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The Obelisk Questionnaire: Methadone Skies

Posted in Questionnaire on August 8th, 2023 by JJ Koczan

Methadone Skies

The Obelisk Questionnaire is a series of open questions intended to give the answerer an opportunity to explore these ideas and stories from their life as deeply as they choose. Answers can be short or long, and that reveals something in itself, but the most important factor is honesty.

Based on the Proust Questionnaire, the goal over time is to show a diverse range of perspectives as those who take part bring their own points of view to answering the same questions. To see all The Obelisk Questionnaire posts, click here.

Thank you for reading and thanks to all who participate.

The Obelisk Questionnaire: Methadone Skies

How do you define what you do and how did you come to do it?

Long story short: a productive way to spend our free time that turned into a hobby and ultimately a passion, really. It all feels like baby steps since we’re approaching our 15th anniversary as a band, but from randomly playing at home to playing with some of our favorite bands or sending our music in dozens of countries around the world, it’s a lovely and at the same time, humbling feeling. We mainly bonded over our love for Queens of the Stone Age songs back in 2008 among other bands, then we pushed ourselves to find a sound of our own. We never took anything for granted and maybe this is why we still play together today.

Describe your first musical memory.

Playing our first show as Methadone Skies in front of about 200 people, opening for a local band, The :Egocentrics, whom we previously went to watch perform multiple times. It was scary, stressful, but awesome. We were unaware at the time, but our soon-to-be guitar player Alex was at that show too.

Describe your best musical memory to date.

There are a few that will stick forever with us, such as our Ukrainian gigs in 2012 which were great, crazy and lots of fun. Also, opening for Yawning Man, getting to spend time talking with them about the whole desert scene, how things developed from there for hours after the gig. We played a cover of “Rock Formations” at our first gig. Maybe the most encompassing was organizing the Haywire Festival in our town for three years in a row, meeting lots of bands. We grew a lot from moments like those, whether musically or how to handle various sides of booking, promo, etc. Being an independent band, handling everything ourselves, it meant a lot.

When was a time when a firmly held belief was tested?

Maintaining focus as a band starting 2017, when our guitar player Alex moved to work in Hamburg, Germany. It wasn’t easy to adjust, since most of our songs were born at our rehearsal space by jamming. It forced us to rethink our approach and since then, we’ve been moving into a different direction, where we think more about song structures and sound from the moment an idea is born. We adapted and there was an upside to that, as we are more aware of our strengths and flaws today.

Where do you feel artistic progression leads?

The sonic journey you embark on each time you start writing a new album becomes trickier with each LP. There is the ever-looming trap of repeating yourself, due to the comfort zone you might find yourself circling while jamming. Escaping that is a progress in itself. This is why we always try to move on from one record to another. Sometimes it’s a natural progression, but other times you just want to incorporate something different to keep things exciting. Even now, we feel we’ve found a new side of ourselves in the songs we’ve been developing, so that makes us stoked to finally have them in a recorded form.

How do you define success?

For us, success is to create a sonic journey we are proud of. We never aimed for commercial success and with each new LP it seems we’re deliberately moving farther from it. Nevertheless, as long as people are into it and there’s feedback coming from fans who listen to us, watch us perform or write about our music, it means we’ve accomplished something.

What is something you have seen that you wish you hadn’t?

All those interminable stretches of highways while travelling from one city to another. How long will it take before we can teleport from one gig to another?

Describe something you haven’t created yet that you’d like to create.

A soundtrack to a movie no matter how weird or obscure it is. It should be an interesting project for us.

What do you believe is the most essential function of art?

To take you on a journey, make you forget about the daily routine. Whether it’s a movie, song, concert, painting or any other form of art, if it inspires you, makes you react in any way, then that is an essential function. We’re bombarded with so much information every day, therefore we need an escape to recharge ourselves.

Something non-musical that you’re looking forward to?

