El Perro will release their debut album, Hair Of, early next year on Alive Records. Details on the record are pretty scarce at this point, which is fair since it’s August, but a lead single, “Black Days,” is streaming now, and there are West Coast tour dates already in progress. For those who’ve been keeping up, the band formed in 2019 by Radio Moscow guitarist/vocalist Parker Griggs were all set to head to Europe last Spring to make their debut there, playing alongside the likes of Colour Haze and doing festivals and blah blah pandemic. This is their first tour — and they’re out with Spirit Mother, who are awesome — though they’ve done shows here and there on the way.

I was fortunate enough to hear a few demos from the band and to interview Griggs to talk about starting the project — at that point I was happy just to learn who else was in the band — and the boogie runs deep, the fuzz runs hot and the funk am delic. “Black Days” would seem to represent the different sides of the band well, and if this is a ‘Single Edit,’ one can imagine where they space it out amid the expected classic-style shred.

Info and what may or may not be the Hair Of cover art came down the PR wire:

EL PERRO – debut single available now for streaming everywhere!

Debut album “Hair Of” due early 2022.

EL PERRO is a brand new band led by guitarist/vocalist/songwriter/producer Parker Griggs. The band’s sound contains elements that fans of his band Radio Moscow will recognize, but this is rock music with a new, fresh spin and feel. El Perro takes heavy psychedelic rock as a starting point and adds the additional instrumentation of a second guitar and a percussionist, pushing the music into more syncopated territory, spiced with Latin rhythms and hints of Funkadelic-style grooves. You could say that El Perro plays psychedelic funk rock, and you wouldn’t be wrong.

In late 2019, hungry to do something fresh, Parker Griggs decided to put together a five piece band, with members including former Radio Moscow drummer Lonnie Blanton, bassist Shawn Davis, and guitarist Holland Redd. With the addition of a percussionist the El Perro sound and style coalesced.

EL PERRO USA Summer Tour with Spirit Mother:
• August 10 @ 7th St. Entry — Minneapolis, MN
• August 12 @ Reggies — Chicago, IL
• August 13 @ The Cooperage — Milwaukee, WI
• August 14 @ The Washington — Burlington, IA
• August 15 @ The East Room — Nashville, TN
• August 18 @ The Whittier Bar — Tulsa, OK
• August 19 @ Deep Ellum Art Co. — Dallas, TX
• August 20 @ Eighteen Ten Ojeman — Houston, TX
• August 21 @ The Far Out Lounge & Stage — Austin, TX
• August 24 @ Launchpad — Albuquerque, NM

El Perro is:
Parker Griggs – Guitar/vocals
Holland Redd – Guitar
Shawn Davis – Bass
Lonnie Blanton – Drums
Blake Armstrong – Percussion

https://www.facebook.com/elperrotheband
https://www.facebook.com/AliveNaturalsoundRecords/

El Perro, “Black Days”

El Perro, “The Mould”

Not much is known at this point about El Perro. Pages on Thee Facebooks and Instagram went up on Wednesday afternoon and there’s a short teaser on the latter with a floating logo and a righteous riff, but not much else to go on. A new band getting together is cool, don’t get me wrong, but the reason it’s news is because the brains behind the outfit happen to be those of Parker Griggs, founding guitarist/vocalist of heavy psych blues and speed boogie masters Radio Moscow. Griggs has assembled the new outfit as a means of exploring some influences beyond what Radio Moscow does, specifically looking to bands who blended funk and heavy and/or psychedelic rock in the early ’70s like Cymande, Black Merda and others in the sphere of what was called Black rock at the time, as well of course as the work Jimi Hendrix was doing a few years prior.

He’s gotten a full four-piece together and they’ll play their first three shows as a weekender at the start of November, beginning as support for none other than Brant Bjork in Las Vegas at a gig presented by Vegas Rock Revolution, and continuing through two subsequent nights in Costa Mesa and Los Angeles. Griggs, of course, is no stranger to touring with Radio Moscow, but it’s early days with El Perro, so probably best to start out with the weekender rather than hit the road for a month right off the bat. Makes sense if you think about it, especially as no one has heard any of the material in question.

