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

Feuerzeug - Dead Wahines and Tsunamis

 

Mark my words.

When future music historians look back at the the career of Swiss sci-fi-toned stoner, heavy rockers, Feuerzeug, they're gonna to look at the album Dead Wahines and Tsumanis as the crux point of their career.

Feuerzeug (swiss for the lighter) blew me away with their hyper-charged stoner debut Drive Fast and Crash which I likened to "a herd of a thousand brontosaurs rampaging in your living room."  As best I can tell, the whole stoner community got right in line behind these guys, digging the urgency they laid into their riffing, the Motorhead-speed and power, the sci-fi twinges in their guitar tone and vibe.  And to be honest, the boys could've gotten away with simply making Drive Faster and Crash Harder, and no one would've complained.

But they didn't.

I don't know if Dead Wahines and Tsunamis is a concept album or not, but the grandness of their scope and vision is readily apparent in song titles like "Cyclops Will Be Beheaded" "Lieuplorodon VS Giant Orthocone," and Magma, Lava, and Burned Karma."   Nothing that made Drive Fast and Crash so immediate is missing from this new album, but so much has been added.

If there was one drawback to Drive Fast, it was that the relentless pace and systematic pounding of the riffing made for a rather single-minded listen.  It would seem that the boys recognized that, or just felt the natural progression to stretch out more, push the boundaries, play with styles.  Create something new.

And they've done just that.  Yes, Feuerzeug is on the border of actually becoming a brutally heavy, stoner prog band.  And if the musical development that is so apparent on Dead Wahines continues, I expect the next album by these Swiss madmen will be one of the more amazing albums of the decades.

But back to Dead Wahines.  "Cyclops Will Be Beheaded" starts things off straight in the Drive Fast and Crash vein.  Hyper-intense riffing with that now familiar futuristic-fuzz tone to the guitar whips out in a frenzy of meth-adled acrid smoke.  Pounding, and I mean pounding.  No one pounds out the riffs like Feuezeug.  It's something about the way the guiar, the bass and the drums all attack the song with the same ferocity and timing.  It's a thing of power, that's for sure. No languid stoner riff-groove here.  Ferocity is the key. "Cyclops" winds through it's 4 minutes with a multitude of riff changes, sideways assaults and full-frontal attacks, and includes a truly memorable chorus that's about as sing-along as stoner metal gets.  All of which crashes dead on into "Landkreuzer" another nitro-blast of sci-fi fuzzed riff-abundance.  Touches of Monster Magnet in a bloody fistfight with Motorhead reign supreme here.  Raw power and froth at the mouth intensity is the order of the game.

All of which is great, but without a change in dynamics, I'd venture to say the album would wear a bit thin on me after a couple of listens.   And Feuerzeug know this, as "Landkreuzer" ends with a tasty bit of fuzzed blitzing, "Evel Knievel Had Kissed the Devil" percolates out next.  No matter what images that title might conjure in my head, the song was nothing like I expected.  Riding a scratchy, near-acoustic guitar riff, the band joins in gingerly, gently, creating something that is almost jazzy in its spartan beauty.  The rage and power kick back in at around the 30 second mark, but the riffing is different; more spacious, more room to breathe.  Then . . .what is that?  A funk scratch guitar?   A soulful bass run?   A jazzy break?  Holy crap!  This is exactly what the album needed.  A refreshing change in dynamic that doesn't ignore the rage and explosive energy when it ramps up, but knows how to slow down.  Toss in a searing, fuzzed out guitar solo and this is the most unique song I've ever heard from the boys.  The song builds and falls and rises and crests all the way to the finish.

Where "I'll Scratch Until I Bleed a Flood" picks up, with its terrifying riff cutting through the silence like a scythe.  But again, we got something new and totally cool going on here.  Staying away from their all out assault and power, the boys play with the balance of restraint and bludgeoning.  Time changes.  Muted moments of silence.  Riff mutations.  It's all here with a vocal line that reminds me of The Automatic Automatic of all bands.  Cool stuff.

"Nitroghostcar" jumps back into the Drive Fast and Crash blitzkreig vein, which is awesome after the change-up of the last two songs.  And just as the title suggests, this is a pedal to the medal, tires smoking drag-race of riffing, a cool twisting guitar solo, and  . . what's that?  A keyboard center fill?  I can't really tell, but it's a nice new texture.  "Fusion Van" reimagines Fu Manchu in style and big retro-70's riffing, which blends right into the masterful two part stoner/prog epic "Cruising the Desert."  Part 1 races ahead in a mostly straight forward Kyuss attack until the very end, when the pace slows and the acoustic come out which blends right into the sweeping, majestic neo-psychedelic (think Dead Man) Part 2.   Like a hot wind blowing across the desert floor, the song floats on the breeze of those acoustics, undulating and drifting in a very prog like passage, until the heat builds back up about 1:13 in.  Mountains of heavy guitar descend like a darkened, storm-cloud filled sky, laying down thunder and the rare crash of lightning.  A very cool passage and great change up for the album.

"Release the Kraken" takes this new neo-prog direction even farther, traveling through it's 9:48 of  heaviness like some demented sci-fi/mythological short story.   Probably the most ambitious song I've ever heard from the Swiss men.  Walls of fuzz eventually give away to a muted passage of crushing doom-laden riffery and sludge-paced malevolence.

That's enough song-by-song to get a taste of what awaits you.  In the end, I still think that Feuerzeug sometimes tends a bit towards a bludgeoning sameness with some of their riffing, but underneath that, there's something really cool going on here.  Dead Wahines and Tsunamis sounds like the work of a group that is deciding to collectively stretch themselves out of their comfort zone, and doing it with great success.   For that reason, this sounds like a crux album to me.  A moment of transition as the band break from the constraints of their past and move into the limitless possibilities of the future.

With that in mind, I fully expect their next album to be a stoner/psych/prog masterpiece of epic proportions.

Mark my works.

--Racer

Jason Serious - Undercover Folk

Folk music is just that - the music of common folk.  The life of the vagabond, wanderer, hobo, itinerant farm worker, equipped with an old acoustic guitar, travelling the country, seeking temporary work, telling it like it is - that is the origin of folk music.  It is simply about folks’ daily lives and concerns.  It is the music of the downtrodden and has historically gained popularity during difficult times.

Slavery and the Civil War brought folk to the forefront with popular tunes like Down By The Riverside and We Shall Overcome.  It experienced a resurgence in the 1930’s during the dust bowl and Great Depression giving birth to such artists as Woody Guthrie.  It also started to compartmentalize.  Bill Monroe’s music slowly became a separate genre - bluegrass - although it started as folk.

In the 1960’s folk again became music for the masses with its protests of injustice and reflections on the human condition.  Bob Dylan, Joni Mitchell, Joan Baez, Judy Collins, The Band, The Grateful Dead, The Byrds, CSN&Y, Poco, The Flying Burrito Brothers, and a legion of others resurrected the folk music of the past and wrote new songs that modernized it to appeal to a much more urban audience.  They also used it as a medium for political action as a focus for populist unity with power to influence government and politics.

The Country has been at war for over 10 years.  The middle class has lost its jobs and homes.  Monied interests buy their influence in Washington, D.C. and State Capitols and seek to control what the rest of us see, hear and do. It is no small wonder that folk music is again experiencing a resurgence. 

