Posted in Bootleg Theater on October 28th, 2020 by JJ Koczan
Just by way of a refresher, New York dark heavy rockers Shadow Witch released their latest album, Under the Shadow of a Witch (review here), this year. That’s right. This year. 2020. It was Feb. 14, for Valentine’s Day. Except of course people were less concerned with the love in the air than the looming threat of a global pandemic that in the ensuing eight months has gone on to claim the lives of over 225,000 Americans, because…. freedom? But yeah. This year. I swear to you, in all honesty I thought it was October 2019.
Maybe that’s because it was around this time last year that my feed on thee social medias started getting flooded with pics of the Kingston-based outfit in blacklight regalia, playing a couple special gigs with the due color effects to match the onstage theatrics of frontman Earl Walker Lundy, who’s joined in Shadow Witch by bassist David Pannullo, guitarist Jeremy Hall and drummer Justin Zipperle. They did it as a Halloween-time thing, and since obviously the same won’t be happening this weekend for that most Reese’s-minded of pagan harvest festivals, they’ve gone ahead and put together a likewise neon-burst video for the track “Spearfinger” from the — again, wow — 2020 full-length. At three minutes, it’s a rush but it’s got one of the record’s best hooks, and since they can’t get out and do the shows, the reminder is welcome.
Fun fact: when I worked at KB Toys Store #1051 in Morris Plains, NJ — about two minutes from where I now live, if you hit the red light; it’s right by where they whacked Phil Leotardo on The Sopranos — we sold blacklights and I used my employee discount to do my whole 18-year-old bedroom in them. It was fun but mostly it just showed all the lint on my t-shirts. Shadow Witch are way better at it than I ever was.
So with that, think back to the Before Time and the shows that might’ve been, and get ready to have this one stuck in your head for the rest of your day. Also don’t go into the forest.
Enjoy the clip:
Shadow Witch, “Spearfinger” official video premiere
Since we were unable to do our usual season of (HALLOWS) blacklight gigs, we wanted to make a celebrational video for the Holy(holi)Day. We invited a friend Esther Gin, she’s a real drag, to have a go at lip-syncing to the song. We wanted to make something fun, trippy, and colorful, and I think we’ve accomplished that. Happy Halloween & Samhain Blessings !
Shifting dynamics, readjusting priorities, moving forward, getting high and playing trippy shit. The way founding guitarist/vocalist Pat Harrington talks about Geezer making their latest full-length, Groovy (review here) — also their debut on Heavy Psych Sounds; out digitally on Friday with physical to follow June 12; preorders here — it is as much purposeful and casual as the album itself. Tightened craft delivering immersive fuzz and languid heavy blues grooves, the record is nothing if not aptly named.
I was asked over the winter to write the bio for the album, and it was clear from the first listen both that it would be a highlight of 2020 — I think pushing back the release date as they have due to COVID-19 helps in that regard — and that Geezer had arrived at a special moment for the band, which is Harrinton alongside bassist Richie Touseull and drummer Steve Markota. I did end up writing that bio, which I’ll probably post around here at some point, but as I’ve already reviewed it and I’m too busy being honored with the chance to do the full-LP stream in addition to posting this interview, I’ll spare you this time around and just say that Groovy is what happens when a band starts out with an idea of what they want to do and then are willing to be guided by their own impulses into becoming what they’re meant to be. There’s a letting go and a holding on alike as a part of that process, but the results are inarguable. And, yes, groovy.
Please enjoy the album stream and the interview. Thanks for reading and thanks to Harrington for taking the time.
Geezer, Groovy Interview with Pat Harrington
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So the record is Groovy and the lead track is “Dig.” How much was the intention to strip things down to their essentials this time around?
I guess it wasn’t really the intention, it may be more of a side-effect. The song “Dig” has been around for a few years. Dig and a few other songs on the album pre-date most of the material on the Spiral Fires EP. Somewhere along the way, we made the decision to put all the trippy weird stuff on the EP, which kind of set the more direct tone of Groovy, almost by accident.
Geezer has gotten progressively jammier on each release to this point, and Groovy seems to pull back from that a bit. Tell me about the songwriting this time around, your goals for the material and ideas you had coming off of Spiral Fires?
In addition to the reasons above, I think another big reason for the change is our drummer Steve. Unlike our previous drummers, who are very much into improvisation, Steve approaches writing and arranging in a much more deliberate manner. As we spent time developing ideas, this became part of our process. I think it’s fair to say that we brought each other a little out of our comfort zones. Richie and I kept pushing Steve into jammier territory that I don’t think he really explored before. At the same time, he made us more structured in how we put the songs together. There is still room for experimentation, but overall the songs took on a more defined feel.
Unlike other albums, we also had a concept together before all the songs were written. Once the Spiral Fires masters were handed in, we started to look at the songs we had, other ideas that were being developed, etc. Then one day it all clicked. We decided that we were going to focus on songs that were groovy as opposed to the heavier or trippy stuff. So then we should call the album Groovy, right? After that, everything kind of fell right into place.
