Who’s up for a potentially-life-changing weekend in the desert? Well, me, for one. Barring a magic invite, I don’t imagine I’ll be there to see the inaugural Mojave Experience Festival when it takes place over two days next March, but looking at the lineup I fail to see how you wouldn’t want to. Look at that Friday bill. They call it a pre-party. Look at that Saturday bill! How many nights in your life are you going to be treated to a succession of acts like that?

It was pretty clear out of the gate — Dead Meadow and Earthless were the first two bands announced — that Mojave Experience meant business this first time out. I don’t know if this is a one-time thing or if there are intentions toward an annual happening, but either way, the assembled lineup crosses generations and stylistic borders, fostering an immediate sense of identity that’s tied to the history of the Californian desert underground with the likes of Mario Lalli, John Garcia, Gary Arce, Nick Oliveri and The Freeks involved, but that is already looking to reach beyond those geographic and aesthetic confines as well, whether that’s the doom of L.A.’s Early Moods or the acidblasting psych of Philly’s Ecstatic Vision. SoftSun and Borracho. Acid King and Hippie Death Cult. I could just go on saying names until I’ve said them all. None of them suck.

Mario Lalli posted the full bill on socials:

🔥 MOJAVE EXPERIENCE 2026 — FULL LINEUP REVEAL 🔥

🎟️ mojaveexperience.net

March 20–21 • Joshua Tree, CA

The dust has settled… and the full lineup is here. Two days !

FRIDAY • Mojave Gold (Pre-Party)
Rubber Snake Charmers feat. Sean Wheeler
The Freeks
Arthur Seay & The RiffKillers
Borracho
Insomniac
SoftSun

SATURDAY • Joshua Tree Lake (Main Event)
Earthless
Dead Meadow
John Garcia
Acid King
Yawning Man
Hippie Death Cult
Nick Oliveri’s Death Acoustic
Ecstatic Vision
Howling Giant
Early Moods

Single-day Riff Rider Passes drop Dec 5 — Friday or Saturday, your choice.
Two-day bundles already gone.

https://www.mojaveexperience.net
https://instagram.com/mojave_experience_festival
https://www.facebook.com/mojave.experience.festival/

Borracho, Ouroboros (2025)

SoftSun, Eternal Sunrise (2025)

So, with confirmed sets from Yawning Man, Mario Lalli, John Garcia, Acid King and Dead Meadow, it’s safe to say Mojave Experience has ‘the desert’ as part of its mission statement. Certainly this week’s pair of confirmations for Nick Oliveri and The Freeks further beat that out as well. My only question at this point is, with Garcia and Oliveri already on the bill, if Brant Bjork might be added for a set too. Not thinking Vista Chino reunion or anything so grand, but it would be cool to have those guys all in one space over a weekend.

Not that I know anything, understand. Because I don’t. Oliveri‘s always-active solo tenure has seen him back and forth to Europe for the last few years, while The Freeks have situated themselves as the desert’s favorite weirdo blues band. There are far worse roles to play.

I’d go to this in a hot second. Just saying. From socials:

Nick Oliveri

Nick Oliveri’s Death Acoustic strips desert rock down to its bare, blistered core — forged in dust, driven by sound. Known for his wild lineage through Kyuss, Queens of the Stone Age, The Dwarves, and Mondo Generator, Oliveri brings that same feral voltage to the acoustic realm. It’s not a mellow detour — it’s a sandblasted sermon, raw and unfiltered, carrying the spirit of the desert in every note.

On stage, Oliveri turns vulnerability into voltage. His Death Acoustic sets swing between cracked-open confession and explosive release — one moment haunted and intimate, the next howling and untamed. His voice cuts with grit and conviction, shifting from haunted melodies to throat-shredding fury in a heartbeat. There’s no filter, no barrier — just an unguarded current of energy that electrifies the space around him. It’s the Mojave spirit distilled: raw honesty meeting sonic chaos beneath the desert sky.

