Final Best of 2012 Top 10 List!!

Our industrious scribe and master of metal, Odin, was tied up and couldn't get his list done earlier.  But we have it now, and wanted to shed some light on the bands that occupied the pleasure zone in Odin's listening last year

Odin's 2012 Top Ten List


In no particular order, other than how they popped into my head:

Murder Construct – Results
Chris Robinson Brotherhood – Big Moon Ritual
Big Wheel Stunt Show – Wonderful Life
The Darkness – Hot Cakes
Never To Arise – Hacked To Perfection
Job For A Cowboy – Demonocracy
Bestial Holocaust – Into The Goat Vulva
Trillion Red – Metaphere
Enslaved – RIITIIR
Witchcraft – Legend

Ripple Effect Unleashes 5 Year Anniversary Free Download Compilation

What started out five years ago as a forum for two music lovers to share their obsession with obscure/little-heard rock music, has grown and evolved into a Record Label, a top-rated Radio Show, and one of the world's premiere sites for discovering new and lost classic music: The Ripple Effect. To celebrate 5 years of collective Ripple Madness, Todd Severin (Racer X) and John Rancik (Pope JTE) are unleashing a massive download compilation album, featuring some of the best of the new wave of modern heavy rock bands. And it's all entirely free!

Best of all, the compilation features many brand new, previously unheard, unreleased tracks by some of the bands leading this charge of the Heavy. In addition, you'll find tracks from several albums buzzing across the websites and music blogs, and several new and waiting-to-be discovered bands.

To be released on July 22, through bandcamp, The Ripple Effect unveils, The Ripple Effect presents: Volume 1- Head Music. In it's depths you'll find such notable bands as Stubb, Ape Machine, Devil to Pay, Miss Lava, Voodoo Johnson, Borracho, and more. 23 tracks in all. All free. Some of the absolute best heavy rock the world has to offer.

To download your free copy, go to the Ripple Effect bandcamp page and get yours today!

And continue to check out The Ripple Effect each day for the latest music discoveries, and the Ripple Music record label for the latest releases from bands like Stone Axe, Mos Generator, Grifter, Trucker Diablo, Poobah, Fen, JPT Scare Band and more.

Here's the track listing:

• Devil to Pay "High Horse" - from the album Heavily Ever After
• White Light Cemetary "The Wieser" - previously unreleased
• Torso "One" - from the EP Inside
• Cody Foster Army "Built Up Knocked Down" - previously unreleased
• Stubb "Under a Spell" - previously unreleased
• Space Probe Taurus "Ridin' the Mud" - previously unreleased
• Concrete Sun "Silver Tear" - previously unreleased
• Hong Faux "Bad City Blues" - from The Crown that Wears the Head
• Hosoi Bros "Wine Witch" - from 7" single Wine Witch/Yellow Fever
• Ape Machine "Everybody Bleeds" - previously unreleased
• Deadweight "Cosmic Lunch" - previously unreleased
• SuperGiant "Rosey Posey" - from Pistol Star
• Voodoo Johnson "Swear it to the Sun" from ep Black Powder Mother Loader
• Banda de la Muerte "Espiritu en Paz" -from Pulso de una Mente Maldita
• Venomin James "Seven Years" - previously unreleased from upcoming album Unholy Mountain
• Miss Lava "Ride" - from upcoming album Red Supergiant
• Steak "Machine" - from ep Disastronaut
• The Heavy Company "Groove a Mile Wide" previously unreleased from upcoming album Midwest Electric
• Dark Earth "Dark Earth" - previously unreleased
• The Enders "Self Deluded" - New Previously unreleased from upcoming album "The Ruins of Ambition."
• Borracho "All in Play" - Live version, previously unreleased. Album version from Splitting Sky
• Arise Within "Black Pearl" - from album Volume 2
• Knall "Dark Amber" - previously unreleased

Lonely Kamel - Dust Devil

It's way past time to give Lonely Kamel some Ripple love.  I was mesmerized by their last album, Blues for the Dead on Transubstans Records.  Mesmerized to the point of never actually writing up a review.  But damn, if they didn't nail the retro-70's vibe that I love so much.  Big guitars, massive Hendrixian flourishes, heavy bass.  Simply put, it was a killer album.

Late last year, the boys came rushing back with their follow-up, Dust Devil.  Now signed to Napalm Records, I didn't know what to think at first.  Napalm is a great label, but not one I'd originally associated with a retro-fuzzy, stoner-minded band like Lonely Kamel.  How was it going to sound?   Were the boys gonna have to change their sound to fit in with the more metal-minded offerings of the Napalm catalog?  Was I about to lose one of my favorite bands?

Hell, no!  Dust Devil, if anything, drops deeper into the retro-70's canyon, mining away into the deep crevices of hard-rocking blues a la early-Zep, Free, Taste, and Blodwyn Pig.  Mix that genetic blueprient with the fired up stoner-blitz of Kyuss, a dash of Fu Manchu, and a sacrifice on the alter of Clutch, and we got what may have been one of my missed Top Ten albums of 2011.

"Grim Reaper" is pure blues.  Hard core, bottom-heavy, riff mad blues.  Cut fresh from the marble of a 70's blues rock band.  Vocals rough but clean.  Riffs precise and heavy as crap when they wanna be.  That vibe doesn't last too long though, as "Evil Man" races right into the dust-swept deserts and canyons of Kyuss.  Killer stoner rock here, revved up and hype, not doomy.  A sandstorm of riffs and bashing drums.

"Blues for the Dead" appropriately enough mixes the first two songs to create a blues-minded, doom-toned, stoner-fried freaked out, fuzzed assault.  "Rotten Seed" picks up the fuzz, lays down a manic beat, and races to places unknown.  Great guitar riffs here, chopping the song up, varying the tempo, and dropping into a KISS-esque choral break.  Dig the killer bass breakdown leading into the space guitar solo jam middle section.  Damn, is it good as it blends right into the plodding, doom-laden, downtempo blues intro of "Seventh Son." 

Lonely Kamel are a band I don't hear bandied about as much as names like Lo-Pan, or even our own Mos Generator, but damn if they aren't right there in the upper eschelon of stoner rock bands.  Someday, I still gotta review Blues for the Dead, because that album really deserves a Ripple write up, but in the mean time, I offer you, oh waverider, Dust Devil.  May the beloved fuzz rock the cobwebs from your brain.


--Racer

The Single Life - 7" of Fun: Featuring My Plastic Sun

My Plastic Sun - Silicone Junkie (digital)

A while back I espoused my love for the late '80's purveyors of darkened psychedelia, The Jet Black Berries. When that band crawled out from their earthen grave and unleashed a total surprise of an album Postmodern Ghosts, I was taken by for a ride by my ear drums, kicking and screaming back down into that abyss of horrorscope pop that the JBB's did so well.

Well, the band is on hiatus right now, but that didn't stop the boys from keeping on keeping on.  Turns out that drummer Roy Stein and singer Johnny Cummings have been busy with their latest project My Plastic Sun who've just debuted their newest single, "Silicon Junkie" and damn if my ears aren't taking me for a ride again.  Big and fleshy, there's still some trappings of psych here, but now it's all wrapped up and buffed in a clear coat of modern pop sensibilities.  And damn if it doesn't cook.  Johnny's voice is smooth as melted butter as he pours over the song, textured guitars wail and undulate, Roy pounds out some polyrhythmic bashings, and the bass plows right into my brain.  Toss in an earworm of a choral hook and we got a chugging winner here.  Seriously, put these guys out on tour with Ripple band, Sky Parade and we're set for a shoegazing, electro pop party.  Cool song that rocks and grooves.  Nice job, boys.  Looking forward to hearing more.

www.myplasticsun.com

Porcupine - Witness to a Chase Scene

A while back I wrote about the fun Porcupine/Metal Ghost split 7".  Now my favorite indie, dream pop shoegazers are back with a 3 song 7" that simply smokes.  "Witness to a Chase Scene" percolates out all revved up late-60's spy film cool with it's Peter Gunn guitar licks and low-down feel that just takes over at the 19 second mark.  Way cool.  It doesn't take long for the boys to mix it up, bringing in some of their hallmark alt-psychelic pop.  A tiny touch of emo?  All good.  "Evil Twin" brings back the more math rock-y aspects of the band but is no less accessible, and "Dare to Jump" jumps right back into the more angular paths without ever losing it's ability to chug along at a head-bopping pace.  Another winner.