Talk about your time in the studio for the album. At what point did you know you wanted keys on “Awake” and the title-track? Is that something you think you might explore more going forward?
The real story actually is about the time we spent BEFORE going into the studio. As we’ve already talked about, these songs are much more defined compared to most of our past work. The reason for that is we spent a long time developing the ideas and arrangements. We played most of the songs live. We gave the songs time to grow. We were very disciplined when it came to rehearsals. Everyone worked very hard at developing their parts. Richie and Steve worked especially hard to get all the grooves locked in, they became a machine! I cannot stress this enough, being in a band is HARD WORK and if you don’t take it seriously, it shows.
We spent two days recording most of the “basics”. We did it at Darkworld Studio, where we recorded the Spiral Fires EP. We had the same production team that we’ve pretty much had since the beginning. Everyone came prepared and acted professionally. That doesn’t mean it wasn’t fun as fuck, but all the preparation paid off. We recorded all these songs together. Standing in the same room. Feeling the kick drum. Connecting to each other. All the drums, bass, rhythm guitars and solos recorded at the same time (more or less). I’m proud to say, not every band can pull that off… we can.
The experimentation mostly came in after the fact. Steve spent weeks developing the percussion tracks (we threw tambourines around like we were AC/DC!). I also stretched out a bit with ambient guitar stuff, synth noise and acoustic guitar tracks. As you mentioned, our friend Jeff Mercel contributed keys to “Awake” and “Groovy: (Jeff also played on “Long Dull Knife” a few years back). We knew right away that we wanted some Hammond B3 type stuff on Groovy, it’s just that type of song. “Awake” has a very tight, syncopated feel to it and I thought some keys could add a softer melodic vibe to it. I was listening to a lot of Nebula at the time, I think I actually sent Jeff the song “So Low” as a reference, I think he nailed it! He really did go above and beyond and his contribution to the songs and album was immense… next level shit.
Some of the songs on Groovy have an almost escapist vibe, and then there are pieces like “Dead Soul Scroll” and “Drowning on Empty.” How comfortable are you with presenting an emotional side in lyrics in a way that’s kind of apart from the blues?
At this point, I think I’ve stripped away most insecurities I’ve had when it comes to songwriting. It took me a long time to figure out, but vulnerability in music is one of the things that people connect to the most. It’s about saying the things that people can’t (or won’t) say themselves. It gives them something to latch on to, a way to express or connect to feelings that they otherwise weren’t able to. The lyrics to both those songs are, in fact, about real personal things. I try and relay them in a way that is open to interpretation, tap into feelings without assigning them to situations. That way, people can relate them to whatever they themselves are going through. To me, that is what music is all about.
How did the Heavy Psych Sounds deal come about? What does it mean to you to be labelmates with acts like Brant Bjork and Nebula and Yawning Man?
The deal came about very fast actually. I’ve been a fan of the label for many years and I had somewhat of an internet friendship with Gabe. With the exception of the first record, this is the first time we’ve “shopped” a record and HPS was very much at the top of our list. I can’t remember how long he had the album, but I followed up with Gabe on a Thursday and by that Monday he was sending contracts. Above all else, I wanted to be on a label that treated us like a priority. Since day one, Gabe and his team have done that and continue to do so. For that, we are extremely grateful.
I am in no way trying to equate myself with these cats, but the fact is, my musical journey was very similar to the bands that were a part of the first generation of stoner rock (or whatever you want to call it). I’m the same age as a lot of these guys, our musical references are all very similar. I grew up on metal and hardcore, felt boxed in by the rules that inevitably popped up around those genres, just like those dudes. Iommi, Page and Hendrix were gods to me… so was Mike Dean and Jello Biafra… so was Chuck D and Duane Allman. Somehow when you distill all this down, a lot of us ended up just wanting to get high and play heavy trippy shit without all the hassle that mainstream music seems to impose.
Because of this, I look up to people like Brant Bjork, Nick Oliveri, Eddie Glass and Mario Lalli. Not only do I love their music, they helped a lot of us figure out a way to express ourselves without having to worry about all the genre politics of the time. To be on the same label as these bands, as well as bands like Black Rainbows, Duel, Gorilla and Ecstatic Vision, is an honor and a challenge. It’s an honor to be here, but we gotta prove that we belong. That is the challenge.
Will you return to Europe to tour for the album? Any other plans or closing words you want to mention?
There were all kinds of plans. This past weekend was supposed to HPS Fest in NYC which has been postponed indefinitely. We had quite a few shows set up for this summer to promote the record, they have all been postponed indefinitely as well. In addition, we were well on our way to booking a European Tour for the late fall and that too is no more. It’s a total bummer for sure, but in the grand scheme of things, these are mild inconveniences compared to the suffering that many are going through right now, so I do my best to try and stay positive.
