Moral superiority suits San Francisco metallers Slough Feg. Their sound, rooted in NWOBHM traditions and met with righteousness culled from Celtic folk, is neither that simple nor that limited. They reside in that same hallowed realm of underappreciation as Voivod, whose Killing Technology is lyrically referenced here, or like what would’ve happened if the early metal of Cirith Ungol and Manilla Road had continued an unabated progression. All comparisons due justice to parts of their sound, none to the whole of it. Slough Feg‘s eighth full-length, 2010’s The Animal Spirits (review here), was organic in its sound and presentation, and while their 2014 follow-up, Digital Resistance (on Metal Blade), feels inherently more aggressive, it’s hard to figure where the line actually resides between band self-awareness and reading a narrative into the songs. Certainly, Slough Feg, who formed in 1990 and are led by guitarist/vocalist Mike Scalzi with Angelo Tringali on guitar, Adrian Maestas on bass and Harry Cantwell on drums, can be expected know what they’re doing by now, and as the title indicates, they’re working in opposition — the position beginning with opener “Analogue Avengers/Bertrand Russell’s Sex Den” seems to be (which I say because I haven’t had the benefit of a lyric sheet) resistance to the digital rather than putting up a resistance via or from the digital — so it’s just as easy to think the signs of a struggle are evoked from the music as they are actually present in it. Who ever knows anything, anyway? Rock and roll, goddammit.

The opener sets both the stage and a dramatic tone befitting it, Scalzi‘s voice clear as ever over the band’s dense and rhythmic churn, but the ensuing title-track offers more of a gallop, and much of Digital Resistance seems keen to play the two sides off each other. A seamless blend of acoustic and electric guitar is nothing new for Slough Feg, and though the character and theme of this album is different, one can hear traces of consistency and development both from The Animal Spirits and the preceding outings, 2009’s Ape Uprising! and 2007’s Hardworlder. Slough Feg sounding like Slough Feg shouldn’t be any great surprise to anyone who’s followed the band at any point in their tenure, but that creative will to stand apart suits well the personality of Digital Resistance, and as “Habeas Corpsus” introduces a spacious acoustic strum amid tom roll and multi-layered vocals, the rush in terms of pace is no less prevalent than it was on the title cut — momentum quickly built and even quicker once it gets going. “Magic Hooligan” furthers the pace, bouncing thrash circularity off more technically engaged riff work and slamming into heavy rock groove into its second half as a bed for classic-style soloing and smooth transition back to a double-kick final verse, a sneakier guitar line in “Ghastly Appendage” holding more tension even as it seems to be paying off in its chorus, peculiar and instrumental save for maniacal laughing. Digital Resistance doesn’t feel overtly structured for vinyl — at 10 tracks and just under 41 minutes, it breaks evenly track-wise at 19 minutes for side A and almost 22 for side B, with “Ghastly Appendage” providing a strange, down-the-rabbit-hole vibe to close out the first half.

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Supporting their earlier 2013 release, Thy Kingdom Scum (review here), Japan’s resident serial-killer-obsessed lords of Sabbathian stonerized doom madness Church of Misery will return to US shores next month. They’ll arrive fresh off a stint in Australia that ends on Oct. 6 and includes a performance at the Doomsday Festival in Sydney.

Joining them for the North American run will be a rotating cast of characters including Saviours, Wizard Rifle, The Gates of Slumber and Against the Grain. The first two will cover the West Coast portion of the tour and the latter will pick up in the Midwest and carry on east before Church of Misery head back west to finish out in Arizona and Los Angeles, as if just to make sure they’ve utterly destroyed the appropriate amount of major urban centers before leaving. No doubt they will.

Church of Misery are also set to release a new DVD on Emetic Records by the title of Terror in Tokyo that captures them in December of last year and also includes the entirety of their Maryland Deathfest performance as bonus footage. The tracklisting and a clip from that follow the tour poster below:

Church of Misery returns to the U.S.!
with Saviours, The Gates of Slumber, Wizard Rifle, Against The Grain

OCTOBER
18 Oakland CA @ Oakland Opera House
19 San Francisco CA @ Thee Parkside
20 Portland OR @ Rotture
21 Seattle WA @ The Crocodile
22 Bellingham WA @ The Shakedown
23 Vancouver BC @ Rickshaw Theater
24 Edmonton AB @ Pawn Shop
25 Calgary AB @ Palomino
30 Fargo ND @ The Aquarium
31 Saint Paul MN @ Turf Club

