Posted in Whathaveyou on June 20th, 2023 by JJ Koczan
New Jersey heavy rock institution The Atomic Bitchwax were previously confirmed for Fall fests listed below like Into the Void Leeuwarden, Up in Smoke, Desertfest Belgium, Tabernas Desert Rock and Lazy Bones, and from the calendar spread of those, it was easy to guess that full tour dates were coming, but knowing that they’ll be in the company of good-time trio Daily Thompson as they go, and that they’ll be hitting the UK in addition to continental shows, these are good things to know. The band continue to road-dog it after a full European tour last year and an appearance earlier this year at Heavy Psych Sounds Fest in California.
And they’ll keep going. After they get back from this UK/Euro stint, there’s only like a week before Heavy Psych Sounds Fest in New York and Baltimore, and who knows what else they might have planned, as the trio of founding bassist/vocalist Chris Kosnik, guitarist/vocalist Garrett Sweeny and drummer Bob Pantella prove that as the band approaches 25 years since the release of their self-titled debut album, not only are they not slowing down in tempo, but they’ve got the freneticism of work ethic to match. If you’ve never seen them, it’s not too late.
Sound of Liberation put word out of the tour thusly:
ATOMIC BITCHWAX!! Teaming up with the great Daily Thompson for a lot of shows this is something you should not miss! Check out the Tour Dates below, grab your tickets and join the party!
28.09.2023 (NL) Nijmegen, Merleyn (W/ Daily Thompson) 29.09.2023 (NL) Rotterdam, Baroeg (W/ Daily Thompson) 30.09.2023 (NL) Leeuwarden, Into the Void Festival 01.10.2023 (CH) Pratteln, Up In Smoke Festival 02.10.2023 (IT) Torino, Blah Blah 03.10.2023 (FR) Marseille, Le Molotov 05.10.2023 (ES) Barcelona, Upload 06.10.2023 (ES) Alicante, La Iguana Rock Bar 07.10.2023 (ES) Tabernas, Desert Rock Fest 08.10.2023 (PT) Porto, Hard Club (w/ Yawning Man) 09.10.2023 (ES) Cangas, Salason 10.10.2023 (ES) San Sebastián, Dabadaba 11.10.2023 (FR) Bordeaux, Sortie 13 12.10.2023 (FR) Nantes, Black Shelter 13.10.2023 (FR) Lille, La Malterie 14.10.2023 (UK) Crdiff, Clwb Ifor Bach (w/ Daily Thompson) 15.10.2023 (UK) Manchester, Rebellion (W/ Daily Thompson) 16.10.2023 (UK) Edinburgh, Bannermans (W/ Daily Thompson) 17.10.2023 (UK) Newcastle, Anarchy Brewing Company (W/ Daily Thompson) 18.10.2023 (UK) Hubbersfield, The Parish (W/ Daily Thompson) 19.10.2023 (UK) Milton Keynes, The Craudford Arms (W/ Daily Thompson) 20.10.2023 (UK) Bristol, Strange Brew (W/ Daily Thompson) 21.10.2023 (UK) London, Powerhouse (W/ Daily Thompson) 22.10.2023 (BE) Antwerpen, Desertfest 24.10.2023 (DE) Berlin, Cassiopeia (W/ Daily Thompson) 25.10.2023 (DE) Düsseldorf, Pitcher (w/Daily Thompson) 26.10.2023 (NL) Amersfoort, Podium FLUOR (W/ Daily Thompson) 27.10.2023 (DE) Fulda, Kulturkeller (W/ Daily Thompson) 28.10.2023 (DE) Hamburg, Lazy Bones Festival (W/ Daily Thompson) 29.10.2023 (DE) Erfurt, Bandhaus
The Atomic Bitchwax are: Chris Kosnik – Bass Bob Pantella – Drums Garrett Sweeny – Guitar
Posted in Whathaveyou on May 19th, 2023 by JJ Koczan
Two bands left to announce, huh? Well, having been in Baltimore earlier this month to see them, Holy Fingers would sure as shit be a welcome addition to this bill, and if Heavy Temple are back from Europe by then (and I’m not sure they will be), they’d be my other pick, though certainly Heavy Psych Sounds wouldn’t be out of line to tap either Ecstatic Vision or Ruby the Hatchet for those spots, again pending their availability.
