https://www.high-endrolex.com/18

Yellowstock X: Lineup Complete; Kadavar to Headline

Posted in Whathaveyou on July 6th, 2016 by JJ Koczan

Set for Aug. 13 and 14 in Geel, Belgium, Yellowstock X is sort of where the summer festival season meets the fall festival season in Europe, thus reinforcing the notion that there is at this point no such thing as a festival season at all, and awesome shows are just a year-round occurrence. Either way, the lineup for the 10th edition of the fest is a striking international assemblage, from Kadavar confirmed to headline to the psych jams of Hills, The Midnight Ghost Train‘s bluster-blues, Zone Six‘s space rock triumphs, Greenleaf‘s hard-driving choruses and on and on.

With bands from Russia to the US, as well as Belgian acts like Flying Horseman, the why-would-you-call-your-band-this Kiss the Anus of a Black Cat, Tangled Horns and The Glücks, it looks like a well-curated mix of groups and should make for a great precursor to the busy autumn ahead.

Complete lineup and headliner announcement follow, courtesy of the fest:

yellowstock-festival-x

The Line-up is complete!!! We are siked to have the almighty KADAVAR to headline Sunday August 14th at Yellowstock Festival 10th Anniversary Edition!!! These retro rockers combine the finest 70’s Rock with enough Psychedelic & Stoner grooves to let y’all band or move!! IF you don’t know’m yet make sure to check’m out!!

Spread the words boys & girls; mothers & fathers; Psychedelic MoFo’s and all the rest!! See you at Yellowstock 2016!!!

TICKETS available now at: http://bit.ly/1prkFxW

EARLY BIRD TICKETS: SOLD-OUT!!!

ALL BANDS CONFIRMED
KADAVAR (Ger)
MICHAEL ROTHER plays NEU!, Harmonia and selected solo works (Ger)
HILLS (Se)
GREENLEAF (Se)
THE OSCILLATION (Uk)
THE MACHINE (Nl)
K-X-P (Fin)
SIENA ROOT (Se)
ZONE SIX (Ger)
THE FLYING EYES (Usa)
FLYING HORSEMAN (B)
PAUW (Nl)
THE MIDNIGHT GHOST TRAIN (Usa)
TERMINAL CHEESECAKE (Uk)
BIRTH OF JOY (Nl)
KISS THE ANUS OF A BLACK CAT (B)
LAY LLAMAS (It)
THE GRAND ASTORIA (Rus)
BLOWN OUT (Uk)
THE GLÜCKS (B)
MANTRA MACHINE (Nl)
TANGLED HORNS (B)

https://shop3.ticketscript.com/channel/html/get-dates/rid/4BHR9KMQ/eid/297973/language/nl
https://www.facebook.com/events/118832615129683/
https://www.facebook.com/YellowstockConcerts/

Kadavar, “Filthy Illusion” official video

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The Grand Astoria Touring Next Month

Posted in Whathaveyou on June 14th, 2016 by JJ Koczan

the grand astoria

Always adventurous and never far off from their next outing, Russian psychedelic progressives The Grand Astoria have just issued a collection of tracks from members’ other outfits. This follows up on 2015’s Soft Focus quieter outing and the grandiose, classically-influenced The Mighty Few, and brings together cuts from The Legendary Flower Punk and other side-projects related to The Grand Astoria proper. To coincide with the latest in a prolific string of outings, The Grand Astoria will hit the road next month through Western Europe, hitting France and the Iberian Peninsula over the course of two weeks before August brings a few select festival dates, among them Yellowstock in Belgium.

This follows up on a run the band did between February and March of this year, as they continue to be somewhat underappreciated in the wider European sphere despite years of steady, quality work. They’re a lot to keep up with at this point — admittedly I feel like I fail to do so more often than not — but their material has always proven to be well worth the effort.