Right now, we’re all looking forward to our holidays, travelling to visit new places and countries.

https://www.facebook.com/MethadoneSkies
https://www.instagram.com/methadoneskies
https://methadoneskies.bandcamp.com
https://soundcloud.com/methadone-skies

Methadone Skies, “The Velvet Suit” (2023)

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The Obelisk Show on Gimme Metal Playlist: Episode 64

Posted in Radio on July 23rd, 2021 by JJ Koczan

the obelisk show banner

If you’re paying attention at all — and fair enough if you’re not — you had to see this one coming, right? No way I wasn’t going to follow up that massive Quarterly Review with a playlist for The Obelisk Show on Gimme Metal. Had to happen. Honestly, I covered enough stuff in that 110-record span that I might do two shows out of it. Have to see what I can pull together for next time.

To answer your next imginary question, yes, it is somewhat bittersweet after two all-Neurosis episodes to be playing anything else. It was bound to happen eventually, some return to normalcy. Such as it is. Fortunately the selections here are killer if I do say so myself, and if you think it’s a coincidence that I reviewed so many albums and this playlist is starting with a cut from the Maha Sohona record, I promise you it is not. That one might’ve been my pick of the whole thing. Also took the excuse to play the Spaceslug track here again, just because it rules and fits that vibe too.

Thanks for listening and/or reading. I hope you enjoy.

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

Full playlist:

The Obelisk Show – 07.23.21

Maha Sohona Leaves Endless Searcher
The Crooked Whispers Hail Darkness Dead Moon Night
Filthy Hippies I’m Bugging Out Departures
Paralyzed Golden Days Paralyzed
VT
Alastor The Killer in My Skull Onwards and Downwards
Spelljammer Bellwether Abyssal Trip
Spaceslug The Event Horizon The Event Horizon
Los Disidentes del Sucio Motel Horizon Polaris
VT
Hellish Form Shadows with Teeth Remains
Vouna Grey Sky Atropos
Rose City Band World is Turning Earth Trip
Moanhand The Boomerang of Serpents Present Serpent
VT
Methadone Skies Retrofuture Caveman Retrofuture Caveman

The Obelisk Show on Gimme Metal airs every Friday 5PM Eastern, with replays Sunday at 7PM Eastern. Next new episode is Aug. 6 (subject to change). Thanks for listening if you do.

Gimme Metal website

The Obelisk on Facebook

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Quarterly Review: Per Wiberg, Body Void, Ghorot, Methadone Skies, Witchrot, Rat King, Taras Bulba, Opium Owl, Kvasir, Lurcher

Posted in Reviews on July 16th, 2021 by JJ Koczan

the-obelisk-fall-2016-quarterly-review

In my hubris of adding an 11th day to this Summer 2021 Quarterly Review — why not just do the whole month of July, bro? what’s the matter? don’t like riffs? — I’ve rendered today somewhat less of a landmark, but I guess there’s still some accomplishment to be felt in completing two full weeks of writing about 10 records a day, hitting triple digits and all that. Not that I doubted I’d get here — it’s rare but it’s happened before — and not that I doubt I’ll have the last 10 done for Monday, but yeah. It’s been a trip so far.

Quarterly Review #91-100:

Per Wiberg, All Is Well In the Land of the Living But for the Rest of Us… Lights Out

per wiberg all is well in the land of the living but for the rest of us lights out

The cumbersome-seeming title of Per Wiberg‘s new solo EP derives from its four component tracks, “All is Well,” “In the Land of the Living,” “But for the Rest of Us…” and “Lights Out.” The flow between them is largely seamless, and when Wiberg (whose pedigree as an organist/keyboardist includes Opeth, Candlemass, Big Scenic Nowhere and more others than I can count) pauses between tracks two and three, it feels likewise purposeful. It’s a dark mood inflected through the melodies of the opener and the atmospheric piano lines of “But for the Rest of Us…,” but Wiberg offers a driving take on progressive heavy rock with “In the Land of the Living” and the build in the subsequent “Lights Out” is encompassing with the lead-in it’s given. Wiberg sounds more comfortable layering his voice than even on 2019’s Head Without Eyes, and his arrangements are likewise expressive and fluid. Dude is a professional. I think maybe that’s part of the reason everybody wants to work with him.