Jason Serious’ latest album, Undercover Folk, consists of ten tunes that bring folk music into the 21st Century.  Serious is an amazingly talented songwriter.  Like Woody Guthrie, Pete Seeger, Bob Dylan, and the stellar folk talents that came before him, Serious can write a song that moves the listener in time and place.  He can evoke passion - from hope to hopelessness, from injustice to anger, from desire to love.   However. his is not protest music. It is music of, about and for the common man.
. 
Instrumental accompaniment is simple and traditional, yet eloquent and elegant. Guitar, violin, drums, horns, piano, banjo and violin all are sparingly applied.  The album also takes folk in an unexpected direction merely by Serious’ choice of sidemen to play with him.  The country-folk tinge is actually played primarily by Europeans.  It makes the music that much more inclusive and, quite frankly, beautiful.

Songs like Met Jack Kerouac combine an old time shuffle with amazingly fun lyrics and a wonderful Dixieland feel. Purple Eyes, with its interesting harmonies, tells an engrossing story of loss, anxiety and life. On A Tide is as close to a protest song as Serious gets and, really, it requires extrapolation to see it as such.  The album ends with Buckets of Gin, a slow drunk shuffle. It is the folk song equivalent of a late night Tom Waits ballad.

The album is like putting on an old coat.  It is comfortable and warm with wear showing around the edges.  Each time you put your hand in a pocket you pull out something familiar and you are excited by the rediscovery. Although the jacket may not be fashionable right now, it once was and will be again,  Undercover Folk will give you a chance to search your pockets and your soul.

- Old School

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The Ripple 7" Subscription Club - Featuring The Dogs D'Amour, Get Killed, Air Traffic and Bantam Rooster

This is a column I've been wanting to start for a long time . . . and a very different column in the life of The Ripple Effect.

In my office right now I'm looking at more than 1,000 pieces of 7" vinyl.  Some I know, like The Stranglers or The Angels, but most are entirely random.  Couldn't recite a name for ya if I wanted to.  See, near me is a cool record store that has a stock of nearly 10,000 45's.  There are huge bins of them, haphazardly placed for the price of 50 cents each.  Tons upon tons of random punk, garage, hardcore, indy.  Maybe some rare metal, some mainstream.  Lots of oldies.  All for 50 cents.

I dig the 7".  Particularly the D.I.Y., small-label released garage punk ones.  They're just so much fun.  7 minutes of hyper-burst enthusiasm by a band doing it for the love.  I dig the "barely there" cover art.  The self-made lettering.  The random inserts.

So, after grabbing a slice of pizza and walking past the street vendors and dreadlocked beggars, I've made it a habit of popping in and grabbing a handful of vinyl.  Or an armful.  Usually, I'll pick out 50 of em, drop off the $25 and head home.  After a while, those 50 add up and now I'm swamped.

So this is what I plan to do.  I'm going to invite you, waveriders, to dig through my amassed smorgasbord of 7" vinyl with me.  Every so often, I'm gonna grab about 5-7 randomly, put em on and write about what I hear.  We'll decide together if the 7" platter playing is a keeper or a tosser.  Class or crap.  So rather than only writing about the ones I like, this time we're gonna review em all.  Warts and blemishes alike.  Just so you know, not all were bought for 50 cents, so when I pull out a Motorhead or Buzzcocks 7" don't go thinking I got the find of the year. 

Should be fun.  You may come across a band or track that totally turns  you on.  You may read about a few stinkers.  I'll finally be able to clear out some space. . .

Cause I got another $25 burning a hole in my pocket and more 7" vinyl to buy.

So without further ado . . .

The Dogs D'Amour - How Come it Never Rains b/w Sometimes; Last Bandit

Now the Dogs I had heard of, probably in the pages of Classic Rock, but I'd never heard em.  Totally depraved hair/glam metal from late-'80's England.  I'm cool with that.  Not much of a fan of hair metal, but I like sleaze and a band that is as famous for their debauchery as their music is alright in my book.  So what's it like?   "How Come it Never Rains" is slower than I'd expected with a stronger country-flair to the guitar intro.  Over all, it's a pretty limp-wristed powerballad in the Poison vein.  So far not impressed.   "Sometimes" also kinda limps along at a mid-tempo beat.  Really, I expected much more Guns n Roses than this.  But the song picks up around the chorus and the guitars get bigger.  And I like the vocals, much better than Poison or Motley Crue.  Closing track, "Last Bandit" is the best one here, with the most interesting arrangement, some tighter guitar work, and a nice opening scream.  More like the Bang Tango school of darker glam. 

Verdict:  Softer than I expected, not as sleazy or rocking, but for 50 cents, it's a keeper. 

Get Killed - No Substitutes EP

 Took me almost 20 minutes to figure out the band name on this one.  But the band is Get Killed and to the best of my research this is one of two 7" platters they produced, the other being a split with The Body.  Despite being nearly impenetrable for me to figure out the band name, the packaging is way cool.  A split cover that reveals the pink vinyl.  There's also a totally unnecessary inserted lyric sheet --like I need to read what they're screaming about. DIY of the highest order.  On the platter are 7 songs (33 RPM) of maniacal screaming hardcore punk.  Guitars are played, but chords are really a grasp at reality.  Drums are beaten as if they owed the mob money.  I'm sure there's a bass there, somewhere, but the band will probably deny it.  Each song is 100 mph random punk screeching, undecipherable from each other.  Violent, thrashing hard core fury. Listening to this too many times in row could probably give you a venereal disease or something worse like brain rot.

Verdict:  Definite keeper.  Too randomly cool to toss.

Air Traffic - Shooting Star (Alternative Version) b/w This Old Town

Don't know if this was a RSD exclusive or not but it got pulled out of the discount bin at Amoeba Records in LA.  Says "part 2 of a 2 part set on limited edition clear vinyl."  As cool as that may sound it's not enough for me.  I'd heard Air Traffic were an up and coming cool UK band, but what I got here is completely wrong-directed Keane-esque whining without the melody or virtuosity.  Derivative and pedestrian.  And to make it worse, the hole was cut too small so it squeaks on my turntable and gets stuck often.  Makes my decision even easier.

Verdict:  Tosser.  

Bantam Rooster  - Mexican Leather b/w Summer in Hamtramack

BR I had heard of and pretty much anything that comes from Big Neck Records will get my attention.  I remember when I got a copy of Seger Liberation Army, which had some members of BR.  Great garage stuff.  And here BR doesn't disappoint.  "Mexican Leather" is a breakneck garage assault with gasoline-gargled vocals and a killer guitar tone.  Fuzzy but still crunchy.   "Summer in Hamtramack" may be even cooler with it's slowed-down, too-cool-beat vibe.  Half spoken, half sung beat poetry vocals hang over a simple but damn cool repeating guitar line.  Fill the club with cigarettes and some funny smoke.  Don your beret, grab a girl in a tight mini-skirt and dig in for the ride.

Verdict:  Keeper.

--Racer

Pelican - Ataraxia/Taraxis

As usual, the latest EP from instrumental post-metal (whatever that means!) pros, Pelican, exhibits a vast harmonic and rhythmic vocabulary - making lyrics unnecessary.

Anyone who knows me is aware that I love instrumental music. I'm always excited to hear what these guys put out. In the context of instrumental rock, I never really know what to expect from them, except for one thing, of course - a departure from the constricting pretentiousness of Shred. Needless to say, I was pleased to see that I had received the promo for Ataraxia/Taraxis (Southern Lord, TBR 4/10/2012).

Immediately, the record's title interested me.

