After crisscrossing rumors and speculation, the April 29 passing of founding Karma to Burn guitarist Will Mecum has been confirmed. Mecum suffered a fall and resultant head injury. His death — even before it actually happened — has caused and outcry of tributes and love that only emphasize the community to which he and his work were so important.

The shortest distance between two points is a straight line, and Karma to Burn were the straightest line to heavy rock and roll one could imagine. Between 1994 and 2014, the Morgantown, West Virginia-based outfit would release some seven full-lengths, including a re-recording of their first. Their influence, like their final lineup, was international, but the band always maintained a forwardness of their approach — instrumental, with Mecum on stage, his hat pulled down over his eyes, hitting it hard — nothin’ too fancy, in a great Appalachian folk tradition embodied no less by the working class riffs that, titled largely by number, populated their records.

The band had this to say about Mecum’s passing:

Dear friends, we come with very heavy hearts to tell you that Will Mecum is no longer with us. Earlier this week, Will suffered a traumatic head injury from an accidental fall. On the evening of April 29th, Will passed on to the next realm. His spirit will live on through his music, and as an organ donor his spirit will live through others who may need help. Words cannot describe how much we appreciated the amount of love and support all of you showed the band throughout the years, it was truly an honor to share the experience of celebrating Will’s riffs all over the world. Rest in Power, Will.

Karma to Burn made their debut in 1997 with their self-titled album, and the transition the band underwent between that record and 1999’s landmark Wild Wonderful Purgatory might be the most enduring key to their legacy and influence. Fronted by Jay Jarosz at the behest of Roadrunner Records, Mecum, then-bassist Rich Mullins and then-drummer Rob Oswald jettisoned their singer and decided on no permanent replacement. Over the years they would flirt with various vocalists, including John Garcia (ex-Kyuss, etc.), Daniel Davies of Year Long Disaster, and others, but when they took the stage and for the vast bulk of their recorded work, they were instrumental. Pointedly so.

And in that, they did no less than set forth a blueprint of how to do heavy rock without a singer that others continue to build on more than 20 years later. Karma to Burn became the model for others to follow, and many have. The band ceased activity for a few years after their third album, 2001’s Almost Heathen, but returned in 2009 following the success of their Mountain Mamas box set and rededicated themselves to the cause of writing music and touring, resulting in 2010’s declarative Appalachian Incantation, 2011’s V and 2012’s Slight Reprise, the latter a prior-alluded fully instrumental redux of their self-titled debut.

That string of records set them on tour for years, largely in Europe. They would also issue a string of splits with friends and tour mates, including Sons of Alpha Centauri (three splits, in fact, recently compiled into a box set) and ÖfÖ Am, as well as live records, a self-titled EP on Heavy Psych Sounds, work with the side-project Treasure Cat and what would be Karma to Burn’s final full-length, 2014’s Arch Stanton. Their most recent release, Thee Rabbit Hole, brought the band full circle in remixing and remastering their earliest demos circa 1995.

H42 Records’ Juergen Berndt, who released the outing, said of Mecum, “Got to know Will since 2014 and got in contact with him while working on the first split 7” together with Nick [Hannon] from Sons Of Alpha Centauri. Three more and a compilation box followed in the last seven years. In the last few months I phoned a lot with Will ’cause working on the album Thee Rabbit Hole (released April 2nd). Of course sometimes it was difficult to work with him when it came to production/art questions but at the end he never put himself in the foreground and at least you just couldn’t be angry with him. I will remember that he had a very special sense of humor, sometimes mostly naturally under the belt line.”

The final incarnation of Karma to Burn continued to tour, featuring Mecum alongside drummer Evan Devine and bassist Eric Clutter, and their status and influence met the waiting eyes and ears of a new generation of fans at club dates and festivals alike. Through it all, the band remained singularly humble — treasured by an international underground fanbase but largely unknown outside those circles — and set themselves to the work that needed to be done.

Mecum is a standalone figure in underground heavy and his contributions will continue to ripple out across generations of artists and listeners. On behalf of myself and this site, I offer condolences to his friends, family, bandmates, and all who knew him. He will be and already is missed.

Karma to Burn, Live at Rock in Bourlon 2018

I know it’s not what you’re supposed to say, but I like that first Karma to Burn record (discussed here) with the singer Roadrunner made them get. I also like them instrumental, so take that for what you will. And I know these are demos, but they sound pretty rad too. You’ll recognize the riffing of “Ten” even in the has-vocals form it arrives in the crunchy “Soylent Green Eyes.” This is early KTB stuff, but the ’95 demo songs that open are clean and clear and full, and even the Jim Davison stuff is cool to hear. It’s different. It’s different than you think of hearing Karma to Burn, but for fans who might not’ve been in the room circa 1994, it makes an interesting listen.