Death Acoustic isn’t about volume — it’s about truth. It’s Oliveri at his rawest and most alive, channeling the same reckless soul that built the desert rock legacy he helped create.

The Freeks

The Freeks are a raw, psychedelically fuzzed surge of electric rock’n’roll — the sound of California heat meeting cosmic chaos. Emerging from the union of two SoCal counties, this crew of rock veterans channels decades of underground energy into a single, pulsing current of fuzz, groove, and liberation. Their music feels alive — not rehearsed or restrained — a living jam that breathes dust and distortion.

On stage, The Freeks are pure combustion. Their frontman leads with a chaotic, exuberant energy — part shaman, part showman — driving the band and crowd alike into a state of wild release. Guitars roar like engines in the Mojave night, basslines rumble through your chest, and the rhythm section locks into a trance-inducing groove that pulls the whole room into motion. It’s heavy and hypnotic but always human — a performance that blurs the line between control and surrender.

In the desert or in the city, The Freeks deliver the kind of rock that refuses to sit still — electric, expansive, and unapologetically alive.

Come ready. Come raw. The Mojave Experience isn’t here to entertain you — it’s here to change you.

See you March 20 & 21.

Next Ticket Bundle, Sun Chaser, goes on sale November 14. mojaveexperience.net

https://www.mojaveexperience.net
https://instagram.com/mojave_experience_festival
https://www.facebook.com/mojave.experience.festival/

The Freeks, Studio/Live II (2025)

Nick Oliveri, N.O. Hits at All Vol. 9 (2024)

Nick Oliveri has put out records this year with Mondo Generator and The Dwarves. He’s toured incessantly, either on his own like the ‘Death Acoustic’ — as opposed to ‘death metal’ — European run he’s got scheduled for early 2024, or with Mondo Generator, who are a trio on fire with Mike Pygmie on guitar and Mike Amster on drums, and in the last couple years, he’s brought forth and developed the band Stöner with former Kyuss bandmate and longtime collaborator Brant Bjork, issuing two albums, a live record and an EP to-date while also touring domestically and abroad to support. He’s done nothing the last few years but work, and to see him on stage as I’ve been lucky enough to do twice in the last two years with Mondo Generator, he’s both a frontman of marked presence and a raw-as-nails punk rocker with a scream that’s unmistakable.

What will next year bring? One assumes more. Oliveri obviously wants to keep momentum on his side, and with full-band stints likely to follow (or precede; one never knows) these March dates, it doesn’t seem unreasonable to expect more word soon. That’s before you get to festivals and all that.

From the PR wire:

NICK OLIVERI – Death Acoustic 2024

– new updated shows –
WE 06.03.24 IT TREVIGLIO – NAMA BREWING
TH 07.03.24 IT RAVENNA – BRONSON
FR 08.03.24 IT PORDENONE – ASTRO CLUB
SA 09.03.24 PT TORRES VEDRAS – BANG VENUE
SU 10.03.24 DE RAVENSBURG – IRISH PUB SLAINTE
MO 11.03.24 DE WEIDEN – SALUTE LIVE CLUB
TU 12.03.24 DE OPEN SLOT
WE 13.03.24 NL ARNHEM – LUXOR LIVE
TH 14.03.24 ES BILBAO – GROOVE
FR 15.03.24 ES MADRID – WURLITZER BALLROOM
SA 16.03.24 ES BARCELONA – SIDECAR
SU 17.03.24 NL DORDRECHT – NL BIBELOT POPPODIUM
MO 18.03.24 UK DOVER – THE BOOKING HALL
TU 19.03.24 UK NEWCASTLE – THE CLUNY
WE 20.03.24 UK GLASGOW – SLAY STUDIO
TH 21.03.24 UK BOLTON – ALMA INN
FR 22.03.24 UK CARDIFF – FUEL
SA 23.03.24 UK LONDON – SIGNATURE BREW
SU 24.03.24 UK BOURNEMOUTH – BEAR CAVE
TU 26.03.24 NL DEN HAAG – PAARD
WE 27.03.24 NL ALKMAAR – VICTORIE

https://www.facebook.com/officialmondogenerator/
https://www.instagram.com/nick_o_1971/
https://open.spotify.com/artist/5Ug0EkTXplXiip0C2OzVi7
https://www.mondogenerator.net/

heavypsychsoundsrecords.bandcamp.com
www.heavypsychsounds.com
https://www.facebook.com/HEAVYPSYCHSOUNDS/
https://www.instagram.com/heavypsychsounds_records/