Per Wiberg on Facebook

Despotz Records website

 

Body Void, Bury Me Beneath This Rotting Earth

Body Void Bury Me Beneath This Rotting Earth

Massive, droning lurch, harsh, biting screams and lumbering, pummeling weight, Body Void‘s third album and first for Prosthetic, Bury Me Beneath This Rotting Earth, boasts feelgood hits like “Wound” and “Laying Down in a Forest Fire,” bringing cacophonous, Khanate-style extremity of atmosphere to willfully, punishingly brutal sludge. It is not friendly. It is devastating, and it is the kind of record that sounds loud even when you play it quietly — and that’s before you get to “Pale Man”‘s added layers of caustic noise. Front to back in the four songs — all of which top 12 minutes — there’s no letup, no moment at which the duo relent in order to let the listener breathe. This is intentional. A conjuring of aural concrete in the lungs coinciding with striking lines like “Your compromises are hollow monuments to your cowardice” and other bleak, throatripping poetry of dead things and our complicity in making them. Righteous and painful.

Body Void on Facebook

Prosthetic Records website

 

Ghorot, Loss of Light

ghorot loss of light

Ghorot is the three-piece of bassist/vocalist Carson Russell (also Ealdor Bealu), drummer/vocalist Brandon Walker and guitarist Chad Remains (ex-Uzala), and Loss of Light is a debut album no less gripping for its push into darkness, whether it’s the almost-toying-with-you Sabbath-style riff of “Harbinger” or the tortured atmospherics in the back end of “Charioteer of Fire,” which follows. Competing impulses result in a sense of grueling even through the barks and faster progression of “Woven Furnace,” while “Dead Gods” offers precious little mourning in its charred deathsludge, saving more ambience for the 12-minute closer “In Endless Grief,” which not only veers into acoustics, but nods toward post-metal later on, despite holding firm to cavernous growls and wails. Obscure? Opaque? There isn’t a way in which Loss of Light isn’t heavy. Everywhere they go, Ghorot carry that weight with them. It is existential.

Ghorot on Facebook

Transylvanian Recordings on Bandcamp

Inverse Records on Bandcamp

 

Methadone Skies, Retrofuture Caveman

methadone skies retrofuture caveman

Lush from the outset and growing richer in aural substance as it plays out, the 17:56 longest/opening (immediate points) title-track of Methadone Skies‘ latest work, Retrofuture Caveman, is an obviously intended focal point, and a worthy one at that. Last heard from with 2019’s Different Layers of Fear (review here), the Romanian four-piece break down walls across the bulk of this fifth full-length, with “Retrofuture Caveman” itself setting the standard early in moving instrumentally between warm heavy psychedelia, prog, drone, doom and darker black metal. It’s prog heavy that ultimately wins the day on the subsequent linear build of “Infected by Friendship” and centerpiece “The Enabler,” but there’s room for more lumber in the 11-mminute “Western Luv ’67” and closer “When the Sleeper Awakens” offers playful shove riffing in its midsection before a final stretch of quiet guitar leads to a last-minute volume burst, no less consuming or sprawling than anything before, even if it feels like it finishes too soon.

Methadone Skies on Facebook

Methadone Skies on Bandcamp

 

Witchrot, Hollow

witchrot hollow

Stood out by the gotta-hear bass tone of Cam Alford, the ethereal-or-shouting-and-sometimes-both vocals of Lea Reto, the crash of Nick Kervin‘s drums and the encompassing wah of Peter Turik‘s guitar, Toronto’s Witchrot offer a striking debut with their awaited first full-length, Hollow, oozing out through opener/longest track (immediate points) “Million Shattered Swords” before the stomping wash of “Colder Hands” sacrifices itself on an altar of noise, leading to the more directly-riffed “Spiral of Sorrow,” which nonetheless maintains the atmosphere. Things get noisier and harsher in the second half of Hollow, which is presaged in the plod of “Fog,” but as things grow more restless and angrier after “Devil in My Eyes” and move into the pair “Burn Me Down” and “I Know My Enemy,” both faster, like blown-out Year of the Cobra toying with punk rock and grunge, Witchrot grow stronger for the shift by becoming less predictable, setting up the atmospheric plunge of the closing title-track that finishes one of 2021’s most satisfying debut albums.

