Got back from seeing Serpent Throne and Pearls and Brass in Brooklyn long enough ago to cook up a couple chicken sausages and some edamame and call it a meal while watching an episode of Squidbillies and bemoaning tomorrow’s impending workload. The show was killer, the sausages delicious and the squids fantastic. The workload I could do without, but we’re approaching the semester, and there’s not really anything I can do to stop it. Reportedly it’s my last.

I thought we’d close out this week with a new jam that the guys in Asteroid posted on their Thee Facebooks page called “Bigger Than Asterix.” It’s reportedly not anything that’s going to show up on a new album (at least not in this form), but it’s Asteroid jamming out, anyway, and that’s better than most anything else I could think of posting, so hope you dig it. I know I do. Bands like this are the reason I’m applying for a Fulbright to Sweden.

Tomorrow night I head back to Saint Vitus (the bar) in Brooklyn to catch Totimoshi, and I hope next week to have reviews up of both tonight’s and tomorrow’s shows. I was stoked to see Pentagram on Sunday, but that’s a no-dice. Hazards of NYC shows. I asked for access too late and there are more important-types looking to get in. Some you win, some you lose. Anyway, two nights of shows in a row — especially after last weekend, from which I’m still reeling — should be plenty. Still psyched for Totimoshi tomorrow though. That new record, which was reviewed this week, really is stellar.

So I don’t know about you, but I’ll look forward to those writeups (some pics as well, hopefully one or two decent enough to post), and disc reviews of Finnish psych-outs The Fërtility Cült, Atriarch and Freedom Hawk, an interview with Faces of Bayon guitarist/vocalist Matt Smith — also formerly of Warhorse — and on Wednesday, a track premiere from Rwake‘s new album, which has surprised the hell out of me in how good it is. I figured I’d dig it and all, but wow. Much more to come on that.

We’ll also have another installment (fingers crossed) of the Orange Goblin studio report on progress for their new record, and on Monday morning, an announcement about a killer show The Obelisk and BrooklynVegan have joined forces on for September. Stoked on that for sure. There’s probably a ton more I can’t think of because it’s 2AM and that’s when my brain shuts down, so I’ll leave it at that. Hope you have a great and safe weekend wherever you are. See you on the forum and back here Monday.

Before I actually knuckled down and bought it, I was kind of annoyed Fuzzorama Records wouldn’t send me a finished copy of Swedish fuzz rockers Asteroid‘s masterpiece second album, II. Entitled prick that I am, I thought maybe I’d earned it with all the sucking off I did of the release between my extensive review, interview and other posts. Hell, II was my number one pick for the first half of 2010! I recall it being with some resignation that I finally made the purchase.

Then I got the thing, and if you haven’t picked it up, then you don’t know, but the packaging is beautiful — it’s this gorgeous die-cut digibox fold-out kind of thing with the panels as part of the artwork itself. Suddenly it made sense. I wouldn’t give that shit away either! Fuck that. Let the reviewers buy it. Score one for Fuzzorama.

Actually, score two for Fuzzorama, because the album itself is magnificent. The only reason I mention the artwork now is because I really think I’ve exhausted everything else there is to say about Asteroid‘s second outing; the increased jam feel, the stunning vocals, the memorable songwriting and much more all well documented by now in the annals of searchable Obelisk lore. It may not have ended up in the top five at the end of the year, but I have the feeling when/if this list gets revisited in 2011, I’ll still be rocking II while others have fallen by the wayside. It’s a keeper in every sense. I’m glad I bought it.

Well friends, it looks like there’s a technicality issue with this year’s TFFH. I thought I’d be all set to go with Clamfight‘s righteous Vol. 1 at number five, but I got this comment from guitarist Sean on the original post:

To clarify, the CD has not been officially released, we are aiming to have it out for a release show in Philly on August 13th with some incredible bands. We’ve been doling out home-burned copies to a select few and some songs will be up for download on the various sites shortly.

August clearly is not June, and since this is the Top Five of the First Half of 2010, Vol. 1 is hereby disqualified.

Controversy! I’ll give you a second to gasp…

Now that the shock has (hopefully) subsided, we can deal with the issue on a practical level. We all know Clamfight‘s Vol. 1 will be seen again at the end of the year, so it’s not worth crying about that, and obviously this change is no value judgment on the record — which, let me emphasize, fucking rules — but if I include a record that won’t be out until August on this list, then I’d have to include stuff like the new Zoroaster too, which comes out in July, and that’s not really what the TFFH about.

