[109] Seen Entirely: Dark Castle, Agalloch, Dispirit, Morbid Angel; Seen Some: Christian Mistress, Bonded By Blood, Death Angel, Woe, Cough, Primate, Nails, Black Breath, Floor; Also Played: The Body, Necrite, Anaal Nathrakh, Wormrot, Fuck The Facts, Bastard Noise, Integrity, Atheist, Immolation, Municipal Waste, Crom, Black Cobra, Obituary (2011)

Oh god. Just look at that list. Look at all I have to talk about. Fucking shit. I don't even know how to approach this. A list is too cheap, but I got to start with a list. That is just too much to take in at once.

This was my first time:

• waking up at 5:30am for a concert


• flying


• staying in a somewhat classy hotel


• going to a day festival


• going to a multi-venue festival


• seeing a concert in California


• watching a show from backstage


• and seeing most of the bands I saw

I had approximately one hour of sleep to last me from 5am to about 3am the next day due to seeing Christian Mistress the night before. I knew I was not going to get much sleep well in advance of the festival date so I had mentally prepared, but no amount of preparation really cuts it. One hour is not enough. After a while I was operating on sheer determination. There was just too much not to be missed.

Knowing how I'd feel in advance, I made a list - I saw every single band on that list and then some. I went all out. Sure, I saw some of those bands for only 2-3 songs, but that I saw them at all is a majestic wonder. Most attendees did not get the same opportunity as myself; others had to wait in line, especially for the Glass House and Fox Theater towards the end of the night. I had an artists wristband so I had free reign of the whole festival. I was very lucky.

What my wristband didn't supply was knowledge. I didn't know about Black Cobra joining the fest until 5-10 minutes AFTER they were done with their set. After missing them live last October, this was a massive fucking burn. If I hadn't have been so tired slash excited from everything else going on, I probably would have laid down in the Fox Theater lobby where I saw the Black Cobra logo stamped over Kvelertak's name and sobbed. Even thinking about it now makes me tear up. UGH.

But lord, did the rest of this thing make up for that.

The first band I saw was Christian Mistress. I'd just seen them about 18 hours beforehand and I didn't need to do it again, but Dark Castle wasn't ready yet. They started with the same couple of songs I'd heard the night before, and I imagine probably played much of the same set. I gave their crowd a look-over. In comparison to the other, this one was much younger overall. I don't know about later on, but they seemed less enthusiastic, too. (Kids *shrug*.) Then again, the night before, I was in the front with the crazy fans...

Dark Castle was still finishing setting up when I walked back in. Mike from YOB was helping. I knew he'd be there as their roadie but I didn't know he was literally going to be their roadie. When they got going he stayed on stage to the side with his Dorothy Gale hair until the final song when he joined vocal duties on an unattached microphone, looking more enthusiastic than I'd ever seen him. I was reminded of a rapper, but also the SOR song Joe from Nether Regions did without a bass. The guys in front of me commented that he looked so angry/serious. Maybe they didn't know who he was, but for me it was a little strange seeing Dark Castle's breed of metal while it was still daylight. My first/last time seeing them was at the dark-as-shit Satyricon. It was perfect; I said it was my favorite show of the year. This was not quite an ideal situation for them with the sun peaking in behind the stage and playing outdoors, but I still came away from the set impressed and happy. I later bought a shirt, which resulted in a high five from Stevie the next day. Yay! Now I'm a well-rounded star-stricken individual.

I didn't have anything to do for a while so I "wandered". This was a major theme of the night. It was keeping me awake and aware during points where I had breaks or didn't care about a band I'd walked in on. I bought a Gatorade (it wasn't "hot" but I was dying from the sudden temperature change) and that resulted in 250 bathroom breaks. Not a damn one of the bathrooms I found had soap and on my 307th trip someone had gone psycho on the Glass House bathrooms, shit water and blood and papers everywhere. I assumed I'd bring home AIDS at the very least but I never got sick. Hooray!

From the bathroom there, I noticed the Glass House had a "secret" balcony area. Bonded By Blood were yelling on stage and I decided to walk over and see the view. What I saw was this:

That's 70% of the floor space completely empty for five or so guys to just casually walk about. I called it the "Sunday Driving" pit. When I walked through the venue I thought it was PACKED because everyone was against the wall and right on the walkway line... Nope! So yeah, I got a good laugh out of that.

I think this is where I saw a few minutes of Woe. I did not care enough and I couldn't focus on them.

Then came Primate. I was really interested in seeing/hearing what Primate was like so I walked over to Tent #1 a little early and was treated to my second rendition of "Bleed" by Meshuggah - seems the festival put the tents on a playlist. That was one of my favorite songs of 2008 so you can imagine I was happy about it the first time, but yeah. Once is enough.

Primate did not impress me in any way. I still appreciate Mastodon outside of their latest piece of elephant crap, and I'd like to support Bill, but they just weren't sinking in for me.