Nick Oliveri, How to play “Autopilot” from Playthisriff.com

Mondo Generator did a European summer tour like this last year as well, where I was fortunate enough to see them play at Freak Valley Festival. This year, the Nick Oliveri-led trio hit StonerKras, Red Smoke, Hoflärm, SonicBlast and more besides over the course of more than a month of consistent bang bang bang, show show show, plugging away. This is an admirable thing. Gotta get paid, of course, but consider that Mondo Generator could easily be marketing itself as ‘Nick Oliveri‘s gonna sing some Kyuss and QOTSA songs too!’ and probably draw more heads, but to-date they haven’t really gone there. Yes, the bulk of what they do are the band’s own punk rippers, but Oliveri‘s whole catalog is fair game and I wouldn’t be surprised if it’s down to whatever a given evening calls for as to what’s played.

Oliveri is someone preceded by his reputation as a wildman, but I’ll say this: when I was introduced to him outside the show Stöner played in New Jersey last year, he was polite to my wife, which many with less wild reputations are not. Even if they hadn’t killed it when I saw them in 2022, that’d probably be enough motivation for me to put these dates here, if the general relevance wasn’t already enough, which I’ll point out that it is.

You may have recently caught wind of the collaboration between Oliveri and Italy’s Temple of Deimos. I don’t know if there’s anything else planned for while Mondo Generator are in Europe, but their schedule sure seems full, as told by the PR wire:

MONDO GENERATOR announce full European & UK summer tour + festival appearances!

Californian stoner punk icons MONDO GENERATOR (fronted by former Kyuss and Queens of the Stone Age bassist Nick Oliveri) are taking over Europe and the UK this summer, with an extensive summer tour including a few festival appearances!

Mondo Generator European summer tour:
13.07 – Prato (IT) Orto Sonoro Santa Valvola
14.07 – Genova (IT) Bau Fest Villa Rossi
15.07 – Trieste (IT) Stoner Kras Fest
16.07 – Pleszew (PL) Red Smoke Fest
18.07 – Dresden (DE) Chemiefabrik
20.07 – Hoofddorp (NL) Duycker
21.07 – Münster (DE) Rare Guitar
22.07 – Eindhoven (NL) Popei
23.07 – London (UK) Underworld
24.07 – Milton Keynes (UK) Craufurd Arms
25.07 – Swansea (UK) Bunkhouse
26.07 – Corby (UK) The Raven Hotel
27.07 – Bournemouth (UK) Anvil
28.07 – Bradford (UK) The Underground
29.07 – Glasgow (UK) Ivory Blacks
30.07 – Manchester (UK) Satans Hollow
31.07 – Norwich (UK) Waterfront Studio
01.08 – Cheltenham (UK) Frog & Fiddle
02.08 – Dover (UK) The Booking Hall
03.08 – Tilburg (NL) Little Devil
04.08 – Steenwijkerwold (NL) Dicky Woodstock
05.08 – Paris (FR) Petit Bain
08.08 – Chambery (FR) Brin De Zinc
09.08 – Zurich (CH) Safari Bar
10.08 – Marienthal (DE) Hoflärm Festival
11.08 – Ancora (PT) Sonic Blast Festival
12.08 – Innsbruck (AT) Pmk
13.08 – San Zenone Degli Ezzelini (IT) Villa Albrizzi
14.08 – Pula (HR) Monte Paradiso
16.08 – Cagliari (IT) Cueva Rock
17.08 – Caramagna (IT) Last One To Die
18.08 – Ravenna (IT) Hana-Bi
19.08 – Francavilla Al Mare (IT) Frantic Fest
20.08 – Carhaix (FR) Motocultor Festival

