Tomorrow here in the US it is Thanksgiving, which has some questionable origins but in practice is actually one of our less-abominable holidays, with a focus on togetherness, good food, and enjoying the company of loved ones. Today, the day before, is traditionally the busiest travel day of the year while people get to wherever they’re going. Even if you don’t manage to find it until after the holiday is over, it seemed only fitting to make a new podcast so that anyone who might want to take it along for the ride would be able to do so.
My head has started to get into year-end wrap-up mode, so don’t be surprised if one or two or three of these bands show up in subsequent “Best Of” coverage. Maybe even four, looking at the list. It’s been a crazy good year, and as it starts to wind its way down and we make our way into the next one, I hope you’ve enjoyed listening to these podcasts and hopefully discovered something you wouldn’t have heard otherwise. That’s really the whole idea.
If you’re traveling by road, rail, or air, I wish you a pleasant journey, and even if you’re staying put, the same applies.
First Hour:
Stubb, “Heavy Blue Sky” from Cry of the Ocean
Murcielago, “Way too Far” from Murcielago
Dune, “Of Blade and Carapace” from Aurora Majesty
The Skull, “Send Judas Down” from For Those Which are Asleep
Elephant Tree, “Attack of the Altaica” from Theia
Renate/Cordate, “Laudanum” from Growth
Mothership, “Serpents Throne” from Mothership II
Space Guerrilla, “Event Horizon” from Boundless
Monster Magnet, “End of Time (B-3)” from Milking the Stars
Memnon Sa, “Megalith” from Citadel
Second Hour:
Soldat Hans, “Meine Liebste; Sie Zerbricht Sich” from Dress Rehearsal
Atavismo, “Meeh” from Desintegración
Øresund Space Collective, “Remnants of the Barbonaeum” from Music for Pogonologists
Finnish four-piece Renate/Cordate (also stylized lowercase as renate/cordate) were last heard from with their early 2013 self-titled debut full-length (review here), which was a solidly constructed and smooth sounding execution of heavy psychedelia. Reminiscent at times of My Sleeping Karma‘s ultra-fluid push, it showed the then-instrumental outfit had room to grow but already a decent idea of what they were going for tonally and in terms of process. A good start, in other words. Twenty-one months later, they return with Growth, which the respected purveyor Breathe Plastic Records will release on tape in December, their sophomore outing comprised of four mostly extended tracks that come from a different enough stylistic base that I had to double-check and make sure I was listening to the same band the first time I put it on. With only one of the four cuts under 10 minutes long, Renate/Cordate have blown out their expansion to a cosmic degree, churning opener “Evolve, Submit” around Ufomammut-style repetition and following a psychedelic doom path of deep-echoing vocals around what seems a chaos swirl of massive tonality, hypnotic and deep. Working with Niko Lehdontie of countrymen psychedelonauts and Svart Records inductees Domovoyd to add extra effects to the wash, Renate/Cordate — the same lineup as last time of guitarists Ville and Samuli (the latter also vocals), bassist Aki and drummer Antti-Pekka — present such a stylistic turn that I’m tempted to think of Growth as a debut and of the self-titled as a demo for how much more solidified and clear-headed in their purpose the band seems to be. At very least, you could say the album is aptly-named.