On that note, there is some good news here in NY. Much of the state has been moved into “Phase 1” of re-opening and our region is on schedule to enter Phase 1 this week. There is still a long way to go, but after a seemingly endless stream of bad news over the last few months, these are all very welcoming signs. Stay strong everybody, take care of yourselves and each other and we may actually make it through this thing. It will still be a while before live music returns. When it does, we’ll be there. I got a new fuzz pedal for fuck sake, I need to crank that shit and rip a hole in the sky! Ya dig?
They throw it down immediately. The question is right there, track one, in the hook: Can you dig it? While the lyrics that accompany that central question in the opener of Geezer‘s fifth full-length and first for Heavy Psych Sounds, titled simply Groovy, turn out to be something of a subtle screed against the greedy ravages of capitalism and an urging toward a more communal lifestyle — “We gotta stand and testify/We gotta live for today, yeah” — the question remains, “Can you dig it?”
Well, can you, punk?
If not, it’s not the band’s fault. Groovy is the finest work the Kingston, New York-based three-piece have yet issued, hands down. With guitarist/vocalist Pat Harrington helming as producer with engineering and mixing by Matthew Cullen (assisted by David Daw and Robert Kelly) at Darkworld Studio, the eight-track/45-minute offering to the gods of groove arrives in with a two-sided LP structure that, in normal circumstances could be thought of like a mullet — business up front, party in the back. Except in this case, the business is the party too. So it’s party up front, party in the back, like if Cousin Itt were a record. A hairy undertaking, and one that wholly justifies a blacklight poster for the Ryan Williams cover art. Make it so.
Harrington as the founding member is joined by the returning rhythm section of Richie Touseull, who came aboard in 2015, and drummer/percussionist Steve Markota, who made his first appearance on early 2019’s Spiral Fires EP (review here), as well as Jeff Mercel, who contributes organ and other keys to midtempo side A closer “Awake” and the title-track that launches side B. The two sides of the album intertwine for sure, as the titular “Groovy” more than earns its tambourine with its ultra good-timey vibe and the earlier second cut “Atlas Electra” follows “Dig” with a more spacious preview of things to come on side B’s spacious cappers “Slide Mountain” and “Black Owl.” But there is a question of balance to both, and while Geezer have never shown so much range in terms of their dynamic between the tightness of their songwriting — “Groovy,” “Dig,” “Awake,” even the beginning stretch of “Atlas Electra” — neither have they shown such a propensity for purpose to their jamming.
That is to say, while both Spiral Firesand the preceding LP, 2017’s Psychoriffadelia (review here), went all-in on post-Wo Fat heavy blues jam exploration, Groovy redirects. Even its broadest, most open-feeling moments, which surely come in the nine-minute “Black Owl” as the three-piece slowly make their way into a long-fade oblivion of guitar effects, Groovy retains a sense of purpose in terms of substance and aesthetic. “Black Owl” jams out precisely because “Drowning on Empty” could have and didn’t, instead riding its fuzz-coated solo-topped crescendo of layered electric and acoustics, more tambourine and righteous bass to a finish exciting enough to mask the darker emotional undercurrent of its lyrics. Likewise, back on side A, “Dead Soul Scroll” highlights Touseull‘s bass tonality as the guitars trip out, essentially reversing the structure to put its somewhat moodier jam forward while the instrumental solidification hits right around the four-minute mark and carries through the rest of the song’s 5:31 as one of the record’s most satisfying payoffs.
By toying with structure in this way, adding arrangement details and nuance as they are — percussion elements like that tambourine or the cowbell in “Dig” are used with class and efficiency throughout — and adjusting their focus on songwriting, Geezer showcase the mastery of their sound even as they use that sound in ways they haven’t done to this degree before. One could cite “Dead Soul Scroll” as clear evidence of their progression, but really any track on Groovy makes the case, be it the ending drift in “Slide Mountain” that seems to end by asking, “Is everybody high enough?” (unless I’m hearing wrong), or the sleeper hook in “Awake” — “I’ve seen more than most/But not as much as many/When I’m feeling lost/Here you come to make me smile” — bolstered by the Mercel‘s well-mixed keys as it moves smoothly through its patient and well-controlled tempo; not slow, but no quicker paced than it needs to be.
But while Groovy goes deeper into emotionality than Geezer have been willing to go before — lines like those quoted above from “Awake” and others about drinking contribute to the coinciding depressive strain — the record is remains an upbeat affair in its overarching spirit. It almost has to. You can’t help but groove, what with the bounce-a-quarter shifts between its verses and choruses and the clarity with which it comes to fruition across the two sides, its stretch finally going in “Black Owl” willfully beyond the limits of its own point of no return. Influences remain — Wo Fat have already been mentioned, Brant Bjork is another — but with that has to comes the realization that Geezer have transcended the fervent stylization of their 2013 debut, Electrically Recorded Handmade Heavy Blues (discussed here), and found a path of their own within a sphere that encompasses not only those heavy blues, but psychedelia, classic rock, stoner groove and so on. More than ever on Groovy, they are singly identifiable. Harrington‘s gravelly vocals are a big part of that, but he also demonstrates a more melodic take than could be found either on Psychoriffadelia or their 2016 self-titled (review here), which until now had been the band’s highest achievement in songwriting.
