Corpus Christi, Texas, five-piece Switchblade Jesus have inked a deal to reissue their 2013 self-titled debut, which also saw a 2014 vinyl release on Bilocation (review here), on Ripple Music. The album landed with nothing short of a smash upon its initial arrival, and has continued to build an audience in the two years since — momentum that Ripple, who seem to be snapping up more bands each passing week, will no doubt help move forward. As it seems like the association between band and label will be ongoing, that is, not just for this reissue, it would be hard to find a more suitable home for Switchblade Jesus than where they’ve landed.

They’re on the road now with Fuzz Evil, having played El Paso last night on a quick four-date tour of Texas (one of few states one can legitimately “tour” within; see also California), and the date for the reissue is May 12, as told by the PR wire:

Ripple Music to reissue debut album from Switchblade Jesus | Share new video for ‘Oblivion’

Switchblade Jesus will be released on 12th May 2015

In the latest of a long line of formidable signings this year, LA-based record label Ripple Music is thrilled to announce the addition of Texan band Switchblade Jesus to their roster, and the official rerelease of their acclaimed 2014 self-titled debut this May.

Formed in 2010 in the land of oil and tar, the Corpus Christi outfit consisting of Peter Quarnstrom (vocals), Eric Calvert (lead guitar/vocals), Billy Guerra (guitar), Jason Beers (bass) and Jon Elizondo (drums) may be hard drinking operators of heavy rock and roll, but they are also well versed in the ways of the desert.

Switchblade Jesus, the band’s devastating right hook of a debut was originally released on Kozmik Artifactz and instantly found listeners hearing notable nods to Kyuss, Orange Goblin and Clutch deep amid from the record’s weighty grooves and vintage stoner vibes. A crushing, loose and alcohol-fuelled fistfight between heavy fuzz and wild peyote hallucinations, tracks like ‘Bastard Son’ and ‘Renegade Riders’ showcase the band’s raw and unruly power… and then some.

The band also take to the road this month to play a number of dates across their home state of Texas with Arizonan three-piece Fuzz Evil (See dates below).

22nd April – Low Brow Palace – El Paso, TX
23rd April – The Mix – San Antonio, TX
24th April – The Lost Well – Austin, TX
25th April – Club Dada – Dallas, TX

Switchblade Jesus by Switchblade Jesus will be rereleased on 12th May 2015 through Ripple Music.

Track Listing:
1. Into Nothing (2:20)
2. Bastard Son (5:31)
3. The Wolves (3:45)
4. Sick Mouth (4:52)
5. Equinox (3:16)
6. Renegade Riders (4:39)
7. Copperhead (4:49)
8. Oblivion (6:27)

Release Date: 12th May 2015
Label: Ripple Music
Format: LP/CD/Download

https://www.facebook.com/SwitchbladeJesus
https://switchbladejesus.bandcamp.com/
https://instagram.com/switchbladejesus
https://twitter.com/The_Switchblade

Switchblade Jesus, “Oblivion” official video

Should you happen to be feeling lucky, Bilocation Records and Switchblade Jesus are giving away one of the three test pressings for the band’s self-titled full-length (review here), which would make a nifty pickup for some fortunate heavy rocker. Apparently the test pressings worked as well, since the label went ahead and pressed Switchblade Jesus‘ album in varying editions of colored 180g vinyl and has made them available for preorder now, hand-numbered gatefold style.

The CD version of the album, which was self-released last year, has sold out quickly enough, and it wouldn’t be much of a shock if the LP followed suit upon its release next month.

Details and links come courtesy of the PR wire:

SWITCHBLADE JESUS – Switchblade Jesus LP

BILOCATION #18

Hailing from the land of oil and tar Switchblade Jesus is a 5 piece equivalent of a heard of elephants slamming into a brick wall. Jamming together since 2010 they had a killer ride so far – playing live nearly every week they were forged to a unbreakable live unit. They played a shitload of shows with great bands – just to name a few: Kylesa, Orange Goblin, The Sword, Wo Fat, Egypt, Baroness.

Asked what the fans can expect of the band, the guys state: “Loud alcohol fueled heaviness laced with fuzz and slight hallucinations of tube amps piercing your mind.” That is a word!

