Posted in Whathaveyou on February 2nd, 2023 by JJ Koczan
This is badass both for band and label, and here’s why. For Bismut, the Nijmegen-based far-far out explorers whose latest LP, Retrocausality (review here), was released in 2020, they get another spot for their third record without having to give up the prior working relationship with Lay Bare Recordings, based in the band’s home country of The Netherlands. Automatic win. For Spinda, it might be even better, because it finds the label, who’ve been so dug into the Spanish heavy underground specifically, branches beyond Iberia in reach for the first time signing a band. And better, it’s a good band. And they’re a good fit on that increasingly diverse label roster. Nobody here loses. Even Lay Bare gets another hand in promotion out of it. Another voice shouting into the void wash of releases isn’t nothing. Hell’s bells, why doesn’t this happen more often???
Alright then:
BISMUT joins Spinda Records!
We are so excited to share with you all that Dutch rockers Bismut are joining the Spinda Records family to put out (together with Lay Bare Recordings) their long-awaited third studio album this Autumn.
Back in October 2022 whilst we were at Tabernas Desert Rock Fest in Almería (Spain), Roberto Lucas of DenpaFuzz told us not to miss a Dutch band called Bismut. We had no idea who the hell they were, but we trusted him. And these guys did something pretty simple: they played the best gig we’ve seen in many years. And we fell in love immediately! Right away after the concert, we went to merchandise stand, picked up their second studio album ‘Retrocasusality‘ on vinyl (what a beauty released by our friends atd Lay Bare Recordings) and the chatting for a couple of hours while we were watching some gigs – there was a connection! Over the following weeks, we bought the last copy on vinyl of their debut album ‘Schwerpunkt‘ (again released by this amazing Dutch DIY label) and we introduced them to some Spinda Records “mandanga” like Moura, Viaje a 800, Híbrido, Gambardella and a few others. We felt comfortable so at some point we started talking about the possibility of working together with Lay Bare Recordings for their third studio album and here we are…
Stay tuned if you like prog rock, doom, metal, stoner, jazz, heavy psych and hard rock. What these guys from Nijmegen (The Netherlands) do is a mix of all the above and it’s awesome! They’ve played in many different venues as Into The Void, Zwarte Cross, Sonic Whip, Stonerfall, Yellowstock, Desert Fest Antwerp, Alterna Sounds Fest, Krach am Bach, Dunajam, Tabernas Desert Rock Fest or Psychedelic Network Festival.
Posted in Reviews on January 11th, 2023 by JJ Koczan
Not to get too mathy or anything — stay with me, folks — but today is the day the Winter 2023 Quarterly Review passes the three-quarter mark on its way to 80 of the total 100 releases to be covered. And some of those are full-lengths, some are EPs, some are new, one yesterday was almost a year old. That happens. The idea here, one way or the other, is personal discovery. I hope you’ve found something thus far worth digging into, something that really hits you. And if not, you’ve still got 30 releases — 10 each today, tomorrow, Friday — to come, so don’t give up yet. We proceed…
Winter 2023 Quarterly Review #71-80:
Black Math Horseman, Black Math Horseman
Though long foretold by the prophets of such things, the return of Black Math Horseman with 2022’s self-titled, live-recorded-in-2019 EP some 13 years after their 2009 debut full-length, Wyllt (discussed here, interview here), helped set heavy post-rock in motion, is still a surprise. The tension in the guitars of Ian Barry (who also handled recording/mixing) and Bryan Tulao in the eponymous opener is maddening, a tumult topped by the vocals of Sera Timms (who here shares bass duties with Rex Elle), and given thunder by drummer Sasha Popovic, and as part of a salvo of three cuts all seven minutes or longer, it marks the beginning of a more intense extraction of the atmospheric approach to heavy songcraft that made their past work such a landmark, with the crashes of “Cypher” and the strummy sway of “The Bough” following ahead of shorter, even-driftier closer “Cypber.” There’s a big part of me that wishes Black Math Horseman was a full-length, but an even bigger part is happy to take what it can get and hope it’s not another decade-plus before they follow it with something more. Not to be greedy, but in 2009 this band had a lot more to say and all this time later that still feels like the case and their sound still feels like it’s reaching into the unknown.
