Posted in Whathaveyou on April 19th, 2022 by JJ Koczan
Tour on, tour off. As previously noted, this inaugural Planet of Zeus tour in the US (a couple shows in Canada as well; not to be forgotten) was scheduled for 2020, and it was a bummer when it was canceled the first time, though of course everything was canceled at that point, so it was just one more for the pile. Now that some tours are actually happening, seeing this one fall by the wayside is even harder. They were to have appeared at Desertfest New York, playing the pre-show at the Saint Vitus Bar, and as you can see for the list of affected dates below, that was just one righteous stop they were making on a coast-to-coast-and-then-some run. I’ve seen no word on whether they’ll try again.
I do not envy any band trying to get to the States my country’s ridiculous visa application process, either in terms of inconvenience or expense. Rest assured, if America was the greatest country in the world as the slogan says, its doors would be open to any and all who might approach them. The problem here lies not with those seeking to share their art, thereby benefiting themselves, their dedicated audience and the community at large.
From social media:
PLANET OF ZEUS – NORTH AMERICAN TOUR CANCELLED
We’re absolutely devastated to have to announce this, but our planned shows in North America, Canada and festival appearance at Desertfest are unfortunately cancelled.
We took every measure to ensure our visas were granted in time but at this point we’re still lacking the correspondence and reassurance that we need in order to go ahead with the tour. We wanted nothing more than to make some noise on US soil but the odds are stacked against us and we simply just can’t make it happen.
Please know that we’re working hard to reschedule the shows and we hope to have clarity on our visa situation soon.
Sincerest apologies to everyone that was hoping to see us and thank you in advance for your understanding.
CANCELLED DATES May 4 – Des Moines, IA – XBK LIVE MAY 5 – Chicago, IL – REGGIE’S May 6 – Youngstown, OH – WESTSIDE BOWL May 7 – Toronto, ON – BOVINE SEX CLUB May 8 – Ottawa, ON – DOMINION TAVERN May 9 – Quebec City – QC – LA SOURCE DL MARTINIERE May 10 – Providence, RI – ALCHEMY May 11 – Frederick, MD – CAFE 611 May 12 – Brooklyn NY – DESERTFEST – ST VITUS BAR May 13 – Virginia Beach – THE BUNKER BREWPUB May 14 – Atlanta, GA – BOGGS SOCIAL May 15 – New Orleans, LA – PORTSIDE LOUNGE May 16 – Lafayette, LA – FREETOWN BOOM BOOM ROOM May 17 – Austin, TX – INDEPENDENCE BREWING May 19 – Tempe, AZ – YUCCA TAP ROOM May 20 – San Diego, CA – KENSINGTON CLUB May 21 – Costa Mesa, CA – THE WAYFARER May 22 – San Francisco, CA – BOTTOM OF THE HILL May 24 – Portland, OR – DANTES May 25 – Seattle, WA – FUNHOUSE May 26 – Boise, ID – SHREDDER May 27 – Salt Lake City, UT – THE LOADING DOCK May 28 – Denver, CO – HQ
Art by Bewild Brother
PLANET OF ZEUS is: Babis Papanikolaou – Vox & Guitars Stelios Provis – Guitars Giannis Vrazos – Bass Serafeim Giannakopoulos – Drums
Posted in Whathaveyou on March 29th, 2022 by JJ Koczan
Freak Valley Festival 2022 has announced that Baroness and Planet of Zeus will play on the added-this-year Wednesday night of the fest, taking the place of Monster Magnet, whose European tour plans have been canceled owing to a back injury. Obviously that’s a bummer for Monster Magnet fans, and I am one, but you can hardly argue with the bands taking their place. Baroness are huge, and Planet of Zeus are killer, so yeah, I expect this news will go over with a “ah hell,” and then a distinct sound of life moving on. Obviously, back injuries or whathaveyou, there’s a lot of leeway for canceling shows at this point in human existence.
Normally I would’ve written this announcement, but I dropped the ball on this one. Sorry to the fest, but they seem to have done just fine without me, not at all to my surprise. I still need to book my flights and figure out where I’m staying, but yes, I’m planning on being at Freak Valley this June.
From socials:
FREAKS!
