This gets pretty heavy, pretty nasty. Then it kind of gets pretty. What happened was I knew I wanted to start with Basalt Shrine because that’s just too killer a beginning to pass up. But I was barely two days into the Quarterly Review and I knew I didn’t want to do a whole show based on that, so I just kind of went from Basalt Shrine forward on a line of extreme sludge of varying kinds, and that was fun for a while. When I started stumbling coming up with inclusions off the top of my head, I decided to switch gears.

That’s where you see the second voice break. I was going to put it at the top of the second hour but figured screw it. I wanted to play Indian and Wren and KVLL, so I did. And then I jump on, announce the change happening, and jump off. I didn’t even really end the show, just “here’s something else” and done. That was a little liberating, if I’m honest. I feel like I have to say hi, thanks, thanks to Gimme, explain what The Obelisk is to anyone who doesn’t know (which I assume is everyone), then thanks again and see you in two weeks. Felt good to skip even a little of that formality/formula.

I don’t think I’ll be rewriting how I do the show entirely, but I apparently needed something different, and that’s what I got.

Thanks for listening if you make it. Thanks for reading if you see this.

The Obelisk Show airs 5PM Eastern today on the Gimme app or at: http://gimmemetal.com.

Full playlist:

The Obelisk Show – 01.06.23 (VT = voice track)

The Obelisk Show on Gimme Metal airs every Friday 5PM Eastern, with replays Sunday at 7PM Eastern. Next new episode is Jan. 6 (subject to change). Thanks for listening if you do.

Gimme Metal website

The Obelisk on Facebook

Good show. Gets heavy. I started thinking about how my knee hurt and that reminded me of Høstsabbat (where I hurt it) earlier this month and I decided to dedicate the second hour-ish of the program to celebrating that lineup. And, well, that lineup was really god damned heavy — though, I say in the voice tracks too, it was way more sonically diverse a proceeding than it appears on the playlist below. So it goes. I’ll plead guilty on that.

Before that though, each one of the first three tracks is something I genuinely hope people will check out. Brant Bjork because he’s Brant Bjork and 14 records in he’s still trying new stuff. UWUW because Ian Blurton is a master and psychedelic heavy soul rock needed to happen. Dead Shrine because it’s new stuff from Craig Williamson (also of Lamp of the Universe) in a heavy style like Arc of Ascent, but with some different kinds of spaces thrown in. Dude just riffs and riffs and riffs. Yes.

Not saying the rest isn’t worth checking out in Ruby the Hatchet, Love Gang, or The Otolith, which is really the rest of the new stuff. The Otolith I’ve been listening to all week to review it and it’s bludgeoningly beautiful and has me wondering how to add a sixth inclusion to my top five for the year. Ruby the Hatchet are like if 1971 happened in 1981, and Love Gang are like if Motörhead were from Southern California or, in other words, from Denver. I certainly thought that song was killer when I premiered it. And a couple classics, some recent Enslaved, Orange Goblin, then the turn up to Norway for the fest-homage. As I said at the top, good show.

Thanks if you listen and thanks for reading.

The Obelisk Show airs 5PM Eastern today on the Gimme app or at: http://gimmemetal.com.

Full playlist:

The Obelisk Show – 10.28.22 (VT = voice track)

The Obelisk Show on Gimme Metal airs every Friday 5PM Eastern, with replays Sunday at 7PM Eastern. Next new episode is Nov. 11 (subject to change). Thanks for listening if you do.

Gimme Metal website

The Obelisk on Facebook

Before, during Kanaan soundcheck

Almost three years to the day since I was last in Norway for Høstsabbat. Some things are different, some are not. I slept almost the entire flight. Blessed by Apollo (or whoever) with an empty seat next to me in a two-person row, I was able to lie down if not stretch out, and that second airline pillow is key.

I remembered to go to the right at Oslo airport to get to the trains even before I saw the sign not quite screaming in my face to do so, and got into town with enough time to crash for another hour before showering and trying to make myself look human enough to be in public for a while. One does one’s best, anyhow. We must acknowledge some causes long since lost. I’ve always thought of myself as more bridge than cave troll, but even that’s perhaps more romantic than “doughy suburban dad.”

In any case, people are busily busying themselves with busy-looking stuff. Laptops are out. I got told to remove my ass from the balcony a brief moment after taking a picture of the church itself — the venue,  Kulturkirken Jacob, is an old church repurposed as an arts/performance space, which is about the best fate one could ever hope for concerning a religious institution — so came downstairs to write, get more coffee and see who’s where. I have a press pass, so I think I can wander a bit. With an hour and a half till showtime, I should probably do that.

My expectations are high here based on prior experience with Høstsabbat, but more than anything I am humbled to be here at all among these incredible people and the likewise incredible event they’re about to make happen. One hopes to stay out of the way, will likely fail. Fair enough.

Kanaan just started playing full volume. Only for a minute, but it was a welcome reminder: Everything’s going to be okay once the music starts. One more coffee before then, maybe.

