetcleaner is as biting as ever, and shows why over 20 years later, the band are still a much-wanted commodity. It’s one of those albums that, if you don’t have it, you probably should, so I thought it was worth a look.

Meanwhile, on the other end of the sludgy spectrum, three Crowbar records just got reissued by E1, making them more widely available than ever before thanks to the label’s far-reaching distribution. Crowbar, Live +1 and Time Heals Nothing cover the venerable New Orleans slingers’ work from 1993-1995, and though I’m not sure why E1 would go after the rights to the second album, a live EP and the third album without also reissuing 1991’s Obedience Thru Suffering debut, I’m sure they have their reasons, as they’ve been pretty on the ball since deciding it was okay to like metal again in 2008/2009.

All three discs are bare-bones, and by that I mean no bonus material, but honestly, I’m so desperate as for any Crowbar release at this point I might consider picking these up just for the sake of their being newly issued. With the band allegedly beginning a new period of activity that involved touring last month down south, heading north next month and supposedly even recording a new album, there’s plenty to hope for, and of course, guitarist/vocalist Kirk Windstein has been plenty busy in Kingdom of Sorrow and Down (neither of which is as good as Crowbar), but man, it’s time for some new Crowbar. Today.

Until then, this is as good as it’s going to get, and in the case of Godflesh — who I’m actively hoping won’t release a new album — it may be as good as it’s ever going to get. Sure we can sit here and complain about rehashing the same records over and over, but when you find a better way to spend time than listening to Crowbar again, you let me know.

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Zoroaster Have a New Song for the Hearing and Listening To

Posted in audiObelisk on September 23rd, 2010 by JJ Koczan

I guess the headline pretty much says it all, but Atlanta doom mavens Zoroaster have made the song “Witch’s Hammer” available for streaming and downloading as part of Adult Swim‘s Metal Swim online compilation, which also features the likes of Jesu, Isis, Torche and Boris.

One can only imagine Adult Swim would rather you checked out the track at their site, and if you’re so inclined, that’s certainly cool by me. If not, however, here’s the song for streaming goodness, followed by the latest off the PR wire:

Zoroaster, “Witch’s Hammer”

Celebrated psych metal band Zoroaster has unveiled the brand new track “Witch’s Hammer” via the just-released [adult swim]/Scion A/V compilation Metal Swim. Described as “a collection of 16 metal tracks from some of the heaviest bands in existence,” Metal Swim features “rare and never-before-released songs from some of the genre’s most notable bands” and is available for free download at adultswim.com/metal now.

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High on Fire Shock the World, Announce More North American Touring

Posted in Whathaveyou on August 10th, 2010 by JJ Koczan

Oh wait, I’m sorry, High on Fire tour all the time. That’s not shocking at all. My mistake.

Here’s the latest batch of dates off the PR wire:

World renowned hard rock giants High on Fire have announced a North American headlining tour. The massive fall expedition – dubbed the “Sanctioned Annihilation Tour” — will feature support from Torche and Kylesa and is set to launch on September 29 at The Great American Music Hall in San Francisco, CA.

Additionally, High on Fire has been chosen to participate as part of the 2011 Soundwave Festival. Billed as Australia’s “biggest metal and rock festival” and set to take place in late February and early March of next year, Soundwave will feature High on Fire alongside such names as Iron Maiden, Slayer, Queens of the Stone Age, Social Distortion, Monster Magnet, Rob Zombie and more.

High on Fire North American “Sanctioned Annihilation” headlining tour:
Sept. 29 San Francisco, CA Great American Music Hall #
Sept. 30 Pomona, CA Glasshouse #
Oct. 1 Flagstaff, AZ Orpheum Theatre #
Oct. 2 Albuquerque, NM The Launchpad #
Oct. 3 Denver, CO Bluebird Theater #
Oct. 5 Minneapolis, MN Varsity Theatre #
Oct. 6 Milwaukee, WI Turner Hall Ballroom
Oct. 8 Rock Island, IL Rock Island Brewing Company #
Oct. 9 Urbana, IL Canopy Club #
Oct. 10 Chicago, IL Metro (Riot Festival)
Oct. 11 Bloomington, IN Bluebird #
Oct. 13 Covington, KY Historic Southgate House #
Oct. 14 Detroit, MI Majestic Theatre #
Oct. 15 Cleveland, OH Grog Shop #
Oct. 16 Rochester, NY Water Street #
Oct. 17 Northampton, MA Pearl Street #
Oct. 19 Halifax, NS The Paragon Theatre (Halifax Pop Explosion)
Oct. 21 Portland, ME Port City Music Hall #
Oct. 22 Providence, RI Club Hell #
Oct. 23 Boston, MA Middle East Downstairs #
Oct. 24 New York, NY Webster Hall #
Oct. 26 Philadelphia, PA Starlite Ballroom #
Oct. 27 Carrboro, NC Cat’s Cradle #
Oct. 29 Gainesville, FL Common Ground (Ye Old Fest)
Nov. 7 Austin, TX Waterloo Park (Fun Fun Fun Fest)
(# = with Torche, Kylesa)

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When the Hell are We Getting a New Crowbar Record?