Buy the 7" from Porcupine's bandcamp and you'll get your choice of vinyl/cover color combination: red cover/white vinyl, orange cover/clear vinyl, green cover/black vinyl, or heck, just buy the 7" triple box set and get all three.


http://porcupineband.bandcamp.com/track/witness-to-a-chase-scene

Dead Weight - Cosmic Lunch

There's a new southern bluesy classic riffing band in town and they go by the name of Dead Weight, and their music is anything but.  Big guitars with sizzling lead riffs, big blues-based chugging, and vocals soulful enough to raise this unit above the pack.  "Cosmic Lunch" is everything you'd hope for from a song with that title.  Tasty morsels of psychedelic guitars searing and tearing through the classic riffs.  And the fine treats don't stop there.  I have no idea what a "Gannymead" is but the song cooks along like a freight train, chugging off into southern blues rock nirvana.   "Lady" slows things down enough for a classic-styled power ballad just long enough for "Stone Frog" lives up to the bands claim that they play voodoo reefer rock.

Check em out.  Any band that lists Led Zeppelin, Red Fang, Baroness, Down, Pride and Glory, and Pabst Blue Ribbon as influences is a band right up our alley.

https://www.facebook.com/DeadweightTheBand/app_2405167945

Esperanza Spalding - Radio Music Society

Or: why the "change" pocket in cargo shorts is truly, genuinely great and useful:

Said pocket holds an iPod nano nearly perfectly, which in turn holds the digital version of the above record, which in turn--

allows Radio Music Society to permeate me while I go about my normal day: washing dishes, vacuuming and whatnot...

Radio Music Society is undeniably "pop" music (a term I'd normally consider an insult) at its very best (perhaps hence Esperanza's recent Grammy win): innovative music with clever, inspirational lyrics, while still melodically memorable: it's George Clinton-- if he played bass, came from a jazz background, and wrote less-sexualized lyrics.

It's adventurous, creative pop music. It's also, pretty obviously, an attempted "crossover" record (from jazz to pop), though it's pretty much successful in this regard (there's no instrumentals; it's all vocal-led pieces with a jazzy though pop-led sensibility):

"Endangered Species" is the best intro tune/ "crossover" example here: previously she just did the somewhat-famous Wayne Shorter piece (while singing the tenor sax line as scat); however,  now there's intelligible lyrics (i.e., what's normally called "vocalese," which is normally a terrible thing, particularly in tunes like Monk's "'Round Midnight") but in this case, it pretty much works.

With the "deluxe edition" (normally a semantic indicative of a cash-grab by iTunes or whomever), you actually get an hour-long video of the "making of" the record-- and it's worth getting in and of itself.

Specific tracks, you ask?

"Land of the Free," which is just Esperanza and a bass with lyrics, is the most overly political tune here: It's George Clinton + Scott LaFaro + Public Enemy, ca. 1988.

"Black Gold," the initial single, still holds up, and in general I really enjoy Spalding as a "New Jazz Artist" (especially since she's a hot black chick playing bass guitar and singing!)-- how is this not hot...?

On track six, "I can't help it," you get this lyric:

"Like a trip to heaven, heaven is the prize..." (featuring Joe Lovano, one of the few tenor guys of the last, say, 40 years, whose tone, via his $1000  custom-made wood mouthpiece, I angrily covet)....

"Hold on Me," is Mickey Spillane (i.e., Dashiell Hammett over the top) as melody and mood... jazz as you probably think it is if you don't listen to much jazz)....

Basically? She's a "jazz"-borne ingenue, one who's decided to write jazz tunes that a very-literate public will chat about while drunk....

Evaluate that as you will, for good, or for bad....

--Horn

Malice - New Breed Of Godz

What? New Malice? New songs? New takes on old songs as well? O.k. before you read more please be aware that I was a malice fan from way back. I have the famed cd, Metal Massacre  which features a then almost unknown Metallica. I saw Vice Versa and went nuts during the Malice concert part.

 This album is chock full of reworked hits and some new songs. Most notable is “new breed of Godz.” This killer track sounds like a freight train smashing right out of the 80’s and into the modern world. I would argue that these guys made a decision to recreate that sound rather than jump on the digital bandwagon of the age.

The production is superb and the song structure is classic Malice. “New Breed Of Godz”….This song is the stand out new song on the album. “Branded”,” Winds Of Death(Angel Of Light)”, and “slipping through The Cracks” are all destined to be classic Malice tomes of sonic assault.
   
“Sinister Double” reworked with vocalist James Rivera is just too good for literary words. I can’t describe it and that’s my job. Grab some headphones…put it on ten and scream along. “Air Attack”, are you kidding me. Amazing, brilliant. A rebirth of classic metal that it unmatched.
   
 Pete Holmes breathes new life into this cosmic metal power horse.  A thunderous Trojan horse that will explode in your cd player like none other. I am and always will be a fan. These guys need another movie cameo! I also like the album artwork. Tastefully ripping your eyeballs off the page. New godz of metal indeed. Five horns up on my own personal metal scale…two being the best!!!


--MetalRising

LINE-UP:

Jay Reynolds – guitars
Mick Zane – guitars
Mark Behn – bass (played on the re-recorded songs)
Robert Cardenas – bass (played on the new songs)
James Rivera – vocals
Pete Holmes – drums


Tracklisting:

CD:
1. New Breed Of Godz (new song)
2. Hell Rider
3. Against The Empire
4. Branded (new song)
5. Sinister Double
6. Circle Of Fire
7. Stellar Masters
8. Winds Of Death (Angel Of Light) (new song)
9. Air Attack
10. Chain Gang Woman
11. Slipping Through The Cracks (new song)
12. Godz Of Thunder

Heidevolk - Batavi

I stood staring out the open door, watching the earth move 15,000 feet below me.

I'd taken many a dive before, so I had no reason to be anxious, but as the wind belted my face, I couldn't help but think something was about to go terribly wrong. Fastening the earbuds into my ears, I hit my iPod and the Pagan Folk Metal of Dutch band, Heidevolk, burst into my ears.  It seemed like the perfect accompaniment to my jump.   Swallowing my fear, I leaped from the plane, flinging myself into the vastness of the early morning sky.  The air buffeted my cheeks, icy daggers of pain digging into my face as if a butcher were filleting my face with tiny scalpels.  Adrenaline seared though me, but not in the sense of the normal rush.  It was the fear of the unknown.

Lightning cracked.  A vortex swirled around me, a maelstrom of darkened clouds and stinging rain.  Thunder resounded within the whirlpool of whipping clouds and ice particles.   The Earth disappeared.  My body descended into nothingness.

Then, just as quickly as the vortex arrived, it was gone.  I was on the earth, unharmed, yet I hadn't ever deployed my chute.  How was that possible?  And where was I?  The darkened forest around me was a far cry from the windswept, brown grassy fields of my landing zone.  Rain fell about me.  I crawled onto my knees in the mud.

Then, they were there.

I saw them before I heard them.  Pounding drums and chants of a long-lost time.   A time of dark ages and lost Germanic tribes.  Terror seized my heart as the foliage parted and out they stepped.   The Batavi.  Yes, I know they existed over a thousand years ago when they dared to rise up and fight against the oppression of the Roman Empire.  But there they were.  In single file formation.  Battle armaments at the ready.  The regiment began chanting in unison "Een Nieuw Begin."   I don't know how they had electric guitars, but they did, and they crushed out one brutal metallic riff after another, searing up and around the melody of the chorus and back into the group chant.  I should have been terrified, but I wasn't.  The Batavi didn't want to harm me.  They knew I wasn't from a lost Roman Legion.  No . . . they wanted me to join them.

We marched back to their village and the feast began.  In the main hall, mead and ale poured like a sexual fluids as the guitar whipped into the melodic lines that rode over the staggering metal riff of  "De Toekomst Lonkt."   Paired clean vocals rose above the fray of rousing metal guitars, leading the men into the hall, ushering them forward to celebrate the upcoming battle.  And the men did.  Rushing in amid a tempo change and perfect thrash riff, they gathered and chanted in unison.  I don't know what they were singing, some Germanic dialect, but I was totally wrapped with them.  Mead flagons held aloft.  A God was going to bless them that night and the men planned to meet that God drunk off their asses.