The names here should be enough. It’s Aidan Baker from heavy drone experimentalist institution Nadjaja (‘and’ in Finnish) Jussi Lehtisalo from prog-of-all masters Circle, collaborating and sharing guitar, bass, vocal and drum programming duties — Lehtisalo would seem also to add the keyboards that give the the titular neon to centerpiece “Neon Splashing (From Your Eyes)” — on a 53-minute song cycle, running a broad spectrum between open-space post-industrial drone and more traditional smoky, melancholic, heady pop. Closer “Racing After Midnight” blends darker whispers with dreamy keyboard lines before moving into avant techno, not quite in answer to “I Wanna Be Your Bête Noire” earlier, but not quite not, and inevitably the 14-minute opener and longest track (immediate points) “(And I Want Your Perfect) Crocodile Tears” is a defining stretch in terms of ambience and setting the contextual backdrop for what follows, its howling guitar layered with drum machine churn in a way that’s analogous to Jesu in style but not form, the wash that emerges in the synth and guitar there seeming likewise to be the suddenly-there alt-reality New Wave destination of the more languid meander of “Face/Off.” The amalgam of beauty and crush is enough to make one hope this isn’t Baker and Lehtisalo‘s last get together, but if it is, they made something worth preserving. By which I mean to say you might want to pick up the CD.
While their crux is no less in the dreamy, sometimes minimalist, melodic parts and ambient stretches of their longer-form songs and the interludes “In the Tall Grass” and “Bloom (Reprise),” the outright crush of Sacramento’s Chrome Ghost on their third record, House of Falling Ash (on Seeing Red), is not to be understated, whether that’s the lumber-chug of 14-minute opener “Rose in Bloom” or the bookending 13-minute closing title-track’s cacophonous wash, through which the trio remain coherent enough to roll out clean as they give the record its growl-topped sludge metal finish. Continuing the band’s clearly-ain’t-broke collaboration with producer Pat Hills, the six-song/50-minute offering boasts guest appearances from him on guitar, as well as vocals from Eva Rose (ex-CHRCH) on “Furnace,” likewise consuming loud or quiet, punishing or spacious, Oakland-based ambient guitarist Yseulde in the lengthy, minimalist midsection of “Where Black Dogs Dream,” setting up the weighted and melodic finish there, with Brume‘s Susie McMullin joining on vocals to add to the breadth. There’s a lot happening throughout, loud/quiet trades, experimental flourish, some pedal steel from Hills, but guitarist/vocalist Jake Kilgore (also keys), bassist Joe Cooper and drummer Jacob Hurst give House of Falling Ash a solid underpinning of atmospheric sludge and post-metal, and the work is all the more expressive and (intermittently) gorgeous for it.
Straight-ahead, metal-informed, organ-inclusive classic heavy rock is the order of the day on Wölfhead‘s second album, Blood Full Moon, which is the Barclona-based four-piece’s first offering since their 2011 self-titled debut and is released through Discos Macarras, Música Hibrida and Iron Matron Records. An abiding impression of the 11-song offering comes as the band — who filled out their well-pedigreed core lineup of vocalist Ivan Arrieta, guitarists Josue Olmo and Javi Félez, and drummer Pep Carabante with session players David Saavedra (bass) and Albert Recolons (keys) — present rippers like the Motörhead (no real surprise, considering) via Orange Goblin rocker “Funeral Hearse” as the tail end of a raucous opening salvo, or the later “Mother of the Clan,” but from there the proceedings get more complex, with the classic doom roll of “Rame Tep” or the Jerry Cantrell-esque moody twang of “Everlasting Outlaw,” while “Eternal Stone Mountain” blends keyboard grandiosity and midtempo hookmaking in a way that should bring knowing nods from Green Lung fans, while “The Munsters” is, yes, a take on the theme from the tv show, and closer “El Llop a Dins” takes an airier, sans-drums and more open feel, highlighting melody rather than an overblown finish that, had they gone that route, would have been well earned.
Issued through Argonauta Records, Exodus‘ seven inclusions are situated so that their titles read as a sentence: “Is,” “The Future of Mankind,” “Forced By,” “The King of Monsters,” “Because,” “Everything That Has Been Given,” “Will Be Taken Away.” Thus Leipzig, Germany, instrumentalists Godzilla in the Kitchen‘s second album is immediately evocative, even before “Is” actually introduces the rest of what follows across three minutes of progressively minded heavy rock — parts calling to mind Pelican duking it out with Karma to Burn — that give way to the longest cut and an obvious focal point, “The Future of Mankind,” which reimagines the bass punch from Rage Against the Machine‘s “Killing in the Name Of” as fodder for an odd-timed expanse of Tool-ish progressive heavy, semi-psych lead work coming and going around more direct riffing. The dynamic finds sprawl in “Because” and highlights desert-style underpinnings in the fading lead lines of “Everything That Has Been Given” before the warmer contemplation of “Will Be Taken” caps with due substance. Their use of Godzilla — not named in the songs, but in the band’s moniker, and usually considered the “king of monsters” — as a metaphor for climate change is inventive, but even that feels secondary to the instrumental exploration itself here. They may be mourning for what’s been lost, but they do so with a vigor that, almost inadvertently, can’t help but feel hopeful.