We are overjoyed to present you another highlight for our Freak Valley Festival. Please welcome the mighty and Grammy-nominated Baroness!
They will join us with their most ambitious work to date, fifth album Gold & Grey. Set for release on the band’s own Abraxan Hymns, Gold & Grey spills triumphantly past genre barriers, their anthemic alt-metal hooks ricocheting between the circuitous twists of prog and jazz, the moody swirls of space-rock and noise, and the hypnotic pulses of trip-hop and 20th Century minimalism. “This is the most clear representation of the artistic vision I have for the band that we’ve ever done,” says Baroness vocalist, guitarist and founder John Baizley. “I’m surprised that we got as far with it as we did.”
Another addition to our Wednesday-Lineup are the greek Heavy rockers Planet of Zeus who will grace us for an alive and kicking party full of heavy riffs, gritty melodies and foot stomping grooves. “How was the heavy rock scene in Greece” you ask, before Planet of Zeus made their debut at the dawn of the third millennium? A band that needs no introduction, for its enviable success and indisputable chemistry on stage are nothing short of becoming part of Greek Mythology.
Freak Valley Festival // No Fillers – Just Killers
Posted in Whathaveyou on February 22nd, 2022 by JJ Koczan
Already confirmed for Desertfest NYC 2022 in Brooklyn this May, Athenian heavy rockers Planet of Zeus today announce their inaugural US tour after stomping only so many mudholes in the European circuit. The run was originally supposed to take place in 2020, but I think we all know how that went. Needless to say, I like their chances of making it over now much better than they might’ve been as the world was turning to shit, and having the occasion of Desertfest to tour around only makes it make more sense. I’m not saying it’s convenient to have the tour kicked back by two years, but I’m saying that at least they’re making the most of the opportunity that delay presents.
Speaking of presents, I was one of the presenters of the original tour and have been back and forth with the booking concerns, etc., over the last couple days about this announcement. I don’t know if I’m still presenting or what, but frickin’ hell, this band plays arenas in Greece. I’ll bet they blow the roof off some of these places they’re playing.
Here there be tour dates:
PLANET OF ZEUS NORTH AMERICAN HEADLINE TOUR
We are so excited to visit North America for the first time. Things are about to get loud in here and we can’t wait to perform alongside Freedom Hawk, Void Vator and Druids and to bring the party to NA. See you on the road!!
DATES May 4 – Des Moines, IA – XBK LIVE MAY 5 – Chicago, IL – REGGIE’S May 6 – Youngstown, OH – WESTSIDE BOWL May 7 – Toronto, ON – BOVINE SEX CLUB May 8 – Ottawa, ON – DOMINION TAVERN May 9 – Quebec City – QC – LA SOURCE DL MARTINIERE May 10 – Providence, RI – ALCHEMY May 11 – Frederick, MD – CAFE 611 May 12 – Brooklyn NY – DESERTFEST – ST VITUS BAR May 13 – Virginia Beach – THE BUNKER BREWPUB May 14 – Atlanta, GA – BOGGS SOCIAL May 15 – New Orleans, LA – PORTSIDE LOUNGE May 16 – Lafayette, LA – FREETOWN BOOM BOOM ROOM May 17 – Austin, TX – INDEPENDENCE BREWING May 19 – Tempe, AZ – YUCCA TAP ROOM May 20 – San Diego, CA – KENSINGTON CLUB May 21 – Costa Mesa, CA – THE WAYFARER May 22 – San Francisco, CA – BOTTOM OF THE HILL May 24 – Portland, OR – DANTES May 25 – Seattle, WA – FUNHOUSE May 26 – Boise, ID – SHREDDER May 27 – Salt Lake City, UT – THE LOADING DOCK May 28 – Denver, CO – HQ
Art by Bewild Brother
PLANET OF ZEUS is: Babis Papanikolaou – Vox & Guitars Stelios Provis – Guitars Giannis Vrazos – Bass Serafeim Giannakopoulos – Drums
Posted in Whathaveyou on February 7th, 2022 by JJ Koczan
Bringing together players from Germany, the Netherlands, France, the UK, Austria, Northern Ireland, Italy, Greece, Sweden, the US and Brazil, the Stoner Rock Worldwide Community Album 2021 boasts seven tracks of remote compositions and recordings, with the songs emerging from members having participated in a call to arms during the pandemic. It’s a hugely ambitious project. In regular circumstances, it would be impressive enough to curate a series of bands and players coming together on a new anything. To sort various parties across international borders into working units even in the age of social media, and then to have them work together creatively, is an oh-hell-no kind of job. Kudos to Felix Melchhardt on making it happen.