Whoever remains to be added, it’s already a pretty sick bill for Heavy Psych Sounds Fest 2023 in New York and Baltimore. Bongzilla‘s new record will be out by then, The Golden Grass put out a banger this year, that Gozu album is a beast, so yeah, toss in Lüger from Montreal and The Atomic Bitchwax who are always welcome, add even more cool bands, and it’s a Heavy Psych Sounds Fest. At the Saint Vitus Bar. I remember a time when nobody went to heavy rock shows in New York. Not a label from Italy is hosting a festival in Brooklyn. Time is very, very weird.
I’m gonna say that’s enough since you probably stopped reading anyhow, skimmed the lineup and clicked off, either to buy tickets or elsewhere. Safe travels, either way.
From the PR wire:
Heavy Psych Sounds Fest New York & Baltimore to take place on November 10-11th with Bongzilla, The Atomic Bitchwax and more; tickets on sale
In cooperation with Saint Vitus Bar and Savage Party, Heavy Psych Sounds Records take over the East Coast with the first edition of Heavy Psych Sounds Fest New York & Baltimore, to take place respectively at Saint Vitus Bar and Metro Gallery on November 10-11th, 2023. Ten bands are already confirmed, don’t wait to get your tickets!
“We are stoked to organize one of our HPS Fests on the US East Coast for the very first time! After conquering the West Coast in March, we are ready to rock the East Coast too!” says Rajko Dolhar from Heavy Psych Sounds.
Heavy Psych Sounds Fest New York 2023 Saint Vitus Bar – 1120 Manhattan Ave, Brooklyn, NY 11222 BUY TICKETS
Heavy Psych Sounds Fest Baltimore 2023 Metro Gallery – 1700 N Charles St, Baltimore, MD 21201 BUY TICKETS
With BONGZILLA THE ATOMIC BITCHWAX HIGH REEPER THE GOLDEN GRASS GEEZER BLACK LUNG WITCHPIT COSMIC REAPER GOZU LÜGER + two more bands TBA
Posted in Whathaveyou on May 18th, 2023 by JJ Koczan
I don’t feel the need to even really say anything here. The lineup speaks for itself. And those who go to this year’s RippleFest Texas will also speak of it, for years, probably in a similar way people now talk about having been at this or that Emissions From the Monolith when that was going on in Ohio. The stuff of legend, in other words. Yeah, you can put on a fest and try to make it cool and fun, or you can do something like this and make it the highlight of everybody who attends’ year.
Kudos to Lick of My Spoon Productions and Ripple Music on a job well done. This will be something special. Bands have been leaked out one at a time at intermittent daily intervals, but the final lineup is out as of today, and it’s stunning. A blend of generations, a reach from on end of the country to the other, and a swath of the heavy underground all rallied in one place for a few days, pre- and after-parties included. Fucking a. If you’re attending, count yourself lucky.
As seen on socials:
Here it is! The full lineup for RippleFest Texas #3! This will be one for the ages with a stacked lineup and lots of special treats in between. Get your tickets now!
Amazing art by @1horsetown
* playing the Pre-Party + playing the Afterparty
King Buffalo, Acid King, Brant Bjork Trio, Sasquatch, Wo-Fat, Fatso Jetson, Mondo Generator, Unida, The Well+, The Atomic Bitchwax, Telekinetic Yeti*, Duel, Forming the Void, Hippie Death Cult, High Desert Queen*, Avon, War Cloud, Rubber Snake Charmers, Spirit Mother+, Kind, Nick Oliveri, Thunder Horse, Royal Sons+, Restless Spirit*, (Big) Pig, Fostermother, Dead Feathers+, Rainbows Are Free, Warlung*, Sun Voyager, Red Mesa, Dunes, Tia Carrera+, Mr. Plow, The Heroine*, Michael Rudolph Cummings, The Absurd+, GoodEye*, Red Beard Wall, God Damn Good Time Band+
Plus a “Legends of the Desert and Friends” jam session to close out Saturday night!
And as always, the visuals by The Mad Alchemist Liquid Light Show
All-Access passes are SOLD OUT! All we have left are 2 Day Passes and Pre/Afterparty tickets available. Many more bands to be announced! Get your tickets now before the full lineup is revealed and the ticket price goes up!
Posted in Whathaveyou on April 20th, 2023 by JJ Koczan
If you’re thinking, “Hey wait, wasn’t Into the Void just in January?” then first of all, kudos on keeping up, and yes, it was. That was Eindhoven, this is Leeuwarden, and if these Netherlands cities aren’t familiar, if these festivals keep happening almost certainly they will be. Into the Void Leeuwarden 2023 is set for Sept. 30 — all-dayer; nice — and has just announced its first 12 bands.