We feasted on boar and deer, tearing the meet from the animals bones with our teeth, juices dripping down our chins, as a funeral mall fell over the group.  The dirge of "Het Verbond Met Rome" settled over the large room, walls of guitar screaming and echoing as if in mirror of the dying that would happen tomorrow.  The reality of our situation settled in.  We were about to face the world's mightiest army--the mere few of us.  But we weren't going to falter.  Picking up the mead flagons we jumped upon the table as the crushing thrash riff picked up the tempo.  Another group chant.  Another rousing metallic riff.  A brotherly slap to the warrior besides me.  If I was to die, these would be the men I would meet my maker with.

"Wapenbroeders"  brought us to the frenzy.  Crushing blast beats accompanied by the mournful wail of a violin filled the air as we lined up single file, grabbing our weapons.  A battleaxe in my right hand, I grabbed a metallic mace in my left.  I steadied the shield that protected my left forearm and pulled the helmet down over my bald scalp.   Our leader called out to us as the cacophony broke into a raging guitar riff.  "Hey" we screamed back in time with the band.  Battleaxe raised.  "Hey!"

Adrenaline speeding through our veins and the taste of blood lust in our mouths, we marched through the village to the raging metal of "In Het Woud Gezworen."  The women stepped out of the earthen huts, babies draped on their hips.  Then it was time for a moments reflection.  A lone violin stepped in above a delicately strummed acoustic guitar as we took the two minutes of the mournfully beautiful "Veleda" to say our goodbyes.   Tears stained their cheeks and even the bravest man felt the knot grow in their throats as the reality of our eventual battle set in.  Not many of us would return to our homes, but fight we must.  For freedom.  For our children.

And fight we did.  To the hyper-intense death scream blitzkrieg of "Als De Dood Weer Naar Ons Lacht" and on through the thrash metal assault of "Einde der Zege" we fought.  Limbs rendered from torso.  Heads split open under the crushing might of my mace.  I defended my brothers, fighting for my new adopted land.  Blood splayed, flesh tore.  The band played on in furious thrash metal as the lone violinist joined in, lending her mournful gaze to the bloodshed.

And then, as quickly as it had started, it was over.  "Vrijgevochten" rang out, a lone guitar scratching out a metal riff, soon accompanied by the full band and the rousing gang vocals of us survivors.  We rose above the dead, our arms locked with each other.  We raised our voices to the Gods, giving thanks for our victory and remembering the brave deaths of our fallen comrades.  As sweet as victory is, the muted metal of "Vrijgevochten" reminds us that nothing comes without a cost.  We gather up our dead and wounded and head back to the village.  Women and mead await.

As for me, I have no desire to go home.  I'm one of the Heidevolk now.  I live with the Batavi.  Romans beware.

--Racer

Dead Sara - S/T

In the world of rock n' roll, there's a lot of crappy bands, a few good bands, and fewer great bands. However, every now and then there's those bands that come along where you listen to them and immediately go, "They've got it!" That phrase right there is hard to describe. It's something within the music, something genuine, something that just clicks. When I first heard Dead Sara's EP The Airport Sessions, I immediately said that very very phrase to myself - "They've got it!"

Now that Dead Sara has released their first self-titled full length album, it's been a breakout year for the band. They have just made a featured slot on the Warped Tour and will be touring with The Used across the USA. Last year, they opened for Bush, and they are riding high with their first single, "Weatherman," a hard rockin' song that's been gaining a lot of buzz for the band.

Fronted by the versatile vocals of Emily Armstrong, whose range can handle blues, soul, as well as unleash a gritty rock n' roll howl full of intensity. Besides Armstrong's amazing vocals, the electrifying band is also driven by Siouxsie Medley's guitar playing, a no non-sense style that blends melodic and heavy riffs into a perfect cocktail of hard rock.

Not to take away from the other members of the band. After all, a band is a cohesive unit. Either the chemistry is there or it's not. Bassist Chris Null and drummer Sean Friday also add to the electrifying dynamic of this band with their straight-forward style. Dead Sara is a tight band that knows how to write damn good songs, whether they're straight up rockers or heartfelt ballads. This album has intensity yet diversity as well. It's far from a boring one-dimensional album.

The albums opening song Whispers And Ashes eases you into the album. It's more of melodic song and has a hint of a U2 vibe. The song is extremely well-written, and a bit of a departure from the sound off their EP.

One of the stand out tracks on Dead Sara's new release is We Are What You Say,  an up-tempo song with a massive hook that's just undeniably - catchy. The song is no slouch, however. It rocks, and I think this song should've been the album's first single, as opposed to Weatherman.

Monumental Holiday is another fast-paced rocker that just has one of those great riffs that's reminiscent of the 90s grunge/punk sound. I can see this song on a soundtrack to an action film. The movie that comes to mind? This tune is perfect for another Crank flick.

Test My Patience is another great song that rocks good and proper, but the great thing about Dead Sara is the genuine emotions they capture in their songs. The three ballads - Dear Love, Face to Face, and Sorry For It All are extremely soul full. It's on these songs, you can really hear Emily Armstrongs amazing singing chops as well as lyrical writing talent.

Though Dear Love could very well be the album's hit song on the lighter side, Sorry For It All is by far the most heartfelt. Although I prefer their original version with just guitar and vocals, the new album's version is an interesting take on the song.

I've been waiting a long time for their album to come out. As I've said countless of times to people, Dead Sara is going to be a huge band in mainstream rock, and there's a reason for that. Don't believe me? Just take a listen. You can find Dead Sara on the Warped Tour and on the road with The Used!

--Boogs

Nine Pound Gun - Twelve, Twelve

The first time I heard the phrase “Nine Pound Gun” was when I was partridge and pheasant hunting near the Madison River in Montana.  As we practiced with 12 gauge shotguns on some skeet before heading out into the fields near the river, one of the guides pulled out an old Civil War-era Springfield rifle and quickly hit, reloaded and hit, two clays.  The second guide, who had been tending to the dogs, yelled back at the group of us hootin’ and hollerin’ over the accomplishment and said “Hey, Eagle-Eye, showing off with your 9 lb gun?”  I didn’t understand the odd reference until I later found out that the rifle weighed 9 pounds and that a 9 lb gun was actually a European cannon found mounted on vessels of the English and Spanish armadas of the 18th and 19th centuries.

Nine Pound Gun (9LB GUN) is also a great power trio that fires classic, country-tinged southern folk rock in the tradition of Bob Seger and the Silver Bullet Band, Son Volt and Uncle Tupelo.  Jeremy Phillips provides lead guitar and vocals.  Ross Kinsler plays a left-handed bass and Bob (The Drummer) Lovvorn provides skins and cymbal play.  Both Kinsler and Lovvorn ably provide back-up vocals.   Phillips and Lovvorn have shot it up together, off and on, for the past 20 years. The band is from Lafayette, IN - Middle America - and they sound the part. They only recently pulled the trigger on forming a trio with Kinsler.

9LB GUN has released one locked and loaded album and it is explosive  It contains ten targeted tracks, is called Twelve, Twelve, and it goes off just like an over under shotgun.  One barrel is full of bar room rock - the other, alternative rock backseat ballads.  It all packs a one-two punch and can do some major damage when properly aimed.  It is great beer bar music loaded with a bit of two-stepping - and it is American as apple pie. 

By the way, 9LB GUN says on Facebook it is looking for a manager. Doing it that way is kind of a field artillery approach to a sniper problem, don’t you think?  Hope it works out for them. 9LB GUN is definitely worth a shot.

- Old School

Sleep - Dopesmoker - Reissue

As of the date of my submission, there's no downloadable content available from Sleep. Which means I have to stream it to hear it at all.

It's not like the album's called Dopesmoker, or anything... that implies one would do well to listen to this one NOT chained via headphones to their computer....

Fine! I'll stream it! Anything to just hear it!

Because I am a whore for Sleep! And Southern Lord in general! I even bought a freaking Sleep shirt for my wife, who doesn't even like metal! And she wears it! And gets compliments on it! And then says, "It's his."