There are two key lessons, takeaways, whatever-you-want-to-call-them, from Groovy. The first is that Geezer have found their way. And in fact, they’ve worked their way toward doing so. Each of their records has built on the last, and even their stopgaps have been effective in constructing the forward line of their progression. So while Groovy stands and testifies its own accomplishments, there’s nothing to say those can’t or won’t be surpassed. The second is that the balance in their sound is something no less fluid to them than their jams themselves. That is, with Groovy, Geezer offer proof of dynamic and live chemistry, but their method for doing so does not hold that their next work will be staid or simply seeking to recapture the same feel. The next party might be even more wild, but as Harrington advises, it’s worth living in the present. This is a moment captured. A crucial one for them. One that is wholly theirs. Can you dig it?
Posted in Features on April 21st, 2020 by JJ Koczan
The statistics of COVID-19 change with every news cycle, and with growing numbers, stay-at-home isolation and a near-universal disruption to society on a global scale, it is ever more important to consider the human aspect of this coronavirus. Amid the sad surrealism of living through social distancing, quarantines and bans on gatherings of groups of any size, creative professionals — artists, musicians, promoters, club owners, techs, producers, and more — are seeing an effect like nothing witnessed in the last century, and as humanity as a whole deals with this calamity, some perspective on who, what, where, when and how we’re all getting through is a needed reminder of why we’re doing so in the first place.
Thus, Days of Rona, in some attempt to help document the state of things as they are now, both so help can be asked for and given where needed, and so that when this is over it can be remembered.
Thanks to all who participate. To read all the Days of Rona coverage, click here. — JJ Koczan
Days of Rona: Jeremy Hall of Shadow Witch (Kingston, New York)
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How are you dealing with this crisis as a band? Have you had to rework plans at all? How is everyone’s health so far?
Shadow Witch has had to cancel a few shows, but it’s a wait-and-see approach as to when we’ll be back out there. It’s certainly started affecting some of the upcoming festivals we were counting on to be out there supporting our new album. The other thing has been a cessation of practices for now, but we’re starting to share files online to work on new songs. The ideas are starting to flow. Everyone’s health has been okay so far and we’re taking lots of precautions especially considering my wife suffers from an autoimmune inflammatory disease. We’re all practicing our social isolation as best we can. I live in the woods, so I can go outside and take lots of walks.
What are the quarantine/isolation rules where you are?
Well, I’m from upstate NY, so the quarantine rules are pretty strict. We’re about 90 minutes from New York City, so it’s definitely a scary time. We’re supposed “shelter in place” essentially but Cuomo, the governor, calls it “NY on Pause” because “shelter in place” is only used for active shooters. But you get the idea. That’s where we are and where we will be for a while. But it’s important to do it. I am a librarian and professor at a college with epidemiologists and infectious disease specialists and value their opinions. This is what they say we should be doing.
How have you seen the virus affecting the community around you and in music?
A lot of bands we’re friends with have had to cancel tours. Festivals are starting to get postponed. Merch people aren’t getting jobs. Venues and bars are shut down. One effect I really worry about is losing a lot of venues in the scene as an outcome of this. People need to get out there and support local bars and restaurants if they can — get takeout! Another thing is that I’ve been spending less time on social media for band stuff because there’s so much rampant misinformation. It just makes a tough situation even worse. It’s going to take some time for the community to bounce back after this, but I think there’s a desire in everyone to come back stronger than ever.
What is the one thing you want people to know about your situation, either as a band, or personally, or anything?
One thing is taking care of your friends and family in a time like this. I know this gets said often, but it’s important to realize that we all have a role in this. Even if it’s staying home sitting on your ass binge-watching Tiger King. I’ve been working remote and honestly I’m busier than ever. And I’m lucky. I have friends who’ve had to shut down their businesses and friends who’ve been laid off. So I think it’s important for everyone to just be more mindful of how all our lives impact each other. Help out where you can. My wife and I sewed a bunch of masks to donate to the local hospital — well, she sewed them and I cut out the fabric. But each little part makes a difference. We all have a chance right now to make a difference. That’s one thing I’d like people to know.
[Click play above to stream Under the Shadow of a Witch by Shadow Witch in its entirety. Album is out Friday on Argonauta Records.]
