Posted in Whathaveyou on January 31st, 2024 by JJ Koczan
I’ve been trying to post this for like a week. This happens to me now. I’ll be sitting on the couch at like 7PM or some such — well past what I consider ‘Obelisk time’ in my feeble brainclock — and see some relevant item on my phone. I haven’t covered Krach am Bach much in years past, so I probably said something like, “Oh shit right on, I can post about something new,” and started to put the thing together. I don’t remember if I squared the poster image or the fest did — probably them. But then I get in the actual back end of the site and there are like 50 other things and then I’m already late and blah blah fucking blah here I am with another festival lineup post. I’m sure by now the lineup has been completed and the festival — which is set for Aug. 2-3 — has already taken place. Because time would bend over backwards just to screw me up, and I say that as the voice of experience.
But the lineup. Seems likely The Devil and the Almighty Blues will be out on tour, ditto A Place to Bury Strangers, Wine Lips, Deathchant, El Perro. You’ll notice Elder-offshoot Delving among the confirmations, which might mean another studio offering from that project is on the way, and I’ll go to bat for each of Karkara, Humulus, Travo and Black Helium being worth your time based solely on my experience with their recorded output. There’s more to come here, but I’m not sure how much more you really need.
Check it:
+++ First announcements || Tickets available +++
In case you’re wondering about some news for the 29. Krach am Bach Festival, we’ve got the finest selection for a ride through heavy, fuzz-drowned and hypnotic space trips.
Orange Goblin |UK A Place To Bury Strangers |US The Devil And The Almighty Blues |Norway Wine Lips |Canada Tuber |Greece Deathchant |US El Perro |US Madmess |Portugal delving |US Verstärker |US KARKARA |France Humulus |Italy TRAVO |Portugal Black Helium |UK ᴉGeRaldᴉ |France
Posted in Whathaveyou on February 22nd, 2023 by JJ Koczan
Don’t mind me, just over here daydreaming about this one. Yeah, maybe I’ll always be something of a sucker for The Netherlands in Springtime, but even taking that into account, the lineup for Sonic Whip 2023 in Nijmegen speaks for itself top to bottom in terms of the bill. There’s a couple bands I don’t know — including The Psychotic Monks, who were just added, and Shaman Elephant, who were the other band that took part in Enslaved‘s big-band collab — but for familiar names and faces and acts I’ve never seen like Stoned Jesus, Causa Sui, Somali Yacht Club, Samavayo, Vinnum Sabbathi, Slift, and so on, I feel like this is two days I very much wouldn’t mind living through.
I feel that way about a lot of European fests these days, and maybe that in itself is worth examining — if perhaps we’re in something of a golden age (a loaded phrase for the Dutch) of smaller-scale festivals across the continent. I see nothing but arguments in favor of that proposition here, and post-covid, the explosion of events both new and returning is only welcome as far as I’m concerned. I haven’t been invited, won’t get over for it, but it’s a good one, and if you’re headed out to it, I tip my hat in your general direction. Or at least I will next time I have a hat on.
Final announcement follows. Tickets are on sale:
LINE-UP SONIC WHIP 2023 COMPLETE
5 & 6 MAY Doornroosje, Nijmegen, Netherlands
Sonic Whip, the multi-headed rock monster that combines ripping guitars with steaming bass lines, pounding drums and other sonic, psychedelic excesses. The 2023 edition will happen on May 5 & 6 in Doornroosje, Nijmegen.
With the addition of The Psychotic Monks (fra), Samavayo (ger), Shaman Elephant (no) and Vinnum Sabbathi (mex) the line-up for Sonic Whip is complete! We’re looking forward to welcome all these fantastic artists and are convinced this is going to be a rad psychedelic sonic party. We hope you will join us on 5 & 6 May in Doornroosje.
FULL LINEUP: King Buffalo, SLIFT, Stoned Jesus, Pigs Pigs Pigs Pigs Pigs Pigs Pigs, Causa Sui, Lowrider, Somali Yacht Club, Les Big Byrd, GNOD, The Psychotic Monks, Radar Men From The Moon, Samavayo, Ecstatic Vision, Iron Jinn, USA Nails, The Gluts, Deathchant, Dommengang, Shaman Elephant, Psychlona, Vinnum Sabbathi and Madmess.
Posted in Whathaveyou on February 6th, 2023 by JJ Koczan
Based in Seelbach, Germany, the Hoflärm Festival will host its fifth edition this August, as seemingly every weekend of Europe’s Spring and Summer fest season seems to increasingly have something going on somewhere at sometime. A glut of cool events is nothing to complain about for anyone who remembers a couple years back when there was nothing — which, as much as one tries to repress those particular memories, I still do — and the lineup here is right on in terms of vibe with Acid King, Mars Red Sky, Messa and Elephant Tree so far at the top of the bill with Rotor, Swan Valley Heights, Mondo Generator, Grin, Black Lung, Eremit, Madmess, Old Horn Tooth and Kvinna rounding out and a few black boxes on the poster like the rest of the lineup has been redacted for the purposes of protecting classified information.