There are songs, though. About a set’s worth. I’ve heard two demos from the band with the working titles “New One” and “Sitar Song” and the percussive groove is met by Griggs‘ spacey shred and bluesy vocal delivery. It’s a different vibe from Radio Moscow in that it’s a little more jam-ready — at least “New One” is; “Sitar Song” is a tight two and a half minutes, but damn that’s a funky two and a half minutes — and as Griggs notes, a little more based around the groove rather than the frenetic movement of his longer-running outfit. I’ll take it happily and look forward to more in 2020.

It’s a short interview because, well, Griggs isn’t really Mr. Chatty and the band hasn’t played a show yet, but if you’ve got a few minutes, he talks about putting the band together, what he’s going for with the sound, the upcoming shows and how El Perro relates to Radio Moscow in the grand scheme of Griggs‘ style.

Please enjoy:

Interview with Parker Griggs of El Perro

A brand new cosmic and groovy music ensemble formed and led by Parker Griggs of Radio Moscow. We are here and we’re coming to GETCHA!

First shows!

November 1st in Las Vegas @ Counts Vamp’d with Brant Bjork

November 2nd in Costa Mesa @ The Wayfarer with LOVE (revisited)

November 3rd in LA @ The Viper ROOM with Deathchant

Stay tuned for more news coming soon!

 

View this post on Instagram

 

A post shared by EL PERRO (@elperrotheband) on Sep 25, 2019 at 11:53am PDT

El Perro on Thee Facebooks

El Perro on Instagram

San Diego classic heavy rockers Radio Moscow were in Europe this past week to make stops at the Bordeaux Psych Fest and a few other shows surrounding it. Neat. Well, while they were there, they went ahead and announced a longer European trip, set for this June/July, which is set to include Hellfest, Black Deer Fest in Kent, UK, Resurrection Fest, a secret show in Italy — I’m gonna guess we know what that is — and more. Not too bad either.

Before they go, they’ll appear in May as headliners for Planet Desert Rock Weekend in Vegas and for a slot at Stoned and Dusted out somewhere in the Cali desert, and I wouldn’t at all be surprised if there are other shows in that mix as well, because that’s basically how Radio Moscow do. When they’re going, they go.

The three-piece released their latest album, New Beginnings (review here), late in 2017 as their label debut on Century Media and toured before and after, like you do. I don’t know what their plans are for the rest of 2018, but it’s easy enough to imagine them back out on the road after this as well. Fall in South America maybe? Somebody call Abraxas.

Sound of Liberation had the Euro dates:

Radio Moscow EUROPEAN TOUR SUMMER 2019!

While Radio Moscow are currently on the road in France, Spain & Portugal, we are thrilled to announce more European shows for them in June!

Check out the dates below:

11.06.19 – Leipzig | UT Connewitz (DE)
12.06.19 – Salzburg | Rockhouse (AT)
13.06.19 – Budapest | A38 (HU)
14.06.19 – Graz | PPC (AT)
15.06.19 – Milano | Cronache Marziane Festival (IT)
16.06.19 – Torino | Blah Blah (IT)
18.06.19 – Secret Show (IT)
19.06.19 – Geneva | L’Usine (CH) *with monkey3
21.06.19 – Clisson | Hellfest (FR)
22.06.19 – Schmitten | Schmittner Open Air (CH)
23.06.19 – Tunbridge Wells | Black Deer Festival (UK)
25.06.19 – Leffinge | De Zwerver (BE)
26.06.19 – Cologne | Helios 37 (DE)
27.06.19 – Groningen | Vera (NL)
28.06.19 – Stuttgart | Keller Club (DE)
29.06.19 – Riegsee | Raut Oak Festival (DE)
30.06.19 – Innsbruck | PMK (AT)
01.07.19 – Vienna | Arena (AT)
03.07.19 – Berlin | Lido (DE)
04.07.19 – Wiesbaden| Schlachthof (DE)
05.07.19 – Viveiro | Resurrection Festival (ES)

More info: www.soundofliberation.com/radio-moscow

Radio Moscow line-up
Parker Griggs (vocals, guitar)
Anthony Meier (bass)
Paul Marrone (drums)

http://radiomoscow.net/
www.facebook.com/radiomoscowband
www.instagram.com/radiomoscowband