Pretty astounding stuff. Vinyl’s in the works as we speak, and the stream went live this past Friday. You’ll find it at the bottom of this post, and considering the amount of effort that seems to have gone into every level of making it, the download is dirt-frickin’-cheap.
More info:
Stoner Rock World Wide Community Album Digital Release out now! 35+ Musicians, Remotely composed and recorded.
Remotely composed, recorded and finally pressed on vinyl together as a worldwide community of heavy rock lovers – The Stoner Rock World Wide Community Album.
26. May 2020: “What if we release an album remotely composed, recorded and finally pressed on vinyl together as a worldwide community of heavy rock lovers? Musicians world wide writing an album for our lovely world wide community, that’s the deal and we think we could make this happen.” – And we did so.
Key Facts – 7 Tracks – Remotely composed, recorded and mixed by more than 35 musicians spread over the globe. Magic definitely happened, friendships were made. – Mastered by Niklas Källgren (Truckfighters). – Once pressed, worldwide distribution via various heavy rock labels. – Special guests: Bob Balch (Fu Manchu), Papanikolaou Babis (Planet of Zeus), Tolis Motsios (Nightstalker). – People participating in the project did not know each other before. Only the love for heavy rock connects them. They were brought together by an open call-out to the community by SRWW 2 years ago. – Groups were brought together via Facebook. They internally organized themselves on how to approach the songwriting process, exchanged ideas and finally put together 7 unique songs. – Anything that could go wrong, went wrong (really) – but we made it. **ck COVID. – Pressed on vinyl right now. – Bandcamp digital release co-finances the master, distribution and further costs. – Endurance was key. Shoutout to all the people involved. – Coordinated by Felix Melchhardt in the name of SRWW. (Cone (Band), Blackdoor Music Festival, SRWW)
Personnel: Track 1 – Dreams of Space Francesco Bonardi – Guitar (Hackberry, Netherlands) Eric Frantzen – Bass (Mantra Machine, Netherlands) Drev – Vocals (Descarado, Sweden) Miguel Pereira – Guitar (Bushfire, Germany) Sascha Holz – Drums (Bushfire, Germany)
Track 2 – Remain Martin Frank – Bass / Vocals (White Noise Generator, Germany) Thomas Berger – Drums (Timestone, Austria) Tony Hochhuber – Guitars (Germany)
Track 3 – The All Seeing Sun Diamond Pr – Guitar / Vocals (The Same River, Greece) Oscar Flanagan – Guitar (Insonika, Sweden) Armin Lehner – Keys (Ozymandias, Austria) Brien Gillen – Drums (Elder Druid, Northern Ireland) Rafael Denardi – Bass (Rafael Denardi, Brazil) Special Guest: Papanikolaou Babis (Planet of Zeus, Greece)
Track 4 – Raw Luke Taylor – Drums (White Noise Generator, Germany) Derek Fisher – Guitar (Moth66, USA) Niels van Eldijk – Bass (Ramkoers, Netherlands) Ben Plochowietz – Guitar / Vocals (Scorched Oak, Germany) Christoph W. – Vocals (Ozymandias, Austria) Special Guests: Tolis Motsios Nightstalker (Greece)
Track 5 – Calypso Tom Maene – Guitar (Motsus, Belgium) Jeroen Schippers – Drums (Mantra Machine, Netherlands) Linda Hackmann – Bass / Vocals (Scorched Oak, Germany) Dimitris Vardoulakis – Vocals (Honeybadger, Greece) Jonas Hartmann – Keys (Willow Child, Germany) Special Guest: Bob Balch (Fu Manchu, US)
Posted in Whathaveyou on November 12th, 2021 by JJ Koczan
God damn, Desertfest.
Importing Stoned Jesus, Green Lung, Planet of Zeus and Orange Goblin (as much as the latter count as an import; they’ve certainly been here before) to play alongside Baroness, High on Fire and Monster Magnet, Red Fang, C.O.C. and Torche?