Yeah, crazy right? First 12 bands? It’s one day! How many more bands can there be? The headliner is still TBA, but with Alabama Thunderpussy leading the charge, they’ve brought on The Atomic Bitchwax, Yawning Man, REZN, Samavayo, The Machine, Howling Giant, Fire Down Below, Heavy Temple, Rrrags, Onhou and Moan, and that looks like a hell of a day to me. Shit, pick any four and that’s a good night alone.
I wanna know if Howling Giant and Heavy Temple are going to tour Europe together. It’d be the most adorable heavy rock export package of the year, hands down. For that alone I want it to be true. Charm offensive.
Anyhoozle, it’s another one for the Alabama Thunderpussy reunion, and a return trip for the Bitchwax that I think is TBA. Shit, put them on tour together too! Man, I’m booking gigs all over the place today. While we’re at it? I’d pair Samavayo and The Machine for a run too. And you don’t think Yawning Man and REZN wouldn’t be a good show? Come on.
I guess the underlying message is this lineup looks pretty good. Here it is as per socials:
Alabama Thunderpussy exclusive reunion show at Into the Void Leeuwarden
The first 11 names for Into the Void Leeuwarden are known. On September 30th Alabama Thunderpussy will host an exclusive Dutch reunion show at Into the Void. It’s the first time since 2008 that the band is back on tour, and despite their death, the Americans are still loved for their legendary live shows.
The Americans are taking Into the Void because as many as seven of the twelve are from the United States. Next to Alabama Thunderpussy that’s the atomic bitchwax, yawning man, REZN, heavy temple, and howling giant.
The (legendary) headliner is also from the US of A and we will announce it soon.
The Machine and Rrrags and the Groninger bands Onhou and Moan are from home. The Germans of Samavayo and the Belgians of Fire Down Below complete the line up for now.
Posted in Whathaveyou on April 7th, 2023 by JJ Koczan
Some expected names in this first announcement from Desertfest Belgium 2023 in Antwerp — Yawning Man, King Buffalo, Truckfighters who seem to be making the rounds all year, etc. — but plenty of unexpected too, with aCarlton Melton returning to Europe, Philadelphia’s Heavy Temple apparently traveling abroad for the first time (new album?), Sourvein returning to road work, REZN heading over to support their killer new record, BlackWater HolyLight, Howling Giant — maybe also their first time in Europe? — Duel getting back over and so on.
As ever, I’m curious to see which of these acts will be on tour, and which with each other, but for now Desertfest Antwerp 2023 looks like a banger in the making. Early-bird tickets sold out in like hours when they were put on sale in February — two months before this first unveiling of band names, mind you — and one expects the sale on weekend tickets to follow suit. I’m not much for the big name on the poster personally, but I recognize I’m in a minority pretty much of myself in that, and from there on I don’t see a clunker in the bunch. Call it a win.
Of course, Desertfest Belgium also helms the Ghent edition. I’m not sure if that will be earlier or later — my guess would be earlier, but maybe the Fall fests spill over to November this year; could happen, wouldn’t be terrible if it did — but for today there’s plenty to dig here as posted by the festival:
The moment we’ve all been waiting for has finally arrived! We’re beyond stoked to announce the first round of names for Desertfest Antwerp!
Confirmed for Desertfest Antwerp 2023 are Cult of Luna, Truckfighters, MANTAR, King Buffalo, The Vintage Caravan, Year of no light, Nebula, Yawning Man, Dopelord, The Atomic Bitchwax, DUEL, Siena Root, Blackwater Holylight, Howling Giant, SOURVEIN, Carlton Melton, Heavy Temple, REZN, Margarita Witch Cult.
No doubt, it is going to be another epic version of Desertfest Anywerp!
Posted in Whathaveyou on March 31st, 2023 by JJ Koczan
Some pretty good inferences one might make looking at the first lineup announcement for Up in Smoke 2023, the annual Sound of Liberation festival held each year in Pratteln, Switzerland. It says The Obsessed will be on tour in Europe this Fall, which I’m pretty sure they’ve said anyway, but it might also be a clue as to the release of their next album. On the other hand, they might just be fucking touring because they’re The Obsessed and that’s what they do. Also it’s further expansion of Alabama Thunderpussy‘s reunion and since this festival is Sep. 29 to Oct. 1 and their prior confirmation was Keep it Low from Oct. 6 to 7, they’ll likely be on the road in Europe for the better part of at least two weeks. That’s not nothing.
