Posted in Whathaveyou on January 18th, 2017 by JJ Koczan
In 2015, ultra-respected Italian print ‘zine Vincebus Eruptum did a story in its 19th issue (review here) highlighting the prodigious and sometimes bizarre Houston noise rock scene. Around the same time, the label wing of the same publication hooked up with the Linus Pauling Quartet to release the early-2016 full-length, Ampalanche (review here), basically putting their money where their mouth is. Or at very least continuing to in a manner beyond the already considerable factor of running a print outlet in the 2010s.
Seems fair to look at Vincebus Eruptum Recordings picking up Houston’s Project Grimm (ex-The Mike Gunn) to issue their first album in well over a decade, The Crass Menagerie, as an extension of the same impulse. The record is set to arrive on Feb. 15, and feature eight tracks split up over two sides of a vinyl limited to just 300 copies, 100 red, 200 black, that, when you buy it direct from the label, come with a copy of Vincebus Eruptum No. 21.
Preorders are up now. Vincebus Eruptum Recordings posted the following info on the subject:
PROJECT GRIMM “The Crass Menagerie”
Issue date: 15th of February 2017
Limited edition vinyl (VELP016): 300 copies (100 copies on red vinyl + 200 copies on black vinyl)
Track-list: A1 – E. Pluribus Merman A2 – Solvent A3 – Cloud No Larger Than A Man’s Hand A4 – New Two B1 – Deliveryman’s Threat B2 – Cartographer B3 – Grifters B4 – A German Beach
The first album by the Houston cult band after 15 years!!! From the ashes of THE MIKE GUNN to that heavy-psych unique sound! The trio is composed by John Cramer (ex Mike Gunn) on guitar and vocals, Drew Calhoun on bass and Ricky Costello on drums.
THAT VINYL WILL BE SHIPPED TOGETHER WITH A FREE COPY OF VINCEBUS ERUPTUM MAGAZINE N.21
The cost contains the fee to subscribe and/or the donation to the Associazione Culturale VINCEBUS ERUPTUM
It’s always a good day when a new issue of Italian ‘zine Vincebus Eruptum shows up. My fandom of the long-running print mag should be well known to anyone who’s been stopping by this site for a while, and Editor Davide “Davidew” Pansolin and the staff under him continue to deliver top quality work with Vincebus Eruptum no. 20, the latest issue. Pressed up with cover art by Kabuto that brings to mind Jawas, the speeder bike that Rey had in The Force Awakens and the cover of the Southern Lord version of Sleep‘s Dopesmoker — all of which is certainly cool by me — the actual physical size of the thing never tells the story of the scope within, as Vincebus Eruptum continues to cover highlights from the international underground in psychedelia, heavy rock, doom, fuzz, garage and more.
Last time around, Vincebus Eruptum took a kind of educational turn and in the midst of a feature about The Linus Pauling Quartet — whose latest album, Ampalanche (review here), was released on Vincebus Eruptum Recordings, the ‘zine’s label arm — gave background on a swath of players and acts from the Texas noise/weirdo rock scene of the 1990s. Cool idea, and Pansolin has clearly decided to run with it. While Vincebus Eruptum no. 20 has fewer interviews than did the prior issue, it makes up for that with two specially-themed features — one on Maryland doom and another on Ireland’s heavy scene. The scope of Maryland doom, of course, is massive. It spans decades and there are so many players involved that to list them all would leave no room in the issue for anything else, but Klaus Kleinowski does well in finding the balance between narrative and detail, and though he speaks from the perspective of someone out of the region, his knowledge comes through clearly and is information worth seeking for anyone who thinks they know that scene or who’d like to know it.