Dates, of which there are reportedly more to come, and other info follow:

the grand astoria poster

First bunch of dates of The Grand Astoria summer tour. We are building around these ones. If you are interested in booking us – please mail to: thegrandastoria@gmail.com

14.7 – Balagny-sur-Thérain (FRANCE) “Le Cheval Blanc”
16.7 – Tarbes (FRANCE) “Celtic Pub”
18.7 – Bilbao (SPAIN) “La Nube Cafe Teatro”
19.7 – Madrid (SPAIN) “Wurlitzer Ballroom”
21.7 – Cangas (SPAIN) “Salason”
22.7 – Ourense (SPAIN) “Urban Place”
23.7 – Figueira de Foz (PORTUGAL) “Woodrock Festival”
25.7 – Cascais (PORTUGAL) “Stairway Club”
27.7 – Loule (PORTUGAL) “Bafo de Baco”
06.8 – Beelen (GERMANY) “Krach am Bach Festival”
13.8 – Cernoy (FRANCE) “Celebration Days Festival”
14.8 – Geel (BELGIUM) “Yellowstock Festival”

From the forthcoming The Grand Astoria family compilation! Lovely piano piece from our keyboards wizard ????? ????????. Enjoy and share with your friends and parents (your mom will dig it)!

https://www.facebook.com/TheGrandAstoria
https://thegrandastoria.bandcamp.com/

The Grand Astoria, “Viipuri Lumi”

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Yellowstock Festival: First Bands Confirmed; Early-Bird Tickets Sold Out

Posted in Whathaveyou on March 8th, 2016 by JJ Koczan

This year’s Yellowstock festival is set for Aug. 13-14 at Bogaard in Geel, Belgium. 2016 marks the 10th anniversary of the fest, which has in years past featured lineups gathering a particular slice of European and American heavy psychedelia, and it looks like this incarnation of the fest is no different. It’s up from one day in 2015 to two now, so I’d expect more than a few lineup additions are still to come, but they’re off and running with the likes of Michael RotherGreenleafHillsThe Flying EyesThe Midnight Ghost TrainThe MachineThe Grand Astoria and so on in their initial announcement.

Enough so that upon being made available this past weekend, early-bird tickets sold out quickly. There’s still time before August gets here if you happen to be near Geel or otherwise ready to travel, but it’s one to keep an eye on. The first Yellowstock was in 2007, and since then the fest has continued to flourish and build its own community in an increasingly crowded heavy scene.

I’ll do my best to keep up with announcements as they come out, but here’s the initial word from the fest itself, as seen on the social medias:

yellowstock header

Yellowstock Festival 10th Anniversary Edition!

TICKETS available now at: http://bit.ly/1prkFxW

EARLY BIRD TICKETS: SOLD-OUT!!!

August 13 – August 14
BOGAARD Diesteweg 135 B-2440 Geel Belgium

First bands confirmed!
Michael Rother plays NEU!, Harmonia and selected solo works (Ger)
HILLS (Se)
GREENLEAF (Se)
THE OSCILLATION (Uk)
K-X-P (Fin)
THE MACHINE (Nl)
THE FLYING EYES (Usa)
THE MIDNIGHT GHOST TRAIN (Usa)
TERMINAL CHEESECAKE (Uk)
KISS THE ANUS OF A BLACK CAT (B)
LAY LLAMAS (It)
THE GRAND ASTORIA (Rus)
BLOWN OUT (Uk)
THE GLÜCKS (B)
+ many more soon!

We are back with 2 full days of music!! Campsite!! and lots more coming soon!!

Cross the dates in your agenda!

https://shop.ticketscript.com/channel/web2/start-order/rid/4BHR9KMQ/language/nl
https://www.facebook.com/YellowstockConcerts/
https://www.facebook.com/events/118832615129683/
http://www.yellowstock.be/

Greenleaf, Rise Above the Meadow (2016)

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The Grand Astoria Euro Tour Starts this Weekend

Posted in Whathaveyou on February 18th, 2016 by JJ Koczan

the grand astoria

It’s not every band in the world you’d believe when they say they’re going to play a different set each night of a tour, but coming from Saint Petersburg progressive heavy rockers The Grand Astoria — who have both the sense of adventure and the back catalog to make such a thing possible — I have no trouble at all imagining they’ll live up to their word. The prolific outfit’s latest outing is last year’s The Mighty Few, a two-song full-length exploration that melds classical and riffy ideas together in a concoction that for just about anyone else would fall flat. Somehow, The Grand Astoria make that work, as you can hear for yourself on the player under the tour dates below.