Consider also Yawning Man heading abroad in Fall for their new album, announced yesterday. And did you hear that Dirty Sound Magnet record? I didn’t until now but it’s a ripper. New school oldschool blues heavy. Rad. And Eyehategod getting back at it too. It’s a cool bill, mix of newer acts and recognizable with Zeal & Ardor on top nothing to complain about.
Of course, there’s more to come here, but hell, I’d go to this. You? Festival in Switzerland in October? Why on earth would you say no to that?
Also note there’s a new Facebook page for the fest. From the PR wire:
UP IN SMOKE 2023 – ZEAL & ARDOR, GRAVEYARD, THE OBSESSED & MANY MORE ANNOUNCED
Hey Smokers, the long awaited day has come. We’re stoked to finally reveal the first names for our 2023 edition. We hope you like it as much as we do!
Get ready for three days of finest heavy rock music… this is just the beginning.
Artwork: Brookesia Estudio
Festival info: Up In Smoke Festival 29. Sep – 01. Oct 2023 @ Konzertfabrik Z7 // Pratteln (CH)
Posted in Whathaveyou on March 17th, 2023 by JJ Koczan
Last year was the first Lazy Bones Festival in Hamburg, Germany. Put on by Sound of Liberation — which also maintains Keep it Low in Munich and Up in Smoke in Switzerland while featuring artists on their booking roster prominently at Desertfest Belgium — it’s set for Oct. 28 and if the first eight names were the entire lineup, it would be an all-dayer well worth traveling to see. Elder and King Buffalo, Greenleaf and The Atomic Bitchwax, Slomosa, Daily Thompson, and Gnome. Any one of those bands, on their own, is a good night.
Together, they make up what is referred to below as a “first batch,” so I guess there’s more coming. I’ll keep an eye out for a second one, to be sure, because in looking at this I’m not entirely certain what else you might need. Shit, this lineup should just tour. Package touring fests have to be due for a comeback, don’t they? Put these acts on the road for a couple weeks in the summer hitting major markets and I bet the shows sell out. You could do five dates in Germany alone.
As of now, however, it’s Hamburg-only. Info follows as per the PR wire:
LAZY BONES FEST in Hamburg Announces ELDER, KING BUFFALO, GREENLEAF, SLOMOSA & many more!
2023 will see the LAZY BONES FEST return to Hamburg, Germany, with an eclectic line-up that doubles down all expectations within the heavy stoner, psych, doom and fuzz rock scene! While the first edition of the indoor festival, presented by SOUND OF LIBERATION, was taking place in the summer of 2022 at Grünspan, LAZY BONES FEST has moved to iconic venue Markthalle in Hamburg.
A first batch of bands has just been announced, and October 28th will see the following, high class line-up rocking the stage of LAZY BONES FEST 2023:
Elder King Buffalo Greenleaf The Atomic Bitchwax Slomosa Daily Thompson Gnome
This Friday, Heavy Psych Sounds will issue two of four concurrent live albums, gathering sets recorded in 2022 from Austin, Texas, bashers Duel and New Jersey-based headspinners The Atomic Bitchwax as both bands undertook European tours. Next week, the label will have two more from Ecstatic Vision and The Lords of Altamont, and those won’t be streamed here (nothing personal, just logistics), sad to say, but in addition to giving these bands something new for the merch table on their respective upcoming tours, these releases also capture and celebrate the return of live music post-pandemic, the sense of deliverance that came as a result of acts being able to hit the road again. Shows were different, life was/is different, but if you’ve got a group nailing it on stage as part of a righteous festival lineup, then there’s still beauty in the world to appreciate. So let’s do that.
Full throttle full-throttlism. Band on fire. For over a quarter century, and increasingly so over their most recent three studio records, New Jersey’s The Atomic Bitchwax have made themselves an institution of heavy shred. Led by bassist/vocalist Chris Kosnik, with Bob Pantella on drums and Garrett Sweeny on guitar vocals, the trio hit Freak Valley Festival 2022 with all-go force, and as someone who was there, their presence on the bill as outright rippers did not go unappreciated. You can hear some of that in the quick turns and forward sprints of “Ain’t Nobody Gonna Hang Me in My Home” or “Ninja” or the by-now-classic “Shitkicker,” which are only some among the 15 songs the Bitchwax squeezed into their 48-minute set, bookended on either side by sections of Edgar Winter‘s “Frankenstein,” also duly kicked in the pants.
