Posted in Whathaveyou on June 11th, 2020 by JJ Koczan
This reissue of Best Custom Written Term Papers - Opt for the service, and our experienced scholars will fulfil your assignment excellently All sorts of writing services & custom Stoned Jesus‘ 2010 debut album, Need to buy essay online for cheap? Professional US Writers; 24/7 Support; High-Quality; Guaranteed Confidentiality; Written Research Proposal online at professional First Communion (discussed here) follows on the heels of Seeking for Comic Strip Assignment? That's great! Check out the most reliable essay writing service EssayOnTime You can decide which writer will create Napalm Records compiling their demos onto last year’s There are enough essays on medical research around the web. If you are wondering why you should choose our website to assist you in studying - click here! From the Outer Space release, as well of course as their fourth long-player, 2018’s Quality is the slogan of our Professional Resume Writing Services Dubai. We do care about our customers and have for them our strict guarantees. 100% satisfaction guarantee. Pilgrims (review here). The band canceled tour dates earlier this year celebrating the 10th anniversary of the album and their existence more generally, and that’s a bummer if a universal one, but at least the record’s getting back out there. When I heard it in 2011 the see post - Put aside your fears, place your task here and receive your professional essay in a few days Craft a quick custom research paper Sleep vibe hit me heavy, but I wasn’t complaining about it then and I’m not complaining about it now either. These cats have always known how to make an impression.
I’m a little wistful here because I was hoping to see them for the first time in the US at Platform Guide ; Performing Database Backup and Recovery with VSS ; About Installing and Uninstalling the Oracle VSS article source; 9.4 About Installing Desertfest NYC in September and that’s been called off, but so it goes. “Life sucks and then you die,” as my dear mother used to tell me.
On that note, to the PR wire:
STONED JESUS to Re-Release Groundbreaking Debut Album First Communion on August 21, 2020 via Napalm Records!
STONED JESUS’ electrifying re-release of First Communion on CD and vinyl (incl. new bonus track)!
In celebration of the 10th anniversary of their trailblazing debut album, stoner prog visionaries STONED JESUS are turning back the clocks and re-releasing their stoner doom offering, First Communion, on August 21st via Napalm Records.
Four hard hitting, sludgy originals are enriched with an unreleased demo version of “Red Wine”, presenting a heavy blend of uncompromising rawness and previously unheard nuances. Tracks such as “Black Woods”, with over four million of hits on YouTube, mark their peerless standing in the scene. With First Communion, STONED JESUS lays the raw cornerstone for their unmistakable signature style, melting barriers across genre boundaries in its wake.
First Communion tracklist: 1. Occult 2. Black Woods 3. Red Wine 4. Falling Apart 5. Red Wine (Demo Version)
First Communion will be available in the following formats:** – CD – 1 LP Gatefold Black – 1 LP Gatefold Purple (Napalm Records Shop / limited to 100 / EU only) **See the North American Napalm Mailorder Webstore for more merch bundles!
Stoned Jesus is: Igor Sydorenko – Vocals & Guitars Serhij Sljussar – Bass Dmytro Zinchenko – Drums
Posted in Features on April 30th, 2020 by JJ Koczan
The statistics of COVID-19 change with every news cycle, and with growing numbers, stay-at-home isolation and a near-universal disruption to society on a global scale, it is ever more important to consider the human aspect of this coronavirus. Amid the sad surrealism of living through social distancing, quarantines and bans on gatherings of groups of any size, creative professionals — artists, musicians, promoters, club owners, techs, producers, and more — are seeing an effect like nothing witnessed in the last century, and as humanity as a whole deals with this calamity, some perspective on who, what, where, when and how we’re all getting through is a needed reminder of why we’re doing so in the first place.
Thus, Days of Rona, in some attempt to help document the state of things as they are now, both so help can be asked for and given where needed, and so that when this is over it can be remembered.
Thanks to all who participate. To read all the Days of Rona coverage, click here. — JJ Koczan
Days of Rona: Bomg (Kyiv, Ukraine)
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Real Estate Broker Business Plan - Put aside your concerns, place your assignment here and get your quality project in a few days Get started with dissertation writing How are you dealing with this crisis as a band? Have you had to rework plans at all? How is everyone’s health so far?
