Posted in Whathaveyou on January 31st, 2024 by JJ Koczan
I’ve been trying to post this for like a week. This happens to me now. I’ll be sitting on the couch at like 7PM or some such — well past what I consider ‘Obelisk time’ in my feeble brainclock — and see some relevant item on my phone. I haven’t covered Krach am Bach much in years past, so I probably said something like, “Oh shit right on, I can post about something new,” and started to put the thing together. I don’t remember if I squared the poster image or the fest did — probably them. But then I get in the actual back end of the site and there are like 50 other things and then I’m already late and blah blah fucking blah here I am with another festival lineup post. I’m sure by now the lineup has been completed and the festival — which is set for Aug. 2-3 — has already taken place. Because time would bend over backwards just to screw me up, and I say that as the voice of experience.
But the lineup. Seems likely The Devil and the Almighty Blues will be out on tour, ditto A Place to Bury Strangers, Wine Lips, Deathchant, El Perro. You’ll notice Elder-offshoot Delving among the confirmations, which might mean another studio offering from that project is on the way, and I’ll go to bat for each of Karkara, Humulus, Travo and Black Helium being worth your time based solely on my experience with their recorded output. There’s more to come here, but I’m not sure how much more you really need.
Check it:
+++ First announcements || Tickets available +++
In case you’re wondering about some news for the 29. Krach am Bach Festival, we’ve got the finest selection for a ride through heavy, fuzz-drowned and hypnotic space trips.
Orange Goblin |UK A Place To Bury Strangers |US The Devil And The Almighty Blues |Norway Wine Lips |Canada Tuber |Greece Deathchant |US El Perro |US Madmess |Portugal delving |US Verstärker |US KARKARA |France Humulus |Italy TRAVO |Portugal Black Helium |UK ᴉGeRaldᴉ |France
Portuguese heavy psychblasters Travo will release their second full-length, Astromorph God, this Friday through gig.rocks! and Spinda Records, furthering a regional/generational sonic emergence on the Iberian Peninsula that you neglect at your peril. Marked early by synthesizer sci-fi grandiosity, it is a cosmos-revelry vision of psychedelia that proliferates from post-intro opener “You Won’t See Me,” which picks up from the minute-long “Omens” and shreds, shreds, shreds the skies above it over the course of its five-minute run, a steady push of bass and some Roky Erickson/George Harrison stuff happening there too amid the frenetic kosmiche rock that will come even more forward in the howls and twists and thrust of “Arrow of Motion,” a far-out space boogie that’s as much now as then between Slift and Hawkwind but thankfully has plenty enough shine to realize the track’s supernova payoff. Taking that arrow, aiming it at the center of the universe, letting fly.
What could be better for a scorched earth than barnburner psych? “Arrow of Motion” boasts ‘go’ worthy of comparison to Ecstatic Vision and I’m sure if you’re on the whole King Gizzard/Pigsx7 end of modern psychedelia there’s a lot here for you as well. “Faceless Ghoul” shoves open the doors of perception with broad leads and echoing, chant-ish vocals calling to mind some of Iberia’s melodic proggers, shades of the recently disbanded Atavismo or Viaje a 800 at their weirdest, but has both structure and direction, so is not a hodgepodge or any sloppier sounding than it should be — I mean, it’s a star-forming nebula of hydrogen and helium coming together with enough gravity to ignite nuclear fusion; you’re gonna break a few eggs — however unhinged its jam sounds before they Sabbath crash shortly before six minutes in and spend the remainder of the song’s total 7:31 in a drone before “Turn to the Sun” restarts the dance-to-this-you-freaks physical urging of “Arrow of Motion” with perhaps more lean into the chorus and a shred seems to melt the track after about a minute and a half, and it’s nearly another minute before they’re back in the verse, undaunted.
Backed by the 15-minute closing title-cut, “Turn to the Sun” is penultimate on Astromorph God and it straddles the line between psychedelic shove and harsh noise, with the guitar meting out furious pulsations of noise as Travo propel themselves toward its finish. And as regards “Astromorph God,” buckle up. The four-piece seem to know at the outset they’re in for a longer ride, and while I wouldn’t call it patient exactly, like Sun Voyager on their most recent outing, Travo find a pocket in the verse in which to catch their breath before the next wormhole opens and sucks band and listener alike through to another change. To the band’s credit, they use nearly every second of “Astromorph God”‘s 15:16, and they don’t depart from the intensity — even the jammier end is dizzying — but they do account for the sprawl of longform work in repetitions and the exploration of the parts of the song itself, breaking to quiet after 10 minutes to start the last build in making the garage rock of an alternate dimension.
Euphoric and lysergic, Astromorph God positions Travo within the sphere of modern heavy underground psychedelia, and while Europe has always been somewhat tribalist in its designation of hotspots — Germany, Sweden, UK — it would be interesting to see Portugal and Spain force their way onto the map this decade as Greece did the last with a variety of acts and corresponding swath of sounds. I’m not saying Travo are leading that charge, but someone would need to and they certainly seem to have the energy for it if the music is anything to go by. A lot will come down to how much they tour, where and when, festivals, blah blah, but the spirit of victory resounds through this second Travo full-length, and it’s hard to imagine it not being embraced readily by those among the converted who take it on and maybe even a few heads out there who didn’t know they were weirdos to start with. Yeah, think of Astromorph God like a litmus test. “Must be this out of place on Earth to relate.” Little cardboard hand like you’re trying to get on the roller coaster.