HØSTSABBAT 2022 NIGHT ONE

Kanaan

Says something that even as Oslo’s own Kanaan celebrate their 2021 Earthbound (review here) LP by performing it in full, they’ve got two newer works out there as well in the 27-minute piece “Beyond” included on a four-way split through Worst Bassist Records and the forthcoming album, Diversions Vol. I: Softly Through Sunshine on Jansen. They are ascendant as well as prolific, each outing offering something new or at least a broadened take on what came before. I feel like I have a better understanding having seen them live, even if a full-album set isn’t the most representative of their work on the whole, their range was by no means absent from that material, however terrestrial it may be on relative terms. Drums, guitar/bass/synth, and guitar all in a line near the front of the stage, Kanaan pulled a packed house early crowd and the audience clearly were not showing up by happenstance. All hall the next generation. Capital-‘h’ Heavy needs this turnover to happen desperately in the next few years, and if Kanaan are among the vanguard for it, so much the better for the intricacy of what they play and the obvious heart with which they play it. They killed and sound like they’re only getting better. Now I get to say both I’ve seen them and that I ‘prefer the live version’ of Earthbound. Ultimate snobbery.

Kosmik Boogie Tribe

My camera fell out of my bag before their set. Full height, cosmic backpack betrayal. Imagine seeing the nicest thing you own bounce off a cement floor. I said a very loud, very much in English “fuck!” but it turned out okay. Might be time for a new camera bag, but will be extra careful in the meantime. Fortunately Kosmik Boogie Tribe were a salve for such concerns, blowing the dust off soul and floor alike with their classic, somehow punk-ish heavy rock and roll. This was riffs, beer, maybe the odd bit of what they call ‘flower’ now that it’s legal where I live. Good vibes, high energy, and no screwing around despite all the screwing around. Aside from my relief and not, you know, needing a new camera, I was pulled in by Kosmik Boogie Tribe’s infectious energy and shut-up-and-go, 1-2-3-4-play verve. Rock and roll can be an outright blast when you do it right. I was only passingly familiar before, so relished the chance to see them open in the crypt, which was immediately full. I hate to think of Høstsabbat outgrowing that space — they say to show up early, and I did — but they had a line of people waiting to get into the space in front of the not-quite-a-stage, and reasonably so. It was packed in there. Better show up early next time too. Kosmik Boogie Tribe had a couple live LPs for sale, and seemed well on board for sonic shenanigans, leaving me with the best kind of homework to do later on.

Needlepoint

I suppose it would be too unsuitable to their ultra-mellow, vibe-minded style to say Needlepoint made waves with 2021’s Walking Up That Valley (review here). Gentle waves, then, to coincide with the melodies with which they and you while listening seem to be taking a casual pleasant stroll that then turns into the kind of conversation about life that changes the way you think, ever so slightly, but more than you realize. I would be willing to bet actual kroner that every single guy in this band was at some point the best player in another band. They’re technical enough to be a showcase, but that melody highlights an utter disinterest in that particular kind of indulgence. Instead, Needlepoint, who are from here, focus on the organic,  a kind of particularly Scandinavian folk moving in along with the jazzy drums, smooth, smooth, smooth basslines and interweaving progressions of keys/organ and finger-plucked guitar, Bjørn Klakegg’s likewise soft vocal delivery reinforcing the intent without over-selling it or coming across as hackneyed. I went upstairs to the balcony to watch the full set and they were done before I even knew it was time. Bonus kudos, as the dudes from Kanaan were down the front the whole set. One can only imagine the drummer-chat that will ensue likely a respectable amount of time after Needlepoint’s gear is off stage. These guys are classy, no need to bother immediately.

U-FOES

I must’ve listened to U-FOES before but could not tell you when. In any case, their noise, sludge-more-in-tone-than-mindset take on hardcore-bred riffing was a hilarious enough contrast to Needlepoint immediately prior that it felt like everyone was in on the gag, which is how it should be if you’re going to do that kind of thing. I didn’t stay long, wanted to grab more coffee, check in at home, etc., but I could hear them through the floor up in the chapel a few minutes later and they sounded duly caustic. Hey, I’m from the Northeastern corridor of the United States, ergo, it’s not my first time hearing hardcore and metal and sludge get slammed together for the sake of aural and artistic release, and while they weren’t really my thing, rest assured that’s on me, not them. Dressed all in white with strobe a-plenty for lighting, they balanced a raw sound of guitar, drums, vocals against a markedly severe atmosphere and hit into some hard grooves along the way.

