The latest update from Freak Valley 2017 gets a hearty ‘fucking a’ from my end, not the least because it contains confirmation that New York heavy blues-psych jammers Geezer will head across the Atlantic for the first time to play. Kudos to that trio, whose 2016 self-titled third album (review here) remains fresh in mind since its release last month on STB Records and Ripple Music, as they join the likes of Pentagram and Greenleaf, as well as Black Willows and Orango, who’ve also been added as of this afternoon. If you missed the last announcement from Freak Valley 2017, it was for a little band called Slo Burn playing an exclusive German show, so, you know, no minor shakes all around.

Once again, cheers to the Geezer guys for working out the scenario of being a good band doing cool shit, living the dream and all that. One anticipates tour dates will follow. I’ll keep an eye out.

Till then, here’s what Freak Valley had to say about Pentagram, Greenleaf, Geezer, Black Willows and Orango:

Short before Christmas we are ready to give you a couple of more killer band names for Freak Valley Festival 2017.

We are thrilled to announce these 5 bands:

Pentagram (official) [US]
Major pioneers of Doom Metal.

Bobby Liebling & PENTAGRAM have been churning out widely admired hard rock / doom metal for over four decades. Within its first, this D.C. band is largely regarded as pioneering not one but two subgenres of hard rock. At the onset of the 1970’s, they helped procreate a behemoth called, “Heavy Metal.” Nine years on, they’d be planting the dark seed of what would grow to be known as “Doom. Now they will finally play Freak Valley! Yeah!

Greenleaf [SW]
Blues / Psychedelic / Stoner Rock

What makes a group truly unique and memorable – is something that can’t be defined, learned, or bought. Call it talent, magic, or whatever you want, but GREENLEAF has it. A super group of the underground rock scene, featuring a revolving cast of fellow musicians who share a love of heavy fuzz rock, GREENLEAF is a righteous kick in the ass and a testament to the almighty riff!

Geezer [US]
Cosmic Stoner Blues

Handmade Heavy Blues is a deep and heavy blues based rock. Imagine The Black Keys with a bit more evil in them, n more “Lonely Boy.” Geezer even sounds a bit like Larmon Clamor mixed with a little Five Horse Johnson. Either way you look at it, you’re getting a heavy blues album that covers it all.

The Black Willows [CH]
Shamanic Psych Rock

Black Willows causes an altered sensory experience of senses, emotions, memories, time, and awareness for 6 to 14 hours, depending on dosage and tolerance. Generally beginning instantly after ingestion, the user may experience anything from subtle changes in perception to overwhelming cognitive shifts. Changes in auditory and visual perception are typical.

Orango [NO]
Southern/Blues/Rock

Purveyors of honest and straightforward blues-infused vocal harmony rock, the trio Orango have worked on their musical blend and live reputation for over a decade. Their music is of the long-playing format, never shy of a hefty guitar solo or jamming in general. The band members say they are inspired by good ol´rock´n roll, good new rock´n roll, good ol´ blues, and good new blues”, namedropping bands like Lynyrd Skynyrd, ZZ Top, Mountain, Led Zeppelin, Johnny Winter, Peter Green’s Fleetwood Mac, Creedence Clearwater Revival, and Crosby Stills Nash & Young.

FREAK VALLEY FESTIVAL – 15th-16th-17th June 2017
www.freakvalley.de – www.rockfreaks.de

Freak Valley Festival 2017: No Fillers – Just Killers

Line-up 2017:
Slo Burn, Pentagram (official), UFOMAMMUT, Greenleaf, The Brew, Salem’s Pot, MaidaVale, Geezer, Kikagaku Moyo, Vodun, Orango, The Black Willows

www.freakvalley.de
https://www.facebook.com/freakvalley
https://www.facebook.com/events/150965291977635/
https://twitter.com/FreakValley

Geezer, Geezer (2016)

The final addition to the lineup for Up in Smoke 2016, which starts this Friday at Z7 in Pratteln, Switzerland? Camping space. Namely the floor of the venue, which will be cleaned after the last band finishes each night so that fest goers can grab their sleeping bags and bed down for the night, only to find breakfast waiting when they roll back to consciousness the next morning. I’ve never slept on a venue floor before. That would be a new one. But provided they get the beer/other fluids up, which I’ve no doubt they’ll be able to do because it’s Switzerland and things like that increase the likelihood that anyone gives a shit about what they’re doing, it seems like a cool way to achieve total immersion in a festival atmosphere. I’ve never gone camping either, though, so don’t necessarily take my word as an expert or anything.