Radio Moscow, “Driftin'” official video

There wasn’t really any doubt, but it’s nice to have confirmation that the lineup for Stoned and Dusted is awesome. So there you have Melvins, Fu Manchu, Brant Bjork, King Buffalo, Yawning Man, Acid King, Black Mountain, Lo-Pan, REZN, BigPig, Del-Toros, Sgt. Papers and, oh yeah, Radio Moscow for a bit of the ultra-boogie. I was having a conversation not so long ago with an artist who played last year and was talking about how the sound guy was indeed spaced way the hell out, so when you look at the poster and see “Sound Guy on Acid” listed above the Mad Alchemy Liquid Light Show, you should know they may be speaking literally. No doubt that will only add to the one-of-a-kind experience of the desert’s own heavy party.

The lineup speaks for itself, so I’ll spare you the get-there-if-you-can-get-there rant and just drop the ticket link here for your purchasing and travel planning. There’s also a Spotify playlist below that, while I imagine you’re well familiar with the bulk of these acts, is no less welcome for that, as far as I’m concerned.

Dig:

Stoned and Dusted 2019

The California Desert Wizards Association will hold its second annual members’ gathering on May 25 & 26th, 2019 in the Southern California Mojave Desert, USA.

Total radness on Memorial Day weekend!

On Saturday May 25th we are doing it up at Pappy & Harriet’s, our favorite desert roadhouse and one of the world’s coolest music venues. Get ready for an outside show under the desert skies with Melvins, Fu Manchu, Brant Bjork, REZN, (Big) Pig, and lights by the Mad Alchemy Liquid Light Show.

Our desert party is back and it’s going down on May 26th at a secret location near Joshua Tree, CA with Black Mountain, Acid King, Radio Moscow, Yawning Man (Official), King Buffalo, Lo-Pan, Sgt. Papers, Del-Toros, and the Mad Alchemy Liquid Light Show.
Limited tickets available, get yours now!

https://cdwa.ticketleap.com/2019-stoned-and-dusted

Poster by Branca Studio
photo by Sam Grant.

Big thanks to Pizza Del Perro Negro and TIMEWARP MUSIC!!

https://cdwa.ticketleap.com/2019-stoned-and-dusted/
https://www.facebook.com/StonedandDusted/
https://www.facebook.com/events/1053849404806774
https://www.instagram.com/stonedanddusted/
https://www.stonedanddusted.com/

Desertscene in London — the same good people who put together Desertfest there and have worked to bring it to New York as well — have paired up with the country/Americana/blues Black Deer Festival to present a stage called The Roadhouse that’ll have custom motorcycles hanging around, camping and a lineup that’s pretty kickass front to back. It’s not exactly like they’re sneaking into the bill, but you’ve got Yawning Man, Asteroid, Brant Bjork and Groundhogs and King Buffalo and Radio Moscow and Duel and Steak and Child and so on bringing their wares to Edridge Park in Kent and it seems to me you could do a hell of a lot worse than kind of having a mini-Desertfest built into another festival. That’s how you reach a broader audience, by playing for people who maybe haven’t already heard you. Seems likely a few heads will be turned across the three-day event.

The PR wire has info:

BLACK DEER FESTIVAL REVEAL MORE NAMES FOR 2019

Another round of carefully curated names have been added to the Black Deer Festival lineup today, making for an impressive second year for the award-winning new event. The three-day celebration of Americana and Country, set in the beautiful Eridge Park in Kent, presents a unique experience combining music, food and Americana culture that can’t be found anywhere else in the UK.

Brant Bjork, the member of two of the most influential 90’s stoner rock bands Kyuss and Fu Manchu, whose desert rock and roots style will resonate from The Roadhouse stage in June. Brant Bjork joins the all American heavy blues contingent of previously announced Left Lane Cruiser, Radio Moscow and The Roadhouse ‘house band’ Steak – all curated by Desertscene for Black Deer.