The Moth Gatherer

Stockholm’s The Moth Gatherer had me by the time they were halfway into “The Drone Kingdom” from 2019’s Esoteric Oppression, and that opened the set. Best bit of post-metal I’ve seen on this stage since Amenra, and I remembered seeing The Moth Gatherer here in 2018 (review here), the difference between that set and this one is this time they were upstairs and absolutely owned the room. Barking vocals, undulating nod, atmospheric sludge-style riffing, lurch, immersion, the whole nine. Some clean vocals changed things up fluidly, but the lesson learned is that clearly I should go back an album or two and give them another shot. Not too many surprises — and to be fair, they’re not really playing to a style that offers them once you know what you’re looking for, but their stage presence was unquestionable and they found a place between the destructive and restorative that made them hypnotic to watch even before the video projections or strobe effects were factored in. Høstsabbat has expanded enough that it’s impossible to see all of it — that’s freeing, in a way, since one feels less obliged to do so — but I felt no doubt in watching The Moth Gatherer that I was at the right place at the right time.

Orkan

Jetlag and boogie do not historically mix, but Orkan are infectious just the same. With the Swedish five-piece taking the floor in the Crypt, Høstsabbat enters the sax-inclusive portion of the evening, and Orkan put theirs to good use, incorporating the brass as part of their classic-heavy-derived sound while leaving room for the dual guitars and the harmony-prone, just-about-everybody-sings-at-one-point-or-another vocal arrangements. Zero complaints whatsoever, except perhaps the lack of room with the crowd press behind me to give their songs the softshoe they deserved. Also I did something to my knee, because I am old. The point is that Orkan, who were had all the ’70s in their sound you could possibly ask for without actually being 70 years old, were a band I’d probably just about never get to see, and that’s worth cherishing, softshoe or no. I scuttled off to the side of the room and sat for a few, just kind of taking in that vibe, and as with everything else I saw at Høstsabbat night one, they were united to the rest of the lineup by a broadly-defined sense of what makes music heavy. In this case, it was their ability to make their sound move, and to make it fun. They seemed pretty serious about what they were doing, but loosened up as they went on, and sure enough, it was a party.

REZN

I’ve written a fair amount about Chicago’s REZN, and as soon as I hammer out the liner notes for their upcoming PostWax collaboration with Vinnum Sabbathi from Mexico I’ll have written more, but I don’t think I ever really got it until seeing them play. They hit the Chapel stage with little to no ceremony and set about unfolding a droney, psychedelic reach that felt like it was going for miles — kilometers, if you’d rather. Peppered with sac and synth, further distinguished by soft-delivered soulful vocals that brought an entirely serene spirit to even the heaviest moments, they were powerful in the sense of making air move from and around amps, but there’s just so much to hear in their sound. Sometimes it’s Dead Meadow offset by Chicagoan post-metallic crunch, and sometimes it’s the bounce and melodymaking of Mars Red Sky with synth filling out what might otherwise be empty spaces in the sound, but any angle you want to take, their set was gorgeous and I feel like I better appreciate what they do having witnessed it in person; a clarification of who they are on record and a singular impression on the day. I went up and watched from the balcony and as they mood-drenched the whole church. Preach, dudes. They just announced a new record, too. I won’t say I wasn’t looking forward to it before, but only more so now.

MoE

They were awesome. Signed to the fest-associated Vinter Records label — see also Norna tomorrow — MoE, just to be clear, have nothing to do with the US jam band of the same name. They’re homegrown Norwegian, and with killer art-rock-via-Melvins-crunch, they were indeed a wondrous abomination to behold. The room was packed well in advance of their start. Between the push — all these humans — and the fact that if I hung out there much longer I was going to topple over the stage monitor, which would help nothing, I backed out quick and with not much mercy or apology. I guess you get to a certain point in the evening and there you go. I sort of hobbled to the back and stayed there for a while, the dual-vocal all-onslaught lumbering like a reminder that, yes, Indian were soon enough to go on upstairs. Another stark shift in style to suit the theme of the day of Høstsabbat gleefully refusing to only be one thing. MoE actually made the point pretty well, since they too were unhindered by whatever self-imposed rules might’ve otherwise held them back. Oh, and also? They were fucking loud. Don’t mistake me — everyone’s been loud. Needlepoint were loud. This was another kind of loud though. Your-earplugs-mean-nothing loud. Brutal without the death. Today was Bandcamp Friday. Next one I know where to put some money.

Indian

There are very few bands who are able to sound so specifically violent. Never mind the fact that they seem not so much to play their songs as to punch them, the scathing guitar noise, visceral screams and each and every crash-and-kick-drum combo hit all feel more like punishment than just about anyone else I can think of in any genre. They’re an emdgame for this thing that they do. There could not be anyone more extreme without it losing something from one side or another. Playing under plain white light that they demanded be brighter before starting, the Chicago four-piece set immediately about physically punishing the crowd and themselves alike with their music, an act of apparently empty catharsis otherwise surely they would’ve stopped by now. They are a tonal force, but it’s not even that, or the feedback, or the screaming or the floor took echoing through the church hall like it’s beating out a march to slaughter, it’s the way in which all of it bus so overwhelming as to trigger this fight or flight panic, like you either need to protect yourself from it or get the fuck out. I’ve seen a lot of bands. A stupid number; I couldn’t even guess. But Indian are their own nightmare. There’s blood and sharp things and I think someone’s crying somewhere? You’ll remember it when you wake up. An infliction of a band and more. Fuck it. None nastier.