With the festival’s most massive lineup yet, Up in Smoke 2016 kicks off this Friday. A new trailer for the fest with some 1000mods in it has been posted and you can find that under the camping info and complete billing below:

SOUND OF LIBERATION and Z7 KONZERTFABRIK PRATTELN proudly present the 4th edition of UP IN SMOKE INDOOR FESTIVAL on September 30th and October 1st 2016! Musical Highlights include Electric Wizard, Yob, Truckfighters, Pentagram and many many more.

Many of you asked for the chance to sleep over in the venue, like we offered in the last editions. Here´s the procedure:

After the last band is done playing, we will go on partying with Dj music for another hour. Then afterwards, we will ask everybody to step out of the main hall for a few minutes. The floor will be cleaned and covered with a sheet so that the place gets clean for all our “in site – campers”. If you want to sleep over in the venue, you should bring your sleeping bag and camping mat. Upon your arrival on the festival site you can store your belongings in the wardrobe and get it back for the night.

In the morning, we will offer you a nice breakfast with coffee/tea, bread and breadrolls, meat and cheese and sweet stuff to get you in shape for the next festival day! The price for sleep over and breakfast is 15.- CHF per person/night. There´s no option of separate bookings like ” only sleep over and no breakfast” or “only breakfast”.

Up in Smoke 2016 Final Line Up
Electric Wizard
Pentagram
Truckfighters
YOB
Elder
Greenleaf
Monkey 3
Cough
Black Cobra
1000mods
Yawning Man
Fatso Jetson
Dyse
Wucan
Desert Mountain Tribe
Giobia
High Fighter
Mother’s Cake
Ephedra

Also not to forget: No overlapping set times, sleep over/breakfast possibiity in the venue + some more specials to be announced soon to sweeten you the “TWO NOT TO BE MISSED DAYS OF VOLUME WORSHIP” !!! Grab your ticket (2-day passes) right now on our website, on www.z-7.ch and on our Facebook (tab ‘Buy Tickets’). If you prefer to buy an original, real hard-ticket, our partner Woolheads is selling them!

http://woolheads.com/cms/shop-2/festivalmerchandise/up-in-smoke-the-indoor-festival-vol-iv-ticket/
http://www.upinsmoke.de/eventinfo-indoor-festival
https://www.facebook.com/UpInSmokeIndoorFestivalInZ7
https://www.soundofliberation.com

Up in Smoke 2016, festival trailer

With the final addition of Cough, the lineup for Desertfest Athens 2016 is complete. The fest is set for Oct. 7 and 8 — less than a month from now — and Cough join the bill as they’ll be on tour at the time with Elder (dates here) supporting their new album, Still They Pray (review here), which was released by Relapse.

The roster of bands they join, including Red Fang and Greek forerunners 1000mods, whose new song “The Son” you can hear below (more to come on that album), is ridiculously strong, and seems to draw from the history of Desertfest itself in various ways, Steak representing London’s incarnation, Colour Haze that of Berlin (though they’re from Munich), and really any number of these acts the Belgian edition. It’s a great mix that does well to represent its home country as well in Automaton (who’ll be joined by Dr. Space himself), Sadhus, and the aforementioned 1000mods.

Looks like a great show, and particularly as it’s the first one, I wish them all the best of luck with it.

Final announcement and lineup follow:

Doom/Sludge masters COUGH joining the bill for Desertfest Athens 2016 1st edition!

This is the full line up for the 1st ever Desertfest Athens!

Red Fang
1000mods
Pentagram
Torche
Colour Haze
Truckfighters
My Sleeping Karma
Karma to Burn
Elder
Cough
Black Rainbows
House of Broken Promises
Steak
Beggars
Sadhus
Black Hat Bones
Automaton with Dr. Space
We Own the Sky

Enjoy desert army!