Even though I have the first two iterations of Dopesmoker (Jerusalem and Dopesmoker), I am (quite figuratively) dying to hear this one-- it's remastered, there's Arik Roper's new stoner-via-Dune esque cover, there's crazy anecdotes about the recording of the album, e.g.:
Pike stated that the "song was getting slower and slower and then it got weird. We started tripping out and second guessing ourselves." Recording the album was difficult. Pike   recalled that "there was so much to memorize for that album, and we had to do it in like three different sections because a reel-to-reel only holds 22 minutes. It was really cool, but it was one of the hardest things I've ever done in in my life." SLEEP were in the studio for one month then went home to rehearse and returned for another month. Pike noted that they ended up with two or three different versions of the song.
It also features an unreleased live recording of a live performance of “Holy Mountain” from San Francisco’s I-Beam in 1994.

When Racer sent this to me I was literally listening to the older version of Dopesmoker on the stereo. It's fate/ kismet/ karma/ destiny....

Ironically, there is no weed with probably a quarter mile of me. Interpolate as is your wont, my minions. You may find this fact journalistically-dishonest (Pike and co. have said repeatedly that Dopesmoker was written to be heard while stoned), but I feel I must fully disclose.

So:

I've heard this new version a dozen times now: the first thing you notice is that the riff entering at around 0:15 is much clearer and louder. I don't really know that much about remastering, mastering, et cetera, and maybe they've only made it louder, but I can actually hear the pick hitting the strings, whereas on the version of Dopesmoker I'm familiar with, it's a bit harder to pick that out. At this point, I want both versions of Dopemoker on vinyl, at jet-engine volume, to truly try and parse the differences between the two editions.

Of course, my lineage is mostly German and Scandinavian, a notoriously-detail-oriented/obsessive people, and I personally am anal-retentive as fuck, so maybe I'm overdoing things.

Again: interpret as is your wont.

At about 21:30, once everything but the main riff drops out, you can again hear the strings over-vibrating against the pickup... which is pretty cool. I feel like I'm standing right next to the band in a small room without carpeted floors.
The lyrics, too, are a bit more clear: the first line "Drop out of life with bong in hand" is easier to understand, as is the classic, "Lungsmen unearth the creed of Hasheeshian."

Man. That's some obscure poetic shit that Rimbaud, William Burroughs, Baudelaire, Rumi and Kerouac would find obtuse.

How can you not love that?

If nothing else, the reissue reiterates why it's such a great record (if you truly let it in, stoned or not)-- it just comes in and sweeps itself through your brain, it says to you we have all the time in the world, let's use it thinking of far-away lands that before this record you found impossible to believe existed....

If you already have the old version of Dopesmoker? If you're really into it, you'll wanna check this out. Otherwise, stick with the old version. Tune in, turn on, burn out, daddy-o....

--Horn




[Southern Lord's Press Release about Dopesmoker: http://www.southernlord.com/band_SLE.php ]

[Southern Lord records' Deluxe Reissue of Sleep's Dopesmoker is released internationally on May 8, 2012.]

Cortez - S/T

This is one of the easiest reviews I'll ever get to write. Cortez is one of my favorite contemporary bands playing mid-tempo heavy rock. They have a new DOUBLE ALBUM on 180-gram vinyl with great cover art that's worthy of acrylic on denim. All the kick ass songs I've been hearing them blast out at shows the past 4 years are now documented and now I know what the songs are actually called. It's the full meal deal! Be warned, there isn't a parental advisory sticker on the cover but there are a lot of pottymouth lyrics.

Since their 2007 EP Thunder in a Forgotten Town, Cortez switched singers and lost a guitarist but the changes only made the band stronger. Lots of bands out there are playing in a heavily Sabbath influenced realm but Cortez is one of the few to utilize more than just the usual Master/Volume 4 riff rehash. For those of us who have spent decades analyzing the Sabbath family tree know just how much killer shit there is that people tend to overlook. The reason why all those Black Sabbath, Led Zeppelin and Deep Purple records are so classic is the variety. Cortez understands that and plays the music they want to hear. I wanna hear it ,too and have been playing the hell out of this!

Album opener "Johnny" is the perfect introduction to Cortez. Guitarist Scott O'Dowd laying it down hard and heavy. Drummer Jeremy Hemond comes in with one of his patented Cozy Powell-esque drum fills to signal bassist Jay Furlo to start thudding away and singer Matt Harrington starts belting it out big time. This is a fast and catchy song that I guarantee that you will cause you to increase the volume at least twice before it's over. The rest of side one is equally killer. "All Hail" is slow and powerful while "Until We Die" has a killer trippy jam in the middle. "Ride On" is easily my favorite Cortez song. Kick ass speed limit rock with references to cheap beer and dirt weeed. You will definitely want to crank this one loud when you cruise around the parking lot looking for a spot at the Priest concert. It's too bad radio stations don't play album sides anymore, this would be a good 'un for people to get down to this summer.

And the other sides ain't bad either! Side two shows them stretching out with some psychedelic warrior jams like "Wormwood" and the Mountain-influenced "Beyond The Mountain." "Monolith" has some excellent Corky Laing style cowbell and "Immigrant Song" moans. Side three has great songs like "Nice Try" and "Northlander" but "Satan" towers high above them. If you ever wished "The Tempter" by Trouble wasn't so damn pro-Jesus, then you've got a new favorite song. Also, anyone that loves the song "Warhead" will be thrilled. Side four (!) has raw demo versions of "Johnny," "Until We Die" and "Monolith" as a nice bonus. The music's heavy and the vinyl's heavy. What more could you want?

--Woody

Not sure of the exact street date on this one but their record release show in Boston is 5/5 with special guests Mighty High.

Band website

http://www.cortezboston.com/

Buy from Kozmik Artifactz

http://www.kozmik-artifactz.com/shop/index.php?cat=c170_KOZMIK---BILOCATION-LABEL.html&XTCsid=4d8a9ced74923384fe1d49242bd35b47


"Johnny" on bandcamp
http://cortezboston.bandcamp.com/album/cortez

Stubb - S/T

Tenacity and perseverance…two of the most essential personality traits to have as a rock musician in this day and age. As the old saying goes, if at first you don’t succeed, try, try, try again. This is no more pertinent than when discussing a certain Jack Dickinson. In 2006 Jack put together the initial line-up for Stubb; a hard rocking stoner/psych/jamming three piece. Fronting the band and cranking his guitar, Stubb very quickly built up a strong live reputation in the UK scene but no sooner had the train started rolling when the wheels fell off and Jack found himself without a band. The erratic Stone Turner briefly filled the void until Jack was thrown a lifeline by two friends and fellow musos. Enter the Trippy Wicked duo of Chris West and Peter Holland. Chris is easily one of the finer drummers in the UK stoner/doom scene and his easy, fluid yet hard hitting style was to be the rhythmic kick Stubb needed to rejuvenate their sound and breathe them back to life. Peter Holland, Trippy Wicked front man and guitarist may have seemed un unusual choice to fill the bass slot but his perspective as a guitarist now allows him to jam on the bass alongside Dickinson with ease as well as providing some very welcome backing vocals to add extra dimension to the core sound. And so it came to pass, Stubb were reborn!!!

It turns out West is not only a fine all round musician but also an enterprising bastard who, when labels failed to deliver, decided to form his own and this Stubb album is the first fruits of this…and you may be hard pushed to find a better album with which to kick-start the whole shebang.

Firing up the engine with old favourite “Road”, it’s clear from the outset that West and Holland’s rolling groove and Dickinson’s Hendrix inspired lead playing were destined to meet in some form of psychedelic supernova. This song as always a highlight of the original band’s set, in no small part to Dickinson’s syncopated and synchronised guitar vocal runs. The song writing is simple and effective built around an easy free flowing riff but bound up in a ton of groove. Holland’s bass playing adds an extra level of diversity that the band missed before playing around the riffs under the solos as opposed to just maintaining the riffs. The fact that he’s playing his bass through a guitar amp in an old school style just adds to that authentic 70’s vibe.

“Scale The Mountain” eases back on the pace but retains the weight and groove of the previous track and allows West free reign to open up on the drums and display some deft jazzy touches. Here also, Holland’s vocal contributions prove to be a perfect counterpoint to Dickinson’s own. Whereas the latter has a rougher, more bluesy tone, Holland punctuates the song with his higher register, Chris Cornell-esque wail that pulls the song up into a higher plain.

Holland kicks off “Flame” with a nice elastic bass line before being joined by the rest of the band. The vibe here is easier and more relaxed pushing the band’s blues influences to the fore. The live instrument recording serves to accentuate the inherent soul of the song keeping it clear and unfussy and allowing the groove to do the talking. It also has to be said that, throughout the album, Dickinson displays some very tasteful chops on the guitar that have barely been touched by the last 40 years of influence…the guy has a very old head on pretty young shoulders.

