It’s been a while since last we heard from Los Angeles outfit Moab, and one can only wish the news was better. Toward the end of last year, the trio marked the passing of drummer Erik Herzog, and they now celebrate his life with a lyric video for the track “Nothing Escapes.” The song comes from Moab‘s second release, Billow (review here), which was released in 2014 via the now-defunct Scion A/V as a free download but is still available on CD and LP directly from the band. In addition to being tragic in its moment of arrival, the video is a reminder of the nuance that album proffered in following up 2011’s Kemado Records debut, Ab Ovo (discussed here), the sweetness of its melody and underlying Beatlesian pop bounce emblematic of the progressive bent emerging in their style at the time.
Naturally, Herzog played a major role in making that possible, so whether or not guitarist/vocalist Andrew Giacumakis and bassist Joe Fuentes will keep Moab going, I don’t know and don’t particularly want to speculate. For now, the lyrics to “Nothing Escapes” make a poignant tribute, and if in fact this does mark the end of the band, they will have offered listeners two rich outings that showed them as unafraid to look outside genre lines for inspiration as they pursued a path of individualized growth. Some groups never get that far, and while one could easily argue for Moab sounding like they still had more to say coming off of Billow — I would have, if we were debating the topic — the band’s work and that of Herzog as a part of the three-piece are able to stand on their own achievements as well and should continue to be enjoyed for years to come.
Condolences to Giacumakis, Fuentes and all who knew Herzog, friends and family and fans.
Please enjoy “Nothing Escapes” below:
Moab, “Nothing Escapes” lyric video
This video is our “shrine” to Erik. The song was especially significant to him as the lyrics were based on years of conversations with him about his struggles with depression. While that remained a struggle for him, he was especially proud of this song and the truth it contained. The drumming is some of his best work and the music is something we are all very proud of.
Lots to get to on this holiday week, but I didn’t want to let the Radio Adds slide any longer than I already have. As ever, there’s a lot of good stuff joining the ranks, and hopefully if you listen, you find something you dig. That’s what it’s all about. Also about giving me a never-ending playlist to listen to while I vacuum, apparently. But still, definitely both.
You’ll note six adds instead of five this time around. Every now and then there’s just too much going on to play by your own limits.
The Obelisk Radio Adds for July 3, 2014:
Blues Pills, Blues Pills
The awaited self-titled debut from Blues Pills arrives via Nuclear Blast in August and finds the four-piece with the blazing rhythm section of bassist Zack Anderson and drummer Cory Berry culled from the former ranks of Radio Moscow, French guitarist Dorian Sorriaux and Swedish frontwoman Elin Larsson almost frighteningly cohesive and cognizant of their blues rock lineage. Larsson does a solid Tina Turner on opener “High Class Woman” — as much as anybody can — and Sorriaux quickly proves himself a wunderkind in classic shuffle. Blues Pills offer all the heavy ’70s influence one could ask with less of the retro aesthetic, giving their first record a refreshing charge, though closer “Little Sun” has plenty of Graveyard-style melancholy for those looking to hear it. A relatively subdued midsection in “Black Smoke,” “River” and “No Hope Left for Me” adds emotional depth, but when Blues Pills decide to tear it up, as on “Devil Man,” they’re more than able to do so. A dynamic first full-length from an obviously powerful four-piece. On Thee Facebooks, Nuclear Blast.
—
Major Kong, Doom for the Black Sun
A two-years-later limited vinyl issue of Polish instrumental stoner doomers Major Kong‘s Doom for the Black Sun debut long-player courtesy of Transubstans Records should be a welcome advent for those who worship riffs, as the trio clearly do. The tracklist is shifted some from the original release and the artwork has changed, but Major Kong are true to the Kyuss reference of their album’s title in their commitment to heavy nod ‘n’ roll. Fuzz abounds and the grooves are smooth as “Witches on My Land” opens up into “The Swamp Altar,” each song getting progressively longer until bassist Domel, guitarist Misiek and drummer Bolek arrive at the 11-minute finale of “Primordial Gas Clouds,” a huge jam peppered by airy psychedelic soloing that doesn’t so much build to a grand finish as it does melt the album down into a molten stew of reverb and fermented buzz. Major Kong released a subsequent single, “Sequoia” early in 2013 and a follow-up full-length in Jan. 2014’s Doom Machine, so there’s plenty of ground to cover for further investigation. On Bandcamp, on Thee Facebooks, Transubstans Records.
—
Moab, Scion A/V Presents Billow
There are a lot of bands who balance riffs and melody, but few sound as natural or as fluid as Moab in doing so. The L.A.-based three-piece follow their 2011 Kemado Records debut, Ab Ovo (discussed here) with Billow, a self-produced nine-track collection presented by Scion A/V that furthers the noise-rock crunch of their guitars while also branching into languid heavy psychedelic washes (“Said it Would”), tribal-style percussive insistence (“I Concede”) and generally bigger, wider-sounding sonic spaces. Guitarist/vocalist Andrew Giacumakis holds mostly to a subdued delivery no matter the madness unfolding behind him — witness the stomp with bassist Joe Fuentes and drummer Erik Herzog on “No Soul” — and in addition to proffering some infectious hooks along the way, the approach also gives Billowa sense of purpose beyond heaviness for its own sake, Moab‘s element of restraint putting their material in league with Radiohead as much as the Melvins, while offering something that should appeal to fans of either, both or neither. Here even more than on the first record, they’ve crafted their own sound, and they’re giving it away for free. On Thee Facebooks, download Billow.
