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Bear Stone Festival Announces Inaugural Lineup

Posted in Whathaveyou on May 5th, 2022 by JJ Koczan

bear stone festival banner

With what they’re calling the ‘Year Zero’ edition, the new Croatian two-dayer Bear Stone Festival unveils a lineup with immediately international ambitions, with Mars Red SkyBlack RainbowsMother Vulture and Acid Mammoth up on top of the poster. It sounds like a pretty genuine outdoor experience, with free-but-limited-to-1,000 entry and free camping on-site, and they say there’s more to come in the lineup, which I’m inclined to believe since although the 12 acts announced would be just fine to fill a two-day bill with six per, there’s also a jam-stage to work out, DJs and other artists reportedly taking part, so yeah, one way or the other, it seems like there will be space for announcements after this.

But it looks like a cool happening if you’re in the area or up for a bit of travel. I can think of worse ways to spend a weekend than by a riverside in Croatia listening to rock and roll and experiencing art of various stripes. I can feel the vibe from here, and it’s not even long enough for everybody to get super-smelly, which is also a win.

Best of luck to Bear Stone Festival on Year Zero, and many happy returns:

bear stone festival poster

Welcome to Bear Stone Festival – Year Zero, the first of its kind

Welcome to Bear Stone Festival, the first of its kind!

This year’s edition of the festival titled #YearZeroEdition will start off Bear Stone Festival as a special preview. Year Zero Edition will be a free admission festival with free camping and an attendance limited to 1.000 visitors. Tickets can be purchased online in digital form via this link –> https://www.entrio.hr/event/bear-stone-festival-year-zero-11209

An audio-visual experience, international gathering of travelers and tribes in the Croatian outback. Two days of psychedelic, stoner, desert, fuzz, heavy rock, electronic and experimental music accompanied by live bands, DJ sets and Jam stage. Stunning landscapes, fantastic psychedelic art installations and projections will shape a unique festival experience and make you reexamine reality.

BLACK RAINBOWS // MARS RED SKY // MOTHER VULTURE // ACID MAMMOTH // SHE LOVES PABLO // STONEBRIDE // DALIBOROVO GRANJE // JASTREB // ACHACHAK // WIZARD OF STONE MOUNTAIN // ARISES // POMELO CHESS SOCIETY //

Slunj, Donje Primišlje, Croatia // 1 & 2 July, 2022 //

MAIN STAGE // JAM STAGE // DJs // CAMPING // FOOD VENDORS // BARS // RAFTING // SWIMMIMG // NATURE and more!

The festival is held in Donje Primišlje (Croatia) on a breathtaking location, on the banks of the river Mrežnica, which with its distinctive emerald color is known as one of the most pristine rivers in Croatia. The location of Bear Stone Festival is also the centre stage for the world famous trance electronic music festival Mo:Dem (Momento Demento).

The Bear Stone Festival is located in the canyon of Mrežnica and is completely surrounded by forest. Both the forest and the river are what make the festival site a part of nature in its most basic and pristine form. The festival site is a 15-minute drive from the towns of Slunj and Ogulin on each side, a 45-minute drive from the world-famous Plitvice Lakes National Park, an hour’s drive from the capital Zagreb and an hour and a half from the Adriatic Sea.

More information at –> www.bearstonefestival.com

https://www.facebook.com/events/2142426915922580
https://www.instagram.com/bearstonefestival
https://www.facebook.com/bearstonefestival
http://www.bearstonefestival.com

Black Rainbows, “Supernova & Asteroid/Fire in the Sky” live at Desertfest Belgium 2021

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Stonebride Release Animals on Display EP

Posted in Whathaveyou on April 11th, 2018 by JJ Koczan

stonebride

The last offering from Croatian heavy rockers Stonebride arrived some four years ago in the form of the impressive — and impressively titled — full-length, Heavy Envelope (review here). Progressive as that outing was, it should be interesting to dig in and hear what the Zagreb four-piece has come up with for Animals on Display, which has been issued through PDV Records and is comprised of just four songs totaling 18 minutes in length. One track per year between releases? The PR wire makes the claim that Animals on Display is the band’s “most exhaustive” work yet. If each track was a year in the making, it might just be.