Witchrot on Facebook

Fuzzed and Buzzed Records website

DHU Records store

 

Rat King, Omen

Rat King Omen

Omen is the first long-player from Evansville, Indiana, four-piece Rat King, who use rawness to their advantage throughout the nine included tracks, at least one of which — “Supernova” — dates back to being released as a single in 2017. With manipulated horror samples and interludes like the acoustic “Queen Anne’s Revenge” and “Shackleton” and the concluding “Matryoshka” spliced throughout the otherwise deep-toned and weighted fare of “Capsizer” and the chugging, pushing, scream-laced “Druid Crusher,” Omen never quite settles on a single approach and is more enticing for that, though the eight-minute “Vagrant” could well be a sign of things to come in its melodic reach, but the band revel in the grittier elements at work here as well — the thunderplod of “Glacier,” the willful drag of “Nepenta Divinorum,” and so on — and the ambience they create is dreary and obscure in a way that comes across as purposeful. Is Omen a foreshadow or just the name of a movie they dig? I don’t know, but I hope it’s not too long before we find out.

Rat King on Facebook

Rat King store

 

Taras Bulba, Sometimes the Night

Taras Bulba Sometimes the Night

What was Earthling Society continues to evolve into Taras Bulba at the behest of Fleetwood, UK’s Fred Laird. Sometimes the Night (on Riot Season) is a mostly solo affair, and truth be told, Laird doesn’t need much more than his own impulses to conjure a full-sounding record, as he quickly shows on the acid lounge opener “The Green Eyes of Dragon,” but the guest vocals from Daisy Atkinson bring echoing presence to the subsequent “Orphee” and Mike Blatchford‘s late-arriving sax on “The Sound of Waves,” “The Big Duvall” and “House in the Snow” highlight the jazzy underpinnings of the organ-laced “Night Train to Drug Town” and the avant, anti-anything guitar strum and piano strikes of “One More Lonely Angel.” No harm done, in any case, unless we’re talking about the common conception of what a song is, and hey, if it didn’t need to happen, it wouldn’t have. An experiment in vibe, perhaps, in psychedelic brooding, but evocative for that. Laird‘s no stranger to following whims. Here they lead to moodier space.

Taras Bulba on Facebook

Riot Season Records website

 

Opium Owl, Live at Hodila Records

Opium Owl Live at Hodila Records

I’ll admit, there’s a part of me that, when “Intro” hits its sudden forward surge, kind of wishes Opium Owl had kept it mellow. Nonetheless, the Riga, Latvia-based double-guitar (mostly) instrumental heavy psych four-piece offer plenty of serenity throughout the four-song live set Live at Hodila Records, and the back and forth patterning of the subsequent “Echo Slam” is all the more effective at winning conversion, so fair enough. “Stone Gaze” dips into even bigger riffage, while “Tempest Double” dares vocals over its quieter noodling, dispensing with them as it pushes louder toward the finish. For a live recording, the sound is rich enough to convey what would seem to be the full warmth of Opium Owl‘s tonality, and in its breadth and its impact, there’s no lack of studio-fullness for the session-style presentation. Live at Hodila Records may be formative in terms of establishing the methods with which the band — who formed in 2019 — will continue to work, but showcases significant promise in that.

Opium Owl on Facebook

Hodila Records on Facebook

 

Kvasir, 4

kvasir 4

Doled out with chops to spare and the swagger to show them off, Kvasir‘s eight-song debut LP, 4, puts modern heavy rock riffing in blender and sets it on high. Classic, epic heavy in “Where Gods to to Pray” and a more nodding groove in “Authenticity & the Illusion of Enough” meet with the funkier starts-stops of “Slow Death of Life” and the languid Sabbathism of “Earthly Algorithms.” “Chill for a Church” opens side B with trashier urgency and suitable rhythmic twist, and “The Brink” sets its depressive lyric to a ’70s boogie swing, not quite masking it, but working as a flowing companion piece for “The Black Mailbox,” which follows in like-minded fashion, letting closer “Alchemy of Identity” underscore the point with a rawer take on what once made The Sword so undeniable in their groove. There’s growing to do, patience to learn, etc., but Kvasir make it easy to get on board with 4 and their arguments for doing so brook little contradiction. Onto the list of 2021’s best debut albums it goes.