—

More pics after the jump.

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08.19.18 – Let’s call it midnight – Sunday night – Hotel room

Every time I walk down a long hotel hallway I think of John Goodman in Barton Fink toting his rifle and yelling about the life of the mind. “Look upon me!” and so on. That’s a fun association to have.

I had breakfast this morning at the kind-of diner here in the Hard Rock and it was the first meal I’d had in a while not made of a protein bar or granola and cereal. Not much time for that kind of thing, but I wasn’t sleeping and a little extra fortification seemed like the right idea for the final day of Psycho. No regrets.

Another busy day. There’s no letup here. Sets are full, and there are breaks between, but if you’re up for going, you can just keep going the whole day. It’s astounding. I’ve been doing my best to see as much as possible, but even that’s a fraction of the whole.

But, today was also the last day, so a bit of adrenaline to carry through is a fortunate happenstance. Flight’s early tomorrow, but that’s tomorrow’s problem.

Here’s today:

King Buffalo

It’s not like I’ve never seen King Buffalo, but I think they might’ve been my most-anticipated band of the weekend. Their upcoming album, Longing to be the Mountain, is a big step forward in their sound, and 2016’s Orion (review here) was already right up there with that year’s best offerings. They opened with the title-track of the new record and then “Repeater” from the 2018 EP of the same name (review here) before digging back to Orion for its own title-track and “Kerosene,” both of which were met with a relative uproar from the knowing Vinyl crowd. At one point early on someone in the audience shouted between songs, “Why are you opening?” and drummer Scott Donaldson answered, “I don’t know!” I don’t really know either, but Donaldson, guitarist/vocalist Sean McVay and bassist Dan Reynolds were a perfect start to the day, with the latter adding a wash of loops and psychedelic noise and transitional drones for between the songs, the build and fluidity of which were immersive in their totality. There was no moment that pulled one out of the atmosphere they set, and when the three of them locked into the heavier end of “Kerosene,” the room became a lake of nodding heads. I will consider myself lucky have seen them here. They made that room their own.

Indian

The Chicago four-piece — playing as a five-piece with Primitive Man‘s Ethan Lee McCarthy sitting in on noise and backing vocals — were probably the angriest act I’ve seen all weekend. Or, you know, ever. The assault factor extended not just to the brutality of what they played, the chest-vibrating volume at which they played it or the harsh noise and feedback that infected every single break between riff after punishing riff, but even unto the bright wash of white light under which they played. It was blinding to stare at the stage for any length of time. So it was a challenge on almost every level it could be short of them spraying skunk scent on the crowd or something like that. The rhythms of bassist Ron DeFries and drummer Noah Leger hit through a surge of low end and were punctuated by a kick drum that could almost turn the stomach, and the tortured, disaffected screams from guitarists Dylan O’Toole and Will Lindsay that cut through all that not-just-aggro-but-really-pissed-off morass were just one more level on which Indian‘s bleakness was conveyed. If King Buffalo were easing the crowd into the final day of Psycho Las Vegas 2018, Indian were making sure no one left without a scar. Menacing.

Coven

Legends, of course. What’re gonna do, not watch Coven? Of course not. Frontwoman Jinx Dawson arrived on stage in a draped coffin and was let out by robed minions, wearing a silver mask for the first song to obscure her face and underscore the theatrical cult rock vibe. Their 1969 debut, Witchcraft Destroys Minds and Reaps Souls is the stuff of cultish blueprint — the style simply wouldn’t exist in the same way without it — and Dawson and her also-robed backing band honored that legacy well. I’ve wondered as Coven have gotten back to the live performance sphere if they might ever do another record. I don’t know that they would or wouldn’t, or if they did what it would sound like — the band behind Dawson definitely brought a modern edge to those classic sounds — but it seems like a worthy pursuit. As it was, the crowd headbanged and took phone pictures at the same time and were no less into the revelry than Coven itself, which brought the atmosphere of ceremony in a way that reminded of the roots not just of cult rock, but black metal and doom and so much more besides. They’re a feelgood story for a band finally getting their due appreciation, or at least Dawson getting hers, but Coven on stage demonstrate the timeless vitality of what they did nearly 50 years go.

Black Mare

I had no idea what to expect from Black Mare, and I was still surprised. Was it just going to be Sera Timms singing over drones, or her and a drummer, or anything. I don’t even know. It was a full band. Timms, who’s probably best known at this point as the ethereal frontwoman of Ides of Gemini but who was also in Black Math Horseman and shared vocal duties with John Garcia in Zun — which I’m still hoping wasn’t a one-off — was joined by her Ides bandmate J. Bennett on bass, as well as a guitarist and drummer, and with a swell of volume behind her, she came out an held the entire Vinyl room rapt. There were moments between songs of actual silence. No talking, no nothing. People were just waiting to see what happened next. With a cloak and face mask that were both gradually discarded, Timms brought her otherworldly vocal approach to a kind of dark-psych lounge feel, almost like she was about to book a show at the bar in Twin Peaks. Atmosphere and tones alike were thick as this version of Black Mare called back to the project’s 2013 debut, Field of the Host (review here) to open with “Blind One” before “Low Crimes” from the split with Lycia (review here) and “Death by Desire” from last year’s  Death Magick Mother (review here) seemed to move further and further into an alluring murk of melodies and ambience.