Karma to Burn have grappled one way or the other with having/not having a singer for over 25 years. Somehow, founding guitarist Will Mecum has always struck me as a fighter.

To the PR wire:

KARMA TO BURN – THEE RABBIT HOLE (H42 RECORDS)

For most people the earliest enduring image engrained in their minds from instrumental luminaries Karma to Burn is that of a porcelain statue of a girl on a motorcycle. That was the iconic cover of the debut album released on Roadrunner Records in 1997.

The self-titled record featured singer Jason Jarosz was hired under pressure from the record but shortly thereafter, the band separated from singer to go fully instrumental.

However, before Roadrunner Records – Jason Jarosz was not the first singer for Karma to Burn. The band were pursuing vocals and ideas recorded songs with singer Jim Davison. The three tracks that were recorded in Kentucky and had long been a mystery whether or not they even existed. After 27 years in the vault of guitarist Will Mecum and original drummer Nathan Limbaugh they are finally published in full on the new album Thee Rabbit Hole.

Before then in 1993 Karma to Burn recorded their first demo recordings in West Virginia with the original and classic line-up William Mecum, Nathan Limbaugh and Rich Mullins. The 4 tracks of the demo, which were released as demo tape in 1995, can now also be heard for the first time on vinyl on full on the new album Thee Rabbit Hole.

The entire demo recordings from the early days of Karma to Burn have been remastered from the original masters and will be released on H42 Records on APRIL 2nd 2021 / Presale start FEB 25th 2021. The original graphic designs have been updated and upgraded by long term collaborator Alexander von Wieding.

This release has been remastered by John McBain (Desert Sessions, Monster Magnet) and is presented as a deluxe inside out printed gatefold sleeve with two sided Poster, 1994 Promotion Photo and tarot card with three different color formats – white, clear and traditional black on 12” vinyl!

https://www.facebook.com/karmatoburnofficial/
https://www.instagram.com/karmatoburnofficial/
https://k2burn.net/
https://www.facebook.com/H42Records/
https://www.instagram.com/j.b.h42records
https://www.h42records.com

Karma to Burn, Live at Rock in Bourlon 2018

Various Artists, Burn One Up: Music for Stoners (1997)

21 years ago, Roadrunner Records gathered together 15 bands on one compact disc, slapped a picture of an 18-wheeler truck in the desert on the front of it, and called it Burn One Up: Music for Stoners. It’s not easy to find a copy of it these days — I looked for a while before finally getting it in London in 2010 — but with bands like Queen of the Stone Age, Karma to Burn, Sleep, The Heads, Cathedral and Fu Manchu on board, it’s worth the search. Dig the full tracklisting:

1. Queens of the Stone Age, 18 A.D.
2. Karma to Burn, Ma Petit Mort
3. Fu Manchu, Asphalt Risin’
4. The Heads, GNU
5. Spiritual Beggars, Monster Astronauts
6. Floodgate, Feel You Burn
7. Slaprocket, Holy Mother Sunshine
8. Leadfoot, Soul Full of Lies
9. Celestial Season, Wallaroo
10. Cathedral, You Know
11. Acrimony, Bud Song
12. Blind Dog, Lose
13. Sleep, Aquarian
14. Hideous Sun Demons, Icarus Dream
15. Beaver, Green

It’s easy to argue that, as far as “stoner rock” goes, these are some of the bands who would most shape it. Yeah, Slaprocket never got an album out, but the New Jersey-based outfit divided into Solace and The Atomic Bitchwax, and both of them continue to make their mark to this day. Europe is represented through Dutch outfits Celestial Season, Hideous Sun Demons and Beaver, Sweden’s Spiritual Beggars and Blind Dog, and the UK shows off some of its best in The Heads, Cathedral and Acrimony. The aforementioned Slaprocket speak for the Northeast, while Floodgate hail from Louisiana, Karma to Burn from West Virginia and Leadfoot from North Carolina, so the Southeast is accounted for as well.

And of course we wouldn’t even be talking about the genre if it weren’t for California, which brings Fu Manchu, Sleep and an early incarnation of Josh Homme‘s then-new, on-the-rebound-from-Kyuss outfit, Queens of the Stone Age, which featured a frontman known only as “The Kid”. That’s a particular point of fascination unto itself, but with a first-album-era vocalized Karma to Burn as well and an off-album track from Cathedral, there’s plenty of fodder to make Burn One Up worth seeking for anyone who’d do so, but while the comp wouldn’t serve as a debut for Cathedral, or Celestial Season — who followed a similar path from doom to stoner rock and didn’t stick around long enough to make the turn back before reuniting in 2011 — or Acrimony or Sleep, etc., it’s still amazing to look at it and think of the legacy many of these bands cast. Shit, Sleep just put out their first record in 15 years and took over the world. Would instrumental heavy rock be where it is today without Karma to Burn? And Slaprocket through their already noted ties and Floodgate‘s vocalist, Kyle Thomas (also Exhorder) is currently fronting a little band called Troublem so you know, not exactly minor shakes there.

