There’s a lot going on here. First, I won’t pretend not to have heard the forthcoming debut album, The Skull 3, from doomly supergroup Legions of Doom. I wrote the bio. Twice. The part below that starts “Where does…” and ends talking about David V. D’Andrea (there was more, but whatever). Set to issue through Tee Pee Records, it is intended on the part of bassist Ron Holzner and guitarist Lothar Keller to pick up where The Skull left off.

Indeed, much of the material began as songs coming together for a third The Skull LP prior to the death of frontman Eric Wagner in 2022. Now, with vocalists Karl Agell (Lie Heavy, Leadfoot, ex-C.O.C.) and Scott Reagers (Saint Vitus) alternating in lead-singer roles, and Henry Vasquez (Saint Vitus, Blood of the Sun, the latest incarnation of Pentagram, etc.) on drums, Legions of Doom pull another step away from being taggable as a ‘Trouble-offshoot’ while keeping the spirit of The Skull‘s take on traditional doom alive. Much to their credit, the sound they have developed is its own thing.

The PR wire has the info on the Sanford Parker-produced record below, plus the limited EP that will precede it, plus live dates, and the lead single “All Good Things” streaming in a just-unveiled video. Album’s out Sept. 13:

LEGIONS OF DOOM: Doom Metal Super Group To Release Debut Full-Length The Skull 3 On September 13th Via Tee Pee Records; New Video/Single Now Playing, Limited Edition 7” EP Announced, And More!

LEGIONS OF DOOM will release their The Skull 3 full-length on September 13th via Tee Pee Records, today unveiling the record’s first single and preorders.

Where does The Skull end and LEGIONS OF DOOM begin? The answer might be “right here.” Welcome The Skull 3.

The 2021 passing of vocalist Eric Wagner (The Skull, ex-Trouble, Blackfinger, etc.) looms over LEGIONS OF DOOM’s debut, as The Skull guitarist Lothar Keller and bassist Ron Holzner (also ex-Trouble) pick up with material that would have been on that band’s third full-length and realize it in a different form. With Wagner’s involvement in the composition and the blessing of the singer’s family, LEGIONS OF DOOM shift further into supergroup territory by welcoming drummer Henry Vasquez (Saint Vitus, Pentagram, Blood Of The Sun), guitarist Scott Little (Leadfoot) and vocalists Karl Agell (Lie Heavy, Leadfood, Blind-era Corrosion Of Conformity) and Scott Reagers (original frontman of Saint Vitus) to the fold, both celebrating Wagner’s life and creativity and finding a path of their own as they do.

“Eric had a file on his computer labeled ‘New Skull Record,’” explains Holzner, “with his lyrics allotted to these songs. I was lucky that his family was able to access the computer and share the files with me. There were extra lyrics and verses that I used to finish the songs. I wrote most of the lyrics to ‘Lost Soul,’ but I’m so happy that Eric’s family was able to access the computer and pass along the lyrics to me.”

It is fitting to the brand of doom proffered by these Legions that Wagner’s spirit is part of this record – not to mention his vocals on “Heaven” – but LEGIONS OF DOOM are more than a tribute. Just as The Skull built on the legacy of its component members in Trouble and other outfits – Keller’s contributions to songwriting have always been the secret weapon; that remains true on The Skull 3 – so too does the new group chart its own forward course. In the end, the record becomes as much a debut as it ever might have been a third album for The Skull, and the persona of LEGIONS OF DOOM is immediately distinguished through the performances of Reagers and Agell on vocals. Yes, it’s classic doom by veterans who helped define the form, but LEGIONS OF DOOM are vibrant in their revelry, and, to be blunt, they sound like a band with more to say. Don’t go into the album expecting a one-off.

Holzner offers context: “Lothar and I wrote eighty percent of the record with Eric prior to him passing away. Karl, Henry and especially Scott Reagers wanted to finish it. Scott really didn’t want The Skull to end and insisted that we continue as The Skull as well as doing LEGIONS OF DOOM. LOD will be the main focus from here out and The Skull will play once in a while. Lo and I finished the record with a collaboration with David Snyder (Trouble, Blackfinger) on the song, [and first single], ‘All Good Things’ and wrote the newest song ‘Lost Soul’ with Henry. We also reworked Eric’s acoustic song ‘Heaven’ to go with his recorded vocals. The cover art was done by the legendary David V. D’Andrea (Samaritan Press). I told him I wanted something to represent moving on from The Skull and being reborn in LEGIONS OF DOOM…”

In advance of the record’s release, today the band unveils “All Good Things,” which also serves as the A side of a limited-edition EP set for release on August 23rd. Side B features a cover of Deep Purple’s “Into The Fire,” exclusive to the EP.