Completing today’s line up is British blues rock band Groundhogs, who are best known for their 70’s single Cherry Red – a name adopted by one of Britain’s longest standing independent record labels – as well as heavy psych-blues trio King Buffalo, Australian blues-rockers Child, 60’s psychedelic songwriter Roxanne De Bastion, California’s experimental rockers Yawning Man, Country preacher Paul Cauthen, larger than life boatman and bluesman Sonic Gypsy and Hertfordshire’s rock band Redwood.

ARTISTS ANNOUNCED TO DATE (A-Z)
Asteroid, Band of Horses, Brant Bjork, Chance McCoy, Child, Daniel Antopolsky, Duel, Fantastic Negrito, Ferris & Sylvester, Gordie MacKeeman and His Rhythm Boys, Groundhogs, Hayseed Dixie, Irish Mythen, Jerron Blind Boy Paxton, John Butler Trio, John Smith, Justin Townes Earle, King Buffalo, Kris Kristofferson & The Strangers, Larkin Poe, Left Lane Cruiser, Lucero, Martin Harley, Morganway, Mountains, Neko Case, Paul Cauthen, Radio Moscow, Redwood, Roxanne De Bastion, Ryan Bingham, Sonic Gypsy, Steak, Stubb, The Black Wizards, The Dead South, The Marcus King Band, The Mavericks, The Sheepdogs, The Staves, The Vintage Caravan, The Wandering Hearts, The Trials of Cato, William Crighton, Worry Dolls, Yawning Man.

TICKET INFORMATION
Tier 1 tickets on sale now and are available from https://blackdeerfestival.com/tickets/
Ticket prices from £105 – subject to booking fees.

Tier 2 tickets will be on sale from 26th February.

https://www.facebook.com/events/342379713221524/
https://facebook.com/blackdeerfest
https://www.instagram.com/blackdeerfest/
https://blackdeerfestival.com/tickets/

King Buffalo, “Longing to be the Mountain” live in Philadelphia, Nov. 3, 2018

John Gist, who is the gentleman behind the promotional company Vegas Rock Revolution and the Planet Desert Rock Weekend festival getting ready to hold its second edition this May, has passion to spare. Passion enough to spread around and have plenty leftover. There’s a little bit of that guy-who-runs-a-fest urgency about him as well — as one would hope for such an event to be successful — but he’s someone who knows his rock and wants everyone else to know it too. The primary driver is passion.

Planet Desert Rock Weekend 2 ups its predecessor this past November in terms of ambition. With a third headliner still to be announced, Gist will bring John Garcia back for a headlining spot and see the other go to Radio Moscow, who will play the first night at Count’s Vamp’d. In addition to this, he’s already got four — one, two, three, four — European bands on the bill in the form of Mr. Bison, Kaiser, Monsternaut and Green Desert Water, and to my knowledge none have played the US before. That’s a significant risk from a booking standpoint — those are good bands, but recall it took Truckfighters half a decade of laying groundwork for their first US tour — but there may indeed be more import acts added as well, since one way or the other, the lineup isn’t done.

Passion rarely is.

Info and links:

The time is near to start announcing Vegas Rock Revolution’s Planet Desert Rock Weekend 2 for May 16-19….

Desert legend John Garcia and 17 bands from all over the country …..very tightly selected lineups to showcase top bands from the long storied history of rock of heavy rock melded with hot younger acts. Oh yeah and cannabis is legal in Vegas !

The Lineup for Planet Desert Rock Weekend v2 so far is:
John Garcia and the Band of Gold — Friday
Radio Moscow — Thurs at Count’s Vamp’d
Nebula
Black Water Rising
Ape Machine Thurs at Count’s Vamp’d
The Watchers – Friday
Red Stone Souls
Sundrifter
RIFFLORD
Shotgun Sawyer
Jason Walker and the Majestic 12

European Showcase Bands:
MR.BISON
Kaiser
Monsternaut
Green Desert Water

Presale Tickets for just $20 for first 100 fans!
https://www.eventbrite.com/e/planet-desert-rock-weekend-v2-radio-moscow-tickets-55384782375