Details and the full EP stream came down the PR wire. Let’s all dig in together, shall we?

Indeed:

stonebride animals on display

Stonebride’s new album ‘Animals on Display’ is out

Animals on Display a new mini album by heavy rock veterans Stonebride is out after 4 years since their last full length effort Heavy Envelope. These diversely influenced musicians are on the quest to set another benchmark in the further development of their sound. The album was released this March 15th through PDV Records and is available in CD/digital forms while the vinyl release is scheduled for the upcoming Autumn release.

Animals on Display consists of 4 tracks with running time little under 18 minutes. It is by far the band’s most exhaustive work which demands undivided attention of the listener.

Stonebride remains true to their musical roots but keep implementing both musical and personal experiences and pouring it into this record. On the verge of various (sub)genres like psych, prog, doom, blues, desert/stoner or giving nod to the 90’s grunge/alternative they’re constantly pushing the envelope with each new release. Keeping in mind the band has been together for almost 13 years (with the same line-up) just adds to their credibility as an ongoing creative force that shows no signs of stopping.

The concept is rounded with the artwork from the talented Krešimir ?uk aka VAST. A visual artist that combines digital collage and vector graphics. Visually inspired by crosshatching and thematically by surrealism, his work’s main premise is comparing subjective experience of the person with objectivity and erasing the boundaries between them. Animals on Display was recorded with several people behind the desk in couple of studios in Zagreb, Croatia from April to December 2017. It was produced by Siniša Krneta (band’s vocalist/guitarist), recorded by Luka Grubiši?, Vedran Kova?i?, Hrvoje Nikši?, Vedran Rao Brle?i? and Hrvoje Štefoti?, mixed by Vedran Rao Brle?i? and mastered by Carl Saff.

STONEBRIDE – Animals on Display tracklist:
1. Animal on Display
2. Embodiment
3. Early Bird
4. Half of Me

stonebride.bandcamp.com
facebook.com/stonebrideband
youtube.com/stonebrighter
www.reverbnation.com/stonebride
http://www.pdv.com.hr/
https://www.facebook.com/PDVRecordLabel/

Stonebride, Animals on Display EP (2018)

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Stonebride Release Heavy Envelope on Vinyl

Posted in Whathaveyou on October 16th, 2015 by JJ Koczan

stonebride

Issued via cooperation between PDV Records and Setalight Records, Croatian heavy rockers Stonebride‘s third album, Heavy Envelope (review here), is out now on vinyl. Not technically a reissue since it’s the first pressing in the format, the album is a moody but progressive take on bruiser riffing, and offers more on repeat visits than it might the first time around. All the better that it’s up now for revisiting by anyone who missed it. You’d almost swear these things were planned out ahead of time.

Stonebride had posted in Aug. about planning out a European tour for March/April 2016, so when and if I hear more on that, I’ll post accordingly. Until then, the PR wire sent along the following on the album:

stonebride heavy envelope

Stonebride’s ”Heavy Envelope” vinyl release!

It is a huge pleasure to announce that the sons of all things heavy , the band Stonebride have just released their latest critically acclaimed album Heavy Envelope in vinyl format! From now on you can treat your record player with two LP album versions (black & halloween orange edition). At the end of 2014. the band unleashed upon the world its’ 4th official release in CD/digital format. This came out via joint efforts from an independent label PDV records and Setalight records.

After a European tour last year, including some selected shows this year, Stonebride is ready for further conquering of all hearing senses. Their take on heavy rock, tied with alternative / psych / doom / prog voyages leaves none without awe. European tour for March/April 2016. is being booked at this moment, so keep an eye out when they roam through your city.

It’s also worth mentioning that in December band celebrates a 10th year jubilee of existing, sonic road bending, creating music and leaving their own mark in the oceans of the most finest art we call music.

Tracklist:
1 Movies, Movies
2 Lowest Supreme
3 Lay Low
4 Coloured Blue
5 Sokushinbutsu
6 Venomous

http://www.pdv.com.hr/artist/stonebride
stonebride.bandcamp.com
facebook.com/stonebrideband
youtube.com/Stonebrighter

Stonebride, Heavy Envelope (2014)

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audiObelisk Transmission 045

Posted in Podcasts on February 20th, 2015 by JJ Koczan

Click Here to Download

 

Here is the Music Player. You need to installl flash player to show this cool thing!