Elaborates Agell, “‘All Good Things’ holds great significance. It’s the first true LEGIONS OF DOOM song. I was granted the great honor of singing Eric Wagner’s beautiful words which telegraph hope and redemption in the midst of pain and despair. It became a sort of collaboration beyond the grave, signaling a rebirth. ‘And so dear friends, you have to carry on. All good things come to those who wait.’

“‘Into The Fire’ is one of my favorite songs by Deep Purple off of their 1970 In Rock album. Ron and I recorded a version of it years ago with Reed Mullin of Corrosion Of Conformity (RIP) and Scott Little of Leadfoot on guitar. Scott also happens to play for LEGIONS OF DOOM. We loved it then, and we loved tracking it again as a worthy B side for the All Good Things EP.”

The Skull 3 was recorded by Sanford Parker at the late Steve Albini’s Electrical Audio as well as Hyper Cube Studios, mixed by Quentin Poynter at QMP Audio, and mastered by John Scrip at Massive Mastering.

Preorders for the All Good Things EP, which will be available digitally and on Purple w/ Black Splatter 7” vinyl (limited to 500 copies), as well as The Skull 3, which will be available on CD, LP and digital formats, can be found at THIS LOCATION: https://linktr.ee/LegionsOfDoom

All Good Things EP Track Listing:
Side A
1. All Good Things
Side B
2. Into The Fire (Deep Purple cover)

The Skull 3 Track Listing:
1. Beyond The Shadow Of Doubt
2. All Good Things
3. Lost Soul
4. A Voice Of Reason
5. Between Darkness And Dawn
6. Insectiside
7. Heaven
8. Hallow By All Means

LEGIONS OF DOOM Live:
9/12/2024 Desertfest NYC Pre Party – Brooklyn, NY
9/13/2024 Widowmaker Brewing – Braintree, MA
9/14/2024 Chapel Of Bones – Raleigh, NC
9/20/2024 Ripplefest – Austin, TX

LEGION OF DOOM:
Ron Holzner – bass
Lothar Keller – guitars
Scott Little – guitars
Henry Vasquez – drums
Karl Agell – vocals
Scott Reagers – vocals

http://www.facebook.com/legionofdoom
https://www.instagram.com/legionsofdoomband/
https://linktr.ee/LegionsOfDoom

http://www.facebook.com/troubletheskull
http://www.instagram.com/theskullusa

teepeerecords.com
https://www.facebook.com/teepeerecords/
https://www.instagram.com/teepeerecords
https://teepeerecords.bandcamp.com/

Legions of Doom, “All Good Things” official video

San Diego classic heavy rockers Sacri Monti are set to release their third album, Retrieval, on July 26 through Tee Pee Records. And as much as the 37-minute six-tracker merrily bends time to its whims in terms of the melding of heavy ’70s progressivism and modern expanse, it has still been five real years since the five-piece’s last studio full-length, 2019’s Waiting Room for the Magic Hour (review here), though they did in 2023 issue live at Sonic Whip MMXII (review here), capturing their performance at the Dutch heavyfest of the same name and introducing listeners to new songs “Desirable Sequel” — a phrase one might use to describe Retrieval itself — and “Intermediate Death.” Following the opener “Maelstrom,” those two appear in succession on the new record, as part of an included trilogy of counterintuitive adjectives and nouns that also encompasses the vinyl’s side B opener, “Brackish Honeycomb,” before the interlude “Moon Canyon” and nine-minute closer “More Than I” (premiering below) complete the proceedings with some of Sacri Monti‘s most ambitious and richest sounds to-date.

Like its predecessor, Retrieval flows smoothly and is unrepentantly speaking to vintage ideas in the organ work of Evan Wenskay and the shuffling riffcraft of Dylan Donovan and Brenden Dellar (also vocals), given solid form and push by Anthony Meier‘s bass and Thomas DiBenedetto‘s drumming. But as they lean toward a more modern recording sound, the sprawl of their melodies has never sounded quite so realized, and in the pairing of shorter and longer cuts throughout, they find a way to balance a kind of rhythmic restlessness next to more patient, flowing ideas. This is the up-front message sent as “Maestrom” — which feels like it was born to open a live set — builds to a synth-laced tension of chug and Dellar begins a first verse after two of its three minutes have passed, and “Desirable Sequel” unfurls from there, setting out with quiet guitar meander and establishing a melancholy vocal narrative. It might be considered of a kind on some levels with “Slipping From the Day,” which appeared on the band’s self-titled debut (review here) in 2015, but the comparison only emphasizes the growth the years since have wrought in their sound, likewise affirmed by the clarity with which “Intermediate Death” spins out its initial intensity only to drop to standalone organ and lands in the plague-era malaise of the verse, marked by the lines repeated later, “Running through this world on empty/Tryin’ to do the best I can.”