And I won’t argue with Hoflärm adding another six or seven bands, but, I mean, this is already pretty killer on first blush. You’ll note this takes place over three days, so spreading the 20 bands out over that long, it seems like a pretty laid back kind of deal — at least until Mondo Generator starts ripping into Kyuss tunes, but that’s fun too — and not necessarily as overwhelming as some multi-stage fests in Europe and elsewhere. This is the five-year anniversary of the fest, and to see Acid King and Mars Red Sky alone, it’s already got me daydreaming, so I take that as a win.
Details follow as per Hoflärm‘s socials:
Hoflärm – 5th Anniversary – GO FOR THE RIDE
Join us this year for the 5th stony ride to Hoflärm 2023! We are very happy to announce the first bands of the line-up today! We also announce the start of the presale for 05.02.2023 at 5 pm!
Started in 1993, we are more than proud to welcome Acid King! The band around Lori S. looks back on 30 years of band history and will bring their new Album to Marienthal in August.
Mars Red Sky and Elephant Tree will drive you into the sunset with their all time classics like Strong Reflection or Wither! We’re already feeling the vibe around the yard!
A very special highlight we are looking forward to is Messa. The Italian doom band combines the raw and rough sides of doom with the warm summer evenings of the Hoflärm.
Just last year, stoner legend Nick Oliveri visited us with his band Stöner. Nick liked it and had reason enough to come knocking on our door again in 2023. We are looking forward to Mondo Generator, Mr. Oliveri!
We also have visitors from Berlin again, on the one hand we are happy to welcome Rotor, our tractors are running at Vollast! But on the other hand also Grin! We can’t imagine a Hoflärm without Jan, Sabine and Andre! In 2021 the three played with Earth Ship, in 2022 with Slowshine. This year, however, only Sabine and Jan will be on stage, Andre will mingle with the audience while Grin plays their crushing riffs.
Black Lung and Madmess will bring you through our hot afternoons with their heavy psych rock!
Doom over Marienthal: Eremit and Old Horn Tooth will be blasting the darkest riffs into your ears! Live Slow Die Old!
Last but not least, we are happy to welcome 2 bands that have played at the Hof in the past! Swan Valley Heights and Kvinna! Kvinna was the band that opened the first Hoflärm, who of you was there and can remember?
Stay tuned for even more announcements! We have more Bands, as well another Headliner & Co Headliner to announce!
06.18.22 – Sat. – 12:59PM – Under a shady tree sitting on a chair
Is the sprinkler on yet? Somebody is playing music somewhere, maybe over by the entrance, but I’ve got prime real estate in the shade and it’s a big day ahead.
You go into a kind of fog with this kind of thing. At least I do. I can’t memorize lineups and I’m not sure I would if I could, so in addition to finding new-to-me or just plain new bands to dig, there’s also an element of “oh shit yeah” remembering when you look at the day-by-day breakdown and the schedule of who is on stage when.
And to answer my own question, yes, the sprinkler is on.
Inevitably for the last day, my head is already thinking about tomorrow, logistics for going to the airport — I’m told I’ll share a ride to Frankfurt with Slomatics, so that’s wonderful — and the trip home to follow. Some anxiousness going back, but the thing to do is enjoy today. If there’s a mission, that’s it. Also buy merch.
But there is no letup today. It is all go, nine bands, front to back. Unmissable. I’m glad I’m not missing it.
If you’ve been keeping up with this at all, please know how much I appreciate that. I’ll have a wrap up/travel post up at some point between now and Tuesday, but for the moment, here’s notes and pics on the final day of Freak Valley Festival 2022, taken as it happened:
Madmess
Madmess should come with a prescription. I met two of the three members of the Portuguese trio last night and they seemed like really nice guys, and their music follows suit with a gentle spirit even in its most active stretches. Mellow psych, jam-based but not entirely jams. I dug last year’s Rebirth (review here) even more after I wrote about it, and they’re an excellent choice to open the day, starting out mellow enough to seem like they’re barely awake but building enough energy to make their way into an organic sounding boogie. No pretense, no bullshit attitude, just players sharing what they do with a crowd growing by the minute and they pick up the tempo heading into “Stargazer,” which as I said in my LP review, is not the Rainbow song, but an engrossing original featuring some of their intermittent vocals. Morning music is not always easy to find amongst the heavy genres, but I feel like I may have to put Madmess in the rotation after this. Funny though, you’ve been able to see the earlier bands the last couple days kind of hanging back on stage to stay out of the sun. I very much get can relate to that. Already missing that chair under the tree. Whatever.
—
IAH
They’ve got the crowd sway-dancing and handbanging in equal measure. Often the same people — it’s entertaining to watch. IAH stay out all drifty and psych and then click into harder-landing chug and distortion. They’re a bit apart in sound from some of the heavy psych/prog that’s been around this weekend as a result, but that they stand out in the lineup is hardly a detriment. I was so stoked when they got announced for the bill — each of their records has been a step forward from the one before it, up to and including 2021’s Omines (review here), which I’ve kept on my phone since I got it and don’t think I’ll be removing anytime soon. I didn’t think I’d ever see this band, and they’re in Europe just for a few shows, but it’s easy to think of them as moving into a forerunner status of Argentine heavy over the next couple years. Sometimes gorgeous, sometimes crushing, they’re the stuff of life put into sound. And they saved their heaviest stuff for last. All they need to do is keep doing what they’re doing. They’ve been on the right track since their first record.