A real blend this time around. Some of this stuff is straight up riffs and crash, and some of it gets pretty far out, even in the first hour, let alone by the time we get to the last two tracks, with Papir’s live prog freakery and Earthling Society’s trippy experimentalism. There’s a lot to dig here and, perhaps unsurprisingly, I dig it a lot. These are all, I think with the exception just of Stonebride, 2015 releases. Some, like Monolord and Blackout and Stoned Jesus, aren’t out yet, and others, like Corsair, or Elbrus, or Sandrider, are newly released.

All told, the balance works between the more straight-ahead stuff and the weirdness, but my head’s been pulled pretty hard in the direction lately of things generally more on the outer edges of genre, so it seemed only right to be honest to that impulse. It’s not too long, and if there’s something here you haven’t heard before, then of course I hope you dig it. Actually, I hope you dig it anyway, new or not. Cheers.

First Hour:
Stoned Jesus, “Here Come the Robots” from The Harvest
Black Rainbows, “The Prophet” from Hawkdope
Sandrider, “Rain” from Sandrider + Kinski
Eggnogg, “Slugworth” from Sludgy Erna Bastard Vol. 1: Borracho & Eggnogg 7”
Blackout, “Cross” from Blackout
Chubby Thunderous Bad Kush Masters, “Devil’s Buttermilk” from Earth Hog
Shepherd, “Turdspeak” from Stereolithic Riffalocalypse
Corsair, “Coriolis” from One Eyed Horse
Kooba Tercu, “Pebble” from Kooba Tercu
Stonebride, “Sokushinbutsu” from Heavy Envelope
Monolord, “Cursing the One” from Vaenir

Second Hour:
Elbrus, “Far Away and into Space Pt. 2” from Far Away and into Space Pt. 2
King Buffalo, “Providence Eye” from split with Lé Betre
Papir, “Monday” from Live at Roadburn 2014
Earthling Society, “It’s Your Love that’s Sound” from It’s Your Love that’s Sound

Total running time: 1:53:18

 

Thank you for listening.

Download audiObelisk Transmission 045

 

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The Obelisk Radio Adds: HARK, Lucifer, Diesel King, Planes of Satori and Stonebride

Posted in Radio on February 6th, 2015 by JJ Koczan

I have continued to enjoy putting together these posts, and hopefully, whether you listen to The Obelisk Radio or you don’t, you get some use out of them. The fact is that it’s a pretty overwhelming amount of music being released these days — I feel like I’ve been behind all week, and for good reason — but it’s a good problem to have, and all you can really do is your best to keep up as much as you can. Accordingly, some of the stuff joining the playlist this week isn’t out yet, some is newly released and some of it has been out for a long time. Months are irrelevant. Riffs are timeless.

Let’s get to it.

The Obelisk Radio adds for Feb. 6, 2015:

HARK, Crystalline

hark-crystalline

UK heavy proggers Hark — also stylized in all-caps and with spaces between the letters — have all the noodly twists and turns one might expect in the shouty post-Mastodonic sphere of modern heavy, but what the trio do even better is use those turns toward building crescendos, so that songs like “Palendromeda,” the opener from their 2014 Season of Mist debut, Crystalline, isn’t just a mash of technical indulgence, but it actually moves somewhere too. Later cuts like “Sins on Sleeves” and “All Wretch and No Vomit” have some straightforward heavy rock to them as well — guitarist/vocalist/cover artist Jimbob Isaac used to play in Taint — but as one might expect, neither he nor bassist Nikolai Ribnikov (who seems to have since been replaced by Joe Harvatt, unless I have that backwards; things like who plays on what don’t matter in the age of digital promos) and drummer Simon Bonwick stay in one place too long. A guest appearance from Clutch‘s Neil Fallon on 10-minute closer “Clear Light of…” follows some particularly fervent tapping and presages another in Crystalline‘s series of crescendos, a long fade following topped by heady swirl that finishes out. Parts can be a bit much, but the full-on sprint that starts “Breathe and Run” and the weighty groove that follows make Hark‘s debut a solid fit for those seeking blinding fretwork that doesn’t necessarily sacrifice dynamic on the altar of technicality. HARK on Thee Facebooks, Season of Mist.