Since their inception, Sacri Monti have had the ability to splinter off in one movement or another, the guitars and organ taking melodic flight while Meier and DiBenedetto provide crucial ground beneath, only to come together around a verse, chorus, whatever it might be. “Intermediate Death” is more straightforward in terms of structure, ultimately, but still holds this spirit as the lush hook unfolds, all the more conveying its emotional crux with the five members of the band heading to the same place at the same time.

“Brackish Honeycomb” follows with Thin Lizzy-style guitar (and organ) leads and classic prog jabs, but its eight-minute course is a precursor for “More Than I” to come in its sweep, and as they move through the second half of the song, the drums, bass, organ and guitars, in succession, take a moment to shine with jammy breadth before turning back to see how far they’ve come via more lockstep lead guitar. This is Sacri Monti at their best — vibrant, writing for the ‘magic hour’ they’ll spend playing on a stage, making the most of the chemistry and instrumental conversation happening — and they arrive at that moment organically, as “Brackish Honeycomb” proceeds, giving it due and purposeful culmination before departing to the acoustic, lap steel, and Mellotron-ish sounds of the sub-three-minute, duly echoing “Moon Canyon.”

And part of the reason “Moon Canyon” lands where it does on the record is likely to give space between “Brackish Honeycomb” and “More Than I,” which are Retrieval‘s two longest and farthest reaching tracks, but the atmospheric reset also informs the context in which the closer sets forth. It is progressive enough in its mood to remind of Astra, and patient in the verse without being staid as the band build toward the short guitar solo after the three-minute mark, then double-back to the song’s intro and set out again, only to wind up in a more subdued instrumental stretch, not quite a jam, but a go-with-it kind of groove that opens to lush keyboard melody and a build that carries them to Dellar‘s subtly Sabbathian “whoa-oh yeah,” and off to double-guitar soar from there. The serenity of that moment doesn’t last — Sacri Monti aren’t hanging out anywhere for too long — as there’s one more build into the finish, but it’s acoustic guitar that closes, and the prevailing sentiment complements the melancholia throughout, without letting go of the live energy that’s obviously so crucial to the character of the band.

In that way, as well as in the complexity of its songwriting, the thoughtfulness of its melodies and the care put into its arrangements, Retrieval feels like a definitive work on Sacri Monti‘s part. At the show — whichever show; they play plenty of them — it’s the kind of thing they could do live in its entirety and represent their stylistic scope, and by the time “More Than I” finished, it’s easy to imagine a line at the merch table to grab LPs. Can’t argue. However long it may or may not have been in the making, Retrieval comes across like a culmination, and front to back, it brings the listener with it on a course that is dynamic and not untroubled, but nonetheless able to swing through whatever comes. There’s a lesson in there for the listener, to be sure.

“More Than I” premieres on the player below. I advise a deep breath before you dive in, and thank you for reading.

PR wire info, including European Please enjoy:

In recent years, Sacri Monti has transcended sonic expectations to create a singular sound so unique that their name has become synonymous with invention.

Signed to Tee Pee Records, this July the SoCal five-piece are back to show once again why they are one of the label’s leading progressive lights with the release of their third studio album, Retrieval.

Formed in Oceanside in 2012 the band has ridden the crest of an enduring wave of unmissable heavy psych bands that have emerged from the San Diego area. So much so that in 2018, Roadburn Festival invited them to take part in a ‘San Diego Takeover’, which found the band showcasing their inimitable sound alongside peers such as Arctic, Harsh Toke, Joy, and a handful of others.

Fans will also be pleased to hear that this summer Sacri Monti embark on a European tour in support of the album, dates, and details of which can be found below.