The term ataraxia is associated with Epicurean philosophy, being representative of the "highest good" or prerogative of life - more specifically, the pursuit of pleasure through a mastery of the art of rational living.  Epicurus (island of Samos, about 342 - 270 B.C.E.) was a pretty cool dude who lived on a commune that boasted a really nice garden. He preached to his followers that one could achieve happiness through a partnership of moderation of bodily activities/ pleasures and mental training. The latter is the most important, since it imparts upon the practitioner a command over everything else in the world. Well, listening to Pelican's music, which leads by this very example, I am directed to ponder this uncompromising, yet calculated, approach to life. Interesting time structures and huge, aurally auspicious harmonies dominate.

Past albums have been known to be geologically heavy, taking me on a journey through a sonic subduction zone only to erupt from the other side of the record, destroyed and scattered across my living room floor. These days, Pelican takes a different route, proving that instrumental rock doesn't have to be governed by trends or exalted expectations. Perhaps, despite all the garbage acts that perpetually circulate the airwaves (bringing modern popular music to an ebb tide of despair), Pelican has founded its own Garden of Epicurus, a sanctuary that promotes and upholds the art of rational listening.

"This is our first release built by making recordings in multiple studios (often not with one another) and compiling the results; an experiment which we think paid off quite nicely and gives some indication on possible working methods for the future," as stated on the bands website regarding the different approach taken for writing and recording Ataraxia/Taraxis.

I can appreciate the wide range of sounds and melodic themes explored, as Ataraxia/Taraxis is only an EP, pretty short in length and created by a fragmented band, no less. The sleepy opener illustrates a cleanly delivered melody that is juxtaposed atop an anxious and even slightly out-of-tune rhythm section - giving off a wavy vibe. In my imagination, this disharmonic tension is indicative of the struggle of Epicurus (or anyone) to find sanity in an otherwise insane and ever-changing world. This flawless use of texturing is exactly what I want to hear in music. So, with my ears glued to this sonic slate, I listen on in anticipation.

What ensues is classic Pelican. 'Loathe Biosas' starts off up-tempo and loud with an optimistic sounding riff that works itself out over the next several measures. The song then seamlessly shifts into a study of harmonic layering through arpeggio chord melodies, and harmonized bass parts. But, as Epicurus would've had it, they resolve the song after not too long. This is a catchy tune and it's available for streaming or download on Pelican's site. Check out the link below:

http://pelican.bandcamp.com/releases

'Parasite Colony' switches gears. It is slower, reallocating one form of intensity for another as it inflicts upon me a pensive and heavyhearted, minor feel. Hands down, though, my favorite track is the last one, 'Taraxis.' It resolves the tension brought on by the dissonant motif presented in the intro track.  Instrument roles, however, have been switched. The electric guitar now whispers the gospel of sanity, driving the record home, as an acoustic guitar discordantly whines in the back seat.

Pelican breaks away from the preconceived mold into which instrumental rock has been cast, making this music a grand three dimensional venue for interpretation (as I've demonstrated), rather than just a big masturbatory guitar act centered around a few scales and a level of technical proficiency - ultimately two-dimensional. The compositional prowess allows for the creation of thick, lush soundscapes reminiscent of the organic timbre of other great bands like The Jesus Lizard and ISIS. Fads come and go, but great music lives on. As current acts like Russian Circles and Animals as Leaders continue to bore me nearly to death with their "music," I can have faith that Pelican will continue to keep me interested.

--Bones

Old Head - Maximum Rock

“Did you talk to the guy Penfold?”
“You mean the wizened old metal head who hangs out down by the arts district?”
“Yeah, the old head.  Did you talk to him about the band?”
“I might have broached the subject.”
“Don’t play games with me Penfold!  You know I don’t like to joke around when we’re talking about the band man!”
“All right Gary, all right.  I’m sorry.  I know how much you care about this stuff.”
“Dang right I do!  So what did the old head say?”
“Well he was kind of vague when I asked him how we could achieve ‘maximum rock’.”
“What do you mean Pen?  Did he tell you what we need to do or not?”
“Yes and no man.  Yes and no.  He told me that knowledge without mileage amounts to nothing.  He said that several times.”
“And that helps us how?”
“I’m reasonably sure the old head was telling me in a roundabout way that we need to go on an epic quest around the world.  I asked him where a rock band could find righteous inspiration and he gave me a list of five locations to visit.”
“So what are we waiting for Penfold.  Let’s round up Billy and Steve and get going!”
*******
“This is it guys!  This is the first place the old head sent us to find!”
“Penfold, we haven’t even left our hometown yet.  I’ll grant you that I haven’t actually walked around down here, but I’ve literally driven past this lot every day for the past three years on my way to work.”
“For crying out loud Billy!  Why do you have to be such a pessimist?”
*******
“Penfold.  Pen.  Stop!  I can’t climb anymore.”
“Steve, we’re only a quarter of the way up the mountain.”
“I can see that Pen.  I just need a breather okay?”
“Yeah Penfold, I could use a break as well.”
“I can’t believe what I’m hearing!  Do you guys want to achieve maximum rock or not?!”
*******
“Penfold, we are LOST!”
“Calm down Gary.  I know exactly where we are.”
“We’re in the middle of the freaking desert Pen!”
“You’re not helping Steve.  NOT…HELPING.”
*******
“Oh man, oh man, oh man.  What was that?!  I’m sure I saw one this time Penfold.”
“Billy, calm down.  How many times do I have to tell you that alligators don’t live in this part of the swamp?  They can only be found several miles west of where we are right now.  We’re perfectly safe.  Tell him Gary.”
“He’s right Billy.  Billy?”
*******
“All right guys.  We just need to get over that next snow drift.”
“Penfold, you’ve said that about the last four snow drifts we’ve come across.”
“I know Steve.  I’m just trying to keep you guys motivated.”
“Steve’s right Penfold.  I’m cold and I want to go home.”
“Billy, are you still upset about that alligator attack?  I said I was sorry.  What more do you want?”
*******
“So what do you guys think about our journey together?  C’mon.  Tell me the truth.  Hit me!”
“I really don’t like you right now Penfold.”
“That was a total waste of time Penfold.”
“If I didn’t have this cast on my arm Penfold I’d be punching you in the face.”
“Good!  Fantastic!  The old head told me this trip would energize us and he was right!  Now all we need to do is channel this energy into our music and we will easily achieve maximum rock!!”

Some days waveriders.  Some days you just luck out.  A coin lands on the side you called out.  You find a dollar on the ground.  Etcetera.  What someone views as lucky is different from person to person.  That’s the way of the world.  For me, when I stumble across a killer new band I always feel lucky.  This music discovery can unfold in a number of ways.  Lady Luck smiled down on me most recently a couple of weeks ago while I was on Facebook.  Going through status updates on my wall I observed that my boss, Racer X, had ‘liked’ a post by Brutal Truth/Total Fucking Destruction drummer Richard Hoak.

Mr. Hoak wanted to know if there were any blogwriters/music journalists who might be interested in reviewing his latest musical offering to the world.  Said offering is the debut album by a band he drums in named Old Head.  Maximum Rock is the name of the album, and it was released on January 1st of this year (2012).  Not wanting to waste the man’s time I found the album on bandcamp for sampling purposes.  About forty seconds into the first song I was messaging Mr. Hoak as fast as my fingers could type!  You know immediately when you’ve stumbled upon something great, and I wasted no time throwing my hat into the ring for a chance to review this high octane music.  Thankfully I was granted permission, and this review began to take shape.

