Live Review: Planet Desert Rock Weekend V – Night 2

Posted in Reviews on February 1st, 2025 by JJ Koczan

Fireball Ministry 1 (Photo by JJ Koczan)

Afternoon — Before Show

Took a drive out to the desert for a bit this afternoon, looking at old rock formations and listening to tunes. The Samavayo guys had stayed over also at Adam from Sonolith’s house where I’m crashing, and it was good to hang out with them a bit this morning as well. I was up early, showered and finished the review, fest-mode, etc., but got my shit done and could hang out for a bit once the rest of the house was awake. Shockingly, balance has never been a strong suit.

It’s another burner tonight: Fireball Ministry headlining, with JIRM from Sweden, Valley of the Sun, Fire Down Below from Belgium and Godzillionaire opening. After last night unfurled with such a clear, and clearly intentional, narrative thread — each of the four bands adding something to the one before it, building to the headliner blowout of Unida — I’m curious and eager to find out how tonight’s acts might also complement each other.

Also I have a lot of friends here and people are very nice. I’m lucky to be here. I spent a decent portion of last night hanging around with Todd from Ripple Music, Scott from Clean and Sober Stoner, and John Gist, who’s the one behind the festival and far and away the fiercest promoter I know. I met Dave Angstrom from Hermano. I saw old friends I haven’t seen in a decade minimum and I’ll see more over the course of the next three nights. Don’t look now, but I think this might be awesome.

Earlier start to accommodate the fifth band in the Ripple Music showcase. Here’s the night:

Godzillionaire

My first time seeing Godzillionaire, from Kansas, whose new album, Diminishing Returns, came out I think two weeks ago now as their Ripple debut. Solid band. They didn’t sound like their sound was a settled issue, but they did sound like that was by choice. Kind of a mix of influences in noise rock, fuzz, weirdo grunge stylizations and frontman Mark Hennessy’s punk-poet vibes, but they’re pretty clearly chasing the organic more than trying to play to genre, and I found that as the set went on, the scope broadened around that central notion. I admit I’m at a deficit for not knowing Hennessy’s prior work in Paw — I missed out on a lot of cool shit in the ’90s; also other decades — but Godzillionaire were fluid in changing up the mood, getting in some sense of immersion and dynamic. I haven’t reviewed the album yet or I’d have linked it, but by the time they were done, I felt like I wanted to know the songs more, so I’ll say they acquitted themselves well on a first impression. That they — the band is completed by bassist Mike Dye, who doubles as the guy at the merch table with the afro, as mentioned onstage, guitarist and low-key secret tonal weapon Ben White and drummer Cody Romaine, who shut off the snare during the quiet parts for extra class — seemed so comfortable up there speaks to their experience, sure, but it also kind of tied the scope together, made it feel like there was a sure hand guiding you. I’m gonna go back to that record at some point.

Fire Down Below

The Belgian contingent coming in hot, which I guess makes sense, and with grunge and songwriting as threads carried. They’ve been around for a bit, I know, but this is my first time seeing them as well — my first time here, despite how welcoming the experience has been thus far — and they were on point desert-style as one would expect from their records, the latest of which, 2023’s Low Desert Surf Club (review here), and they were a ready reminder of the richness of thy Euro underground, how a band like this can grow their approach over time and find out who they are. Fire Down Below are very much the sing-along hook in “California” — to which, as was noted from the stage, they’ve reportedly never been so close — and are the kind of band you’d play to explain to someone the appeal of this kind of music. The kind of band who could win a listener over with a song. They were all about engaging the crowd, were likewise generous in their thanks and their on-point riffs, and the vocal melody cut through while still letting the guitar sound powerful, early Kyuss style. Which, if you’re going to do it, is an advisable course. It’s good living on Planet Desert Rock, is what I’m learning.

Valley of the Sun

If ever there was a brand you could trust, it’s Ohio stalwarts Valley of the Sun, whose shit is bordering in classic in my mind, and somehow that includes the new stuff? Anyhow, ferociously reliable as they are, I was nonetheless curious to see and hear them as a trio live. Turns out single-guitar Valley of the Sun is still Valley of the Sun, which should be taken as a relief. Their songs still had that distinctive energy and force-of-groove. And the songs are undeniable. They’re a pull away from the grunge that was shared between the first two bands, but Valley of the Sun drew out as a logical extension of the desert mood Fire Down Below were working in, and when they hit the big riff, it hit correspondingly hard. I’d been hanging out, was a little in my own brain before they went on, but Valley of the Sun started off with “Hearts Aflame” as a slap back to a better headspace and that is no small thing to appreciate. From last year’s staggered-release LP, Quintessence (review here), they treated the room to “Graviton,” “The Late Heavy Bombardment,” and “Palus Somni,” the latter of which closed out the set with a punch to counteract the song before and a shove better suited to fire emojis than fucking anything I could ever hope to come up with. Airtight.

