I’ll say it: I’m feeling damn good going into this weekend. Got that Iron Man show tonight, and next week marks one year of The Obelisk. The numbers look good and a little bit ago I got off the phone from interviewing Dave Fucking Chandler of Saint Fucking Vitus, so I’m pretty stoked on life right now. It’s way better than flushing your car keys down someone’s toilet. That interview and a bunch more about the anniversary (and hopefully some other stuff) kick off next week, so until then, please enjoy this awesome Melvins video, filmed live at Amoeba Records in California. They do “Honey Bucket” from the classic Houdini album. Rock.

Hailing from the hotbed of righteous psychedelia known as Devenport, Iowa, the five-piece Mondo Drag blend retro stylization, modern approaches and timeless groove for a concoction both lysergic and familiar. Their debut, New Rituals, was just released via Alive Records. Ever vigilant in these cases, the PR wire has the info:

Merging exciting psychedelic rock with an electric blues edge, Mondo Drag delivers a sound that references the past while pushing forwards towards the future (Jimi Hendrix, Pentagram, Blue Cheer and even Pink Floyd are part of the band’s musical lexicon, while Sonic Youth hints to its current references). Mondo Drag’s first-rate live performances have become a thing of local legend in and around its Midwest home and have seen the band share stages with artists such as Sleepy Sun, Dead Meadow, Witchcraft, Radio Moscow, Jennifer Gentle, The Dodos, Cass McCombs, Awesome Color and Monotonix to name a few. With a hulking wall of sound, an arsenal of guitars and a head full of clouds, Mondo Drag is on a rock ‘n’ roll mission.

A taste of what Mondo Drag’s New Rituals holds in store can be sampled now as the record’s intoxicating title track has been posted online at this location. In celebration of the release of New Rituals, Mondo Drag has announced upcoming US tour dates as well as multiple appearances at the 2010 SXSW Music Festival, set to take place March 17-21 in Austin, TX.

Mondo Drag live dates:
February 6 – Iowa City, IA – White Lightning Wherehouse
February 9 – St. Louis, MO – Off Broadway Nightclub
February 10 – Carbondale, IL – The Swamp
February 11 – Lexington, KY – Al’s Bar
February 12 – Nashville, TN – Springwater Supper Club
February 13 – Murfreesboro, TN – Wall Street
February 14 – Greenbrier, TN – Loudhouse Coffee
February 15 – Cincinnati, OH – Blue Rock Tavern
February 16 – Detroit, MI – Corktown Tavern
February 17 – Chicago, IL – The Mopery
February 18 – Dekalb, IL – House Show
February 20 – Davenport, IA – RME Hall (New Rituals CD release show!)
March 17 – Austin, TX – Cheers on 6th (SXSW)
March 20 – Austin, TX – Electra Beauty Lounge (SXSW)

It suddenly occurs to me that I never reviewed The Atlas Moth‘s Candlelight debut, A Glorified Piece of Blue Sky. What a dick. While it’s a little late, I may or may not rectify the situation sometime soon (that vague enough?). While I’m weighing out the pros and cons, check out these tour dates from the PR wire:

Cerebrally pulverizing Chicagoan quintet The Atlas Moth will be blazing a good chunk of the East Coast and Midwest on the road this March with Coalesce and Harvey Milk. The low-end triple-guitar thunder the band are well-known for creating on stage is as massive as it is mesmerizing, as witnessed on their 2009 live with Dark Castle, Wetnurse, Black Cobra, Nachtmystium, Pentagram, Javelina and countless more.