—
Slomatics
Look. I fucking love this band. I’m not going to attempt to hide it or say play it like the fucking critic out here to coldly assess — incidentally, it would be physically impossible to do anything “coldly” right now — but between “And Yet it Moves” and “Tunnel Dragger” and “Canyons,” what a feast of righteousness Slomatics presented to Freak Valley. They were supposed to be here in 2019, Lufthansa lost their guitars. Last two years, obviously not. They bought their instruments a seat on the plane, so took no chances, and got here just before it was time to go on stage, but hell’s bells, even in the open air they managed to sound huge. I went out front in the sun, took off my hat and sunglasses for a bit and let roll absorb me. Nearby, someone was juggling, so to each their own, but for me there is precious little in terms of “very, very heavy” that stands up to Slomatics. I’ve made the “And Yet it Moves” joke before, but the truth is even just the movement isn’t it. The synth and the atmosphere of the two guitars, the leads coming and going, drummer Marty Harvey’s voice — which sounded the best I’ve ever heard as he held out notes before the inevitable concrete collapse followed. I needed this. This whole thing, but this specifically. An offering of slow catharsis made with devastating impact. Of a band could be this, they would never need to be anything else.
—
Psychlona
Dudes got riffs. “Down in the Valley,” which guitarist/vocalist Phil Hey introduced by saying it was about this very festival, was a languid highlight, and their songs have that primal, when-stoner-rock-was-stoner-rock — so I guess the ’90s era — but even the most rocking stuff comes across thicker. They’re tight with the Psycho Las Vegas crew — their next album, from which they aired a few songs; no I don’t know the titles because I haven’t heard the record and the stage being so high makes setlist peaking impossible. So it goes. Their last album, Venus Skytrip (review here), hit a nerve, and I can’t argue with a band who knows exactly what they want to be doing and then does it. They closed with a faster song off the first record, 2018’s Mojo Rising and had a crowd who’s seen a lot of rock and roll over the last few days still on their side and rocking out. And Hey owns that stage. Not much thrashing around or whatever, but the band’s got chemistry and it’s his stage presence at the center of it. Palo Verde is the name of their new album. I don’t know when it’s out, but I know I’m going to look for it.
—
Temple Fang
It’s hit 32 degrees, which is 90 in Fahrenheit. I actually don’t know if that’s hotter than yesterday or not. I blame Temple Fang. I mean, it’s not every band on the bill who get on stage and start conducting experiments fusing atoms. So it goes. The Amsterdam four-piece let loose on a patient cosmic flow from the moment they started, and with resonance at their core, they nonetheless conveyed a sense of motion, both in the songs and in themselves. Dennis Duijnhouwer, Jevin de Groot and Ivy van der Veer all contributed vocals, sometimes at once, and while because they work in a longer-form context, and because they’re so fucking good at what they do, one tends to focus on the instrumental side of their approach, but 2021’s Fang Temple (review here) was gorgeous and exploratory in kind and they’ve apparently put out two already-gone live cassettes to follow-up 2020’s Live at Merleyn (review here), so good on them. I hope they’re recording this, or they can get the audio from Rockpalast or whatever. It should all be preserved for posterity. They took a bow when they were done, and I think someone was yelling for “one more song,” but I guess without the 20 minutes to spare it was a no-dice.
—
The Midnight Ghost Train
They raised The Midnight Ghost Train’s banner before they went on, and even that got some applause. I wonder where that’s been since the band broke up. The garage? In one of those bins from Costco? I didn’t ask and I regret it a bit. The trio, from Topeka, Kansas, are doing nine more shows after this for their European run and then supposedly that’s it, but I’ll be honest, that’s not the story they’re telling from the stage. That story is about a band who’ve barely been in a room together in four years — longer than that since the last time with this lineup and who have lost none of the fire or the propulsive vitality that defined them. They’ve got album reissues on Majestic Mountain, and maybe they take it slow, do it right, decide only to tour Europe, etc., but if they’re not leaving themselves open to the possibility of keeping this going, it’s a loss, just like it was a loss when they played their final show in 2018. This band is pure heart, pure shove, pure go. They broke out some old material, with Steve Moss telling the crowd about the riff that started the band, how glad they were to be here, and so on, in his gruff delivery with feedback surrounding. Brandon Burghart remains a beast on drums, and Mike Boyne on bass still stands up to everything Moss delivers, meeting him head-on figuratively and literally at the center of the stage. I’ve been looking forward to this since it was announced, I think maybe The Midnight Ghost Train have been missed more than they realize. They closed with “Ain’t it a Shame,” which is no less relevant now than when they were playing it 10 years ago.