NOVEMBER
01 Chicago IL @ Ultra Lounge
02 Rock Island IL @ Rock Island Brewing Co.
03 Grand Rapids MI @ Pyramid Scheme
06 Pittsburgh PA @ 31st Street Pub
07 Syracuse NY @ Lost Horizon
08 Toronto ON @ Hard Luck
09 Ottawa ON @ Mavericks
10 Montreal QC @ Il Motore
11 Providence RI @ AS220
12 Brooklyn NY @ Saint Vitus Bar
13 Richmond VA @ Kingdom
14 Baltimore MD @ Ottobar
16 Atlanta GA @ The Earl
17 New Orleans LA @ One Eyed Jacks
18 Austin TX @ Mohawk
19 Dallas TX @ Club Dada
22 Tempe AZ @ Yucca Tap Room
23 Los Angeles CA @ The Satellite

Church Of Misery – Terror In Tokyo

Terror in Tokyo is Church Of Misery’s 4th dvd and first to ever be available outside of Europe or Japan and 1st since since 2007’s Live In Red – Eurotour 2005. Along with the main feature the entire set from the 2012 Maryland Death Fest has been added as bonus material.

Track Listing – Main feature at 20000 VOLT, Kouenji, Tokyo 29th December 2012. Run time 2.5 hours

1. B.T.K 0
2. Lambs to the slaughter
3. Brother Bishop
4. Candy Man
5. Born to raise hell
6. Taste the pain
7. Killfornia
8. Red ripper blues
9. El Padrino
10. Shotgun boogie
11. Sick of living
12. Badlands
13. I,Motherfucker
14. Blood sucking freaks
15. Where evil dwells ~ jamming
16. For mad men only
17 Filth bitch boogie

Church of Misery, “Blood Sucking Freaks” from Terror in Tokyo

Wow. So this is a thing that happened. I knew Uncle Acid and the Deadbeats were kind of a big deal, but I guess I had no idea just how big. Apparently they’re a “Main Support to Black Sabbath” kind of big deal. Congrats to the band. Here’s the info off the PR wire:

UNCLE ACID ANNOUNCED AS MAIN SUPPORT SUPPORT TO BLACK SABBATH ON UK EUROPEAN TOUR. FULL PRESS RELEASE THIS TIME!!

Through the flickering flames of a pyre built from a thousand emaciated hipsters leap Uncle Acid & The Deadbeats, black tongues distended and hair blown backwards…

The UK’s best new rock band are pleased to announce they have been invited by the legendary rock band Black Sabbath as the main support for their EU & UK arena tour in November and December 2013. The quartet have also been confirmed to play this year’s Reading / Leeds festival.

FULL DATES:
23-25-Aug UK Reading/ Leeds Reading/ Leeds Festival
20-Nov Finland Helsinki Hartwall Arena
22-Nov Sweden Stockholm Friends Arena
24-Nov Norway Oslo Telenor Arena
26-Nov Denmark Copenhagen Forum
28-Nov Netherlands Amsterdam Ziggo Dome
30-Nov Germany Dortmund Westfalenhalle
02-Dec France Paris Bercy
04-Dec Germany Frankfurt Festhalle
07-Dec Czech Republic Prague O2 Arena
10-Dec UK London O2 Arena
12-Dec UK Belfast Odyssey Arena
14-Dec UK Sheffield Motorpoint Arena
16-Dec UK Glasgow Hydro
18-Dec UK Manchester Arena Manchester Arena
20-Dec UK Birmingham LG Arena
22-Dec UK Birmingham National Indoor Arena

Formed in Cambridge by media-shy frontman K.R. Stars, in an era of profile building, brand-expanding and over-exposure Uncle Acid & The Deadbeats are a cult genuine phenomena. The dictionary definition of cult, in fact: “a system of religious worship, with reference to its rites and ceremonies. A group or sect bound together by veneration of the same ideal.” In this case: taking rock music back to its ritualistic beginnings when pagan heathens would stomp out a dirt-rhythm and howl at the moon. When music was the carnal catalyst for orgiastic midnight reckonings.