There’s no question that Sacri Monti has upped their game on Retrieval. Due for release on 26th July 2024 via Tee Pee Records we highly advise you to do the same. Pre-order the album here: https://hypeddit.com/sacrimonti/maelstrom

European Tour Dates

1/8 – Blah Blah – Turin, Italy
2/8 – Pietra Sonica Fest – Osoppo Udine, Italy
3/8 – Palp Festival – Couvert du Goly. Switzerland
5/8 – Stone Smoker – Louny, Czech Republic
6/8 – Channel Zero – Ljubljana, Slovenia
9/8 – Sonic Blast Festival – Moledo, Portugal
10/8 – Hoflarm Open Air – Seelbach, Germany
11/8 – Urban Spree – Berlin, Germany
14/8 – dB’s – Utrecht, Netherlands
15/8 – Merlyn – Nijmegen, Netherlands
17/8 – Volcano Sessions – Montpeloux, France
18/8 – Secret Place – Montpellier, France
21/8 – Le Cirque Electrique – Paris, France
22/8 – The Black Heart – London, UK
23/8 – 1865 – Southampton, UK
24/8 – Kazimier Stockroom – Liverpool, UK
25/8 – Cosmic Vibration Fest – Sheffield, UK

Track Listing

1. Maelstrom
2. Desirable Sequel
3. Intermediate Death
4. Brackish/Honeycomb
5. Moon Canyon
6. More Than I

Sacri Monti is:
Brenden Dellar -Guitar
Dylan Donovan- Guitar
Anthony Meier- Bass
Evan Wenskay- Organ, Synth
Thomas Dibenedetto- Drums

Sacri Monti on Facebook

Sacri Monti on Instagram

Sacri Monti BigCartel store

Sacri Monti on Soundcloud

Tee Pee Records website

Tee Pee Records on Facebook

Tee Pee Records on Instagram

Tee Pee Records on Bandcamp

This news came through last week, but I was in Quarterly Review Land, so I do hope you’ll pardon the tardiness. In any case, the internet’s big enough to accommodate me being late on a thing, and in the interim, Sacri Monti‘s Retrieval hit the inbox so I’ve actually had a chance to listen to a thing that’s coming out before writing about it. Novelty, I know.

First of all, it’s way ’70s sounding. Not vintage like they’re trying to pretend it’s 1973 and instead of Nixon and war it’s weed and riffs, but organic in its root and you can hear that right away on “Maelstrom,” which is both the lead single and opening track. A driving chug of guitar given tension through low-key ace-in-the-hole drumming and complemented by organ and a glut of effects, in and out in three minutes’ time. Easy to dig. The record grows more expansive as it moves into side B, but they keep that it’s-called-prog-rock-because-it’s-progressive-and-it-rocks sentiment throughout and I stoked to get to know the songs better. It’s been five long years since 2019’s Waiting Room for the Magic Hour (review here), and the San Diego five-piece sound like they’re ready to move forward.

They’ll do so later this summer on a European tour following Retrieval‘s July 26 release through Tee Pee Records, as the PR wire tell it:

SACRI MONTI’s Retrieval will be released via Tee Pee Records on 26th July 2024

San Diego’s premier spaced-out psych quintet are back in Europe with their heaviest and most progressive album yet…

Preorder: https://hypeddit.com/sacrimonti/maelstrom

In recent years, Sacri Monti has transcended sonic expectations to create a singular sound so unique that their name has become synonymous with invention.

Signed to Tee Pee Records, this July the SoCal five-piece are back to show once again why they are one of the label’s leading progressive lights with the release of their third studio album, Retrieval.

Formed in Oceanside in 2012 the band has ridden the crest of an enduring wave of unmissable heavy psych bands that have emerged from the San Diego area. So much so that in 2018, Roadburn Festival invited them to take part in a ‘San Diego Takeover’, which found the band showcasing their inimitable sound alongside peers such as Arctic, Harsh Toke, Joy, and a handful of others.

The first single taken from Retrieval also happens to be the opening salvo, ‘Maelstrom’; a whirling 70s prog rock opus that recalls the chugging riff/organ majesty of Machine Head-era Deep Purple, slung with the Space Ritual vibes of Hawkwind. A fine and fitting way to ease listeners into a heady and head-banging assembly of new songs which, like previous album – 2019’s Waiting Room for the Magic Hour – thrives on the art of keeping you guessing.

Fans will also be pleased to hear that this summer Sacri Monti embark on a European tour in support of the album, dates, and details of which can be found below.

There’s no question that Sacri Monti has upped their game on Retrieval. Due for release on 26th July 2024 via Tee Pee Records we highly advise you to do the same. Pre-order the album here and check out ‘Maelstrom” now!
EUROPEAN TOUR DATES:

1/8 – Blah Blah – Turin, Italy
2/8 – Pietra Sonica Fest – Osoppo Udine, Italy
3/8 – Palp Festival – Couvert du Goly. Switzerland
5/8 – Stone Smoker – Louny, Czech Republic
6/8 – Channel Zero – Ljubljana, Slovenia
9/8 – Sonic Blast Festival – Moledo, Portugal
10/8 – Hoflarm Open Air – Seelbach, Germany
11/8 – Urban Spree – Berlin, Germany
14/8 – dB’s – Utrecht, Netherlands
15/8 – Merlyn – Nijmegen, Netherlands
17/8 – Volcano Sessions – Montpeloux, France
18/8 – Secret Place – Montpellier, France
21/8 – Le Cirque Electrique – Paris, France
22/8 – The Black Heart – London, UK
23/8 – 1865 – Southampton, UK
24/8 – Kazimier Stockroom – Liverpool, UK
25/8 – Cosmic Vibration Fest – Sheffield, UK

TRACK LISTING:
1. Maelstrom
2. Desirable Sequel
3. Intermediate Death
4. Brackish/Honeycomb
5. Moon Canyon
6. More Than I

Sacri Monti is:
Brenden Dellar -Guitar
Dylan Donovan- Guitar
Anthony Meier- Bass
Evan Wenskay- Organ, Synth
Thomas Dibenedetto- Drums

https://www.facebook.com/sacrimontiband/
https://www.instagram.com/sacri_monti_band/
https://sacrimonti.bigcartel.com/
https://soundcloud.com/sacri-monti

teepeerecords.com
https://www.facebook.com/teepeerecords/
https://www.instagram.com/teepeerecords/
https://teepeerecords.bandcamp.com/

Sacri Monti, “Maelstrom”

Sometimes it’s kind of funny to write a band’s bio — in this specific case it’s also a frickin’ honor — and then not know when it’s going to be used and be surprised to see it come back down the PR wire. You do a thing, send it off, and a little while later, it comes back to you. I thank Liz Ciavarella, who has only been supporting my efforts and making me a better writer AS WELL AS giving me stuff to write about for the last, oh, 18 years or thereabouts, for putting my name out for bio writing stuff. Sometimes I get a little Paypal money for Bandcamp, sometimes it’s just a cool thing to do, but it’s always appreciated and if someone thinks enough of my work in general to ask, well, that’s a push to do a thing right there.

But to get to the point, Legions of Doom are recording this month their debut album. They’re in kind of a fluid situation, sort of transitioning out of The Skull but still keeping that band — whose frontman Eric Wagner passed away in 2021 — in reserve for special slots at festivals and such, and moving ahead with Legions of Doom as a next phase for bassist Ron Holzner, guitarist Lothar Keller and drummer Henry Vasquez. That that core trio are working with vocalists Scott Reagers (original frontman of Saint Vitus) and Karl Agell (Lie Heavy, ex-Leadfoot, C.O.C. Blind, Kinghitter) tells you the size of the gap left by Wagner‘s absence and also shows a readiness to explore new ideas. Guitarist Scott Little, also formerly of Leadfoot, will be a part of both Legions of Doom and The Skull, at least as I understood it.

Interested as always to hear what Sanford Parker, who will engineer the impending session leading toward a Fall release, gets from the band, especially working in Electrical Audio, which will make it a good day to be Vasquez for drum sounds. The bio I wrote appears in blue text below, as served up by the PR wire. Note they’ll be at Ripplefest Texas in September as I also hope very much to be:

LEGIONS OF DOOM: Doom Metal Supergroup Featuring Vocalist Duo Karl Agell And Scott Reagers To Enter Studio This Month

Banded together out of mutual respect, admiration, history, and a strong desire to move ever forward, LEGIONS OF DOOM brings together split-duty lead singers Scott Reagers (Saint Vitus) and Karl Agell (Lie Heavy, Karl Agell’s Blind, Leadfoot), bassist Ron Holzner (The Skull, Trouble, Earthen Grave), guitarists Lothar Keller (The Skull, Sacred Dawn), and Scott Little (Leadfoot), and drummer Henry Vasquez (The Skull, Saint Vitus, Blood Of The Sun), and was born as a project following the death of The Skull vocalist Eric Wagner (also ex-Trouble) in 2021. Initial The Skull/LEGIONS OF DOOM shows in tribute to Wagner were held in 2023, and in 2024, LEGIONS OF DOOM will record both the album that The Skull would have made and a new collection of original material that’s been worked on since.

Plans to record at Steve Albini’s Electrical Audio with engineer Sanford Parker (YOB, Wovenhand, Eyehategod) will lead to a first release this Fall on Tee Pee Records, and in the interim, LEGIONS OF DOOM will again take to the stage. Fall/Winter European and US touring is being discussed, with a just announced appearance in September of this year at Ripplefest in Austin, Texas. While LEGIONS OF DOOM will step forward as the priority, Holzner assures The Skull isn’t fading completely.