JIRM

And then, of course, Sweden’s JIRM came and took the desert from Valley of the Sun and launched the fuzz into space. And further, their doing so adds another dimension to the arc of the fest, following suit from what MR.BISON brought last night. Interweaving plot threads drawn out across band sets on multiple nights? Do you understand how much fun that is for me? I’d seen JIRM before, but that was before they put out The Tunnel, the Well and Holy Bedlam (review here), and so they were among my anticipated bands of the weekend — I don’t mind telling you and I also told the band we were listening to that album this afternoon — and so I was excited to do so again. They mixed in some stuff from the Jeremy Irons and the Ratgang Malibus days, and the vibe opened up: they could get heavy or trip it out, slow roll or hit harder, and they did it with professionalism and fluidity. It all meshed, which, I mean, is what you’d expect. It isn’t like The Tunnel, the Well and Holy Bedlam reinvented their sound, but it was a deeper dive into atmospherics and sonic progressivism than they’d made before — on the most basic level, I’d float it as their best with to-date — but if there was an incongruous moment, I couldn’t tell you where. I felt justified in how much I’d been looking forward to seeing them. If you’re ever in a position where you can, do. I have to tell you, though. I heard a nasty rumor they don’t pronounce it “germ,” but instead J-I-R-M like the acronym it admittedly is, and I immediately set about outlining a 500-word essay (which I might actually write just for fun) on why they should.

Fireball Ministry

Hell yes again to the what-it’s-all-about headliner. Fireball Ministry rocked heavy before it was cool. Bleed it. Jim Rota and the esteemed Emily J. Burton sharing guitar and vocal duties, a pair of humans who have spent a goodly portion of their lives living for their instrument. They had Johny Chow, who’s been m the band before and played with Cavalera Conspiracy and a host of others, on bass, and he sat well in the groove with drummer John Oreshnick, but one would expect no less from Fireball Ministry, who remain legends of the Southern California heavy underground while always having been a bit removed from desert rock, more straight up heavy, lumped in with stoner in the ’90s because I guess every band didn’t have their own genre yet, but always coming from a classic place and unrepentantly sweet in the melody. In other words, they’ve been themselves for a long time, musically speaking, and their material is timeless in part because it never really fit. Some older songs — “from the Johny Chow era,” as Rota put it — were warmly received, and while their stuff was a departure from the thread to a point, Fireball Ministry are a celebration of heavy songwriting. They’re always gonna fit. I stood up front for a while, just to sort of soak in the sound, and no regrets. As with Unida, it was an extended headlining set, and Fireball Ministry pulled it off with motor riffs to spare.

I have been doing a lot of hanging out. I met a dude named DJ who told me I was his best friend. He was pretty serious, kind of intense about it. I teared up a little, gave a big hug. Shit, I’ll be friends with DJ. Fucking a right.

Said a few goodnights and had a good talk with Ryan from Valley of the Sun, who kind of nailed me down as I was on my way by saying safe travels. You know what my problem is? Somewhere a scroll just unfurled a list, but specifically I worry about disappointing people meeting them in-person. Someone comes up to you and they know you from what you do, they might have an idea of who you are based on that. There’s little more important to me than being honest in my voice in this space, but still, if someone’s saying hi, I don’t know their expectations and I hate the thought of bringing someone down who’s just been kind enough to tell me they see value in this project. So I’m awkward. But I’m trying. It was a nice chat with Ryan. I’ve had more than a few really good hangs over the last couple days, old and new friends, bands coming through, and so on. I am lucky to be here.

Was up until about three, crashed till a few minutes before an 8AM alarm. I have lunch plans, I think, and then it’s a venue change to The Usual Place for tonight’s six-band (!) festival crescendo. Looking forward to it. More pics after the jump in the meantime.

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Planet Desert Rock Weekend V: Night Two Poster and Lineup Revealed

Posted in Whathaveyou on November 22nd, 2024 by JJ Koczan

planet desert rock weekend v banner

After the reveal of the poster and lineup for night one last weekPlanet Desert Rock Weekend V presses its argument with a Ripple Music showcase on its second evening’s bill. With label-newcomers Godzillionaire opening — their album, Diminishing Returns, is out Jan. 17, as announced two days ago — and a bill that includes two import acts in Belgium’s Fire Down Below and Sweden’s JIRM, the sure guidance to grooving glory that is Ohio’s Valley of the Sun between them and no less than Fireball Ministry headlining, it’s another another killer night carved from a killer overall bill.

So what do we know so far? Plenty. Planet Desert Rock Weekend V will almost certainly have Joey Rudell posters for night three and its ‘Last Call’ Feb. 2 show too, and fest honcho John Gist notes there’s another announcement for night three coming, but now that night two is out, a rough estimate can be pieced together of what to expect for the day splits. Here’s how it looks:

Night one: Unida, MR.BISON, Sons of Arrakis, Samavayo (confirmed here)

Night two: Fireball Ministry, JIRM, Valley of the Sun, Fire Down Below, Godzillionaire (confirmed below)

Night three: Mos Generator, Solace, Sergeant Thunderhoof,
Omega Sun, Green Desert Water, (plus one more TBA)

Night four (Last Call): Duel, BoneHawk, Luna Sol, Iota, Jason Walker’s Badmotorfinger (confirmed here)

In other words, it looks pretty sweet. Looking forward to seeing who’s the last one to join the bill, probably next week.