As anybody does, staying at home, trying to keep the distance, everything is on pause. Now there is no point in scheduling anything, up to what time? Who knows… We haven’t scheduled events in the nearest month or two, so nothing much to rework, but it seems like all summer live shows that were being discussed are gone for now. Heath-wise we’ve been okay so far. No way to test it though, only people with severe symptoms are being tested right now.
9780854735037 0854735038 The Teaching of Reading in 45 Inner London Primary Sourceer grade 1 Schools - A Critical Examination of OFSTED What are the quarantine/isolation rules where you are?
The rules are basically the same as in many countries: state of emergency, social distancing orders, essential businesses are only allowed etc. However, you can use means of personal transportation, not without occasional document checking.
Only cheap services on fast weblink! Pay only for top-quality assignments written by expert US and UK writers. Essays, research papers and How have you seen the virus affecting the community around you and in music?
It’s a bummer to see bands canceling tours and whatnot: EHG were in Kyiv and they had to leave the same day a show was scheduled, how unfortunate is that? Hope they’re doing well. As for the community, many people on the streets seem not to care about the situation, which raises concerns about the next month. Pharmacies have almost none of the masks, hand sanitizer – all of it gets hoarded the minute the pharmacy opens. All means of municipal transportation are for essential workers only, the borders are closed. Overall the country lacks funding and medical infrastructure, so without these measures, everything may go south very quickly. The thing is steadily spreading across the country. It’s a mess, but relatively normal in terms of reaction and measures.
dam sunwoo dissertation.Buy dissertation methodology online | professional american writing.Personal Essay For College.Essay online help.Professional What is the one thing you want people to know about your situation, either as a band, or personally, or anything?
I hope that this situation will be solved, and the opportunity to live to the full extent, travel, play live music, meet friends and family will be restored and appreciated on whole another level. Stay healthy. And don’t let the fear sink in – it is the worst disease.
Posted in Features on April 29th, 2020 by JJ Koczan
The statistics of COVID-19 change with every news cycle, and with growing numbers, stay-at-home isolation and a near-universal disruption to society on a global scale, it is ever more important to consider the human aspect of this coronavirus. Amid the sad surrealism of living through social distancing, quarantines and bans on gatherings of groups of any size, creative professionals — artists, musicians, promoters, club owners, techs, producers, and more — are seeing an effect like nothing witnessed in the last century, and as humanity as a whole deals with this calamity, some perspective on who, what, where, when and how we’re all getting through is a needed reminder of why we’re doing so in the first place.
Thus, Days of Rona, in some attempt to help document the state of things as they are now, both so help can be asked for and given where needed, and so that when this is over it can be remembered.
Thanks to all who participate. To read all the Days of Rona coverage, click here. — JJ Koczan
Days of Rona: Somali Yacht Club (Lviv, Ukraine)
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We’re all alive and well! Could say the crisis isn’t so crucial for us (Desertfests in London and Berlin have been canceled, Australian tour was postponed to November), but rather untimely. We got a good boost after the autumn tour and we feel that it is worth to tour more now. In addition, the autumn will be full of concerts. It is already difficult to find a free date.
We are now actively using the time to record a new album. This is our almost our only reason for leaving home.
Most people work from home or at quarantine. All establishments are closed except supermarkets / grocery stores, pharmacies and banks. We must wear a mask in crowded places. Authorities do not restrict people from walking, but after warm weekends imposed penalties for picnics. People are enough responsible — they are queued at a distance from each other, the city center is empty. Only in sleeping quarters are quite crowded.
Worried about the increase in police force on the streets and possibly tougher quarantine rules. There is a feeling that these measures are exaggerated and will be used to strengthen positions of power (e.g., for suppressing unwanted rallies). Let’s see.
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The impact of quarantine is obvious — musicians, organizers, venues, etc. just stopped. As I see it, people are just waiting. Someone is immersed in creativity (is engaged in music, mastering tracks, etc.), someone is trying to establish business in new conditions (acquaintances from renting musical equipment shoot live shows). The whole is ecosystem stopped and can’t earn money. Quarantine losses will depend on its duration.
At the highest level, we have the situation that the government is seriously (more than half!) reducing the cost for cultural development. There is never a time for culture in Ukraine and now it will take a few steps back.
http://www.detnyteater.dk/?dissertation-english - Expert writers, quality services, timely delivery and other benefits can be found in our writing service Enjoy the benefits of expert What is the one thing you want people to know about your situation, either as a band, or personally, or anything?