—
Elder
I’m a sucker, but I’m glad that as far as Elder have come sonically in the last decade, they still play “Dead Roots Stirring” live. And I love it with two guitars, too. They opened with “Compendium,” as they will, and proceeded to hand the festival its ass with their level of craft, play and style. This was my first time seeing them with drummer Georg Edert, who joined in time to make his recorded debut with the band on 2020’s Omens (review here), and while I’ll always have a soft spot for Matt Couto’s swinging style, Edert has been in the band long enough now that the dynamic isn’t even a question. They just got on and nailed it. “Compendium” into “Blind,” “Dead Roots Stirring” into “Halcyon” and all the sweep you could ask. And as it’s been some years since I last saw them and even longer since the last time in Europe, this was a thrill. They’ve had a new record done for a while, and I hope it’s proggy and unexpected and that they continue to move in whatever direction they want regardless of any expectation placed on them by the fact that they’re one of the best heavy bands in the world, because doing so is what got them there in the first place. It feels like I’ve been unconsciously saving the word “epic” for them, and I’m glad I did. I’m pretty sure new bands form every time they play. Because I’m greedy, I was hoping for a new song in the set, something from their upcoming album murmurings of which have been made pretty much since Omens, but there’s only so much time in a situation like this. Soon enough, I’m sure.
—
High on Fire
I would be lying if I said I wasn’t feeling worn out, out of words, etc., from the last few days, but the intensity of High on Fire is just too overwhelming to not let it affect you. Standing in front of the stage while they tore open the set, the festival and perhaps reality it — I’ll get back on that one — my head was immediately swimming, and when I was done taking pictures, it was all I could do to stand up straight. “Rumors of War.” The nod of “Madness of an Architect.” “Fertile Green.” “Baghdad.” “Fury Whip” gets me every time. Between songs, Matt Pike thanked the crowd profusely, noted that it was the band’s first time back in Europe since the pandemic and said “this is our love and we can’t do it without you.” That’s a far fucking cry from “thank you, Germany,” and on the right direction. I’m still a little astonished that they’re not the last band playing — they sure were a few weeks back when I saw them in NYC (review here) — but one way or the other it’s not like anyone’s going to match their level of destruction. Who the hell could? I stood up front near the end of the set, watched the finish. They were some idealized vision of High on Fire. More than 20 years after the fact, the whole band is incredible. I know Pike has been catching flack for his reading choices, but between him, Jeff Matz and Coady Willis, there’s no weak link. You could pick a player to watch the entire time and be completely bowled over, never mind the three of them together.
—
Fu Manchu
Come on, man. It’s Fu Manchu! And they did “Godzilla” and everything. What more could you possibly ask? Scott Hill, striped shirt, baggy pants, clear guitar. Brad Davis, putting the “fu” in fuzz and giving a little punk rock to the backing vocals. Bob Balch, who probably shreds in his fucking sleep. Scott Reeder, who in a band whose foundation is riffs still bashes his kit heavy enough that other drummers should be blushing. Not everybody could follow Coady Willis. Not many could follow High on Fire, but Fu Manchu being such a different vibe, their being Fu Manchu, and the crowd being so on board made the shift that much smoother. They opened with “Hell on Wheels,” which was indeed a big deal, despite Hill’s professing the contrary, and I don’t think there was one person standing still in the field. I took pictures on the quick because I knew that I still had to do this and I found out that I have to leave earlier than expected tomorrow — plus travel always takes longer because the king of the road says I move too slow — but it’s Fu Manchu digging into “Reagal Beagle.” The primo-est of tone, the primo-est of groove, and a band who have been around for well longer at this point than the 30 years they’re celebrating doing the thing they’ve long since mastered but have never let get dull. If Freak Valley was looking to make it a blowout, they picked the right band to do it. What a party. There’s a reason heavy rock bands have been ripping off Fu Manchu for the better part of those last 30-plus years, and it’s because they’re one of the best to ever do the thing. Classic stoner rock. Dependable to the utmost. They sounded ready to roll all night, and if you would expect any less, you’ve probably never seen Fu Manchu. Recommend you rectify that at the next available opportunity.
—
06.19.22 – Sun. – 7:32AM – Hotel
Thank you first and foremost to The Patient Mrs., through whom all things are possible. I have the not-at-all-vague feeling that when I get home The Pecan is going to rip my arm off and beat me to death with it because I left in the first place — he’s not one for expressing emotions like, “I missed you,” so the arm thing is what you get — but I’ve missed them both tremendously. All the more as there were families at the fest the whole weekend. I can’t imagine trying to wrangle him and cover the fest at the same time, but I’ll be happy to see them both.
The thanks(es) are a long list. Jens Heide, for bringing me here and making this happen. It’s been years in the making even before covid, and it’s truly something special. A festival with heart, made with love for those who will love it. I did.
Thank you to Désirée Hanssen and Rolf Gustavus for making me feel so welcome, for the rides back to the hotel and for the company and conversation. Here’s to no small talk. I almost cried last night telling them how much they made me feel at home. Thanks to Bill from Bushfire for existing. Rare dude. He wasn’t there yesterday and I shit you not the atmosphere was different without him walking around.