Enjoy your ride. More info follows, including the preorder link, as per the PR wire:
It’s said that Travo is one of Portugal’s best kept secrets and it’s looks like it’s true. They’re young; they’ve already published two albums and one EP (and a the new one ‘Astromorph God’ which is on its way); and their live shows a real joy of head-banging, crowd-surfing and mosh pits. In their music you can find a fusion of heavy psych, progressive rock and trash-metal, with a significant garage attitude, without any type of filter. Yes, Europe is about to explode, with bands such as Slift, Maragda, Gator The Alligator, Kamggarn and, of course, Travo. It’s clear that on this side of the Atlantic Ocean there are thousands of fans of bands such as King Gizzard And The Lizard Wizard, Osees, Psychedelic Porn Crumpets, Elder, Wine Lips and Frankie And The Witch Fingers.
And although this new album by David Ferreira (bass, guitar), Gonçalo Carneiro (guitars, synths, percussion), Nuno Gonçalves (drums, percussion) y Gonçalo Ferreira (vocals, guitars, percussion, piano) won’t see the light until 17 November, it can be pre-ordered on both compact disc and vinyl editions through Spinda Records and gig.Rocks!, Spanish-Portuguese alliance under which this album will be out.
‘Astromorph God’ will be available on November 17 on digital, compact disc and on a double edition on vinyl, limited to 150 copies in turquoise color and 150 copies in standard black color, both with gatefold cover.
On October 4 ‘Astromorph God’ Iberian tour kicks off. So far gigs at Uma Noite Irreversível, Festival NOVO and Sevilla Monkey Week have been announced already.
Travo live: Nov 18 | Évora (PT) @ Black Bass Festival Nov 25 | Seville (SP) @ Monkey Week Dec 02 | Porto (PT) @ Woodstock 69
MORE ABOUT ‘ASTROMORPH GOD’ Track-list: 1. Omen 2. You won’t see me 3. Arrow of motion 4. Faceless ghoul 5. Turn to the sun 6. Astromorph God
Credits: Produced by Travo and Budda Guedes Recorded and mixed by Budda Guedes at Moby Dick Studios (Portugal) Mastered by Clara Araujo at Arda Recorders (Portugal) Artwork and layout by IMUNE Published and distributed by Spinda Records and gig.Rocks!
Posted in Whathaveyou on June 29th, 2023 by JJ Koczan
Spinda Records has announced picking up two bands in the last 40-or-so hours, sending word down the PR wire that Argentina’s Fin del Mundo and Portugal’s Travo have signed to the label — the latter also a collaboration with Portuguese imprint Gig.Rocks — with new releases coming soon. I’ve heard the new Travo and it’s right on modern heavy psych, sounding like it’s from another galaxy. I don’t know the status of Fin del Mundo‘s next offering, but if Spinda wanted to do a pressing for their pastoral 2022 second EP, La Ciudad Que Dejamos, hearing it for the first time following word of their signing, I’d hardly argue.
The record is righteously heavy in the bass and has a bit of post-rock float in the vocals and guitar, a kind of heavy-indie psych-gaze, melodically focused and flowing. It’s only four songs, so perhaps it might be paired with their similarly-constructed 2020 self-titled across a compiled 12″? Just tossing out ideas, here. Either way, “El Incendio” sounds like The Cure in a way that sits well alongside Travo‘s more blasted cosmic rock.
Details are sparse but follow here in not-really-organized-looking-but-organized-in-my-head-and-it’s-my-site-so-bite-me fashion, along with audio and video from both acts:
FIN DEL MUNDO – NEW BAND!!!
Post-rock & shoegaze band FIN DEL MUNDO from Argentina joins Spinda Records. Some exciting news are coming… but in the meantime please enjoy their live session for the KEXP, with nearly 900.000 views in 8 months!
FIN DEL MUNDO: Julieta Heredia – guitarra Julieta Limia – batería Lucía Masnatta – guitarra y voz Yanina Silva – bajo y coros
TRAVO – NEW BAND!!!
We’ve some awesome news to share with y’all. TRAVO’s upcoming second studio album ‘Astromoporh God’ is fully ready, sounds amazing and is coming out in Autumn through an Iberian collaboration between Gig.Rocks and Spinda Records. Keep an eye as both album pre-order and live dates are just behind the corner. (#128247#) Francisco Gaspar
Enjoy this live video from their gig at Sonic Blast 2022!
TRAVO: David Ferreira – Bass Gonçalo Carneiro – Electric Guitar, Synthesizer Gonçalo Ferreira – Vocals, Electric Guitar, Synthesizer, Percussion, Organ, Piano Nuno Gonçalves – Drums