And if the shift in sound is jarring, it’s bound to be less so for anyone who didn’t hear Renate/Cordate‘s debut and for whom Growth marks their first exposure to their work. It is an expansive 43 minutes, still perhaps vinyl-ready, though they’d more likely get rid of third track “Laudanum” and dedicate the whole of side B to the 17-minute closer “Mother” for ease of time. Side A, then, would be the back-to-back 10-minute post-doom wallops of “Evolve, Submit” and “Humankind (Not My Kind),” which quickly announce the band’s new direction in their sprawl and atmospheric take. The record is a big jump from where they were last year, and clearly a purposeful one, but not all of the elements from Renate/Cordate, the album, are gone. One can still hear the airy ringing of Russian Circles-style post-rock guitar presiding over the mix as the opener rolls past its third minute and into the first of Growth‘s encompassing space-doom nods. Heavy crashing leads to a quiet break of minimalist guitar — one of their most Ufomammut moments — and “Evolve, Submit” explodes again into cascades of echoing riffs that set a lot of the atmospheric course for what follows, rounding out with a long fade of feedback into dreamy synth that pushes forward into the quiet guitar opening of “Humankind (Not My Kind),” which is more about the tradeoffs than was “Evolve, Submit,” but no less ably conceived. An extended subdued intro builds for the first three and a half minutes before pushing into its first heavier section. The lull has the effect of drawing a listener further in, and should Renate/Cordate continue in this direction — after the difference between their first two albums, I wouldn’t speculate as to where they might go on a third — I wouldn’t be surprised to find them toying more with that feeling of stillness and the juxtaposition against pummeling riffs, but even here, they’re able to transition easily from light to heavy and heavy to light, as they do on “Humankind (Not My Kind),” taking the song all the way down to silence before rebuilding their way to the tone-wash apex that ends out.
The shorter “Laudanum” follows and is more immediate in its riffing though ultimately just as spacious as the rest of what surrounds, even finding room in its six minutes for a jammy midsection break that boasts some especially satisfying guitar work holding the tension until the heavier tones reemerge and thrust into a louder and louder burst of noise. If there are vocals — and there might well be — they are buried deep enough in the mix that they’re indistinguishable from a sample. All you get is a vague human presence, and it works to the song’s advantage, cutting out right before the thrust of the final echoing solo, deconstructed along with everything else to bring about the 16:53 concluding statement, “Mother.” Begun on a foundation of bass and drums backed by swirl and ambient noise, “Mother” unfurls essentially as a combination of everything else Renate/Cordate do on the album structurally, bridging the gap between a loud/quiet interplay and an extended linear build by simply doing both. Before its first four minutes are through, it has built up and peaked and moved to an ethereal, almost jazzy peacefulness, but the crushing reignites several minutes later, only to once again fall back past seven minutes in. This is the key transition, since the band uses this stillness as the starting point for the trip to to Growth‘s last crescendo. The turn happens right around the 12:30 mark, but by then, it’s less about payoff than just going where the band takes you, and that winds up being Renate/Cordate‘s greatest success with their second album. They’ve accomplished this change in style, which is all well and good, but they’ve managed to hold onto the immersive nature of what they did on their self-titled as well, and that only makes the ending of “Mother” more consuming and thus more satisfying. Yes, it’s wildly heavy, and yes, it’s a suitable ending, but what leaves an even more resonant impression is the ability of the band to retain their control over their sound even at its most unbridled. If they do wind up staying on this path, or if they don’t, that can only serve them well as they continue to progress.
[PLEASE NOTE: I’ve been given permission by Renate/Cordate to host a full stream of Growth for your listening pleasure. I hope you’ll give it a shot on the player below and enjoy.]
Posted in Bootleg Theater on December 12th, 2013 by JJ Koczan
Finnish instrumentalists Renate/Cordate have sent along an update on the progress of the follow-up to earlier-2013’s self-titled debut (review here). They’re set to record the bulk of the album at the end of the month and will be working with members of Domovoyd on adding noise and ambience thereafter. Hard to say what the final result will be, but the group has posted a practice video for the song “Humankind (Not My Kind)” that was recorded live in their rehearsal space, so at least there’s some way to get a feel for the texture of the new material, incomplete though it may be. Ranging from heavy psych to post-metal atmospherics, Renate/Cordatewas hardly light on mood, and it seems like the band have kept that ethic going into their sophomore effort.
The biggest change you’ll notice immediately is the inclusion of vocals. Drenched in echo and somewhat sparse, they’re still more than showed up last time out, so I guess Renate/Cordate are continuing to refine what they want their sound to be and where they want to go with their psychedelic progression. Get a feel for how it went down in the jam room with the clip below:
Renate/Cordate, “Humankind (Not My Kind)” Rehearsal Footage
The video was filmed in our rehearsal place/studio and audio was also recorded at the same time. This song has been on our live setlist for quite some time, and therefore we decided to give everyone a sample of the new stuff we’ve been writing. Here you go!