—
Monobrow, Big Sky, Black Horse
Big Sky, Black Horse is the third self-released vinyl from large-riffing Ottowa trio Monobrow following 2012’s Bennington Triangle Blues and their 2010 self-titled debut (review here), and immediately the instrumentalists set about knowing their business when it comes to putting the riffs front and center and backing up with strong, forward-pushing rhythmic drive. Parts of Big Sky, Black Horsefeel derived from Karma to Burn‘s all-straightforward-all-the-time mentality, but by and large, Monobrow have a more upbeat approach, and even on a mid-paced groove like “These Mountains Don’t Want us Here,” the 8:27 second track of the total eight, they use their longer runtimes to showcase fluidity in pacing and genre-minded stylistic depth. It’s an easy record to dig, and I dig it, whether it’s the bass-led thud of “Old Man Mouthbreather” or the go-anywhere 11-minute apex the album receives in its title-track, which starts big, ends big and is big in the middle. Beware the quiet parts in that song and a cut like “Ancient Arctic Wanderer,” as stretches of silence only seem to presage the next round of riffy pummeling. Monobrow seem comfortable working in either modus, and their third offering is a primo boon to fellow riff-heads. On Thee Facebooks, on Bandcamp.
—
Mope, Mope
Put into the right hands and through the right effects pedals, a saxophone can be a formidable tool in the psychedelic woodshed. Slow-rolling Italian foursome Mope clearly realize this on their three-track self-titled full-length debut CD, which comes in a digipak with gorgeous Snailking-esque black and white art from guitarist Jessica Rassi. They’re not long into opener “Old Grey Street” (7:32) before Sara Twinn distinguishes herself in adding a smoky melody atop the doomly vibes unfolding from Rassi, bassist Stefano Parodi and drummer Fabio Cuomo, and the dreamy-but-still-very-very-heavy mood Mope establish in the first track holds firm on the subsequent “Doomed to Feed the Ground” (12:58) and “La Caduta” (9:58) as well, the instrumental band sticking to a balance between psychedelic and stoner-doom impulses. Hypnosis ensues. The centerpiece is perhaps the most immersive of the three inclusions on the Taxi Driver Records outing, with its surprise piano at the beginning and sparse, minimalist ending, but across the board, Mope hone an engaging depth of presentation by which it’s a pleasure to be subsumed. Ending slow and jazzy on “La Caduta,” Mope‘s Mopeis one to close your eyes and just go with. On Thee Facebooks, at Taxi Driver’s Bandcamp.
—
Prisma Circus, Reminiscences
I don’t know how many times I’ve said it over the years, but, oh, what a difference a great drummer can make. Spanish classic heavy rock power trio Prisma Circus separate themselves on their World in Sound debut full-length, Reminiscences, from the scores of post-Graveyard retro worshipers thanks in no small part to the unmitigated swing in drummer Alex Carmona Blanco‘s playing. Couple that with the fiery leads of guitarist Oscar Garcia Albizu and warm, steady fills and bluesy exultations of bassist Joaquín Escudero Arce and Prisma Circus bang out thick-cut chops on their eight-track outing, starting with longest cut “The Mirror” (immediate points) and tapping into some Radio Moscow-style psych-blues volatility along the way. “Born in a Red House” slows the proceedings some, but Blanco kicks out a drum solo on the subsequent “Napalm” that lives up to the title, and the lighter back-half acoustics of “Cain” and the power trio thrust of “Onyx Star” ensure that Reminiscences stays satisfying to the bitter end, capping off with the smooth roll-out of “Joseph Merrick (The Elephant Man),” which turns tempos fast enough to require multiple listens just to keep up. They may not be innovating the style at this point, but Prisma Circus are tight enough to stand out anyway. On Thee Facebooks, on Bandcamp, World in Sound.
—
Righteous though these grooves are, this is less than half of everything that joined The Obelisk Radio playlist this week. See the updates page for the complete list.
Posted in Whathaveyou on June 17th, 2014 by JJ Koczan
To the best of my knowledge, Moab‘s sophomore outing, Billow, marks the first time that Scion A/V has sponsored a full-length album. They’ve done plenty of singles and shorter releases — EPs and splits, etc. — over the last couple years, and of course tours and the Scion Rock Fest, which Moab also played this year, but I’m pretty sure Billowis the first long-player to bear their logo. The album has been made available as of today as a free download.
It’s a ripper, with the melodic and pummeling “I Concede,” the Dozer-style airiness in “Burn Maria” and oddball progressive build of closer “The Softest Bait.” As with their 2011 debut, Ab Ovo, the L.A.-based three-piece self-recorded, with guitarist/vocalist Andrew Giacumakis (interview here) — who also helmed the new Fu Manchu; the two bands also formerly partnered on a Scion-sponsored split single — handling the production, and the sound is accordingly huge, a natural feel no less maintained in wide-open drums and spacious guitars anchored by dense low end.
The link to get your download comes courtesy of the PR wire:
MOAB’S SOPHOMORE ALBUM, SCION AV PRESENTS BILLOW, AVAILABLE TODAY FOR FREE DOWNLOAD VIA SOUNDCLOUD
Scion AV Presents Billow track listing 1. Said It Would 2. I Concede 3. Whittled Away 4. No Soul 5. Burn Maria 6. Nothing Escapes 7. Made To Wait 8. Under All 9. The Softest Bait
Moab recently played Scion Audio Visual’s Rock Fest. In an interview with the Inland Valley Daily Bulletin, Giacumakis discussed the band’s relationship with Scion AV: “I think they’re ultra important to metal in this community. Scion is keeping the faith for sure by promoting these bands that mainstream media won’t pay attention to.”