Old Head is an explosive quartet made up of Megadan Tumolo on vocals, Ryan Moll on guitar, Dan O’Hare on bass, and Richard Hoak on drums.  Essentially, Old Head is the membership of Total Fucking Destruction plus a dedicated singer.  I was excited about hearing Old Head in large part due to my fondness for TFD’s last album Hater, which I reviewed for The Ripple Effect several months ago.  That album is grindtastic!  More of the same would have been perfectly acceptable to me, but I’m very happy to report that Old Head is a remarkably different musical beast.  Whatever you may say about Maximum Rock, it is defiantly not a retread of past accomplishments.  Far from it.

What we have here waveriders are established grindcore musicians successfully trying their hand at music that is equal parts thrash metal and classic 1970s rock.  The combination feels oh so right, and it sounds utterly fantastic!  If you don’t believe that these two great tastes can be melded together look no further than album opener “Bleeder”.  This incendiary song starts ominously with a persistent bass drum thumping out the downbeat underneath a couple of grimy guitar/bass notes.  Then all hell breaks loose as the unhinged, hyper speed thrash element takes over.  The aggressively melodic sing along choruses mark the only times the song is brought back to earth.  Outside of that; blastoff!  The rest of the album doesn’t disappoint either.  Those looking for a weak song or lull in the album won’t be able to find one.  Maximum Rock is relentlessly superb!  This is thirty one minutes of your life well spent!  Well…if you want to rock that is.

Before I wrap this up I must make note of the three covers that Old Head perform on this album.  Normally I prefer to let a band’s original compositions do the talking, but these covers are truly exceptional.  The band completely reimagines Crosby, Stills, Nash, and Young’s “Almost Cut My Hair”, evolving it from its acoustic roots into an absolute metal scorcher.  Same goes for Jethro Tull’s “Fat Man”.  The vocal melody remains the same, but the song takes on an entirely different attitude thanks to the boisterous guitar/bass playing and frenzied drumming.  Last but not least, the band’s cover of Black Sabbath’s “Rock ‘N’ Roll Doctor” is refreshing.  That’s right.  Refreshing.  If I told you a band had recorded a Sabbath cover I would bet my last dollar no one would have guessed it would be this song.  You all know I’m right.

Waveriders, Maximum Rock is an album that needs to be on your radar.  If you like thrash metal.  If you like 1970s hard rock.  If you like grindcore music and want to try something different this album is your ticket to nirvana!  Pick up a copy today, and rock on!

--Penfold

MOTHER’S GREEN interview with March Giaccari

Every now and then the rock gods breathe a pleased sigh of satisfaction and bestow an absolute sonic gem on our collective earholes.  The latest musical manna from the heavens is the second installment from Canada’s own heavy fuzzed out desert stoner sons MOTHER’S GREEN called “Swimming in the Sun”.  So where do I start?  A trademark way cool angle?  Another riveting make believe story?  A meaningful, symbolic anecdote or some witty repartee perhaps?

I got nothing.

After spinning this album multiple times, I’m like a riffstruck kid in a sonic candy store.  So why dick around?  I’m just going to come out and say it.  This is easily the SINGLE BEST album I’ve heard in the last several months.  Maybe even beyond.  And I spin a lot of ‘em on a weekly basis top to bottom.  “Un-fuckin’-real” might be an adequate descriptor.  Let me put it this way.  The comparisons stick.  If you dig the brazen balls out bombasity of early Soundgarden and the heavy rip snortin’ sly groove of Fu Manchu coupled with the experimental desertness that is Baroness and the trippy funky ass vibes of Earthless then you’re in the right sonic wheelhouse.  ”Swimming in the Sun” is chock full of lush, gorgeous, stunning soundscapes, epic crescendos and crushing, punishing riffs masterfully delivered with air tight kickassedness.  Drummer Dean Glover is the new Sheriff in town and takes no quarter behind the kit.  And Mike Simpson’s menacing low end thunder satisfies the most rabid of THC fueled appetites.  Creative fountain March Giaccari’s songwriting, vocals and guitar work are otherworldly.  Just a stellar, stellar album throughout.  Smokin’ wall-to-wall killer rock’n’roll. 
I sat down with creator, song writer, guitarist and singer March Giaccari to discuss the newest addition to the band’s repertoire and his insatiable love for music.

TEEDER: When and how did you first encounter your love for music?

MARCH: Um, my whole life.  I don’t know just music in general.  When I listen to it, it’s just like it’s a good feeling, ya know?  And there’s nothin’ really new, no doubt about that.  I remember my family you know they got records and stuff and you go through certain records and just be like… I can’t explain it.  It’s a love that I have man.

TEEDER: When did you first pick up the guitar?

MARCH: The first time I picked it up I was 11 years old.  That’s when I got my first guitar.  I got it for Christmas and um… yah, I’ve been addicted to it ever since!

TEEDER: What were your influences growing up?

MARCH: Influences?  We’re gonna be here all day.  Everything from Sabbath to Zeppelin to Santana to Gypsy Kings to say Michael Jackson.  I mean everything man… everything.  Like I’m just tippin’ off you know what I mean… Pantera.  Lots of stuff man.  From one side to the other.  There’s no boundaries.  Black Sabbath, Led Zeppelin, Santana, Gypsy Kings, Pantera, Pink Floyd, Johnny Cash, Michael Jackson, Queen, Corrosion of Conformity, ZZ Top, Aerosmith, Monster Magnet, Phil Collins, Kyuss, Jimi Hendrix, Jaco Pastorius, Fleetwood Mac, Primus, Alice Cooper, Alicia Keys, Bob Marley, Type O Negative, Fu Manchu, Lynyrd Skynyrd, Deep Purple, Motorhead, Guns’n’Roses, Luciano  Pavarotti, Steppenwolf, Van Halen, KISS, Motley Crue, Rush, Creedance Clearwater Revival, Cream and on and on….

TEEDER: So what led your tastes into the stoner realm?

MARCH: I don’t know, it feels good man.  It’s not that I would categorize a song, it’s just it’s a good feeling.  It’s music with feeling and… it’s organic you know ?  Lots of guitars, drums, bass, percussion.  Just add like natural instruments.  And that’s awesome.

TEEDER: Let’s talk about the new album.  The first album had a more laid back, tripped out vibe to it.  Where did the more aggressive, heavier feel come from on “Swimming in the Sun”?

MARCH:  It’s just excitement.  I wouldn’t like look at it as aggressive.  I would just look at it as excitement.  Like, for instance ya know when you’re around good people and you’re havin’ a good time?  It’s just energetic.  You feel like moving.  So there’s no aggression whatsoever on the record.  If you listen to the lyrics there’s no negativity whatsoever.  I just wanted to make a record that feels good cause that’s how I was feeling.  You know when you feel good you feel like you could run for miles?  That feeling. 

TEEDER: I noticed there’s a theme in a lot of the music and lyrics about capturing what each day has to offer and not squandering it.  Carpe Diem.  Seize the moment.  Living life to its fullest.  Is that a central theme to how you live?

MARCH: Oh, yah!  For sure.  It’s like you gotta enjoy it cause like… life is short.  So just enjoy it and then appreciate everything that’s around you.

TEEDER: What’s the new album concept about?... musically and artistically including the splendiferous jacket art done by Alex Baker and so on.  It’s a beautiful gatefold.