I like to consider myself pretty familiar with Maryland doom, so after digging that piece, I shifted right over to “Emerald Haze: A Brief History of Irish Fuzz” by Sid Daly and Matt Casciani, which gives a similar, if shorter, treatment to the Irish underground, dedicating space to letting Iona Death Cult bassist Ste O’Connor and Mount Soma bassist Conrad Coyle — both Dublin natives — run down lists and descriptions of their favorite countryman heavy albums. Yes, Slomatics make the cut, amid names like Electric Taurus, Wild Rocket, Weed Priest, Astralnaut, Venus Sleeps and Triggerman. Reading Vincebus Eruptum is always a bit like getting a homework assignment of stuff to check out — in a good way; I was never much for doing homework — and to have them go to experts directly to pick out bands for their readers is a shift in approach that I hope they continue. I’d love to see a piece on the boom in the Ukraine rock scene, for example, or to get their perspective on the West Coast of the US’ surge in heavy psych of the last several years. There’s an entire planet to cover, since ‘heavy’ exists just about everywhere.
From there, time to dig into the interviews. Leading off are Kevin Starrs of Uncle Acid and the Deadbeats and Gianmarco Iantaffi of Void Generator — Vincebus Eruptum, as ever, bringing Italian bands to the fore — and both have plenty to talk about. New Void Generator is reportedly in progress, and Starrs talks about some of his favorite Italian film noir directors, the Giallo set, which inspired the band’s 2015 fourth album, The Night Creeper (review here). There are also chats with Abbot and Domovoyd, two Finnish bands with very different takes between them — Abbot leaning toward classic prog/heavy and Domovoyd blending psychedelia and black metal — but who nonetheless share an adventurousness of spirit and songwriting that serve them well. Top it off with a feature looking at Fruits de Mer Records‘ catalog, the usual batch of worldwide reviews — Goatsnake and Snail alongside Nightslug and Bretus, among many more — and it’s another jam-packed installment from Vincebus Eruptum, which if I haven’t gotten the point across by now should be essential reading for novices and lifer experts alike when it comes to all manner of things weighted in tone.
Vincebus Eruptum Recordings has an upcoming release by Sendelica called I’ll Walk with the Stars for You, and as Pansolin notes in his editorial, he’s also opened a physical venue (300 capacity) where bands can play. Congratulations to him on that — way to live the dream — and here’s looking forward to the next Vincebus Eruptum, to which in the same breath he once again doubles-down on his commitment. I can’t wait to see what the associazione culturale does next.
My appreciation for long-running Italian fanzine Vincebus Eruptum is well documented at this point, but I feel compelled to reiterate the admirable nature both of the work they do and the manner in which they do it. If saying that every time they put out an issue takes away from the impact of the statement, at least know it doesn’t take away from my actual enjoyment of reading the thing. As ever with issue No. 19, Editor Davide “Davidew” Pansolin and his crew have combed the heavy psychedelic and stoner underground to bring forth another quality collection of reviews and interviews in support of the genre(s) at large and their own efforts as the associazione culturale that they are and of course, the Vincebus Eruptum Recordings end of the operation, which continues to expand via releases from Sendelica, Lords of Bastard, and The Linus Pauling Quartet.
Wouldn’t you know it? It just so happens that an interview with The Linus Pauling Quartet leads off the issue! You’d almost think these things were planned out beforehand. But if there’s one thing that makes a ‘zine special, it’s the passion of the individual at its heart — Pansolin has a staff but still does a good portion of the writing himself — and Vincebus Eruptum is very obviously the labor of his love, in this case of the Texas five-piece, who in the course of the five-page leadoff feature lead him on a trip down memory lane of Houston’s psychedelic and noise scene in the post-Butthole Surfers ’90s. Very interesting stuff, and there’s even a chart at the end showing the different members who played in various bands, all the same people sharing music with each other in the way that city-wide scenes always become incestuous over time. The historical angle might make the Linus Pauling piece my favorite of the issue, but My Sleeping Karma also gave a fascinating talk about their new album, Moksha (review here), and it’s always cool to hear what the guys in Orange Goblin have to say, especially now that they’ve spent the last few years really kicked into gear as a full-time touring band.