** New single Mind Crawler, with accompanying video to be released late August.

Uncle Acid and the Deadbeats, “Mind Crawler” from Mind Control (2013)

After debuting in 2010 with the so-rare-it-barely-exists Volume 1 and following it in 2011 with the landmark arrival that was Blood Lust – an album for which one can still hear the hyperbole echoing on the wind if one listens just right – British horror rockers Uncle Acid and the Deadbeats emerge with another round of malevolent fuzz on Mind Control. Though Blood Lust was reissued by Rise Above last year, Mind Control marks the Cambridge four-piece’s debut proper on the label (Metal Blade in the US), and if the response to the advance single “Poison Apple” and the sold-out live debut at London’s The Garage venue are any indication, the monstrous hype that swelled for Blood Lust is primed to take hold again for the new collection, which is longer at nine tracks/50 minutes than the second album. More importantly than the visceral nature of the blind praise it’s almost predestined to receive, Mind Control showcases some distinct changes in Uncle Acid’s approach, taking their late-‘60s garage fuzz to far-out psychedelic ranges while also balancing those influences with the strong pop sensibilities that came to fruition the last time out, so that a song like the later “Valley of the Dolls” is languid, fuzzed mellotron’ed and meandering – also doomed – but still proffering one of Mind Control’s strongest hooks. While one of the most distinct aspects of the band’s sound two years ago was their ability to capture a classic horror aesthetic in their songwriting, Mind Control is less tied to that single idea specifically, and though it doesn’t want for foreboding atmosphere or an underlying sense of ill intentions, the impression is delivered through what’s at times a strikingly sweet package. To wit, “Follow the Leader,” which owes more to The Beatles’ Revolver than to the Hammer House of Horror, or the progressive soloing that arises in the second half of the earlier “Desert Ceremony.” They’re on a different – though no less individualized – trip, still putting the overarching affect of the material at the fore rather an any one member’s performance, but taking the means of their methods to new and more evolved ends.

One of the great strengths of Blood Lust was its use of classic pop structures, and that’s something Uncle Acid and the Deadbeats have carried over into Mind Control as well, though as much as that album transferred verses and choruses into felonies of surgical precision, some of these songs’ best moments are their most drawn out. The opener and one of the longer cuts, “Mt. Abraxas” (7:09), hints at some of the psychedelia that comes up later in the closing trio, but really does most of its work in heralding the tonal consistency with the band’s prior outings while also showcasing the uptick in production value accomplished through working with Jim Spencer at Chapel Studios in Lincolnshire, showing also in its midsection just how much of Uncle Acid’s tonality – fast becoming their signature – is owed to circa-1974 Black Sabbath, the guitars taking on classic Iommi layered interplay between lead and rhythm lines. I was left wondering though why the song had been chosen to lead off Mind Control until the crashes and slowdown after the 4:30 mark that leads the way instrumentally through the remainder of the track, which hone directly in on Uncle Acid’s psychotic cabaret stomp and give the record one of its most lasting grooves, duly ridden. Perhaps also “Mt. Abraxas” is meant to signal a departure from the form of Blood Lust, since it functions not so much as a direct chorus hook as did that album’s launch, “I’ll Cut You Down,” but instead as more of a lead-in to the rest of this album as a whole, the pace picking up with the ensuing “Mind Crawler.” With a synth line buried beneath the guitars, bass and drums to offer a sense of urgency fitting the more upbeat tempo, “Mind Crawler” is both a strong hook and an immediate contrast to the opener, finding companionship shortly with the more metallic “Evil Love” in a quicker rush that builds to a stop in the second half before repetitions of the title at the end give it a second chorus as much as an outro. The swaggering jaunt of “Poison Apple” follows, its initial verse following a simple pattern of proclamations rounding out with the lines, “Don’t you worry baby, you’re safe with me/I’m the poison apple in your tree.” From there, it’s riffy groove, spiders in the brains, infections and a host of other threatening images to go with one of Mind Control’s best basslines and a toe-tapping rhythm. The vocals, almost always delivered by more than one member of the band at once, are rarely at the fore, but present enough in the mix to carry across the hook of “Poison Apple” well, setting up the more spacious “Desert Ceremony,” which takes some of the Sabbathisms that showed up in “Mt. Abraxas” and makes them the core of the progression.