Thank you to Kirsten Seubert and Falk-Hagen Bernshausen for the company in the photo pit, and specifically to the former for her antihistamines, which just about saved my life on Friday as my allergies were doing to my mucus membranes what High on Fire did to riffs last night. That kind of generosity means more than I can say.
I met so many wonderful people. Thanks to Alexander Fuchs — who is THE GUY — to Ellen and Nadine backstage, to Jamey, Felli, Jules, to Volker and everyone else helping out behind the scenes for dealing with my dumbass questions and for letting me use that shower in the AWO building to cool off and being generally incredible and kind. The only person who yelled at me all weekend was one of the Rockpalast guys who thought I was stepping on his cable. I was not and told him so in no uncertain terms.
Thanks to Christian from Who Can You Trust? Records. Thanks to Geezer, Elder, The Midnight Ghost Train, Temple Fang, Slomatics, Psychlona, Bob from Fu Manchu, Duel, the guys from IAH, Madmess, Supersonic Blues, The Atomic Bitchwax, Green Lung, Purple Dawn, all the other bands and folks from bands I met and got to hang out with or say hi or chat for a little bit, whatever it was.
Thanks to everyone who came up and said hi who knew the site. Every day, people said the nicest, most validating stuff. Humbling. I know how much The Obelisk means to me, and it feels silly and awkward but I do very much appreciate knowing that I’m not the only one. Thank you. Nick and Hazel, Tim from Noorvik, Arthur Starmonger, Uwe, Tanguy, Max Rebel, Dries from Down the Hill, a ton of others. What a delight as always to see Sister Rainbow and to meet Johan, and if the UK doesn’t name Pete Holland ambassador-at-large soon, I fear for the state of global diplomacy.
No doubt I’ll add more names throughout today as I begin to process what the last 96 hours have wrought, but thank you most of all. The only reason I’m here in the first place, the only reason I can feign relevance to the minimal extent that I can, is because of you. Thank you. Thank you for reading. Thank you if you’ve followed along with any of this. Thank you.
Today’s episode of The Obelisk Show on Gimme Metal is a tribute to and a look at the lineup for this year’s Freak Valley Festival, taking place next week in Siegen, Germany. Freak Valley has been hosting bands for over a decade and I’m proud to say that this will be my first year attending after many, many more wanting to do so, doing writing for the festival, etc.
Should probably point out even if I d don’t necessarily need to that this isn’t the full lineup of the festival, just as much as I could effectively pack into two hours while also managing to play a 20-minute Endless Boogie track. Could I have hunted out shorter cuts and maybe been able to fit another band or two? Probably, but it doesn’t feel like The Obelisk Show in my brain if it doesn’t end with a jam, so it is what it needs to be.
I should be in the chat this time if you want to say hi. I was doing live factoids about the bands for a while because the Gimme Bot doesn’t always know this stuff if it’s new, or weird, or not at all metal, and so on, but it just kind of got sad after a while so I stopped. Lesson learned.
Thanks if you listen, thanks if you’re reading. Thanks in general.
The Obelisk Show airs 5PM Eastern today on the Gimme app or at: http://gimmemetal.com.
Full playlist:
The Obelisk Show – 06.10.22
Psychlona
Blast Off
Venus Skytrip
Fu Manchu
Strange Plan
Fu30 Pt. 2
Duel
Wave of Your Hand
In Carne Persona
Green Lung
Leaders of the Blind
Black Harvest
VT1
Red Fang
Wires
Murder the Mountains
The Midnight Ghost Train
Foxhole
Buffalo
Villagers of Ioannina City
Part V
Age of Aquarius
Pelican
Arteries of Blacktop
Nighttime Stories
Djiin
Warmth of Death
Meandering Soul
Toundra
Danubio
II
Geezer
Atomic Moronic
Stoned Blues Machine
Slomatics
Cosmic Guilt
Canyons
IAH
Naga
Omines
Kosmodome
Hypersonic
Kosmodome
Madmess
Rebirth
Rebirth
VT2
Endless Boogie
Jim Tully
Admonitions
The Obelisk Show on Gimme Metal airs every Friday 5PM Eastern, with replays Sunday at 7PM Eastern. Next new episode is June 25 (subject to change). Thanks for listening if you do.
Posted in Whathaveyou on May 2nd, 2022 by JJ Koczan
My flight is booked and I’m beyond excited to say that after years of longing to do so even before the covid-19 pandemic, I’ll be attending Freak Valley Festival for the first time in June. I’m not sure yet where I’m staying or how I’m getting to the actual event from the airport, let alone back afterward, but you know, a flight isn’t nothing and I’m honored to have that like I’m honored to see a logo for The Obelisk on the poster. I wrote the announcement below — composed it in the back end of this very post, as it happens — and I’ll drop a hint and say that I know who the special guest is if you can make a fantastic getaway to get to see them. Actually that’s way too vague a hint. Sorry, I can’t think of anything else. If you have your head keyed into early aughts Nasoni Records releases, maybe you’ll come up with it. If not, sorry.
In any case, to say I’m looking forward to this — seeing Geezer and The Atomic Bitchwax on foreign soil, seeing friends in and out of bands, seeing IAH and Temple Fang and Villagers of Ioannina City and Duel and Supersonic Blues and The Midnight Ghost Train‘s reunion and Planet of Zeus and Pelican — well, hot shit, to say I’m looking forward to it borders on laughable. In my head, I’m already there.