MONDO GENERATOR is:
Nick Oliveri – Bass & Vocals
Mike Pygmie – Guitars
Mike Amster – Drums

https://www.facebook.com/officialmondogenerator/
https://www.instagram.com/nick_o_1971/
https://open.spotify.com/artist/5Ug0EkTXplXiip0C2OzVi7
https://www.mondogenerator.net/

heavypsychsoundsrecords.bandcamp.com
www.heavypsychsounds.com
https://www.facebook.com/HEAVYPSYCHSOUNDS/
https://www.instagram.com/heavypsychsounds_records/

Mondo Generator, Fuck It (2020)

I don’t feel the need to even really say anything here. The lineup speaks for itself. And those who go to this year’s RippleFest Texas will also speak of it, for years, probably in a similar way people now talk about having been at this or that Emissions From the Monolith when that was going on in Ohio. The stuff of legend, in other words. Yeah, you can put on a fest and try to make it cool and fun, or you can do something like this and make it the highlight of everybody who attends’ year.

Kudos to Lick of My Spoon Productions and Ripple Music on a job well done. This will be something special. Bands have been leaked out one at a time at intermittent daily intervals, but the final lineup is out as of today, and it’s stunning. A blend of generations, a reach from on end of the country to the other, and a swath of the heavy underground all rallied in one place for a few days, pre- and after-parties included. Fucking a. If you’re attending, count yourself lucky.

As seen on socials:

Here it is! The full lineup for RippleFest Texas #3! This will be one for the ages with a stacked lineup and lots of special treats in between. Get your tickets now!

Amazing art by @1horsetown

* playing the Pre-Party
+ playing the Afterparty

King Buffalo, Acid King, Brant Bjork Trio, Sasquatch, Wo-Fat, Fatso Jetson, Mondo Generator, Unida, The Well+, The Atomic Bitchwax, Telekinetic Yeti*, Duel, Forming the Void, Hippie Death Cult, High Desert Queen*, Avon, War Cloud, Rubber Snake Charmers, Spirit Mother+, Kind, Nick Oliveri, Thunder Horse, Royal Sons+, Restless Spirit*, (Big) Pig, Fostermother, Dead Feathers+, Rainbows Are Free, Warlung*, Sun Voyager, Red Mesa, Dunes, Tia Carrera+, Mr. Plow, The Heroine*, Michael Rudolph Cummings, The Absurd+, GoodEye*, Red Beard Wall, God Damn Good Time Band+

Plus a “Legends of the Desert and Friends” jam session to close out Saturday night!

And as always, the visuals by The Mad Alchemist Liquid Light Show

All-Access passes are SOLD OUT! All we have left are 2 Day Passes and Pre/Afterparty tickets available. Many more bands to be announced! Get your tickets now before the full lineup is revealed and the ticket price goes up!

FESTIVAL TIX: https://bit.ly/faroutxripplefest
PREPARTY TIX: https://www.eventbrite.com/e/ripplefest-texas-pre-party-tickets-548171905927
AFTERPARTY TIX: https://www.eventbrite.com/e/ripplefest-texas-afterparty-tickets-548185095377
FB EVENT: https://www.facebook.com/events/1351567998746933/

https://www.facebook.com/theripplemusic/
https://ripplemusic.bandcamp.com/
http://www.ripple-music.com/

https://www.facebook.com/LOMSProductions
https://www.instagram.com/LOMSProductions/
http://www.lickofmyspoon.com/
https://linktr.ee/Lickofmyspoon

King Buffalo, “Regenerator” live at Sonic Whip 2023

In a manner not dissimilar from how its California fests took largely the same expansive lineup from San Francisco to Los Angeles and Los Angeles to San Francisco, Heavy Psych Sounds is bringing a circus to Berlin and Dresden on Oct. 21 and 22. In association with Greyzone and ElbSludgeBooking, the label has assembled a lineup that includes HPS bands and others like 1000mods and Gozu, and that sense of community outreach isn’t to be understated. The synergy between booking and releasing is a big part of what has allowed Heavy Psych Sounds to become the underground nexus it is, able to do more for bands than many other outlets. The festivals in cities across Europe and now in the US as well are another extension of that.

