Baroness Rams Head Live 05-25-13

Continuing with my week of shows I saw Baroness tonight. I know that they occupy an odd space, right now. Musically, they are transitioning from a Sludge metal Stoner Rock kind of band to a more psychedelic rock band. Compound that with the forced hiatus after their by-now famous accident, and the subsequent loss of half the band, and they're in an odd place, indeed. I find the best way to resolve this is to lump them in with Coliseum, Kylesa, Torche and others who are creating strange hybrids of hard rock. Whether it be Coliseum's post-post hardcore, where part of the "post" is mixing Stoner/sludge riffs with early 1990's angularity, or Kylesa's grunge/doom version of slacker indie rock- the point is that there's this loose collection of bands out there, right now for whom the rules of genre do not seem to apply.
As for the accident, and having to reconstitute the band, on the first part- so long as John and Peter are there to play those interlocking guitar parts and vocal harmonies, the accident is just a personal matter- the art is still there. As for the second part, John said it from the stage- there were no auditions- they just picked up two other of their friends- friends who already knew the songs. ( and having Sebastian from Trans Am can only help!)
So what was the concert like? There was the backdrop of John's creation- when I spoke to John, the first thing I said is that he's one of my favorite artists- not just musician- I think he creates beautiful Art with both his painting and his music. Then, there was music. No smoke, no dramatic light, not video projections. Everything comes down to the no-bullshit premise of four guys playing their hearts out.  Yes, they play jaw-droppingly beautiful music, and they project nothing but sheer passion for the music- passion in the sense of both joy and angst. They are also some of the most capable musicians going.People throw around words like Virtuoso way too often- these guys really are. Seriously, if you are a musician, yourself, you need to check them out, immediately. They're just stunningly good- in all the right ways, and in all the ways that recordings just don't do justice. Go and see them. Soon. As for the rest? Here's the Photos:

Red Hare and Coliseum at the Sidebar 5-24-13

Great show. Didn't like the venue- that's the TL:DR of it.
While I saw Swiz many many years ago, and never saw Dag Nasty (though I tried) nor Bluetip, I feel like it is somewhat made up by seeing Red Hare. Not exactly, 100% my "thing", nevertheless, good enough that I liked seeing them

But I was really there to see Coliseum. Their last three releases have all been stellar- House with a Curse, Parasites, and now Sister Faith. They were a good thrash band- No Salvation I like in particular, but I think the thrash is better with Ryan's other band(s) Black Cross/ Black God, but they're an absolute monster of a post Hardcore band. Up there with Jawbox, Quicksand, and the Refused. So, unlike the majority of the audience who started the show by asking for the older, thrashy stuff, and ended the show by demanding it, I was there to see what Coliseum do best. I got my wish a lot more than the spillover Metalheads got ( I call them that because a goodly percentage were refuges from the Maryland Deathfest metal festival a block or so away. I think Ryan recognized that, as well. He said something I found pretty apt- Death, real death, is all around us. While I wouldn't say I struggle with it- I'm pretty reconciled to the fact that life ends- I cannot say that I like the name "Deathfest", either. I also think it's a bit of poor timing to have "Deathfest" during Memorial day weekend. Too many of these yahoos' peers have been maimed and killed in stupid wars to let that go unsaid) but I heard most of what I came for- Lost in Groningen (I'm Dutch, so, of course) Perimeter Man, Skeleton Smile, Blind in One Eye, Sister Faith, Love Under Will, Black Magic Punks, Waiting, Fuzzbang, and Doing Time. The only two I didn't get were Bad Will, and Used Blood. That's ok, maybe next time. I did ask Ryan, directly, for Used Blood- I think he didn't play it for the same reason they didn't play Bad Will- he was in a good mood, playing a show with friends, and trying to have a good night.