“Soul Mover” offers a welcome step up in pace with its acidic, early Monster Magnet reminiscent punked up psych rush. Here Dickinson tells us “Oh Baby I don’t know what you like, but I’ll keep you satisfied”. Presumably there will be an element of trial and error and guesswork in the lad’s love making!!! I was initially worried that the new Stubb album may be given over too heavily to aimless jamming but it couldn’t be further from the truth. The songs are all tight and concise and the jamming elements stay on the right side on tolerable offering just the right level of unpredictability without ever crossing over into self indulgence.

On “Crosses You Bear” the band offer their first respite from the fuzz overload with a delicate, folk driven acoustic ballad that shows that Dickinson is not only a tasty finger picker but  capable of delivering a vocal with some true emotional depth. Melodically this is a clear stand out track…and over far too quickly.

The Big Muff muscles its way back onto the scene on “Hard Hearted Woman”. Another tale of heartbreak and loss, a theme that seems to run through many of the lyrics here. Musically this draws less from the psychedelic end of the heavy spectrum and plants its size 9’s firmly into muscular 70’s hard rock with yet another killer riff before playing out with some mellow, bluesy yet tasteful axe heroics.

Next up we have the potential album stand out. “Crying River” is a Neil Young flavoured mid paced ballad featuring dual lead vocals from Malin Dahlgren from Swedish folk duo the Polly Tones. This is an achingly beautiful song that also features Dickinson’s most emotive playing on the whole album and shows that the band are so much more than just a bunch of heavy rocking hairies!!!

The seven plus minute “Galloping Horses” plays the album out on another fat, rolling groove that is almost literally dripping with 70’s testosterone. It practically smells of Denim aftershave and chest hair before changing tack at the mid way point into something altogether more esoteric and spacey.

Do I have any criticisms? Yeah a couple but they’re most certainly far from being deal breakers and more a question of taste than anything else. Firstly, although Dickinson shows a real flair for a vocal melody and has a decent set of pipes with which to put this across, his delivery doesn’t yet show the same level of confidence as his guitar playing, occasionally sounding a little awkward. It is still relatively early days for Dickinson as a vocalist and in time he will grow deeper into the role and really define his personality as a singer. It is also something of a shame that, given Holland’s ability as a singer, his skill isn’t utilised to a greater degree to provide counterpoints and harmonies with Dickinson to create a vocal breadth that could be truly spectacular. When the technique is employed here it provides a major lift and could prove to be a real selling point for Stubb lifting them above their contemporaries. Lastly, don’t come into this album looking for divine lyrical inspiration. The lyrics, for the most part are ridden with clichés that either drip with psychedelic mysticism or broken hearted melancholy but come across as fairly uninspiring, meaningless sixth form poetry. Fortunately I rarely take much notice of a band’s lyrics and let them gloss over me unless they really carry some form of intrigue or weight like Neil Fallon’s from Clutch. So in this case the lyrics didn’t prove to be a major distraction.

On the far greater plus side, this is an excellent debut album from a supernaturally talented bunch of musos who know every trick in the book when it comes to creating some awesome, kick ass heavy rock and roll with true passion and guts. Stubb’s debut album is definitely a triumph of, not only dogged determination from all involved, but of sheer class! You will be hard pushed to find a better debut album this year…so don’t bother looking, just get this.


--Ollie

http://stubb.bandcamp.com/
http://www.superhotrecords.com/

Teramaze - Anhedonia

Teramaze sound like dream theater with some balls. True to thrash form they unleash plenty of staccato riffing but temper that steel with some killer vocals. Undoubtedly these guys are looking to make an impact on their scene down under in Australia.  I like it when you really have to strain to pick out the influence a band has. That, to me is a sign of a great band.

This one grabs your attention from the first riff and shakes you around like a great white shark. Tracks that stood out in my cd player were. “Machine”, “Fear of the Unknown”, and “without Red Hands”. This is a sound that combines so many of today’s new metal with the thrash classics of old. Bands like Testament come to mind as well as Nevermore.

 Mick Tallent on drums and Tijon Lolis on Bass are a juggernaut. Chugging through the backline like a freight train. These two are tight and this album owes a lot to their strength. Check out title track, “Anhedonia”, and “Black Circles” to get a complete sense of their power.

  Guitarists are often either pushed too far to the front or buried in the mix. Not so with this album. Perfectly matched and just simply incredible guitarists, Matthew Dawson and Dean Wells lay down a frontal assault of six string carnage. “ Black Circles” contains a screaming lead. I can’t get enough of the power of this band.

 Brett Rerekua on vocals is allowed to put in some incredible runs as his band stirs up a psyclone around him. He rises above the chaos and screams, sings, growls, and serenades your ears like a banshee gone wild.  He makes you sing along with their infectious and progressive sounding tunes.

  I was not expecting the wall of sound that melted out of my speakers on this one. Just a great album with some killer production.  Find this album wherever and however you can and buy it. Then buy another one and pass it on to your best friend (yes this album is that good).


--MetalRising

Spiritual Beggars – Return To Zero

I’ve been a fan of Michael Amott for a while now.  He certainly has all the death metal cred he needs, having formed Arch Enemy back in 1996, after doing a stint with the immortal Carcass, and prior to that forming Swedish death metal OG’s Carnage.  So his metal pedigree is about as rock solid as they come, at least in my book.

I kept hearing about this other band of his, Spiritual Beggars, which he started around the same time as Arch Enemy, but was not metal at all.  The description I always heard was “stoner rock”.  I finally checked them out with the release of their most recent album, “Return To Zero” from 2010.  And then beat myself repeatedly about the head and face for taking so long to get into this band. 

I don’t know that stoner rock is the right pigeon hole for these guys, at least not on this newest release.  I put this CD in and had to take it out about 2 minutes later to see if they had maybe put the wrong CD in the case, because it really sounded like some vintage Deep Purple from the classic “Machine Head”/”Made In Japan” era.  If I had to tell someone what this band sounds like, that would be my reference point, although there is definitely stuff that would also be right at home on the “Perfect Strangers” release as well.

But please don’t take that to mean that these guys are just Deep Purple clones.  In fact, they are far from it, but they do have that similar riff based groove going.  “Return To Zero” opens with the titular intro, just a little synth-y thing that lasts less than a minute, then right into “Lost In Yesterday” we go.  It’s a very nice, moderately heavy, moderate tempo song and gets things going.  “Star Born” is up next, and it picks up the tempo without losing the groove.  Then we have “Chaos Of Rebirth”, which has heavier, slightly ominous feel to it, but maintains that nice groove feeling.  A really good quartet of songs to start things off, and they really establish the tone for the balance of the album.

“Spirit Of The Wind”, track 6, is my absolute favorite on this album.  I could literally listen to that track on a daily basis.  It is more of a ballad, definitely not rooted so much in the riff and groove as the rest of the tracks, and is a really beautiful song.  If you only knew Mr. Amott from his death metal stuff, this one will really take you by surprise.

This is a really solid release and I can’t recommend it highly enough.  In fact, on the strength of this album I have gone and purchased the rest of the Spiritual Beggars catalog.  They really are that good, and listening to the earlier stuff I can see how they were tagged as stoner rock.  My only wish is that the releases came along a little more often than every three or four years.  Check out this other side of Michael Amott, it is well worth doing.

- ODIN

Acephalix - Deathless Master

Acephalix' last full-length, Interminable Night, was my no. 7 album of last year, so I was excited to hear this one.

It's very similar to Black Breath's newest, in that there's a marriage of Entombed to New York City Hardcore-- the difference here is that Acephalix are much closer to Entombed than the NYHC-- they're boldly detuned, and overall slower than BB.

"Tomb of Our Fathers" is the first standout, with its groovy, Asphyx-like riffing and completely unintelligible lyrics... "Raw Life" is a lurching, undead-Golem of a riff/song, and highlights one of the qualities of this record-- it's just as rawly-produced as its predecessor-- you can hear absolutely every ambient sound during the recording, and (during the silences at least), it's pretty fucking cool; it underscores the heavier riffs once they start back up, and "Raw Life" clearly shows this effect.

"Blood of Desire" roars out of the gate, blastbeats at first then D-beats, then, with a Zeus/ Odin-like bellow, hits what is arguably the most "memorable" of the tunes here....