That’s not really an insight as to the lineup here or the label’s ethic or taste — also choice — but the fact is this is Heavy Psych Sounds doing what it does. More power to them, and so on.

From the PR wire:

HEAVY PSYCH SOUNDS FEST BERLIN & DRESDEN full lineup announcement

Heavy Psych Sounds Records & Booking will smash Berlin and Dresden with their highly acclaimed mini festival-series, the HEAVY PSYCH SOUNDS FEST!

In cooperation with Greyzone Concerts and ElbSludgeBooking, Heavy Psych Sounds has revealed the full lineup for the upcoming HEAVY PSYCH SOUNDS FEST BERLIN & DRESDEN !!!

The HPS Fest Berlin & Dresden will be taking place 21st and 22nd of October, 2022 at the Festsaal Kreuzberg and Urban Spree in Berlin and Chemiefabrik in Dresden !!!

HEAVY PSYCH SOUNDS FEST – BERLIN & DRESDEN
@ Festsaal Kreuzberg / Urban Spree, Berlin
@ Chemiefabrik, Dresden
October 21st and 22nd 2022

feat.
1000 MODS
NICK OLIVERI
BELZEBONG
BLACK RAINBOWS
ACID MAMMOTH
THE LORDS OF ALTAMONT
HIGH REEPER
SLEEPWULF
TONS
HIPPIE DEATH CULT
GOZU
OREYEON
WEDGE
MOTHER ENGINE

BERLIN TICKETS PRESALE:
https://www.greyzone-tickets.de/produkte/602

BERLIN FB OFFICIAL EVENT:
https://www.facebook.com/events/1358860387859773/

DRESDEN TICKETS LINK:
https://www.konzertkasse-dresden.de/event/heavy-psych-sounds-fest-dresden-dresden-chemiefabrik-2022-tickets-54749.html

DRESDEN FB OFFICIAL EVENT:
https://www.facebook.com/events/554544359334945

heavypsychsoundsrecords.bandcamp.com
www.heavypsychsounds.com
https://www.facebook.com/HEAVYPSYCHSOUNDS/
https://www.instagram.com/heavypsychsounds_records/

1000mods, Youth of Dissent (2020)

Still weeks away from hosting its two nights in Los Angeles and San Francisco, Heavy Psych Sounds has unveiled a similar strategy to take place this Fall in Berlin and Dresden. Set for Oct. 21-22, these Heavy Psych Sounds Fest 2022 editions are just beginning to take shape with this first announcement, as roughly a third of the acts and a headliner are still to be revealed, but there’s already stuff to note here. To wit, it’s Nick Oliveri touring and not Mondo Generator or Stöner. Will he play acoustic or have a full band behind him?

Also, the inclusion of High Reeper here makes me wonder if that Philly outfit won’t have a new record out by the time they go. Maybe September to get ahead of the busy Fall season? Pure speculation. After 2016’s High Reeper (review here) and 2019’s Higher Reeper, could this be the year of the highest of all reepers? Stay tuned to find out.

Whoever else ends up being included and whatever the answers to the above questions, one can continue to see Heavy Psych Sounds branching out across Europe and beyond as the foremost purveyor of underground heavy in the world. Ain’t nobody else out there putting out Nebula and Oreyeon, Dozer reissues and Witchpit. Label owns one of the most crucial moments in the history of heavy music. It is astounding.

From the PR wire:

*** HEAVY PSYCH SOUNDS FEST BERLIN & DRESDEN ***

first bands announcement

Heavy Psych Sounds Records & Booking will smash Berlin and Dresden with their highly acclaimed mini festival-series, the HEAVY PSYCH SOUNDS FEST! In cooperation with Greyzone Concerts and ElbSludgeBooking, today Heavy Psych Sounds has revealed the first bands for the upcoming HEAVY PSYCH SOUNDS FEST BERLIN & DRESDEN !!!