Blind Dog put out two records through MeteorCity before splitting up, closers Beaver would soon have a split out with openers Queens of the Stone Age via Man’s Ruin Records, and this would be the final appearance for Hideous Sun Demons, who released their only album, Twisted, in 1995. Spiritual Beggars gave an early look at their third album 1998’s Mantra III, with “Monster Astronauts,” while The Heads showcased how far out aural weedism could go with “GNU,” inarguably the trippiest cut on the release.

And The Heads are just one of the several bands who continue to make an impact. Fu Manchu. QOTSA. Karma to Burn. Sleep. Spiritual Beggars. One could argue the only dude missing here is Wino, and he would’ve been coming off The Obsessed and just getting going with Shine — later Spirit Caravan — so that could just as easily be a question of timing as anything else. Okay, maybe a bit of Orange Goblin and Electric Wizard would’ve been cool. You can’t have everything.

As with most compilations, the sound is somewhat disjointed, as the material was recorded by different players in different studios often enough in different countries, but Burn One Up gives an amazing summary of where the genre was in the wake of Kyuss‘ breakup and as it looked forward to developing in the 21st century into the multi-headed beast it is now. You can hear the crunching influence of grunge in Beaver, Floodgate and Slaprocket, but clearly these bands and the rest were on their own wavelength already, and whether new or old, whether they went on to lead the aesthetic or folded soon after — that reminds me, I need to break out those old Leadfoot discs — Burn One Up: Music for Stoners shows an admirable prescience in its picks and is a true piece of treasure for anyone who’d seek it out in its summary of what heavy rock and roll was at the time and what it would go on to be.

As always, I hope you enjoy.

—

Went to bed last night around 8PM. I’d been up since one in the morning, so somehow it made sense, plus The Patient Mrs. was having trouble getting The Pecan to go to sleep and she had half a cocktail to finish, so it seemed only fair to tag in. I’d woken up early on account of said Pecan as well, his sort of nighttime mumblings varying between actual fuss, crying and a kind of sleepy coo, and decided to spend the extra hours organizing stuff on my new laptop, which I’ve dubbed The Silver Fox. Because it’s silver, you see. Yes, we’re all very clever over here.

Anyhoozle, kind of another rough night with the baby last night had me up at three. He was in the bed — something I swore up and down I wouldn’t let happen and then of course did — and had rolled toward me in such a way that I was against the wall pretty much pinned. By a kid who, at seven months, weighs about 18.5 pounds. Life does funny things to you. I woke up, enjoyed the snuggle-time for a bit, and then got up to work on the above post. Circa 5:30, The Patient Mrs. came out of the bedroom carrying the again-complaining baby — whose diaper I’d already changed at some point — and kind of at a loss for what to do. I went back to bed with both of them and sort of rocked him while standing up, a gentle bounce with his head on my shoulder and swayed back and forth until he was falling asleep, then got into bed while holding him basically the same way and he went out. We all caught a solid two hours of rest in that position and it’s early yet to call it (a little after 8 as I type this), but I think that might be the difference-maker on the day.

We’ll get in the car soon enough and head south from Connecticut, where we drove to yesterday for two magical hours of screaming-baby-in-the-car fun, to New Jersey, where once again we’re basically setting up shop for the summer. We’ll be back and forth between there and CT to hit the beach probably on weekends and/or various other times, and there’s still stuff that will need tending to in Massachusetts — The Patient Mrs.’ work commitments and the like — but it’ll be a lot of good family time over the summer with my people and her people and I’m looking forward to being in the New York area for probably the greatest amount of time in the half-decade since we moved away.

Around here, things will likely proceed as normal, if there is such a thing. Notes for next week look like this currently, but these things can and do change as you well know by now:

Mon: Demande a la Poussiere review/track premiere; Dust Lovers video premiere maybe.
Tue. Oresund Space collective review; Kal-El live video.
Wed. Orange Goblin review.
Thu.: Currently open. Maybe Astrosoniq review.
Fri.: King Heavy review/album stream.

Plus plenty of news and whatever else happens my way.

Ups and downs this week as ever, but I’m getting through. That’s the story from here.

I hope you have a great and safe weekend. Thanks for reading and stick around as there’s more good stuff to come. All the best. Forum and Radio.

The Obelisk Forum

The Obelisk Radio

How do I know the following announcement from Freak Valley 2018 is awesome? Well, for starters I wrote the frickin’ thing. That might put me in something of a position of authority on the subject, but even if not, you don’t really need to look any further than the bands themselves to realize there’s righteousness afoot. Karma to Burn — always greeted as liberators — will make an appearance, and L.A.’s The Freeks will head to Germany supporting their yet-to-be-released new album.