Not their first tour by any stretch, but also noteworthy since that different set each night will reportedly include a generous helping of new material. All the better from these guys, whose evolution remains ongoing.

Dates follow:

the grand astoria euro tour

The boss of booking is here! Come to our shows! We play different set every night. Don’t miss and tell your friends.

We promise you a nice set with a bunch of absolutely new songs from the forthcoming album! They are epic!

Poster by Sophia Miroedova.

The Grand Astoria on tour:
19.02 – Wroclaw (PL) – Ciemna Strona Miasta
20.02 – Katowice (PL) – Pub Korba
21.02 – Krakow (PL) – Jazz Rock Cafe
22.02 – Budapest (HU) – Instant
23.02 – Graz (A) – Wakuum
24.02 – Ljubljana (SI) – Gromka
25.02 – Zero Branco (IT) – Altroquando
26.02 – Milan (IT) – Cox 18
27.02 – Cremona (IT) – Circolo Arci Arcipelago
28.02 – Pescara (IT) – Orange Rock Cafe
29.02 – Palermo (IT) – Fabbrica 102
01.03 – Catania (IT) – Magazzini Sonori
02.03 – Reggio Calabria (IT) – Limitazione
03.03 – Bologna (IT) – Freakout
04.03 – Trieste (IT) – Tetris
05.03 – Maribor (SI) – Gustaf Pekarna
06.03 – Bistrica ob Sotli (SI) – Klub Metulj
07.03 – Brno (CZ) – Bajkazyl
08.03 – Ostrava (CZ) – Plan B
09.03 – Hradec Kralove (CZ) – Klub 4
10.03 – Prague (CZ) – Dead Jack Club
11.03 – Karlsruhe (DE) – Cafe Bistro KA
12.03 – Nuremberg (DE) – Artischocken
15.03 – Plzen (CZ) – Divadlo Pod Lampou
16.03 – Halle (Saale) (DE) – Huhnermanhattan
17.03 – Dresden (DE) – Sabotage
18.03 – Potsdam (DE) – Spartacus
19.03 – Berlin (DE) – Urban Spree
20.03 – Warsaw (PL) – 2Kola

https://www.facebook.com/TheGrandAstoria
https://thegrandastoria.bandcamp.com/

The Grand Astoria, The Mighty Few (2015)

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The Grand Astoria Release New Single “Masterplan”

Posted in Whathaveyou on September 15th, 2015 by JJ Koczan

the grand astoria

You might not always know what Russian progressive heavy rockers The Grand Astoria are up to on any given day, but rest assured they’re always up to something. The restless and accordingly prolific outfit are looking to raise funds for an impending European tour — their umpteenth, to be specific — and have issued a new single, “Masterplan,” in order to help pay for stuff like having merch made, gas, food, lodging, etc. Their asking price for a download? A euro. I’ve seen crowdfunding efforts asking way more and delivering way less than the hook of the new track from the ever-expansive outfit.

The Grand Astoria released an acoustic EP earlier this summer called Soft Focus, and already have a 2015 full-length under their collective belt in the classically-vibing The Mighty Few, as well as a split with Samavayo that Setalight Records released as a 10″ (review here), but next up seems to be a split between all the bands associated with The Grand Astoria‘s members, whether it’s The Legendary Flower Punk or, presumably, Lucifer in the Sky with Diamonds.

Cool things in the works. Here’s the info and track stream:

the grand astoria masterplan

Hello dear heavy psych lovers and friends of The Grand Astoria Here is the new electric song by yours truly. It will be a part of the very special The Grand Astoria Family split record which will also include new music from The Legendary Flower Punk, Organic Is Orgasmic and our other side-projects!

We decided to publish the first song from it to raise some funds for our forthcoming tour! We need to rent a van, print the merch, pay for the studio so every dime will be really appreciated!!! And the most important – THIS SONG IS REALLY WORTH IT Enjoy and share!