From us — we are actively recording demos, for you — just stay at home as much as it’s possible and survive in this interesting time.
I’ll readily admit that I had never heard Voida‘s Colour Me Darkness until yesterday. That was kind of the point. On thee social medias, I put out a request for something mellow with which to end the week. I wasn’t feeling anything too aggro, more subdued, and there were some really cool suggestions that came back. This one came courtesy of Igor Sidorenko of Kyiv-based Stoned Jesus and I followed the link immediately because, well, when The Mountain speaks, you listen. So I listened. It wasn’t until I actually looked at the Bandcamp though that I realized Voida was his own project — respect the hustle — with contributions of mellotron/organ from Alexey Klabukov of Vespero and some added sax from bnk of Selma. Right on. Igor also warned, via GIF, that it was depressing, and fair enough. While second cut “Erased” opens up to flourish of mellotron melody and is one of the three out of total six tracks that features drums, the roots of Voida are very much in acoustic songwriting, and there are plenty of moments — the opening of “No Sanctuary for the Sinking Ship,” and, to an extent, the opening title-cut — that hinge on guitar-and-voice minimalism.
At the same time, Colour Me Darkness, in that same “No Sanctuary for the Sinking Ship” no less, also explores a particularly Floydian melancholia, giving the entire affair a more contemplative feel. Sidorenko weaves in a sense of structure throughout. “Colour Me Darkness” establishes its hook in its verses and there’s a sense of drama thanks to the mellotron that gives a sense of build to “Erased,” even as the song takes on a full-band vibe, with bass and drums layered in beneath the electric guitar solo that, while not scorching, still provides a tie to Sidorenko‘s work in his main outfit. Still, some of the stylistic difference is part of what makes Colour Me Darkness engaging, particularly as a first/second/third listen, etc. The emotive crux of “The Last Date” serves as an example of something that, in a form that was outwardly heavier in tone, would be nearly impossible. Surrounded by his own acoustic strum and Klabukov‘s flowing keys, Sidorenko‘s voice lets loose in a way that weighted distortion would simply swallow up, and the backdrop enhances the sincerity of the lyrics. That song caps with backward guitar transitioning into “The First Snow,” and the connection is purposeful as the two songs comprise the ‘Disintegration Duology.’ It’s no stretch to hear a lonely spirit in a recording of solo voice and acoustic guitar, but the rougher edge in Sidorenko‘s voice, the way he reaches for some of the notes, the dryness (that is, sans-reverb) of the vocal recording — all of this feeds into a central idea of organic expression that, once again, is the root from which Colour Me Darkness stems.
And it does stem. “Erased” gave some tease, but Voida‘s drums return on both “The First Snow” and 14-minute closer “Poison in the Wells.” The penultimate track shifts into tambourine-laced psych-folk, with sitar-esque guitar drone and all, before its quiet conclusion rounds out the duology and, one assumes, the disintegration, with a sense more of acceptance than misery. Meanwhile, the finale is essentially an album unto itself, as its runtime spans not just a significant portion of Colour Me Darkness‘ 44-minute stretch, but it moves from hypnotic and moody Scott Kelly-style strum-and-woe into multi-layered vocals on a linear path that eventually takes it into a launch at 7:25 that puts it in atmospheric territory not unlike Paradise Lost or even Judgement-era Anathema in a spacious, progressive and surprising finish. Mellotron returns, the drums and bass march out in dirge fashion, and yes, there’s still an acoustic guitar at the base of it that’s the last thing to go, plucking the notes that started the song off on its encompassing path, but so much is put forth in “Poison in the Wells” that it’s easy to gloss over such subtleties in the wake of what’s just passed. Such is all the more fodder for repeat listens.
Voida issued a series of four seasonally-named EPs between 2010 and 2014, but Colour Me Darkness, which came out in 2011, was the project’s lone full-length, and since 2014’s Autumn EP, it would appear to have been put to rest. Perhaps that’s due to the shifting priorities of Sidorenko himself, with Stoned Jesus hitting the road ever harder after releasing their second album, 2012’s Seven Thunders Roar (review here), resulting in an even busier schedule for 2015’s The Harvest (review here) and their eventual pickup by Napalm Records ahead of 2018’s Pilgrims (review here), their ascent fueled not only by the hit-the-algorithm internet word of mouth, but through their own continued efforts in terms of touring and progressing in terms of sound. Last year, Stoned Jesus began to mark their 10th anniversary with a series of tours, dividing Europe into different territories and covering them one by one. Their first US appearance is currently still slated for Desertfest New York in Sept. 2020, but like everythig else in New York, it is a question as to whether or not this will take place.