I wasn’t as familiar with Ouzo Bazooka, though I’d seen the name (and once you see that name, you remember it), but checked out their stuff and found it wanting nothing in its blend of psychedelia and classic surf, but I think it’s Toke who are really going to surprise a lot of people when they take the Freak Valley stage. I’ve said before that the North Carolina trio are the inheritors of a Southern sludge legacy going back to Buzzov*en and other such early/mid-90s noisemakers, but they deliver their sound with a next-generation energy and have toured hard the last couple years to refine their attack. I would not be surprised if they come back from Europe a significantly bigger band.

Just my thoughts. Here’s that announcement, which, again, I wrote, as posted by the fest on the social medias:

Freaks, gather!

The time is coming ever closer, and we’ve already announced so many killer acts from OM and Yuri Gagarin to Russian Circles, Nap, and Year of the Cobra. We could not possibly be prouder of the fact that Freak Valley 2018 is already sold out, and we thank you so much for your support both this year and in festivals past. It’s the community of freaks that lets this thing happen year after year and keep getting bigger, so thank you!

Four new bands to welcome today and they’re awesome, so pay attention! Please say hi to Karma To Burn, The Freeks, Toke, and Ouzo Bazooka!

KARMA TO BURN

Led by founding guitarist Will Mecum, KTB are pioneers of instrumental heavy rock and roll. Yeah, the first album had a singer, and they’ve brought in guests in the past – some dude named John Garcia, etc. – but as they are today, Mecum, bassist Eric Clutter and drummer Evan Devine have never been such a force from the stage, and after years and years of lineup changes, bad luck, more lineup changes and worse luck, it finally seems like Karma to Burn are ready to take their place among the top league of riffers worldwide.

THE FREEKS

Welcome to Freek Valley! Los Angeles classic heavy rockers The Freeks – with none other than Ruben Romano (Nebula, Fu Manchu) behind the kit – recently announced they’ll release a third full-length this year through Heavy Psych Sounds. Could we wait to hear what was in store after loving their 2016 offering, Shattered, so much? Obviously not. We booked them, didn’t we? Get ready for punk-funk-psych-boogie-blues like none other, because – hey, big surprise – The Freeks feel no need to fit in with the expected fare.

TOKE

These North Carolinian sludge bastards are pucking up the next generation of a legacy for filth-coated riffing and heavy-ass-those-bass-cabinets groove begun by the likes of Buzzov*en, Eyehategod, and Sourvein. Yes, that’s the league of bands we’re talking about. Their Orange LP was released earlier this year, and you might not know it yet, but Toke are very quickly getting ready to conquer every stage onto which they set their collective foot. Don’t miss the opportunity to see them prove the power of truly unhinged sludge riffing.

OUZO BAZOOKA

Look. We’re not saying you’re going to watch about 30 seconds of Ouzo Bazooka’s set and then immediately decide you need to hit the merch table as soon as they’re done and purchase everything they have for sale – but yes, that is exactly what’s going to happen. The Tel Aviv-based psych-surf four-piece issued their latest EP, Songs from 1001 Nights, at the start of 2018, and further refined their blend of Western and Middle Eastern influences to sound like nothing else out there – nuanced but familiar like a dance in some lost otherworldly dream.

Freak Valley Festival 2018 // No Fillers – Just Killers

Line-up 2018:
OM, Russian Circles, Karma To Burn, My Sleeping Karma, My Baby, Mars Red Sky, Sumac, Lucifer, Yuri Gagarin, Dýse, The Freeks, Sacri Monti, Black Bombaim, Year of the Cobra, Purple Hill Witch, Ouzo Bazooka, Ruff Majik, Toke, Humulus, Kaleidobolt, Rage of Samedi, Nap
More tba soon

Have a freaky time – your Rock Freaks

www.freakvalley.de
https://www.facebook.com/freakvalley
https://www.facebook.com/events/738782742996668/
https://twitter.com/FreakValley

Karma to Burn, Live in Paris, Dec. 23, 2017

Pretty impressive lineup that Italian heavy rockers Humulus have put together in conjunction with Elav Brewery for what’s being called Elav Stoner Open Air 2017, with Monkey3 and Karma to Burn headlining and performances locked in from Humulus themselves as well as Toner Low, My Sleeping Karma, Monte Nero, Ride Paranoia, Elepharmers and Bangarang. It’s a two-night affair, and one assumes that since it’s actually being held at the brewery itself it’ll be as much a party as it is a show, but all the better for the heavy and psychedelic vibe that seems to be the event’s ultimate aim.