Megalurching post-sludgers Onhou leave a crater with the four-song Monument, released by Lay Bare Recordings and Tartarus Records and comprising four songs and a 41-minute run that’s crushing in atmosphere as much as the raw tonal heft or the bellowing vocals that offset the even harsher screams. Leadoff “When on High” (8:19) is the shortest cut and lumbers toward a viciously noisy payoff and last stretch of even-slower chug and layered extreme screams/shouts, while “Null” (10:39) is unremittingly dark, less about loud/quiet tradeoffs though there still are some, but with depths enough to bury that line of organ and seeming to reference Neurosis‘ “Reach,” and “Below” (11:55) sandwiches an ambient beginning and standalone keyboard finish around post-metallic crunch and not so much a mournfulness as the lizard-brain feeling of loss prior to mourning; that naked sense of something not there that should be, mood-wise. Sure enough, “Ruins” (11:03) continues this bleak revelry, rising to a nod in its first couple minutes, breaking, returning in nastier fashion and rolling through a crescendo finish that makes the subsequent residual feedback feel like a mercy which, to be sure, it is not. If you think you’re up to it, you might be, or you might find yourself consumed. One way or the other, Onhou plod forward with little regard for the devastation surrounding. As it should be.
Less meditative than some of Germany’s instrumental heavy psych set, Bremen’s Fuzzerati explore drifting heavy psychedelic soundscapes on their 47-minute second album, Zwo, further distinguishing themselves in longform pieces like “Claus to Hedge” (13:01) and closer “Lago” (13:34) with hints of floaty post-rock without ever actually becoming so not-there as to be shoegazing. “Lago” and “Claus to Hedge” also have harder-hitting moments of more twisting, pushing fuzz — the bass in the second half of “Claus to Hedge” is a highlight — where even at its loudest, the seven-minute “Transmission” is more about dream than reality, with a long ambient finish that gives way to the similarly-minded ethereal launch of “Spacewalk,” which soon enough turns to somewhat ironically terrestrial riffing and is the most active inclusion on the record. For that, and more generally for the fluidity of the album as a whole, Fuzzerati‘s sophomore outing feels dug in and complete, bordering on the jazziness of someone like Causa Sui, but ultimately no more of their ilk than of My Sleeping Karma‘s or Colour Haze‘s, and I find that without a ready-made box to put them in — much as “instrumental heavy psych” isn’t a box — it’s a more satisfying experience to just go where the three-piece lead, to explore as they do, breathe with the material. Yeah, that’ll do nicely, thanks.
At least seemingly in part a lyrical narrative about a demon killing an infant Jesus and then going to hell to rip the wings off angels and so on — it’s fun to play pretend — Afghan Haze‘s Hallucinations of a Heretic feels born of the same extreme-metal-plus-heavy-rock impulse that once produced Entombed‘s To Ride Shoot Straight and Speak the Truth, and yeah, that’s a compliment. The bashing of skulls starts with “Satan Ripper” after the Church of Misery-style serial murderer intro “Pushing up Daisies,” and though “Hellijuana” has more of a stomp than a shove, the dudely-violence is right there all the same. “Occupants (Of the Underworld)” adds speed to the proceedings for an effect like High on Fire born out of death metal instead of thrash, and though the following closer “Gin Whore” (another serial killer there) seems to depart from the story being told, its sludge is plenty consistent with the aural assault being meted out by the Connecticut four-piece, omnidirectional in its disdain and ready at a measure’s notice to throw kicks and punches at whosoever should stand in its way, as heard in that burner part of “Gin Whore” and the all-bludgeon culmination of “Occupants (Of the Underworld).” This shit does not want to be your friend.
My only wish here is that I could get a lyric sheet for the Britpsych-style banger that is “Costco Get Fucked.” Otherwise, I’m fully on board with Canadian trio Massirraytorr‘s debut LP, Twincussion — which, like the band’s name, is also styled all-caps, and reasonably so since the music does seem to be shouting, regardless of volume or what the vocals are actually up to in that deep-running-but-somehow-punk lysergic swamp of a mix. “Porno Clown” is garage raw. Nah, rawer. And “Bong 4” struts like if krautrock had learned about fuckall, the layer of effects biting on purpose ahead of the next rhythmic push. In these, as well as leadoff “Calvin in the Woods” and the penultimate noisefest “Fear Garden,” Massirraytorr feel duly experimentalist, but perhaps without the pretension that designation might imply. That is to say, fucking around is how they’re finding out how the songs go. That gives shades of punk like the earliest, earliest, earliest Monster Magnet, or The Heads, or Chrome, or, or, or, I don’t know fuck you. It’s wild times out here in your brain, where even the gravity slingshot of “The Juice” feels like a relatively straightforward moment to use as a landmark before the next outward acceleration. Good luck with it, kids. Remember to trail a string so you can find your way back.