The HPS Fest Berlin & Dresden will be taking place 21st and 22nd of October, 2022 at the Festsaal Kreuzberg and Urban Spree in Berlin and Chemiefabrik in Dresden !!!

HEAVY PSYCH SOUNDS FEST – BERLIN & DRESDEN
@ Festsaal Kreuzberg / Urban Spree, Berlin
@ Chemiefabrik, Dresden
October 21st and 22nd 2022

feat.
BELZEBONG
NICK OLIVERI
THE LORDS OF ALTAMONT
HIGH REEPER
SLEEPWULF
+ more TBA

STAY TUNED FOR MORE INFO COMING SOON…

heavypsychsoundsrecords.bandcamp.com
www.heavypsychsounds.com
https://www.facebook.com/HEAVYPSYCHSOUNDS/
https://www.instagram.com/heavypsychsounds_records/

Belzebong, De Mysteriis Dope Sathanas – Live in Oslo (2021)

Back for its second year and with a fourth day in tow, Ripplefest Texas 2022 confirms its full lineup, a total beast of legends and newcomers. Really, I don’t even know what to say here except that if you’re lucky enough to go, it’s probably the kind of thing you’re going to remember for a long gosh-darn time, and it’s the kind of lineup that serves as lording-over fodder on the part of those who were there to those who weren’t. Well, at least it would if the heavy underground weren’t too cool to each other for that kind of gatekeeping nonsense. In any case, this looks like a massive undertaking to put on, and the roster of assembled acts gets a hearty ‘fucking a’ from my corner of the universe.

Tickets for all four days will run you $150, but I feel like the festival earns that on both quality and quantity of product.

Here’s the announcement, info and links:

RIPPLE FEST TEXAS – The Far Out Lounge – July 21-24

4-day passes available now!

RippleFest Texas 2022 is back and the lineup is as big and hot as Texas itself! 4 days of blistering hot music at Austin’s premier music venue The Far Out Lounge. There will be everything from crushing heavy riffs, to acoustic and banjo picking, to improvisation jam sessions and puppet shows! So many legends and great music that this will be a 4 day weekend you will not want to miss!

TICKETS:
https://www.tickettailor.com/events/thefaroutloungestage/639551

FULL LINEUP:
Eagles of Death Metal, The Sword, Crowbar, Mothership, Big Business, The Obsessed, Stöner, Spirit Adrift, The Heavy Eyes, Sasquatch, REZN, Fatso Jetson, Heavy Temple, J.D. Pinkus, Lord Buffalo, Lo-Pan, Wino, El Perro, Void Vator, Hippie Death Cult, Howling Giant, Doctor Smoke, Nick Oliveri, High Desert Queen, Destroyer of Light, Ape Machine, High Priestess, Dryheat, Rubber Snake Charmers, Sun Crow, Holy Death Trio, Bone Church, Horseburner, Spirit Mother, Thunder Horse, Mother Iron Horse, The Age of Truth, Salem’s Bend, Las Cruces, All Souls, Kind, Fostermother, The Absurd, Godeye, Ole English, Mr. Plow, Snake Mountain Revival, Blue Heron, Grail, Formula 400, Rickshaw Billie’s Burger Patrol, Eagle Claw, Bridge Farmers.

The Far Out Lounge is located at 8504 South Congress. Winner of Best New Venue at the Austin Music Awards 2020.

http://www.thefaroutaustin.com/

https://www.facebook.com/ripplefesttexas
https://www.facebook.com/LOMSProductions/
https://www.facebook.com/theripplemusic/
https://www.instagram.com/ripplemusic/
https://ripplemusic.bandcamp.com/
http://www.ripple-music.com/

Lo-Pan, Live at the Grog Shop, Cleveland, Ohio, Feb 18, 2022