Lucifer, Anubis

lucifer-anubis

Born out of last year’s hot-shit-and-then-gone The Oath, London/Berlin four-piece Lucifer make their Rise Above debut with the Anubis/Morning Star 7″, vocalist Johanna Sadonis crooning out vaguely devilish incantations over The Wizards‘ riffs, Dino Gollnick‘s bass and Andrew Prestidge drums. The results on “Anubis” are probably the most Sabbathian bit of Sabbathery that’s come along since Orchid wandered along — the progression of “Anubis” is almost singularly indebted to “Snowblind.” “Morning Star” is likewise familiar, nestled somewhere between a theatrical take on ’80s proto-doom and ’70s cultistry and bolstered by the craft of Sadonis and former Cathedral guitarist Gary “Gaz” Jennigs. Hey, if it works, fair enough. One imagines that by the time the single arrives in April, word of Lucifer‘s coming will have spread far and wide, and if the single is meant to intrigue and pique interest ahead of a full-length to be issued later in 2015, I’ve no doubt it will do precisely that. Lucifer on Thee Facebooks, Rise Above Records.

Diesel King, Concrete Burial

diesel-king-concrete-burial

If you’ve got a quota for burl, London sludge metallers Diesel King will likely meet it with their When Planets Collide debut long-player, Concrete Burial, an album that hands out grueling, ultra-dudely chugging like a beefed-up Crowbar, vocalist Mark O’Regan offering shouting and growling extremity bordering at times on death metal. Shit is heavy, and it lives up to the violent threat of its title on songs like the catchy “Inferis” and “Horror. Disgust.,” the latter of which actually manages to make the lumbering guitar tones of Geoff Foden and Aled Marc move, propelled by the metallic drumming of Bill Jacobs while bassist Will Wichanski adds to the already pummeling low end. The 80-second “Mask of the Leper” is straight-up grind, but don’t be fooled by shifts in tempo — Diesel King‘s bread and butter is in sludged-out chug-riffing and growled chestbeating, like a testosterone supplement you take via your ears. Diesel King on Thee Facebooks, When Planets Collide.

Planes of Satori, Planes of Satori

planes-of-satori-planes-of-satori

Made for vinyl and pressed in that manner by Who Can You Trust? Records as the follow-up to last year’s Son of a Gun 7″ (review here), Planes of Satori find easy sanctuary on uneasy ground, smoothing out jagged edges and uncautious twists on their self-titled debut full-length. Bassist Justin Pinkerton doubles as the drummer in Golden Void, but though Planes of Satori share a West Coast affinity for the golden age of krautrock, cuts like “Eyes,” “Gnostic Boogie” and “The Ballad of Queen Milo” are on a much different trip, psychedelic afrobeat rhythms unfolding their insistence under the echoed out vocals of Alejandro Magana while Raze Regal tears into jazzy solos and Chris Labreche somehow manages to make it swing. The airier, more rhythmically settled “KTZ” retains a progressive feel both in the underlying tension of its bassline and in the open, creative vibe through which it careens. Call it “manic peace,” but it works well for Planes of Satori on a cut like the earlier “If You Must Know,” which reimagines ’90s indie weirdness through a lens of what-if-it-wasn’t-so-cool-not-to-give-a-crap, and “Green Summer,” which follows a building course without tipping off its hand until you’re already wrapped up in Regal‘s live-sounding leads. The closing solo guitar echo of “The Snake and the Squirrel” speaks to yet-unexplored drone dynamics and further delving into psychedelia to come. Sign me up. I have the feeling that the more bizarre Planes of Satori get, the more satisfying the trip is going to be. Their debut already shows a pervasive adventurous spirit. Planes of Satori on Thee Facebooks, Who Can You Trust? Records.