Serbian five-piece Tona make their self-titled second LP with a 10-song collection that’s less a hodgepodge and more a melting pot of different styles coming together to serve the needs of a given song. “Sharks” is a rock tempo with a thrash riff. “Napoleon Complex Dog” is blues via hardcore punk. Opener “Skate Zen” takes a riff that sounds like White Zombie and sets it against skate rock and Megadeth at the same time. The seven-minute “Flashing Lights” turns progadelic ahead of the dual-guitar strut showoff “Shooter” and the willful contrast of the slogging, boozy closer “Just a Sip of It.” But as all-over-the-place as Tona‘s Tona is, it’s to the credit of their songwriting that they’re able to hold it together and emerge with a cohesive style from these elements, some of which are counterintuitively combined. They make it work, in other words, and even the Serbian-language “Atreid” gets its point across (all the more upon translation) with its careening, tonally weighted punk. Chock full of attitude, riffs, and unexpected turns, Tona‘s second long-player and first since 2008 gives them any number of directions in which to flourish as they move forward, and shows an energy that feels born from and for the stage.
Posted in Whathaveyou on November 9th, 2022 by JJ Koczan
Frayle just wrapped the UK portion of their Fall 2022 European tour, and are currently kicking around the Netherlands, Germany, Denmark, Sweden, Norway, and more Germany to wrap up. No doubt Damnation Festival was a highlight, but it inevitably would be. As they go, continue to go, the Cleveland, Ohio, witch doomers and apparent light-bondage aficionados — not shaming, judging, particularly caring; it’s just a thing to mention as it’s clearly a part of their aesthetic and live presentation, like the one dude’s dreadlocks — further announce they’ll re-press their two full-lengths, the latest of which, Skin and Sorrow, was released in September, to rectify prior sell-throughs. That’s the EP, The White Witch, Skin and Sorrow, and their debut LP, 1692. Sometimes a band moves records. Kind of nice when it happens, actually.
Info, preorder links and whatnot all came down the PR wire:
Frayle announces the repress of The White Witch, 1692 and Skin & Sorrow for their European tour
Cleveland based Heavy Witch Doom coven are excited to announce that they will re-pressing all 3 of their albums on vinyl to co-coincide with the band’s European Tour which they are currently on.
Formed in Cleveland in 2017 by Sean Bilovecky and Gwyn Strang they band made their debut with the ‘The White Witch’ EP in 2018 released on vinyl by Lay Bare Recordings. The White Witch was followed by two full length albums: ‘1692’ and ‘Skin & Sorrow.’
Frayle’s “lullabies over chaos” approach to songwriting allows them the freedom to explore what is possible with heavy music. They strive to balance the heaviest of riffs with the approachability of Gwyn’s haunting vocal melodies. Complex layering and tone stacking is a hallmark of their music. Each musical element is thoughtfully composed resulting in a unique combination of midrange-heavy guitars, syncopated rhythms, and unexpected vocal progressions. Gwyn tells stories of heart break, anger, hypocrisy and resolution, asking the audience for empathy, and in turn inspiring vulnerability.
The coloured vinyl comes with full colour inlay (300pcs). A repress of the ‘White Witch’ CD (300pcs) will be available at Lay Bare Recordings and on Frayle’s bandcamp (300 vinyl, 200 CD) and available EXCLUSIVE on their EU/ UK tour.
In this 2nd repress version of 1692 ‘Ring of Fire’ from Johnny Cash is added. Frayle delivers their own epic version of the song written by June Carter Cash and Merle Kilgore and popularized by Johnny Cash in 1963.This version comes in a/ side b/side: white/ gold colored vinyl.
This is the first repress of the critically acclaimed album that was released 23rd of September 2022.The new version come on heavy weight 180g 12” coloured vinyl (grimace purple / sea blue) in a gatefold cover.
Tour Dates 9th November 2022 – Alte Meierei – DE 10th November 2022 – Stengade – Copenhagen – DK 11th November 2022 – Plan B – Malmo – SE 13th November 2022 – Revolver – Oslo – NO 16th November 2022 – Backstage – Munich – DE 17th November 2022 – Comma Club – Gera – DE 18th November 2022 – Zolkatine – Bremen – DE 19th November 2022 – Gloomar Festival – Neunkirchen – DE 20th November 2022 – MTC – Cologne – DE
Spanish heavy alt and sludge rockers Rosy Finch will release Seconda Morte on Nov. 4 through Lay Bare Recordings, Discos Macarras and LaRubia Producciones. The four-song offering runs 28 minutes long and follows the band’s 2020 sophomore album, Scarlet (review here), as a flowing conceptual piece drawing strongly from 1990s riot grrrl aesthetics while functioning in a range of sonic styles, from hard-hitting aggro fire to answer the intensity of Scarlet to more serene fare like that at the outset of nine-minute closer “Paradiso” or the strum of the later not-quite-hidden acoustic finish. In particular — and this is something you’ll see in the video premiering for the penultimate “Purgatorio” below as well — founding guitarist, vocalist and songwriter Mireia Porto seems to pay homage to Courtney Love and Hole‘s ’94 album, Live Through This, but immediately Rosy Finch are on their own wavelength musically, opening Seconda Morte as they do with the gradual beginning of the deeply ambient instrumental “Selva Oscura,” which prefaces many of the smoothly executed volume trades and style swaps to come.