From the PR wire:

planet desert rock weekend v night two

PDRW V – Night Two – Friday January 31st – Ripple Music Showcase

For Night 2 of Planet Desert Rock Weekend V we are proud to announce this as a Ripple Music Showcase evening! Since the beginnings of Vegas Rock Revolution, we have had strong ties to Ripple Music and their amazing roster of bands. From the early days of VRR we had Salem’s Bend, Void Vator , Rare Breed and Mothership play shows in the 1st year of our booking events. From there we had such Ripple bands as Freedom Hawk (PDRW ), Wo-Fat (PDRW), The Obsessed, 1000mods, The Watchers, Steak(PDRW) , High Desert Queen (PDRW), Sun Crow (PDRW) ,Blackwulf (PDRW), Wino(PDRW), War Cloud (PDRW), High Priestess, Ape Machine (PDRW),. Shotgun Sawyer (PDRW), Rifflord (PDRW), Horseburner, HTSOB and more!

Plus from Planet Desert Rock Weekend v2 we had 4 international bands that eventually would be part of the Ripple Split Series “Turned to Stone”. Mr. Bison (Italy), Saturna (Spain), Captain Caravan (Norway) and Kaiser (Finland) with 3 of them being curated by VRR’s John Gist.

So it only made sense as we were coming up with the roster for PDRW V that we do a night dedicated to such a fantastic label as Ripple Music. Headlining the evening with be Fireball Ministry who has been in a bit of a hibernating mode but has awaken with the re-release of their classic album “Their Rock is Not Our Rock” on Ripple Music. We have two amazing international bands playing exclusive USA shows with JIRM from Sweden and Fire Down Below out of Belgium. The thought of JIRM’s massive epic sound being heard in one of the best rock clubs sound wise at Count’s Vamp’d was more of a dream than anything. This will be a very special set and with Fire Down Below, we get to see a very hot Ripple band play their debut show in America. Long time heavy rockers Valley of the Sun whose Ripple Music release “The Chariot” landed on many people’s end of the year lists will be returning to Planet Desert Rock Weekend after playing the 1st one back in 2018.

And kicking off the evening is new Ripple band Godzillionaire that features Mark Hennesey who was also frontman for 90s grunge era band Paw. They have their new album “Diminishing Returns” being released in January 2025. Their debut album “Negative Balance” grabbed the attention early on from John Gist at Vegas Rock Revolution and Leanne Ridgeway of Mettle Media that helped get the momentum going for this album excellent band out of Kansas.

Night two event page: https://www.facebook.com/events/931143599075635/

Artwork is by Fuzz Evil’s Joey Rudell and we are excited to see what else he has in store for us on the remaining shows!

Saturday’s full lineup will be released soon and will include the final band announcement!

We are truly humbled by the response to Planet Desert Rock Weekend V! We will put a cap on how many tickets we sell as we want it to be a cool and comfortable weekender with your friends from around the world!

Cheers,
John
Vegas Rock Revolution / Planet Desert Rock Weekend

Event page: https://www.facebook.com/events/901571638307182/

Tickets for PDRW Last Call: https://www.eventbrite.com/e/1022254108557

Tickets for PDRW V: https://www.eventbrite.com/e/873750791137

FB event: https://facebook.com/events/s/planet-desert-rock-weekend-v-j/1399556780734695/

https://www.facebook.com/VRRProductions/
https://www.facebook.com/vegasrockrevolution/

Planet Desert Rock Weekend V preview playlist

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Planet Desert Rock Weekend V Makes First Lineup Announcement

Posted in Whathaveyou on March 29th, 2024 by JJ Koczan

The annual Planet Desert Rock Weekend festival will hold its fifth edition on Jan. 30-Feb. 1, 2025, which I think marks the first time I’m actually writing that year to refer to an event that’s actually happening rather than random speculation. Feels like the future. And a killer future at that. Planet Desert Rock Weekend V makes its first lineup announcement today, and the sense of curation and purpose behind it could hardly be clearer.

No doubt the three-dayer conceived and booked by John Gist of Vegas Rock Revolution will pick up more than a handful of domestic acts in addition to Mos Generator (though if you had to only have one…), but five out of the six bands in this first publicly-confirmed batch will cross the Atlantic to play. Five for six, between JIRM, Sergeant Thunderhoof, Samavayo, Omega Sun (they’re making a return appearance after playing in 2019) and Fire Down Below. The very obvious message here is that Planet Desert Rock Weekend V wants to give the audience — the American heavy rock underground — a show it isn’t going to get anywhere else. If you can’t respect the put-up-or-shut-up nature of that, well, maybe you’ve never booked a show before. No doubt your existence has been easier and more gratitude-filled for that.