The Atlas Moth w/ Coalesce, Harvey Milk:
3/05/2010 Rex Theatre – Pittsburgh, PA
3/06/2010 Kung-Fu Necktie – Philadelphia, PA
3/07/2010 The Ottobar – Baltimore, MD
3/08/2010 Le Poisson Rouge – New York, NY
3/09/2010 Middle East [Downstairs] – Boston, MA
3/10/2010 Il Motore – Montreal, QC
3/11/2010 Wreckroom – Toronto, ON
3/12/2010 Smalls Bar – Hamtramck, MI
3/13/2010 Subterranean – Chicago, IL

The Atlas Moth at SXSW 2010:
3/18/2010 East End Tattoo – Austin, TX @ Chronicyouth.com showcase
3/20/2010 The Metropolis – Austin, TX – early show
3/20/2010 21st CO OP – Austin, TX – late show
3/21/2010 Red 7 – Austin, TX – Goodbye Southby

Not much for obits, but let’s give this a shot:

Yes, we all rejoiced seeing him stroll down the lane each year at the Academy Awards, the Grammys and sometimes even those pesky Golden Globes, but alas, author J.D. Salinger, who so loved the limelight, is dead today at 91. Much like after the 2009 passing of Michael Jackson, his fans have lined the streets of Los Angeles in poorly-printed bootleg t-shirts bearing his image, and there seems to be no end to the public grieving in sight.

In all seriousness, I’ll say this for the guy: J.D. Salinger totally hated your guts. He didn’t even know you. In fact, in all likelihood he hated you before you were born, and he hated your parents too. And he meant it. A genuine American misanthrope in the 20th Century; the age of ever-increasing access and he wouldn’t have it. I guess that’s admirable. Much as anything, anyhow.

And where would we all have been without his most famous work, 1951’s The Catcher in the Rye, to validate all our directionless teenage angst and ennui? To tell us who “the phonies” were and who were the real people? Certainly we were all made real by Holden Caulfield, and you can be sure that had the book never existed and someone actually come along to tell us that, at 15 years old, we weren’t the center of the universe and that whatever trivial emotional turbulences we were experiencing amounted to less than nothing on the scale of human suffering, we wouldn’t have believed them anyway. With Catcher in the Rye, we didn’t even have to pretend to buy it. We really were the center of the universe.

Salinger so loved and understood teenagers, in fact, that at 35 he married one. In strict defiance of the “half your age plus seven” rule and in what can only be called his “living the dream” phase, he rejected the fame and literary praise being heaped on him, took a 19-year-old bride and lived as a recluse for the rest of his days (not that the marriage lasted that long). A quick question: would you ever leave the house if you were 35 and newly wedded to someone 16 years your junior? Seclusion seems an immediately more logical option.

The good news in all of this is now his offspring can plunder through the reported 15 completed manuscripts he left behind and sell the movie rights for his life at top dollar to Paramount (I think Ben Affleck would be perfect for the role, don’t you?), pissing all over his legacy, yes, but breathing much needed new life into freshman high school curricula everywhere. Jerome David Salinger: you will be missed?

Echoes of YOB’s The Unreal Never Lived pop up on Swedish trio Kongh’s sophomore full-length, whether it’s the driving rhythm that built tension “Quantum Mystic” transposed onto opener “Unholy Water” or the malevolent triplet riffing of “The Mental Tyrant” in the closing title track. By keeping their sound generally darker, though, and adding elements vocally and otherwise out of black metal, Kongh make it through the five tracks of Shadows of the Shapeless without sounding overly redundant or derivative.

Issued first in Europe by Trust No One, Shadows of the Shapeless finds distribution Stateside via Chicago imprint Seventh Rule Recordings. No strangers to the town, Kongh played the 2008 Kuma’s Doom Fest, which marked their first US appearance. Whether the narrative actually goes that that’s where and when they came to the attention of Seventh Rule (one imagines it was actually before), it’s impressive they’d wind up on the label nonetheless, Seventh Rule in the past having issued albums from Akimbo, Sweet Cobra, Indian and Wetnurse.

The music on Shadows of the Shapeless is bound to inspire all manner of antler-laden hyperbole and metaphor, but what it rounds out to is post-metal crunch with darker and heavier shades that set it apart from the pseudo-cerebral approach that so much of the genre has taken on these last few years. To call it progressive wouldn’t be a mistake, but guitarist/vocalist David Johansson successfully averts the Isis trap and crafts a more natural-feeling soundscape. As the press release suggests, the music is cinematic, but sitting and parsing through its ups and downs, blasts and lulls, feels like a waste of time as compared to experiencing the whole of each of these songs.