Here’s that announcement:
Freaks!
Spring has come to Freak Valley, and somehow the universal image of the season meaning new life manifests for us in an especially killer lot of band announcements. Hey, we don’t judge. Don’t you either.
Did we mention BAND ANNOUNCEMENTS?
Good. Here they are:
THE ATOMIC BITCHWAX
More than 20 years on from their legendary debut album, The Atomic Bitchwax are the train of riffs that wouldn’t stop anyway if it could. They are nothing less than stoner rock royalty and we’re thrilled to welcome them to our lineup. Top frickin’ shelf rock and roll.
ENDLESS BOOGIE
The New York City jammers are nothing if not aptly named. If you’re not familiar, check out last year’s ‘Admonitions’ LP and we know you’ll find it stunningly easy to get on board. When these guys play they’re in their own world. We look forward to getting a glimpse of that.
DVNE
We’re just going to assume that, yes, you heard ‘Etemen Ænka’ when DVNE released it and so you don’t need us to tell you how excited we are to welcome these progressive metallers to the Freak Valley stage. Duh, right? We thought so. Years from now you’ll brag about seeing this band.
TYLER BRYANT AND THE SHAKEDOWN
Tyler Bryant and the Shakedown’s 2020 album, ‘Pressure,’ was a high point of a shit year, and we knew immediately we had to have this Nashville-born blues rocking outfit to our stage. They’ve toured with the likes of Guns ‘n’ Roses and AC/DC, and their swagger is backed up by chops. You will not regret being here for this one.
MADMESS
Hell yes. That fuzz. That drift. That vibe. For a good time, call Madmess’ 2021 LP, ‘Rebirth.’ These Portuguese heavy psychedelic expansionists cast a warmth that’s cosmic and earthy in kind. Their jams are memorable and organic, and they deliver with an energy that’s raw power. Oh it’s gonna be so good. You don’t even know.
DJIIN
That’s not a typo. These French heavy proggers put out their ‘Meandering Soul’ album last year, and we’re still tripping on it. Ambitious landscapes of sound and scope meld fluidly with thoughtful songcraft and gorgeous vocal melodicism. They’re retro enough to be from the future, so it must be the sound of right now. We stoked to meet it in-person.
SPECIAL GUEST!!
Luckily we will also be able to sell some returned full festival tickets soon.
Also Wednesday Tickets for those who already own 3 Day tickets are still available.
Please buy them now!
Rock on – your Rock Freaks
Freak Valley Festival // No Fillers – Just Killers
Day Three of the Spring 2022 Quarterly Review — commence! As you well know because I’m quite certain you’re the type of person to sit around and think about these things and I’m in no way the only human who gives enough of a crap to notice, today we hit the halfway point of this particular QR, not in the middle, but at the end, as today will culminate with review number 30 of the total 60 to come by the end of the day next Monday. Is it cheating to get a full weekend to do the last installment? Depends entirely on the weekend. In any case, starting tomorrow we go downhill, numerically, not in terms of the quality of what’s covered.
Until then.
Quarterly Review #21-30:
Ruby the Hatchet, Live at Earthquaker
While on tour with Kadavar in late-2019, New Jersey heavy psych rockers Ruby the Hatchet swung through Earthquaker Devices in Ohio and put these three songs to tape. In addition to being the band’s first release for Magnetic Eye Records, the EP serves these years after the fact as a still-foreshadowing glimpse at their next full-length, the follow-up to 2017’s Planetary Space Child (review here), which but for plague probably would be on its third pressing by now. At least it would be if the rolling riffs and organ shimmer of “1,000 Years” and the bluesier what-I’ll-just-assume-is-an-homage-to-the-band-of-the-same-name “Primitive Man” are anything to go by. Paired with Ruby the Hatchet‘s take on Uriah Heep‘s “Easy Livin’,” the new songs herald the awaited album in a way that seems to justify their having been kept in-pocket for just the right moment. I’m glad that moment is now, and I also kind of feel like Ruby the Hatchet need to start recording more shows and putting out their own soundboard bootlegs. This is clearly mixed, pro-mastered and all that, but still. They make every second of these 14 minutes count.
Anonymous Belgian outfit Wyatt E. return five years after their debut with āl bēlūti dārû, comprising two tracks of all-in Mesopotamian-themed drone ritualizing. The robed outfit top 18 minutes with “Mušhuššu” and “Šarru Rabu” both, and their intention toward immersing the audience in a whole-side experience isn’t misplaced as their arrangements branch beyond genre typicality in service of the Middle Easternism around which much of what they do is based. More than cinematically wrought, the two pieces here are striking in moving from the crescendos of their respective builds into richly conjured explorations, the former of saz and other instruments, the latter of percussion and voice. Likewise, with two drumkits, they want nothing for rhythmic urgency, despite the open structures of the actual material. One wonders at the Orientalism on display throughout as potentially a kind of minstrelsy, particularly with the hooded unknown figures casting themselves as decidedly ‘other’ from a European mainstream, but the same anonymity guards against the notion since it’s unclear just who these people are. I’m not sure I’m all the way on board, but they effectively convey spectacle without losing artistic presence. And if you spend the rest of your day reading about the Akkadian Empire, I’m sure worse things have happened.