Anyway, pictures say it for me:

Yet More TV, and a note on Fashion

I said I had a lot to write about, didn't I?
So, one of the nice things about cord cutting ( evidently that's what I did- giving up cable TV in favor of digital streaming is called "cord cutting" by all the hip, young pundits)  is just how easy it is to dial up documentaries. So, I've seen a lot of them in the past week. Another nice thing is that several of the services keep track of what you've watched, so on Netflix, I watched a biography channel doc on Rasputin, Gonzo, the movie about Hunter S Thompson, Dreams of a Life about Joyce Vincent, Resurrect Dead about Toynebee Tiles, a Nat Geo series on Russian Prisons,  and American, The Bill Hicks Story. On Hulu I watched Brutal Beauty: Tales of the Rose City Rollers, and a few episodes of The End  about British gangsters. I've also watched about 10 lectures on TED. I think it's interesting that I really like documentaries but dislike "reality TV". I suppose I could flatter myself, and say that it's because the documentaries I watch are smarter, and go more in depth, and actually explore our reality, and there's a certain truth to that. I think it'd be more true, though to say that I like narrative structure, and documentaries have a beginning, middle and an end. Whatever the reason, I feel more connected with the docs than I ever did with "Reality" TV.
This also speaks to a side benefit of cord cutting- I actually am becoming a lot more engaged and mindful, rather than just running the TV like electronic wallpaper. We will see where this experiment goes...
But, I'm not abstract- I've got a reality of my own, right? That means I need shoes. Now, I'm a simple guy. Well, if not simple, at least straightforward. So basically, I like 4 types of footwear, and I can most easily describe them by brand- I like Dr Martens, I like Chuck Taylors, I like Fryes and I like Vans But, I'm not brand loyal, so bear in mind that these are just archetypes. I don't need to see a label, the style is what I'm looking for. So, for example, I've got Kenneth Cole shoes that look like Docs, and I've got sketchers that look like Docs. I've got Vision skate shoes that look like Vans and Converse shoes that look like Vans. It's not about price or fashion, really- I just have identified some elements that I think constitute my "style'. So, PF Flyers have been on my radar. they're similar to Chuck Taylors but slightly more "ruggedized" and slightly more structured- so they correct two drawbacks to Chuck Taylors: they're a bit flimsy, and they don't offer much arch support. The problem is that they price, generally, about 80% higher than Chuck Taylors, so it's hard for me to justify buying them ( it's very similar to the difference between Fluevogs and Dr Martens, incidentally) so, I was very pleased to find a pair for 60% less than Chucks- and I snapped them up. I've been wearing them a lot since. They're great, and if you have the opportunity and the means, i heartily recommend them as an alternative to Chuck Taylors.

Kylesa- Ultraviolet

If you missed out on Spiral Shadow, correct that error. You're missing one of the great hard rock LPs. However, that LP is just one aspect of Kylesa's music. Ultraviolet is another. It's both more connected to the band who recorded Static Tensions and Time will Fuse its Worth, and yet it stretches out to new territory. It's not further along the continuum, so much as it operates at a different point on the spectrum. Which means, you have to take each LP from them  at its own merits- not as the "next one".
So, This Kylesa LP opens with Exhale, about as doomy as they get, in that southern Sludge way. A hammering slow tempo, shouted crust punk vocals, Psychotronic guitar solos, tribal stomp drums. In other words, exactly what you would have predicted from Kylesa if you hadn't heard them in 6 years.
Then, track two, Unspoken brings in the psychedelic doom- like Baroness' Yellow and Green, if crushed into a Paranoid-era Black Sabbath song. Hello, Laura even sings a bit like Ozzy. It's got a great gypsy tune under all the sludge, though, speaking to an alternate reality where Kylesa would've played mournful folk songs at Eastern European funerals.
But then, Grounded snaps you back with a southern boogie riff that Raging Slab, Monster Magnet and Molly Hatchet all would have killed for. Until about a minute in, when the Godflesh grind beats the boogie down. This ain't no party, mister, it's a posse.
After that, We're Taking This is more crusty and harsh than most Tragedy songs. Other than the spacey interludes between poundings, this could have been a Damad song.
Long Gone, though is brilliant in the way that I first loved on Static Tensions- a trippy drone, punctuated by the best tribal Tom drum breakdown this side of Can's Yoo Doo Right. This has no "pop rock" to it, though it is melodic, and it does swing. It's just good music.
Likewise, What does it Take is a great bit of psychedelic Punk rock, that takes me back to 1987- bands like Bomb, early Jane's Addiction, Butthole Surfers, and Alice Donut.
Steady Breakdown, again is far more straightforward than Kylesa usually is. a slow to mid-tempo grind with an almost gentle watery breakdown like Diamonds and Rust era Judas Priest running into Piper at the Gates of Dawn era Pink Floyd.
Believe it or not, Low Tide is almost a Cold Wave song- a relative of half a dozen Cure and Joy Division songs, but still definitely Kylesa. Amazingly convincing, I've not heard a heavy band, apart from Deftones able to conquer that "mopey, but transcendent" sound.
Then, Vulture's Landing exploits the Kim Deal impression that Laura can pull off, and sneaks a Torche-styled Sludge monster riff wrapped up in a pop-alternative candy shell. Like a Python wearing a feather boa- you laugh and then it crushes you.
Quicksand is another endlessly melodic song with energy and groove- like Torche, again, but not walking the tightrope of a tight song structure. It's like feeding Van Halen 50 hits of blotter acid and a few ounces of weed- Stoner Rock, to the max.
Finally, Drifting is just that- a lovely wallow with echo guitars buzz synths, and an almost Cocteau Twins verse riff.
Is the LP good? Sorry, it's far, far too deep, and layered for me to make that call. I've only heard it three times, so far- and I suspect it will be about ten times before I can tell what I would call the over all vibe. It's a Kylesa LP. If you're willing to go with them, there are rewards, but again, know that you're venturing into the unknown with them- every time. Yes, this straddles lines between hardcore, Doom, Stoner, Alt rock, and psychedelic- and jumps decades from the late 60's to the early 21st century, sometimes in the space of three bars, but how do you rate something like that? What's the yardstick for greatness when you cannot get a handle on the unit of measurement? Get the idea?
Right now, I think Spiral Shadow was better, and it seems about par with Static Tensions. Get back with me in a month, and maybe it'll have changed.