Posted in Whathaveyou on August 9th, 2010 by JJ Koczan

As per usual, I was up late last night, crying to myself and wondering why the hell Crowbar hasn’t put out a new album in half a decade. Was Down III really worth no new Crowbar for all this time? I think we all know it was not.

Somewhere along the line, the lords of New Orleans signed to E1 (seems to be happening a lot lately), and the label is set to reissue 1993’s self-titled, 1994’s Live +1 and 1995’s Time Heals Nothing. Not sure why they didn’t also pick up the debut, Obedience Thru Suffering, but life is strange sometimes.

The PR wire has specifics, and, if you look hard enough, a teaser about a new record:

Newly signed to E1 Music, sludge metal legends Crowbar will re-release three influential records, Crowbar, Live +1 and Time Heals Nothing on October 5th, 2010. With each title originally being released in the early ‘90s, this will be the first time all three records will be widely available in stores. A new Crowbar record is planned for early 2011.

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Zoroaster Interview with Will Fiore: A Red Hot Burning Sensation from Down South

Posted in Features on July 6th, 2010 by JJ Koczan

Today, Atlanta‘s Zoroaster release their third album in the head-soaked form of Matador. It is the band’s first release through E1 Music, and it comes as the latest brick in a tower of momentum that can be traced back across last year’s Voice of Saturn full-length and its 2007 predecessor, Dog Magic, both of which the band put out through their own Terminal Doom Recordings.

But, as guitarist/vocalist Will Fiore informs from sunny Hollywood, California, there are just some things you need a label for. As an example, the band are currently embroiled in an extensive US tour with fellow Georgian upstarts Black Tusk and Florida‘s Dark Castle that’s been dubbed the Summer Southern Burn Tour. I’m sure it’s way more comfortable than it sounds.

Of course, Zoroaster are no strangers to the road. Fiore, bassist Brent Anderson and drummer Dan Scanlan have been hitting it hard since the inception of the band in 2003, and as they release the Sanford Parker-produced (longtime engineer Ed Rawls also worked on it) Matador, it seems their work touring is beginning to pay off. They are among the best doom bands of their generation, and more and more, they’re being recognized as such. Not a bad platform on which to issue a new album.

After the jump, you’ll find my recent Q&A with Will Fiore as the Summer Southern Burn Tour was getting started. Since he was in Hollywood, I began the interview with the most important question of all…

Read more »

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Zoroaster on an Odyssey

Posted in Bootleg Theater, Whathaveyou on July 2nd, 2010 by JJ Koczan

The whole “promoting by not promoting on The Obelisk” bit is tired and sad, so I’m going to let it rest this time. Zoroaster‘s new video for the track “Odyssey” made a premiere well-timed for the release of the Matador album next week on some website that takes ads. Here’s the clip, directed by Chad Rullman:

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Previously Unheard High on Fire Track Now Available for Hearing

Posted in audiObelisk, Whathaveyou on June 23rd, 2010 by JJ Koczan

I’ve been a fan of Adult Swim since the days when they showed clips of old people synchronized-swimming, and in no way is that depressing. The Cartoon Network Sunday night programming block got ahold of the as-yet-unreleased High on Fire track (somehow Kia was involved too), and posted the single as part of a series they’re doing over the course of apparently eight weeks. So, uh, thanks guys.

You can stream the track below or download it at the Adult Swim page linked above. If you don’t recall, High on Fire guitarist/vocalist Matt Pike spoke about this song in our interview.

Speak in Tongues

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An audiObelisk Not-So-Exclusive: Zoroaster Have a New Track for Streaming

Posted in audiObelisk, Whathaveyou on June 4th, 2010 by JJ Koczan

I know you’ll all be surprised and devastated to learn that when Atlanta doom mavens Zoroaster were looking for a place to stream “Black Hole” from their forthcoming E1 Music debut, Matador, they did not come to The Obelisk. I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again, when you’re a band looking to promote a new release, there’s nothing quite like not The Obelisk to get it done.

At least I can take solace from my irrelevance in the fact that it was the good people of Brooklyn Vegan who got the premiere. Matador is out July 13, and Zoroaster hit the road middle of this month to promote the album with the oh-so-hot-right-now Black Tusk and underrated Floridian purveyors Dark Castle. Stream “Black Hole” below.

And in case you were wondering whether or not it’s metal, just look at that dynamic range. No other genre has such oppressive waveforms.


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