Short version: they're Entombed, got very fat and very pissed off-- can't move quickly at all, weighs 300 pounds (136 kilograms to my European brothers and sisters, 21 1/2 stone to my Irish homies) and would squash you without even thinking twice about it, though probably wheezing through the whole endeavor.

"In Arms of Nothing" intros with the same badass bass than Interminable Night started with....

Overall, there's a very slight change (I hesitate to say "evolution") from their previous record, and this consists in inching further down the death metal spectrum, ever-so-slightly away from the D-beat that characterized their previous record, Interminable Night. I can't say it's better or worse; just very slightly different.

To reuse a metaphor, it's death metal Coca-Cola. It's not new Coke, it's not diet Coke, and it's definitely not Cherry or Vanilla coke, what with their increased sweetness....

But how many Cokes have you drunk in your life so far? Hundreds to thousands, right? And they were all pretty good, yeah?

Deathless Master is your latest two-liter of D-beat-ish Death Metal.

If you love this very particular beverage, this is for you.

DRINK. UP.

--Horn

Acephalix myspace: http://www.myspace.com/acephalix

Pussy - Invasion

Only a real friend will send you Pussy in the mail. Thankfully I have such a friend in Racer. He could have been greedy and kept the Pussy all for himself, but no, he let me have it. A month or so ago, Racer said he was going to concentrate his Ripple ramblings on his beloved but neglected Proto-Metal report. His reviews of bands like Toad, Jerusalem, Iron Claw, etc was a big factor for me getting involved with these clowns a few years ago. Jerusalem's album is a real favorite of mine and I was thrilled to find out that they gave birth to Pussy.

Jerusalem's self titled album was released in 1972 and produced by Ian Gillan. That's all it took for me to pick up a copy of Rockadrome's reissue of it. Thankfully the music was just as primitively heavy as I had hoped but I must have forgotten that the band later morphed into Pussy. So when this showed up I rushed straight to the stereo to get a taste of this Pussy. It did not disappoint. This is some fine, fine Pussy indeed! While not as heavy, Pussy's Invasion is a definite growth from Jerusalem and reminds me a lot of the band Hard Stuff, another band associated with Deep Purple. Bassist/vocalist Paul Dean was the main songwriter for both bands and there's a definite refinement in the material and the playing. He's joined by Jerusalem drummer Ray Sparrow. Guitar duties were originally handled by Bob Cooke who was later replaced by Brian Goff. Tracks 1- 10 were recorded for an album that was never released with Brian and the bonus tracks from their original single and outtakes are played by Bob. Both guitarists are nothing fancy, but solid British blues-rock players. Everything was produced by Ian Gillan, who also throws in some backing vocals and percussion.

70's rock freaks will definitely want to get ahold of this. There's tons of flange on all the instruments, bluesy guitar solos and plenty of mid-tempo heavy rocking beats. Plus, you gotta love a band called Pussy that wrote a risqué song like "Feline Woman." As George Clinton once said, "more power to the Pussy!"

--Woody

http://www.rockadrome.com/superstore/product_info.php?products_id=5792

Freak Kitchen - Land of Freaks: new reissue

 Great news waveriders.  This amazing album, and the entire Freak Kitchen catalog, is being reissued by Lasers Edge.  Land of Freaks is released 5/22.  Dig it and this classic Penfold review.

“Hello everyone.  My name is Chef Penfold.  Welcome once again to ‘Cooking With Penfold’.  I’m very happy you could join me today.  Folks…wow, do we have a great show for you!  If this is the first time you’ve tuned in to the broadcast, allow me to fill you in on what you’ve missed.  At the beginning of last month, we here at ‘Cooking With Penfold’ decided to take a culinary trip around the world, bringing you my favorite recipes from thirty different countries.  Today we’ll be showing you how to make a fantastic casserole hailing from Sweden.  And to make today’s program extra special, I’ll be joined by a very special guest.  He is a true master of the culinary arts, and I am honored to cook beside him.  Without further ado, ladies and gentlemen I present to you the one…the only…Swedish Chef!”

“Hellu Cheff Penffuld, I'm gled tu be-a here-a. Bork Bork Bork!”
“Thank you Swedish Chef.  It truly is an honor to have you as a guest on my show.”
“Theenk nutheeng ooff it. I'm joost here-a tu help.”
“You’re too kind Chef, too kind.”
“Nunsense-a.  Su vhet ere-a ve-a gueeng tu be-a mekeeng tudey?”
“I’m glad you asked Chef.  Today, we are going to be making Janssons Frestelse, otherwise known as Jansson’s temptation.  It is a creamy potato and anchovy casserole, named after a famous Swedish opera singer, which is traditionally served around Christmas time but is eaten year round.”
“Oh guud! Thet is oone-a ooff my fefureetes! Bork Bork Bork!”
“Yes, it’s one of my favorites too!”

“All right, we’ve gathered all of the necessary ingredients.  Arrayed on my cooking table we have 1.2 kg (2½ lb) potatoes, 400 g (14 oz) onions, 375 g (13 oz) spice-cured anchovy filets, 600 ml (3 cups) heavy whipping cream, salt, white pepper, breadcrumbs, and butter.  Now the first step is to peel the potatoes and onions and then cut them into thin strips or slices.  Chef, if you’ll please peel and cut the potatoes I’ll take care of the onions.”
“Off cuoorse-a.”
“Great.  I’m finished slicing the onions.  Now I’m going to gently sauté them in a little butter, but I’m going to make sure not to brown them.  While I’m seeing to that, Chef would you please grease that ovenproof baking dish sitting over there?  Oh, you’re ahead of me I see.  You’re already covering the bottom with a layer of potatoes.  That’s fantastic!  Okay, I’m going to add half of my sautéed onions and half the anchovy filets.  There we go.  Let’s add another layer of potatoes, and then the rest of the onions and filets.  Beautiful!  One last layer of potatoes and the hard part is over. Now, I don’t want to tempt you too much Chef, but do you know what comes next?”
“Zee fletteneeng?”
“That’s right, the flattening of the surface.”
“Oh buy, ooh buy! Bork Bork Bork!”  The Swedish Chef flattens the surface with his customary gusto!
“All right Chef, thank you.  That’s flat enough.  We’re down to the last few steps here folks.  First, we add a few turns of pepper from the mill and just a little salt.  Next, we’re going to pour the cream on until we can almost see it through the potatoes.  That’s it.  Lastly, we’re going to put a few dabs of butter on top along with a sprinkling of breadcrumbs to add some nice texture.  Okay, all that’s left now is to put this dish in the oven where it will cook at four hundred seventy five degrees Fahrenheit for about an hour.”

Waveriders, while we wait on the delicious casserole to finish baking, I want to tell you about something else from Sweden that is incredibly exciting.  This non-edible, non-perishable entity I am going to discuss is the band Freak Kitchen.  At this moment there are no ifs, ands, or buts about it.  Freak Kitchen has established itself as one of my all-time favorite bands, and they released one of my favorite albums of 2010 (it was originally released in October 2009, but I was unable to obtain a copy in the US until 2010).  That album’s name is Land of the Freaks.  Using what I like to think of as incontrovertible evidence, I’m going to emphatically explain why all music fans need to become familiar with this album and its intrinsic greatness.

Freak Kitchen is a trio.  No…scratch that.  Freak Kitchen is a power trio!  The band, brainchild of guitarist/lead vocalist Mattias “IA” Eklundh, has been in existence since the early 1990s.  Their debut album Appetizer came out in 1994.  After three additional albums the original trio disbanded, leaving Mr. Eklundh the task of finding two new bandmates.  Shortly thereafter a new trio was formed with the addition of bassist Christer Ortefors and drummer Bjorn Fryklundh.  Land of the Freaks is the group’s seventh overall album, and the third for version 2.0 of the band.  But enough of the history, let’s talk about what’s most important…the music!

Here is where it gets interesting.  Freak Kitchen is typically classified as a progressive metal band.  I am not going to argue with that.  What I am going to do is flesh out a couple of intricacies that make this particular progressive metal band unique.  First of all it is critical to note that the songs contain as many pop elements as progressive ones.  What does that mean?  Easy.  When you break down one of their songs you will find wacky time signatures, ridiculous playing, grand thematic changes, etc.  But here is the catch.  If you don’t concentrate on uncovering these elements, you won’t notice they exist thanks to the band’s pop sensibilities.  Nothing, no matter how flashy, disrupts the flow of a song.  That means unlike some other progressive metal bands I can name, there is never a moment of mid-song headbanging recalibration.