Kvasir on Facebook

Glory or Death Records on Bandcamp

 

Lurcher, Coma

lurcher coma

Lurcher might go full-prog before they’re done, but they’re not their yet on their four-song debut EP, Coma, and the songs only benefit from the band’s focus on impact and lack of self-indulgence. The leadoff title-track has an immediate hook that brings to mind an updated, tonally-heavier version of what Cave In innovated for melodic post-hardcore, and the subsequent “Remove the Myth From the Mountain” follows with a broader-sounding reach in its later solo that builds on the heavy rock foundation the first half of the song put forth. Vocalist/guitarist Joe Harvatt — backed by the rhythm section of bassist Tom Shortt and drummer Simon Bonwick — is prone, then, to a bit of shred. No argument as that’s answered with the Hendrix fuzz at the outset of “All Now is Here,” which both gets way-loud and drones way-out in its seven minutes, in turn setting up the lush-and-still-hard-hitting capper “Cross to Bear,” which rounds off the 26-minute release with all the more encouraging shifts in tempo, flowing melody, and mellotron sounds to add to the sweeping drama. I know the UK underground is hyper-crowded at this point, but consider notice served. These cats are onto something.

Lurcher on Instagram

Trepanation Recordings on Bandcamp

 

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Methadone Skies to Release Retrofuture Caveman May 7; Video Posted

Posted in Whathaveyou on March 16th, 2021 by JJ Koczan

Retrofuture Caveman is the best album title I’ve heard in a hot minute. It has the honor of adorning the fifth album from Romanian instrumentalists Methadone Skies, which is set to release May 7 on their own Haywire Records label as the follow-up to 2019’s Different Layers of Fear (discussed here). I haven’t heard the record yet, but I’ve managed to make my way through the startlingly cinematic video below for “Infected by Friendship,” and soothing vibe of the track even in its more surging moments is only encouraging in terms of making me look forward to more. Some heavy post-rock in there, but hell, I’ll take that. More please.

Album announcement came down the PR wire:

methadone skies retrofuture caveman

Psych ‘n’ Doom Post-Rockers METHADONE SKIES Reveal Album Details And Brand New Music Video!

Retrofuture Caveman coming on May 7th!

Romanian psychedelic doom and post-rock collective METHADONE SKIES has announced the details of their upcoming, fifth studio album, entitled Retrofuture Caveman, which is slated for a released on May 7, 2021.

Following their highly acclaimed, 2019- album Different Layers of Fear, the instrumental quartet did not waste any time and started working on their new record during the pandemic. METHADONE SKIES, who formed in 2009, has released 4 full length records so far; each LP shares its own musical direction, often leaning into stoner, post-rock and doom metal territories. Never fearing any boundaries, every album highlights the sum of the band’s various influences and constant sonic exploration.

Retrofuture Caveman dives even deeper into the post-rock and doom metal worlds. These contrasting styles are ultimately blended with progressive elements, a stoner rock touch and psychedelic spheres. While this eclectic mix flows in a perfect balance, Retrofuture Caveman will easily become the band’s most ambitious and mature work to date. But let the music speak for itself, as METHADONE SKIES has just premiered a brand new music video for their first album single, “Infected By Friendship”! The track is one of the most straight-forward and uplifting songs you will find on their new record, gradually exploding into a massive wall of sound. Its surreal music video was created by the band’s drummer, Flavius Retea, and Alexandra Dragu, watch the clip right here.

“We usually pick a heavy song as an album teaser, but this time we tried something different, ” the band comments. “We really dug the song right from the beginning of the creation process and it feels more soothing than many others in our catalog. The title obviously references the pandemic, yet we wanted to give the term a positive twist. Music became even more important for people in these complicated times, so we hope it acts as a sonic getaway from the listener’s daily routine.”

Retrofuture Caveman was recorded in Timisoara, Romania, at Consonance Studio by Edmond Karban, Cristian Popescu and Andrei Jumuga (all of them members of DorDeDuh and Sunset in the 12th House), and was mixed and mastered by James Plotkin. Additional keyboard layers were added by Marius Muntean (The Thirteenth Sun, Black Water). The album will be released on May 7th as LP Gatefold, CD, Digital formats and a limited Cassette Tape edition through METHADONE SKIES’ own imprint, Haywire Records. The artwork was created by Mihai Manescu (aka Obsidian Nibs).