Chats with Victor Griffin (Pentagram, Place of Skulls, etc.), Fantasyy Factoryy, Ides of Gemini and a talk with Gabriele Fiori (Heavy Psych Sounds, Black Rainbows) about the 2015 debut from his side-project Killer Boogie, Detroit (review here), all provide further points of interest, and then it moves into the review section, which brings looks at the latest from Pyrior, Acid King, Pombagira, Black Rainbows, Madre de Dios, Osso, Wild Eyes, Spidergawd, Sendelica, Child, Black Capricorn, Colour Haze and many others. They pack so much in that there isn’t always room to delve into the deepest details of a release — these are the things you have to do when you can only fit so many words on a page — but Vincebus Eruptum never fails to give an impression of what a band is going for, and of course their expertise is long since established when it comes to heavy rock. I trust their judgment as I do few other sources.
Unlike most issues that I’m fortunate enough to receive, I read No. 19 cover to cover in a single sitting. Usually I’ll jump around a bit, read something in the middle — My Sleeping Karma have the gatefold honor, right on the staple, this time around — then go back to the start, but from Pansolin‘s editorial at the beginning to the closing, packed-tight bit of news from Vincebus Eruptum Recordings after the reviews, I went front to back, and it flowed well in a way that, bouncing here to there, I hadn’t previously appreciated. Particularly so in light of Pansolin‘s editorial, which displayed a kind of wariness of the new school of heavy psychedelia. A quote: “What’s important is that these bands do not pretend to have found the Mecca feeling like having definitely made it for good just because they ended up on a label jam-packed with metal outfits because that does not mean to mechanically achieve greater exposure and instant success!” He also refers to it as “‘our’ heavy-psych scene,” which, as ever for that kind of statement, made me wonder who “we” are, and warned bands off from forgetting their underground roots just because more people are listening to the style of music now.
Striking, candid thoughts from someone who’s spent at this point more than a decade and a half in the European heavy underground, but if Pansolin sounds jaded up front, that’s gone almost immediately as soon as the interview with The Linus Pauling Quartet arrives, and Vincebus Eruptum, like always, is a party heralding some of the best heavy psychedelics the world has to offer. I’ll look forward to going front-to-back on the next issue.
Posted in Reviews on November 21st, 2014 by JJ Koczan
I’ve expressed my nerdy idolatry for Italian ‘zine Vincebus Eruptum on numerous occasions — each new issue seems to bring out a feeling of admiration for their project and their accomplishment of it — but as I flip through the latest edition, No. 18, of the vaunted publication, even more of a standout is just how together the Vincebus Eruptum product is. Editor Davide Pansolin has been slowly, steadily expanding the brand over the last year plus, taking Vincebus Eruptum from a reactivated fanzine to a state-licensed associazione culturale, beginning to work directly with bands as a label and promotion vehicle and continuing to give Italian heavy rock and psychedelia its best public representation as the scene grows in no small part because of its own efforts. An example? When I removed Vincebus Eruptum from its plastic sleeve, inside I found a CD copy of Essay on a Drunken Cloud (review here) by Anuseye. It’s not the first time Vincebus Eruptum has tied in Vincebus Eruptum Recordings releases with the publication itself, but even the sheer amount of coordination involved was impressive, since not only was the album placed right between the two pages containing an interview with guitarist/vocalist Claudio C. (also ex-That’s all Folks!), but those two pages were also the dead-center of the issue itself.