Here is where I discovered I'd missed Black Cobra. Laughing at Bonded By Blood, seeing Primate, and that bit of Woe was not worth this. I texted my boss what had happened and he told me there was food backstage at the Fox Theater. I was kind of hungry and was curious about if these people would let me backstage. They sure did. I grabbed some snacks for later and another Gatorade and proceeded to leave to go see Cough, but there was a backstage balcony and Floor were two seconds from starting, so....

I stuck around from their first song "Scimitar" through "Return To Zero" and "Downed Star". That's about all the Floor I needed given that I already knew I'd be seeing them live at home soon, so I was off to check out Cough immediately after "Downed Star".

Cough, when I walked in, were not interesting. I almost immediately walked back out.

Across the way Nails had already started. Their songs, as I previously knew, were short, which made them easy to digest. But as I stood there longer, the more they were sounding like Converge. I've heard and seen Converge. I don't really like them as a whole but they have some great moments. Nails were about the same. Some douchebag was being more aggressive than the crowd in that area wanted and he was creeping up on my standing spot, so I decided it was a good time to go see if Cough was done yet.

Cough was not done and they proceeded to make happyfuntime for me. After Nails screaming about how mom never lets them use the car, Cough were perfect. I later discovered one of them was Southern epitomized after he started talking about how there was a party going on in a room he'd just come back from and we kids were invited. He had an accent matching a trucker hat and a southern stoner band shirt to match that - he looked like there might have been a Jesus statue on top of a TV in front of an Elvis painting in his home growing up. Back to the music, I found myself regretting that I'd missed them live last time they were here.

I'm not sure what I did next - perhaps I finally ate those snacks - but it seems I must have seen Black Breath at this point. I walked in early and waited a bit. I wanted to hear them in the live setting because I wasn't "getting" their album at home short of the song "Eat The Witch". People have said good things about them and their energy. Of course, once they started playing, I wasn't "getting it" again. This was made worse when some guy stood next to me - I didn't look straight at him and it was dark but from the corner of my eye he was either Jason from Black Cobra or one of the guys from Death Angel (they look alike). That was far too distracting, I had to get out of there.

The line for Agalloch was almost to the other end of the block and not moving.

Next: Agalloch. I had no real plan to see or stay through their set but I ended up backstage again on the balcony, and them being clients and me having never seen a whole Agalloch set before, I sat my tired ass down and watched their whole performance. I was treated. When they weren't interesting, their crowd was. When the songs started to blend together, that was the perfect time for Aesop, their drummer, to surprise me by throwing his drumstick 20+ feet in the air over his head and still catch it, without looking, in time for the next hit of the drum. Fucking impressed. It was like: hit of the drum - second in the air - catch, hit. I like drummers anyway but that was awesome. The crowd agreed.

The band I most wanted to see who I hadn't seen before, Dispirit, wasn't on for nearly an hour after Agalloch, so I had some time to myself to do whatever. I walked from the Fox Theater and slowly wandered in whichever direction my feet took me. I ended up in the Glass House on the balcony. Death Angel were in the midst of their set. I have never listened to Death Angel but it seemed from first impression of my walk-through to the balcony that I could tolerate some of what they do.

My eyes went straight to their "pit". It was a lot like Bonded By Blood but people were participating. One kid was doing a crazy enthusiastic foot-tapping/hand jerk thing between "metal" skipping around the circle that was cracking me up. I tried to get pictures and video of him but it was too dark. Seems I wasn't the only one who noticed him, though! Check out these pictures, particularly the fifth picture under "Dark Castle by Genie" of the kid sitting down and the first picture under "Fuck The Facts by Adam". If you saw him, too, you'll recognize him immediately. Since when do Californians need winter hats?

Death Angel were actually pretty fun. I ended up walking out after a few songs, realizing my mistake after about 5-10 minutes of aimlessness, and walking right back. The style was a bit too nu metal-ish for my taste this year but they were the most interesting stage and crowd band for me - were it not for the latter portion of my adventure, they would have made my day.

I walked out of Death Angel with just enough time to spare in advance of Dispirit that I ended up in the front against the barrier. Now, if Dispirit were a "normal" band this would have meant I would have had a GREAT view. Instead, all I saw were fog and red-outlined shadows, just like everybody else. Still, for the fact that I was standing directly in front of the speakers, I finally had my ears blasted for the evening. They sounded great. I thought their cassette demo sounded a little too familiar to Portland's Atriarch, but they delivered a unique live experience. They closed with a Slayer cover after telling us that one of the guys we couldn't see up there was filling in for the normal guitarist - no idea WHICH Slayer song they did. I recorded part of it, so if one of you Slayer fans want to have a gander at it, feel free to drop me a line.

I was pretty spent at this point. I had thought about going back to the hotel and finally sleeping after Dispirit, but somehow I ended up backstage to see Morbid Angel instead. Well, that's where I started before they were actually playing. Seems that other bands had this idea so that between Agalloch and Morbid Angel the place had become a crowded heap of food wrappers and bodies. Seriously, it was like night and day. We essentially got kicked out right when Morbid Angel started playing. A few minutes later we landed at the VIP balcony in the actual theater.

Sitting was not good for me. I have no history with Morbid Angel and the sensation of nothing was making my eyes droop. I almost fell asleep. I bet I'm the only sober person in this world who can say that I almost fell asleep while Morbid Angel was on stage feet away and I also bet I just pissed someone off.