Early-bird tickets are up and there’s of course more to come, but in terms of the curation involved here and the feeling of Planet Desert Rock Weekend bringing over the acts it wants to see that no one else is bringing over, there’s a lot to admire as is. I will look forward to who else is added, finding out if this is it for non-US-based acts or if there’s more coming, and watching as the lineup takes shape generally. Thinking of making travel plans? I get it.

Word from the fest follows. Oh, and before you get your no-doubt-very-masculine panties in a bunch about AI art like all of a sudden you never used something cheap, convenient and easy because it was all of those things — we’re all complicit in the horrors of capital — the actual art is still in progress, and the full poster will be unveiled later. It’s a placeholder. Calm down, imaginary internet pearl-clutchers. Deep breaths.

Here we go:

planet desert rock weekend v first poster

Planet Desert Rock Weekend V — Jan. 30 – Feb. 1

Tickets: https://www.eventbrite.com/e/planet-desert-rock-weekend-v-in-las-vegas-jan-30-31-feb-1-2025-tickets-873750791137

FB event: https://facebook.com/events/s/planet-desert-rock-weekend-v-j/1399556780734695/

Vegas Rock Revolution’s Planet Desert Rock Weekend is back for edition 5 and it’s going to be a spectacular collection of bands from around the world of heavy rock!

It’s 3 nights of highly curated bands with evening shows only so that you can enjoy all that Vegas has to offer during the day rather it’s hitting the museums or hiking or donating to our local casinos (ha we kid!). Each evening will be in a cool atmosphere and the sound will be top rate to make your concert experience an unforgettable one.

Our 1st 6 bands are:

Mos Generator / Washington State

Mos Generator has been rocking for over 20 years and led by Tony Reed who is a monumental force within the scene. From straight forward heavy rock to heavy psychedelic they have always created music that elevates above many.

JIRM/ Sweden

Ripple Music’s JIRM (formerly known as Jeremy Irons + the Ratgang Malibus) has built their reputation on an epic sound on each release regardless of the evolution and creativity of the album. They can range from a light summery psych song to a dark tinged song describing inner turmoil. They are accented by amazing vocals. JIRM’s album “The Tunnel, The Well, Holy Bedlam” landed #4 on the Doom Charts for March 2022. This will be their 1st time in the States.

Sergeant Thunderhoof / U.K.- England

These Brits have blown away fans in the U.K. for years and rocked amazing album after album of heavy rock for the world to hear. Highly touted for their live sets but their recent album “The Scripted Veil” took the scene by storm with incredible soaring vocals and superior songwriting to most. Landed #1 on Doom Charts for June 2022. This will be their 1st and only show in the States in 2025!

Samavayo / Germany

This German trio has been releasing amazing heavy rock since 2003! Their evolution of sound and influence have changed some over the years but at their core they are a heavy rock band that writes rocking songs that are catchy but yet get you moving. They have played with many of the top bands in the world whether it was on tour or at a festival. Samavayo’s album “Payan” landed #2 on the Doom Charts for March 2022. This will be their 1st time playing the USA!

Fire Down Below / Belgium

Since their 2017 release “Viper, Vixen, Goddess, Saint” they have done a masterful job of blending desert rock, stoner rock and grunge elements together to make music that is so easily accesible to people who want to rock. Their 2022 release “Low Desert Surf Club” on Ripple Music landed #5 on Vegas Rock Revolution’s end of year list and #3 on Doom Charts for September. This will be their 1st time playing the USA!

Omega Sun / Slovenia

Returning to Planet Desert Rock Weekend is Omega Sun whose recent 2023 release Roadkill captured many rocker’s ear with their powerful blend of heavy rock, doom, grunge and stoner rock. Recently the guys had the great fortune of opening up for USA supergroup The Winery Dogs and have embarked on a European tour. We love to bring back bands to the PDRW fold! Their 2023 release “Roadkill” landed #9 on the Doom Charts and VRR’s end of the year list at #6 in 2023.

We will be collaborating with Ripple Music again on this version and looking at a full night that would be all Ripple bands or close to it. Todd is such an amazing part of the scene and his curation of bands feels unparalleled.

We will announcements for at least 8 more bands from all around the world coming up in the months to come!

https://www.facebook.com/VRRProductions/
https://www.facebook.com/vegasrockrevolution/

Planet Desert Rock Weekend V preview playlist

JIRM, The Tunnel, the Well, Holy Bedlam (2021)

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Full Album Premiere & Review: Fire Down Below, Low Desert Surf Club

Posted in audiObelisk, Reviews on September 7th, 2023 by JJ Koczan

Fire Down Below Low Desert Surf Club

[Click play above to stream Fire Down Below’s Low Desert Surf Club in its entirety. Album is out tomorrow, Sept. 8, on Ripple Music.]