Attention to detail like that, coupled with the psychedelic design and unabashed readiness to support the European heavy psych scene make Vincebus Eruptum indispensable. The Anuseye CD, which is only available with the issue (vinyl is for sale separately), is also reviewed — I won’t begrudge Pansolin laying it on a bit thick in the self-promotion department as the ‘zine celebrates its 15th anniversary — and as usual, the company it keeps is an impressive swath of recent heavy rock and psych releases from groups like Octopus Syng, Fatso Jetson/Herba Mate, Hot Lunch, L’Ira del Baccano, Vibravoid, Electric Moon and so on. Of course, Italy is thoroughly represented, both in independent bands and through labels like Go Down Records, Heavy Psych Sounds and Vincebus Eruptum Recordings. As ever, the pieces are concise and to the point — there’s a lot to fit — but informative and give a sense of what the groups are going for and whether or not they get there, and I find myself with an expanding wishlist of stuff to check out. Business as usual, in that regard, but it’s no less true reading No. 18 than it ever is, Pansolin handling all of the reviews by himself this time out except for Essay on a Drunken Cloud, which he turns over to Roberto Mattei.
Being a sucker for that kind of thing, I tend to go to the reviews first, but interviews with Electric Wizard, Swedish sleeper-hitters Jeremy Irons and the Ratgang Malibus and retro cyclone Prisma Circus make for fascinating fare, and having seen their name with an increasing frequency, I appreciated a chance to get a better sense of Australia’s Child as well. Da Captain Trips, who also have a record out through Vincebus Eruptum Recordings, are interviewed, though I think most fascinating of all is the chat with Wolf, who heads the German imprint World in Sound, and is responsible for fostering quality acts like Samsara Blues Experiment, the aforementioned Prisma Circus, The LoneCrows, Doctor Cyclops and many others. Topped off by Kabuto cover art recreating the Malleus cover of the first issue 15 years ago, a stirring note in the beginning from Pansolin himself, and the Anuseye album for a soundtrack, and Vincebus Eruptum seems to be passing the 15-year mark going stronger than ever. As someone always happy to nerd out on what Pansolin and his crew have going, I couldn’t be happier for them and hope we get another 15 years of quality, dedicated psychedelia coverage and much more.
Posted in Reviews on April 28th, 2014 by JJ Koczan
No doubt about it, Vincebus Eruptumhas its thing and does it well. The Italian fanzine continues to keep me enamored with issue no. 17 (which actually came out in February but was somewhat delayed in getting to me owing to US post office silliness), redoubling my passion for underground print media with its own. Editor Davide “Davidew” Pansolin has assembled another round of interviews with new and established bands, and in addition to as ever supporting the hell out of his native Italian scene, he’s reached across borders and continents in the reviews section to once again tantalize with a variety of heavy wares. I think I say this every time I get an issue, but I never come out of reading Vincebus Eruptumwithout wanting to spend money on records.
I’d understand if that actually turned some people off from reading — last thing any of us need to be shelling out a more significant portion of income, I’m sure — but the fact is that even if you don’t immediately take to label sites, Bandcamp pages or whatever other outlets (physical stores, maybe?) and pony up, Vincebus Eruptumremains a good way to stay informed. Especially for somebody like me, who’s a nerd for Euro heavy psych but lives across a particularly large body of water, it’s a cool way to stay in the loop. Not that the ‘zine just sticks to European bands, though. This time around, an interview with San Francisco’s Wild Eyes SF caught my eye as a cool read after reviewing their Get Into It! vinyl, and chats with Icelandic rockers The Vintage Caravan, The Oscillation and Alice Tambourine Lovers followed suit. I hadn’t heard of Minneapolis’ The Lone Crows, so mark that a win as well.
Of course, it wouldn’t be Vincebus Eruptumif Italy wasn’t strongly represented. By my count, 17 of the 38 reviews are either bands of Italian origin or on an Italian label, and that includes such heavy-hitters as Void Generator‘s new album and Fatso Jetson‘s limited 7″ on Go Down Records, so everything included well earns its place. Two releases by Swedish rockers The Movements are covered, and takes on Deamon’s Child and Earthless once again assure Vincebus Eruptum‘s commitment to all things heavy, regardless of where they might call home. Now a licensed cultural association (fiscal code 92100050092) and a sponsor of the Desertfest in Berlin with new label releases from Organic is Orgasmic and Sendelica — the latter are coincidentally interviewed in issue no. 17 — through Vincebus Eruptum Recordings, it seems like the ‘zine has never been going stronger.