Album Tracklist:
1. Retrofuture Caveman
2. Infected by Friendship
3. The Enabler
4. Western Luv ‘67
5. When the Sleeper Awakens

METHADONE SKIES is:
Alexandru Wehry – Guitar
Casian Stanciu – Guitar, E-Bow
Mihai Guta – Bass
Flavius Retea – Drums, Percussion, Keyboards

https://methadoneskies.bandcamp.com
https://www.facebook.com/MethadoneSkies
https://soundcloud.com/methadone-skies
https://www.instagram.com/methadoneskies

Methadone Skies, “Infected by Friendship” official video

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The Obelisk Show on Gimme Radio Recap: Episode 15

Posted in Radio on April 30th, 2019 by JJ Koczan

gimme radio logo

It was last Friday about an hour before I had to head out for the start of Desertfest NYC that I cut the voice breaks for this episode, once again on my phone, while in transit. I did the same thing last time and it sounded like crap. I know the stakes are pretty low — that is, nobody really cares — but if you’re going to do a thing, at least try to do it well. I backed off the phone this time and hopefully that cut some of the overmodulation in my voice.

I say “hopefully” because I actually haven’t heard the show yet. I was at the fest on Sunday while it aired, so I’ll be catching the rerun at 9AM this Thursday when that’s on. This is the 15th episode of The Obelisk Show and it’s been an exceptionally busy few weeks, but it’s still fun to put together, and there were some killer tracks included this time from Worshipper, Abrahma, Molasses, Stone Machine Electric, The Well, Kandodo, Methadone Skies, and so on. Any opportunity to throw in some Øresund Space Collective makes me happy, so that was a must, and I was kind of also doing myself a favor in including Natas as the “classic track” (yay! classic track!) for the episode.

So basically, unless I crapped it up, at least the music is good. That’s what matters anyhow, or so I’m told.

Here’s the full playlist:

The Obelisk Show – 04.28.19

Pelican Midnight and Mescaline Nighttime Stories*
Abrahma Lost Forever In Time for the Last Rays of Light*
Worshipper Coming Through Light in the Wire*
BREAK
Molasses Drops of Sunlight Mourning Haze*
Los Mundos Subterráneo Mar Jurásico Calor Central*
Kandodo King Vulture K3*
Omen Stones Fresh Hell Omen Stones*
The Well This is How the World Ends Death and Consolation*
BREAK
Natas Samurai Delmar
Smear Old Town A Band Called Shmear*
Methadone Skies Where Were You When We Were into the Void? Different Layers of Fear*
Stone Machine Electric Purgatory Darkness, Dimensions, Disillusion*
BREAK
Øresund Space Collective Meets Black Moon Circle Afterglow in the Sea of Sirens Freak Out in the Fjord*

The Obelisk Show on Gimme Radio airs every other Sunday night at 7PM Eastern, with replays the following Thursday at 9AM. Next show is April 28. Thanks for listening if you do.

Gimme Radio website

The Obelisk on Thee Facebooks

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Methadone Skies Premiere “Control” Video; Different Layers of Fear out May 10

Posted in Bootleg Theater on April 9th, 2019 by JJ Koczan

methadone skies

Different Layers of Fear is the fourth full-length from Romanian atmospheric sludge/heavy rockers Methadone Skies. Issued through their own Haywire Records — an offshoot of Haywire Booking — the album brings the four-piece to an entirely different scale of work than they’ve gone before, following-up 2016’s Colosseus (discussed here) by pushing outward across a 71-minute 2LP that’s simply a new echelon for them. With the returning four-piece of guitarists Wehry and Casi, bassist Mihai and drummer Retea, the band embrace a psychedelic atmosphere constructed with clear ambient intent, melding together elements from post-metal and lysergic flow in a way that leaves one wondering how they got to be so separate in the first place. The seven-song instrumental offering brings a weighted tonal presence used for effect in moments like the last-couple-minutes crescendo in the 16-minute closer “Manos” — as in, “the hands of fate?” — and the lumbering earlier cut “Contra,” which is the shortest on the record at 6:10. Elsewhere, from opener “Where Were You When We Were into the Void?” through the extended duo of “God Help Us All” (12:55) and “Focus” (11:59), they balance that heft with an airy wash of effects to create a thoughtful and ethereal wholeness that’s engrossing even as it continues to dig deeper and deeper into itself.