The two halves of Shadow Witch‘s Under the Shadow of a Witch break just about evenly into vinyl sides, each one bearing its own subtitle. The first is ‘Spearfinger and Other Cautionary Tales’ and the second is ‘Fountain and Other Love Songs.’ In this way, the Kingston, New York, four-piece of vocalist/Mellotronist/noisemaker Earl Walker Lundy, guitarist Jeremy Hall, bassist David Pannullo and drummer Doug Beans (since replaced by Justin Zipperle) introduce the two central concepts with which their third album is working, largely through metaphor, bluesy, distinctly Southern-rooted storytelling, but rife with a realization of the dark heavy rock aesthetic the band have been building toward over the course of their two prior LPs, 2017’s Disciples of the Crow (review here) and 2016’s Sun Killer (discussed here), as they’ve moved from labels like Snake Charmer Coalition, Salt of the Earth and Kozmik Artifactz to find a home on Argonauta Records.
Under the Shadow of a Witch contains nine songs and altogether runs just under 40 minutes in total, indeed opening with “Spearfinger” in immediate and intense fashion, the four-piece clearly rushing to get their audience swept up in the energy of their shortest inclusion, while on the other end, “Fountain” closes at over eight minutes as the longest cut. All between, their songs are crafted, arranged thoughtfully, and very much playing with a studio presentation toward a live energy. That is, they’re not trying to ape a live show by being overly or needlessly raw, but there is attention given in the recording by Paul Orofino at Millbrook Sound to maintaining to one degree or another the vitality with which “Spearfinger” casts such a striking initial impression. Even as the penultimate “Sour” leads into the finale, it does so on a swell of noise and layered soloing from Hall with crashing cymbals behind.
As there would be on a record with such consideration underlying its execution, there is no shortage of dynamic at play in terms of tempo and general style, whether it’s the subdued acoustic beginnings of early highlight “Demon’s Hook” or side B leadoff “Saint Magdalene” — fleeting though they may be — or the effectively-placed emergence of Mellotron in the final-minute slowdown of the former, the chorus of which lives up to its title, i.e., that hook is for sure a demon in its potential to possess. It would perhaps be the catchiest song on Under the Shadow of a Witch — the great irony of the album is that for as much as it’s meant to be taken as Side Caution and Side Love, as it were, the component tracks do so much work to stand out individually — but for the subsequent “Wolf Among the Sheep,” begun with a spoken preach and working along an anti-dogmatic theme critiquing organized religion in a manner well presented if familiar.
While we’re talking about ironies, it’s hard to imagine Shadow Witch, in terms of listeners, aren’t preaching to the converted there, but again, it’s the chorus that’s the real sway of the piece as it rounds out the launchpoint salvo with “Spearfinger” and “Demon’s Hook,” portraying Shadow Witch as a band sure in their approach and ready for consideration at another level from where they’ve been before. They have, in terms of sound, found what they’ve been looking for this whole time.
A third album is a natural place for that to happen, but more specifically, one can’t help but be drawn to the sense of frontman presence Lundy brings to his performance here. Part of that is that his voice, presented often in layers, with harmonies and other nuances of arrangements — dude can sing, and that always helps — is forward in the mix as to stand out from Hall‘s guitar, Pannullo‘s bass and Beans‘ drums, but the storytelling elements that begin with “Spearfinger” continue throughout that lead salvo and into the lush and nodding riff of “Witches of Aendor,” which touches on metal in its later reaches as Shadow Witch are wont to do without ever giving in entirely to aggressive posturing. Through that careening, chugging finish and into the more straightforward side A finale “Shifter” — another chorus not to be discounted — Lundy‘s task is to unite the material through whatever variety surrounds, and he does so impressively while donning a host of characters and perspectives along with ample melodic command.
There are moments where the balance tips one way or the other between band and frontman, but that ends up adding to the overarching dynamic of Under the Shadow of a Witch as a whole. As “Saint Magdalene” introduces the notion of a more patient side B about to unfold, it does so with a stepped-back Lundy (relatively speaking) and a stepped-up groove, an airier guitar returning temporarily in the second half of the song amid soulful, bluesy-almost-in-spite-of-themselves vocals that lead to a rousing solo. The brashest and most aggro of the nine inclusions, “6×6” is call-and-response through the verse and crunch in the rhythm — all business — as it makes its way to the chorus and a jarring strike of guitar after the title line is delivered. If Shadow Witch are metal anywhere on their third LP, it’s in “6×6,” but that doesn’t come at the expense of songwriting, which remains top priority.
It and “Sour” make a fitting pair for a dug-in vibe ahead of the closer, keeping momentum rolling without losing the thread of complexity coinciding, even if less infectious than “Demon’s Hook” or “Wolf Among the Sheep” earlier. The eight minutes of “Fountain” that follow are time well spent, with guest slide guitar from fellow Kingstonian Pat Harrington of Geezer that’s built toward with a payoff of the bluesy aspects both in Lundy‘s singing and in the progression behind him. They cap with howling wails and intertwining solos in a fitting wash atop the solid rhythmic foundation that’s underscored the various moves made all along, and give Under the Shadow of a Witch an earned sendoff into the ether of its own making.