Immediate cowbell. On a song called “Cocaine Hippo,” no less. If you’re looking for a way to convey energy, movement, motivation for the listener to get of their ass, that’s a fitting way to go, and indeed how Ghent, Belgium’s Fire Down Below lead off their third album, with an intro that communes directly with Queens of the Stone Age‘s “Millionaire” and a hook that backs it with a rhythmic push that would make Fu Manchu smile. Along with that cowbell, then, is the immediacy of communion with California desert/heavy rock, and particularly that of the 1990s and the turn of the century, circa 2000-’03.

Comprised of guitarists Kevin Gernaey (lead) and Jeroen Van Troyen (also vocals), bassist Bert Wynsberghe and drummer Sam Nuytens, the band offer nine songs across 57 minutes of material, and even that feels like a reference to the CD era, and it’s nearly 15 minutes longer than was 2018’s Hymn of the Cosmic Man (review here), much of which can be accounted for in the 16:06 closer “Mantra.”

That’s the longest song the band have ever made — though both Hymn of the Cosmic Man and their 2017 debut, Viper Vixen Goddess Saint, passed 11 minutes in their respective finales — and in seven-minute cuts “Surf Queen” and the catchy-as-all-get-out “Here Comes the Flood,” and the six-minute heavy psych lean of “Hazy Snake” with some Elderian shimmer in its lead guitar that feels well placed since Nick DiSalvo (guitar/vocals in ElderDelving, drums in Weite, etc.) produced with engineering by Richard Behrens (he’s the guy in Berlin; front-of-house for Kadavar, was in Samsara Blues Experiment, has recorded tons of bands, on and on), they explore outer reaches around the perimeter of the straightforward heavy rock and roll of songs like “Cocaine Hippo,” “California” and “Airwolf” in the initial salvo or “Dune Buggy” and “The Last Cowboy, which are positioned to offset the longer pieces.

All of this — the titular delve into surf for the first half of “Surf Queen” before it gets into a more open, jammier stretch and circles back to the hook, the pure desert worship and escapism of “California,” the ecological impossibility of lines like “Surfing through the desert, I ride a wave/There’s a lady dressed in white who knows my name” in “Cocaine Hippo,” and so on — results in a full-length of marked flow and varied sounds built around its central, heavily-fuzzed ideology. Most of all it feels like a celebration.

One that feels well earned, given the five years between Hymn of the Cosmic Man and Low Desert Surf Club. And if these songs are something of a breakout moment for Fire Down Below, a realization of who they are as a group and the things they want to honor in their music, then that’s the manifestation of a heart-on-sleeve approach they’ve had all along. Heavy rock by heavy rockers; Fire Down Below sound like fans of the style they’re playing.

Fire Down Below circa Low Desert Surf Club

The low-rolling post-Kyussism of “Airwolf” and the similarly sourced shove of “The Last Cowboy” in the penultimate spot — crucial there for regrounding from “Hazy Snake” and ending on a gentle fade in its solo ahead of the sprawling “Mantra” — and the fact that the centerpiece is the sand-boogie of “Dune Buggy,” named for vehicle that might cruise through the desert à la Truckfighters and serves as a getaway car here, makes forehead-slapping sense considering the return of the cowbell, the drive of the chorus and that last charge that pays off its mini-build. On a level of fans communicating their love for this specific thing to its specific community, the dogwhistles and references abound and converts will find themselves smiling in recognition as the funky swing in the first movement of “Mantra” unfolds with its Brant Bjork hat on, so much go-go-go throughout resolved inevitably, correctly, at an unshakable altar of cool.

If “Surf Queen” ends side A of the 2LP and “The Last Cowboy” wraps side B, and side D is etched, that leaves “Mantra” hanging alone on side C. Will listeners to the vinyl swap platters for one song, even one as substantial as that? Does anyone actually listen to vinyl other than to take pictures for social media? I don’t know. Depends on the listener, obviously, but “Mantra” earns its standalone place, feeling at least partially improvised around its central riff in the early going, digging into mellower Kyuss circa …And the Circus Leaves Town in its wavy-guitar structured midsection before the swinging, hot-shit strut verse riff kicks in and the festival set begins the trek to its peak.

At about 8:30, the vocals depart and the band smoothly — so, so smoothly; gracefully — begin to sidestep into another mostly-instrumental stretch, still holding some of the early funk and classic style, but seeming to inhale before they dive into Low Desert Surf Club‘s actual finish. I don’t know the process through which “Mantra” was made, whether it was different parts recorded and assembled after the fact, jammed-out live in the studio, or what, but I enjoy how little it seems to matter to the actual listening experience, which fulfills the immersion that “Here Comes the Flood” teased and is atmospheric without hyperintellectualizing aesthetic and thus undercutting the passion fueling it. It’s a win, is what I’m saying.