The new album will be recorded at the last weekend of 2013, and after that vocals and additional noise will be recorded ASAP. Niko from Domovoyd will be giving his personal touch on the album by adding noise/ambience/etc, and he has been joining us on stage now for quite some time. The plan is to release the album on vinyl in 2014.
Posted in Whathaveyou on August 28th, 2013 by JJ Koczan
It might seem a little strange sometimes that I post the info for fests taking place halfway around the world. Truth is, it’s my version of escapism. I don’t know all the bands playing the inaugural Kiarama next month in Finland — names like Sink, Mansion, Acid Elephant, Abbot, Mr. Peter Hayden, Sons of Kings, Renate/Cordate, etc. are familiar enough, but there are plenty of others that would be new to me — but I think that’s awesome. I’d love to be able to get to Pori, which is a place I’ll probably never be fortunate enough to see, and go to a show like this in a foreign land among strangers. I like that kind of thing. I think it would be fun.
I won’t make it to Kiarama, but I appreciate the spirit the fest seems to be working under, and if nothing else, it’s a good list of bands to check out. The fest sent the following info down the PR wire:
KIARAMA – a DIY celebration of all things slow and low
A new DIY festival for all things low and slow in Finland In mid-September, on Friday the 13th, the two-day long Kiarama festival will open the doors of Annankatu 6 and release the doom over Pori. It’s lineup covers almost 30 names, e.g. internationally reknown Mr. Peter Hayden and Mansion, which has been scheduled to play at Roadburn 2014. Twoday tickets for these heavy bacchanalia cost 22 euros now and 25 euros from the door – that is only 95 cent per orchestra!
Offering low frequencies almost more than one can handle, Kiarama has been founded to fill in a huge, dark gap in Finland’s festival offering, that is one for a festival organized by the DIY principles and celebrating all low and slow music, the likes of stoner rock and doom, and other related forms of culture. Those who have visited Roadburn in the Netherlands or Heavy Days in Doom Town in Denmark will know the concept, and now inspired by these torchbearers a bunch of artsist from the scene are finally brought under one roof to form a mischievous psychedelic bacchanalia. In addition to mindblowing bands these orgies sport so burlesque as well as reptilians – so you don’t want to miss this!
The festival will gather up together not only a bunch of heavy domestic names, but also a few international surprises: in addition to the Roadburnvisitor Mr. Peter Hayden Friday’s line-up includes e.g. brilliant acts of Finnish post-rock, like Baulta and All Will Be Quiet, as well as the Icelandic power ambient greatness Stafrænn Hákon; Hisko Detria, the new star of Finnish kraut; Sons of Kings, the Messiah of Poseidon-hugging ambient doom; Domovoyd, who even played at Ilosaarirock festival earlier this year alongside with the likes of Witchcraft and Hexvessel; and an Estonian progressive act TNVVNüM.
On Saturday Annis will be blown away not only by Mansion, but also by Sink’s holy drone, the psychedelic acts Octopie and Astral Bazaar from Helsinki; Laserdrift, a desert rock orchestra from Tampere playing music much in the vein of the legendary Fu Manchu; Acid Elephant, the erotic desert drone orchestra from Pori as well as the Swedish guests Ponamero Sundown, who’ve entertained the audience in Desertfest London, among others.
Performing:
Abbot Acid Elephant Alaneuvosto Astral Bazaar Baulta Blind Architect Domovoyd Fuzzifer Gangrened Hisko Detria Laserdrift Macchia Nera Mansion (I Am The Mansion) Mr. Peter Hayden MS Hornblower Octopie renate/cordate Revival Hymns Sink Smokebender Sons of Kings Stafrænn Hákon (ISL) TarpitOrchestra TNVVNüM (EST) Veil of Isis
+ Lucky Star Reptiles – oriental dance show and a DJ!
Two-day Tickets 22€ – order by e-mailing kiaramafest@gmail.com – and do it now, for the price at the door is 25€!
Timetables TBA 9.9.2013 – bare with us ’til that!