True to its side’s subtitle, “Fountain” is a love song ultimately, and while I’m not sure I’d say the same about “6×6” — I’m not sure I wouldn’t, mind you — Shadow Witch‘s performance across the span of the full-length as a whole, taken in sides or song-by-song, shines with the feeling of an intention fulfilled. It is the work of a band who went into the studio with a purpose, and who realized that purpose in righteous form. Preach on, Shadow Witch.
Shadow Witch, “Wolf Among the Sheep” official video
Sincere congratulations to Kingston, New York, three-piece Geezer on inking a deal to release their new album, Groovy, on May 22 through Heavy Psych Sounds. I’ve been sitting on my excitement about the record, which is aptly-titled, for more than the last month at this point as they were kind enough to ask me to write the bio for the record, and while I don’t want to say too much about it even now because it’s early heading into the release, it’s their fifth album and it seems to coalesce the jammy impulses they’ve showed across their last couple of releases into pointed, excellently-crafted songs. They show some influence from Brant Bjork — now a labelmate — and by no means let go of those jammy impulses, but using them as a means to grow and move forward. Progress, people. I’m talking about progress.
They’re seven years out from their first record and growing. Not every band can say that.
“Dig” — of which I have the pleasure of hosting the premiere below — opens the record and lays it all out for you. Geezer. Groovy. “Dig.” This is a band stripping it down to the most essential components.
See? I’m getting ahead of myself.
More to come, stay tuned. I’m not wrong to be excited about this album. And we didn’t even talk about the cover art! Blacklight poster immediately!
Announcement from the PR wire, along with the bio I wrote:
Geezer to Release New LP, ‘Groovy’, May 22
Underground New York Power Trio Signs with Heavy Psych Sounds Records
Kingston, New York acid rock band Geezer has signed with Heavy Psych Sounds Records (Brant Bjork, Nebula, Mondo Generator). The cosmic blues unit will release its new LP, ‘Groovy’, on May 22 via the Rome-based independent record label.
Known for its fuzz-fueled, groove-driven psychedelic blooze, Geezer’s sound has been described as “an application of psychedelic sensibilities” that draws inspiration in equal parts from Robert Johnson and Muddy Waters, to Bad Brains and Black Flag. Formed in 2014, Geezer has enjoyed a steady ascent over the course of multiple releases and a robust live show that has helped the group develop a following both in the U.S. and abroad, while sharing the stage with High on Fire, Acid King, Nebula, Earthless, Ufomammut and more.
“Geezer has been honored to work with some of the best record labels in the underground rock world. That being said, one look at the roster of Heavy Psych Sounds and it’s easy to see why they are the right label for us right now,” says the band in a statement. “Whether it’s legends of the genre like Brant Bjork, Nebula and Yawning Man, or a new generation of bands like Black Rainbows, Ecstatic Vision and Duel, Heavy Psych Sounds reputation speaks for itself. Geezer is looking forward to earning our place among these titans of the riff. Inhale the groove, keep it heavy. Dig.”
A first taste of what the new Geezer LP holds in store can be heard now as the band streams the new song “Dig.”
Track listing:
1.) Dig 2.) Atlas Electra 3.) Dead Soul Scroll 4.) Awake 5.) Groovy 6.) Drowning On Empty 7.) Slide Mountain 8.) Black Owl
Produced by: Pat Harrington Recorded and Mixed by: Matthew Cullen Asst. Engineers: David Daw & Robert Kelly Recorded at Darkworld Studio, Kingston, NY Mastered by: Scott Craggs Album cover by: Ryan Williams (A Subtle Difference Design) Photo by: Monik Geisel
Pre-order ‘Groovy’AT THIS LOCATION. Heavy Psych Sounds Records is distributed in the USA by All That Is Heavy and Forced Exposure.
Geezer are: Pat Harrington – Guitar/Vocals Richie Touseull – Bass Steve Markota – Drums/Percussion
Posted in Bootleg Theater on December 12th, 2019 by JJ Koczan
It’s a Feb. 13 release date for Shadow Witch‘s awaited new album, Under the Shadow of a Witch, through Argonauta Records. So be it. I’ve seen some pics around thee social medias of blacklight shows the band have been doing of late, and they look fairly insane as one would imagine. A touch of the otherworldly or alternate-reality suits Shadow Witch‘s sound well, as does the video for “Wolf Among the Sheep,” which plays up the religious commentary of the track itself.
You know the really fucked thing about Christianity? They tell that shit to kids. Imagine having a kid and being like, “Yo, you better be good because there’s an all-powerful white dude watching you ALL THE TIME EVEN WHILE YOU SLEEP OR PEE and if you’re bad you’ll be set on fire and also that happens forever and ever.” Think about it. That is insane. And I’m speaking as someone who was one of those kids. No wonder people hate each other.