My impression of Canterbury, UK, doomers Famyne‘s 2016 self-titled debut (review here) were of a band burgeoning in atmosphere anchored by strong songwriting and melodic vocals with periodic likeness to Alice in Chains and The Wounded Kings. Arriving through Svart Records, the eight-song/45-minute II: The Ground Below doesn’t do much to detract from that core impression, but the ambient “A Submarine” and the mean chug in the back half of the later “The Ai” take them to new places and demonstrate the individualization of genre tropes underway in their sound. “Once More” taps a more NWOBHM style, while “Babylon” touches on Candlemassian grandiosity, and “Gone” fluidly begins to transition from the crush of opening duo “Defeated” and “Solid Earth” before “A Submarine” takes hold, which is only further evidence they know what they’re doing.
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Humanotone, A Flourishing Fall in a Grain of Sand
Evidently a number of years in the making from front-to-back, Humanotone‘s second full-length, A Flourishing Fall in a Grain of Sand, finds the solo-project spearheaded by Jorge Cisternas Monsalves, aka Jorge Cist, working once more completely on his own save for some saxophone on 12-minute closer “Even Though.” Given the lush, progressive, and thoughtful execution of progressive heavy rock the Chile-based Cist manifests throughout cuts like “Light Antilogies” and “Ephemeral” prior — taking lessons from Elder‘s Dead Roots Stirring and applying them well for his own purposes — it wouldn’t have been surprising if he picked up the sax himself, frankly. He proves visionary throughout the proceedings one way or the other, and atop a bed of his own drumming is able to cast deep landscapes of keys and guitar and bass in “A Flourishing Fall” and a build and payoff in “Scrolls for the Blind” before the 3:45 “Beyond the Machine” goes straightforward in a way that feels like a gift ahead of the closer, while still retaining its proggy vibe vocally, melodically and rhythmically. There’s been some word-of-mouth hype around this one. Not unwarranted.
Big on vibe, crunches when it wants, spaces out with broader jams, takes its time, flows as it will but still hits with an impact — yeah, there’s no shortage of things to like about Madmess‘ Hassle Records-issued second full-length, Rebirth. If you, yourself, have been born-again semi-instrumentalist psych-prog, then no doubt you’ll relate to the careening and twisting path that the five mostly-extended tracks take, unfolding with a focus on liquefied echo on “Albatross” before the companioning “Mind Collapse” introduces the vocals that will show up again on closer “Stargazer” (not a Rainbow cover). Between those two, the title-cut and “Shapeshifter” back-to-back build on some of the mellower stretches prior at least before locking into their own heavier parts, but by then you’re long since hypnotized anyway, and the drift that serves to transition into “Stargazer” is only pushing further out as it goes. I’m not sure who in the Portugese trio (if anyone) is the vocalist, but the voice suits the songs well, even if they’re plainly comfortable going without, and reasonably so.
Mostly instrumental, the aptly-titled EP II — the second short release from Utrecht, the Netherlands, trombone-inclusive experimentalist doomers Eaters of the Soil — runs four tracks and 35 minutes and, early on, uses spoken samples from this or that serial killer about putting plastic bags over women’s heads to suffocate them. Through “V – Point of Capture” and even into “VI – Untouched, Unspoken To” (the Roman numeral numbering system continued from their pandemic-minded 2021 first EP), a somewhat slowed down version of whoever it is goes on about killing women and this and that. The second half of the release with “VII – Burrowing, Feasting” and “VIII – Subcurrent,” are both dark enough to be considered affected by the same atmosphere — “VI – Untouched, Unspoken To” has a bit of float to it, so it’s not all grim — churning, meandering and freaking out in at-least-partially improv-jazz style, but Eaters of the Soil cast a grim vision of humanity and that impression stays resonant even as “VIII – Subcurrent” lumbers into its wash of a finish. Is extreme jazz a thing? Turns out maybe.
With its just-slightly-off-beat drum loop, “Light” seems to build into a wash until even the song can’t take anymore and needs to drop out. It’s not the first take on NYOS‘ second offering for Pelagic Records, Celebration — that would be the improvised opener “First Take” — but it and the serene hum that emerges in the subsequent “Something Good” and even the shimming almost steel-drum sounds of “Tucano” demonstrate the Finland-based instrumentalist duo’s stated intentions toward dance music. The later “Gold Vulcan,” the first single, gets into some noisier fare as if to remind that guitarist Tom Brooke (also recording) and drummer Tuomas Kainulainen are coming from a harder-hitting place, but in the also-improv “Cloudberry” just before and particularly the willfully gorgeous “Rosario” (Dawson?) after, the intentions are gentler and more welcoming, and that continues into the final drone stretch and far, far back drumming that consumes most of closer “Surface” before it ultimately explodes in resonant light, reinforcing the notion of joy inherent in the album’s title, feeling like a grand finale to an aural fireworks display.