That’s a big frickin’ deal.
If Desertfest NYC 2019 was a testing of waters to see if such a think could succeed and be feasible over a longer term, Desertfest NYC 2022 is an immediate play to become the preeminent heavy festival on the Eastern Seaboard of the US. To be a genuine Desertfest, in other words, of no less scale than Berlin, London, or Belgium. I’m glad to see Sasquatch and Fatso Jetson will be coming from the West Coast — I’d expect Fatso Jetson will be touring with Planet of Zeus, as that was supposed to happen in the long-long ago — and Somnuri are sure to represent NYC well and Stinking Lizaveta and High Reeper likewise for Philly, while The Atomic Bitchwax headlining the Vitus Bar pre-show warms my Garden Stater heart no end.
There are more to be announced (I have a couple picks of my own, not that anyone asked), but already this is the best heavy fest lineup for New York City in recent memory. It will be something special to behold. I hope there’s a photo pit at the Knockdown Center.
Behold Arik Roper‘s gorgeous poster art below, followed by the announcement:
Desertfest New York announces Baroness, High on Fire, Monster Magnet, Red Fang + more for second edition in 2022
Europe’s leading stoner rock collective Desertfest returns to New York in 2022.
Taking place in the unique arts space of the Knockdown Center from May 13th – May 15th, with an exclusive pre-party at Saint Vitus Bar on May 12th. Desertfest are firmly planting their feet back into New York’s underbelly with a mammoth line-up celebrating the very best of heavy music.
Welcoming home-grown talent such as BARONESS, MONSTER MAGNET, CORROSION OF CONFORMITY & TORCHE alongside acts from across the pond like Ukraine’s STONED JESUS, Greek groovers PLANET OF ZEUS & a debut US performance for English doom maestros GREEN LUNG, Desertfest NYC are pushing their second edition to new levels.
Saint Vitus kicks off proceedings as THE ATOMIC BITCHWAX, PLANET OF ZEUS, FATSO JETSON & DRUID warm up the engine for the weekend ahead. Followed by 3 monumental days as Knockdown Center hosts the likes of Grammy-award winning trio HIGH ON FIRE, British heavy metal icons ORANGE GOBLIN, a rock’n’roll bacchanal from RED FANG, insanity from INTER ARMA and much, much more.
4-day passes (includes access to Saint Vitus pre-party on Thursday 12th May) & 3-day passes (Knockdown Center only) are on sale now via the following link –https://desertfest.eventbrite.com
With more to be announced, including day splits, Desertfest are most certainly back with a bang. We highly recommend getting your tickets ASAP, don’t say we didn’t warn you…
Full Line-Up Knockdown Center May 13th – May 15th 2022 Baroness | High on Fire | Monster Magnet | Red Fang | Corrosion of Conformity | Torche | Orange Goblin | Dead Meadow | Inter Arma | Big Business | Green Lung | Stoned Jesus | Left Lane Cruiser | Sasquatch | Silvertomb | Telekentic Yeti | Stinking Lizaveta | High Reeper | Holy Death Trio | Yatra | Somnuri | Leather Lung
Saint Vitus Bar May 12th 2022 The Atomic Bitchwax | Planet of Zeus | Fatso Jetson | Druids
Go, just go. Go see Planet of Zeus. The Greek heavy rockers are coming to the US (plus a couple Canadian shows) in April, and you should be there to see it. Not the least because they’re traveling in the certifiably legendary company of Fatso Jetson, as well as Druids — what a fucking tour — and not just because I get an ego boost out of seeing a logo for this site at the bottom of tour posters, but also because it’s their first time here and they come in celebration of their 20th anniversary as a band and should be accordingly made to feel nothing but welcome every step of the way.
Seriously, you know the vast, vast majority of the planet thinks Americans are assholes, right? Well, you can work to counter that impression by showing up. Hell’s bells, buy a t-shirt, if not because you dug the crap out of Planet of Zeus‘ 2019 record, Faith in Physics (review here), then at very least for diplomacy’s sake. You’re an ambassador. Start acting like it.