Either way, the point here was that I wanted to hear something new to me, and here was a solo-project by someone whose work I’ve respected for the better part of a decade — Stoned Jesus made their debut in 2010 with First Communion, which I picked up in 2011 and dug — that I’d never heard. These are hard times. I know that. We all know it. Human beings aren’t made to sit still. We’re made to go, even if it’s just from one place to another to serve our capitalist overlords. But while we’re forced to stop that process, it’s important to remember that there are still ways to encounter new things, new ideas, both that are coming out now and that we might have missed. People are still making art, and people still have made art forever, and I don’t care who you are, there’s no way you’ve seen it all. If we’re all stuck, at least we can unstick our minds a little, and maybe when the plague lockdown is over, we’ll all come out a little better for it.
As always, I hope you enjoy. Thanks for reading.
—
Week’s over, right? Next week, I intend to wrap up the Days of Rona series. Last posts. It’s starting to feel like data-entry on my part and that’s a bit of a drag. Not really what my day needs. Plus I was kind of disappointed at the lack of response from women or anyone who wasn’t a dude with a beard, but I guess that’s heavy rock at this point. So it goes.
I asked The Patient Mrs. if she wanted to do one. I don’t know if she’s going to or not. She’s pretty busy these days.
Beyond that, Monday I’m reviewing the Elder record, Tuesday I’m reviewing High Priestess (finally!) and there are some other premieres set for this and that along the way too. Cool stuff to come.
Regular news is also starting to trickle in again, which is good. I wouldn’t say it’s “back to normal,” as far as that standard goes — not a lot of tour announcements — but there are things to talk about that aren’t directly related to COVID-19, and, if nothing else, I could use a break. If we all wind up in lockdown until June or July, August, October, three years from now, whenever, I reserve the right to start the series back up.
It’ll probably be all the same people answering. Ha. At least I’ll have pics to go with.
I noted such on Thee Facebooks, but today’s probably the busiest release day 2020 has seen, with new stuff from Elephant Tree, Elder, Wight, 1000mods, Soldati, King Witch, Gaffa Ghandi, Lord Fowl and a ton of others out. Obviously no one knew there’d be a pandemic on when they were doing their scheduling, so whatever you can do to support these people vis a vis buying records, it’s something you might consider doing. Because more art.
Have a great and safe weekend. Thanks again for reading.
Posted in Features on April 8th, 2020 by JJ Koczan
The statistics of COVID-19 change with every news cycle, and with growing numbers, stay-at-home isolation and a near-universal disruption to society on a global scale, it is ever more important to consider the human aspect of this coronavirus. Amid the sad surrealism of living through social distancing, quarantines and bans on gatherings of groups of any size, creative professionals — artists, musicians, promoters, club owners, techs, producers, and more — are seeing an effect like nothing witnessed in the last century, and as humanity as a whole deals with this calamity, some perspective on who, what, where, when and how we’re all getting through is a needed reminder of why we’re doing so in the first place.
Thus, Days of Rona, in some attempt to help document the state of things as they are now, both so help can be asked for and given where needed, and so that when this is over it can be remembered.
Thanks to all who participate. To read all the Days of Rona coverage, click here. — JJ Koczan
Days of Rona: Igor Sidorenko from Stoned Jesus (Kyiv, Ukraine)
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How are you dealing with this crisis as a band? Have you had to rework plans at all? How is everyone’s health so far?
Hey, Igor’s here! Thanks, we’re all in good health for now. The main problem logistics-wise is that our drummer Dima lives in Kharkiv, which is like 400 miles away from Kyiv, where the rest of the band is located (me and Sergii). We haven’t seen each other in person for months. So basically I’m sending new-song ideas to the guys and then we discuss those online -– long live the internet, amirite? We’ve already lost some money on the postponed March tour flights and other stuff. We should’ve had FIVE more legs of our Xth Anniversary Tour this year — including US and Canada for the first time ever and South America for the first time in three years. Then there was studio time booked for fifth LP’s recording sessions… now we’re splitting this money to make it at least till summer. What’s next –- no one knows.
What are the quarantine/isolation rules where you are?