Enslaved

Well, Enslaved played “Ruun,” so really anything else that happened, basically ever, takes a back seat to that. It would be impossible for the Norwegian progressive black metal powerhouse to capture the entirety of their 14-album catalog and their 27-year career, and to their credit, they didn’t try. With “Isøders Dronning” and “Yggdrasil” from 1993’s Frost included for longtime fans or those who’ve dug in deep, they were free to explore some more recent material — opening with “Roots of the Mountain” from 2012’s Riitiir (review here) before “Ruun” and including “Sacred Horse” from 2017’s E (review here) in a showing of just how proggy they’ve become. This was my first time seeing Enslaved with keyboardist/vocalist Håkon Vinje — about whose relative youth bassist/vocalist Grutle Kjellson joked twice on stage — and he absolutely nailed new material and old. Wasn’t even a question. With him, Kjellson, guitarist/vocalist Ivar Bjørnson and guitarist Arve “Ice Dale” Isdal, who I don’t think even owns a shirt at all, was new drummer Iver Sandøy. I didn’t know Cato Bekkevold wasn’t with the band anymore after 15 years, but Sandøy made his presence felt on vocals as well and like Vinje, was right at home in the songs. I’ve never seen Enslaved that they didn’t totally deliver, and I’m happy to report that streak is still alive.

The Hellacopters

There are some serious fans of The Hellacopters walking around Psycho Las Vegas this year. Decked-out rockers, heavy-garage types, fucking classic drinkers, trouble through and through. Don’t fuck with those people. They’re the drunkard’s drunkards. Turbojugend jackets have abounded all weekend and it would seem to be The Hellacopters that brought them out. Fair enough. The Swedish rockers made The Joint get down like no one I’ve seen this weekend, and it was superlative. Superlative rock, as a genre. Lot of punk in there, lot of garage as well, but all of it was distilled down to the essence of rock and roll, and as guitarist/vocalist Nicke Andersson came out to soundcheck with the rest of the band, it was clear the room had been waiting for The Hellacopters to arrive. Andersson, keyboardist Anders “Boba” Lindström, guitarist/vocalist Andreas “Dregen” Svensson, bassist Sami Yaffa and drummer Robert Eriksson handed that same room its ass in short order. Good times, absolute forget-about-tomorrow-let’s-kill-it-tonight mentality, all-in, all-go, all-fire. Just right on. I’ve dug Hellacopters records and such as much as the next who’s like, “Yeah, that’s pretty cool, right on,” but seeing it live it’s much, much easier to understand why they have the cult following they do. It’s well earned.

Dreadnought

For everyone who could pull themselves away from The Hellacopters or for those to whom the straight-up rock wasn’t maddening enough, Denver’s Dreadnought offered an alternative in Vinyl. I’ve seen some impressive shit this weekend. It’s been a good fest, okay? Then I saw Dreadnought drummer Jordan Clancy one-hand cymbals while using his other hand to press the notes on the saxophone he was also playing at the same time. Dreadnought‘s 2017 album, A Wake in Sacred Waves (review here), was lush in its layers and as creative in its arrangements as it could be scathing in its blackened extremity, but I don’t think I’ve ever watched somebody drum and play sax at the same time. That’s a Psycho Las Vegas 2018 first for me. Guitarist/vocalist Kelly Schilling was playing a flute at the time as well, so he was in good company, and bassist Kevin Handlon and keyboardist/vocalist Lauren Vieira stood ready at a moment’s notice to take off into the next movement, be it Vieira and Schilling on a quick melodic duet, or strobe-accompanied blasting black metal, heads banging and screams utterly vicious. I didn’t stay the whole set, I’ll confess, but I was glad to catch what I did, and it only reinforced my opinion that they’re a band whose scope and execution are likewise admirable.

Sunn O)))

As it happened, I had a couple minutes to spare. As it also happened, drone/amp/riff-worship magnates Sunn O))) were going on in The Joint. Playing as just the duo of Stephen O’Malley and Greg Anderson, they were decked out in full grimmrobe regalia and surrounded of course by a henge of speaker cabinets. The floor shook, it was so loud. I hadn’t seen Sunn O))) in a very long time, and even longer with just the two of them — maybe never — so while the timing worked out for me to catch them because Vinyl was running late, it was a fortunate bit of happenstance working in my favor. There’s been so much said about the poetry of what Sunn O))) do that I’m in no way about to add any insight to the canon, but as far out as they’ve gone over the years and their intermittent studio albums, incorporating vocalist Attila Csihar and various other players throughout their time, seeing just Anderson and O’Malley together on stage, bathed in fog as ever (though the ventilation system was almost too good and the fog kept swirling away, needing immediate replenishment), reaffirmed the raw power that’s always been at the root of the band. Their project has outgrown being just the two of them, and I don’t think I’d trade the Sunn O))) discography for a hypothetical, but the force of rumble emanating from the stage said everything that needed saying.