Jams? Maybe. At least in some measure rooted in jams, but maybe Methadone Skies are more experimental than jammy. Not in the kitchen-sink sense of they’re-actually-banging-on-a-kitchen-sink — arrangements aremethadone skies different layers of fear largely straightforward despite added keys throughout from Marius Muntean — but in that their pieces seem to have an overall direction in mind, such as when “God Help Us All” follows its hypnotically repeating guitar line into an oblivion of noise wash, or when “Focus” turns from its sprawling fuzz into an uptempo post-rock progression in its second half. Some structure. Some master plan at work. “Contra” might be the most upfront of all the songs on Different Layers of Fear, and it comes paired with “Ol’ Painless,” which drifts through the early going of its linear build in order to provide due payoff ahead of the penultimate “A Glitch in the Sun,” which boasts a guest vocal from Davide Straccione (ZippoShores of Null, also head of Spikerot Records), who switches between crooning, whispers and harsher shouts over the 10-minute span of the track, adding to the emotional crux of the melodic guitar floating behind.

And when it comes around, “Manos” is almost an album’s flow unto itself, as Methadone Skies earn the added runtime through a patient execution that brings groove to bear even as it spaces out with intertwining guitar and synth in its earliest movement, right until the crushing central riff — yes, the one that comes back at the end — kicks in and sets up the essential back and forth of the finale. That moment too is well-earned, and though at an hour-plus, Different Layers of Fear is well past the line of what might be considered manageable, even if one has to take it in multiple sittings, it proves to be worth the effort of meeting them on their level.

The video for “Control” was filmed during the making of Different Layers of Fear, and I’m just going to assume that the wavy-vision on the footage captured of the band while they played is not, in fact, an effect put on the video, but actually how it appeared in the studio. Would only make sense. Also keep your eyes out for the dinosaur. He’s in there.

Please enjoy:

Methadone Skies, “Control” official video premiere

Second track off ,,Different Layers Of Fear” set for release May 10th via Haywire Records. Footage filmed during the recording of the album at Consonance Studio in Timisoara, Romania. Music by Methadone Skies. Keyboards and synthesizers were added by Marius Muntean (The Thirteenth Sun, Black Water).

The artwork was illustrated by Mihai Manescu (Obsidian Nibs). Different Layers of Fear was recorded at Consonance Studio in Timisoara in October – November 2018 by Edmond Karban, Cristian Popescu & Andrei Jumuga (all members of dordeduh, Sunset in the 12th House), then mixed and mastered by James Plotkin in December 2018 – January 2019.

Methadone Skies are:
Wehry – Guitar
Casi – Guitar
Mihai – Bass
Retea – Drums

Methadone Skies on Thee Facebooks

Methadone Skies on Bandcamp

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Methadone Skies Premiere Title-Track of New LP Colosseus

Posted in audiObelisk on March 24th, 2016 by JJ Koczan

methadone skies

Romanian instrumental four-piece Methadone Skies will release their new album, Colosseus, April 4 via Haywire Records. It is their third full-length behind 2012’s Enter the Void (review here) and 2014’s Eclectic Electric, and it brings with it five new tracks that feed into a central linear flow across a 39-minute LP span, starting with the push-you-into-the-fray rush of opener “Muscufo” and continuing through the crunching, lumbering finish of closer “Master of Convulsions.” Between those two, on “The Elemental,” the brief, sub-three-minute centerpiece “Ruse” and the title-track, Methadone Skies situate themselves somewhere between heavy rock, psychedelia and progressive doom, playing to one side or the other through songs that are immersive without the need for verses or choruses, and which draw a complex picture of where the Timisoara-based band — guitarists Wehry and Casi, bassist Mihai and drummer Retea — are at seven years into their tenure.