And its ending, for which the vocals briefly return, hits its mark and calms down, highlighting the intimacy between Fire Down Below and their subject matter. This is not desert rock by happenstance; it’s desert rock as a lifestyle. It’s tattooed desert rock. And I guess there are still people who think desert rock has to come from a desert. Okay. Does everyone who plays death metal have to die? Regardless of the absurdity of that position, Low Desert Surf Club basks in its all-in nature as regards genre, and a good portion of the character of the album comes from the obvious love and passion with which it was made. Also the riffs. And the songs. And the tone. And and and…

Fire Down Below on Facebook

Fire Down Below on Instagram

Fire Down Below on Bandcamp

Ripple Music on Facebook

Ripple Music on Instagram

Ripple Music on Bandcamp

Ripple Music website

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Ripplefest Germany 2023: Lineups Announced for Berlin and Köln

Posted in Whathaveyou on August 29th, 2023 by JJ Koczan

Life takes you strange places. I’m reporting live from a bench at what I grew up calling Hershey Park — it’s now known as “Hersheypark,” if current signage is to be believed — in not-much-else-here Hershey, Pennsylvania. My wife and kid are and have been for long enough for me to set up the entire back end of this post, maybe 25 minutes or so, waiting on line for a rollercoaster called The Comet. Park opened at 11 and is slammed.

We’re here, my little family unit, because it’s the end of summer. The Patient Mrs. starts a new semester teaching this week, The Pecan goes to school for full-day kindergarten Sept. 5, so this is pretty much it for summer. Why we’re here instead of something not two and a half hours from where we live is because about 25 minutes from here, at 2PM, we’re meeting with a dog breeder to see about maybe buying a three-month-old puppy. It’s a shichon, small, doesn’t shed much or make a lot of noise. A non-dog, by some standards. Fine. If it doesn’t immediately bite my kid, we’ll probably get it. This has emotional baggage for me — shocking, I know — but it’s time to get this kid a dog, so even if it’s not this one, we’ll keep looking.

What does any of this have to do with Ripplefest Germany 2023 announcing lineups for Cologne — Köln in German — and Berlin?

Just about nothing, actually, but it’s why I’m distracted from giving you the usual spiel: “here’s a cool fest I’ll never get to see but maybe you will and we can both daydream so here you go,” so at least that’s a connection. And please don’t take my inability to focus as somehow detracting from the work Max Röbel has done in assembling lineups both representative and forward thinking from Ripple and -adjacent acts. If you need more proof of his noble mission to shake heavy rock genre norms, go check out the new Plainride. Also, good for Crystal Spiders doing a bit of travel.

These reportedly are not the only acts that will be announced for these events, but it’s a start. Here’s what the PR wire has to say about it:

ripplefest-germany-berlin-koln-posters

RIPPLEFEST GERMANY announces first names for 2023 edition in Berlin and Cologne this fall; tickets on sale now!

The international RIPPLEFEST festival series, organized by renowned California independent label Ripple Music, returns to Germany this fall with two unmissable events! Ripplefest Berlin and Ripplefest Cologne promise a musical experience of the highest caliber for fans of Stoner, Doom, and Heavy Psychedelic Rock.

Ripple Music, a label known for its specialization in heavy rock sounds, aims to promote emerging talents from the international heavy rock underground and bring together fans and bands from all over the globe. Dubbing their own festival series “Ripplefest”, the record label has been organizing showcase events for years, in cities such as Austin, San Francisco, London, Nantes, Stockholm, Cologne and Berlin.

The organizer of both Ripplefests is Max Röbel, frontman of Cologne’s heavy rock band Plainride and Head of A&R Europe for Ripple Music. About curating the festival, he says: “Creating a platform for music beyond the mainstream and being able to showcase it with such international lineups is a matter dear to my heart. These festivals are meant to be both a meeting place and a stepping stone for our acts, which is why I am particularly excited that with Kabbalah, Crystal Spiders, and Daevar, we once more have three bands with exceptionally strong frontwomen, on this year’s lineup.”

RIPPLEFEST BERLIN 2023
November 25th at Roadrunner’s Paradise
Buy tickets (20€): https://ripplefest.de/berlin.html
Facebook event: https://facebook.com/events/s/ripplefest-berlin-2023/987568972444269/

❱ CANNABINEROS (DE) Stoner rock
❱ KABBALAH (SP) Occult rock
❱ CRYSTAL SPIDERS (USA) Doom rock
❱ APPALOOZA (FR) Heavy tribal rock

RIPPLEFEST COLOGNE 2023
December 2nd at Club Volta
Buy tickets (20€): https://ripplefest.de/berlin.html
Facebook event: https://facebook.com/events/s/ripplefest-cologne-2023/1301970177360757/

❱ MOTHER’S CAKE (DE) Stoner rock
❱ KABBALAH (SP) Occult rock
❱ FIRE DOWN BELOW (BE) Stoner rock
❱ CRYSTAL SPIDERS (USA) Doom rock
❱ APPALOOZA (FR) Heavy tribal rock
❱ CANNABINEROS (DE) Stoner rock
❱ DAEVAR (DE) Stoner doom

https://www.facebook.com/theripplemusic/
https://www.instagram.com/ripplemusic/
https://ripplemusic.bandcamp.com/
http://www.ripple-music.com/

Mother’s Cake, Studio Live Session (2022)

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Desertfest Belgium 2023 Completes Lineup (Almost)

Posted in Whathaveyou on July 28th, 2023 by JJ Koczan

Man this looks like a wild time. Desertfest Belgium 2023 has just about finalized its lineup, bringing Enslaved, Quicksand, Black Mirrors, Khan, Iron Jinn, Bushfire and a host of others to the bill and teasing that there’s still one more to add. Belgian native. A surprise. You’ll note below that it says “artist” instead of “band.” Could it be a solo act? Curious.