Second, also stemming from the pop sensibilities, the songs themselves never outstay their welcome.  The longest track on Land of the Freaks is five minutes and forty two seconds.  All of the others end before the five minute mark, most before four minutes.  I’m not trying to imply that epic-length songs are bad (I love quite a few of them myself), but I am saying that I like knowing I don’t have to specifically set aside a half hour to fully enjoy one song.  Third the contributions of Mattias Eklundh, both vocally and on guitar are spectacular, plain and simple.  To say that he is a gifted guitarist is an immeasurable understatement.  His tonality, technicality, timing, and musical IQ are second to none.  The fact that he is also a fantastic vocalist is icing on the cake.  His clean vocals are able to perfectly match the mood of the song whether it calls for all out aggression or heartfelt tenderness.  In a time where a lot of metal bands are choosing the growling option, it’s nice to know who I can turn to when I need a break.  So what about that album?

Land of the Freaks is terminally ill.  “God Save the Spleen”, the opening track, has been my go to neck snapper for well over a year now.  The monstrous guitar tone, devastating main riff, and bottomless groove cast a magic spell upon my person.  I-Can’t-Stop-Listening-To-This-Song!  But let’s not stop there.  Other top-shelf metal anthems on this album include the South-Asian flavored “Teargas Jazz”, the deceptive “Murder Groupie”, and the phenomenally amusing anti-fascist “Honey, You’re a Nazi”.  Feel like something different?  No problem.  Try the transformative “OK” which begins like a ballad before morphing into a rocker, or the straight up acoustic ditty “Do Not Disturb”.  Not good enough?  Fine.  How about “Hip Hip Hoorah”, a danceable metal song.  That’s right…danceable (don’t ask me to demonstrate; I promise you’ll be sorry you did).  What I’m trying to get across is that there is a chasm-wide variety of material on offer here.  No matter what you’re looking for, Land of the Freaks will fulfill your order.  Ooh, looks like our casserole is ready!

“Okay folks, it’s time to take our dish out of the oven.  Chef wait!  That baking dish is going to be HOT!”
“Ehh! I boorned my hunds!
“Chef!?  Are you all right Chef?”
“Oh dun't vurry ebuoot me-a, I'll be-a feene-a. Bork Bork Bork!”
“Thank goodness!  You had me worried with that whole blowing air on your hands thing you have going there.  Well folks, this dish will make six to eight servings.  I hope you enjoy Jannson’s temptation as much as I do.  Thanks again to my honored guest the Swedish Chef for helping me cook today.  Join us next time when we continue our culinary trip around the world, won’t you?  This is Chef Penfold saying goodbye for now.”

--Penfold

Buy here: Land of The Freaks

Black Earth - Pink Champagne

 

Black Earth.  Dwell on the words for a second.  Imagine it.  Inhale it.  Feel it in your hands.
Black.  Rich.  Pungent.  Dirty.  Fertile.  Moist.

Six words that best describe the uber talented shit kickin’ powerhouse three piece from Austin, Texas.  Ladies and gentlemen, I bring you Black Earth.

The essence of our existence is the earth itself.  Where all good things come from.  Under the sun.  Holding the water.  The earth.  Black loam.  The kind that gets under the nails and stains your cuticles. (cute testicals?).  In the same gritty vein as Americana rocker greats Leroy Justice and the Brought Low from New York City, and sparked with a renewed vigor, Black Earth come roaring back with their euphoric sophomore album “Pink Champagne” produced by Chris “Frenchie” Smith.

Make no mistake, they have “that sound”.  The sound that’s going to go big come hell or highwater.  You can hear it in the strength and depth of their song writing prowess and musicianship, the sheer power of their delivery and the interwoven, in each other’s pocket, synchronous gel jamability of their live show.  The chemistry is more than evident.  These guys would KILL live!  And they have a reputation for doing just that.  As their bio reads, “they demonstrate a lot of versatility.  They’re tenacious live and can perform at will”.  They’re apt to “go off the deep end into an improvisational tangent”.  According to legend, they once did a thirty minute set and only played three songs.  The crowd ate it up.  Singer/guitar player Jason Calise captures a potent vocal combination of Mark Lanegan from the Screaming Trees and Ian Astbury from The Cult.  Influential moments from the Rolling Stones, Sheepdogs, Seven Mary Three, Faces also leak into their sound like friends dropping by for a drink and a tickle. 

Their bio continues – “Lots of indie bands use titles so generic that their fans have no clue about the light and dark places in the heart that the songs emerge from.  Not so with Black Earth, who declared ‘Hell Yeah’ from the get go on their 2008 album ‘That’s Right, We’re Goin’ Balls Deep’—a collection that also included high energy fare like ‘Whatever Happened to Drinkin’ Whiskey and Kickin’ Ass?’.

Don’t sugar coat it boys.

“Continuing the theme of high hopes followed by shattered expectations, the three began work on Pink Champagne during some of the darkest, heaviest individual periods of their lives.  Yet amidst the darkness and personal crossroads, there’s also a feeling that there’s light at the end of the tunnel.  This record also shows a different side of the band.  ‘We've been through a lot of difficult times, member changes, you name it’ says bassist  Dave Rangel.  ‘The one thing that has kept us together is the fact that we persevere and our love for music. Through this perseverance, we've been able to create some of our greatest moments.  When the chips are down, we keep stepping up’.  Pink Champagne begins in and then emerges from a much darker place resulting in an emotionally compelling work”.

Ten songs in ten days.  Take no prisoners fellas.

The album kicks off with the twangy bluesy, somewhat countrified DEAR LADY LEAN.  It offers up a grass chewin’, tabacco spittin’ feel featuring the rich, raspy vocal work of Jason Calise.  The keys sweetly blend the instrumentation on this number.  To quote Gord Downie from The Tragically Hip, it conjures up images strollin’ down a corduroy dirt country road on a dusty hot summer’s day pondering where the next paycheck’s coming from and whether the power will still be on when you get home.

The opening chords of FACE DOWN IN THE GUTTER kick ass!  The freakin’ tone drips with so much texture and taste it would make Gordon Ramsey blush.  It transitions into a flat out rocker while the vocals take on a more condensed, urgent feel - a perfect fit.  Skins monger Jason Reece performs rhythmic gymnastics on the kit while Dave Rangel ‘s bass runs are lockstep.  A couple of timely fuzzed out reprieves in the middle and near the end paint a different perspective.  Calise opens up the throttle on his otherworldly tone towards the end - just fucking epic intonations on the solo.  Lots of way cool FX here too and he works the baby wah like he’s spankin’ a wayward bastard child.  This stubborn number just does not want to quit!

HER SONG – if this song was written for somebody’s wife or girlfriend then she must be a pretty special person.  It has a very delicate Pearl Jam-esque quality to the guitar sound and song structure.  Supported by a magnificent background Hammond wash, the song explodes in a Billy Duffy inspired burst in the middle and again at the end before it returns to its original introspective roots.  Once again, Jason Calise squeezes out an exquisite fuzzed out solo near the end dripping with thick, savoury overmodulated tone!  This puppy’s spewing chunks.  Up front backup vocals bring it home.

LIVIN’ AND LOVIN’ is a hard driving, raucous rocker with an intro. reminiscent of the opening of Rod Stewart’s “Stay With Me” - only on speed.  Eventually things settle back into a steady rock groove augmented by a fun, quirky bridge.  Total live show fist pumper.

MY PRIVATE HELL – the title speaks for itself and the distorted guitar drives the dark point home and then some.  This dark little ditty’s a no holds barred, straight up, no bullshit rocker featuring even grittier vocals with no shortage of cowbell, a sweet chorus and a raunchy, rippin’ solo that’s a perfectly imperfect fit (you read that right).  Things pick up toward the end as the pace morphs into a full on gallop.  The Brought Low salute.

NO WAY BACK assaults your earholes with classic Bad Company/BTO type power chords right off the top.  It’s a simple, catchy tune that will ignite crowds into a rousing round of the chorus at a live show.  A tried, tested and true head banger for those down front.

The title track PINK CHAMPAGNE is a sweet, complex acoustic number that really smacks of the Screaming Trees in terms of feel and tone, highlighted by some newly minted, prominent, lip smacking female background vocals.