Music and lyrics by Kamille Sharapodinov

Kamille Sharapodinov – guitars, backing vocals
Danila Danilov – lead vocals, rhodes piano, percussion
Michail Bukin – bass
Rogier Berben – drums
Sophia Miroedova – artwork

Recorded by D.Danilov in Red Wave studio during spring 2015
Mixed and mastered by Alexander Karelin

http://thegrandastoria.bandcamp.com/album/masterplan
https://www.facebook.com/TheGrandAstoria

The Grand Astoria, “Masterplan”

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Samavayo & The Grand Astoria, Split: Soul on Kobaïa

Posted in On Wax, Reviews on July 23rd, 2015 by JJ Koczan

samavayo the grand astoria split 10 inch cover and record

Released to mark a month-long tour together earlier this year, the Setalight Records split 10″ between Berlin heavy rockers Samavayo and Russian genrenauts The Grand Astoria holds a few surprises along the way. Pressed to black vinyl, it’s a follow-up to Samavayo‘s 2014 joint release with One Possible Option, and for The Grand Astoria, who’ve worked with Setalight in the past on 2014’s La Belle Epoque (review here), as well as 2013’s Punkadelica Supreme (review here) and several other short releases along the way.

Though on paper it might seem like an awkward pairing — come to think of it, just about anybody paired with The Grand Astoria is kind of awkward on paper; their sound is expansive, and they’re more than capable songwriters, but you never quite know what they’re going to do next — they mesh pretty well, and with a side split between them, both bands give a quick glimpse at where they’re at stylistically without completely losing a thread going one into the other.

One might notice The Grand Astoria‘s skull-headed mascot on the cover art by Sophia Miroedova walking away from a temple — or maybe having his portrait painted in front of it? — over which Samavayo‘s sun-style logo resides in the sky. Both acts, then, are represented, one perhaps more subtly than the other. It’s much the same way with the music. On side A, Samavayo offer two tracks: “Intergalactic Hunt” (4:03) and “Soul out of Control” (8:06), while on side B, The Grand Astoria reaffirm their shift toward progressive rock with “Kobaïa Express” (11:30).

Each cut is distinct from those around it, one way or another, and “Intergalactic Hunt” stands out for its immediate sense of movement, the guitar of Behrang Alavi (also vocals) setting a tight rhythm that drummer/backing vocalist Stephan Voland and bassist/backing vocalist Andreas Voland match both in groove and nuance, building and releasing tension in the instrumental verses and chorus of the first half before shifting in the second to a bridge that gradually leads them back to where they started, the guitar line that started it all serving also as the leadout. Fitting somehow for Samavayo in terms of showing their range that they should go from an entirely instrumental track to one centered almost completely on its vocal hook.

Well, “almost completely” is a stretch. “Soul out of Control” still has its riff — a more laid back chug over which Alavi calls to mind any number of ’90s alt melodies — and at eight minutes, there’s plenty of room for Samavayo to give the song a sense of space. They do precisely that, even slowing down over the last two minutes to march the way out, but “Soul out of Control” remains a deceptively quick listen for topping eight minutes, and that too suits Samavayo well, their songwriting always at the core no matter how expansive a given track may or may not be.

And speaking of expansive, The Grand Astoria‘s “Kobaïa Express” takes its name from the fictional planet created by Magma drummer Christian Vander — or at least from the train that presumably gets you there with the minimum of stops en route — and is presented in the accompanying alien language, a morass of syllables sometimes closer to Italian, sometimes more Slavic depending on where the music is going in any particular movement. And it does go. Recorded as the six-piece of Kamille Sharapodinov (vocals, electric and acoustic guitar), Danila Danilov (vocals, keys, flute), Eugene Korolkov (bass), Vladimir Zinoviev (drums), and Igor Suvorov (lead guitar) with Ravil Azizov on clarinet, “Kobaïa Express” is nigh on visionary progressive metal, at times operatic and at times grinding, but always precise, heavy and intricately constructed.