Not that they never slow it down. The Core cover “Kiss the Sun” and “So Come On,” “Liv a Little” late in the set are at about warp three (out of a Constitution-class seven), but on Live at Freak Valley Fest, even “Hope You Die” and “Forty-Five” feel faster, and the Evel Knievel aspect is part of what makes it fun. Kosnik, Sweeny and Pantella, up on stage, tearing ass to run circles around the riffs of “Houndstooth,” playing with heads-down tenacity that offsets what might otherwise be the seriousness of the physical effort required by such speeds with a palpable sense of just how much they’re enjoying themselves. It’s like watching a race. You know they probably won’t crash and you’re drawn in by the adrenaline in the atmosphere, but especially in the case of The Atomic Bitchwax, it’s all done in the name of a good time.
From the stage banter — two songs about ninjas, “Kiss the Sun” out to the ladies in the crowd, lots of “you guys ready?” before the next burst, etc. — to the way “Coming in Hot” takes off from its own teaser slow intro, The Atomic Bitchwax are every bit a blast, and as the closest thing they’ve come to a proper live album in their time was the 2005 set from Seattle included in the 2006 Jack Endino-produced Boxriff EP, they’re well due for this kind of showcase. Live at Freak Valley Fest brings to life the ‘t-t-t-total freedom’ heralded in the lyrics to “Hope You Die” and is a twisty speed rock gauntlet being thrown down.
Can you keep up? Maybe, maybe not. Either way, it’s a thrill to try, and the energy they bring to their material, new and old alike, is infectious. They play and smile, you listen and smile, and this communion and shared experience is the point of the whole thing. I don’t know when they might follow-up 2020’s Scorpio (review here) — wouldn’t mind this year, but I haven’t heard more than a murmur about new stuff — but Live at Freak Valley Fest captures them at their best on stage, and considering who we’re talking about, that means something.
Duel are a proven argument in my mind. They lay waste, exclusively. Their 2021 fourth album, In Carne Persona (review here), highlighted the underlying metallic current of their songwriting, and that LP’s “Wave of Your Hand” from opens the set at Live at Hellfest with due charge. It might sound strange until you see them or maybe really dig in here, but the Austin-based four-piece — who also appeared at Freak Valley (review here) as part of this tour — are most of all about love. Their Hellfest 2022 set? It’s half an hour long; 30:20 on the record. Not taking up your day, and whether you were there or not, the sheer sense of relief of the band playing on stage comes through unabated. This is a band who sat on their collective ass for two years waiting to break out, and Live at Hellfest is their breakout. It is something you want to hear.
This is the second live record Duel have done behind 2018’s Live at the Electric Church (review here), and they meet the occasion in furious form. Through “Devil” from 2017’s Witchbanger (review here) and into “Electricity” from their 2016 debut, Fears of the Dead (review here) — the title-track of which also closes — the band draw a from older material to newer, with the delightfully metal “Strike and Disappear” representing 2019’s Valley of Shadows (review here) before they turn to “Children of the Fire,” the opener of the latest LP. That song emphasizes a lot of what works best about Duel on stage; it is tight in structure, swinging and grooving with enough tonal presence behind it to feel thick, catchy as anything you want to sit next to it, and delivered with propulsive authority, the gruff voice of guitarist Tom Frank — backed by bassist Sean Avants and guitarist Jeff Henson — a commanding presence that nonetheless sounds sincere amid the cacophony at the end of “Children of the Fire” when he says “We love you so much.”
And really, that’s the story here. That love. The love of the band for their audience, for their material itself, for the performance itself, the passion of their delivery that comes through even the raw audio. For that, they don’t need more than the half-hour Live at Hellfest runs, and as brash as their songs can be — “Electricity” and “Strike and Disappear” both build into righteously noisy solos — the spirit that drives Duel remains the same. They’re an act who believe in what they do and are going to get on stage and put as much into it as they can. I’ve been fortunate enough to see them a few times over the last half-decade, and they’ve only ever been a joy to behold, throwing elbows as they gallop through, riding riffs like “Fears of the Dead” as they coalesce around the next hook, dirt-fuzz and an overlaid element of danger the calling card left imprinted on the memory of the crowd standing before them. On Live at Hellfest it’s easy to imagine slackened jaws and wide eyes, but you can also hear the roar of the crowd when they’re done, and yeah, that tent was on board for where Duel were headed. Rightly so.