Whoever it is, they’ll join a packed bill that stands out even among the crowded European Fall festival circuit. You can see the list of names below and I sincerely doubt you need me to tell you how badass an assemblage it is, so I won’t. I will point out that it’s a great mix of European and American acts with representatives from Australia in Khan and South Africa in Ruff Majik. If you’re keeping score at home, that’s four continents accounted for across the three days of the fest. Not too shabby.

The latest from the fest is below, as per social media:

Desertfest Belgium 2023 final-ish poster

We are excited to announce the following final bands. Some are big, some badass, some barbaric, some boisterous, and some all of the above! (#129304#) We are talking about:

Enslaved – Quicksand – Kid Congo and The Pink Monkey Birds – Khan – Black Mirrors – LA MUERTE – Fire Down Below – BUSHFIRE – Red Sun Atacama – Iron Jinn – Astodan – Witch Piss

Unfortunately REZN’s European tour was cancelled, so they won’t make it to this year’s Desertfest. We sure hope to welcome them back somewhere in the near future.

On the bright side, we have one final, very talented Belgian surprise artist tugged away in our sleeve! The project is so secret that we can’t say much more just yet, but we will be lifting a corner of the veil pretty soon…

So, why wait?

Satisfy your thirst for the desert and get your Reduced Three Days Combi Ticket or your Day Ticket at our Ticket Page!
https://www.desertfest.be/antwerp/information/ticketing/

Event page: https://www.facebook.com/events/1634817843606240/

Rock out as you rock on! (#129304#)

http://www.desertfest.be/
https://www.facebook.com/desertfestbelgium/
https://www.instagram.com/desertfest_belgium/

Enslaved, Heimdal (2023)

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Fire Down Below Announce Low Desert Surf Club Out Sept. 8

Posted in Whathaveyou on July 11th, 2023 by JJ Koczan

Fire Down Below circa Low Desert Surf Club

Belgian heavy rockers Fire Down Below give a catchy and uptempo showing in the first single from their third album, Low Desert Surf Club, keeping on-theme with the album’s title in the shove of “California.” The four-piece imported producers Nick DiSalvo (also of ElderWeiteDelving, etc.) and Richard Behrens (too many to list as producer/engineer, but he was also in Heat and Samsara Blues Experiment) from Berlin to make the record, as they profess something of a stylistic re-grounding after 2018’s Hymn of the Cosmic Man (review here). “California” bears that out with a straight-ahead, down-the-highway shove and maybe a little bit of daydream escapism in the bridge later on.

I don’t know if any of the members of the band have been to CA or not and I don’t particularly care. Aside from the reality that desert rock can happen in places without a desert, as someone born and raised on the Eastern Seaboard of the US, the Golden State was a daydream for me too. Even that kid in The Wizard knew. “California…” Even then, the future was neurodivergent.

Album preorders and the song stream are below, as per the PR wire:

Fire Down Below Low Desert Surf Club

Belgian stoner rockers FIRE DOWN BELOW drop burning hot debut single off new album “Low Desert Surf Club”, out September 8th on Ripple Music!

Ghent-based stoner rock foursome FIRE DOWN BELOW announce the release of their third studio album “Low Desert Surf Club” through Ripple Music this September 8th, with preorders and a summer-ready first single available now!

About their new single, FIRE DOWN BELOW explain: “California is our take on a feel-good party song that would lift us from the everyday doom and gloom and remind us that good times were going to be back. Now that they are, we hope people will feel the vibes and go crazy with us when we play this song live. Party time!”

“Embracing the contradiction of a Belgian band making songs about the California desert, we pinned down the album title because it captures the general ‘summer vibes upbeat rock ‘n roll’ vibe,” says the band. Produced by Elder frontman Nick DiSalvo and recorded by renowned Berlin engineer Richard Berhens at Dunk! Studios at Zottegem in Belgium, third album “Low Desert Surf Club” is filled with nine fuzzed-out and sunbaked feel-good hits evocative of a road trip through the Californian desert, from the high-speed stoner madness of “Cocaine Hippo” or “Surf Queen” to the heavier and mind-altering vibe of “Hazy Snake” and “Hear Comes The Flood”. An instant stoner rock classic that should enthrall fans of Fu Manchu, Kyuss and 1000mods!

“Written when people were confined to their houses, live music was banned and putting four guys together in a room to jam was borderline illegal, we made the decision not to lament and wee, but instead make an album full of positive vibes and hope for better days to return soon. So we started writing songs that made us feel like we were driving through wide-open deserts, exploring new lands or partying at the beach all day and all night long. After exploring outer space on our second album Hymn of the Cosmic Man, this album feels closer to the vibes on our debut Viper Vixen Goddess Saint,” the band adds.