After London, Berlin and Antwerp, the Desertfest franchise is keeping up its conquest of Europe by launching the very first Greek edition of the famous stoner, doom and psych festival. DESERTFEST ATHENS will take place over the second weekend of October, as a sister event of the autumnal Belgium edition.

Over the years, DESERTFEST has become one of the most popular events in Europe for everything heavy, stoner, doom and psyche. “Made by fans for the fans”, the festival gathers thousands of people from across the globe each year by hosting the finest headliners, while also constantly stretching the limits of its own niche with dozens of quality live acts throughout a weekend. Nurturing a friendly atmosphere since the very beginning, DESERTFEST is a urban festival that has won the loyalty of heavy music lovers, so expect your Greek holiday to be a unique and memorable music and human experience!

https://www.viva.gr/tickets/music/iera-odos/desertfest-athens/
www.detoxevents.gr
https://www.facebook.com/Desertfest-Athens-189161564797514/
https://www.facebook.com/events/1530177053945310/

1000mods, “The Son”

It’s more than a little amazing to think that Pentagram are 45 years into their career. 45 years! Of course, vocalist Bobby Liebling is the sole remaining original member and they’ve had a near-Hawkwindian amount of lineup changes at this point, but still, for even the name to last that long is impressive, let alone the fact that in 2016, they’re probably bigger than they’ve ever been. Recent controversies aside — and whether or not they should be put aside is a matter for internet thinkpieces to sort out — the band’s reach has only expanded over the last several years, and the release of Curious Volume (review here) in 2015 confirmed them as one of the most pivotal American doom acts on the circuit.

That they’ve never had a music video before this new one for the title-track is more trivia than landmark — as I recall it also took Saint Vitus a long time to get their first video out — but certainly noteworthy in any case. “Curious Volume” would seem to live up to the occasion by emphasizing Pentagram as they are today rather than who they were four-plus decades ago. Shot on their Spring European tour, which included a stop at Roadburn 2016, where they slayed, the video finds Pentagram compiles and manipulates performance footage, bringing the vibrancy of their stage show to bear in a well-edited four-minute package delivered in advance of their appearance next month at Psycho Las Vegas.

Check it out below, followed by some comment from Liebling via the PR wire:

Pentagram, “Curious Volume” official video

45 years into its career, Pentagram is ecstatic to announce its first ever promotional video for the title track from the acclaimed album Curious Volume.

The video for “Curious Volume” was produced by David Hall (Uneasysleeper.com), known for his work with The Melvins, Pig Destroyer, Phillip H. Anselmo and the Illegals, Venom, Brutal Truth, Ken Mode and more, with the live footage shot on tour March – April 2016 by Jerry Moore, Chris Navarro, Joe Shuerger and Dan Lively.

Pentagram frontman Bobby Liebling said of the video: “We wanted our first ever video to, in-a-way, be a connection to the past as well as the present. The song can be interpreted as a personal and collective journey that we’ve been on for close to half a decade. It’s a trip that’s both physical and mental and I feel that Dave’s end result illustrates that for us and everyone. The video stands as both an escape and an introduction to us as artists and people. You can feel the rigors and rewards of tour life through the visuals. We love the stardust and psychedelics as well as the raw rock-n-roll energy felt throughout the song and video alike. We hope you connect with it like we do.”

Pentagram is:
Bobby Liebling – vocals
Victor Griffin – guitar
Greg Turley – bass
Pete Campbell – drums

Pentagram website

Pentagram on Thee Facebooks

Pentagram at Peaceville Records

If you were hoping to get early-bird tickets for Desertfest Athens 2016, tough turkey — they’re gone. It didn’t take more than an initial lineup announcement to move them all out the door, so I guess if there was any question there was enough interest in Athens to warrant holding a fest under the Desertfest banner, that’s gone too. As for the first acts joining the bill, it’s an impressive assemblage, with Colour Haze, Pentagram, Karma to Burn, Beggars and Sadhus, the latter two local to Athens and supporting an international cast that’s only going to increase in scope as we get closer to October.

As noted yesterday, Desertfest Athens 2016 is part of a string of European festivals happening on successive weekends, preceded by Up in Smoke and followed by Desertfest Belgium and Keep it Low. I don’t know about you, but if ever there was a time to drop out of life and go bum around Europe for a month, this would seem to be it. If you need me, I’ll be daydreaming about same.