Towards the end of their set my eyes were fixed on the drummer. It was like watching a machine - the most extreme, quickest precision I've ever seen. One of the songs resulted in a total "holy shit" moment. Does that guy have money? He needs more.

And then it was over. Sort of.

My boss had somehow seen or had conversation with The Body earlier, so when they saw us stranded on the sidewalk waiting for our ride, they offered to drive us back to the hotel. That was very nice of them - they will be spared from my "to kill" list.

The band hotel was "interesting". Partying was going on in various places - I heard of three or four separate rooms having festivities. The lobby and bar area was busy but not "party" level busy, which was decent for my normally sober, anti-social, hate-you-humans temperament, so that's where I stayed until I gave up with consciousness. I ended up hearing some lovely dinner conversation from dear Aesop (in other words, a dick joke). I met a few people, namely the booker of the Metalliance tour. I got to see a promoter from Seattle do a drunk cartwheel in the road. Some pissed-drunk lady who looked like she might be one of my dad's girlfriends made mouth-words at me. Worst of all, some fuckin' jerk from Portland started talking to me about how he'd spent the night at Danny Carey's mansion... and didn't invite me (though I guess I don't advertise my Toolisms these days). At some point before all that I saw Steve "Smiley" Brooks re-introduce himself to my boss (as opposed to the other way around), and I ended up recommending some guy to look out for the new Indian album and I had to break his heart by telling him I was from Oregon. Also, Indian sucks. 4/12!

Morning after was a subdued more-of-the-same. I had probably the longest conversation yet with Joe - odd that it would occur in another state when I'm mentally on another friggin' planet myself, but I guess that's how I roll. I also talked some with Mike and annoyed Christine by sitting on her jacket... and saw the guys from Death Angel in a nice family restaurant. I should have taken a picture.

In a few hours I was home, dizzy from the ride and not sleeping and all the excitement, feeling like I'd stepped into an alternate universe of what my home should be but isn't and will never be again. Fin.

Seriously, though, this experience changed my life. Brevity and musical failures aside, it was so cool to see so many decent and interesting bands in one place to some of the best metal crowds I've ever witnessed. Ten hours of sleep the night before would have done me wonders, but even as-is it was an awesome experience. Massive thanks to Scion for the free everything and, especially, my boss for thinking of me in the first place. <3

I suppose since it's my favorite Portland area band and all, I should probably share this.

Red Fang is streaming on NPR. For serious.

Let's see how many of these I've already heard!

1. Malverde. Yeeeah. I heard this one in early 2008 when I saw them live for the first time. It's on the Tweak Bird split released that year. I like bass, I like that version better.

2. Wires. I've heard this as-is for ages, and for at least a year and a half live. Didn't notice the weird noises going on in the middle-end of the song, though. Production, wtf.

3. Hank Is Dead. Metal Swim compilation in the summer. This slightly different quality (perhaps just because it's streamed) is making me focus on different parts of the music.

4. Dirt Wizard. I've heard this live for some time now - since September 2009 according to my notes. Got a recording of it recently.

5. Throw Up. February 2009 they played this live at Rontoms. I got the flu the next week. I'm not sure if I've heard this song since then - otherwise it sounds unfamiliar. Mellow? I heard they changed the vocalist on this song (I think?) but I don't remember who was singing, if I could even see, at that show. ... But they're both singing after all! Nice ending.

6. Painted Parade. Drum intro sounds familiar. Yep, heard this one live, too. I think I have video of it! And lyrics in my ticket stub book.

7. Number Thirteen. This is on a comp from Relapse, and I've also heard it live 500 times. Aaron has a nice voice. Fucker needs to get Ancient Age into gear when he gets back from Fang-wide Tour '11.

8. Into The Eye. This title is in my notes from September 2009. I vaguely remember knowing it was called "into the eye" without checking the song list. I'd like to hear it live again; not enough bass/heavy on this recording.

9. The Undertow. This is an unfamiliar name! The intro spacey bit seems unfamiliar, too... I have a hard time not connecting this to Tool. Nice, chilled out little doomer without the cliche screaming part... I'll take it.

10. Human Herd. This name is not in my notes. Who the fuck is singing? Weird. That style makes it a hell of a lot more stoner-ish. I like. Nice ending, too.

So out of ten songs, I have heard at least eight of them. The two I have not heard yet are worth the $12 CD price alone, so you can guess how it is.

In conclusion, I have seen this band live too many times. Next show: Thursday. I've never seen Red Fang perform upstairs at the Roseland before, so it should be exciting and sort of new. Love these guys. You will, too. Mark the date: April 12th.

Song: "Zombie"
Artist: Vortice
Album: Zombie (2010)

Songs like this one are among many reasons why I can no longer listen to acoustic or gentle music without feeling uncomfortable, bothered, or annoyed. I was never good with sappy music but that goes triple these days.