Before they make the journey across the Atlantic, Planet of Zeus will be out starting later this month in Europe — call it a pre-victory lap — and that’s awesome, but please know that I’m honored to have involved in presenting this in the tiny way that it is and humbled to have even been asked. Get your ass out of the house. Please. We want them to come back.
Dates follow as posted today by the band:
PLANET OF ZEUS – NORTH AMERICAN TOUR 2020
We are stoked to announce that the time has come for the band to tour America for the very first time! All these years, we have been receiving messages from our fans in the States and Canada to play a show in their town, so this upcoming April seems like the perfect time to pay them a visit!
Having the legends FATSO JETSON and Druids on board for this one, makes it honestly unique.for us.
The whole tour is presented and supported by The Obelisk and we couldn’t thank him enough for that!
April 8th: Omaha, NE – The Sydney April 9th: Chicago, IL – Cobra Lounge April 10th: Pittsburgh, PA – Cattivo April 11th: Toronto, ON – Bovine Sex Club April 12th: Montreal, QB – Cafe Dekcuf April 13th: Quebec City, QB – La Source De Martiniere April 14th: Brooklyn, NY – St. Vitus April 15th: Frederick, MD – Cafe 611 April 16th: Charlotte, NC April 17th: Atlanta, GA – The 529 April 18th: New Orleans, LA – Portside Lounge April 19th: Lafayette, LA – Freetown Boom Boom Room April 20th: Austin, TX – The Lost Well April 21st: Dallas, TX – Lola’s Saloon April 23rd: Tempe, AZ – Yucca Tap Room April 24th: San Diego, CA – Soda Bar April 25th: Costa Mesa, CA – The Wayfarer April 26th: San Francisco, CA – Bottom of the Hill April 28th: Portland, OR April 29th: Seattle, WA – Funhouse April 30th: Boise, ID – The Shredder May 1st: Salt Lake City, UT May 2nd: Denver, CO – Streets Denver
Tour poster by our beloved Bewild Brother Tour powered by Atomic Music Group!
Our European tour with Kvelertak is getting close!
27/2: Kulturzentrum Schlachthof,Bremen (DE) 28/2: Gruenspan, Hamburg (DE) 29/2: Essigfabrik, Koln (DE) 1/3:Rockhal, Luxembourg, (LU) 3/3: Le Trapendo, Paris (FR) 4/3: Substage, Karlsruhe (DE) 6/3: Conne Island, Leipzig (DE) 7/3: SO 36, Berlin (DE) 8/3: Kwadrat, Krakow (PL) 10/3: Durer Kert, Budapest (HU) 11/3: Szene, Vienna (AT) 13/3: Meet Factory, Prague (CZ) 14/3: Backstage, Munich (DE) 16/3: Z7, Pratteln (CH) 17/3: Schlachtof, Wiesbaden (DE) 18/3: Patronaat, Haarlem (NL) 20/3: Academy 2, Manchester (UK) 21/3: SWX, Bristol (UK) 22/3: Electric Brixton, London (UK)
Posted in Reviews on January 6th, 2020 by JJ Koczan
I’d like to hope y’all know the drill by now. It’s the Quarterly Review. We do it (roughly) every quarter. The idea is 10 reviews per day for a Monday to Friday span, running 50 total. I sometimes do more. Sometimes not. Kind of depends on the barrage and how poorly I’ve been doing in general with keeping up on stuff. This time is ‘just’ 50, so there you go. You’ll see some bigger names this week and some stuff that’s come my way of late that I’ve been digging and wanting to check out. It’s a lot of rock, which I like, and a few things I’m writing about basically as a favor to myself because, you know, self-care and all that.
But staring down the barrel of 50 reviews over the next few days has me as apprehensive and how-the-hell-is-this-gonna-happen as ever, so I think I’ll just get to it and jump in. No time to waste.