Four bands tomorrow, five on Saturday. I know it’s kind of a crapshoot to think you’re going to be able to make it out to this one on such short notice if you didn’t already plan to go, but consider this notice at least that cool stuff like this is happening somewhere on the planet. On the most basic level, ideas like this one seem worth supporting to me. It looks like a good time.

Fest info follows, as run through a major tech firm’s translation matrix from its original Italian:

Elav Stoner- Open Air Festival

The Brewery opens the doors for the Stoner event of the year.

Friday 7 and Saturday, July 8, 2017 will arrive in the year of the ELAV STONER OPEN AIR FESTIVAL at #Bergamo, a two-day stoner music with nine bands, between national and international, which will alternate on stage with: Psych-Stoner , Psychedelic vibrations, garage, rock and some blues notes …

The billboard took shape under the artistic direction of the Humulus, power trio Psych-Stoner of Brescia / Bergamo.
Guest star of Karma to Burn, US trio that with their rock instrumental stoner will explode the stage!

Friday, July 7

MONKEY3 (Switzerland)
Psychedelic vibrations, stoner rock slides with a twist prog, instrumental music that invites to travel through the mind. During a 14-year career, Monkey3 has released 6 albums. Over the years, the Swiss quartet played everywhere in Europe, taking part in the best festivals: Roadburn, Hellfest, Desertfest, Burg-Herzberg, Freak Valley …

HUMULUS (Italy)
A power-trio Psych-Stoner set up in 2009. Their first album of the same name comes out for Go Down Records in December 2012. In 2015, after a change of training, the Humulus are ready to write new songs; An EP of 3 songs entitled “Electric Walrus EP” sees the light in October 2015. 2016 is a year full of important concerts and new ideas for new songs that will compose the new LP entitled “Reverently Heading Into Nowhere.”

ELEPHARMERS (Italy)
Stoner rock band from Cagliari, two guitars with heavy tuning, battery and voice. The sound of the trio brings with it the teaching of the Black Sabbath, the “cosmic” blues of the 60s and 70s, the groove of the stoner of the ’90s. The Elepharmers sound continues to have a sabbatical matrix, but with respect to the first album the songs are longer and more dilated, there are more instrumental parts and the arrangements are richer, thanks to the presence of acoustic guitars and synth arrangements and hammond By Matteo “Baro” Paper.

Bangarang! (Italy)
Quartet with a loud rhythm, a strong ironic vein and the lyricism of the sampler that becomes a sort of “virtual singer”. The Bangarang Concert! Is littered with voices, noises, quotes, and dialogues around and inside the songs. In 2016 the Bangarang! Come back with a new work in the studio: ten tracks that go to create RELIGION CATODICA, an album that tells the many aspects of Italian television, for good and for evil, and which leads to the extreme consequences of the fusion of the power of a schizophrenic power trio And the quotation of the sampled voices.

Saturday, July 8

KARMA TO BURN (USA)
With their rock instrumental stoner they are ready to blow up the stage! For more than 20 years, the US trio proposes a rock stoner that is for all such lovers a solid and historic reference point; With their latest EP “Mountain Czar” Karma To Burn propose another wave of what they like to call “Mountain Rock” … and we are ready to make us invest in this mountain of increasingly aggressive and rhythmic riffs .

MY SLEEPING KARMA (Germany)
Aschenburg’s rock psychedelic German group, with 4 studio albums behind and a lot of live experience. With their new album “Moksha” and a series of live sold out across Europe, My Sleeping Karma arrives at the Brewery together with their instrumental rock, a real journey out of the mind: hypnotic atmospheres, engaging guitar riffs and a Massive dose of rock that never breaks.

TONER LOW (Netherlands)
Band Doom Stoner who released the third album “III” in April 2013 on Bilocation Records / Kozmik Artifactz and Roadkill Rekordz.
The band features a rock stoner characterized by very low and rhythmic obsessive frequencies typical of the doom, which live become a real space trip.

MONTE NERO (Italy)
The Monte Nero project is a unique Distinct Music Moloch. After 15/20 years of ripening in various cellars, dance halls and stages throughout Italy, some operative musicians from rock band Bergamo (Gea, Spread, In The Howling Storm) are transferred to the BDC Room by Stefano Locatelli To spend another two years of maturing. Then, when the elements have reached full maturity, they blend together to create rock songs with a rich, intense aroma and full and round flavor.