Now, Vortice isn't quite amazing because they so obviously attempt to do what Meshuggah does, but if you're already into that sort of technical death metal or whatever it's called, you'll at least be able to appreciate them. In this song's case, stick around for the end - it's worth it. Better yet, listen to it in order with "Filed Process" so you get the right amount of build up. When it's all over you're actually going to miss someone screaming at you.

Well, I knew it was "imminent" but that was pretty fast.

Folly is available here:
mongoloidvillage.bandcamp.com

Tracklisting:
1. Ithaca
2. MS Drunk: a sober assessment
3. The Albina Leprechaun
4. Nocturnal Emissions
5. Halitocirrhosis
6. Corn Eyes
7. Ship of Fools

Now you get free reign to use "imperial blaster" in a sentence without sounding like a music dork, kids! The title was switched to "Nocturnal Emissions" "Halitocirrhosis" (Edit: I'm retarded. I'm not sure how I fucked that up, but gosh durnit, I did).

Song: "Invoke The King Of Hell"
Artist: Beast In The Field
Album: World Ending (2010)

I hate "Friday" mentality and I hate the Friday crowd even more but this song compensates for either.

Big surprise: this band is a duo. Their sound does not lack their appreciation of Electric Wizard, though, so don't be swayed by any idea of flimsy minimalism the word "duo" might provoke.

Since this song isn't online, here's something else. As the description says, "Watch Jordan play the cymbal with his face!":

Song: "Wight Weedy Wight"
Artist: Wight
Album: Wight Weedy Wight (2011)

Kyuss, Sleep, OM, Karma to Burn, Hawkwind. You should get this album if any of the previous bands appeal to you in the slightest.

As you might guess, Wight makes some mostly laid back stoner/doom. While a bit derivative with this particular song, it's a good starter. You'll like the rest of their album, too.

Unfortunately, it looks like I'll have to travel to Europe if I want to see them live anytime soon. They're German. :(

[108] Lecherous Gaze, Christian Mistress, Danava (2011)

This is going to be really short but there's a good reason behind the brevity.

I had to catch a flight the next morning. Despite altogether skipping Danava intending to get some sleep, I didn't get to sleep til shortly before 4am, leaving me an hour's nap to last me for the next full day. You can imagine how I felt. You can imagine how I felt knowing that this was so likely to be the case whether or not I actually went to the show.

It was so worth it in the end, but ugh.

My boss and I arrived to Lecherous Gaze a little late. While this was already known before arriving, the crowdedness of the venue was sure to be a reminder. East End was PACKED. I have never seen so many people in that room before. There was NO view for us late arrivals as every spot already had a person in it.

With my preference for that "all-encompassing" sound one normally gets out of loud metal bands and not even being able to see, I gave up after a song or two and left. I could still mostly hear them where I went, and they sounded decent either way. Not 100% my kind of thing, but cool, and it would have been nice to see them (literally) at another place. Considering the crowd, I'm sure there will be a next time.

I ended up people-watching and getting a smirk out of counting how many girls walked by wearing animal print. I counted three or four before I was distracted. Weird coincidence or shitty trend I hadn't yet noticed?

I've seen Christian Mistress once before. At the time I'd only heard them a little bit and it had been established that I wasn't really into their sound - the live experience more or less confirmed my feeling. It wasn't that they sucked, but I grew up on and grew to love different breeds of hard rock and metal. I don't have the right frame of reference to judge what they do. Still, I respect them as best I can, and with the band being a client and partially affording me the next 36 hours of awesome, I wanted to give them another sincere attempt.

Once Lecherous Gaze was fully off-"stage", I made my way to the front. Ultimately I didn't end up with a great view - I could see their tallest guitarist and some of their drummer - but after seeing absolutely nothing of Lecherous Gaze, I was grateful. The guitarist alone turned out to be interesting enough for me.

For not being "into it" before, I didn't mentally crap out or get irritated on their set, so that's good. They started with a mellow sort of song, leading into a set that felt different - more current? - than what the previous show had been. Maybe that was just my perception having changed over the previous months. Either way, only a few songs were familiar to me, and the novelty part of their performance definitely helped me stay focused.

I would have traded the other two bands in a heartbeat for a full set of anything Danava felt like throwing at us, but with the crowd and already being able to tell I was getting nervy and over-stimulated when I needed to be in bed soon, I left soon after Christian Mistress finished.

I am very jealous of anyone who got to see Danava with Red Fang, or Danava with Lord Dying, or even Lord Dying with Saviours, this last month. All of you are jerks. But, some of you will be saying I'm a spoiled asshole after the next show 'view writing I post... rightfully so.

Edit: 3/29 @ The Know: Lecherous Gaze, Ripper, Fast Talkers

Have fun spreading this rumor: I heard Neurosis, Grails, and Akimbo will be playing 9/10 for MFNW. Since MFNW hasn't even switched their website to this year yet, who can say if this will even happen, but I heard about Sleep/YOB about this time last year, so... perhaps it will!

In other news, I had a thing that has kept my head out of this blog for the last few days. I'll finish up those concert 'view posts soon. The next couple are monsters.