So much to write about, so little ability...

I've got an overwhelming amount to talk about, but I'm currently somewhat under the weather due to several over-indulgences- none of which are illegal, and only one of which is a vice.
So, a couple of things. First, I saw the Bloody Beetrrots last night:

 

that was pretty awesome. EDM, wrapped around a rocknroll, maybe even Punk rock core.

Do you wanna Dance?

Then, the second thing is nearly totally unrelated- while I've got other CDs to mention, I'm just going over this one: Mark Lanegan and Duke Garwood's Black Pudding. The fathomless darkness of Lanegan's sandpaper and velvet croon set with Garwood's virtuoso guitar is a very heady mix.  It starts as Garwood's game, with a Spanish flavoured fingerstyle workout called "Black Pudding", and a menacing delta country blues called "Pentecostal". But then the dirge of "War Memorial" starts up, and Mark gives off the sweetest vocal he's done in years- all yearning, regret and graphic trauma. Mescalito, the next one keeps up the stalemate, with Lanegan's dirty black howl from the gutter meeting Garwood's delicate modal psychedelic blues halfway between the brothel and the monastery. Sphinx is a rare mis-step, in my humble-ish opinion- burying Mark's vocal with a leslie-effect compression, while Duke's guitar is so close-miked that it's all attack, no sustain, leaving the mosquito drone to dominate.  Soon enough, Driver comes along to rescue the proceedings, sounding like the most skeletal and introspective mid sixties Rolling Stones song you'll ever hear: think Their Satanic Majesties filtered through Nick Drake. The subdued gospel of  Death Ride keeps up the quality. Put it this way: Leonard Cohen is jealous. Likewise John Cale for Thank you. I want this for my ring tone- that would freak people right out. Cold Molly, despite the Casiotone percussion re-imagines early seventies funk as a Nick Cave styled junkyard vaudeville murder ballad. If that doesn't get you interested, I'm sorry, I'll get back to the rocknroll soon enough, but you'll have to indulge me, here. This just totally does it for me, in a non-rock kind of way. The spirit of Nick Cave similarly inhabits Shade of the Sun; it's a watery psychotronic western blues- and would have been an excellent addition to the soundtrack for "The Proposition". What more could a poor boy need than that? Just stellar...

New TV part Two

So, not quite a week in, and I've more to report about my adventures in cutting the cable cord, and joining the Internet TV wave:
It does feel better than the Cable thing. Absolutely, there are drawbacks. Live sports are hard to come by, and some of the payback in glitchy. Also,there are delays and lags, as well as a labyrinthian layout of content.  However, it's a lot closer to what I think we all want: a la Carte TV: Watch only what you want, pay for only what you're getting.  Like the rest of the internet, the amount of content is nearly infinite. So, if you look, you very well might find exactly what you're looking for. You might feel as if you have 'left the ranch", but I know that's an illusion- Netflix or Comcast, Viacom or Hulu- it's still a racket. Heck, Crackle is owned by Sony, and Amazon, is, well, Amazon.
I signed up for Hulu plus, Netflix, Plex, and I already had Amazon Prime. I also got Crackle, Nowhere TV, Havoc TV, Vevo,  Smithsonian, NBC news, CNN international, Fox News, and TED talks. That gives me literally hundreds of channels, and thousands of TV shows and movies- an overwhelming amount of content. I could watch my TV 24 hours a day, seven days a week, for the rest of my life and not catch up to that amount of content.
So, I'm saying so far, so good. I think I'm getting closer to the mission- which is still to find  culture that I can feel is mine.