FIRE DOWN BELOW “Low Desert Surf Club”
Out September 8th on Ripple Music

US preorder – https://ripplemusic.bigcartel.com/product/fire-down-below-low-desert-surf-club-digipack-cd
Bandcamp – https://ripplemusic.bandcamp.com/album/low-desert-surf-club

Formed in Ghent (Belgium) in 2015, Fire Down Below first stepped into the spotlight with their self-released debut album Viper Vixen Goddess Saint in 2016. The album quickly garnered international praise and caught the attention of California-based label Ripple Music, home of some of the finest bands in the world of stoner, doom and heavy rock. Ripple Music re-released VVGS worldwide and released its sophomore album Hymn of the Cosmic Man in 2018. The second album again received excellent critique and Fire Down Below played over 30 shows throughout Europe in the next year.

Album three, Low Desert Surf Club, was recorded in late 2022. The band sought and found a producer in Nick DiSalvo, famed frontman of the bands Elder and Delving. Richard Behrens (Samsara Blues Experiment, Big Snuff Studio Berlin) was added to the team to record and mix the nine tracks on the album. Low Desert Surf Club will be released on 8 September 2023. With the new album, Fire Down Below is once again ready to rock any stage.

Fire Down Below has become known for energetic live shows, with sweat often dripping from the walls by the time they quit the stage. They have shared line ups with bands like Fu Manchu, Sleep, Monster Magnet, Acid King, Naxatras and Stoned Jesus and appeared on festival such as Desertfest Antwerp (BE), Desertfest London (UK), Desertfest Ghent (BE), Alcatraz Hard Rock and Metal Festival (BE), Ripplefest Cologne (GER) and Westill Fest (FR).

FIRE DOWN BELOW is:
Kevin Gernaey – lead guitar
Sam Nuytens – drums
Jeroen Van Troyen – vocals, guitar
Bert Wynsberghe – bass

https://www.facebook.com/firedownbelow/
https://firedownbelow.bandcamp.com/
https://www.instagram.com/firedownbelowband/
https://twitter.com/Fire_Down_Below

https://www.facebook.com/theripplemusic/
https://www.instagram.com/ripplemusic/
https://ripplemusic.bandcamp.com/
http://www.ripple-music.com/

Fire Down Below, Low Desert Surf Club (2023)

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Into the Void Leeuwarden Makes First Lineup Announcement

Posted in Whathaveyou on April 20th, 2023 by JJ Koczan

If you’re thinking, “Hey wait, wasn’t Into the Void just in January?” then first of all, kudos on keeping up, and yes, it was. That was Eindhoven, this is Leeuwarden, and if these Netherlands cities aren’t familiar, if these festivals keep happening almost certainly they will be. Into the Void Leeuwarden 2023 is set for Sept. 30 — all-dayer; nice — and has just announced its first 12 bands.

Yeah, crazy right? First 12 bands? It’s one day! How many more bands can there be? The headliner is still TBA, but with Alabama Thunderpussy leading the charge, they’ve brought on The Atomic BitchwaxYawning ManREZNSamavayoThe MachineHowling GiantFire Down BelowHeavy TempleRrragsOnhou and Moan, and that looks like a hell of a day to me. Shit, pick any four and that’s a good night alone.

I wanna know if Howling Giant and Heavy Temple are going to tour Europe together. It’d be the most adorable heavy rock export package of the year, hands down. For that alone I want it to be true. Charm offensive.

Anyhoozle, it’s another one for the Alabama Thunderpussy reunion, and a return trip for the Bitchwax that I think is TBA. Shit, put them on tour together too! Man, I’m booking gigs all over the place today. While we’re at it? I’d pair Samavayo and The Machine for a run too. And you don’t think Yawning Man and REZN wouldn’t be a good show? Come on.

I guess the underlying message is this lineup looks pretty good. Here it is as per socials:

into the void leewarden 2023 first poster

Alabama Thunderpussy exclusive reunion show at Into the Void Leeuwarden

The first 11 names for Into the Void Leeuwarden are known. On September 30th Alabama Thunderpussy will host an exclusive Dutch reunion show at Into the Void. It’s the first time since 2008 that the band is back on tour, and despite their death, the Americans are still loved for their legendary live shows.

The Americans are taking Into the Void because as many as seven of the twelve are from the United States. Next to Alabama Thunderpussy that’s the atomic bitchwax, yawning man, REZN, heavy temple, and howling giant.

The (legendary) headliner is also from the US of A and we will announce it soon.

The Machine and Rrrags and the Groninger bands Onhou and Moan are from home. The Germans of Samavayo and the Belgians of Fire Down Below complete the line up for now.

Tickets are now on sale and cost 49 euros each.

Tickets https://www.intothevoid.nl/tickets

https://www.facebook.com/gointothevoid/
https://www.instagram.com/intothevoidfestival/
https://www.intothevoid.nl/

Rezn, Solace (2023)

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