That’s all the more impressive in an age of such rampant internet dominance, proving that if you offer a unique, well-curated experience and understand your audience, it’s still possible to make a print model work. Easier said than done, of course, but flipping the pages once again of Vincebus Eruptum, they make it seem so natural, so easy, that one can only hope they keep it going into perpetuity. It’s a joy when the next issue shows up.
Organic is Orgasmic, As We Speak of Space and Wisdom (2014)
Posted in Reviews on October 31st, 2013 by JJ Koczan
Italian ‘zine Vincebus Eruptum continues to impress with its dedication. When it comes to issue number 16, the interviews with Colour Haze, Sula Bassana, Blood Ceremony, Church of Misery and Telstar Sound Drone are cool enough, but I think the most telling thing about the passion driving the publication is in the letter from editor Davide “Davidew” Pansolin. He gives a pretty basic rundown of what’s happening with the “Vincebus EruptumCultural Association” — which is awesome — but more than that, he plugs the album release for Vista Chino, which would’ve been coming out as the issue was finalized.
That doesn’t seem like a huge deal, right? I suppose it’s not, and that’s precisely the point. Pansolin didn’t need to plug the Vista Chino release. He gains nothing by having done so, but instead of ignoring it or just having an album review in with the bevvy of others, he calls it, “a key event for any heavy-psych head who kept following this genre for 20 years.” He’s absolutely right. It was a huge question mark as to whether or not John Garcia and Brant Bjork would be able to pull off a return to the desert rock spirit of Kyuss with that record, but that he’d come out of nowhere like that and bring it up, it lets you know how important he really feels marking the “event” is, how much it means to him personally.
Especially from a self-made ‘zine, that kind of human passion is ridiculously admirable, because the issue itself — all Vincebus Eruptum‘s issues, really — stand 100 percent in testament as the realization of it. They are that passion made product. It’s something I strive for with this site and do so precisely because I admire it so much in people like Pansolin, in Walter Roadburn, in my wife, in Scott Small Stone, and so many others. Every time I get to read a new batch of reviews from Pansolin and his crew, it makes me want to listen to music, to buy new albums and hear new things, expose myself to something I haven’t heard before.
And this time, particularly in the reviews section, amid a tapestry of European acts — of course Italy is well represented as always, with Black Rainbows, Blizzard of Lizard, Doomraiser, Giobia and others, including plenty from Go Down Records — it’s encouraging to see a number of American bands, whether it’s The Freeks, Dali’s Llama, Geezer, Luder or Naam. Could it be that American heavy psych is gaining recognition in the European scene?
I’m always glad to check out the next issue of Vincebus Eruptumand I look forward to digging deeper into these interviews and reviews, but at this point, the ‘zine itself is just a part of what they do. Vincebus Eruptum Recordings has a number of limited vinyl releases in the works from the likes of Sendelica (who are also reviewed in this issue), Da Captain Trips and the The Grand Astoria offshoot, Organic is Orgasmic, and more in the works.
The bottom line is the same, though, whether it’s the mag itself or the label, and it’s that Vincebus Eruptumis an enterprise fueled by love of music and love of heavy psych particularly, and it continues to set a standard worthy of aspiration.
Blizzard of Lizard, “The Rage Blooms in My Soul” from Blizzard of Lizard (2013)
Hold onto your ears, eyes and wallet, because Italian ‘zine Vincebus Eruptumis back with Issue No. 15, the latest on their ongoing effort to expand consciousness of the worldwide heavy underground. Printed on high-quality paper stock with a thicker, glossier feel than ever before, Vincebus Eruptumearns even more respect for keeping analog in a digital world. As someone who works for a “living” in print media, I have a hard time checking out this mag every time it comes in and not being insanely jealous of editor Davide “Davidew” Pansolin and his staff’s free-ranging will to explore the depths and uncover new and awesome bands.