Just before this post went up, I noticed Greek outfits Automaton and Black Hat Bones have also newly joined the bill. Seems like it’s fair to expect Desertfest Athens will be highlighting the booming Greek heavy rock scene in its lineup, and I won’t argue with the mission. Feels like a long time coming.

Info courtesy of the fest:

First line up announcement for Desertfest Athens 2016!!!

Colour Haze
Pentagram
John Garcia
Karma to Burn
BEGGARS
Sadhus “The Smoking Community”

Automaton are the next band to be announced for Desertfest Athens!!!

Black Hat Bones join Desertfest Athens too!!!

Get your tickets now!!!

Desertfest’s early bird tickets are sold out!!!

After London, Berlin and Antwerp, the Desertfest franchise is keeping up its conquest of Europe by launching the very first Greek edition of the famous stoner, doom and psych festival. DESERTFEST ATHENS will take place over the second weekend of October, as a sister event of the autumnal Belgium edition.

https://www.viva.gr/tickets/music/iera-odos/desertfest-athens/
www.detoxevents.gr
https://www.facebook.com/Desertfest-Athens-189161564797514/
https://www.facebook.com/events/1530177053945310/

Colour Haze, To the Highest Gods We Know (2014)

One festival season (spring/summer) has barely begun, and already it’s time to start setting up the next one (fall). The snag here, of course, is that there is no such thing anymore as festival season. It’s all seasons. For Desertfest Belgium 2016 — the Antwerp-based fest now in its third year — extra intrigue is added because of its proximity to Keep it Low, held the weekend after in Munich, to the newly announced Desertfest Athens, which happens the weekend before in Greece, and to Up in Smoke 2016, held two weeks before in Switzerland.

What does that mean? Well, there’s always some overlap from one fest to the next, one year to the next, so that won’t necessarily be a surprise, but it seems fair in addition to that to expect a lot of tours to be announced that will perhaps start in Athens and anchor weekends in Antwerp and Munich, so not only do we get a sense of how long these runs will go — obviously not everyone will do four weeks, but some will — but also their general direction. For example, Pentagram, who’ve been announced for Desertfest Belgium, will also be at Up in Smoke. That’s three weeks in Europe right there already. You see where I’m going with this.

Looking forward to watching all these lineups shake out, who goes where and when. Also added to Desertfest Belgium 2016 are My Sleeping Karma, Torche, Electric Citizen and Belgian locals Your Highness, as the fest itself informed:

Aaaaaand….. here. The Fuck. We. GO!

We know this is the moment you’ve been waiting for, so we won’t waste too much time on pleasantries. Here are the first bands that will turn Desertfest Antwerp 2016 in our greatest edition yet:

The True Doom Legend of PENTAGRAM!

The expanding mind grooves of MY SLEEPING KARMA!

The thick Florida sludge of TORCHE!

The delirious retro throwback of the up-and-coming ELECTRIC CITIZEN!

and finally: the fabulous YOUR HIGHNESS hailing from our hometown Antwerp!

So how’s that for starters. Expect some more big names to be heading your way in a couple of weeks, meanwhile: start spreading the news, and start booking your ticket! Early Bird tickets are gone, but you can now get your Reduced Combi Tickets at €95 (which let’s be honest, is still a steal)

Come taste the rock at the Home of the Heavy! Save the date! On October 14-16, Trix Antwerp will become a temple to all sound heavy and psychedelic!

Enjoy 3 stages and 3 days of face-melting riffs and rump shaking grooves!

https://www.facebook.com/desertfestbelgium/
https://twitter.com/desertfestBE
https://www.facebook.com/events/488174281372335/
http://www.desertfest.be/tickets

Pentagram, “All Your Sins” Live at Roadburn 2016

Doom legends Pentagram continue pro-level touring in support of their 2015 album, Curious Volume (review here). They’re recently returned from Europe, which brought an appearance at Roadburn 2016, and before that was SXSW. Still to come this year are Psycho Las Vegas — they also headlined Psycho California last year — and a return trip to Europe that will include a stop at Up in Smoke 2016 in Switzerland, among other appearances sure to be announced. I don’t know if 2016 is Pentagram‘s busiest year in their 45-ish year history, but it sure feels like it. They’re giving an entirely new meaning to “Relentless.”