Without further ado, here is the revised Top Five of the First Half of 2010:
1. Asteroid, II
2. Solace, A.D.
3. Ufomammut, Eve
4. Fatso Jetson, Archaic Volumes
5. The Wounded Kings, The Shadow over Atlantis

There. Now we can all dance like Ewoks and be happy that the list is fair and only includes albums which were released in the first six months of the year. Honorable mentions go out to Apostle of Solitude, The Brought Low, Sasquatch and Brant Bjork, any of whom could have been on this list easily.

With that cleared up, that’s it for the 2010 TFFH. If you’ve got a list of your own, leave a comment and let me know what I’ve been missing.

A quick search on this site and you’ll see almost immediately that I’ve barely been able to even mention the word Sweden in the last, oh, seven or eight months, without accompanying it with the word Asteroid. Very quickly, the Örebro trio have become a touchstone to which I compare almost every act from their home country, fairly or unfairly — it certainly applies more to Blowback than Barren Earth — and because I’ve gone back to it for more repeat listens than anything else in 2010, their second album, II, is my number one pick for the first half of the year.

Even after reviewing the disc and interviewing bassist/vocalist Johannes Nilsson, I’m blown away by the natural feel of the record. If you take the time to listen to II, the songs begin to seep into your consciousness, and I think a big part of that comes from how well balanced the production is. Songs like “Edge” and “Time” might sound simple your first time through, but examine the depth of the arrangements, the vocal interplay between Nilsson and guitarist Robin Hirse, the personality behind the drumming of Elvis Campbell and the flowing but distinguishable jams that permeate the tracks, and you’ll hear an organic clarity that few bands can affect on a recording. Asteroid make it seem easy.

It’s a cliche among music fans: “I haven’t taken it out of my player since I got it.” Obviously that’s not true or there’d be a serious dearth of reviews around here, but safe to say that Asteroid‘s II has gone back in said player more times than anything else in 2010. After finally buying a full copy of the record and seeing the gorgeously intricate cut digipak packaging, my appreciation went even further. Every part of this album is uniquely Asteroid, from the music on.

What it all boils down to is that my enjoyment of II has only increased with the number of times I’ve heard it. It’s far from the highest profile release in terms of the promotional machine, but for me, it’s the richest, most satisfying listen I’ve come across this year, and since it came out in January, I’ve had plenty of time to get tired of it and it hasn’t happened yet. Had II not been my number one pick, this whole list would be a sham.

Okay, the truth is I basically chose “The Garden” to cap off this week because it’s the name of the Chinese restaurant next to our hotel here in the financial district of San Francisco, but that doesn’t mean the track off Asteroid‘s aptly-titled 2010 highlight, II, has been any less stuck in my head. If you want proof, all you have to do is ask The Patient Mrs., who’s been earning her moniker listening to me repeat the chorus of the song to — as yet — no end. “In the garden… (garden!)” Yeah dude. I’m way into it.

No record shopping today, but we did hit City Lights book store, famed for Allen Ginsberg having debuted “Howl” there, where I picked up some but hopefully not all the literature I’ll acquire this trip. I hope to hit Aquarius Records tomorrow or maybe Amoeba Music again in either San Francisco or Berkeley, but a lot depends on time. I know Monday we’re headed out to Napa to hit up a few wineries, so I’m trying to fit as much record shopping in as I can before then… because I don’t expect to come back with any money.

Thanks everyone for reading this week. Enjoy the weekend. It rained most of the afternoon here, but was allegedly beautiful back in the valley. I hope wherever you are you’re enjoying however it is.

As was the case with their self-titled debut, Asteroid‘s second album, II (Fuzzorama), reveals its personality more and more with time and repeat listens. Many bands strive for this for their whole career — to make a record that gets richer the more you hear it — but to the Swedish trio of vocalist/bassist Johannes Nilsson, vocalist/guitarist/organist Robin Hirse and drummer Elvis Campbell, it at least seems to come naturally.

In fact, if there’s a word to encapsulate II, it would probably be “natural.” The band has loosened the structural reins somewhat compared to the first record, and in so doing has allowed a series of heady jams to take place within the songs that doesn’t just make the album different from what came before it, but introduces a creative freedom that wasn’t necessarily evident last time around. Very quickly over the course of a duo of solid outings, Asteroid is one of Sweden‘s brightest and fuzziest hopes.