Quarterly Review #1-10:
Mos Generator, Exiles
Worth it just for the Sabbath cover? Most definitely. As Mos Generator take on “Air Dance” from Never Say Die as part of the Glory or Death Records LP compilation release, Exiles, they blend the proggy swagger of later-’70s Iommi leads with the baseline acoustic guitar fluidity that makes those final Ozzy-era records so appealing in hindsight. It’s just one of the six reasons to take on Exiles however. The A side comprises three outtakes from 2018’s Shadowlands (review here), and guitarist/vocalist Tony Reed‘s Big Scenic Nowhere bandmate Bob Balch sits in on “Battah,” while a duly manic reworking of Van Halen‘s “Light up the Sky,” the Black Sabbath track and a live version of Rush‘s “Anthem” from 2016 make up side B. It’s a quick listen and it’s Mos Generator. It may be a stopgap on the way to whatever they’re doing next, but if you think about it, so is everything, and that’s no reason not to jump in either for the covers or the originals, both of which are up to the band’s own high standard of output.
The distorted wails of Andy Briston‘s guitar echo out of Freak Mammal — the five-track/46-minute third LP from London’s Psychic Lemon — like a clarion to the lysergic converted. A call to prayer for those worshiping the nebulous void, not so much kept to earth by Andy Hibberd‘s bass and Martin Law‘s drums as given a solidified course toward the infinite far out. Of course centerpiece “Afrotropic Bomb” digs into some Ethiopian groove — that particular shuffling mania — and I won’t take away from the lower buzz of “Free Electron Collective” or the tense hi-hat cutting through all that tonal wash or the ultra-spaced blowout that caps six-minute finale “White Light,” but give me the self-aware mellower jaunt that is the 13-minute second track “Seeds of Tranquility” any day, following opener “Dark Matter” as it does with what would be a blissful drift but for the exciting rhythmic work taking place beneath the peaceful guitar, and the later synthesized voices providing a choral melody that seems all the more playfully grandiose, befitting the notion of Freak Mammal as a ceremony or at very least some kind of lost ritual. Someday they’ll dig up the right pyramid and call the aliens back. Until then, Psychic Lemon let us imagine what might happen after they return.
There’s a context of social commentary to Planet of Zeus‘ Faith in Physics that makes one wonder if perhaps the title doesn’t refer to gravity in terms of what-goes-up-must-come-down as it might apply to class hierarchy. The mighty, ready to fall, and so on. Songs like the post-Clutch fuzz roller “Man vs. God” and “Revolution Cookbook” (video premiere here) would seem to support that idea, but one way or the other, as the later “Let Them Burn” digs into a hook that reminds of Killing Joke and the dense bass of eight-minute closer “King of the Circus” provides due atmospheric madness for our times, there’s a sense of grander statement happening across the album. The Athens-based outfit make a centerpiece of the starts and stops in “All These Happy People” and remind that whatever the message, the medium remains top quality heavy rock and roll songcraft, which is something they’ve become all the more reliable to deliver. The more pointed perspective than they showed on 2016’s Loyal to the Pack suits them, but it’s the nuance of electronics and arrangements of vocals and guitar on cuts like “The Great Liar” that carry them through here. If you believe in gravity, Planet of Zeus have plenty on offer.
Experimentalist keyboard-laced psychedelic goth your thing? Well, of course it is. You’re in luck then as Brass Hearse — an offshoot of once madly prolific Boston outfit Ice Dragon — unveil three new songs (plus an intro) with the Oneiric Afterlife and in 10 minutes work to unravel about 30 years of genre convention while still tying their material to memorable hooks. “Bleed Neon,” “Indigo Dust” and “Only Forever” seem simple on the surface, and none of them touch four minutes long, let alone “A Gesture to Make a Stop,” the 26-second introduction, but their refusal of stylistic constraint is as palpable as it is admirable, with a blend of folk guitar and dark-dance-party keys and percussive insistence on “Bleed Neon” and a ’60s Halloweeny rock organ line in “Only Forever” that’s complemented by low-end fuzz and a chorus that would rightly embarrass Ghost if they heard it. In comparison, “Indigo Dust” is serene in its presentation, but even there is a depth of arrangement of keys, guitar, bass and drums, and the skill tying it all together as a cohesive sound is not to be understated. A quick listen with a lot to unpack, it’s not going to be everyone’s thing, but those who get it will be hit hard and rightly so.