MARCH: It’s just about being in a good place, ya know?  Everybody’s got stresses and stuff like that and this record’s just like an escape.  You listen to it and you go somewhere that’s um, ya know fun to be at you know what I mean?  It’s got some mellow moments as well.  But ya know, that’s the excitement about it.   It’s an escape record.

TEEDER: Let’s talk about the song writing process.  What was your approach?

MARCH: Actually this record came out a little bit faster than the first one.  I booked to go into BWC Studios months in advance but I didn’t actually finish writing the words and the music ‘til pretty much close to a month before going in.  It was like the last month before the deadline and the songs just started to come in.  It was a humbling experience because they just came one after the other – bang, bang, bang! 

TEEDER: That’s a transcendental moment, isn’t it?  I hear that time and time again from different songwriters in different genres.  Where do the songs come from?  Good question.
Tell me about the recording process on this new album.  What worked, what didn’t work.  Any interesting technical or creative developments or discoveries along the way?

MARCH: Oh, it was great cause I got to work with Producer Greg Dawson and ah, yah I learned a lot from that guy.  He’s a good Producer and um… the good thing about Greg is he gets an idea of the direction that you wanna go in and he makes sure it happens.  The guy’s like an encyclopedia for music you know so… It was great working with him and Dean and Mike.  And uh yah, I’ll remember that for a long time.  Probably the rest of my life!

TEEDER: Let’s move to the songs on the album.  First up, the title track “Swimming in the Sun”.  It fades in on an extended drone and builds to an explosive percussive moment that goes off like a fragmentation grenade.  The song has all the intensity of Soundgarden’s “Jesus Christ Pose” and never relents.  It never lets go.  Your vocals smack of a Chris Cornell like texture and yet there’s something more.  The delivery is tight like your first high school girlfriend.  You scored (so to speak) a reprieve that hangs back in the middle and again builds to one of the most EPIC moments I’ve heard in ALL OF ROCKDOM that bursts through the containment barrier at the 3:24 minute mark.  Absolute sheer sonic brilliance quickly pursued by a dazzling, stratospheric solo smothered in delectable tone.  Then out of nowhere you hit the brakes and deliver a punishing bridge and riff loop.  The latino congas are simply icing on the cake.  What’s the theme behind this song?  Where did it come from?

MARCH: The theme of that is like I was on vacation.  I was back home, I was back in Italy to see some old family out there and um… yah, it was just being like somewhere different outside of your surroundings.  You see mountains, you see oceans and stuff.  It’s just a beautiful feeling.  You enjoy everything.  And that’s what that song’s about.  It’s like going somewhere totally new not knowing what to expect and everything’s a beautiful thing.  Good vibes.

TEEDER: So inspired by geography and culture – music, cuisine, people.  What about the first single “Observation for the Day”?  This is a different beast of a song.  We get whacked in the face with a fuzzed out menacing drop tuned distorto hEAVy riff right from the get go!  Like the height of the London Blitz in WWII.  It’s a KILLER riff (see video below and CRANK that fucker!).  This one’s a TOTAL headbanger.  Once again, you channel Mr. Cornell underscored by some meaty guitar tones and a sweetly executed ethereal, reverbed out solo that settles into a laid back bad ass heavy groove.  Thematically you follow a thought provoking, confrontational lyrical stream.

MARCH: The theme for that song is basically like if you go and take the time to look at your surroundings and what’s around you, you know?  Life is a beautiful thing but there’s also limitations that make it not so good.  That song’s just about waking up and seeing what’s not so good and fair and how you can’t do anything about it.

TEEDER: How about “Catching Existence”?  It’s reminiscent of the chilled, trippy feel and vibe from the first album.  You feel like you’re floating down a lazy river in a psychedelic canyon nudged along by some bright, echoed guitar licks.  Vocally it’s much more relaxed, comfortable, intimate and warm.  The song is uplifting and lyrically captures the essence of Alex Baker’s awesome abstract album cover artwork.

MARCH: Catching Existence is just about hangin’ out and you’re partying and you’re with people you know, people you like hanging out with and um, and you just stop and look and you’re just like “this is awesome!”.  You’re just catching the moment.  Enjoying the moment and loving your surroundings.  That’s what that song’s about and it’s a beautiful thing.

TEEDER: Next up is “A Night in Complete Awe”.  It’s more up tempo with a minacious opening driven by a heavy gargantuan drawn out riff, snarling Cornellesque vox, smokin’ guitar tones and unexpected congas delivering a funky groove.  Three quarters of the way through you execute a tempo change with a more forceful attack decorated by another fully reverbed stratospheric solo stretching to the cosmos.  What was your thinking behind this one?

MARCH: The theme behind that one is just like um, ya know, goin’ out to a club or a lounge or anything and just like after… when you get like a good buzz going and all of a sudden you’re just, you’re in complete awe.  You’re like “this is awesome!”.  Something totally unexpected happens, something totally positive and you’re just like, “Yah!”.  You know what I mean?  And the next day you look back at it and you’re like, “yah, that was a good night”.  Having a good time and enjoying the moment.  Looking at how beautiful things can turn out unexpectedly.

TEEDER: Sometimes a confluence of different things centered around music.
What about “Conscious of the Free”?  You created a very laid back vibe on this track with more unaffected guitar tones and warm intimate vocals at the outset.  It crunches down as you up the fuzzosity and takes on a sense of urgency vocally about halfway through.

MARCH: That’s about just being in a good state of mind and just being free.  You’re being humble and knowing who you are.  Just enjoying it.

TEEDER: Flipping over to the B-side, you once again kick it into high gear with a faced paced rocker called “Just Another” that boasts delicious, twangy distant guitar, a deeply satisfying harmonic bridge and a fist pumping chorus that ends in a full gallop.  What’s the theme behind this song?

MARCH: I wrote it in a perspective towards myself but anybody can relate to this song.  Everybody goes through break ups and uh, this song just puts the positive in it.  You know what I mean?  Just enjoy you know.  Somethin’ better’s gonna come along.

TEEDER: “The Antidote”.  Another upbeat rocker with a charging attack showcasing a more fluted tubular guitar sound and monster bass tone.  You slay a resplendent noodlehead solo part way in that goes off like an errant firework shooting sparks out it’s ass and then immediately tred into darker territory without losing pace.  The ending destroyed what was left of my brain with a magnificently executed deconstruction powered by more lavish, fuzzed out tones.  A devastating plodding bottom end finally overwhelms the piece like Gigantor stomping out entire city blocks wearing mammoth concrete pads.  What’s the movement or theme on this one?

MARCH: Antidote is like um, you know when you’re feeling down?  The antidote.  It’s symbolic.  It’s not really like an antidote that you take.  It’s just symbolic meaning like it’s uplifting.  Like getting your spirits up and enjoying everything!  It’s about staying positive and not being afraid.  That’s the whole theme man.  A lot of the songs are like that and this is just one to up it up, you know what I mean?  Not being afraid.  And just enjoying stuff.

TEEDER: Next is “A Close Encounter”.  A very touching, reflective song with a whole other trippy laid back spaced out cosmic vibe interspersed by unaffected vocals and guitar, a searing upfront solo and some ravishing Hammond B3 keys from beyond that would put a smile on Jon Lord’s face.  Where were you coming from with this song?