RIDE PARANOIA (Italy)
A rock band from Brescia, born in 2014, is the meeting between the two completely different music companies. Claudio, Davide, Andrea and Marco are part of The Credo band, which has been active since 2006, the fifth element of the band is Giovanni, eclectic guitarist, formerly a member of the French Wine Coca and Waiver. The result of this sound fusion has given rise to the sound of the Paranoia Ride, explosive mix of stoner, garage, rock, embellished with a touch of electro.

https://www.facebook.com/events/134003620485445/
https://www.elavbrewery.com/
https://www.facebook.com/humulusband/

Humulus, Reverently Heading into Nowhere (2017)

The Obsessed have announced a massive round of tour dates for April and May to support their first album in more than 20 years, Sacred, which is out April 7 on Relapse Records. Direct support on the run will come from Karma to Burn (with whom The Obsessed also toured last year), and Fatso Jetson and Lo-Pan will trade off for the West Coast and East Coast portions, respectively. In addition, a record release party will be held in Philly on April 8 at Kung Fu Necktie, at which The Obsessed legendary founding guitarist/vocalist Scott “Wino” Weinrich will perform acoustic.

By way of a spoiler, I interviewed Wino yesterday about the new album — which rules — and he’s stoked to take it on the road. More to come on that as soon as I get the conversation transcribed.

Meantime, without further ado here are the dates from the PR wire:

THE OBSESSED Announce Headlining US Tour Dates

Maryland doom legends THE OBSESSED have announced a full US tour in support of the forthcoming album Sacred. The tour commences on April 12th in Pittsburgh, PA and runs through May 20th in Baltimore, MD. Karma To Burn will provide direct support on all dates while Fatso Jetson (April 17 – May 1) and Lo-Pan (May 3 – May 20) will provide additional support on select dates. THE OBSESSED will also join Weedeater and label-mates Primitive Man on five West Coast shows during the run (April 27 – May 1). All confirmed tour dates below.

Additionally, THE OBSESSED will hold a record release show for Sacred on April 8th at Kung Fu Necktie in Philadelphia, PA. The band will also perform at this year’s Berserker Fest IV in Detroit, Michigan the weekend of April 14-15. Stay tuned for further tour announcements in the future!

April 7, 2017 will see the worldwide release of Sacred via Relapse Records on CD/LP/DLX. 2xLP/Digital. Physical pre-order and bundles are available via Relapse.com HERE and digital downloads can be pre-ordered by Bandcamp AT THIS LOCATION. The Deluxe 2xLP bundle includes an enamel logo pin, signed art print and two bonus tracks!

With renewed energy and purpose, THE OBSESSED sounds heavier and more relevant than ever before. On Sacred, the band doubles down on enormous, heaving riffs and pummeling low-end across 12 tracks of eternal doom. Rounded out by Wino’s lyrical honesty and iconic throaty vocals, Sacred is an album that further pushes THE OBSESSED into the annals of heavy metal history, well worth the two-plus decade wait. The band will perform once again as three piece featuring Wino, Reid Raley and Brian Costantino.

THE OBSESSED Tour Dates:
Apr 08 Philadelphia, PA Kung Fu Necktie *Record Release Party/Acoustic Wino Set*
— All Dates Apr 12 – May 20 With Karma To Burn —
Apr 12 Pittsburgh, PA Cattive
Apr 14 Cleveland, OH Grog Shop
Apr 15 Pontiac, MI Berserker IV (The Crofoot) &
Apr 17 Indianapolis, IN 5th Quarter +
Apr 18 Kansas City, MO Riot Room +
Apr 19 Chicago, IL Bottom Lounge +
Apr 20 St. Louis, MO Fubar +
Apr 21 Rock Island, IL Rock Island Brewing Co. +
Apr 23 Denver, CO Hi-Dive +
Apr 24 Salt Lake City, UT Metro Music Hall +
Apr 25 Boise, ID Neurolux +
Apr 26 Bellingham, WA Shakedown +
Apr 27 Seattle, WA Highline ** +
Apr 28 Portland, OR Star Theater ** +
Apr 29 Sacramento, CA Starlite ** +
Apr 30 San Francisco, CA DNA Lounge ** +
May 01 Los Angeles, CA Regent Theater ** +
May 02 Mesa, AZ Club Red
May 03 Albuquerque, NM Launchpad #
May 04 Dallas, TX Three Links #
May 05 Austin, TX Grizzly Hall #
May 07 San Antonio, TX Korova #
May 08 New Orleans, LA Siberia #
May 09 Savannah, GA The Jinx #
May 10 Johnson City, TN Hideaway #
May 11 Atlanta, GA EARL #
May 12 Miami, FL Gramps #
May 13 Spartanburg, SC Ground Zero #
May 14 Raleigh, NC Pour House #
May 16 Philadelphia, PA Kung Fu Necktie #
May 17 Boston, MA ONCE Ballroom #
May 18 Brooklyn, NY Saint Vitus #
May 19 New Hanover, CT The Ballroom at Outer Space #
May 20 Baltimore, MD Otto Bar #