Killing Joke in doses large and small

It's interesting to me that, in all the years I've been a gatherer, I've met so few Killing Joke fans like me. Granted, with an extensive catalog ( 15 proper LPs, several live LPs, several EPs, and over 30 years down) as they have, there will be something for everyone, so gatherers tend to be a motley assortment, but still, I've met few transcontinental Marxist progressives with a more punk than industrial or metal take on them. Yes, I realize that Killing Joke are a punk band in the same way that the Ramones were a bubblegum pop band- a group of individuals destined to create something more than they intended. But still, context is key for me, and if you subtract the occult fascinations, I fail to see how Killing Joke are any less "Punk" than Gang of Four, Devo, or even the Clash. Punk, it seems to me, was always meant to be an adjustment, more than a position, you know?
So, removed from Album context, all these songs bear witness to both the linearity and expansiveness of Killing Joke. That is, there are obvious musical similarities between everything from Wardance through Corporate Elect, but at the same time you have everything from dub reggae through death metal coming into the mix of styles and influences.
The songs then, are broad enough that everyone from pinkos like me to Nazi Skinheads can find something to love and understand in them. Still, can no one else see that these are not cavemen- they're not just neo-pagan, and they're not just about bludgeon and violence- there's sophistication and an urbane appreciation of the fruits of true civilisation as well? So, my favorite stuff is the 1980-1985 stuff, but I also like the Democracy, and Absolute Dissent LPs. I hate nothing of what they've done, but I prefer the less headbanging, yet still not slick stuff.
Still it's all here- from Requiem to In Cythera. Even some alternate and rate tracks. But I can only suggest it for hardcore gatherers like me. If you're new to Killing Joke, or if you just dabble, I think it's better to just dig into the stuff you love- they have a vast enough catalog that you could just love, say, the Pandaemonium and Killing Joke ( 2003) lps, and hate the rest of their music, and they would still have made some of your favourite music, ever.  As for me, I'm a gatherer- I will be there no matter what- because it's less about them, and more about my experience of the gathering.

TV -Changing the channel

So, not a lot to say, yet, but I ( with my wife's blessing) finally carried through with my decision to cut the cable cord. We are an internet only household. But I still own a TV, and I am currently experimenting with a Roku. So far I'm liking Netflix and Hulu and Plex and a few other things, but give me a month to see where this goes.