Tickets to Kiarama 2013 – a DIY celebration of all things low and slow – festival can be bought by e-mailing kiaramafest@gmail.com or calling +358 50 376 4593. Look up additional information and news from theKiarama facebook event. Keep it low and slow!
Acid Elephant, Defenestration of a Dying Mammoth (2012)
Posted in Reviews on August 26th, 2013 by JJ Koczan
What makes the self-titled, self-released debut EP from Oulu instrumental four-piece Renate/Cordate intriguing isn’t so much that it’s breaking new ground nearly as much as it’s setting up a fluidity between several familiar styles. The four-song, 28-minute release follows a 2010 demo from the Finnish group, and finds them fleshing out flowing heavy psychedelia that can alternately be traced back to instrumentalists like Pelican, earlier Red Sparowes and Russian Circles, with rougher traces of heavy psychedelia à la My Sleeping Karma or even elements at work from Isis-style post metal, but it’s all very well balanced so that Renate/Cordate don’t seem overly adherent to one school of method or another. I wouldn’t call Renate/Cordaterevolutionary, but it’s clear the band — bassist Aki, guitarists Ville and Samuli (who’s also credited with vocals, though I’ve heard none on the release) and drummer Antti-Pekka — are in the process of establishing an individual style for themselves, and that comes across in both the hypnotic droning moments of third cut “Conjuring Power” or the post-metal ambience in the midsection of “Calumet.” The results are noble in kind to the mission, and though it’s short, I’m more inclined to think of Renate/Cordateas a full-length, both for the flow it demonstrates between its tracks and for the subtle stylistic turns that each piece represents. In fact, I’d gladly argue that Renate/Cordatemakes a better album than an EP, because where an EP is generally geared toward giving a band rein to make an initial statement, feel out a shift in aesthetic or provide listeners with a sample of what they do, Renate/Cordate feels complete in its ideas and gives a much richer impression than a phrase like “self-titled, self-released debut EP” used above might imply. Ultimately, it’s a minute distinction between one or the other in terms of how you actually listen to the release, but hopefully it gives some impression of the overarching effectiveness the band displays in terms of feeding one song into the next and tying the whole work together as one cohesive expression.
Perhaps as one might expect, repetition and tonal weight are go-to elements of Renate/Cordate‘s approach. Riffs get pretty big when the band wants them to, but it’s important to remember that it’s the dynamic and the smoothness which with Renate/Cordate turn from loud to quiet and execute their builds that stands the EP out among its many peers working under similar influence. Beginning with “The Climb,” they commence a patient groove as a bed for the aptly-named progression that ensues. Aki‘s bass is an immediate standout factor, rich and warm in its tone, and Antti-Pekka‘s subdued ride work keeps a sense of movement to the quiet initial moment while the guitars slowly come more and more to prominence. A stop at 2:30 drops out everything but the bass, and an effects whistle after three minutes in hints at the impact to come — almost like a bomb dropping. The build-up happens in tense measures from there and at 4:48, the track explodes to its apex, hitting a peak that rounds out in chugging, churning riffs marked out by a wash of cymbals and an ever-faster pulse that continues to rise — or climb, as it were — until there’s about 20 seconds left in the seven-minute piece and it finally, inevitably must subside, feedback leading straight into “Calumet,” the march of which is more immediate in its motion. In the background, a subtle swirl plays out behind to add heavy psychedelic flourish to layered wah guitar. Another, less telegraphed, full-toned heavy section takes hold after roughly a minute and a half — all the tracks hover on either side of seven minutes long — and breaks gradually to atmospheric jamming. Here too, it’s not like the band has stopped, but as the rhythm section holds together and develops the relatively straightforward line that acted as the center of the song since its start, both Ville and Samuli are given room to play out in serene, proggy explorations. It becomes hypnotic quickly, and is the kind of thing Ufomammut might counter with a grand cosmic bludgeoning. Renate/Cordate don’t get quite that far, but a quick switch to heavier lines gives breadth to the listening experience and highlights the fact that just because they can be patient doesn’t mean they always will.