MARCH: That song’s just about like um, I’d say you know when you’re in a relationship and you know you’re havin’ fun and that.  This is reflecting.  Looking back on stuff.  You know, not being so bitter.  Just enjoying stuff and uh, it’s a relationship song you know?  That’s all I can say.  It’s like it’s… I could talk all day about feelings and stuff like that but if you listen to the song it’s got the feeling and you know what?... everybody feels that feeling once in a while.  You think back about the partner you had.

TEEDER: The song captures that feeling you describe even before you get into the lyrics.
We continue on to “Checking Point” and throw some more gas on the embers.  Palletable excitement starts to ride.  It leaps out of the trenches with compunction and leans into a powerful bridge.  The addition of tambourine and congas again unexpectedly defies the norm, but it works!  Then three quarters of the way through you guys freakin’ throw yourselves off Victoria Falls ass over tea kettle with some seriously heavy pounding riffs!

MARCH: That’s basically about like the way life is a game of chess and how we’re all pieces on that board stuck in the system and you just gotta stay positive and whatever.  Obstacles get in your way, you gotta figure out what moves to make and how to get around it.

TEEDER: You revisit a song from the first album called “Tattoos Leave Scars” which is a great song.  It has a hauntingly sad acoustic quality to it highlighted by your rich trademark soaring vocals overtop.   A favourite of mine.  What’s the message behind it?  And how come you brought it back on the second record?

MARCH: That’s a good question.  I want to clear this up.  The reason why I brought that song on the second album… originally the second album was supposed to be nine songs and um, ya know I had that song left over from the last record.  So I was thinking ya know just add congas and bass to it and just release it as a bonus track.  And that’s why it’s on the second record as well.  It’s another break up song about a relationship gone sour.

TEEDER: So was it just a matter of adding a few instrumental tracks or was it a complete remix?

MARCH: No, it was the exact same song remixed with congas and bass.  Just added it as a bonus cause I wanted to add something extra

TEEDER: What’s the song about?

MARCH: Yah, once again here we go!  I dunno.  The song’s about a breakup and uh, you know sometimes you feel down so you write yourself a song and get over it.

TEEDER: So it’s a healing mechanism in a way.
Tell me about the musicians you surround yourself with.  Thoughts and feelings on Dean Glover, Nick Tipe, Mike Simpson and some of the guys who worked with you on the new album – keyboards, congas, etc. and their contribution.

MARCH: I’ve just been priviledged ya know, to jam with great musicians.  The line up’s constantly changing but I appreciate everybody I’ve worked with.  It’s great you know what I mean?  They’re all great musicians and I love them all man.  I love music so much it hurts.

~Teeder


BAND WEBSITE: http://www.mothersgreen.com/

Christian Mistress – Possession

Living here in the great Pacific Northwest means that I live close by to some great music put out by some great bands.  Christian Mistress is one of those bands, in my humble opinion.  They hail from Olympia, Washington, which is literally about 15 minutes south of me on I-5.  I have had the pleasure to see them up close and personal in small clubs, which I love, and to follow their releases, from the demo that got them noticed, to their first full length, and now this release, their first for Relapse.
I really love this band, and they have really grown over the course of the release mentioned above.  This one, Possession, really shows the band stretching out and doing some different things, and the results are very good.

One of the very minor complaints I had about this band is that, while they play some great, all out, thrashy kind of stuff, everything they did was in this vein.  There weren’t a lot of tempo changes or anything like that to break things up.  This new album has some very tasty slower tempo tunes and it really makes a difference when you are listening to the album.  I haven’t had a chance to see them play any of the new songs live yet but I am looking forward to it.

Possession kicks off with a barn burner of a track called “Over and Over”.  If you have heard Christian Mistress before, this track will be easily recognizable.   But with the second track, “Pentagram and Crucifix”, the changes are immediately noticeable.  The song has a nice, doomy, ominous opening before going full out.   Then on track number four,  “The Way Beyond”, we get an acoustic intro that fades into something you could call almost traditional metal. 

Track 5, title track “Possession”, is a slower tempo track that really showcases the songwriting skills of the band and was my favorite on the album.  The lyrics are great and it is definitely a side of the band not heard previously.  “Black to Gold”, the sixth song on the album, is not some sort of ode to my beloved Pittsburgh Steelers, but it’s a very good up tempo track to get things raging again after a few slower songs.  And the final 3 tracks of the album deliver the kind of music that Christian Mistress are known for.

When I heard that the band had signed to Relapse I was hoping the jump to a larger label would pay some dividends for the band, at the very least getting them some more exposure.  Hopefully that will happen, and the album seems to be well received.  But it also seems that the jump has paid off for them in terms of growth as a band all the way around.  Great release from a band that more of us metal heads should know about, so go pick this up and you’ll be happy you did.  You have my word on that. 

-- ODIN

One Direction - Up All Night

Deep breathe now, mates, prepare yourselves. My name is Gorgeous Nightmare, and I......am a One Directioner. I do not deny it, I love One Direction. I stayed up and watched all of the KCA's just to see One Direction's performance, even though I detested everyone else at that awards show. I bought three copies of their debut album, simply because one version had a poster, one had exclusive pictures of the band, and the third had a scrapbook instead of a normal booklet. But luckily, I am still a somewhat older teen girl, so I have something of an excuse to my fangirling out on this band.

If any of you have read any of my previous articles, you know I am an extreme metal gal. The darker the better. Men dressed as goth corpses normally strike my fancy. So why do I desperately love a pop band, a pop boy band at that? Because they are really very superb, that's why.

One Direction started out as five solo singers on The X-Factor UK in 2010. They were all on the brink of being sent home, when Simon Cowell decided to save them by putting them together as a group. Four-fifths of One Direction, Liam Payne, Louis (pronounced Lou-ie) Tomlinson, Harry Styles, and Zayn Malik are from England, with the exception being Niall Horan, who is from Ireland. These lads have got a ton going for them: good looks, pure talent, determination, and Simon Cowell's belief.

I don't like singing shows, to be honest. I like my singers to make the rounds the old fashioned way, playing at dives until they catch the eye of a record label. My facebook had an ad with these guys on it when they were still on the X-Factor, with the label, "Meet the next Justin Beibers" I opened it, because I don't like to be behind on the uptake, even if I don't listen to mainstream. (Don't make me relive my school's reaction to me not knowing who The Situation was earlier this year!) I expected a laugh, and some cringes. What I did not expect was to be blown away by the talent these guys possess at their age. When they first got together in 2010, they ranged from 16 to 18 years old.

What's even better, One Direction sound amazing live. At the KCA's they blew Katy Perry out of the water performance-wise. Lots of pop singers are disappointments live, when you discover your favorite artist is nothing without the bells and whistles from a studio. Nope, One Direction are as perfect live as they are on CD. Even better in my opinion. The auto-tune or whatever diminishes their individual voice's sound a teeny bit. I almost couldn't tell Liam from Niall just by listening, and that bothered me, considering they each have little aspects that make their voice unique and wonderful.

Having this gig as a writer, someone gave me a free download of their single, "One Thing" as an acoustic version. I loved it; raw talent just pours out of these guys like water from a spout. In the accompanying video, the lads were singing their super-hit, "What Makes You Beautiful" acoustically. One Direction were slumped on couches, relaxing, most of them not even wearing shoes, and they still sounded exceptional.
"More Than This", a ballad on the album, sticks out among the other ballads, it truly showcases how great these guys' voices are. It's heart-wrenchingly despair-filled. "When he opens his arms and holds you close tonight, it just won't feel right, cause I can love you more than this. When he lays you down I might just die inside, it just don't feel right, cause I can love you more than this." Oh, come on, it pulls your heart strings a bit now, doesn't it?