VINYL FACTZ

– 100x transparent green vinyl (EXCLUSIVE MAILORDER version incl. A3 poster & silkscreened card signed by the band)
– 200x spooky clear/black marbled vinyl
– 100x black vinyl
– all high-quality heavy 180g vinyl pressed in Germany
– matte laquered 300gsm gatefold cover
– handnumbered

TRACKS

A1. Into Nothing 2:19
A2. Bastard Son 5:31
A3. The Wolves 3:45
A4. Sick Mouth 4:52
B1. Equinox 3:15
B2. Renegade Riders 4:38
B3. Copperhead 4:49
B4. Oblivion 6:26

Vinyl available at:
http://shop.bilocationrecords.com/navi.php?suchausdruck=switchblade+jesus&JTLSHOP=f7f65ee43a384ae40f4cbddb8be01e78

Bandcontact:
http://kozmik-artifactz.com/artist/switchblade-jesus/
http://switchbladejesus.net/
http://switchbladejesus.bandcamp.com/
https://www.facebook.com/SwitchbladeJesus

Switchblade Jesus, Switchblade Jesus (2013/2014)

Initially a 2013 self-release by the band on CD, the self-titled debut full-length from Corpus Christi, Texas-based heavy rockers Switchblade Jesus gets another look in 2014 thanks to a vinyl issue courtesy of Bilocation Records. The 35-minute album was greeted with a flurry of hyperbole upon its first arrival, so one expects an LP edition to be a welcome advent. The eight-track offering marks the last appearance in Switchblade Jesus of vocalist Pete Quarnstrom, his duties having since been taken over by guitarist Eric Calvert, joined in the now-four-piece by guitarist Billy Guerra, bassist Jason Beers and drummer Jon Elizondo, and finds the burly rockers engaged in comfortably-paced post-Pepper Keenan-era C.O.C. Southern-style heavy riffery, straightforward structures led by the guitars being underscored solidly by the rhythm section from “Bastard Son”‘s easy sway to the highlight closer “Oblivion,” which offers a more complex take. Much of what they have to offer throughout will be familiar in a songs-about-whiskey vein, shades of Clutch showing up on “The Wolves” while a Down influence seems to march hand in hand with a markedly unfortunate tinny snare sound on “Renegade Riders.” Quarnstrom, who vacated after a mini-tour in support of the album, mostly lets the riffs be his guide and is less “hey whoa mama yeah” than some I’ve heard in the I’m-a-bluesy-white-dude pastiche, but it winds up almost too easy to stick him in that category anyway, his approach aligning neatly with a staple trope within the current sphere of American heavy rock that one has been able to find in bands from all over the country, not just Texas or the South.

If that’s a sticking point for you, then Switchblade Jesus‘ Switchblade Jesus is going to take all the more exposure to find favor despite, though I wouldn’t say it’s incapable of doing so. Following the opening introduction “Into Nothing,” “Bastard Son” sets much of the tone for what’s to follow in aesthetic and pace, songs like “The Wolves” and “Sick Mouth” changing their pants, sonically speaking, but essentially moving on the same legs. There are touches of boogie to be had in “Sick Mouth,” and the tempo is somewhat quicker, but there’s an element of a comfort zone being established across the board here in booze-fueled riff rock that’s all well and good since they make it work, but also bound to be familiar to listeners who’ve encountered this kind of dudely groove before. I’m not inclined to rag on a relatively new band — formed in 2010 — for not having developed a complex stylistic take on their first outing; it just doesn’t seem fair. If Switchblade Jesus are setting themselves up for future creative development, then fine. I get some sense of that from “Oblivion,” but songs like “Equinox” and “Copperhead” show less of a tendency to shift atmosphere or mood, and Switchblade Jesus comes off less varied for it. The acoustics on “Into Nothing” and the sort of cinematic soundscaping that accompanies lead one to expect a certain amount of ambience that the rest of the album seems to have no ambition to fulfill, instead burrowing into a well-worn brand of heavy rock that’s endearing enough to get them through the relatively brief 35 minutes of their debut, but will want more variety moving forward. If switching Calvert to a vocalist/guitarist role helps expand Switchblade Jesus‘ songwriting methodology, then it can only be a change for the better on the part of the band.

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