One can look at Mind Control as functioning on a couple different levels. Cuts like “Mt. Abraxas,” “Follow the Leader,” “Valley of the Dolls” and “Devil’s Work” are longer, and particularly in the case of the last three, working in more psychedelic realms, where “Mind Crawler,” “Poison Apple,” “Evil Love” and “Death Valley Blues” keep a more straightforward – structurally – feel, the latter nonetheless providing transition atmospherically into the rest of side B’s freakout. At very least I’d argue that’s the case, and if so, “Desert Ceremony” is where the two sides of Uncle Acid’s sound meet and get down on some drawn-out lysergics while smoothly shifting into some of the album’s most satisfying riffing, the guitars harmonizing here and there and setting a table for the end of the first half that arrives with “Evil Love.” Classic proto-NWOBHM chugging – more biker movie than otherworldly horror creep, but well done – shows up in the chorus, but the sound is stripped of the lushness that “Desert Ceremony” hinted at in its midsection, and that’s the biggest change. The momentum already established by the time “Poison Apple” ends carries through “Desert Ceremony” to “Evil Love,” so that the shift back to a faster tempo isn’t jarring, and the simple chorus of “You need our love/Our evil love/You are dear/To our purpose” (that third line might be something else) showing off the band’s ability to make the most out of near-minimalist lyricism. The song ends cold, marking a distinct break between the first halves of Mind Control even on a linear medium (CD or digital), and “Death Valley Blues” starts with a quiet introduction to its chorus guitar line, establishing a theme with “Desert Ceremony” even as the sweet first verse turns sinister with the heavier guitar that enters for the chorus at full breadth. Its threat made clear, “Death Valley Blues” plays off the I’m-harmless-watch-me-kill-you contrast of the airier pop verse and the vicious chorus, moving after a couple turns through to a near-vaudevillian riff that seems to echo the ending “Mt. Abraxas” even as vocals are introduced over top, the chaos coming to a head as the murderous vibe loses consciousness in its own repetitions, crashing and ringing out to start “Follow the Leader” from a base of total silence.

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Yeah, everybody thinks they’re the biggest Black Sabbath fan in the world, but long-running Japanese doomers Church of Misery have a pretty solid case working in their favor. Like, you know, everything they’ve ever done. Led by bassist/founder Tatsu Mikami, the Tokyo-based four-piece will issue their fifth full-length, Thy Kingdom Scum, on Rise Above in Europe and Metal Blade in North America, May 27 and June 11, respectively.

This is the first new Church of Misery release since their 2010 Live at Roadburn (review here) offering, though Emetic Records reissued Vol. 1 in 2011 (review here). A brand new teaser for Thy Kingdom Scum has just been made public, from serial killer samples to blistering Iommic riffage, everything seems to be in working order. Check it out below:

Church of Misery, Thy Kingdom Scum Teaser Trailer

It’s been five long years since Southampton, UK, doomers Moss debuted on Rise Above Records with their sophomore album, Sub Templum, and though the band issued a couple EPs and the Never Say Live live album since that release, they’ve been silent since 2010 and emerge now with a new outlook on the full-length Horrible Night. Still aligned to Rise Above, the trio of Olly Pearson (vocals), Dominic Finbow (guitar) and Chris Chantler (drums) have shifted away from the deathly influences that typified their many earlier works in favor of cleaner singing and a darkly psychedelic, cultish sprawl. Where Sub Templum was comprised of four tracks totaling nearly 74 minutes, Horrible Night is more efficient on the whole, clocking in at just over 54 with six tracks, none of which go much past 11. That’s quite a change from songs like “Gate III: Devils from the Outer Dark,” which closed the prior outing at an insurmountable 35:31, but the bigger shift is in Moss‘ actual aesthetic, which is more atmospheric than in the past and echoing its abysmal feel rather than bludgeoning with volume. In some ways, Horrible Night has more in common with latter-day Electric Wizard than did Sub Templum, which was produced by that band’s vocalist, Jus Oborn, but Moss show comparatively little of the same psychotic pop fascination. Songs here like “Dark Lady” and opener “Horrible Nights” have choruses that are memorable and engaging as much as this kind of feedback-drenched morass can be or wants to be, but they’re never rushing to get to them. Or to anywhere else, for that matter.