Eight Bells

What a way to cap the festival. One more show in Vinyl, one more band I probably wouldn’t get to see otherwise. I was dragging to be perfectly honest, and as noted, Vinyl was running late, but screw it, I was already in, and Eight Bells were going to be worth the wait. The Portland-based space-psych-post-whatever four-piece vary in volume, meter, melody and rhythm, but are persistently spacious, and especially digging 2016’s Landless (review here), I was doubly interested to see Eight Bells since guitarist/vocalist Meylinda Jackson had a completely new lineup with her. Comprised now of Jackson, keyboardist/vocalist Melynda Amann, bassist Alyssa Maucere and drummer Brian Burke, the experimentalist side came out before the set even started in earnest, with Jackson taking some kind of voice box and running it through what seemed to be a host of effects to create a foundation of atmosphere. Drift was a factor, but Eight Bells were never actually out of control, and even for being a new group working together, what they played seemed well-honed and there was none of that awkward everybody-in-their-own-sonic-space-on-stage thing you get when a band is recently formed or revamped. I don’t have anything to compare it to in terms of Eight Bells, never having seen them before, but they held together a ranging heavy psychedelia that seems to be individualized no matter who’s playing it at the time.

—

I fly out of Las Vegas in about eight hours. It’ll be brutal, but I’m pretty sure I’ll make it, and if not, well, there’s always ‘wandering the earth’ to try. I hear good things.

Tomorrow’s pretty much all travel, so unless I have space on the plane to open my laptop — which I sincerely doubt I will — I expect it’ll be Tuesday before I get a proper thanks-everybody post up to wrap up this coverage, so with pictures still to sort through and packing to be done, I’ll just bow out and say thanks for reading and more pics after the jump.

So… thanks for reading and there are more pics after the jump. Ha:

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It’s only taken a few years for Psycho Las Vegas to establish itself as the premier underground festival in the US. All well and good. With 2018’s lineup, though, it’s time to start thinking of Psycho among the best in the world.

Sounds like too much? Consider Godflesh and Dimmu Borgir sharing a stage, both for exclusive West Coast appearances. Think of Sweden’s Witchcraft playing one of the two shows they’ll do in the US at Psycho, and ditto that for Japanese riff-madmen Church of Misery. Think of US exclusives from Lee Dorrian’s With the Dead, or Lucifer, whose Johanna Sadonis will also DJ the Center Bar. The commitment to up and coming underground acts local, domestic and foreign like Temple of Void, King Buffalo, Dreadnought, The Munsens and DVNE. Picture yourself watching Wolves in the Throne Room headline a pre-fest pool party with Elder, Young and in the Way, Dengue Fever, Fireball Ministry and Toke.

2018 is the year Psycho Las Vegas outclasses even itself and pushes further than it ever has in terms of stylistic reach (Integrity walks by and waves… at Boris) and the sheer power of its construction. If you’re looking for the future, you’ll find it in scumbag paradise.

Here’s the lineup:

Psycho Las Vegas 2018

Hard Rock Hotel and Casino Las Vegas
4455 Paradise Rd, Las Vegas, Nevada 89169

Tickets: https://www.vivapsycho.com/pages/tickets

PSYCHO LAS VEGAS 2018 lineup:
DIMMU BORGIR (west of chicago exclusive)
HELLACOPTERS (one of two shows to be played in the USA in 2018)
SUNN 0)))
GODFLESH (west of chicago exclusive)
WITCHCRAFT (one of two shows to be played in the USA in 2018)
ENSLAVED
AMERICAN NIGHTMARE
HIGH ON FIRE
ROCKET FROM THE CRYPT
RED FANG
ZAKK SABBATH
CHURCH OF MISERY (usa exclusive 2018 with exception to one other show in San Diego)
TINARIWEN
GOBLIN
CKY
VENOM INC
EYEHATEGOD
VOIVOD
BORIS
COVEN
INTEGRITY
PALLBEARER
WITH THE DEAD (USA exclusive 2018)
MONOLORD
LUCIFER (USA exclusive 2018)
ACID WITCH
SURVIVE
DOPETHRONE
BIG BUSINESS
UNEARTHLY TRANCE
MUTOID MAN
TODAY IS THE DAY
HELMS ALEE
SPIRIT ADRIFT
BATUSHKA
PRIMITIVE MAN
DVNE
ALL PIGS MUST DIE
EIGHT BELLS
WORMWITCH
INDIAN
NECROT
HOMEWRECKER
BRAIN TENTACLES
CLOAK
BLACK MARE
MAGIC SWORD
UADA
TEMPLE OF VOID
DREADNOUGHT
WOLVHAMMER
ASEETHE
DISASTROID
FORMING THE VOID
VENOMOUS MAXIMUS
GHASTLY SOUND
HOWLING GIANT
KING BUFFALO
NIGHT HORSE
THE MUNSENS
GLAARE