Song: "Rule The Beast"
Artist: Torche
Album: In Return (2007)

The high I got out of my recent adventures has resulted in a number of music revivals for me. I haven't been listening to music with fresh ears and/or mind very often this last year so it's been nice even though I'm forever going to remember this time connected with this particular music... Not always a good thing. Regardless, since I got home, I keep listening to this song. I haven't listened to it much in my history but suddenly it sounds just so good. I know it's by fault of seeing Floor live, but what the hell? Of all bands and sounds, why this one?

[107] Lord Dying, Thrones, Witch Mountain (2011)

This show took place late on a Monday in the relatively small East End, so I was a little surprised to see so many paying customers. It was crowded enough to be a little uncomfortable and difficult to get around even from the first band, making me think that if the show took place later in the week at a larger venue it would have done even better.

Lord Dying seems to be doing a lot of good social work for themselves as each show I've seen them do since the first two they've had an excellent crowd and reaction. This was no exception. A few different people yelled about how they were great after the first song - always a good sign for a new band. Having seen them plenty of times in recent history and with all their live songs familiar to me now, I ended up mentally wandering all over the fucking place. At one point I was thinking about how the band seemed like the premise for a comic book with their wildly different appearances and ways of approaching what they do.

Thrones seemed to be having a good night. He didn't play "Ephraim" which left time for three or four other songs, most I either haven't heard or haven't heard live in a while, closing with those I do know well - "Trmph Life" and "Wage War". Between songs he took time to talk to the crowd and sell merch for Lord Dying which resulted in a joke about selling off Witch Mountain as a band since they didn't have merch. I think the total got to $1.25, but someone offered $5 Canadian.

Witch Mountain set up as they usually do, with their singer standing some feet in front of the drums, guitarist on stage right, bassist on stage left. I hadn't noticed this before but they were situated in a near-perfect square from each other, visually enhanced by the way the room is built and their opposing twin physical statures.

They played: a new song entitled "Crown of Hair", "Plastic Cage", "Iron Lung II", "Wing of the Lord", "End Game", and "Veil of the Forgotten". When they got to "Plastic Cage" it felt like it was slowed down and given a shitload more bass... but I was nearest the bass, so who's to say what was loudest on the other side of the room at that time. When I later got up and moved to the side of the way the bass speakers were facing, the bass significantly lessened and mostly I heard drums and vocals. Apparently Nate plays quieter on album/song than he does live.

The sound of the room, despite where I stood or which band, was good and clear. None of the three had bad, ineffective, washed out, or spotty sound. Vocals were lacking for Lord Dying but they usually are - I could hear them but not totally, making me think they were louder a few feet away. I was behind Erik so it stands to reason...

As I said, the crowd was good if not excellent for the room. The proper crowd in front of the "stage" was always attentive. However, during Witch Mountain there was a group of folks off to the side that I am probably accurately thinking of as "hipster fuckheads" being exactly that. For Lord Dying I was standing next to a girl who apparently really likes music and really doesn't care if one Hipster Fuckhead is laughing at her. I noted her in my phone as "dancing queen" because she looked like she belonged in the 70s. She was joined by another later in the night, and together they also made for some snickering on my part.

At one point in the night "Nod Scene" or "Ozium" was playing over the P.A. and I was gifted with one of those special show moments - Joe turned to ask what the hell he was hearing. I don't know why that's funny but it fucking is.

Getting to this show was a piece of cake; I had the most stress-free ride I've had in a really, really long time. With the bit of socializing I did beforehand and this show going off without a hitch, it was a great night.

Witch Mountain finally releases their latest album South of Salem April 9th. You should fucking get it. You should also go to the release show the same day. It also has Wizard Rifle, Nether Regions, and Rabbits. Yes, yes, and bring your damn earplugs, grandma. I can't wait.

It's been a month since this show, so this one's going to suck a little.

[106] Norska, Rabbits, YOB (2011)

I have been waiting for Rabbits to release an album for too long now. The one EP I found ages ago sounded bad, doing them no justice. I had to rely on the live experience of the band which, as you may know, hadn't turned out so well. The first few times I saw them was when I really wanted to see some other band playing after them, meaning I didn't approach them with full attention and felt passive aggressive and impatient about their set. Being local and sort of similar to other bands I listen to, I wanted to like them, but not like that. I hoped a proper album would make the difference.

Around the same time that I heard that they were signed to Relapse, I finally saw Rabbits at a good time. After two hours of Salvador and Diesto's mutual slow and slower doom, Rabbits' heavy psychosis was fully welcome, sounded perfect for the venue, and was probably the best way to end the night short of punching a stoner in the face.

This show - meaning YOB, Rabbits, and Norksa - was Rabbits' official CD/LP release for their new album Lower Forms. For all my ADD and trouble with the band before, I was looking forward to it.

As you might be able to guess, they played the whole thing start to finish, all ten songs and 40-something minutes. It was a bit overkill for a relative newbie who doesn't listen to any other band quite like Rabbits. Still, I got to learn I knew their music better than I thought I did. "Burn, Sun, Burn" was instantly recognized from some internet samplings. I'd also already heard "Duck, The Pigs" online. A few other songs I'd already heard live at their previous November show, possibly even earlier, such as "We Beat" and "A Tale of Tales".