This time around, the focus is as ever on the European heavy sphere. The one US-based band interviewed is Carlton Melton, from California, but with Ireland’s Electric Taurus, Scotland’s The Cosmic Dead, Swedish acts Skånska Mord and Spiders, and Italy’s own Doctor Cyclops (Vincebus Eruptum is famously supportive of its native scene and rightly so), there’s a decent spread of styles and geography. Not being familiar with a few of those names — Carlton Melton, Electric Taurus — it was cool to get to know them before I got to know them, and as ever, the reviews section reads like a wishlist in the making, with records from Karma to Burn, Vibravoid and Eternal Elysium alongside recent outings from less known names like Mombu, Orrenda Acciaieria and Sendelica — the very first release on the ‘zine’s own Vincebus Eruptum Recordings.
Kudos to Davidew and company for branching out — and for very subtly informing their readership that they’ve done so — but for anyone who’d really want to dig into the European underground, Vincebus Eruptum #15 offers the “Stoned Handbook” guide to the German scene. Put together in collaboration with Stonerrock.eu, it’s a list of bands, venues, promotion outlets and labels, that might not look very in-depth on the surface, but nonetheless provides an excellent research platform from which to explore, and whether you wind up checking out Ahab or Low Gravity Circus or Zone Six as a result, you’re not going to lose out, and by just providing the list like they do, Vincebus Eruptumactually plays it pretty smart in understanding how print and online media can work together: “Here’s what you should be Googling next,” and so forth. Awesome.
I’ve made overtures of my ongoing respect for the pub before, and that continues for this latest issue, and even if you look at the quality of people taking out ads — Sulatron, Small Stone, Elektrohasch, Desertfest, Go Down, Heavy Psych Sounds — it’s a testament to the quality of Vincebus Eruptumthat they’re thriving in an age where print media is supposedly in full decline. Right on and keep up the great work. It continues to be a pleasure each time a new edition shows up.
Carlton Melton, “Space Treader” from Photos of Photos (2012)
Posted in Reviews on January 23rd, 2013 by JJ Koczan
My experience with Italian ‘zine Vincebus Eruptumis usually the same each issue. It arrives in the mail sometime after I see the awesome-looking cover online, I open it up, flip through, and immediately find like 15 records I want to buy. I’m not sure how many times I’ve said it, but as a fan of European heavy psych and of heavy rock in general, Vincebus Eruptumis an indispensable resource.
This time around, with issue #14, my interest was piqued by records from Tons, Electric Swan and a debut 7″ from Friendship, and interviews with Uncle Acid and the Deadbeats. Orchid, Doomraiser, Witchcraft and Naam made for good reads, while the examination of cult folkers Black Widow‘s legacy and the special look at the Italian scene in listing bands, labels, promoters and venues was educational in that made-me-want-to-go-to-Italy kind of way. A lot of things are educational like that.
Editor Davidew and his crew are unparalleled in their support for Italian heavy, so the lists of bands/labels/etc. wasn’t necessarily out of place, but still appreciated. A Q&A with Roma drunkards Doomraiser was also killer, and when it comes to the reviews, the latest from labels like Rise Above and Small Stone were represented along with Heavy Psych Sounds, Bloodrock Records and Electric Magic. Since some of the stuff in there I’ve already reviewed, it was great to get another take, and for albums pending on my list like Mother of God and House of Aquarius, cool to see what someone else thought even as I form my own opinions.
I continue to respect the hell out of Vincebus Eruptum, for bring a print mag in a digital world, yeah, but more for just being generally awesome. Their output is of reliable quality and they know their subject matter better than almost anyone on the planet, and really my only hope is that they keep it up into perpetuity. A strong allegiance to the Euro (specifically the Italian) psychedelic rock scene and the likes of Go Down Records places them at the forefront of their stated sphere. Limited copies of the latest issue include a compilation CD with tracks from Insider, Perizona Grass, Epstein Superflu and others as well as an exclusive poster. You can’t lose.