Paradise Pool Pre Party
August 16th

WOLVES IN THE THRONE ROOM
ELDER
YOUNG AND IN THE WAY
DENGUE FEVER
FIREBALL MINISTRY
TOKE

Center Bar DJ’s
Andrew W.K.
Nicke Andersson (Entombed/Hellacopters)
Johanna Sadonis (Lucifer)

https://www.facebook.com/psychoLasVegas/
https://www.facebook.com/events/125340824913552/
http://vivapsycho.com

High on Fire, Live at Psycho Las Vegas 2016

It was only a matter of time, wasn’t it, before the great American disruptor returned? As Europe’s Spring 2018 festival season continues to take shape — I’ve hardly seen a word about summer outside of a certain hellacious France-based fest held annually each June — Psycho Las Vegas 2018, set once again for the dead heat of August in Nevada’s basically-uninhabitable-were-it-not-for-air-conditioning desert stronghold of decadence, is lashing out early with its first lineup announcements and putting its tickets on sale. Waste not want not in all things, including time.

If they’re early with the first Psycho Las Vegas 2018 announcements, they’re certainly already working at the scale one expects from what’s become the US’ premium heavy festival. High on Fire, Goblin, Witchcraft, a notable underground first-timer import in DVNE, as well as the extremity of Indian, the profile of Zakk Sabbath and the spacious S U R V I V E, otherwise known as the duo behind the soundtrack to Stranger Things. I still haven’t managed to watch the second season. Any good?

Either way, this is just the start for Psycho, as we all know, but it’s a hell of a start, and on looks forward to what they build up as we get closer to next summer. They haven’t failed yet to outdo themselves in scope or scale, and they continue to give the rest of Planet Earth a run for its money in that.

The PR wire brought official word:

PSYCHO LAS VEGAS 2018: Announcing Witchcraft, Goblin, High on Fire + MORE, Tix on Sale

TICKETS ON SALE
FRIDAY 12/15 @ 10AM PST HERE

AUGUST 17-19, 2018
@ HARD ROCK HOTEL AND CASINO, LAS VEGAS

The award winning Psycho Las Vegas has announced its return, along with its first round of bands it plans to host next August 17-19 at The Hard Rock Hotel and Casino. Expectations are high for the fest after last year’s massive, expertly curated selection of artists from around the globe, and if
this first taste of the lineup is any indication, 2018 promises to go above and beyond, setting the desert on fire.

The list of bands they have unleashed to reign havoc as of now are:

The return and reunion of Swedish psychedelic fuzz legends Witchcraft will be playing their first US show since 2009. In line with their reputation for scoring highly coveted sets, Psycho Las Vegas will be only one of two US dates that the band will be performing in 2018. Joining the ranks are Italian purveyors of prog rock, Goblin, most notable for their original scores for Dawn of the Dead & Disturbia; beloved stoned thrashers High On Fire; guitar lord Zakk Sabbath; horror-synth group S U R V I V E, best known for scoring Stranger Things; the reunion of Chicago doom heavyweights Indian; and UK’s prog masters DVNE, who will be performing their first ever US show at this year’s fest.

The first 2500 tickets sold will also include access to the Psycho Las Vegas Pre-fest Pool Party on August 16, which is not only the most notorious pre-party in town, but also includes favorite Psycho alumni.

PSYCHO LAS VEGAS 2018
AUGUST 17-19

WITCHCRAFT
GOBLIN
HIGH ON FIRE
ZAKK SABBATH
S U R V I V E
INDIAN
DVNE
And many, many more to be unleashed…

https://www.eventbrite.com/e/psycho-las-vegas-2018-tickets-41041983678
http://www.vivapsycho.com
https://www.facebook.com/psychoLasVegas
https://www.instagram.com/psycholasvegas

DVNE, Asheran (2017)

True to their word, it’s Jan. 15 and Psycho California 2015 has announced the headliners for what looks like the best American festival lineup I’ve seen since the days of Emissions from the Monolith. That’s not to take away from the hard work anyone else is doing, but just look at the list of bands. It’s unreal. You’d want to be everywhere at the same time to see all of it. Absolutely wild.

Sleep and Pentagram were pretty clear choices to headline. Not only for being legends in the heavy underground, but for also being just about two of the only bands left. Sweden’s Cult of Luna were something of a surprise, but for a festival already showing a European reach in bringing aboard the likes of Samsara Blues Experiment and Stoned Jesus, they make sense. Hell of a bill. Kudos to anyone who actually gets to go to the thing.