Coliseum- Sister Faith

So, this doesn't come out for a few days, and I pre-ordered back in march so I really wasn't expecting it. But, there it was, today, on my doorstep, and true to my word, I'm talking about it as soon as I get it. This is Coliseum's "Sister Faith"
First, a word about packaging: this is a pretty and awesome vinyl release.  Yes, I got the download code, and I will probably listen to the CD that I plan to burn from the MP3's more often than anything else, but I would suggest you get the Vinyl. It's on purple, red and blue "tie dyed" vinyl, with a heavy cardstock cover,  and has a nice newsprint "zine" of Ryan Patterson's witchy illustrations, and a lyric sheet, and a nice photo of the band on a rooftop, a la The Replacements' " Let it Be" . It could be some lost hardcore collectible from 1989 on Homestead records, or something. Musically, it's the next obvious step from House with a Curse, if you know a bit about the players. Ryan's guitars are cutting and sharp like Geordie from Killing Joke meets Bill Barbot from Jawbox, while his voice is a throaty bellow akin to Lemmy, Frankie Stubbs, and Tom Waits. Kayhan's bass throbs with a trebley mix, played low on the neck, like Lemmy or St Patrick from Dillinger Four. Carter's drums are pounding, heavy and spare like early Paul Ferguson or Ted Parsons.  Track 1 and 2,  Disappear from Sight and Last Lost,  could be from Black God- it's that same thrashy hardcore heavily aware of post-hardcore. Like a grindcore band discovering that Fugazi and Jawbox wrote more challenging music than Integrity ever did. Track 3 , Doing Time,  is a straight continuation of what the best moments of House with a Curse had- muscular, anthemic, yet angular hardcore with an equal awareness of Killing Joke and The Jesus Lizard. Track 4, Love Under Will,  is a brooding, reverb-drenched throwback to the late eighties- when everybody from the Effigies to The Call were realizing , by way of U2, that space in the song creates drama- I wish more hardcore and metal bands understood the lesson here- you don't need to stuff your riffs into the song- let it breathe a bit, and that great riff can become a hook. Track 5, Under the Blood of the Moon, umm, did I mention Killing Joke? This sounds like both the late 80's "Love Like Blood" era Killing Joke, and the late 1990's "Millennium" era Killing Joke. It burns down a grinding tribal pulsebeat like some evil cyborg powered by ancient voodoo brews. Track 6, Used Blood,  continues that trend, but with a more traditional guitar riff- like say "Lost in Groningen"- it's Jawbox meets Motorhead, and I defy you not to sway and pump your fist with it, before it degenerates into raw noise. Track 7, Late Night Trains,  again brings the late eighties Killing Joke sound into more traditional rock ground- think "Eighties" meets the Angels' "City Out of Control"- with a prismatic spray of "Blow" by Red Lorry Yellow Lorry. Next, Everything in Glass,   brings Da Noise, and brings Da Funk- a stomping grunge beatdown that sounds like nothing short of Chicago- that is, I will eat a hat ( yours, mine, some bum's) if Steve Albini doesn't have at least a little love for it, and I bet Am Rep would've signed 'em based on the bassline, alone. Track 9, Black Magic Punks, you should know already. If you don't, it's your loss. This is absolutely state-of-the-art post-post-hardcore, that makes Ceremony and Iceage seem like the skeezy little kids that they are. I give Fucked up to the count of 30 to run from the crushing glory of the hook on this one. Save Everything  picks up the pace to Punk rock, with strong spaghetti western riffs. Remember, before "Alternative", when there post punk bands edging around the British charts that sounded genuinely dangerous? Bands like the aforementioned Killing Joke, and Theatre of Hate, and New Model Army, and even Siouxsie and the Banshees, and Shriekback?  This would fit right in with that, and then some. Track 11, Bad Will,  like the first couple of tracks,  is thrashy Robot Rock, like Gang of Four runs into Poison Idea, and they THROW DOWN.  Do not operate heavy machinery around this song, or you may find yourself explaining to the authorities why you stuffed a bully from your childhood into a woodchipper. Next, the title track is a galvanizing rumble of big block rock song that'll make all sludge metal bands jealous. Yes, there is a solo. Track 13, Fuzzbang, is a gleeful noisey blister of a song, that's like all these "Nu gaze" bands ( A Place to Bury Strangers, I'm looking at your skinny asses) thrown into a major key Punk Rock blender. No matter how long this song would be, it's too short. I want hours of this, like an ambient noise to have on while I do my workday. Absolutely glorious.
Lyrically, it's adult punk rock concerns filtered through the pagan/satan filter that I'm not so certain is a put on. Much like say, Alkaline Trio, as opposed to AFI, I don't think it's entirely for effect. I think real meaning is derived from occult/ metaphysical/ theosophic beliefs. That is to say- questions like "How do I maintain my integrity, and my individuality in the face of a society designed to wear me down until all my squareness fits into that round hole?" are taken seriously, and some of the answers come back from non-horror movie occultism. Ultimately, as Sister Faith's lyrics attest, the real faith is in logic, and reason, but the symbols of what most would call "Satanism" are used to get there. It's both knowing, and gnostic, dig?
So, on only two listens, I'm already calling it- this is one of the best LPs I will hear all year.

May promises to be busy

 I have pre-ordered the new Coliseum record, Sister Faith, which comes out April 30th. Then, my birthday is May 1, so I'm doing something that weekend, I just don't know what. I've got tickets secured to see the Bloody Beetroots on May 17, Coliseum on the 24th, and Baroness on the 25th.  Then, I've pre-ordered the new Kylesa record "Ultraviolet" which comes out May 28. So, lots of Dance Music, Hardcore, Sludge/Stoner, and general goings-on... I'm excited. Wouldn't you be?