Not strict enough, unfortunately. I mean, thankfully the authorities closed all public places like cinemas and cafes, ordered to close most businesses and set some limitations for food stores and public transportation, but the main problem is the regular people. I’m watching them from my window just hanging around like nothing is wrong, and this is driving me mad. For them quarantine means extra vacation, that’s it. STAY INDOORS YOU HACKS!
How have you seen the virus affecting the community around you and in music?
Well, literally 90 percent of everyone I know are in music industry in one way or another, so yeah, every social media feed I follow is filled with people talking about losing their jobs/not being able to rehearse/not being able to tour, etc. Honestly, I think when this thing is over like two-thirds of artists/bands we all know and love won’t be able to bounce back from it. No one understands yet what kind of job a former musician/roadie/tour manager will be able to find in this new terrifying post-covid-19 world, but one thing is certain –- at the end of the day we all need bread on the table. If this means putting your music project on hold in order to concentrate on your day job, so be it. And I’m afraid this is the future for many of us.
What is the one thing you want people to know about your situation, either as a band, or personally, or anything?
Glad you asked! I’m starting my Patreon channel – https://www.patreon.com/igorfromstj – to help StJ survive. As far as I’m concerned this thing [Patreon] is not very popular within doom/stoner/psych-community but this is literally the only way for us to get through this all. Of course I understand there are billions of way more essential things money could buy, and money will be tight for all of us this year. But hey, if you feel like helping –- please join! Also don’t forget to wash your hands and please stay home!!!
Posted in Whathaveyou on March 10th, 2020 by JJ Koczan
Ukrainian heavyweights Stoned Jesus have pulled the plug on a round of tour dates originally announced about a month ago that would have been part of their ongoing 10th anniversary celebration. On the scale of reasons to cancel a tour, surely “looming plague” has to be somewhere on the side of, “yeah that’s reasonable,” and should the response to COVID-19 continue to be so inept, one suspects this won’t be the last tour to get the axe. Hard to hit the road when you’re under quarantine. Schools are closing, colleges putting classes online — they shitbagged SXSW, for crying out loud! — part of me doesn’t know if this thing is real or a goof and part of me is suddenly thankful I already keep an apocalypse-ready amount of toilet paper in the house.
The tour that would’ve been can be seen below, and fair enough for the band to reschedule. Their announcement follows, as per the social medias:
Stoned Jesus – March Tour Postponed
The third leg of Xth Anniversary Tour, which starts this week, consists of shows booked in Italy, France, Switzerland and Spain. These are FOUR countries out of FIVE affected by coronavirus in Europe the most. Oh, and we should’ve landed in Germany, so it’s five out of five!
Taking into account that all three of us have just been through nasty seasonal flu, we’re pretty sure our immune systems are simply not ready to face the new threat – nor do we want to become a danger to our dearest fans. A Stoned Jesus show must remain ‘a sick place to be’, not become ‘a place to get sick’ ;)
Unfortunately we have no other choice but to POSTPONE our upcoming March dates. This is not something we decided overnight since we live off touring, but don’t worry, the rest of Xth Anniversary Tour stays intact. IT, SP, CH and FR – we’ll definitely see y’all later in the year.
Stay hydrated and wash your hands! Sorry and thanks for understanding
Effected dates: 11.03 – CH Olten, Coq d’Or 12.03 – FR Metz, Les Trinitaires 13.03 – CH Martigny, Caves du Manoir 14.03 – IT Caramagna Piemonte, Spazio Polivalente 15.03 – FR Marseille, Le Molotov 17.03 – SP Barcelona, Razzmatazz 3 18.03 – SP Madrid, SALA CARACOL MADRID 19.03 – SP Vigo, Sala Rebullón 20.03 – SP Bilbao, Shake Bilbao 21.03 – FR Bordeaux, Sidéral Bordeaux Psych Fest 22.03 – FR Montpellier, Secret Place
Stoned Jesus is: Igor Sydorenko – Vocals & Guitars Serhij Sljussar – Bass Dmytro Zinchenko – Drums
Posted in Whathaveyou on February 10th, 2020 by JJ Koczan
Already confirmed for Freak Valley Festival this June in Germany and set to make their debut appearance on American soil at Desertfest New York in September, Kyiv progressive heavy rockers Stoned Jesus have announced a tour this March going for 11 days as part of their ongoing celebration of their 10th — or as they put it, “Xth” — anniversary. They’ll roll through Switzerland, France, Italy and Spain en route to Bordeaux Psych Fest on March 21, then hit Montpelier on their way home. It’s the third part of a so-far-trilogy of tours covering Europe, but I wouldn’t be the least bit surprised if more dates were forthcoming around either of the above-noted festivals, as Stoned Jesus are nothing if not in continual demand, anniversary or no.