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California psychedelicists Black Math Horseman‘s Tee Pee Records debut, Wyllt was one of the warmest meandering records of 2009. You just wanted to follow it wherever it was going. Likewise, I’d kind of like to follow the band as they tour around Europe in April, starting with an appearance at the much-discussed Roadburn festival and taking it from there. I’ll just have to console myself with their new video for “Tyrant,” which the label hosted over at Converse‘s blog. Apparently someone at Converse decided they like stoner music (they’re also sponsoring the Small Stone day party at SXSW). Good for them. Whoever it is, email me and we’ll discuss licensing costs for some exclusive Obelisk customs. Fun all around.

But back to Black Math Horseman. Click the image to see the video in all its infrared glory and behold the dates from the PR wire:

Black Math Horseman have announced a UK/European tour in April to coincide with their appearance at the 2010 Roadburn Festival in Tilburg, Holland. Tour info is below.

2/19 Spaceland – Los Angeles, CA w/ Ancestors and Intronaut
4/17 Roadburn Festival – Tilburg, NL
4/18 TBA – London, UK
4/20 Hafenklang – Hamburg, GER
4/21 Steinburch – Duiburg, GER
4/22 DB’s – Utrecht, NL
4/23 Connewitz – Leipzig, GER
4/24 Beatpol – Dresden, GER
4/25 Yacht Club – Brno, CZ
4/26 Cafe Cairo – Würzburg, GER
4/27 Sedel – Luzern, CH
4/28 Rosenkeller – Jena, GER
4/29 TBA – Berlin, GER

What starts out as a litmus test for how much drone punishment a listener can handle not so quickly becomes an encompassing ritual nearly religious in its scope. Skullflower’s Strange Keys to Untune Gods’ Firmament (Neurot) is a double-disc, 12 track excursion to the outer limits of instrumental noise. There are no songs, no catchy choruses, no pop structures. UK-based guitarist Matthew Bower continues his 20-plus year run of unbridled experimentation, now as the sole creative force within the band.

It is, for most who’d even be brave enough to take it on, completely unlistenable. Bower makes no attempt to meet his audience halfway or do anything that might make his music more accessible. This, for a small but loyal cult segment of the underground, is precisely what has earned him such acclaim these past decades in his various projects, and with Strange Keys to Untune Gods’ Firmament, the idea seems not so much to expand the horizons of noise — because Bower’s already done that — but rather to engage in the rites of the unhinged and to make a work that, apart from the already-stretched limits of its instrumentation, is truly without borders.

That said, there can be no doubt that Skullflower’s latest is bound to be more appreciated than heard. The destructive chaos of these tracks is rampant throughout, and makes most bands who talk of their sound as apocalyptic seem even sillier than they did themselves. Take the vocals out of the first two Godflesh records and play them at quarter-speed. Repeat for two hours and enjoy. Or, more likely, don’t. Doesn’t seem to matter to Bower.

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…To be perfectly frank, I can’t decide where I’m at with this thing. By all accounts, the inaugural Scion Rock Fest was a blast last year in Atlanta, and Columbus, where it’s being held this year, is a substantially shorter drive. There are a couple CD stores there I’d like to check out, and with YOB and Shrinebuilder on the show, I know I’d at least get my money’s worth — especially since the entry is free.

Not only that, but arguing in favor of my attendance is that it’s my spring break and I wouldn’t even have to worry about the reading/writing I should be doing for school (that comes later in the week, like Monday). And even the bigger, heavier acts like Hate Eternal or Cannibal Corpse, they’re certainly cool by me. I know I’ve dropped hints here before, but I’m a big fan of well done death metal, and though I’ve seen both of those bands and most of the others on the bill in whom I’d be interested in seeing, it might be a cool mix to catch them together in one sitting.

On the other hand is the whole Scion thing. Not even so much the corporate sponsorship, but the fact that they put their name as the first word in it. It was never Cheetos Emissions from the Monolith or Honda Stoner Hands of Doom. Even SXSW, which actually has plenty, shows a little decorum about their rampant name-selling (at least until you get there). So what’s a boy to do?