Anyway, you’ll see the snakes, the grainy footage, the speaking in tongues, and yes, the children taking part, as well as the band integrated among the fray — can’t miss them. For further viewing, go back and watch Jesus Camp again. For further listening, stay tuned and I hope it’s not all that long before another track from Under the Shadow of a Witch surfaces. Maybe in January? Hell, I’ll take it whenever it comes. I’m not looking to interrupt anyone’s holiday dinner or anything. Whenever they get around to it is good by me.
ShadowWitch will be at New England Stoner & Doom Fest and will return to Maryland Doom Fest 2020 as well. Because hell yes they will. More dates are reportedly forthcoming, and I believe it.
Dig:
Shadow Witch, “Wolf Among the Sheep” official video
New York Heavy Doom And Stoner Metal Veterans, SHADOW WITCH, Premiere Brand New Music Video!
Under the Shadow of a Witch coming in February 2020 on Argonauta Records!
Shadow Witch, who inked a worldwide deal with Argonauta Records last year, are a heavy rock/stoner metal band from the Hudson Valley region of New York. Forming in the autumn of 2015, the band released their first full-length album Sun Killer to excellent reviews from the international heavy music community in the summer of 2016. A diverse assemblage of songs pulling in Doom, Thrash, NWOBM, and psychedelic and stoner metal, the band backed it up with intense and explosive live shows, opening for King Buffalo, Mothership, and Corrosion of Conformity among others.
Shadow Witch began a new chapter with the release of their second full-length album Disciples of the Crow in December 2017, again gaining excellent reviews from the heavy music community. Countless explosive shows later, the band returns with their highly anticipated third album, titled Under the Shadow of a Witch, coming out on February 13th via Argonauta Records !
To shorten the wait for its official album release, Shadow Witch have just unleashed a brand new video from their upcoming magnum opus! Watch the new clip for Wolf Among The Sheep HERE!
Get ready to kick of into a heavy as hell 2020 with Shadow Witch, and watch out for many more news and album pre-sale infos to follow soon!
Shadow Witch live: May 15-16, 2020 (US) – NEW ENGLAND STONER AND DOOM FEST June 18-20, 2020 (US) – MARYLAND DOOM FEST with many more dates to follow soon!
SHADOW WITCH is: Justin Zipperle – drums David Pannullo – bass Earl Lundy – voice / mellotron / loops Jeremy Hall – guitars
Posted in Bootleg Theater on November 29th, 2019 by JJ Koczan
I recently had reason to go back and pop on Geezer‘s first record, Electrically Recorded Handmade Heavy Blues. And I’ll be honest, it’s probably the most I’ve dug into it since it was released in Sept. 2013. Maybe it was the fact that I’d just moved out of the New York region, where they’re from, and the last thing I needed was another thing to be bummed about leaving behind. Maybe it was the fact that Bandcamp was just really starting to come up as an outlet for heavy music and it seemed like every band with a “stoner rock” tag was being mega-hyped on social media as the next Whoever.
Maybe I wasn’t feeling guitarist Pat Harrington‘s gravelly vocal approach — which can sound at first glance like a put-on, but I tell you as someone who’s had extensive conversations with the man, he’s no less ‘whiskey-soaked’ when you’re quietly chatting about your kids than he is on “Full Tilt Boogie” here — or lyrics like “You’re such an evil bitch” in opener “Planes, Trains and Automobiles” and “My girl is built like a pony/Long legs and curves that ain’t phony” on “Pony,” which only lace one of the catchiest slide guitar riffs I’ve heard in the last 10 years with a fervent eyeroll even now as I’ve come to appreciate Electrically Recorded Handmade Heavy Blues on an aesthetic level, for its songwriting, and for its subtle hints at the band that Geezer would become.
At the time, they were comprised of Harrington, bassist Freddy Villano and drummer Chris Turco, and their stock-in-trade was indeed a heavy blues rock marked out by rolling grooves and the use of slide guitar — something Harrington has pulled back on in years since, possibly as he’s grown more confident in working without it and the band has changed direction — but from their bouncing cover of The Beatles‘ “Why Don’t We Do it in the Road” to the mellow post-Clutch‘s “The Regulator” twanger “Rain on the Highway,” to “Underground” and the penultimate shuffler “I Just Wanna Get High with You,” which boogie enough between them to remind that the blues can be a party as much as it can be anything, their early work reaches beyond those simple stylistic confines. Or at very least it pushes the limits of expectation for them.
Villano and Turco would both eventually be out of Geezer, but the three-piece had a chemistry that worked well and sounded natural throughout Electrically Recorded Handmade Heavy Blues and their subsequent offerings together, and that dynamic is clearly established in these 10 songs. For the title and cover art’s speaking to an earlier era of recorded music — too bad I don’t think a 78RPM platter can hold a 39-minute release, otherwise a limited reissue pressing could be a lot of fun; maybe a double-78 just for kicks and collectors? — the production is never especially retro sounding, but the tracks still come though with enough energy to carry their largely comfortable tempos and there’s enough range between them that Geezer give a showing of character and craft that, had I done a list of 2013’s best debut albums, probably would’ve deserved to be on it.