“The Skull, featuring me, Lothar, Henry, Scott Little, and Karl singing, will continue in a limited capacity doing occasional shows,” informs Holzner. “The Skull shows will consist of 90-95 percent The Skull music. LEGIONS OF DOOM shows consist of all our combined history: Blind-era Corrosion Of Conformity, Trouble, Leadfoot, The Skull, Saint Vitus, and LEGIONS OF DOOM material, too.”

Adds Karl Agell, “When Ron asked me to join him in carrying on the doom metal tradition that he was part of and established first with Trouble and then The Skull, there was only one path forward. I truly look forward to performing songs from the massive legacy of all the members of LEGIONS OF DOOM.”

Having already appeared at Hellfest in France, Graspop Metal Meeting in Belgium, and Legions Of Metal in Chicago, expect LEGIONS OF DOOM to continue to roll out confirmations as they move toward the album release, because with these guys, it’s never just about what’s been done in the past, but adding to that legacy as well. Just as The Skull built on the foundations Trouble laid at the core of the doom metal genre, look for LEGIONS OF DOOM to push to new ground along that familiar path. [words by JJ Koczan]

LEGION OF DOOM:
Ron Holzner – bass
Lothar Keller – guitars
Scott Little – guitars
Henry Vasquez – drums
Karl Agell – vocals
Scott Reagers – vocals

http://www.facebook.com/legionofdoom
https://www.instagram.com/legionsofdoomband/

http://www.facebook.com/troubletheskull
http://www.instagram.com/theskullusa

teepeerecords.com
https://www.facebook.com/teepeerecords/
https://www.instagram.com/teepeerecords
https://teepeerecords.bandcamp.com/

Legions of Doom, Live at Legions of Metal Fest 2023, Chicago, IL

San Diego heavy psychedelic rockers Sacri Monti have finished recording their yet-untitled third full-length for release later this year. Pictured below with producer Eric Bauer at Discount Mirrors, the band issued Live at Sonic Whip MMXXII (review here) last year through Burning World/Sonic Whip, and though one assumes Tee Pee Records will handle the studio release to come since they did 2019’s Waiting Room for the Magic Hour (review here) and Sacri Monti‘s 2015 self-titled debut (review here), but it occurs to me I have no confirmation of that.

But it seems to have been a joyous process, if the posts I saw from bassist Anthony Meier were anything to go by. Osees‘ John Dwyer stopped in for a bit, which was surely rad, and it looked like the focus was on playing live, getting that energy onto tape as best as possible. I hope to and look forward to engaging with the results and hearing what the last five years have brought to Sacri Monti‘s sound. I haven’t heard any of it beyond the new songs that were on the live record, but I’ve got a good feeling about this one with just about nothing to base that on except the band’s own history and the fact that they looked like they had a good time putting it together. But I think that might be enough to go on, at least for now.

When I see or hear anything else, I’ll post it. Expect release news and tour dates both, as Sacri Monti will return to Europe this summer and are already confirmed to appear at SonicBlast Fest and Hoflärm 2024, happening on the same weekend in Portugal and Germany, respectively. While a just-that trip would likely be intense enough to count as a whole tour, more dates to come feels like a safe expectation.

So, for now, here’s what I saw to mark the end of the recording/mixing process:

Just wrapped up recording and mixing our third studio album in the past 7 days. The process was a lot of fun and everything came together sonically with this one. It was a pleasure and an honor to work with Eric Bauer at Discount Mirrors Studio in Los Angeles. Stay tuned for release date and upcoming plans. Onward!

Sacri Monti is:
Brenden Dellar -Guitar
Dylan Donovan- Guitar
Anthony Meier- Bass
Evan Wenskay- Organ, Synth
Thomas Dibenedetto- Drums

https://www.facebook.com/sacrimontiband/
https://www.instagram.com/sacri_monti_band/
https://sacrimonti.bigcartel.com/
https://soundcloud.com/sacri-monti

teepeerecords.com
https://www.facebook.com/teepeerecords/
https://www.instagram.com/teepeerecords/
https://teepeerecords.bandcamp.com/

Sacri Monti, Waiting Room for the Magic Hour (2019)

As you and I sit comfortably in our reclining easychairs, gently clinking crystal highballs of actually-old-fashioned old fashioneds and toasting the ease of our lives, Iowa two-piece Telekinetic Yeti are once again out on the road, slogging away and carrying a silly-billy amount of amplifiers and playing louder than is recommended by medical professionals. The yeoman’s work of riffs. They’re out with JD Pinkus, who if you were going to put a bassist in the band would be a good one for the job, and will hit up the Southeast region and a little bit in their native Midwest as they put yet more miles between themselves and last year’s Tee Pee Records label debut, Primordial (review here).