That’s one factor that Moss have kept consistent with their prior output — they are slow. Moss take ultra-thick plod and let it ride for however long they feel it needs to, and while one could easily consider Horrible Night an overall more manageable or accessible record than its predecessor, it’s hardly a comfortable listen. Weary, sluggish groove pervades the verse of “Horrible Nights” (note the ‘S’ at the end, where the title of the album is singular) as Pearson tops Finbow‘s guitar with Sabbathian lines, buried deep but still cutting through the mix, caked in reverb. I suppose compared to some of what Moss has done, this is fast, but put to the scale of most anything else, its lurching still qualifies as extreme — and it’s also probably the most accessible moment of the record — even as it moves into wailing guitar leads and malevolent screams in the second half, feedback setting a bed for chaos reminiscent of early The Wounded Kings at their bleakest or the first Cough full-length. If I’m comparing Moss, who’ve been around for over a decade, to bands getting their start, it’s because they essentially are. Horrible Night covers new ground for them, and even if on paper, their latest work shares elements they’ve used in the past, the reality of the situation makes for a much, much different listen, “Horrible Nights” even going so far as to return to its verse at the end, giving the second half’s chaos a sense of purpose and symmetry as the fadeout leads to the beginning of “The Bleeding Years,” even slower and more ill-meaning.

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Lee Dorrian ain’t no dummy. He knows what time it is. And if their new video for the track “Tower of Silence” from their forthcoming final album, The Last Spire, is anything to go by, it’s about doom o’clock. The UK legends seem to be enjoying their farewell, and why not? Dorrian, guitarist Garry “Gaz” Jennings and bassist Scott Carlson already have a new project in the works called Septic Tank, and they’ll make their live debut in May, so what the hell? Live it up a little in the meantime. Certainly a victory lap well earned over the last 24 years.

Assuming the tracklisting stays as it was in the release announcement late last year, “Tower of Silence” is the centerpiece of The Last Spire, surrounded by three tracks on either side. I don’t want to make predictions about the rest of the record having only heard this one track, but at very least it bodes well.

Enjoy:

Cathedral, “Tower of Silence” Official Video

The final promo video from the final album by UK Doom Legends Cathedral. Thanks to all our friends, followers and supporters over the year. This is for you!

Inspired by classic cult British Film Institutions such as Amicus and Hammer House of Horror, “Tower of Silence” was shot on location during the British Winter of 2012 at Gunnersbury Park Tower, London. It features a guest appearance from Purson’s Rosalie Cunningham, who places a symbolic black orchid on the tombstone of each member in the clips closing scenes.

Directed by UK based Paraffin City Productions, Tower of Silence will be the last full production promo video ever made by this British Doom Metal institution and is taken from their final album, The Last Spire, out April 29th on RISE ABOVE Records.

The Last Spire is released in the following territories;

UK via Rise Above Records on April 29th 2013. www.riseaboverecords.com
USA via Metal Blade Records on April 30th. www.metalblade.com
Japan via Trooper Entertainment on May 1st. www.trooper.co.jp
Pre-order at iTunes from March 29th.
Die-hard vinyl editions will be available from the Rise Above webstore soon.

Lee Dorrian – Vocals
Garry Jennings – Guitar
Brian Dixon – Drums
Scott Carlson – Bass Guitar

Before they head overseas to play both Desertfests and the Barrosela Metalfest in Portugal, US doom legends Pentagram will make a stop at Brooklyn’s St. Vitus bar, as the latest in an increasingly long line of impressive gets for the venue that’s also included such landmark acts as Eyehategod, Floor (who’ll be there next Friday) and Saint Vitus themselves. Pretty fucking astounding, if you ask me. I’ll be on a plane while the show is happening, but this one’s bound to be a good time for anyone who can make it out and/or won’t be able to see the band at this year’s Maryland Deathfest.

Dig it:

Heavy metal legends, PENTAGRAM, will be returning to the road in 2013 in Europe, as well as North America, for select shows and festivals. The band will once again perform at Maryland Death Fest as well as Farmageddon Records Music Festival, Metaldays (Slovakia), Barroselas Metalfest XVI (Portugal), and more. PENTAGRAM’s list of confirmed performances can be found below.

PENTAGRAM will have new merchandise designs available exclusively at these shows. Also, the band has listened to their fans and will be performing some classics and fan favorites that have never before been performed live! Be forewarned, everything’s turning to night!

PENTAGRAM
04/16 Brooklyn, NY Saint Vitus Bar
04/25 Berlin, DE Astra *Desertfest 2013*
04/26 Barroselas, PT Barrosela Metalfest XVI
04/28 London, UK Electric Ballroom *Desertfest 2013*
05/26 Baltimore, MD Forme Sonar Compound *Maryland Deathfest 2013*
07/20 Warsaw, PL Days of Ceremony 2013
07/22 Tolmin, SI Metaldays 2013
07/25-07/28 TBA, Montana Farmageddon Records Music Festival