Stonebride, Heavy Envelope

stonebride-heavy-envelope

Late 2014’s Heavy Envelope is the third Stonebride record behind 2010’s Summon the Waves (review here) and their 2008 debut LP, Inner Seasons. Released by Setalight Records, it finds the Zagreb, Croatia, four-piece’s sound way solidified as compared to the psychedelic sprawl of the prior release, a ’90s-style rolling crunch riff to “Lay Low” following the distinctly Alice in Chainsian vocal melodies of “Lowest Supreme” and preceding the effectively replicated Queens of the Stone Age bounce of “Coloured Blue.” Some intervening solidification in the four years between the second and third albums might explain the shift in sound — the opposite could also be true — but drummer Steps and guitarist Tjesimir, bassist Alen and vocalist Sinisa work well within their newfound sphere, even finding room to branch out a bit on the more extended closing duo of “Sokushinbutsu” and “Venomous,” never quite hitting the same psyched-out feel of Heavy Envelope‘s predecessor, but definitely adding further individual sensibility to an engaging take on heavy rock. Stonebride seem ripe for a new beginning, and Heavy Envelope boasts precisely that kind of energy. Stonebride on Thee Facebooks, on Bandcamp, Setalight Records.

For the complete list of what went up today and everything else that’s been added recently and everything played going back I don’t even remember how long at this point, be sure to check out The Obelisk Radio Updates and Playlist page. Hope you find something you dig and that you think is worth hearing.

Thanks for reading and listening.

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Stonebride: The Marriage of Space and Earth

Posted in Reviews on June 15th, 2010 by JJ Koczan

The second full-length onslaught from these Croatian purveyors of the heavy cosmic psych, Summon the Waves (Setalight Records) finds the four-piece Stonebride coloring outside the lines in Hubble shades while nodding at the head-caked riff crowd with amped crunch and minor-key melodicism. The psych here is dark (that whole minor-key thing) and moody, but never whiny or miserable. Rather, Stonebride play layers of guitar off each other in extended passages and occasionally go into hyper-hypnotism with sometimes too-brief moments of repetition. Head. Trip. Rock.

All seems straightforward and riffy from the intro “The Phoenix,” but “Shadows Like Snakes” makes short work of that impression, constantly shaping and reshaping itself over its nine and a half minute runtime. Though the track begins heavy, the self-harmonizing vocals of Krnfa add complexity to the songcraft, doing call and response à la Dirt-era Alice in Chains for a chorus of “In the arms of God/There is no shame/In the Arms of God/We’re all the same,” while Tjemisir’s guitars chug out underneath. At about the 4:30 mark, the song opens up for an extended instrumental jam that not only shows of Tjemisir’s solo acumen, but some impressive tom work from drummer Thee Steps and well-timed distortion from relatively banally-named bassist Lenny.

So then you’ve got it all figured out again, and you think Stonebride’s Summon the Waves is just going to be another one of those meandering heavy psych records – a little more weighty than Colour Haze or any of their growing legion of imitators, but making plenty of the same moves structurally – and there comes “Crimson Tongue” and “Mute Heart Rivers,” two six-plus minute offerings that up the melody and heavy/ambient interchange. “Crimson Tongue” has some megaphone vocals from Krnfa in the verse but changes to a whispery, softer approach for the chorus, where Thee Steps’ hi-hat is almost a little too busy hitting sixteenths. But soon the music changes again, the guitars pick up and you’re grooving on one of those High on Fire moments where the chaos has given way to the power of the riff. It’s a suitable lead-in for the Melvins-style drum opening of “Mute Heart Rivers,” which retains its percussive edge throughout, affecting a slow build that culminates, appropriately, shortly before the song ends.

Read more »

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Croatian Doom! Part Dvoje

Posted in Bootleg Theater on July 24th, 2009 by JJ Koczan

You guys! I found the perfect place to take the band photo!A little while back, I did a, “Hey check it out” type thing on Croatian doomers Good Day to Die. Well, since I just came across the more stonerly Stonebride, who hail from the same city (Zagreb), it seems only fitting that I do the same for them. Helps that they’re pretty good. Their latest record, Inner Seasons, came out last year. Someone out there needs to educate me. Is there a Zagreb scene? Does it rule? Were they jamming out to Sky Valley at roof parties on top of Zagrep?anka in ’94? One can only hope.

While I’m doing research (read: “dicking around on band websites”) , enjoy this Stonebride video from this year’s Stoned from the Underground fest in Deutscheland. When you’re done with that, hop over to their MySpace page and get a taste of “Moonrider.” It’s awfully tasty for a song with such a cornball name.

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