And yes, that album was primordial. Willfully lunkheaded in how it clubbed your unassuming skull with riff after fuzz-coated riff. And I’m glad to have the excuse to revisit it that the video provides. Maybe this is Telekinetic Yeti saying goodbye to Primordial as they round out the tour cycle and begin to think about moving forward again — they don’t strike me as the ‘go home for two years’ types, but one never knows — with new material and, subsequent to that, probably a whole other round of touring. I’m very glad I got to see them play these songs.

If you haven’t, there’s still time. Dates and PR wire info follow the clip below.

Please enjoy:

Telekinetic Yeti, “Beast” official video

TELEKINETIC YETI RELEASE “BEAST” VIDEO

ANIMATED CLIP COMES FROM BAND’S ALBUM, PRIMORDIAL

U.S. TOUR UNDERWAY; J.D. PINKUS SUPPORTS

Directed by Brodie Rush. Featuring Alex Baumann (guitar and vocals) and Rockwel Heim (drums).

The duo share the larger theme behind the track: “’Beast’ is a reflection on societal disillusionment and the inherent desire to escape the cyclical trap of wage slavery. Acknowledging that these empires are built on sand as well as the human need to escape the tentacles that bind us through mindless, obligatory, financially-centered routines facilitated by hypnotic black magic.”

Telekinetic Yeti have spent the past year-plus on the road supporting the well-received, 11-song Primordial, including multiple headlining treks and a stint with Weedeater. The band is in the midst of their final 2023 tour dates, playing tomorrow at Maggie Meyers in Huntsville, Ala. J.D. Pinkus opens on all remaining shows.

Telekinetic Yeti is on tour now! Tickets available at http://tonedeaftouring.com/yeti

11/08/2023 Huntsville AL @ Maggie Meyers
11/09/2023 Little Rock AR @ Four Quarter
11/10/2023 Lafayette LA @ Freetown Boom Boom Room
11/11/2023 New Orleans LA @ Poor Boys
11/12/2023 Panama City Beach FL @ Moseys
11/15/2023 Cape Coral FL @ Nice Guys
11/16/2023 Tampa FL @ Brass Mug
11/17/2023 Jacksonville FL @ Kona Skatepark
11/18/2023 Savannah GA @ EL Rocko Lounge
11/19/2023 Charleston SC @ Trolley Pub
11/20/2023 Piedmont SC @ Tribbles
11/21/2023 Raleigh NC @ Pour House
11/22/2023 Atlanta GA @ Star Bar
11/24/2023 Wilmington NC @ Reggies
11/25/2023 Chesapeake Bay VA @ Riffhouse
11/26/2023 Bensalem PA @ Broken Goblet

New album, Primordial, out now via Tee Pee Records Limited-edition Vinyl and CDs available here: https://teepeerecords.com/collections/frontpage/products/telekinetic-yeti-primordial-cd-lp

Telekinetic Yeti Merch:
https://telekineticyeti.bigcartel.com/

Telekinetic Yeti is:
Alex Baumann – Guitar/Vocals
Rockwel Heim – Drums

Telekinetic Yeti, Primordial (2022)

Telekinetic Yeti on Facebook

Telekinetic Yeti on Instagram

Telekinetic Yeti on Bandcamp

Tee Pee Records website

Tee Pee Records on Facebook

Tee Pee Records on Bandcamp

A bit of housekeeping here as the PR wire steps up to make official the return of Satan’s Satyrs. Perhaps relocated from their Virginia home to NY, the classic heavy rock unit led by bassist/vocalist Clayton Burgess announced early last month they’d reunited with a new lineup, would have a new single and live shows and all that we’re-a-band-again stuff. What’s new here is making public the band’s signing to Tee Pee Records for Quick Quiet Raid and the preorder link for the 7″. One assumes this is kind of a precursor to a fuller return in 2024, and I wouldn’t be surprised if there’s an LP at least in the works by the end of next year if not before. You’ll note in the below Burgess says he’s been writing all the while.

Cool stuff to come, one hopes. We’re into November now, so there’s as much that’s going to be about next year as this one, but with the single on the way, I don’t think you’re wrong to think of it as something to applies to today as much as eight months in the future, or however long it ends up being until they get another record together. Gets the old “we’ll see,” I guess.