Topped off with artwork by Tonino Bosco, Colosseus begins at a rush with the progressive tapping that starts “Moscufo,” and while much of what ensues will be more indebted to Karma to Burn, they never completely give up that sense of something deeper happening than a simple methadone skies colosseusparade of riffs. By the time it’s three minutes in, “Moscufo” has established a back and forth between dense distorted roll and this airier type of noodling, and as interplay between the two guitars is marked out early as fair game, it becomes a distinguishing factor as Colosseus continues to play out through the flowing stretches of the nine-minute “The Elemental,” which balances post-rock and heavy low end thrust more than ably en route to a half-time-drummed drone-out, less contrasting tones than setting one behind the other to bolster its position, and into “Ruse.” The aforementioned center cut, the shortest at 2:55, is also the most spacious, bringing those post-rock elements to the fore as an interlude. One can’t help but wonder if it was given its title as a reference to the manner in which it lulls the listener into a false sense of security before the heft of the extended B-side tracks “Colosseus” and “Master of Convulsions” kick in, but if it’s delusion, it’s a pleasant one.

With such a peaceful stretch preceding — not to mention with its title — it falls on “Colosseus” to be the album’s most weighted offering, and for its first movement alone it indeed might be that, but as it moves past its initial thrust and chug, it shifts into a long stretch of open tones and far-back percussion that makes “Ruse” seem downright prescient, rather than a work of trickery. Thicker tones reemerge as it passes the halfway point and once again Wehry and Casi lead the winding course, but even as it comes to a fuzzy head past 10 minutes in, “Colosseus” holds true to its overlaid progginess, and in that way it very much represents the record as a whole, which takes a speedy victory lap in the beginnings of “Master of Convulsions,” before a more percussive and grooving break takes hold and sets the stage for the final build. Structurally similar to the title-track ultimately, “Master of Convulsions” is marked out by the massive slowdown in its second half, and while it’s not Methadone Skies‘ only intent with their third offering, clearly they didn’t want to let it end without leaving a crater behind. So be it.

Ahead of the April 4 release for Colosseus, I’m thrilled today to be hosting the premiere of the title-track. You can find it in the YouTube embed below.

Please enjoy:

Methadone Skies, “Colosseus”

Second reveal from our new album ,COLOSSEUS”, to be released on the 4th of April 2016 via HAYWIRE RECORDS.

Recorded, mixed and mastered at Consonance Studio Timisoara between August 2016 and January 2016.

Methadone Skies on Thee Facebooks

Methadone Skies on Bandcamp

Haywire Records

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Methadone Skies Release Colosseus April 4

Posted in Whathaveyou on March 18th, 2016 by JJ Koczan

methadone skies

Big-riffed Romanian psychedelic rockers Methadone Skies will issue their new album, Colosseus, on April 4. The record follows 2012’s Enter the Void (review here) and 2014’s Eclectic Electric and brings five new tracks, the second of which, “The Elemental,” is now available to stream. The song sets itself quickly to establishing wide-open spaces and a largesse of sound, and though it toys some with pace throughout its nine-minute roll, building a good head of steam to finish out slow, it never seems to lose that plus-sized vibe.

Announcement from the band is below, followed of course by that track. Dig it if you dig it:

methadone skies colosseus

We are excited to finally share some news about our upcoming album, Colosseus! It will be released on April 4 as vinyl, CD and digital download through our own imprint, Haywire Records. Production was once more handled by Edmond Karban and Cristian Popescu at Consonance Studio, where it was recorded, mixed and mastered over the course of 7 months.

We are proud of Colosseus, because we managed to capture the power of our live performances and had the chance to try new things too. We will debut a song off the album soon, stay tuned! Meanwhile, the cover (again done by ZIPPO’s very own Stonino) and tracklist can be found below:

01. Moscufo
02. The Elemental
03. Ruse
04. Colosseus
05. Master of Convulsions

Confirmed tour dates so far:

April 14 – Cluj, The Shelter
April 15 – Timisoara, DAOS club

Check back, more shows to be announced in the near future, as well as full details regarding the ones already mentioned.

Methadone Skies was formed in March 2009, as a trio of friends started to discover their love for music. Although at first they tried to restrict themselves to a definite musical style and approach, they soon realized that they had to start shaking things around without the limit to a stereotype genre.

Wehry – Guitar
Casi – Guitar
Mihai – Bass
Retea – Drums

https://www.facebook.com/MethadoneSkies
http://methadoneskies.bandcamp.com/

Methadone Skies, “The Elemental”

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