Drummer and returning producer Jose F. Rojo recorded the EP — one more song and for sure it’d be a full-length, even with that long instrumental opener, and it’s on the line between EP and LP anyway, but they call it the former so I’m rolling with it — with Porto also credited as producer, and one can hear the depth of their approach in the layered growls and harsh vocals of “Inferno,” the wrenching lead guitar of that song’s guitar solo and the sudden drop to organ sounds and ethereal fare that precedes the next turn to the verse. Here Rosy Finch are part-Pantera, part-early-Tool, and unquestionably in command tonally as well as in the aggression level of their delivery. Longer than “Selva Oscura,” “Inferno” sets the shorter-song-into-longer-song A/B pattern that plays out across “Purgatorio” and “Paradiso” still to come, the two five-minute tracks each giving over to something that reaches broader, though one could hardly accuse “Purgatorio” of wanting for atmosphere with its post-rock wisps of floating guitar early and gradual coalescing in a pre-chorus that holds its threat in the drum crash before receding and telling you without telling you that the next time that part comes around, you’d best watch your ass.
The making-good on that promise is no doubt a big part of why “Purgatorio” was picked as the first single from Seconda Morte, and I find I’m even less able to argue listening to the driving nod and the band’s ability to keep it together even as the song pushes into an increasingly furious procession. At 5:06, “Purgatorio” is the shortest track — “Selva Oscura” is 5:18, but would be a less representative single — but it emphasizes the fluidity of the changes Rosy Finch are able to make throughout Seconda Morte, and all the more for arriving ahead of the from-the-ground-up beginning of “Paradiso.” In its just-under-10 minutes, the finale moves from heavy post-rock and psychedelic hypnotics into riffy triumphalism and storm-conjuring, maybe a bit of Viaje a 800 influence resonating subconsciously there, back to the float, back to the crunch, and as it crosses the midpoint threshold, into a more melodic but still weighted dreamscape, consuming and growing fuller in its wash as it moves through. You don’t know it at first, but that’s the trick the band are so able to pull off in introducing their shifts so smoothly that if you don’t follow closely, you can end up looking back after a minute and wondering how you got there. That’s a compliment to the band as well as a boon to repeat listens.
It’s also perhaps nowhere so prevalent as in the final turn undertaken by “Paradiso,” which is to leave that wash behind on a slow fade, patient noise setting a tide-going-out bed for the hard strum of acoustic that Porto‘s last vocals will soon follow, solo, voice-and-guitar style. One is reminded of Nirvana and the swath of acoustic pieces they inspired near the ends of records with “Something in the Way,” but the mood of “Paradiso” at the finish is Rosy Finch‘s own, and that the guitar sounds a little beat up is a reasoned choice to add to that mood. It’s not like there weren’t perfectly tuned instruments around, but sometimes that’s not what you want, and like so many of the moves Porto, Rojo and the band make here, it works in no small part because they are assured enough in their purposes to nail it. You can (and mostly should) do whatever you want — doom what thou wilt, if you want it another way — so long as nobody gets hurt who doesn’t want to and you’ve got creative intent backing you up. As they move closer toward a decade’s tenure, Rosy Finch have obviously learned that lesson well, and they have the presence of craft to bring their audience along for the ride.
“Purgatorio” doesn’t necessarily give the whole story of Seconda Morte in terms of sound, then, but it does showcase the atmosphere and general vibe of the EP. You’ll find the video below, followed immediately by more from the PR wire.
Enjoy:
Rosy Finch, “Purgatorio” video premiere
Today sees the release of Purgatorio, the first single and video taken from the bands highly anticipated EP Seconda Morte, a moody, thrilling journey based on the poem The Divine Comedy, which releases on the 4th November 2022 via Lay Bare Recordings, Discos Macarras, and LaRubia Producciones.
“Purgatorio is the second part of the Dante’s The Divine Comedy and the first track on side two of the new album.” Says vocalist and guitarist Mireia Porto. She delves a little deeper into the meaning behind the song, “It’s about Dante’s journey through Mount Purgatory, describing the climb to the seven terraces which all represent the seven deadly sins. The punished souls residing there are suffering and expecting to receive forgiveness and Dante believes their sins arise from love.”