"What Makes You Beautiful" is a made-for-summer hit that sounds like it would be right at home being blasted out of a car with the top down as it heads to the beach. The video is set on the beach, too, confirming my thoughts on it. Another thing I really liked about the video was the girls in it. Everyone has seen the 'music video girls'. You know, the drop-dead gorgeous, enviable figured girls you just know went home with one of the band members due to their shimmying and shaking all over the place. The girls in "What Makes You Beautiful" are very pretty, yes, but they aren't overly made up, nor are they scantily clad, popping and locking all over the camera. They're the kind of girls you see and say, "Hey, I look like that, those boys must like normal girls!" Morale booster a bit?

The next music video was for their next hit, "One Thing." The boys are dressed as almost like a mod-Beatles, and they are gallivanting around London. The beginning shows the boys running around a park, genuinely being cute and adorable. The rest of video shows scores of One Direction's dedicated fanbase, and how One Direction interact with them. One Direction are very loyal to their fans, constantly tweeting, 'how is everyone? how was your guys' day?' to their followers, in addition to asking them questions, like Zayn's 'I've just shaved my head, not sure what you guys will think, I'll post a pic in a few. tell me what you think. x' It was an April Fools Day joke, as Zayn has a signature hairstyle, but you get the idea.

I noticed that there seems to be a more guitar-oriented sound to One Direction. Instead of all synths, and machines, a lot of songs have catchy, smooth guitar lines that give One Direction a nice edge in the competition of pop singers. They don't look like other pop singers either. Everyone is trying to be the next Lady GaGa, or Justin Beiber, face it, it's the sad truth nowadays for the mainstream. One Direction dresses quite sharply, with nice jackets and plain t-shirts underneath, or patterned jumpers, nice trousers, with plain white or plain black trainers. In some shots, they are seen with suspenders, and bow-ties, like a mod-40's look. Very nice, fitting for the good-looking lads, I would say. Simplicity puts the focus on their music and talents, not how 'outrageous' they can seem like some other stars.

Talks were made in getting the boys their own show on Nickelodeon, a fact that many One Direction fans were NOT happy about. Fears that the boys were going to turn into squeaky clean friends, Big Time Rush were happily put to rest by the band themselves. All five members agreed that they are focused soley on their music careers, and not looking to making any forays into the world of acting, beyond making tv appearances as themselves. I'm happy, because really, I like One Direction the way they are, hopeless romantics in their songs, but in interviews, they're dirty minded and and make jokes about each others sex lives. They're 18-20 and they act like they're 18-20. =)

One Direction are beloved (maybe a bit too much, haha) in their native countries, England, and Ireland. They've debuted in America the past month, to much fanfare, and much adoration. Some fans camped outside the Today Show's building for three days merely to catch a glimpse of One Direction making their North America debut! News is still spreading throughout America about the band, but already they have leagues of hardcore fans here.

Good looks, great songs, love for their fans, One Direction seem poised on the threshold to take over the pop world. They've captured the hearts of millions upon millions of fans around the world, and are now taking the United States by storm. Is there anything these guys can't do?


--Gorgeous Nightmare

EMA- Past Life Martyred Saints

Entertaining. Mesmerizing. Awesome. These three words best describe one of the most entertaining musical artists to emerge in recent years, Ericka M. Anderson a.k.a. EMA. This experimental noise rock singer-songwriter stuns audiences with her electronic, magnetic voice.
Recently, EMA and Zola Jesus played the Natural History Museum of Los Angeles and after discussing the show with friends I felt obligated to discuss this engaging, emotional artist.

EMA burst onto the music scene around 2006 with noise-folk band Gowns and released three albums before breaking up in 2009. At that time, EMA went solo and released her debut album Little Sketches on Tape on Night People in 2010. Last year, EMA released her sensational, stunning studio debut album Past Life Martyred Saints.
The risky raw emotions showcased on this album make it a difficult album for most mainstream audiences to accept and enjoy. To be perfectly honest, it’s an album that grows on you with each subsequent listen. EMA captivates audiences by channeling her emotions in a brazen way and is completely confident with exhibiting her sensitive side.

Past Life Martyred Saints could probably be best described as a noise folk album. Track after track, the album draws you further in with each subsequent song. Anderson’s ability to capture emotional eeriness attacks your eardrums in an irresistible way. EMA is one of the most unique singer-songwriters to emerge in recent years and Past Life Martyred Saints proves just why.

Lending their support, former Gowns band members Ezra Buchla (keyboards, viola, vocals),  Aaron Davis (bass) and Corey Fogel (percussion) make appearances on the album with EMA’s younger sister Nicole “Nikki” Anderson  (drums, guitar, vocals). This exceptional support group glues and solidifies EMA’s emotional sound.

EMA’s studio debut album Past Life Martyred Saints opens up with the ghostly “Grey Ship,” a soothing seven minute song that kick starts this noise-folk record. Inspired by her Nordic ancestry, “Grey Ship” describes death rituals on Viking vessels and is just one of the many unique subjects that illustrate EMA’s emotional rollercoaster debut.

My favorite track is “California” and although I disagree with the opening lyrics, “Fuck California/ You made me boring” it’s an awesome song filled with raw, remarkable lyrics like
“You never seen the ocean/ You never been on a plane/ Schizophrenia rules the brain/ Aliens coming to take you away/ You’re still my favorite/ Past life martyred saint.” EMA is not for everyone and this song proves it. Those who detest EMA will usually utilize this song as a prime example why she isn’t good, but I always remind them to appreciate the beautiful, bold lyrics. Cookie cut compositions can be enjoyable, but I rather have a memorable, magnificent artist like EMA that has me talking about all aspects of her music not just “how cool her video looks” or “how catchy her lyrics are” to mainstream audiences. She is an artist that can be appreciated on multiple levels.

Like an edgy female Conor Oberst, EMA composes crafty Lou Reed-like lyrics that have you begging for more. I commend anyone who proudly showcases their vulnerabilities and that’s why I like EMA. A true artist, regardless of their talent, will always convey their true feelings time and time again.

Next up, “Anteroom” reminds me of a similar melody to the opening of “Gigantic” by The Pixies and “Needle in the Hay” by Elliott Smith. A simple, subdue song serenades the listener with a catchy melody that even casual listeners can start humming along. “Milkman” is a fun hybrid shoe-gaze and psychedelic track. Besides being reminiscent of Sleigh Bells and Panda Bear I adore the “Milkman” music video.

“Coda” is a harmonious folk/ bluesy song that persists as a buffer about romantic obsession between “Milkman” and “Marked.” The sweet sorrow showcased on “Marked” demonstrates how much talent EMA possesses. This song is a true gift bestowed upon us music fans! The remaining tracks “Breakfast,” and the Patti Smith-like “Redstar” are also worth mentioning. However, I need to take a moment to recognize “Butterfly Knife.” This torturous and devastating song takes EMA to a whole new emotional level with cunning lyrics like “Only God can make it right/ In the desert underneath/ The light it’s/ 20 kisses with a butterfly knife.”

Past Life Martyred Saints is an intense, ingenious poignant album. Layered lamentation throughout this triumphant album makes Past Life Martyred Saints a must buy for those unafraid to embrace their vulnerability.