& No Karma To Burn
** W/ Weedeater + Primitive Man
+ W/ Fatso Jetson
# W/ Lo-Pan

https://www.facebook.com/TheObsessedOfficial
http://relapse.com/the-obsessed-sacred/
https://theobsessed.bandcamp.com/
http://www.relapse.com
http://www.relapserecords.bandcamp.com
http://www.facebook.com/RelapseRecords
http://www.twitter.com/RelapseRecords

The Obsessed, “Punk Crusher”

Lineup additions have continued to come out over the last week-plus since Pittsburgh-based fest Descendants of Crom made its first announcements with the formidable likes of Earthride, EYE, Foghound and Stinking Lizaveta taking part. West Virginian instrumental trailblazers Karma to Burn, New Jersey rock destroyers Solace, Kansas boogie-thrusters The Midnight Ghost Train — as the names have appeared, the geographic reach of Descendants of Crom 2017, which is set for Sept. 30 on the Cattivo Nightclub‘s two stages, has only expanded, but perhaps the biggest addition yet brings the festival much closer to home.

Penance released their Alpha and Omega album in 2001 via the Martyr Music Group, and with it debuted a five-piece incarnation that will play for the first time in 15 years at Descendants of Crom, in a great add to the bill that fulfills the stated mission of the fest in honoring Pittsburgh’s own underground contributions as well as looking outside its borders. Badass all around.

In addition to the already-noted, Cant, Ol’ Time Moonshine and Archarus, have also been added, so the more right on. Here’s the latest from the fest, including some comment from organizer Shy Kennedy on Penance signing on:

DESCENDANTS OF CROM – Penance to Headline with ‘Alpha & Omega’ Lineup

All-day fest set for Sept. 30, 2017, with two stages fueled by riffs created by the riddle of steel.

This all day music festival is the first of its kind in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. The underground scene of stoner and doom here is healthy and thriving and the location at Cattivo Nightclub is perfect with two large floors, a stage on each, and good sound with friendly staff.

Descendants of Crom Festival lineup:
CANT
MONOLITH WIELDER
OL’ TIME MOONSHINE
ARCHARUS
HORSEBURNER
WASTED THEORY
FOGHOUND
EYE
BRIMSTONE COVEN
SOLACE
THE MIDNIGHT GHOST TRAIN
KARMA TO BURN
VALKYRIE
EARTHRIDE
STINKING LIZAVETA
PENANCE (Alpha & Omega lineup)

Shy Kennedy on Penance headlining:

It all starts out with an idea of, ‘Hey, wouldn’t it be great if there were a gig in Pittsburgh that had a bunch of riff-fueled bands of all rock and metal genres?’ It’s the perfect place for it, really. The scene here is supportive and it’s an accessible city to many. It doesn’t come out of nowhere –- you have to make it happen.

Next, who headlines this underground, doom-rooted event? The answer would be Penance but they’ve been dormant for some time. The Alpha & Omega lineup are all right here and nearly all active in the scene someway or another. Turns out that you just have to ask. Penance are as excited to be a part of the Descendants of Crom as I am. A lot of the seasoned fans are going to appreciate this and for those who aren’t familiar with Penance are going to get a little lesson in Pittsburgh Doom History.

DESCENDANTS OF CROM will bring great regional talent to a hungry crowd, utilizing national fan favorites to lure them to learn about these other amazing artists. This first year is anticipated to be a contender among other established annual fests and will not be an event to miss.

http://facebook.com/descendantsofcrom
http://www.descendantsofcrom.com/

Penance, “Wizards of Mind”

Please note: This post is not culled in any way from the Year-End Poll, which is ongoing. If you haven’t yet contributed your favorites of 2016 to that, please do.

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Yeah, I know I said as much when the Top 20 Debut Albums of 2016 went up, but I take it back: this is the hardest list to put together. And to be honest, there’s a part of me that’s hesitant even to post it because I know as soon as I do someone’s going to be like, “No way you dick your entire existence is shit because you forgot Release X,” and very likely they’ll be right. Up to the very moment this post is going live, I’ve been making changes, and I expect I’ll continue to do so for a while after it’s out there.

So what’s a “short release?” That’s another issue. Pretty much anything that’s not an album. Singles, digital or physical, as well as EPs, splits, demos, and so on. The category becomes nebulous, but my general rule is if it’s not a full-length, it qualifies as a short release. Sounds simple until you get into things like, “Here’s a track I threw up on Bandcamp,” and “This only came out as a bonus included as a separate LP with the deluxe edition of our album.” I’m telling you, I’ve had a difficult time.

Maybe that’s just me trying to protect myself from impending wrath. This year’s Top 30 albums list provoked some vehement — and, if I may, prickishly-worded — responses, so I might be a bit gunshy here, but on the other hand, I think these outings are worth highlighting, so we’re going forward anyway. If you have something to add, please use the comments below, but remember we’re all friends here and there’s a human being on the other end reading what’s posted. Thanks in advance for that.