I have to think they’re somewhere in the neighborhood of thinking about their next record as well. They may have said as much and I missed it, so if that’s an old consideration, I’m sorry. Either way, they reissued their 2009 demos last year through Napalm as From the Outer Space, and are an act who constantly move forward, so don’t be surprised if they’re plugging away behind the scenes somewhere.
Sound of Liberation, which is presenting the run, booked the dates thusly:
STONED JESUS MARCH TOUR ANNOUNCED
Surprise, friends! Stoned Jesus enjoyed the last run of their Xth Anniversary tour so much, they simply continue it and will stop by in Switzerland, France, Italy and Spain this time!
Says Stoned Jesus: “We started our Xth Anniversary Tour back in September with Eastern Europe, continued it with Central Europe in November, and now WE GO WEST! Grab them tickets while/when they’re available!”
Catch them playing their best tunes from the past ten years on one of these dates:
11.03 – CH Olten, Coq d’Or 12.03 – FR Metz, Les Trinitaires 13.03 – CH Martigny, Caves du Manoir 14.03 – IT Caramagna Piemonte, Spazio Polivalente 15.03 – FR Marseille, Le Molotov 17.03 – SP Barcelona, Razzmatazz 3 18.03 – SP Madrid, SALA CARACOL MADRID 19.03 – SP Vigo, Sala Rebullón 20.03 – SP Bilbao, Shake Bilbao 21.03 – FR Bordeaux, Sidéral Bordeaux Psych Fest 22.03 – FR Montpellier, Secret Place
Look out for pre-sale links and grab your tickets before they’re long gone!
Stoned Jesus is: Igor Sydorenko – Vocals & Guitars Serhij Sljussar – Bass Dmytro Zinchenko – Drums
Posted in Reviews on January 10th, 2020 by JJ Koczan
Hey all, we made it to the final day of the Winter 2020 Quarterly Review, so congrats to ‘us’ and by us I mean myself and anyone still reading, which is probably about two or three people. On my end today is completely manic in terms of real-life, offline logistics — much to do — but no way I’m letting one last batch of 10 reviews fall by the wayside, so rest assured, by the time this goes live, it’ll be complete, even though I’ve had to swap things out as some stuff has been locked into other coverage since I first slated it. Plenty around waiting to be written up. Perpetually, it would seem.
But before we dive in, thank you for reading if you’ve caught any part of this QR. I hope your 2020 is off to an excellent start and that finding new music to love is as much a part of your next 12 months as it can possibly be.
Quarterly Review #41-50:
Sunn O))), Pyroclasts
The narrative — because of course there’s a narrative; blessings and peace upon it — is that drone-metal progenitors Sunn O))), while in the studio recording earlier-2019’s Life Metal (review here) with Steve Albini, began each day doing a 12-minute improvised modal drone working in a different scale. They used a stopwatch to keep time. Thus the four tracks of Pyroclasts were born. They all hover around 11 minutes after editing, which settles neatly onto two vinyl sides, and it’s the rawer vision of Sunn O))), with just Greg Anderson and Stephen O’Malley‘s guitars, rather than some of the more elaborate arrangements which they’ve been known to undertake. That they’d put out two studio records in the same year is striking considering it had been four years since 2015’s Kannon (review here), but I think the truth of the matter is they had these tapes and decided they were worth preserving with a popular release. I wouldn’t say they were wrong, and the immersion here is a good reminder of the core appeal of Sunn O)))‘s conjured depths.
Traditional doom rarely sounds as vital as it does in the hands of Crypt Sermon. The Philly five-piece return with The Ruins of Fading Light on Dark Descent Records as an awaited follow-up to 2015’s Out of the Garden (review here) and thereby bring forth classic metal with all the urgency of thrash and the poise of the NWOBHM. Frontman Brooks Wilson — also responsible for the album art — is in command here and with the firm backing of bassist Frank Chin and drummer Enrique Sagarnaga, guitarists Steve Jannson and James Lipczynski offer sharpened-axe riffs and solo scorch offset by passages of keyboard for an all the more epic vibe. The rolling “Christ is Dead” is pure Candlemass, but the galloping “The Snake Handler” might be the highlight of the 10-track/55-minute run, though that’s not to take away either from the Dehumanizer chug of “Key of Solomon” or the melodic reach of the closing title-track either. Take your pick, really. It’s all metal as fuck and glorious for that. If they don’t sell denim jackets, they should.