Only 300 tickets will be sold to this intimate show in one of the most premier rock clubs in the country. Count’s Vamp’d is owned by Danny “The Count” Koker from Counting Cars on the History Channel. All rock all the time and very good food also. Unique cool environment!

https://www.facebook.com/events/2193967267598051/
https://www.facebook.com/events/545651042582860/
https://www.facebook.com/VRRProductions/
https://www.facebook.com/vegasrockrevolution/

John Garcia and the Band of Gold, Live at Planet Desert Rock Weekend, Nov. 2018

Admittedly, I’m a few days late on this update from Desertfest Berlin 2018, and I don’t have an excuse for that other than ‘I suck at this,’ but don’t let that fact stop you from appreciating how righteous this festival is, both in terms of this year’s lineup and what they’ve built over previous installments. Adding Radio Moscow to a bill is always a good idea — also a good way to make everyone else playing that stage feel insecure — and I certainly dug the hell out of the latest from Pretty Lightning, The Rhythm of Ooze (review here), so having them aboard in this latest update along with Lucifer, Lionize and Haik only makes a strong Desertfest Berlin 2018 even stronger.

Unfortunately, it doesn’t make my ass any timelier. It’s okay though, I hear immediacy isn’t a big deal on the internet…

From the PR wire:

DESERTFEST BERLIN 2018 ANNOUNCES RADIO MOSCOW + LUCIFER + LIONIZE + PRETTY LIGHTNING + HAIK!

Finally the wait for a new band announcement is over, DESERTFEST BERLIN is thrilled to welcome RADIO MOSCOW, LUCIFER, LIONIZE, PRETTY LIGHTNING and HAIK to their already exciting festival line-up in 2018!

Radio Moscow (US)
No need to introduce RADIO MOSCOW, the psychedelic blues rock juggernaut will make you groove so heavily, none of us at the entire ARENA Berlin will stand still!

Lucifer (US)
Why just a few guitar cabinets and amplifiers, when you could use TONS on stage? Heavy doom trio LUCIFER will bring their massive wall of sounds to our stage, the entire city of Berlin will shake!

Lionize (US)
Rooted in hard rock & heavy metal, American rockers LIONIZED are not afraid to experiment in various sounds: add some exciting dose of funk, reggae and even dub-step to their mix, this band will round off the perfect heavy rock party. No wonder that LIONIZE are signed to CLUTCH’ own label Weathermusic, while members such as Neil Fallon or Tim Sult already guest-appeared on several LIONIZE records.

Pretty Lightning (DE)
With the heavy psychedelic blues running through their veins, up and coming PRETTY LIGHTNING from Germany will serve us sundrenched vibes moving into a powerful dark affair of tunes!

Haik (DE)
Feating members of Rotor and Dyse, Berlin-based quartet HAIK has their roots in rock´n´roll while runnig into creations of metal, jazz, blues and electronic fever. Fresh ideas meeting old drives and will showcase the band’s unique sound live at Desertfest Berlin 2018!

With this new bunch of highclass acts for 2018, Desertfest Berlin will make sure fans of the entire desert rock genre and beyond will experience the most special edition to date. Alongside headliners such as MONSTER MAGNET, HIGH ON FIRE and GRAVEYARD, many more bands will be announced soon! Desertfest Berlin will take place between May 4th – 6th 2018 at the ARENA BERLIN, tickets are available at: www.desertfest-tickets.de

www.desertfest.de
www.facebook.com/DesertfestBerlin
www.facebook.com/DesertfestBerlin/events

Pretty Lightning, “This Machine is Running”

A well-earned slow clap for Desertfest London 2018 on the occasion of completing what is unquestionably its broadest, biggest and most staggering lineup to-date. The festival has been outdoing itself every year since it got going, but this is a different league entirely. Kudos all around to the Desertfest London team. I really feel like there’s nothing else to say about it. It’s just amazing what these people have put together and I hope that those who are fortunate enough to be there realize the special event to which they’re bearing witness, because that’s what this is. Truly something special.

Here’s the final lineup update:

Psych legends Hawkwind + complete lineup announced for DESERTFEST LONDON 2018!

DESERTFEST LONDON announce the final acts for its 2018 edition on May 4-6th in Camden, including psych legends HAWKWIND, plus The Quietus, Human Disease Promo & Nightshift Promotions stages all revealed.