That said, I think my favorite song of the lot was "No Depth"... the shortest song on the album (59 seconds!), perhaps a reflection of my amazing attention span.

With Rabbits being more familiar than I expected, I was surprised that others near me didn't seem to know them and a local music fan even straight up said that they had never seen them live before. This subdued sort of vibe was not the case at previous Rabbits shows, so I wondered if maybe the vast majority of the audience were YOB fans... But, with their recent press and attention, I may have just been standing in the wrong spot.

I don't have tons say about YOB's set, but I'll tell you one thing that threw me off course... Mike fucking hugged me. Now, I'm not into YOB the way some folks are and I'd probably have died if it were someone like Buzz Osborne or Maynard, but that kind of friendliness just does not compute for me. I expect musicians to be anti-social dicks. Especially in recent months, any little bit of respect, honest friendliness, and social appreciation I've gotten in this field has meant a lot. That I got a hug for no good reason by someone I barely know who I've seen be nothing but nice to me and others, musician or otherwise, was really uplifting.

YOB started with a new song that sounded very much like another YOB song. Maybe it was just my closest neighbors, maybe it was the novelty, maybe it was the moon, but something felt oddly disconnected about their crowd right off - they were attentive but not. It took a bit of time before people really started to seem on the same page. By then, though, my limited view and the imperfect sound of the venue resulted in other thoughts, like my last two, both great YOB shows, and how next time I see this band I should make a point to watch them from the front of the stage so I'm not so psychologically distracted by my asshole neighbors.

Nevertheless, YOB went all out with their set, playing three songs totaling 45 minutes after the first new song, taking a little break, and coming back with another block of three or four. The second to last song had Stevie from Dark Castle on vocals. While only nine songs, they were on stage at least and hour and a half... Excellent number, methinks. Their set even included "Exorcism of the Host" which Mike said they hadn't played live since 2005. Yikes.

Featuring the same bassist as YOB, Norska opened this show. They have a familiar doom/sludge but still challenging sound that's like a cross between YOB and Isle of Marauder-era Diesto. Technically this was also an album release show for them - I bought a copy, you can, too.

I've only seen Norska play to tiny, 30 person or less audiences, so seeing them on stage in front of a couple hundred was refreshing and new. I didn't listen to or pay any attention to their kind of sound before a few years ago but I wondered where that size crowd stacked up to their show history. In any case, I think I was actually most excited about their set, especially once they played their last song "They Mostly Come At Night" (Sounds harsh. I hope they leave money on the nightstand when they do). It had a "big finish", har har.

This was a work night for me and consequently I got to get to know the crowd even better after-the-fact. There was a pretty even mixture of men/women at this show. At my last Norska show I complained about there being almost no women in the building and there weren't too many at my second-to-last YOB show, either. Perhaps this had to do with proximity to Valentine's Day, or the crowd size (a few hundred), or maybe these bands are "branching out", so to speak. Either way, good to see.

In conclusion, between Norska and Rabbits, I now have two new albums to lose in my collection. Yay!

Last year my job allowed me my first opportunity to directly influence the music world. By some craziness I was asked to research some local Atlanta/Athens-area bands to add on a show with Thrones and Christian Mistress, and much to my offense this list did not include one of my new favorite bands Wizard Smoke. I spoke up, they got on the show.

They didn't actually get to perform - some dumbass went and broke his arm or something before the date. I thought that was funny in a sad clown kind of way.

Attempt number two to get them on a show happened recently but apparently I totally forgot that one of the guys in the band is also in Maserati. Maserati's currently on tour and I knew that because they'll be here April 18th and I'd thought about going. In any case, it seems this situation isn't simply my own personal roadblock - Wizard Smoke also had to turn down a mini-tour with Floor. Yes, THE Floor, the one that recently reformed with a whole new young, psychotic fanbase. That's smarts. You gotta feel bad for them. I mean, it's nice that Maserati's doing so well these days, and Wizard Smoke's name is at the very least circling around, but that's pretty harsh.

The good news for everybody else is that Wizard Smoke is two weeks away from releasing the follow-up to their 2009 EP Live Rock In Hell.

As you may already know, I listed that album as one of my top ten favorites of 2009, on the same list as Black Cobra, Sepultura, OM, and Masters of Reality. Here's what I said about it:

I researched this band simply because they were playing a show with Red Fang in another state. I was immediately impressed and, even, jealous because I'm sure that show was outstanding. Wizard Smoke has an overall sound that can be described as stoner metal, with vocals that are more black metal in style. Generally I don't care for the kind of vocals, but they're blended in with the music in a way that's, at the very least, tolerable. The first two songs on this EP stand out something awful, especially "I", but after a hundred listens I've grown to like "III" and "IV" nearly just as much. The fact that I had to hear of this band by chance exploration rather than by any supposed "authority" on stoner music makes me doubt these authorities' usefulness, as Live Rock In Hell is only a hesitation away from being my favorite of the year.