Nilsson took some time out for an email exchange about the band’s shift in approach, the recording process that went into making II and where they think they might go from here. If this album is anything to judge by, that could be pretty much anywhere.

Read more »

What I’m quickly discovering about his band I’m going to call the “Asteroid process.” It happened with the Swedish group’s self-titled Fuzzorama debut, and the same seems to be holding true for the numerical follow-up, II, as well. It happens like this: you listen to an Asteroid album, and while you’re in it, the music relaxes you to a barely conscious state. You hear the laid back fuzz tones and feel as though you might melt in them. Maybe you do. And when it’s over, you say to yourself, “Golly, that was pretty good,” and you go about your day.

Little do you know, though, that there are riffs and lines that are going to stick with you. That more and more you’re going to find yourself humming different parts of different songs until you feel you have to listen to the album again. And again. And again. Next thing you know, you’re out to lunch with your wife and all you can do is sing the refrain of “Disappear” over and over again, or think about that one riff in “Fire” that seems to sum up all of II in a matter of seconds. Resistance, as they say, is futile.

Asteroid’s infectious style is in full force on their sophomore album, but their growth is also readily apparent. Listening to a song like “Karma,” it feels as though some of the rigidity of the first record, which maybe kept a song like “The Big Trip Beyond” strictly adhered to a verse/chorus methodology, has spread out. “Karma” opens with a softly building jam, and opens up to some of the warmest tones this side of Colour Haze with a riff that soothes as much as it rocks. II seems less focused on structure on the surface, but it isn’t, the manner of execution has simply evolved. The guitars of Robin Hirse have taken the musical fore in a big way, leading most of the jams and often competing for dominance in the mix along Hirse’s own vocals and those of bassist Johannes Nilsson.

Read more »

Because I’m an easily distracted moron, while I was making that little list yesterday I forgot one of the albums I’m actually most looking forward to: II by Swedish fuzz rockers Asteroid. As it happens though, the band have checked in with an update via a little site called The Obelisk (wait a second, that’s this site! — yeah, that’s right, we’re breaking news now as well as stealing it) letting everyone know when what might be one of 2010′s best stoner rock releases will be out. Thanks to Asteroid for filling us in. Here’s what they have to say:

Dear listeners!

We are sorry for the delay with the album release. The hold up has a couple of reasons. But the time has now come and the album will be released, January 22nd 2010, thru Fuzzorama Records as usual. The album will be available thru iTunes one week earlier, the 15th of January.

Pre-listen at http://www.myspace.com/asteroidband

I know I did a Buried Treasure about it already, but I keep kicking around that self-titled Asteroid record, and the more I do, the more I can’t wait to hear Asteroid II, which according to label Fuzzorama, is out “this fall.” Hey man, it’s fall now, let’s do it up. These guys rule. Laid back vibes, memorable riffs, solid grooves and fuzz for days.

Because I just happened to run into it on my interwebular journeying, Here’s “SimSalaBim” from Asteroid‘s split with Blowback. Also pretty badass.

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You ever get one of those songs in your head that just doesn’t seem to want to leave? Well, as I reported (and then re-reported) a little while ago, one of the discs in with the last All that is Heavy haul was the self-titled debut from Sweden‘s Asteroid. Turns out this record, which I didn’t know much about going into it, fucking rules, and the last song on it, “Dr. Smoke,” might be the stoniest bit of stoned out stoneriffic stoneification I’ve heard in the last year. Makes just about everyone else look like real squares, man.

Now, if you do a search on this site going by the tags, you’re going to find that the answer with the most results is “Gods,” and that second to that is “Sweden,” so understand I’m a fan of this style of the heavy, but these three ?rebro dudes (?rebroans? ?rebroheims?) have early Truckfighters-style fuzz down to a science and rock with a laid back vibe that is an instant chill. I can’t find an mp3 of “Dr. Smoke” anywhere or a clip on YouTube, but there’s a couple videos on the Asteroid MySpace page, and among them is one for organ-ic Asteroid opener “The Great Unknown,” which is also catchy as hell and presented below for your viewing convenience.

And just because the math of life sometimes has funny ways of punching out equations, Asteroid have a new record due out this fall on Fuzzorama. Hopefully there’ll be more to come on that soon.