The Neptune Power Federation, Memoirs of a Rat Queen
“Can you dig what the Imperial Priestess is laying down?” is the central question of Memoirs of a Rat Queen, the first album from Sydney, Australia’s The Neptune Power Federation to be released through Cruz Del Sur Music, and it arrives over an ELO “Don’t Bring Me Down”-style arena rock beat on leadoff “Can You Dig?” as an intro to the rest of the LP. Strange, epic, progressive, traditional, heavy and cascading rock and roll follows, as intricate as it is immediately catchy, and whether it’s “Watch Our Masters Bleed” or “I’ll Make a Man out of You,” the Imperial Priestess Screaming Loz Sutch and company make it easy to answer in the affirmative. Arrangements are willfully over the top as “Bound for Hell” and “The Reaper Comes for Thee” engage a heavy rocker take on heavy metal’s legacy, maddened laughter and all in the latter track, which closes, and the affect on the listener is nothing less than an absolute blast — a reminder of the empowering sound of early metal on a disaffected generation in the late ’70s and early ’80s and how that same fist-pump-against-the-world has become timeless. No doubt the costumes and all that make The Neptune Power Federation striking live, but as Memoirs of a Rat Queen readily steps forward to prove, the songs are there as well.
Have Chron Goblin been here before? The title of their album speaks to a kind of creepy deja vu feeling, and that’s emblematic of the Canadian band’s move away from the party rock of their past offerings, their last LP having been Backwater (review here) 2015. Fortunately, while they seek out some new aesthetic ground, the 11 tracks of Here Before do maintain Chron Goblin‘s penchant for straight-ahead songcraft and unpretentious execution — and frankly, that wasn’t at all broken. Neither, perhaps was the let’s-get-drunk-and-bounce-around spirit of their prior work, but they sound more mature in a song like the six-minute “Ghost” and “Slipping Under” (premiered here) successfully melds the shift in presentation with the energy of their prior output. Maybe it’s still a party but we watch horror movies? I don’t know. They’ve still got “Giving in to Fun” early in the tracklisting — worth noting it follows the swaying “Oblivion” — so maybe I’m misreading the whole thing, or maybe it’s more complex than being entirely one thing or the other might allow for. Perish the thought. Either way, can’t mess with the songs.
Ukrainian heavy rockers Ethereal Riffian make a pointed sonic shift with their Legends album (on Robustfellow), keeping some of the grunge spirit in their melodies as the eight-minute “Moonflower” and closer “Ethereal Path” show, but in songs like “Unconquerable” and the early salvo of “Born Again,” “Dreamgazer” and “Legends” and even the second half of “Kosmic” and “Pain to Wisdom,” they let loose from some of the more meditative aspects of their past work with a fiery drive and a theme of enlightenment through political and social change. A kind of great awakening of the self. There’s still plenty of “ethereal” to go with all that “riffian” in the intro “Sage’s Alchemy,” or the first half of “Kosmic” or the CD bonus “Yeti’s Hide,” but no question the balance has tipped toward the straightforward, and the idea seems to be that the electrified feel is as much a part of the message as the message itself. The only trouble is that since putting Legends out, Ethereal Riffian called it quits to refocus their energies elsewhere in the universe. Are they really done? I’m skeptical, but if so, then at least they went out trying new things, which always seemed to be a specialty, and on a note of directly positive attitude.
A second long-player behind 2015’s Para Solem, the eight-song/35-minute Nemesis is not only made for vinyl, but it’s made for rockers. Specifically, heavy rockers. And it’s heavy rock, for heavy rockers. Based in Linz, Austria, the double-guitar four-piece Parasol Caravan have their sound and style on lockdown, and their work, while not really keeping any secrets in terms of where it’s coming from in its ’70s-via-’90s modern take, is brought to bear with a clarity that seems particularly derived from the European heavy rock tradition. Para Solem was longer and somewhat fuzzier in tone, but the stripped down approach of the title-track at the outset and its side B counterpart, “Serpent of Time” still unfold to a swath of ground covered, whether it’s in the subdued instrumental “Acceptance” or “Transition,” which follows the driving “Blackstar” and closes the LP with a bit of a progressive metal edge. Even that has its hook, though, and that’s ultimately the point.
