Founded by guitarist/songwriter Selim Lemouchi and his sister, the powerful vocalist Farida Lemouchi, the Eindhoven-based band were subject to fervent reactions almost immediately. Following a 2007 demo and the 2008 single, The Graveyard Shuffle, their Come, Reap EP was a blatantly devilish call to arms that stood in stark musical contrast with the thematic conventions of extreme metal with which it was toying. On their first full-length, 2009′s The Time of No Time Evermore (review here), The Devil’s Blood set about offsetting classic rock with ethereal psychedelic washes, and on their latest album, The Thousandfold Epicentre (review here), they’ve mastered their form.

With a massive, 74-minute sprawl, The Thousandfold Epicentre makes no attempt to hide its grandiosity or self-indulgence, instead celebrating its blatant atmospherics while also maintaining a strong core of songcraft that can be heard on the flagrant hooks in “Die the Death” or the centerpiece “She.” Through it all, Farida keeps supreme hold of her charisma, and Selim‘s instrumental melodicism behind her makes for one of the underground’s most intriguing pairings. The Devil’s Blood owe more to Coven‘s “Black Sabbath” than Black Sabbath‘s “Black Sabbath,” but as Selim hints in the interview that follows, the band revels in doing what’s unexpected.

And since in order to hold onto an element of Satanic mysticism one must be vague in discussing processes, the word “hints” is all the more appropriate. Nonetheless, Selim, who often goes by the initials SL, was open in acknowledging his band’s theatricality and his own classic pop and heavy rock influences, from The Beatles and Thin Lizzy to Roky Erickson and Black Widow. If you make it that far, a particularly fascinating moment came near the end, in talking about touring and playing high-profile festivals (The Devil’s Blood will be on the Decibel magazine North American tour with Watain, In Solitude and Behemoth this spring; dates included below) as opposed to club shows. Just something to watch out for, if you’re interested.

Please find the enclosed Q&A with Selim Lemouchi after the jump, and enjoy.

Can you talk a little bit about what you think is behind the reaction The Devil’s Blood has gotten since you got together?

The reaction? I think, as with most artists or bands or creative output, we seem to have a slightly polarizing effect on people. I haven’t really heard a lot of people tell me they think we’re okay. They either like us or they don’t, which I think is a good thing. Things are either cold or hot, and the lukewarm needs to be moved out of the way, I think. We’ve been given some really fantastic opportunities in the last couple years, working with very good people in Europe and now Metal Blade has come into play in America, giving us, again, more chances and more possibilities to take it to the proverbial next level. So there’s not a lot to complain about as far as reactions go.

What’s behind the meaning of the title “The Thousandfold Epicentre?”

The ideas The Devil’s Blood works with have always been the same. Everything we do, every song we create or every lyric that manifests itself through us is always some kind of connection to death, to chaos and to Satan. These three basic principles are really what ties The Devil’s Blood together as a unit. The worship of these three is also what the title-track stands for and what it is supposed to arouse within the listener. Of course, there are various levels of interpretation and content possible, and I think it’s always a good thing to allow people as much room for personal interpretation as you can, so I’m always a bit cautious when it comes to the actual lyrics themselves, or titles and stuff like that, but in a very broad way, those three principalities, if you will, are the main inspiration behind The Devil’s Blood, and that has not changed and that will not change.

Do you see setting up the contrast between occult ideas and the upbeat, melodic songs as the central musical idea of the band?

Well, as far as contrasts go, being somebody who’s listened to music like Coven, Black Widow, Roky Erickson, Alice Cooper, KISS, even, to a lesser degree, I don’t really see the contrast myself. I think it’s become commonplace – especially in the metal scene – for people to immediately tie Satanic imagery and Satanic lyrics to extreme music, to death metal and to black metal and stuff like that. Fair enough, I guess, because that’s where a lot of people come from, but let’s not forget there has been a lot of art and music created in the past which could be described as colorful or upbeat, as you just did, which in and of itself was extremely demonic and insidious. I think we more or less ascribe to a longstanding tradition in culture and music that these things are not necessarily kept apart from each other. The other thing is that of course we are very happy to be doing this (laughs). We are very glorious about the music we make, and I think the music itself reflects that, in a way. Even though people might consider it to be upbeat, the music itself is still fraught with dissonance and with darkness. So for me, it’s not so much a contrast, but a unity.

As you say, though, the expectation is that demonic ideas and things like that come with death and black metal. I think there’s something subversive in working against that expectation.