Well, I know I’m not flying to Austin this year, and it’s looking more and more like Roadburn isn’t going to happen either, despite my wishes to the contrary. If they do another Planet Caravan in Asheville, I could be down for that, but that’s later in the summer, and honestly, I could stand to get the hell out of the valley for a day or two, even if most of that time is spent on Rt. 80. The debate rages on, and I can’t imagine they’re finished adding bands to the Scion Rock Fest, so we’ll see how it all plays out. Needless to say, if I do end up making the trip, I’ll let you know.

To anyone who’d argue that the “stoner” sound is belonging to any one region or locale — i.e. the Palm Desert in California or the Southern US — first, you’re just wrong, and second, take a look at an act like The Grand Astoria, who call St. Petersburg in Russia home. They bill themselves as a stoner punk band, and in their more active, upbeat material like “Evolution of the Planet Groove,” I can hear it especially in the vocals of guitarist Kamille Sharapodinov, whose singing style might seem awkward with the music until you recall how many stoner rockers are just punkers who grew up.

That said, of the tracks on their MySpace, I prefer the grander, more instrumental and jammy vibe of “The Man. The Sun. The Desert,” which, although not without its moments of hesitation, has a more graceful flow and when Sharapodinov does offer vocals, they’re more subdued. The build up on that track, bolstered by the guitar work of Igor Suvorov, the bass of Farid Azizov and Nick Kunavin‘s drumming, leads to more straightforward thrash riffing and screaming solos sure to satisfy anyone looking to add a little metal into the mix.

These multiple personalities play out even further on “The Art of Communication with Aliens,” which takes the riffing to yet another level of noisy crunching heaviness. Fortunately, for anyone who’d want to experience The Grand Astoria‘s self-titled, self-released album, they’ve made it available free of charge. I know I’ll be checking it out, as it’s always interesting to hear what those from another culture bring to an established sound — and since you don’t hear much about the Russian scene, it could be an eye-opening experience. Here’s looking forward.

Detroit rock favorite Small Stone Records has officially announced its annual SXSW showcase, set to take place at Encore in Austin, TX, on March 18. As a veteran of several of these affairs, I can safely say they’re always the best show at all of SXSW, and more than that, completely void of all the music industry douchebaggery that the rest of the festival seems to thrive off of. If you’ve never made the trip, this lineup looks like it might be worth it:

Thursday March 18th
at Encore (next to Emo’s)
611 Red River Austin, TX 78701 – 512-474-6688

Official SXSW Showcase
1am – Dixie Witch
12mid – House of Broken Promises
11pm – Solace
10pm – Sasquatch
9pm – The Brought Low
8pm – Throttlerod
7pm – Luder

Converse / Small Stone Day Party FREE!
Free Booze! Free Chow! Free Rock!
*Inside Stage*
6pm: Honky
5pm: Sun Gods in Exile
4pm: Tia Carrera
3pm: Magnet School
2pm: Chylde

*Outside Stage*
5:30pm Suplecs
4:30pm Gozu
3:30pm Roadsaw
2:30pm Killa Dilla
1:30pm Whitey Morgan & the 78′s

Besides this ass kicking lineup of music above, we will have a few other special things going on at this event. The fine folks at Converse are manufacturing an extremely limited run of 50 Small Stone Records Chuck Taylor’s that will be giving away at the gig only. And, to fill your belly, we will have a spread of fine Mexican grub on hand…The Day Party is FREE to enter!!! This will leave you with some extra cash to tip your bartenders and buy some merch! In the evening, you will be required to pay a small door cover charge, or show your SXSW badge and/ or wristband to enter the Small Stone SXSW Showcase.

In and out in a little over 12 minutes, this split 7” between British rockers Alunah (whose ending ‘h’ seems a recent addition) and multi-continental experimental droners Queen Elephantine is a quick trip, but a satisfying one nonetheless. Limited to 250 copies and issued through Catacomb Records, each side of the vinyl features one song just past six minutes long and though the two bands work in different atmospheres, there’s a far-off echo that permeates both pieces and builds cohesiveness between the styles.