--Mr Brownstone

Haemoth – In Nomine Odium

“This is the soundtrack to your worst nightmare: Life”.  So says the press release accompanying this album from French black metallers Haemoth.  If your life is unrelentingly bleak, filled with plague and pestilence, nasty and noxious, then this probably is your soundtrack.  This is music made by musicians unapologetically in league with Satan.  And it is so damn good.

I have written before about my love of French black metal.  I have never been to France, so I don’t know what it is about that fair country that provides us with such quality black metal, but this is definitely the grade A good stuff.  This is what black metal should sound like.  This is how black metal should make you feel.  Hopeless.   Haunted.  Forlorn.  The music is menacing, virulent, and vehement.  There is no doubt about how these guys feel about life on planet Earth when you listen to this music.  Any effort that can make you feel things to this degree is worth taking note of, whether you actually like the particular genre of music or not.  Music should take you somewhere and make you feel.  Maybe that’s what makes this stuff so good.

The song titles give you an idea of where this is headed before you even give it a listen.  “Odium”.   “Slaying The Blind”.  “Demonik Omniscience”.  “Spiritual Pestilence”.  “Disgrace”.  “Son Of The Black Light”.  “….And Then Came The Decease”.  This ain’t no party, or disco, or foolin’ around.  This is flat out war on humanity, Christianity, goodness, light, happiness, and all related topics and ideas.  There are ambient passages on this album that will absolutely creep you the fuck out, that will make you check to be sure the lights are on in the house and go check out any noises you hear.  Because there are times when you just aren’t sure if Satan and his minions might be coming up through your kitchen floor.

So personal confession time; I don’t know what it is about music like this, but it actually relaxes me.  It soothes me.  Maybe deep down inside I’m just a sociopathic hater of mankind, maybe I can’t wait until the Dark Lord rises up to take dominion over this world.  To see the dawn of a new day when, to quote Black Sabbath, “Satan laughing spreads his wings”.  Maybe I’m not the happy go lucky guy most people see me as.  Maybe I’m someone you should just stay away from.

But I think it’s more likely that I just love music that makes me feel.  I love music that exposes thoughts and ideas, even if they are a little controversial or outside of the mainstream.  Or maybe that’s just what I want you to think, so your guard is down when I bury an axe deep into your skull.

 - ODIN

Marc Robillard – Sophmore EP

Mixing drums, piano, acoustic guitars and strings,
And a bit of poetry and philosophy with emotion,
Marc Robillard’s sophomore EP brings
Well-crafted songs with folk roots devotion.

A bit of notoriety with “So Much More” for Frito Lay Sun Chips,
Has been followed with these six tracks.
Pay attention to the words so filled with angst and quips
The compositions will take you back.

His lyrics are bare,
“Settin’ suns and all the ones who reach for shooting stars
So close you’re almost there,
then you realize it’s so far.”

Robillard says he is influenced by Coldplay,
Travis, Death Cab for Cutie, Wilco and Damien Rice,
I can also heard Leonard Cohen, early Lou Reed and David Gray,  
Not hard, not rough, not nasty - quite nice.  

Canadian-born, but, now Los Angeles-based,
His sullen works express hopes and introspections.
I suggest you check out a taste,
A new musical experience beckons.

 - Old School

buy here:  So Much More

The Single Life - 7" of Fun - Featuring The Vinyl Stitches, Chrome Spiders, The Cold Beat, and Movers & Shakers

The Vinyl Stitches - Beautiful Mistake, Panther Sex b/w I Said Alright, Runaway Baby

Coming from Death Pop Records, those fine purveyors of maximally fuzzed out garage trash, comes this absolute gem of a 4-song 7".  And without a doubt, this is the finest piece of underground garage fuzz that I've ever heard coming from the Deathpopsters.  Absolutely soaked in the oil-stained concrete garage floors of the Stooges, 13th Floor Elevators, The Velvet Underground and any one else you want to throw into the mix, this is an absolute bliss of primitive surf nirvana.  These songs don't just rock, they positively percolate, rummaging across a thunderously heavy bottom end layered with a heady dose of screaming fuzz psychedelia.  Fun, fun, fun.  I defy anybody who claims to be a fan of garage rock to not get their groove on to any one of these cuts.  Rightfully, the Stitches declared the 7" to be an A side and a double A side, cause their ain't no B cut songs on this baby.

Take every garage band you've ever loved, throw in a dozen lava lamps, some mod haircuts, and a wall of sliced-to-stitches amps, toss it all into a blender, put it on puree, and the sound that comes out is The Vinyl Stitches.  And the sound is good.  Oh, so good.

http://www.myspace.com/thevinylstitches




Chrome Spiders - Black Butterfly b/w TheWhip Hand

While we're on the topic of garage trash . . . let's take that theme and weld to it some truly classic rock riffmeistering, and a nasty bit of psychosis and what you get is the Chrome Spiders. Calling their sound Primal Sophistication, the Chrome Spiders were formed when Detroit ex-pat Thomas Jackson Potter (Bantam Rooster, Dirtbombs, Detroit City Council, Seger Liberation Army) moved to the lovely lakeside resort of Muskegon, MI. Unable to stand musical retirement for long, he hooked up with Kalamazoo native Sean Barney (Menthols, The Breaks, Deconstruction) Marc Savage (The Bitters) and Michael Sheneman (The Bitters) and launched themselves down the road to almost certain destruction.  With the band raging with a mania that verges on psychosis, Chrome Spiders are more addictive than a mainline of narcs right in the brain.  I haven't been this caught up in a raunchy, scratchy groove since the first time I heard the Angels.  And that's what "Black Butterfly" sounds like, Doc Neeson and his band of cretins, dirtied up, roughed up and raging on after an all nighter.  Huge riffs, manic vocals, undying beat.  Great stuff.  "The Whip Hand" dirties up the garage with a face wash of The Cramps eerie intensity.  Perfectly done.  Don't miss it.


http://www.myspace.com/chromespiders

The Cold Beat/Movers & Shakers - split 7"

Keeping the garage rock intensity but adding in their own touches, flips, and twists, we got us a tasty split 7" featuring two Boston bands definitely worth keeping an eye on.

Starting off on the Cold Beat side, we get the passion of garage indy rock married to the darker textures of post-punk bands that followed in the old Echo and Joy Division vibe.  Not that these cats sound like that, but they do favor the same huge, looping bass and angular guitar runs, fusing that darkness to a roughened post-Replacements ragged glory of mid-America indie rock.  And let me tell you, this is my kinda gig, and I knew that right off the bat.  Give me some vocals that bleed with intensity, while that massive bass rocks my ass in the background.  Add in some Andy Gil-esque guitar flares with touches of a hefty crunch, and put that package together with some serious songwriting chops and I'm hooked.  


Movers & Shakers comes next adding a touch of Elvis Costello to their Paul Westerberg-inspired roots garage.  Featuring some dynamite finger picking guitar and some nicely weathered vocals, Movers & Shakers cut a wide swath through the homespun, rustic world of indy americana.   Still raw enough to encompass that gritty garage vibe, there's some serious songcraft going on here, from the more complex song structures to the drill-it-into-my-head infectious choruses.  This is kinda what we all wanted The Gin Blossoms to sound like, once upon a time.  Thank God, it's here at last.

Toss in the fact that this split 7" comes on a gorgeous platter of light blue marbled vinyl and it's a treasure find for any serious indy rock fan.  Gobble this one up.  They only printed 500, I really don't expect it to last for long.

www.myspace.com/thecoldbeat
www.myspace.com/moversandshakers