The video was directed Mireia and shot by Marcos Bañó at Creative Madness Lab, as well in a mountainous red-sand desert, representing the Mount of Purgatory, where Dante is watching a sinner stuck on the terrace of the wrathful. “For me, this is the most common sin: harm of others for not facing your own demons.” Comments Mireia.
The trio burst onto the scene in 2013, founded by singer/guitarist Mireia Porto (who also later played with stoner doom phenoms, Hela). Having released two successful full-length albums and an EP, the line-up changed in 2019 during the recording of their barnstormer 2020 album, ‘Scarlet’. Óscar Soler (previously of space-rockers Pyramidal) and Juanjo Ufarte (from psychedelic doom merchants, Grajo) took over on bass and drums respectively, and a new day dawned in the Rosy Finch camp, one filled with heightened aggression and intent.
Posted in Whathaveyou on October 11th, 2022 by JJ Koczan
In what I seriously doubt will be their last trip abroad supporting their new album, Skin & Sorrow, Ohio witch doomers Frayle have announced a stretch of European tour dates for next month. That includes a stop at Damnation Festival in Manchester, UK, and the Gloomar Festival in Neunkirchen, Germany, for which I’ve no doubt they’ll be suitably gloomy. They’re fresh off a run with Cradle of Filth, and I could be wrong, but I think that officially puts them in the realm of ‘kind of a big deal,’ so as their audience increases thanks to crisp songwriting and striking visuals like those in the video for “Bright Eyes” at the bottom of this post, the chance to see them at spots like The Black Heart in London and Backstage in Munich — these venues very much on the circuit for heavy underground touring acts — may be limited. That is to say, the rooms are only going to get bigger.
I don’t know that I’ll review the album or not — I’m challenging myself on why I wouldn’t, other than the usual crunch of time and space — but Frayle have a thing and are clearly making a go of it and from where I sit you have to respect the hustle. Safe travels and well wishes, and so on. The dates came from the PR wire:
Heavy Witch Doom quartet Frayle set to embark on a European tour in November
Frayle makes music for the night sky.
Hot off the heels of their latest release Skin & Sorrow, Cleveland’s Frayle have announced a European tour kicking off on November 1st, 2022. The tour will see the band playing shows and festivals in the Netherlands, Denmark, Sweden, Norway, UK, and Germany.
The group was formed in 2017 by guitarist Sean Bilovecky (formerly of now-defunct Man’s Ruin recording artists Disengage) and vocalist Gwyn Strang, a singer with an alluring voice and an equally compelling flair for imagery. Frayle’s “lullabies over chaos” approach to songwriting allows the group the freedom to explore what is possible with heavy music; its gorgeously ominous sound a result of complex layering and tone stacking while simultaneously overseeing the perfectly delicate balance between heaving, heavy riffs and haunting vocal melodies.
“We look forward to seeing everyone again in the Netherlands, Germany and Belgium as well as meeting new fans and friends in the UK, Denmark and Sweden. This album has been a long time in the making and we can’t wait to share these new songs with our fellow Heretics.” – Frayle
Tour Dates 1st November 2022 – Willemeen – Arnhem – NL 2nd November 2022 – Patronaat – Haarlem – NL 3rd November 2022 – VII – Rotterdam – NL 4th November 2022– Ragnarök – Bree – BE 5th November 2022 – Damnation Festival – Manchester – UK 6th November 2022– Black Heart – London – UK 8th November 2022 – Simplon – Groningen – NL 9th November 2022 – Alte Meierei – DE 10th November 2022 – Stengade – Copenhagen – DK 11th November 2022 – Plan B – Malmo – SE 13th November 2022 – Revolver – Oslo – NO 16th November 2022 – Backstage – Munich – DE 17th November 2022 – Comma Club – Gera – DE 18th November 2022 – Zolkatine – Bremen – DE 19th November 2022 – Gloomar Festival – Neunkirchen – DE 20th November 2022 – MTC – Cologne – DE
Posted in Whathaveyou on June 23rd, 2022 by JJ Koczan
Recorded between lockdowns in 2021, there is a certain sense of urgency, of longing in Seedy Jeezus‘ The Hollow Earth, and in thinking about life, death, the unknown, the perpetuation of conspiracy theories as both an escapist fantasy and a way to deal with very real cultural, political and economic change, it’s hard for a rock show to speak to all of it, but there’s something just a little extra in the atmosphere of Seedy Jeezus‘ upcoming 2LP live album on Lay Bare Recordings. Maybe it’s knowing that after this everyone would have to go back home again, to recede into lockdown-mode again, or maybe it’s the cautious hopefulness with which the show was played in the first place, that sense of we-need-to-go-for-it-right-now-because-it-turns-out-all-this-shit-is-really-fragile-and-can-go-away-at-any-time, that’s coming across.