Making their debut on Heavy Psych Sounds with Impending Doom, Sweden’s Endtime are not shy about their influence from horror cinema. Their sound blends sludge and classic doom together such that opener “Harbinger of Disease” comes through like Mike IX Williams of Eyehategod stepping in to front Cathedral, and his harsh wails echo out a tolling (for thee, make no mistake) bell to foretell the harsh terrors soon to unfold. “ICBM” kills quick and lets its church organ mourn later, and the centerpiece “They Live” (a classic) adjusts the balance such that the cinematic, post-Uncle Acid vibe comes to the front still with the barking vocals overtop; a blend I can’t think of anyone else pulling off as well as Endtime do. The longer “Cities on Fire with the Burning Flesh of Men” follows and is more purely about the crunch at least until the sitar shows up — a nice curve to throw — ahead of its severe closing section, and closer “Living Graves” wraps the 28-minute LP by pushing the organ forward again and dissolving into a wash of noise before the feed seems to cut out like channel 11 just stopped broadcasting in the middle of the night. Hey man, I was watching that. Not quite revolutionary, but onto something. Impending, if you will.
By my count, Bloodshot Buffalo — the solo-project of Santa Rosa, California’s Sheafer McOmber — has put out no fewer than four full-lengths since 2019. Accordingly, the two-song Light EP is most likely a stopgap en route to the next one, but “Light” and “Don’t Follow Me” make an enticing sampler of the band’s wares all the same, digging into an energetic heavy progressive rock like a less-low-end-focused Forming the Void in the title-track as McOmber carefully weaves in a multi-layered guitar solo panning channels from one to the other and “Don’t Follow Me” reaffirms the groove on which that happens while sorting out its own languid flow. The shorter of the two, “Don’t Follow Me” doesn’t feature the same kind of midsection break as “Light” itself, and once it heads out, it doesn’t come back, unlike “Light,” which returns to the hook at the finish. Some structural play as enticement to dig further into the Bloodshot Buffalo catalog while waiting for the seemingly inevitable next thing. This being my first exposure to McOmber‘s work, I hope to do exactly that.
Swedish now-duo Oh Hiroshima present their fourth album, Myriad, as a collection of weighted, spacious and emotive contemplations. Their heavy post-rock is stylized to be patient and broad-reaching, and in pieces like “All Things Pass” and “Veil of Certainty” early on, they find a niche for themselves between harder-hitting atmospheric material marked out by droning horn arrangements and more straight-ahead melodic verses, the ambience open enough to pull the focus away from underlying structures. It’s an immersive-if-somewhat-familiar modern take, but the two-piece of guitarist/bassist/vocalist Jakob Hemström and drummer Oskar Nilsson stem into moodier vibes on “Tundra” and closer “Hidden Chamber” takes a less effects-centered, more organic-sounding approach, emphasizing the strings for its build while staying earthbound in the drums, bass and guitars beneath. Some will pass Myriad up entirely, others will worship its depth. Either way, the pair seem like they’ll keep moving forward in their well-crafted, considered approach.
Posted in Radio on February 4th, 2022 by JJ Koczan
There’s a lot going on here. A lot to unpack, in the parlance of our times, but I’m gonna keep it short because I always feel like I screw these posts up by making it more than the list of bands and encouragement and thanks for listening that it should be. Hey, guess what? I think the songs I picked for the show I made don’t suck. If that wasn’t going to be the case, why would I pick them?
As for the voice breaks here, I barely remember what I said other than I was awkward. My wife was giving our son a bath at the time and I was worried he tub sounds would show up in the recording. That’s my rock and roll lifestyle. I’ve been considering a cocaine addiction so I can convince myself I’m fun again. Maybe go to a show.
Thanks for listening. Or reading. Whatever, really. Just thanks.
The Obelisk Show airs 5PM Eastern today on the Gimme app or at: http://gimmemetal.com.
Full playlist:
The Obelisk Show – 02.04.22
Author & Punisher
Maiden Star
Kruller
Purple Dawn
Death to a Dying World
Peace & Doom Session Vol. II
Eric Wagner
Maybe Tomorrow
In the Lonely Light of Mourning
VT
Madmess
Stargazer
Rebirth
Stone House on Fire
Waterfall
Time is a Razor
Hazemaze
Ceremonial Aspersion
Blinded by the Wicked
Spaceslug
Spring of the Abyss
Memorial
Mt. Echo
These Concrete Lungs
Electric Empire
VT
Slugg
Yonder
Yonder
KYOTY
Ventilate
Isolation
JIRM
You Fly
The Tunnel, the Well, Holy Bedlam
Carcaňo
I Don’t Belong Here
By Order of the Green Goddess
Ascia
Eternal Glory
Volume II
VT
MWWB
The Harvest
The Harvest
All Them Witches
Blacksnake Blues
Baker’s Dozen
The Obelisk Show on Gimme Metal airs every Friday 5PM Eastern, with replays Sunday at 7PM Eastern. Next new episode is Feb. 18 (subject to change). Thanks for listening if you do.