With “Song of the Sun,” Alunah offer comparatively straightforward riff-based heavy rock, set apart from the pack by the lead vocals of Sophie (no last name given), for whom Acid King comparisons can’t possibly be anything new. Nonetheless, the band spend their time wisely, fading out and back in at the end for an additional few seconds of riffing and lead lines. The four piece aren’t really breaking any new ground for stoner rock, but neither are they offensive. They’re recording a new full-length this year, and I’d be interested to check it out, so if the idea of “Song of the Sun” was to get people interested in the band by giving them a small taste, then it worked.

Whether they’re hailing on any given day from New York, Providence, RI, or Hong Kong, the prolific Queen Elephantine always seem up for a little mind expansion. Somewhat ironic is that by keeping their contribution, “Mephistopheles,” to around six minutes, they’re actually more reigned in than usual. I get the feeling there’s a half-hour version of this song out there somewhere. As it stands on the split, though, the band, led by Indy Shome continue their progressive journey through deconstructed psychedelia. In contrast to Alunah, Queen Elephantine care little for structure and ride their song out to wherever it takes them. In the context of an LP, this can be challenging, but here they keep it relatively on track, which makes for a fascinating balance.

For Alunah, this is their second release following the Fall to Earth EP (also on Catacomb), and Queen Elephantine seem to have a new split or online-only release every few months, so it’s a fair bet we’ll be hearing more from both bands. Going by the tracks included on this 7”, that’s just fine, since they each have something of their own to offer but don’t stray so far from the other as to make for incongruous listening.

Alunah on MySpace

Queen Elephantine on MySpace

Catacomb Records

Everybody’s touring Europe these days. Of course, in the case of Belgian duo SardoniS (MySpace here), it makes sense to want to get paid in Euros. Actually, come to think of it, that makes sense for everyone. Good for SardoniS though, whose self-titled CD is out now on MeteorCity, getting out and doing the thing. According to the PR wire, they’ve got a slew of dates, and a CD release party with the increasingly ubiquitous Karma to Burn. Dig it:

The official SardoniS CD release party will take place on April 10 in Het Depot in Leuven (Belgium) in support of Karma to Burn and Year Long Disaster. Organized by Belgian bookers Orange Factory.

Also, SardoniS will be touring Europe with Dark Fortress and SerpentCult. The tour dates are as follows:

Feb 12 2010 – Muziekodroom – Hasselt (B)
Feb 13 2010 – Helvete – Oberhausen (D)
Feb 14 2010 – Rocket Club – Landshut (D)
Feb 15 2010 – Exit Chmelnice – Prague (CZ)
Feb 16 2010 – Arena – Vienna (A)
Feb 17 2010 – Dynamo Werk 21 – Zurich (CH)
Feb 18 2010 – Rock It – Aalen (D)
Feb 19 2010 – Eastclub – Bischofswerda (D)
Feb 20 2010 – Ostendfest – Oostende (B)
Feb 21 2010 – Willemeen – Arhnem (NL)

If you asked, they probably wouldn’t tell you so — in fact, they’d probably say something along the lines of, “Who?” — but I think we all know Shrinebuilder‘s newly-scheduled NYC date was booked with me in mind. So thanks guys, for that. Could’ve been in Jersey, but it’s fine, I’ll make the drive. I appreciate the effort.

In addition to this show at NYU and their West Coast shows (some with Harvestman) and their Roadburn appearance, they’ll also be at the Scion Rock Fest on March 13. Busy, busy, busy. Here’s the latest tour update:

These two newly announced Shrinebuilder dates fall directly after the previously announced West Coast Neurot Recordings tour, also featuring labelmates A Storm of Light and with special appearances from Harvestman at three Bay Area shows. Shrinebuilder will also perform at this year’s Roadburn Festival in Tilburg, Holland alongside Thorr’s Hammer, Goatsnake, Enslaved, Eyehategod, Eagle Twin, Church of Misery and more.