Yes, you read that title correctly. Desertfest are honoured, thrilled, losing our minds, quivering in our boots to reveal that one of the most influential English bands in heavy musical history are gracing us with our presence this May, seminal space-rockers HAWKWIND will return to the hallowed ground of The Roundhouse to play a very special performance as main support to Monster Magnet. Hawkwind require no real introduction – genre-defining mavericks since 1969, it’s safe to say most of your favourite bands wouldn’t exist without Hawkwind; their legend precedes them, expect a life affirming, life altering show. We are beyond excited.

Yet more Carolina goodness is coming Desertfest’s way, underground skater heroes ASG will make their psych riddled, post-punk sound heard across London, earplugs recommended, party times guaranteed. 70’s blues-soaked hard rockers RADIO MOSCOW will also make their return, following a recently sold-out performance at The Borderline – this trio of psychedelic power are being met with hugely high acclaim and for a damn good reason. They’re groovy, heavy and damn near perfect.

No strangers to the Desertfest, doom heroes MONOLORD are back to offer up some of the finest riffs to have ever come out Sweden’s smoke. Fuelled by bongs and black coffee, they are one of the favourite returning acts for the fest – y’all better get in the queue now if you don’t want to miss it. Another act from the dirty South comes in the form of SOURVEIN, sludge and crust blended together in perfect guttural harmony. Leading man T-Roy’s been fighting the good fight for over two decades and the band are now easily at their strongest. Not one for the faint hearted.

Alongside his performance with The Obsessed, leading man WINO will perform an acoustic set across the Desertfest weekend. Last time we had the frontman play an acoustic set at DF the queue was out the door, it’s stripped back but still totally heavy. Belgian bulldozers STEAK NUMBER EIGHT are making a long awaited appearance at Desertfest London, a postmetal powerhouse their live performances have been met with high praise around Europe. A hypnotic haze will fall when the mighty DOPELORD take the stage, sickeningly smooth vocals hit the good spot whilst thunderous riffs and a mind altering magnitude of heavy rattle your core.

Also filling up the final line-up are newcomers DEAD WITCHES, psychedelic New York masters KING BUFFALO, out of this world riff rockers KIND, British noise rockers CATTLE plus NECROMANCERS, CRUMPET, SOLLEME, LIONIZE, LNN, CHRCH, MASTIFF, TUSKAR, TOM CAMERON and LO CHIE

ALSO RECENTLY ANNOUNCED:

The Quietus stage

The Quietus Stage usually brings some of the more diverse bands to Desertfest and this year is no different. Headlining the stage at The Black Heart on Friday 4th May are WHITE HILLS whose concentrated blasts of interstellar noise with a tank load of psychedelic glam makes them the truest space rock goliaths of our time. They’ll be joined by GHOLD, SNAPPED ANKLES, MELTING HAND, CASUAL NUN and SWEDISH DEATH CANDY.

Nightshift Promotions stage

The melodic tones of DARKHER will be headlining this year’s Nightshift Promotions stage at The Dev at Desertfest 2018. They’ll be joined by a diverse, but equally dark lineup which brings post-metal from TELEPATHY and SNOW BURIAL, the experimental noise of CROWD OF CHAIRS, blackened doom from MONOLITHIAN and the sludge of THE MOTH.

Human Disease Promo/When Planets Collide stage

This year the Human-disease Promo and When Planets Collide Stage has gone for an all out colossus of weighty heaviness for Desertfest 2018. Headlining the stage are WEEDEATER, making their second appearance of the weekend with a special early years set. They’ll be joined by Denver’s most crushing PRIMITIVE MAN, Canadian bruisers BISON, Swedish heaviness from SUMA, St Louis filthsters FISTER, Notts nasties MOLOCH and heavyweight duo BISMUTH.

http://www.desertfest.co.uk/
https://www.facebook.com/DesertfestLondon
https://www.instagram.com/desertfest_london/
https://twitter.com/DesertFest
https://www.instagram.com/desertfest_london/

Hawkwind, Warrior on the Edge of Time (1975)