The first of three tracks on Greek progwinders Mother Turtle‘s fourth LP, Three Sides to Every Story, “Zigu Zigu,” would seem to cap with a message of congratulations: “You’ve listened to three musicians indulging themselves with some kind of weird instrumental music.” It then goes on to question its own instrumentalism, because it has the words presently being spoken, continuing in this manner until a long fadeout of guitar leads to the funky start of the 15-minute-long “Notwatch.” Good fun, in other words. Mother Turtle maybe aren’t so weird as they think they are, but they are duly adventurous and obviously joyful in their undertaking, bringing chants in over drifting guitar and synth swirl in “Notwatch” before building to a crescendo of rock guitar and organ, ultimately dominated by a solo as it would almost have to be, before intertwining piano lines in 16:46 closer “A Christmas Postcard from Kim” lead to further shenanigans, vocal experimentation, plays on metal, holiday shimmer, and a fade into the close. At 38 minutes, Three Sides to Every Story doesn’t at all overstay its welcome, but neither is it an exercise looking for audience engagement in the traditional sense. Rather, it resonates its glee through its offbeat sensibility and thus works on its own level to craft a hook. One can’t help but smile while listening to the fun being had.
It is something to consider, perhaps as you dive into the nine-minute “Prince Mojito” on The Legendary Flower Punk‘s Wabi Wu, that the band started as a psych-folk solo-project. Currently working as a core trio plus a range of guests, the Russian troupe make their debut on Tonzonen with the brazenly prog seven-tracker, totaling just a 44-minute run but with a range that would seem to be much broader. Alternately jazzy and synth-laden, technically intricate but never overly showy, pieces like the bass-led “Azulejo” and the penultimate “Trance Fusion På Ryska” present a meeting of the minds with founding guitarist Kamille Sharapodinov at the center of most compositions, he and bassist Mike Lopakov and drummer Nick Kunavin digging into nothing’s-off-limits textures from fusion onward through New Wave and dub. The abiding rule followed seems to be whatever moves the band about a given track is what they roll with, and though The Legendary Flower Punk has evolved well beyond its origins, there’s still a bit of flower and still a bit of punk amid all the legends being made. Good luck keeping up with it.
With the follow-up to 2018’s V – Oceans (review here), Belgian duo Slow rattle off another 78 minutes of utterly consuming, crushing, atmospheric and melancholic funeral doom like it’s absolutely nothing. Well, not like it’s nothing — more like it’s a weight on their very soul — but even so. Issued through Aural Music, VI – Dantlion brings the two-piece of guitarist/vocalist/drummer Déhà and bassist/lyricist Lore B. once again into the grueling, megalithic churn of self-inflicted riff-punishment that’s so encompassing, so dark, so deep and so dramatic it almost can’t help but also be beautiful. To wit, second track “Lueur” is a 17-minute downward journey into ambient brutalism, yet as it moves toward the midsection one can still hear melodic elements of keyboard and orchestral sounds peaking through. There is letup in the lush finale “Elégie,” but to get there, you have to make your way through “Incendiaire,” which is possibly the most extreme movement of the seven inclusions. Though frankly, after a while, you’re buried so far down by Slow‘s glorious miseries that it’s hard to tell. The world needs this band. They are what humanity would sound like if it was ever honest with itself.
Adelaide, Australia, newcomers OKO present their debut EP in the form of Haze, a 14:44 single-song outing that sees the instrumental three-piece of guitarist Nick Nancarrow, bassist Tyson Ruch and drummer Ash Matthews tap into organic heavy psych vibes while working cross-planet with Justin Pizzoferrato (known for his work with Elder, among others) on the mix and master. The resulting one-tracker has a clarity in its drum sound and clean feel that one suspects might speak of more progressive intentions on the part of OKO in the longer term, but as they are here they have a sense of tonal warmth that serves them well across the unpretentious span of “Haze” itself, the winding riff inevitably bringing to mind some of Colour Haze‘s jammier work but still managing to find its own direction. I hear no reason OKO can’t do the same, regardless of the influences they’re working under in terms of sound. Further, the longform modus suits them, and while future work will inherently develop some variety in general approach, the natural exploration they undertake on this first outing easily holds attention for its span and is fluid enough that, had they wanted, they could have pushed it further.