SHE DON’T WANT IT – the Valient Thorr inspired rolling riff off the top has you grasping for your pint of the good stuff and raising it in a collective salute to this hard chugging, tongue-in-cheek rocker that hollers out a delectable chorus once again smacking of the mighty Brought Low. 
Who’s complaining?

SINGLE STITCH is a great example of Black Earth’s superior song writing talent.  Epic in the most pulchritudinous haunting way.  Sublime reverbed mouth harp sets up the laid back feel of the song.  About three quarters of the way through, the guitar chimes in with more outrageous , over-modulated fuzzed out tones on the solo.  Finger lickin’ good!

SOMETHING ABOUT YOU is the longest song on the album and that’s a good thing.  It’s a stunning piece of song writing.  Right from the peeling opening chords and subsequent gloriously refined fuzzed out tones.  Jason Reece works the kit like a blacksmith pounding out a heavy masterpiece with gorgeous fills.  The song is intensely percussive and he attacks the skins once again like a mad rhythmic magician.  There’s more than a scent of the mighty Brought Low on this number as well which is certainly a welcome influence.  I also detect a slight Ray Davies/Kinks thing goin’ on too.  The reprieve in the middle showcases some mouth watering, hollowed out voice work as the BE boys take us on an extended psychedelic magic carpet ride exploring distant sonic galaxies.  This song is VERY indicative of what they’re capable of pulling off live.  It moves to a full gallop about three quarters in, right through to a rowdy, fist frenzied finish.

“As the title Pink Champagne indicates, Black Earth has a lot to celebrate.  Successful tours of Europe and the U.S. have allowed them to share the stage with killer bands from both sides of the pond like Blue Cheer, Throw Rag, Burning Brides, The Meatmen, Supersuckers, Red Fang, Early Man, Atomic Bitchwax, Gogol Bordello, Jimmy Chamberlain Complex, Peter Pan Speedrock, Jingo De Lunch, Sasquatch, Dixie Witch, Young Heart Attack and Nashville Pussy.  Black Earth was also featured in Classic Rock Magazine's October Issue # 150 with their song “Face Down in the Gutter” added to the compilation ‘The First Cut is the Deepest”.

And so they raise a toast to you.

Black Earth is Jason “Ving” Calise on vocals and guitar, Dave Rangel on vocals and bass and Jason Reece on drums (also of “And You Will Know Us by the Trail of Dead”).

~Teeder

http://www.myspace.com/blackearth

http://www.facebook.com/pages/Black-Earth/159290060949

http://itunes.apple.com/us/album/thats-right-were-goin-ballz/id275436710

Ripple Tech - Tweaker Travel Speakers - The Best Little Noise on the Planet

Different column today, but I wanna share something pretty darn cool.

If you're like me and travel quite a bit and listen to a lot of music, you probably know that really small/compact portable speakers are a dicey affair.  I've gone through at least 10 different makes/models over the last couple of years.  They all promise big sound and lightweight, but in the end have all been pieces of crap.  It's just nearly impossible to find something incredibly small that has worthwhile sound quality.  If they sound decent, then they take up way too much space in my over-stuffed luggage or computer bag.   And if they sound decent, they probably cost an arm, leg, kidney and unborn child.

I realize big sound will never come from a tiny speaker, but still, I keep hoping.  Something to plug into my iPhone or laptop.  Anything that is ridiculously small, lightweight, sounds good, and doesn't cost me a fortune.

I finally found it.

Now, it takes a lot to get me excited about a pair of travel speakers.  But here they are.  Grandmax Tweakers SPKR-RI-BK, 3.4 W Pull-n-Play Speakers are my newest baby.

Why?

First, the product design is killer and amazingly well thought out.  The speakers are tiny, I mean tiny.  Maybe 1 and 1/2 inches tall and wide, dome-shaped marvels.  They stack together with a magnetic connection and squeeze into a little pouch that takes up no more than 4 x 2 inches of bag space.  Item weight is said to be one pound, but it feels lighter to me.  That's it!  Yeah, I've seen smaller single speaker units, but not double speakers.  Not for real stereo sound separation.  Not a bad start, but the engineering gets better from there.

Each speaker twists open and pops up to reveal an acoustic chamber that creates the bass. Sure, it's not stoner metal-vibrate-the-walls-and-set-off-car-alarm bass, but its good enough, and surprisingly rich for these little guys.

I bought these on a whim before a big trip.  I knew I need some real sound to write some reviews, listen to Ripple submissions, and check out some Master tapes for upcoming Ripple Music releases.    The pair cost me $40 at the airport and you can find them cheaper at Amazon.

Sure, they won't replace your home stereo, and don't go expecting too much from a pair of speakers that can fit into the palm of your hand.  But these are definitely the best speakers I've come across in my travels for the size, weight, and money.  Count me a fan.

No batteries are needed (a huge plus for me).  The speakers charge through my laptop, and --coolest of all-- they charge and connect through built-in, retractable charge/audio cables.  Man, that's cool!  Eliminates most of the packing needed to get stereo sound.  There's one cable included to connect the speakers to each other, that's it, and I wouldn't even need to use it if I wasn't charging.  They're that clever.

So the design is cool, but what's really important is the sound.  Is it better than my built in computer speakers?   Hell yes!  Granted,  my computer speakers are totally crappy, but the frequency-tuned amplifier in these little Tweakers delivers really clear sound, handles high volumes without distorting (too much), delivers enough bass for me to review stoner submissions on the road, and the stereo provides real separation and fullness.  I'm listening to the Vincebus Eruptum "Acid Sounds Vol. 1" CD as I write this and it sounds badass.

So, if you hit the road as often as I do, laptop and iPhone in hand, and you want to hear music.  And if space, weight, and volume in the suitcase are as important to you as they are to me.  Check these babies out.

And let me know what you think.

--Racer

http://www.grandmax.com/online/
https://www.facebook.com/grandmaxam

Stonehaven – Concerning Old-Strife And Man-Banes

Hailing from the Midwest, (I’ve seen that they are from Kansas and Kansas City, and there is a Kansas City, Kansas, so both could be right), we have Stonehaven.  They’ve come through Seattle a couple of times in the past year but unfortunately I did not catch their live shows, but I will rectify that in short order the next time they come through town, because this is the good stuff.  The Midwest is not known as a stronghold of black metal, but these guys certainly own what they do.

This is as grim and frosty a release as any Norwegian black metallers could put out.  Upon first listen I was positive this band had to be from Europe, so yay America for putting out some of the classic sounding stuff.  And actually, classic sounding isn’t entirely true; because Stonehaven do mix it up a bit.  I hear some slight nods to straight up death metal in their music, and they are also not so tied into the tremolo picking drone that a lot of black metal bands fall into.  That drone stuff can be very good when it is done well, but in my humble opinion very few bands actually do it well, so you can wind up listening to a nine minute track that bores you to tears.  These guys avoid that by mixing up tempos, mixing up progressions, etc, and as I said above, it’s really good stuff.

Album opener “Suffering The Swine Array” pulls no punches and just starts things off right at full speed.  There are no classical or operatic type openings with this band, just good old fashioned black metal coming right at you.  This leads right into “Death Fetter” which has some spots that have a death metal feel to them in terms of tempo and the playing.  I think my favorite track on the album is the fourth, “Addressing The Scorn Pole”.  It alternates between straight up black metal time signatures and a waltz time, almost folk metal feel, and the transitions are done really well.  I have to say that the songwriting is one of the big strengths of this band.  Every track on this release is well written.  Nothing on this album sounds out of place or extraneous.  It all fits, it all sounds good together, and makes my black metal heart feel good.

I have to talk for a minute about the album cover.  It was designed by one of the band members to represent an actual event in Norwegian history from the late 10th century.  King Olaf apparently wanted his subjects to convert to Christianity and was very adamant about it, to the point that when a particular pagan priest refused to convert, he wanted to make an example of the guy.  So King Olaf and his henchmen tortured this priest publicly and the culmination was forcing the priest to eat a live snake.  While I don’t condone the forced Christianity, I always love the zeal of the Norwegians and the other Scandinavian folks who brought us the Vikings and so much great mythology.

There are a total of 8 songs on this release and they are all top notch black metal.  Do yourself a favor, check out this album, check these guys out live if they come through your town, and just dig the black metal goodness that is Stonehaven.

  - ODIN