I’ll allow that could be me reading into it, but this one has been in the making pretty much since the show was played and its pressing has been met with of-the-era delays and so on, so as the world pokes its head out from under protective cover and hopes to move actually into some kind of “post-pandemic” existence, it’s fitting too that Seedy Jeezus included so much new material in this set. “The Hollow Earth,” which you can see premiering at the bottom of the post, is a mellow, immersive Floyder, and figuratively as well as literally it’s just a fraction of what’s on offer throughout the 10-track outing.
You can read more about the idea of the ‘hollow earth’ concept below. The key I think is where the band ties in the idea of something mysterious and unknown happening beneath the surface in with the notion of death, which of course is what ultimately unites us all. The bridging of one concept to the next, particularly as reflection on the time of the album’s making and when the show was played, is nothing short of brilliant.
Info from the PR wire:
SEEDY JEEZUS – THE HOLLOW EARTH PRESALES JUNE 27 – RELEASE DATE JULY 16 2022
Preorder (open June 27): http://seedyjeezus.com
The Hollow Earth Theory has a long and entwined interaction with the human races’ historical cultural belief systems. Early on it was believed that it is a dark place filled with the souls of the dead. A chasm of dread and foreboding filled with danger and challenge. Later beliefs suggested a world of light and life. A place suspended in the center of that hollow with an interior sun that is divided by day and night. The other part of the Hollow Earth theory is that near the North and South pole are substantial openings that lead into this interior where it is thought that the Aurora Borealis is the escape of the internal heavenly light of this centre world.
Possibly the first person to scientifically speculate about a hollow earth was none other than Edmund Halley, of Halley’s Comet fame. He proposed it as a way of explaining anomalous compass readings, Halley’s theory is that the planet is a series of nested, spherical shells, spinning in different directions, all surrounding a central core. Jules Verne was obsessed with the concept and although the existence of this place is yet to be substantiated by modern science, six feet under the worlds’ surface are pockets of earth, musty and dark. They are filled with fine clothing, jewellery and hold artefacts of one’s existence. They are the final deposit of all we can take with us. Bones, dust and memories.
Seedy Jeezus recorded a live double album capturing fan favourites and a window into what is in store on their next studio album. It was recorded at Studio One B out the back of a stonemasons’ across from the main graveyard in Melbourne’s northern suburbs. It was performed in front of some friends in between heavy lockdowns in 2021 when live performance and social gatherings were almost a forgotten decadence. We were lucky to have this short space of time bring together a time capsule of Seedy songs to send to friends and fans everywhere.
Tracklisting :
1. Is There All That Is – This track will be opening the next studio album, it also hints as to the direction of the album.
2. The Golden Miles – this will also be on the next album… it’s about the end of a relationship, and looking at it as a whole.
3. My Gods Are Stone – from the Polaris Oblique album, Isaiah Mitchell originally played the lead on the studio version.
4. How ya Doin’? – When we first recorded this for the Debut it was 20 mins long, but never released. We thought we’d reinstate the full version.
5. Voodoo Chile (Slight Return) – a Hendrix cover Lex learnt during lockdown and put to the band to play.
6. Echoes in the Sky (Jam) – we debated playing the full song or not at all- the jam won as an overflow from Voodoo Chile.
7. The Hollow Earth – A next album track that also indicated the direction the band is heading… it’s written from the body in the coffin view.
8. Oh Lord Pt. 2 – From Polaris Oblique, this song is a favourite live, and one we always love to play.
9. Dripping from the Eye of The Sun – this song evolves and changes all the time, it’s very diff to the studio version. This is something the band likes to do live.
10. Wormhole – another live favourite, taken from our debut… it’s lost none of its lustre played live.
2LP available in multiple colours: Deluxe (3D colours – Red n Blue) Europe is Purple Death Australia – Halo Gold Standard – Black Death
Also a very limited Destroyer Edition – this is a splatter edition that was pressed and destroyed as they were noisy.
And Test Pressings with unique art, etc….
The Deluxe version comes with: 70 min bonus CD of unreleased Studio demos and Live Slip mat 8 Page booklet of photos taken at the show Liner Notes by Patrick Emery and a set list
Posted in Whathaveyou on December 3rd, 2021 by JJ Koczan
In case 2008 doesn’t seem like all that long ago, the image below is one I found on Carlton Melton‘s MySpace page. Many of the pictures are gone, but this one with the album info written in what looks like a MS-Paint-with-mouse handwriting was still there, and, since all the images of the album art are teeny-tiny, I figured that would be fun to include instead.