Shrinebuilder live appearances:
3/02/2010 The Casbah – San Diego, CA
3/03/2010 Echo – Los Angeles, CA
3/04/2010 Echo – Los Angeles, CA
3/05/2010 The Voodoo Lounge – San Jose, CA w/ Harvestman, Brain Oil
3/06/2010 Oakland Metro – Oakland, CA w/ Harvestman, Laudanum
3/07/2010 The Independent – San Francisco, CA w/ Harvestman
3/09/2010 Neumo’s – Seattle, WA
3/11/2010 E+L Auditorium @ New York University – New York, NY
3/13/2010 Scion Rock Fest – Columbus, OH
4/17/2010 Roadburn Festival – Tilburg, Holland

I’m willing to wager it’s not homemade chocolate chip cookies, or puppies, or a Thank You card that says “Just Because” on the inside of it. Whatever else they’ve got in their vault, we can only assume it’s ugly, drug-addled and given to physical altercations. Seems to be the way it went with these guys.

They were only together for about a decade, but the chaotic legacy of North Carolinian sludge bastards Buzzov*en endures even as no one since has been able to capture quite the same level of fuck you-itude that seemed to come so naturally from vocalist/guitarist Kirk Fisher and the sundry musicians with which he surrounded himself throughout the band’s tenure. With the new Relapse collection, Violence from the Vault (Alternative Tentacles released the career-spanning Welcome to Violence in 2005), there surfaces five tracks recorded with Billy Anderson in 1995 featuring the same lineup as was on the 1994 Sore full-length.

Some version of “Mainline” was previously released on the 1997 The Gospel According… II EP, and “Nod” appeared on a ’96 split with Sourvein, but “Paintake,” “Breed” and “I Never” seem to have been unearthed for the first time. The sound is raw, with plenty of cassette wobble in “Breed” and a general tin-can feeling throughout, but who ever listened to Buzzov*en for the pristine production value? When I’m waist deep in the nearly 16-minute noise/drone/slow-riff/screaming stretch of “Nod,” clarity of sound is the last thing on my mind. Making it out alive is much more of a primary focus.

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I was kind of bummed when CD World on Rt. 46 in Totowa went out of business, and couldn’t have cared less when Coconuts right down the road did the same. As I stood in the FYE on Rt. 10 in East Hanover with the “LAST 3 DAYS!” sign outside and all the yellow “Going out of Business — Everything Must Go!” paraphernalia strewn about the place, I was appreciative of the fact that the indies, the Vintage Vinyls and Sound Exchanges, are still going. Who knows for how long.

Everything was at least half off, and I was down that way anyway picking up my car at long last after the whole key/toilet debacle, so I figured I’d pop in. They had a few copies of Behemoth‘s Evangelion left, one of which I grabbed just for the hell of it, and a disc called Super Duper by the band Valentine Saloon that was $1.99 (before the sale) and had artwork that looked like it was by Frank Kozik. It wasn’t. The album was, however, produced by Jack Endino. Unfortunately, it was also really, really bad.

The upshot was the self-titled album from Portland, OR‘s Red Fang, whose new school beery/bearded boogie Melvins rocking got me wherever the hell I was going that night. The highlight of the record is probably “Humans Remain Human Remains,” although “Good to Die” has balls big enough to trip over them. There’s a definite Floor/Torche influence, which adds pop flair, and at their most unhinged, they’re not quite as break-stuffy as Akimbo — who’ve more or less mastered the art of cerebral post-hardcore violence — but they’re not so terribly far off.

It was a pleasant surprise to come upon Red Fang in that setting, where once, by sheer luck, I found a used copy of Astroqueen‘s Into Submission, but even so, I’m not sorry to see FYE go. It’s a bummer for anyone if they were looking to make a lifetime career out of working there, but judging by the bored looks on the faces of the post-adolescents behind the counter, I don’t think they were too concerned. As some ring bells in memory of physical media, I’m more than happy to pick up their discarded treasures for half price. And yeah, if Beyonce stops making CDs, that’s fine, but I’m pretty sure Red Fang‘s next one will be pressed to plastic one way or another. When it is, I’ll be ready for it.