The Grand Astoria have already followed this split up with a two-song full-length titled The Mighty Few on which each track tops 20 minutes, so we know it’s not as far as they’ll push into fleshing out arrangements and the like, but “Kobaïa Express” thrills nonetheless for its direct Magma-ism and the poise the band demonstrates throughout, and Samavayo‘s inclusions, both of which were recorded at the end of last year, bode well for what they might do on their own next outing. If nothing else, the moral of the story with their split would seem to be that that must have been one hell of a tour. Even though it’s long since over, the scope both bands show here does justice to the fact that they got together in the first place and unites in unexpected ways across a bridge of progressive stylization and heavy craftsmanship.

Samavayo & The Grand Astoria, Split (2015)

Samavayo on Thee Facebooks

Samavayo on Bandcamp

The Grand Astoria on Thee Facebooks

The Grand Astoria on Bandcamp

Setalight Records

 

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Samavayo and The Grand Astoria European Tour Starts this Weekend; Split 10″ Due Next Month

Posted in Whathaveyou on February 25th, 2015 by JJ Koczan

samavayo

Last I heard, the plan was for German heavy rockers Samavayo to release a new album this year, which would be their first as a three-piece. Nothing’s come my way to contradict that, but it looks like they’ll be tightening up new material on the road prior to hitting the studio. Titles like “Intergalactic Hunt,” “Kodokushi,” “Someone Else” and “Iktsuarpok” have been tossed about as being inclusions in the setlist, and as you can see from the list of dates below — there goes March — those songs and anything else Samavayo might decide to throw in the set are bound to get a workout on the road with The Grand Astoria. The two groups will also have a split 10″ out next month on Setalight Records.

Dates and the preorder link for that split follow here, taken from Samavayo‘s latest updates. They came from the internet! Imagine that:

samavayo the grand astoria tour

Oh yeah, booking is almost finished. And here we go, We proudly present our tour in March 2015 across Europe playing a lot of the shows with our friends from The Grand Astoria and Six Months of Sun and many many more. Looking forward to an awesome tour!

28.02. DE Berlin, Zukunft am Ostkreuz
04.03. DE Potsdam, KuZe
05.03. DE Hamburg, Bar 227
06.03. DE Hamburg, Marias Ballroom
07.03. DE Cottbus, Muggefug
08.03. DE Erfurt, Tiko
11.03. DE Nürnberg, Artischocken
12.03. DE Karlsruhe, Alte Hackerei
13.03. FR Paris, Le Buzz
14.03. FR Nantes, La Scène Michelet
17.03. FR Strasbourg, Check point
18.03. CH Neuchatel, La Prise
19.03. CH Genf, Kalvingrad
20.03. CH Luzern, Bruch Brothers
21.03. CH Winterthur, Gaswerk
22.03. CH Olten, coq d’or
23.03. DE München, Cafe Cult
24.03. AT Salzburg, Rockhouse
25.03. AT Haag, Boellerbauer
26.03. AT Wien, Arena
27.03. DE Weiden, Salute Club
28.03. DE Jena, Kulturbahnhof

It just arrived! The new Split Ep from The Grand Astoria and Samavayo. It´s an honour to share the EP with our Russian friends! It´s gonna be on our tourbus in March and of course we´ll bring it to our gig on Saturday in Berlin as well.

In case you wanna pre-order…it´s limited: http://www.setalight.com/…/samavayo-the-grand-astoria-split

https://www.facebook.com/events/1404904473146662
https://www.facebook.com/samavayo
http://samavayo.bandcamp.com/
https://www.facebook.com/TheGrandAstoria
https://thegrandastoria.bandcamp.com

Samavayo, From East to West and Back Again (2014)

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The Grand Astoria, La Belle Epoque: Snakes in Paradise