But that’s hindsight, and of course informed by my experience with the band since as well as the group they’d become. I had seen them and written positive things about their 2013 Gage EP (review here) that would become an STB Records LP (review here) in 2014 — so it’s not like they were completely off my radar — but I just kind of missed out on Electrically Recorded Handmade Heavy Blues when it came out. I tell you all the time I suck at this. It ain’t like Pokemon. You can’t catch ’em all.
Not yet is mentioned six-minute closer “Still a Fool,” and that’s on purpose. It’s about a minute and a half longer than the next longest track, and something of a standout as well as very purposefully placed where it is on the record. It starts out with an up and down riff and Harrington‘s vocals, talking about back-door-creepin’ on someone else’s wife or some such, and resolves itself in a blues rock cacophony worthy of any ’70s comparison you want to make for it — MC5, Cactus, Zeppelin, doesn’t matter who — before capping off as a gig might. In so doing, Geezer sends advance notice of a skill that would emerge in their sound over subsequent offerings, including that Gage LP the next year, and that is the jam.
Ah, the jam. Take a breath. In. Out. The jam.
As the band began its gradual shift in lineup, it was the jam that would begin to emerge as the dominant force within their sound, and it was through the jam that Harrington‘s true persona came through on guitar. Gage and the Live! Full-Tilt Boogie tape (review here) in 2014 showed more flashes of it, and their 2015 participation in Ripple Music‘s The Second Coming of Heavy split series (review here) alongside D.C.’s Borracho led into their 2016 self-titled LP (review here), their second proper full-length, that really marked their arrival as something more than an object of temporary social media interest.
Now signed to Ripple, they brought that bluesy sound with them as they veered into more psychedelic and melodically adventurous fare, balancing songs and extended explorations in a way that successfully captured their live spirit with studio clarity. 2017’s Psychoriffadelia (review here) followed and built on that principle, and early 2019’s Spiral Fires EP (review here) on Kozmik Artifactz not only kept the momentum and progression going, but tested the waters with drummer Steve Markota alongside the longer-set pairing of Harrington and bassist Richie Touseull. And “waters” is the right word for the fluidity they were able to conjure between the three of them.
Nonetheless, the reason I had for going back and finally giving Geezer‘s debut long-player its due was that in 2020 the band — Harrington, Touseull, Markota — will release another new album that they’ve been working on throughout 2019. I’m not saying I’ve heard any of the tracks or anything, but I will say there’s a good chance it marks another significant forward step in their ongoing sonic evolution and features some of their best and most developed songwriting to-date. I have no release plans or details to share, but consider it something to look forward to, even as you look back at their first record.
As always, I hope you enjoy.
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Yesterday was Thanksgiving here in the US. Like just about everything in this country — including the country itself — its history is racist and horrifying. Hi, colonialism.
Turkey was good, family time was even better. My Jersey crew and The Patient Mrs.’ Connecticut crew (plus a rare but crucial appearance from the Maryland blood-relative branch) all got together up in CT and we went up with The Pecan on Wednesday, stayed over and then were there until after dinner and at least the first stage of cleanup on Thursday before getting in the car so the kid could fall asleep on the ride and then just basically be thrown in bed. It was good.
I’ve slept an extra hour the last few days, waking up at 5 instead of 4AM. It’s been good for my rest level, bad for productivity. My disposition is still shit either way, so, you know, I might as well at least do what I need to do to get done what I need to get done. Head down, keep working.
Like now. It’s 9AM. I just put up that Roadburn post — actually just got to write it too, with all the inherent chaos of the holiday yesterday — and The Pecan and The Patient Mrs. are playing hide and seek while I’m off watch and buried in my computer. I must really need this as much as I think I do.
I have an appointment to finish up a root canal in about an hour and a half, so that’s a thing to look forward to. This is the follow-up to the surprise root canal I had a couple Fridays ago. Third one on the same tooth. I don’t like the tooth’s chances longterm, but I’ll try and give it as much of a shot as I can. The crown is too big and shaped wrong for the surrounding teeth. The human mouth is a cesspool anyway. Why should my bite be any less awkwardly shaped than any of the rest of me?
So anyway, I’ll probably spend the next 45 minutes or so trying to brush the coffee taste and residual garlic from yesterday out of my mouth (and fail) before I head out and then come back and start to worry about weekend stuff like the press release I need to write for STB Records this weekend — I’ve sworn to myself that I’m stepping back from such usually-unpaid labors as this, liner notes, bios, etc., and I am, but some projects you can’t refuse — and a playlist for the next Gimme Radio show, which airs next Friday. I guess it’s best-of-2019 time already. Go figure.
Anyway, if you’re in the States, I hope you got the four-day weekend thing going. I’ll be in my sweatpants probably the entire time, fretting about this and that and enjoying leftovers. May you rock and roll and have fun and be safe and be kind and have kindness done to you, wherever you are.