Before they get to Psycho and back to the EU, they’re sneaking in a West Coast run later this month, looping down from Seattle and eventually back into SoCal and heading north again from there. Dates and info follow, courtesy of the PR wire:

PENTAGRAM ANNOUNCES HEADLINING MAY TOUR DATES

New album “Curious Volume” out now on Peaceville

Legendary U.S. heavy/doom metal band, Pentagram, has announced a batch of headlining May U.S. tour dates in support of its latest album Curious Volume, which released last summer on Peaceville Records. A full list of confirmed shows can be seen below.

Featuring 11 classic heavy metal compositions with catchy hooks from core band members Victor Griffin, Greg Turley, and Bobby Liebling (Pete Campbell on the drums completes the band’s line-up), Curious Volume was recorded with Swedish producer Mattias Nilsson at studios located in Maryland and Virginia. Additional recording took place in Tennessee with Grammy-nominated producer Travis Wyrick, who also produced Pentagram’s previous album, Last Rites. The album’s cover artwork was provided courtesy of Richard Schouten.

Pentagram on tour:
5/17 – Seattle, WA @ Studio Seven
5/18 – Portland, OR @ Dante’s
5/19 – Boise, ID @ Neurolux
5/20 – Salt Lake City, UT @ The State Room
5/21 – Denver, CO @ Marquis Theater
5/23 – Phoenix, AZ @ Nile Theater
5/24 – Los Angeles, CA @ The Echo
5/25 – San Diego, CA @ Brick By Brick
5/26 – Santa Ana, CA @ Observatory
5/27 – San Francisco, CA @ DNA Lounge
5/28 – San Jose, CA @ The Ritz

Pentagram is:
Bobby Liebling – vocals
Victor Griffin – guitar
Greg Turley – bass
Pete Campbell – drums

http://www.PentagramOfficial.com
https://www.facebook.com/pentagramusa
http://www.peaceville.com/store

Pentagram, “Walk Alone”

Pretty courteous if you think about it for Up in Smoke 2016 to give you six months of advance notice that you should get your ass to Switzerland — which, yes, I phrased that way because it might as well be Mars. Still, if you think about starting lineups, Sound of Liberation isn’t screwing around in this first batch of announcements, bringing out big guns in Electric Wizard, Pentagram, Monkey3 and Yawning Man and showing further dedication to Europe’s booming underground with Noon.

I’m especially curious to see how Yawning Man shakes out. The Gary Arce-led desert rock progenitors recently unveiled a new four-piece lineup with Bill Stinson still on drums, Justine Summer Heaven presumably on bass and Malene Arce (LewdFlesh) on… vocals, maybe? They reportedly have a new EP in the works for the summer, so we’ll hear how it turns out, hopefully.

I got sidetracked. That release will hopefully be out by September, which is when Up in Smoke 2016 is set, at Z7 in Switzerland, with indoor camping and more, as the PR wire informs:

UP IN SMOKE 2016! Sept. 30th / Oct. 1st … Electric Wizard, Pentagram, Monkey3, Yawning Man, Noon confirmed!

We are proud to present our UP IN SMOKE INDOOR FEST IV, that will take place on September 30th and October 1st 2016, in our dear Z7 Konzertfabrik! Two days of stoner/heavy-psych/doom music in Basel-area (Switzerland) featuring 20 outstanding acts on two stages with no overlapping sets, and an indoor campsite!!

ELECTRIC WIZARD, which have been announced last fall, will headline one of the nights, and we are stoked to tell you today that Pentagram, Monkey3, Yawning Man and Noon are confirmed as well for this new edition! 2-day passes (e-tickets) are already on sale on our website, on www.z-7.ch and on our Facebook. If you prefer to buy a hard-ticket, our partner Woolheads is selling them!

Enjoy our new design made by Elvisdead, grab your ticket, and stay tuned! More names will come in March.

http://www.upinsmoke.de/eventinfo-indoor-festival
https://www.facebook.com/UpInSmokeIndoorFestivalInZ7
https://www.soundofliberation.com/

Electric Wizard, Live in Minneapolis, MN, April 8, 2015