The title Fimbultýr translates to “mighty god” and is listed among the alternative names of Odin, which would seem to be who Oslo’s Golden Core have in mind in the leadoff title-track of their second album. Issued through Fysisk Format, it is not necessarily what one thinks of as “Viking metal” in the post-Amon Amarth or post-Enslaved context, but instead, the eight-song collection unfolds a biting modern sludge taking an edge of the earlier Mastodon lumber and bringing it to harshly-vocalized rollout. The 11-minute “Runatal” and only-seconds-shorter “Buslubben” are respective vocal points around which sides A and B of the release center, and each finds a way to give like emphasis to atmosphere and extremity, to stretch as well as pummel, and much to Golden Core‘s credit, they seem not only aware of the changes they’re presenting in their material, but in control of how and when they’re executed. The resulting linear flow of Fimbultýr, given the shifts within, isn’t to be understated as a victory on the part of the band.
Harbinger may well be just that — a sign of things to come. The debut offering from Black Smoke Omega wraps progressive death-doom and gothic piano-led atmospherics around a thematic drawing from science-fiction, and while I’m not certain of the narrative being told by the Dortmund, Germany-based band, their method for telling it is fascinating. It’s not entirely seamless in its shifts, and it doesn’t seem like the band — seemingly spearheaded by multi-instrumentalist/vocalist Jack Nier, though Ashley James (The Antiquity) plays guitar on “A Man without a Heart” and Michael Tjanaka brings synth/piano to “Kainé” — want it to be, but there’s no denying that by the time “Falling Awake” seems to provide some melodic resolution to the often-slow-motion tumult prior, it’s doing so by bringing the different sides together. It’s a significant journey from the raw, barking shouts on “The Black Scrawl” and the lurching-into-chug-into-lurch of “The Man without a Heart” to get there, however. But this, too, seems to be on purpose. How it all might shake out feels like a question for the next release, but Black Smoke Omega seem poised here to leave heads spinning.
While on the surface, Liquid Orbit might be on familiar enough ground with Game of Promises for anyone who has encountered the swath of up-and-comers working in the wake of Blues Pills, the Bremen, Germany, five-piece distinguish themselves through not just the keyboard work of Anders alongside Andree‘s guitar, Ralf‘s bass, Steve‘s drums and Sylvia‘s vocals, but also the shifts between funk, boogie, and edges of doom that play out in songs like “Shared Pain” and “Please Let Her Go,” as well as the title-track, which starts side B of the Nasoni Records-issued vinyl with a highlight guitar solo and an insistent snare tap beneath that works to bring movement to what’s still one of Game of Promises‘ shorter tracks at six and a half minutes, as opposed to the earlier eight-minute-toppers on side A or the psych-prog finale “Verlorene Karawane,” which translates in English to “lost caravan” and indeed basks in some Mideastern vibe and backward-effects vocal swirl. Bottom line, if you go into it thinking you know everything you’re getting, you’re probably selling it short.
As the title hints, the name-your-price Black Volume III is the third EP release from Toronto’s Sun Below. All three have been issued over roughly a year’s span, and the three-piece of guitarist/vocalist Jason Craig, drummer/backing vocalist Will Adams, bassist/backing vocalist Garrison Thordarson — who as far as I’m concerned wins this entire Quarterly Review when it comes to names; that’s an awesome name — and two have featured covers. On their debut, they took on “Dragonaut” by Sleep, and on Black Volume III, in following up the 12-minute nod-roller “Solar Burnout,” they thicken and further stonerize the catchy jaunt that is “Wires” by Red Fang. They’ve got, in other words, good taste. Black Volume III opens with “Green Visions” and thereby takes some righteous fart-fuzz for a walk both that and “Solar Burnout” show plenty of resi(n)dual Sleep influence, but honestly, it’s a self-releasing band with three dudes who sound like they’re having a really good time figuring out where they want to be in terms of sound after about a year from their first release, and if you ask anything else of Black Volume III than what it gives, you’re obviously lacking in context. Which is to say you’re fucking up. Don’t fuck up. Dig riffs instead.