Wizard Smoke sent reminders to a ton of metal blogs about their upcoming album this time and therefore I'm not one of two or three people in my sphere enthusiastically discussing them anymore. Due my mild lateness in posting about them I've been able to see others' posts on topic of The Speed of Smoke, and it's "some good" (to quote my favorite Newfie) to see them get so much positive attention these days.

The music of The Speed of Smoke garners that. I'm not a reviewer and it takes me ages to process new music so I won't say too much about it, but you can accurately guess it sounds "graduated" over the previous release. All in all, it's musically more diverse - Live Rock maintains the same sort of doom/stoner sound throughout; Speed of Smoke has different moods per song, the songs are changed up a little more, and there's seemingly more going on. It depends on what kind of mindset you have about your music if you'll find that a better thing or not, but these are some fine songs as-is and I'll be testing the album out plenty over these next weeks and months.

I really have to wonder what the fuck is in Georgia's water that has resulted in so many amazing bands - Mastodon, Zoroaster, Whores, Maserati... I leave off Baroness and Kylesa when I discuss "amazing bands", but you may feel differently. Wizard Smoke seems like they're with good company. A more direct musical association would certainly be with Zoroaster and the ilk of Weedeater, In Return-era Torche, and Atolah. Again, good company to have.

As you may already know, The Speed of Smoke comes out March 29th as a download with a physical release to follow in late April. You'll be able to find it on their website or their facebook page.

In the meantime, here are two live videos of Wizard Smoke playing "Dead Wood" and "Weakling", the first and third songs on the album respectively. Now, is it just the poor lighting in the first vid or does their bassist look like he could be Aaron Beam's cousin?

Song: "Ithaca"
Artist: Mongoloid Village
Album: Folly (2011?)

New Mongoloid Village songs are hitting the internet every day. I suspect an album release is imminent.

For now, listen to this, listen to it again, take a break and maybe listen to it a third time, because this band is like that. If you need a smaller dose of nerd, feel free to listen to "Shittown, U.S.A" 47 times in a row.

PS. Melvins by way of Rabbits and Black Elk.

Song: "Untitled"
Artist: Weekend Nachos
Album: Punish and Destroy (2007)

I had this song come up randomly from a compilation someone had done. I have mostly ignored Weekend Nachos, but the introduction to this song is intriguing as fuck and from first listen I couldn't turn it off. It sounds very much like a dark castle dungeon scene in an old Nintendo or arcade game - perhaps it is and I simply haven't played the particular game before. What follows, though, is an incredibly effective slow doom mirroring the same sound. Together, I think it may very well be one of the best songs I've ever heard.

Also, I played the game Crystal Castles (a name I knew first from the band Crystal Castles) for the first time about two weeks ago so this kind of shit's been on my brain.

Song: "Constant Future"
Artist: Parts & Labor
Album: Constant Future (2011)

I saw Parts & Labor live three and a half years back opening for Battles. From my research I was a little worried Parts & Labor would be "indie", ie. too soft, poetic, or parading to some kindly emotional/feminine ideal for my tastes. While they do have that element, instead the show turned out to be positive - like Battles, they had a heavy drum focus, and I really like that. Though I haven't given them much time since, they've always been in the back of my mind.

I've already given their newest album two full spins (well, it's mp3s, but you know...) so you can guess I like it. If you've never heard Parts & Labor before and you come from a metal/heavy rock background, you may want to sample "The Gold We're Digging" first to get the idea and then come back to "Constant Future", a more "psychedelic"-sounding, ambient in feeling kind of song. After all, Teeth of the Sea will be supporting them live in May.

It's been a few weeks since this concert so excuse the lack of details at points. I'll make up for it in vigor...

[105] Wizard Rifle, Lord Dying, Nether Regions, Danava (2011)

This was Nether Regions' Into The Breach CD release show. I had been looking forward to both the show and the album release for months. For one, I was told Danava would be playing and they're one of my favorite Portland bands, live or otherwise. For two, it was cool to have heard Into The Breach in advance of the release, but it's no fun knowing how cool something is yet being unable to share that experience with others.

Yeah, most of the times I share music and nobody takes to it (if they even listen in the first place); most days I feel like I'm talking to myself with this blog. Even when it does seem like I have some sort of audience or reception, it comes at a cost. Maybe it's my writing style, maybe it's just that I am that kind of person. I say too much when I shouldn't, too little when I should. Whatever the case, I don't like sitting on good music too long. If I like it, it stands to reason someone else will, too.

This show, much to my relief, was evidence of that concept. It was one of the best and biggest crowds I've seen for every band of the night, THE best I've seen for both Wizard Rifle and Nether Regions. For building this show up as much as I had, it was so nice to see so many people here, and so many of them totally 'into it'.

Branx recently had a revival due the demise of Berbati's Pan and, especially, Satyricon, so I wasn't really sure where the venue was or what the method would be regarding doors or showtime. Naturally, the door to the venue itself was "hidden" at the end of a ramp leading between buildings, located underneath Rotture from the opposite side of the building. Doors themselves opened a little late due to Wizard Rifle finishing their soundcheck, reminding me a little of Satyricon. Inside was also similar to Satyricon with a dark/grungy vibe and the front open area followed by the stage "room". Unlike Satyricon, drinks are allowed in the main room, but for this all ages show alcoholics were confined to a bar area away from the stage. First impression: so far so good.