Posted in Reviews on January 14th, 2015 by JJ Koczan

the grand astoria la belle epoque

Russian heavy rockers The Grand Astoria have only gotten more progressive and more prolific. La Belle Epoque, which was released last month by Setalight Records, is their first long-player since 2013’s Punkadelica Supreme (review here) and their fifth overall, but in the time between the two albums, the Saint Petersburg-based outfit have unleashed a barrage of outings, including singles, EPs, splits and live releases, plus side-projects from guitarist/vocalist Kamille Sharapodinov (The Legendary Flower Punk) and lead guitarist Igor Suvarov (Lucifer in the Sky with Diamonds). Their increasing tendency toward exploration has led them to a more metallic approach on La Belle Epoque, and what seemed on their earlier works like a defining core of stoner rock and punk has become only pieces of a puzzle to which, apparently, more is being added. Their first three records, 2009’s I (review here), 2010’s II (review here) and 2011’s Omnipresence (review here), showed an increasing tendency to look outside the band itself — a rotating lineup around Sharapodinov and Suvarov has been part of that; near as I can tell, keyboardist/floutist/vocalist/metallophonist Danila Danilov is the only other returning player from Punkadelica Supreme — and La Belle Epoque further extends that impulse stylistically. It is their proggiest work to date, though at seven-tracks/43 minutes it’s not like they’ve gotten so indulgent as to surpass an easy vinyl fit, but the range of their material and their ability to fluidly bring listeners along for the ride throughout is indicative of their growth. As much as it is exploring, La Belle Epoque is also a mature, not-at-all-confused offering.

Opener “Henry’s Got a Gun” makes a surprising first impression in calling to mind Faith No More sonically, and I find the more I listen to La Belle Epoque, the more that band fits as a comparison point. Not always in sound — The Grand Astoria aren’t limited to aping one group or genre at this point, if they ever were — but in method. The likeness comes more from the ability to translate experimental tendencies into traditional or semi-traditional forms of songwriting; that is, to take the experiment and develop it into a fully-realized song. Be it the slight country touch of guest banjo in “The Answer,” the Metallica groove early in “Gravity Bong,” the Devin Townsend-style harmonies and prog-metal range of the 14:05 “Serpent and the Garden of Eden” or the sweet melodicism of the clarinet-inclusive title-track and the brief, positive moment provided in closer “Charming,” each song offers something different, but La Belle Epoque does not overbake its ideas or push too far in one direction or another, instead keeping a balance sound-wise and through Sharapodinov and Danilov‘s vocals that guides the listener across the various movements on hand. Overarching flow winds up one of the great strengths of the CD — the vinyl presumably splits just before “Serpent and the Garden of Eden” — though that’s not really a surprise given it’s The Grand Astoria‘s fifth full-length. The tonal quality is a bit more of a surprise, the guitars having more bite and bassist Eugene Korolkov and drummer Vladimir Zinoviev following them on runs like those of “Lisbon Firstborn”‘s instrumental first half, which shifts after four minutes to an acoustic homage to Lisbon that in turn builds to organ-topped classic rock groove and soloing to finish out.

the grand astoria

In many other contexts, such shifts might come across as manic or disjointed, but by the time they get around to “Lisbon Fuzzborn,” The Grand Astoria have bent the rules far enough that they can more or less squeeze through whatever they want. Of course, at 14 minutes, “Serpent and the Garden of Eden” is a focal point, and from its grandiose opening build through the metallic tension that arises early, the tight groove, psychedelic vibe in Suvorov‘s first-half solo, and progressive changes and turns made from there on out, winding up in a second-half payoff for song and album alike, it’s a singular achievement in the band’s discography in its arrangement and execution. As an example of how far they’ve come since their debut six years ago, I don’t think there’s much more one could ask of it, though one could just as easily say the same of “La Belle Epoque” itself, which clocks in at a much shorter 3:19. So it’s not just about how they’ve written a long track, or found a metal-sounding production. It’s about how La Belle Epoque demonstrates a progression hard won through constant evolution of songwriting and work on the road. Most satisfying of all is how increasingly these elements belong solely to The Grand Astoria, and how they’ve carved an identity for themselves in their willful searching for their sound. They’re only going to keep moving forward, and while La Belle Epoque features their familiar cow-skull mascot on its cover by Sophia Miroedova, the tracks on the album itself are anything but repetitive. If anything, this is one in a series of ambitious adventures that character has had, and I’d be very surprised if it’s all that long before the next one arrives.

The Grand Astoria, La Belle Epoque (2014)

The Grand Astoria on Thee Facebooks

The Grand Astoria on Bandcamp

Setalight Records

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