Announcement follows, courtesy of the PR wire:

PSYCHO CALIFORNIA ANNOUNCES HEADLINERS: SLEEP, PENTAGRAM AND CULT OF LUNA

WEST COAST METAL FESTIVAL HAPPENING MAY 15, 16 & 17 AT THE OBSERVATORY IN SANTA ANA

FIRST WAVE OF ARTISTS ANNOUNCED INCLUDED KYLESA, EARTH, OM AND RUSSIAN CIRCLES

Psycho California, the west coast’s first annual metal festival and a must see for fans of doom, heavy psych and sludge, has announced the headliners for this year’s event: Cult of Luna (May 15), Sleep (May 16) and Pentagram, who will perform First Daze Here in its entirety (May 17).

“2015 is going to be a slow year for Cult of Luna. However as much as we are musicians we are also fans,” said Cult of Luna’s Johannes Persson. “Evaluating if the offer to play Psycho California was worth dusting off our instruments was not hard after looking on the line-up. Being on the same bill as Pentagram, Sleep and a festival packed with the best bands around is a privilege in itself and we’ll try to live up to that honor.”

The lineup for Psycho California is: Sleep, Pentagram, Cult of Luna, Kylesa, OM, Earth, Russian Circles, Bedemon, Conan, Wrench, Eyehategod, Indian, Earthless, Pallbearer, Stoned Jesus, Old Man Gloom, Cave In, Acid Witch, Truckfighters, Tombs, Bang, Electric Citizen, Coffinworm, SubRosa, Eagle Twin, Mammatus, True Widow, Anciients, Bellwitch, Dead Meadow, Lord Dying, Death By Stereo, Radio Moscow, Ancient Altar, Samsara Blues Experiment, Atriarch, Elder, Mothership, The Well, Deathkings, Wo Fat, Rozamov, Destroyer of Light, Highlands, Bloodmoon, Slow Season, Goatsnake, Crypt Trip, Wrench, Lords of Beacon House, Tumbleweed Dealer, Sinister Haze, Blackout, Red Wizard, Banquet and Loom.

Festival interludes will be provided by Housecore Records’ artist Author & Punisher and vinyl DJ set from Bob Lugowe (Relapse Records) and Sean Pellet (Last Daze Here).

Previously announced early bird tickets sold out immediately. Tickets for the festival are on-sale this morning with both a 3-day pass ($149.50) and a 3-day VIP pass available ($256.66)

VIP packages include a 3-day festival pass, a signed screen print concert poster by David D’Andrea, express entry via artist check-in booth, access to artist VIP lounge, a limited edition Thief X Obey festival tee, a Psycho record bag and patch as well as access to a complimentary craft tequila bar, premium microbrews and artisan snacks.

www.psychoca.com
www.facebook.com/psychocalifornia
https://www.facebook.com/Thiefpresents

Sleep, “The Clarity/Dragonaut” Live in Chicago, Aug. 28, 2014

The list of bands, quite frankly, is astonishing, but even more astonishing is the fact that  Thief Presents‘ Psycho California 2015 (formerly Psycho de Mayo) hasn’t announced its headliners yet, because these sure as shit look like headliners to me.

A three-day festival set to take place at The Observatory in Santa Ana, CA, Psycho California will feature the following acts:

Here’s that list again: Kylesa, Om, Earth, Russian Circles, Orange Goblin, Bedemon, Conan, Indian, Pallbearer, Cave In, Old Man Gloom, Tombs, Earthless, Truckfighters, Bang, Eyehategod, Crowbar, SubRosa, Lord Dying, Acid Witch, Electric Citizen, Coffinworm, Eagle Twin, Stoned Jesus, Mammatus, True Widow, Bell Witch, Death by Stereo, Radio Moscow, Samsara Blues Experiment, Anciients, Elder, Mothership, Ancient Altar, The Well, Deathkings, Wo Fat, Rozamov, Destroyer of Light, Highlands, Bloodmoon, Slow Season, Crypt Trip, Lords of Beacon House, Tumbleweed Dealer, Sinister Haze, Blackout, Red Wizard, Banquet, Loom.

Plus interludes by Author and Punisher.

God damn.

Not only does it cover both coasts, huge bands, legends and up and comers, but the reach is international. Take special note of Conan, since their appearance means that Maryland Deathfest won’t be their only US date, and also Samsara Blues Experiment and Stoned Jesus — two killer European bands that you don’t even go after unless you know what the fuck you’re doing. That also hugely extends the possibilities for headlining acts. It’s an assemblage that’s beyond impressive, and if you haven’t already looked up flights to Southern California, I don’t know what to tell you. As I write this it’s after one in the morning on Sunday night, and you know I wouldn’t be doing that if my mind wasn’t leaking out of my ears at the thought of experiencing this thing.

Stay tuned for more to come, since as the poster says, headliners will be announced on Jan. 15. I’ll be looking forward to finding out who else is in store.

Psycho California on Thee Facebooks

Thief Presents on Twitter

Thief Presents on Thee Facebooks