Vug are not the first European heavy rock band to blend vintage methods with modern production. They’re not the first band to take classic swagger and drum urgency and meld it with a pervasive sense of vocal soul. I’m not sure I’d tell them that though, because frankly, they’re doing pretty well with it. At its strongest, their Tonzonen-released sophomore outing, Onyx, recalls Thin Lizzy via, yes, Graveyard, but there’s enough clarity of intention behind the work to make it plain they know where they’re coming from. Such was the case as well with their 2018 self-titled debut (review here), and though they’ve had some lineup turnover since that first offering, the self-produced four-piece bring a character to their material on songs like “Tired Of” and the penultimate boogier “Inferno” before closing with the acoustic “Todbringer” — a mirror of side A’s “On My Own” — that they carry the classic-style 39-minute long-player off without a hitch, seeming to prep the heavy ’10s for a journey into a new decade.
As the title hints, the Season 1 EP is the debut from Italy’s Ultracombo, and with it, the five-piece of vocalist Alessio Guarda, guitarists Alberto Biasin and Giordano Tasson, bassist Giordano Pajarin and drummer Flavio Gola work quickly to build the forward momentum that brings them front-to-back through the 23-minute five-track release. “Flusso” and opener “The King” feel particularly drawn from an earlier Truckfighters influence, but Guarda‘s vocals are a distinguishing factor amidst all that ensuing fuzz and straight-ahead drive, and in “Sparatutto” and the closer “Il Momento in Cui Non Penso,” they seem to strip their approach to its most basic aspects and bring together the tonal thickness and melodicism that’s been at root in their sound overall. The subtlety, such as it is, is to be found in their songwriting, which results in tracks that transcend language barriers through sheer catchiness. That bodes better for them on subsequent outings better than a wall o’ fuzz ever could, though of course that doesn’t hurt them either, especially their first time out.
Last week, it was announced that Planet of Zeus had signed to Heavy Psych Sounds and will release their new album, Faith in Physics, on Sept. 27, with preorders up now. The album would seem to take a more political direction that the opening title-track of their 2016 LP, Loyal to the Pack, hinted toward, and with the unveiling of the first single/video for “Revolution Cookbook,” that’s borne out across a sub-three-minute run of catchy, uptempo and hard-hitting heavy rock. My curiosity when the press release came through was how the Athens-based four-piece would square their burly, Clutch-style groove with the thematic, and I think “Revolution Cookbook” answers that question pretty succinctly in its intense forward drive and cyclical chorus, sticking the landing on the line “We got our first-world problems” and pitting that against the contrast of “They got the tv and the money and the power and the guns.” I don’t want to put too fine a point on it, but it sounds in that scenario like “we” are fucked.
I’m not sure who that “we” encompasses, but fair enough. If nothing else, “Revolution Cookbook” would seem to demonstrate that Planet of Zeus, if indeed they’re revising their focus lyrically, aren’t doing so at the expense of efficiency in craft. That is, they’re not so caught up in the message as to lose sight of the song. Faith inPhysics would seem to be setting itself up for an exploration of these contrasts, whether it’s the melodic and shouted vocals here or the workman groove and more considered lyrics themselves. I haven’t heard the rest of the record yet — and since the release date is still more than three months out, I think that’s totally reasonable — but even the title Faith in Physics speaks to an idea of conflict or struggle, hinting toward the idea of science vs. dogma and commenting that even “believing” in science is a belief system, even if one based on empirical observation. This too would seem to make it a fitting follow-up to Loyal to the Pack, the first lines of which were, “No fake gods/No submission/No trust to anyone.”
The video itself is pretty straightforward in terms of capturing the band’s performance, but is well timed to the rhythm of the song nonetheless, though if you’re sensitive to flashing lights you might want to watch out in parts. It’s not too bad. I expect you’ll be fine.
Ultimately, it does nothing so much as make me curious to hear the rest of the album.
Enjoy:
Planet of Zeus, “Revolution Cookbook” official video premiere
Faith in Physics was recorded in Autumn 2018 at “Villa Guiseppe Studio” (drums), Planet of Zeus’s studio (guitars and bass) and “Kiwi Studio” (vocals) in Athens, Greece. It was produced by Planet of Zeus and recorded, mixed and mastered by Nikos Lavdas. The album artwork was created by “Aristotle Roufanis Studio”.
PLANET OF ZEUS is: Babis Papanikolaou – Vox & Guitars Stelios Provis – Guitars Giannis Vrazos – Bass Serafeim Giannakopoulos – Drums
