This year’s Maryland Doom Fest has already begun. It started last night and will continue through Sunday, packing as much volume as possible between the first switched on amplifier and the final, inevitable broom swept across the floor afterward at Cafe 611 in Frederick, MD, where the fest is held. These shows are jammed. They start early. They go late. There’s nothing else quite like Maryland Doom Fest out there, and when you go, you’re made welcome whether you’re a regular or not. It’s too intimate a space and too cool a crowd for bullshit attitudes to survive. Relax and enjoy the tunes.

I’m sad to say I’m not there this year — let’s call it “family stuff” and leave it there — but the lineup is incredible and I wanted to do at least some tiny measure of tribute to that, so here we are. Some of these bands are MDDF veterans — Apostle of Solitude, Zed, Foghound, Faith in Jane, Caustic Casanova, etc. — but some are new to the event as well — Coven, Great Electric Quest, Formula 400, and others — so it’s a good mix, and you know I’m a sucker for ending epic, so The Age of Truth seemed perfect for that. They’re gonna kill it this weekend playing songs from Resolute and everyone there will know it long before they go on and they’ll still kill it. That’s just how it goes down there. You’re gonna have a good time.

Thanks if you listen, thanks if you’re reading. Thanks in general. And if you’re at the fest this weekend, enjoy it.

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

Full playlist:

The Obelisk Show – 06.24.22 (VT = voice track)

The Obelisk Show on Gimme Metal airs every Friday 5PM Eastern, with replays Sunday at 7PM Eastern. Next new episode is July 8 (subject to change). Thanks for listening if you do.

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As suspected, the lineup announcement for the 2022 Maryland Doom Fest is relatively short on fluff. No flowery descriptions of the acts involved, no hype about how important it is to get together in these times of plague and support the community, the underground, whatever it is. That’s all true enough, but as ever, Maryland Doom Fest is putting the name out there for you to see, and if you know, you know. If you’re a part of that family down there in Frederick, you’ve already got your calendar marked. This is who’ll be at the reunion.

And to that, with bands like Horehound, Thunderbird Divine, Caustic Casanova, fest-organizer JB Matson‘s own Bloodshot, Faith in Jane, ZED, Helgamite, Shadow Witch, The Age of Truth, Apostle of Solitude, Horseburner, Dead East Garden, Strange Highways and Foghound on the bill, this one will no doubt feel like a reunion in no small part. These acts and some of the others as well have shared MDDF bills in the past, and indeed, some were included in the announcement for January’s Doom Hawg Day as well, as was speculated. Still cool to see some of those returning coming across the country to do it, though, be it ZED or Formula 400.

Set for June 23-26 at Cafe 611 and Olde Mother Brewing in Frederick, MD, and of course subject to some changes between now and June, the lineup for Maryland Doom Fest 2022 is as follows:

Maryland Doom Fest 2022 Lineup

Black Road
Dust Prophet
Ol’ Time Moonshine
High Priestess
Wrath of Typhon
Alms
Black Lung
Thunderbird Divine
Atomic Motel
Byrgan
Faces of Bayon
Grief Collector
Crystal Spiders
Helgamite
Shadow Witch
The Age of Truth
Heavy Temple
Problem with Dragons
Strange Highways
Fellowcraft
Formula 400
Tines
Indus Valley Kings
The Stone Eye
Crow Hunter
Caustic Casanova
Coma Hole
Wizzerd
Mythosphere
Horehound
Bloodshot
NobleSoul
Coven
ZED
Faith in Jane
Future Projektor
Apostle of Solitude
Orodruin
Dead East Garden
Ritual Earth
Grave Next Door
Black Sabbitch
Lost Breed
Horseburner
Foghound
Hot Ram
Flummox

https://www.facebook.com/MdDoomFest/
www.marylanddoomfest.com

Apostle of Solitude, When the Darkness Goes (2021)

The Age of Truth, Resolute (2021)