After taking in my new environment a bit, Wizard Rifle hit the stage. They had been working on a new album and preparing for their first US tour, so most of what they ended up playing live this night seemed to be new. I don't know their material well enough to say what they played or didn't, but their overall set also felt graduated and professional over the times I'd seen them before. Perhaps that had something to do with them being on a proper stage playing to a decent, active crowd (for once?), too. As always, their stage banter was top notch.

Lord Dying’s material is mostly recognizable for me now, what with listening to a few of their songs regularly at home since they uploaded tracks to the ‘net. I believe they played five songs - the same five they play at every show lately. Having seen them more than enough times now, I had the liberty to go brain dead on their set and performance. I'm sure I was more concerned about seeing Nether Regions, anyhow... That happens a lot; if I came to a show for a band, the band that plays before them gets stiffed. Anyway, Lord Dying's music is good, and that's good enough.

This being Nether Regions' CD release show, they were sure to play the majority of their new album, starting with a dramatic pre-intro as they settled on stage in the dark and moving towards "Into The Breach/Spanish Werewolves" territory. I didn't keep a setlist but it seemed like they skipped "A City Far Enough Away". I could be wrong; at this point I can't remember anything except that I was distracted by the center crowd and the sonically ironic good vibe I was getting from the whole experience.

Either way, they were on stage longer than usual for all that material. Seeing them for less time at venues with sub-par sound was getting annoying. Even here, with me standing close to speakers, I couldn't hear the guitar on the other side of the stage very well, but that is something I can live with when I know their material fairly well at this point and went to this intending to foremost analyze their new drummer.

That said, the new drummer did a fine job. Some pieces, like “Alpha/Omega” where there’s a quick drum solo, seemed vaguely unnatural, but that’s a given considering the drummer isn’t the one who originally played those parts. Still, I doubt anyone in the audience noticed if they hadn’t specifically focused on the previous drummer before. The new guy was accurate and totally looked like he belonged on stage with them.

Danava played:

“Where Beauty & Terror Dance”
(new song)
“Riding Hood”
“Illusion Crawls”
(new song… long)
“Unonou”
“Eyes in Disguise”

Three new songs, three old ones. Pretty good!

They sounded, played, and seemed better than their Berbati's show last fall, and the energy of the crowd where I stood was a lot more authentic. Even with the long new song being more rock oriented than dependent on synth (or whatever the fuck is going on there), it reminded me of the first time I ever saw Danava when they played a few long keyboard-focused songs in a row. It was very nice to see "that" again, especially with their newest lineup.

The crowd of this entire show was younger than usual, as it was both free and all ages. Perhaps due more to the size of the crowd than the age difference, some of Wizard Rifle and most of Lord Dying and Nether Regions were treated to a shove-pit. Danava's crowd was more subdued; that's to be expected (hippies!). Even with the aggressive and enthusiastic folks, though, I didn't have to deal with any drunks, conversationalists, "girlfriends", or people in front of me constantly looking back. I had been worried about this show beforehand being a fucking social meltdown but instead it turned out to be my most positive social show experience in a while. In other words, when I caught a good mood, I got to keep it.

In conclusion:
- Wizard Rifle has since released some songs to the world.
- Lord Dying has a few songs online.
- Nether Regions' album is out now. You should get it.
- Danava is still selling copies of their split with Earthless and Lecherous Gaze. It's the best three-way split I ever did heard.
- and this show was great.

Song: "Dunkelheit"
Artist: Burzum
Album: Filosofem (1996)

I knew of and then knew about Burzum long before I actually listened to the music. I'm still on page one with Burzum musically, and it's no secret why: I don't really care for black metal and only recently have started to pick at the genre. That I avoided this so long makes fine sense. However, in retrospect, fuckin' A! I should have heard this album ages ago.

My first impression of this album was that it sounded like a black metal Superjudge (Monster Magnet). It has a similar messy/noisy, all-encompassing sound. That I would immediately compare this album to one of my favorites says a lot. In it's nearly continuous loud "fuzz", I might also compare it a bit to Sleep's Dopesmoker. Certainly we're comparing different genres, but with my minimal black metal background, you can see why I thought of those first.

If you haven't heard this album (or song) yet, you should get to doing so very soon.

Hi there! Miss me? Aww, come on, I know you did!

So I've been absent from the blogosphere for a few weeks now. Though I guessed I'd probably take a week or two to myself around early March, I ended up getting a head start. While perhaps disturbing as I've never taken a full month off from writing in the entire eleven years I've been muttering online, it was fucking necessary.

In short, I've been busy and needed to take a break. You'll get somewhat of a glimpse where I've been and what I've done soon.

In the meantime, you can see I simplified the design of the blog. Turns out that that multiple template system wasn't easy for me to work with after all. It gave me an excuse to change a few things, and I have. That said, hopefully comments work now - I had trouble with them. Otherwise, I've shut off the feed(s) until I get some other things working.

Expect some huge posts soon.