The Mendocino drift-heads released Live in Point Arena as their first CD-R in suitably casual fashion, winding up with about 100 copies made, one of which indeed is listed currently for $100 cash monies on Discogs. Below, guitarist Rich Millman gives some background remembering the get-together where the set was recorded, as well as how it was recorded, and you’ll also find the preorder link for the first official vinyl edition of Live in Point Arena, which will be a 2LP out through Lay Bare Recordings in a they-should-probably-make-more edition of 300, though mind you I have no idea if they’ll actually make any more of them.
Among the admirable traits of the new version is that it doesn’t cost a hundred bucks. Plus availability. Plus headpsych.
Have at it:
CARLTON MELTON – PRE ORDER DEC 3RD 10:00 cet DOME ROCK AT ITS FINEST!
Carlton Melton’s CD-r version of ‘Live in Point Arena’ finally on heavy weight vinyl (2LP).
Honoured to announce that the ‘Live in Point Arena’ CD-r version from Carlton Melton finally will be released on heavy weight coloured vinyl as 2LP.
‘Live In Point Arena’ was recorded during a full moon on the evening of July 18th, 2008. It wasn’t a live show but more a gathering of friends and folks to play some ‘head music’ at Brian’s home which happened to be a geodesic dome and ideal for those types of sounds. I recorded the evening on a M-Audio handheld recorder duct taped to the wall/ceiling of the North side of the Dome. When I got back to San Francisco a few days later I immediately crushed the audio to 4-track cassette tape on a Tascam 424. Upon listening back I thought this stuff sounded cool and shared it with Andy. We then burned some cd-r’s to give to friends and likeminded folks. Andy dropped off a copy to Scott Hewicker at aQuarius records in San Francisco and they liked it enough to request a few cd-r’s to sell at the shop and also posted a kind review by Scott. Then there were more requests for the cd-r’s and we burned some more ( like 70 or so ) and that was that…
Until now 13 years later and our friend Désirée kindly asking if she can release the cd-r recording on vinyl on her label with some added bonus bits recorded that same evening. We thank you Désirée and Lay Bare Recordings.
Andy had brought up his guitar and amp and used it on ‘happy song’, ‘against the wall’, ‘full moon ridge’, and the bonus tracks ‘thirst cycle’ and ‘purer’ (extended). Andy also got on the drums for ‘fucking funky shit’ and bonus tracks ‘another log on the fire’, ‘speeditup’, and ‘rubbery room’. Brian got on the drums for ‘happy song’, ‘against the wall’ and the bonus track ‘purer’ (extended). Andreas stopped by and played drums on ‘full moon ridge’. I played guitar and synth throughout the evening. Some other folks stopped by throughout the night offering shout outs and guidance. It was a special night and eventually forged the beginnings of the musical group Carlton Melton. We hope you can find some joy and amusement with this blast from the past. Long Live Dome Rock.
– Rich April 2021
Tracklisting: Happy Song Against The Wall Fucking Funky Shit Inter Mission Root Ball Full Moon Ridge Legion of Doom Thirst Cycle Another Log On The Fire Speeditup Rubbery Room Purer ( extended )
Lineup: Andy Duvall / guitar, drums Brian McDougall / drums Rich Millman / guitar, synthesizers John Steuernagel / bass
Posted in Whathaveyou on October 22nd, 2021 by JJ Koczan
No sense pretending to be Johnny Groundfloor on Modder here, but if you, like me, didn’t hear the Belgian five-piece’s 21-minute debut single, “Mudslinger,” when they released it late last year, it’s well worth the atmosludge immersion. By the time their self-titled debut shows up, they may turn out to be more in line with Europe’s rampant post-metal movement — from Amenra to the Pelagic Records roster, etc. — but “Mudslinger” is rawer, more consistent in its volume and its course feels less defined by artsy hyper-consciousness than sheer grooving drive. Maybe that’s wishful thinking on my part. I don’t know. There’s demolition happening in my house as I type this, so everything kind of sounds destructive.
But! When Lay Bare Recordings and Consouling Sounds both get together around a thing, that’s a thing I want to know more about, so this is my way of leaving a note to myself to find out more about Modder‘s Modder when the time comes. In the interim, should you happen to be in their part of the world, they’ll be making a hometown appearance at Desertfest in Ghent at the end of the month. Good gig for a band who just have a single out. Or, you know, anyone.
And no, my neck probably isn’t “ready for the riff onslaught.” Just being honest. I headbanged like twice yesterday morning and I can still feel it. Perils of age.
From the band’s sociables:
Modder – Modder
Our first full length LP ‘Modder’ will be available at the end of this year, as promised.
The wonderful Lay Bare Recordings invited us into their family and grooving roster of like minded artists.
Expanding the family even more, the amazing Consouling Sounds will be co-releasing our LP as well, home of many inspiring bands.
Suffice to say, we are hyped to be releasing our hard work on two astonishing labels we respect and are proud to call our new home. Are your necks ready for the riff onslaught that is about to come?