From the PR wire, as noted:

Cult Scuzz Rockers Satan’s Satyrs Return with 7″ Single, Live Shows, and a Pledge of Allegiance to Tee Pee Records

After calling it a day in 2019, this Friday the NY-based biker trash/occult obsessed quartet will be reborn again via new single ‘Quick Quiet Raid’

Pre-order their 7″ single here ahead of its release through Specimen Records/Tee Pee Records on 10th November 2023: https://teepeerecords.com/products/satans-satyrs-quick-quiet-raid-7-out-11-10-23

After years in the void, heavy rock devotees Satan’s Satyrs are back to deliver a lumbering, glam doom Frankenstein of a tune with 7″ single ‘Quick Quiet Raid’, the band’s first stab at new music since 2018’s The Lucky Ones.

Having harboured a cult following for over ten years and four indispensable albums prior to their split – Electric Wizard’s Jus Oborn once described them as, “Violent, filthy, ugly and loud like it should be” – the band is thrilled to announce that they’ve signed to legendary New York label, Tee Pee Records.

“It’s a great fit for us because they can appreciate our odd-band-out legacy,” explains bassist, Clayton Burgess. “Tee Pee Records has a long history of cultivating a heavy freak rock underground and we feel right at home in that universe.”

Soaking Sabbath, Venom, The Stooges, and Blue Cheer in acid and acrimony, the quartet’s love of exploitation movies and horror culture have always permeated their music, and none more so than on their latest paean to primitive rock. Replete with howling vocals and a freak-fuzz guitar meltdown, this is volcanism at its finest and signals a return to form for Dungeon Rock’s wayward sons.

“Even during the band’s recess, I never stopped writing,” Burgess continues. “We were always the riffy band on punk bills, the fast band on doom bills, the glam-tinged band on metal bills, with each album sounding different from the last. As new material slowly amassed and the right players fell into place, the potential couldn’t be ignored. The band could be a vital force again.”

The band also take to the road this month for a string of live dates, all of which you’ll find below. Pre-order their 7″ single here ahead of its release via Specimen Records/Tee Pee Records on 10th November 2023.
LIVE DATES:

14/11 – Local 506 – Chapel Hill, NC
15/11 – The Warehouse – Richmond, VA
16/11 – The Runaway – Washington, DC
13/12 – Knitting Factory – Baker Falls, NY

SATAN’S SATYRS:
Russ Yusef – Drums
Morgan McDaniel – Guitar
Clayton Burgess – Bass, Vocals
Jarrett Nettnin – Guitar

https://www.instagram.com/satanssatyrs/
http://satanssatyrs.bandcamp.com/
https://satanssatyrs.bigcartel.com/

teepeerecords.com
https://www.facebook.com/teepeerecords/
https://teepeerecords.bandcamp.com/

Satan’s Satyrs, “Quick Quiet Raid” teaser

Think we’ll get a new record from these guys in 2024? I wouldn’t mind one showing up. Based in Iowa but spending markedly little time there the past couple years, Telekinetic Yeti seem to treat hard-touring as a defining ethic. This past summer, they undertook their first headlining stint on the US West Coast with the backing of Tone Deaf Touring, with support from Stinking Lizaveta, Somnuri and Rifflord (at various points, though that’d be a mean package tour if those are still a thing) after going to the UK in Spring with Weedeater and Mars Red Sky. At least to-date in the tenure of the band, this is what they do.

And 2022’s Primordial (review here), as the ostensible cause they’re supporting, stands up to the volume and vitality they bring to it on stage. It hasn’t been so long that the record has lost its mud-tinted luster, whatever that might even mean — I guess just that it still sounds good listening to it as I put this together — but for an act with such an intense focus on forward momentum, it might not be unreasonable to think that would extend to recording. Or maybe the full-color shirts do well enough on the road that they can take their time and keep re-pressing sold out LPs. Good work if you can get it. Also hard work. Fair enough.

They’re out this time with JD Pinkus of Butthole Surfers, Melvins, etc., which will certainly not make any given gig less raucous. Telekinetic Yeti put up the poster with a quick blurb on social media, and wouldn’t you know it, here it is:

Get ready! We are joining forces with JD Pinkus this fall for a road trip! Highly excited about this one! Get your tickets now! Where will we see you?

ALL TICKET LINKS: http://tonedeaftouring.com/yeti

Telekinetic Yeti is:
Alex Baumann – Guitar/Vocals
Rockwel Heim – Drums

https://www.facebook.com/telekineticyetiband/
https://www.instagram.com/telekinetic_yeti/
https://telekineticyeti.bandcamp.com/releases
https://telekineticyeti.com/

teepeerecords.com
https://www.facebook.com/teepeerecords/
https://teepeerecords.bandcamp.com/

Telekinetic Yeti, Primordial (2022)