And since this is the last list of The Obelisk’s Best-of-2016 coverage, I’ll say thanks for reading as well. More to come in the New Year, of course.

Here we go:

The Obelisk Presents: The Top 20 Short Releases of 2016

1. Scissorfight, Chaos County EP
2. Earthless / Harsh Toke, Split
3. Mars Red Sky, Providence EP
4. Mos Generator, The Firmament
5. Soldati, Soldati
6. Monolord, Lord of Suffering / Die in Haze EP
7. Wren, Host EP
8. Goya, The Enemy EP
9. The Sweet Heat, Demo
10. River Cult, Demo
11. Stinkeye, Llantera Demos
12. Megaritual, Eclipse EP
13. Ragged Barracudas / Pushy, Split
14. Mindkult, Witchs’ Oath EP
15. Iron Jawed Guru, Mata Hari EP
16. Brume, Donkey
17. Bison Machine / Wild Savages / SLO, Sweet Leaves Vol. 1 Split
18. BoneHawk / Kingnomad, The Second Coming of Heavy: Chapter Three Split
19. Wicked Gypsy, EP
20. Love Gang, Love Gang EP

Honorable Mention

An expansive category as ever. In addition to what’s above, the following stood out and no doubt more will be added over the course of the next few days. If you feel something is missing, please let me know.

Presented alphabetically:

Cambrian Explosion, The Moon EP
Candlemass, Death Thy Lover EP
Cultist, Cultist EP
Danava, At Midnight You Die 7″
Dos Malés, Dos Malés EP
Druglord, Deepest Regrets EP
Fu Manchu, Slow Ride 7″
Geezer, A Flagrant Disregard for Happiness 12″
Gorilla vs. Grifter, Split
Holy Smoke, Holy Smoke! It’s a Demo!
Karma to Burn, Mountain Czar
LSD and the Search for God, Heaven is a Place EP
Pallbearer, Fear and Fury
Reign of Zaius, Planet Of…
Sea of Bones / Ramlord, Split
Shallows, The Moon Rises
The Skull, EP
Snowy Dunes, “Atlantis Part I” digital single
Sun Voyager / The Mad Doctors, Split
Valborg, Werwolf 7″

Notes

Was it just the raw joy of having Scissorfight back? No, but that was for sure part of it. It was also the brazenness with which the New Hampshire outfit let go of their past, particularly frontman Christopher “Ironlung” Shurtleff, and moved forward unwilling to compromise what they wanted to do that made their Chaos County so respectable in my eyes. Having always flourished in the form, they delivered an EP of classic Scissorfight tunes and issued a stiff middle finger to anyone who would dare call them otherwise. They couldn’t have been more themselves no matter who was in the band.

At the same time, it was a hard choice between that and the Earthless / Harsh Toke split for the top spot. I mean, seriously. It’s Earthless — who at this point are the godfathers of West Coast jamadelica — and Harsh Toke, who are among the style’s most engaging upstart purveyors, each stretching out over a huge and encompassing single track. I couldn’t stop listening to that one if I wanted to, and as the year went on, I found I never wanted to.

I was glad when Mars Red Sky included the title-track of the Providence EP as a bonus cut on their subsequent album, Apex III (Praise for the Burning Soul), both because it tied the two releases together even further and because it gave me another opportunity to hear it every time I listened to the record. Their short releases have always shown significant character apart from their full-lengths, and this was no exception. I still tear up when I hear “Sapphire Vessel.”

To bounce around a bit: Had to get Mos Generator on the list for the progressive expansion of the live-recorded The Firmament. Stickman was right to put that out on vinyl. Both Monolord and Goya provided quick outings of huge riffs to sate their respective and growing followings, while Megaritual’s Eclipse basked in drone serenity and the debut release from Sergio Ch.’s Soldati provided hard-driving heavy rock with the particular nuance for which the former Los Natas frontman is known. It’s the highest among a slew of first/early outings — see also The Sweet Heat, Wren (Host was their second EP), River Cult’s demo, Stinkeye, Mindkult, Iron Jawed Guru, Brume, Wicked Gypsy and Love Gang.

Ultimately, there were fewer splits on the list this year than last year, but I’ll credit that to happenstance more than any emergent bias against the form or lack of quality in terms of what actually came out. The BoneHawk and Kingnomad release, the Ragged Barracudas and Pushy split, and that heavy rocking onslaught from Bison Machine and company were all certainly welcome by me, and I’ll mention Gorilla vs. Grifter there too again, just because it was awesome.

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One more time, thank you for reading, and if you have something to add, please do so in the comments below. Your civility in that regard is appreciated.

This is the last of my lists for 2016, but the Readers Poll results are out Jan. 1 and the New Year hits next week and that brings a whole new round of looking-forward coverage, so stay tuned.

As always, there’s much more to come.