It could be considered as such, but it was never a conscious move. If that’s what draws people in, then that’s fine. But for me, we could have very well been a death metal or a black metal band, because those both are musical extremes that, for me, have been very important as a musician and as a fan. It’s stuff that I’ve listened to since I was very young. But also, I listened to The Doors and Black Sabbath and Thin Lizzy, The Byrds, The Beatles, whatever. I think when you boil it down to its core, The Devil’s Blood makes an amalgam of all these things, and not just one or the other.

With so much going on musically and in terms of influence, do you feel connected to any one genre more than another?

Not really, to be honest. For me, music goes in phases. I could be listening to old Bathory and Slayer and Venom for weeks on end and then make a shift and listen to nothing but The Beach Boys for a month. For me, music is just that. It’s music, and apart from the reasons people made it or whether or not it’s — spiritually inclined or stuff like that, which can be very important in the choices we make when it comes to listening to certain stuff and not listening to certain other stuff – I think I just pick out whatever fits my  taste for the moment. To tie myself to one genre, I think I would have to say just rock and roll in all its forms. For me, death metal and black metal are still rock and roll. It’s still the rebellious music of the youth, of a certain sense of counter-culture, a certain sense of rebellion through art, which they share.

At the same time, The Devil’s Blood has a pretty established aesthetic across the two albums and the EPs. Do you ever feel limited by that aesthetic?

Not at all. Not at all. No. Because the aesthetic is a result of our creative output and not the other way around. It could very well be that we will change in the future, that the style will diverge or evolve into different territories, and these might be [predictable] or not. We don’t know. We are not in charge.

Tell me about the writing process and when Farida comes into it?

The most relevant part, I guess, is it’s a frightfully boring thing (laughs). Just imagine: Usually it starts concentration. With studying, with reading, with meditation, with certain magical rites involving certain occult principles I feel close to or connected to in a certain part of the year or in a certain part of my life, or, you know, just a certain part of the day. From this comes a certain inspirational flow, which I have to follow to its logical extent, and this is just usually me with an acoustic guitar and a piece of paper, humming away, and music and lyrics usually come in almost the same flow. When this has traveled a bit, I start to make sense of what I made – because usually it’s just maybe one lyric line or a few chords tied together with maybe a chorus or a bridge or whatever or a certain melody – and from that point onward, the song starts to manifest itself. It becomes sculpted, in a way. When all the granite is chipped away at the edges and all the excess baggage is cut off and the lyrics are done and the music is done, I contact my sister and we meet up, we discuss very intimately the details of the music, the details of the lyrics, what they mean to us – especially what they mean to her, because for me it’s very important to know that she knows what she is singing. Parts of it, parts of the understanding, she keeps for herself on her own responsibility. She puts them inside of her and locks them away and never talks about them again, to give something completely unique to it. We record the demos in this way, and then the demos are presented to the rest of the band, and we work from there.

Is working with Farida, your sister, ever affected by a family dynamic, or does it affect your relationship as siblings?

It strengthens our relationship, if anything. Family is one thing. It can be a good thing or a bad thing. I think we all have certain elements in our family that we’d rather not think about or talk to or be around and some others that we feel more comfortable with, just basically like our friends or whatever. Our social structures. But in our case, being forced to work together in this way has actually given us a much clearer understanding of each other as persons and individuals and creative entities. We can be completely brutally honest with each other, to the point of extreme insults (laughs) and violence and everything that comes. It’s very much a dynamic form of love/hate, that never sticks in one place for too long. For outsiders, it can be a little bit strange to behold (laughs), because it tends to be unforgiving and at the surface, it seems to have absolutely no consideration for each other’s feelings or emotions, but because we are so close to each other and know each other so well, we don’t need to express the consideration, because we already know it’s there. For us, it works. I don’t think I would be able to do it with anyone else, basically, in this way.

“Everlasting Saturnalia” seemed to really stand out on the record. It’s so atmospheric, and so much focus seems to be on mood, moving away from that – to use the word again – upbeat sound, that rock and roll influence. Can you talk a bit about where that came from?

(Laughs) I think the lyrics explain it the best, and I think should someone be really interested in that, that is the best place to start looking for any kind of explanation. The problem with The Devil’s Blood – well, for me, it’s not a problem, but from a journalistic standpoint it’s a problem – is that the answer about the creation of any lyric or music that we’ve ever made is always the same: That’s the way it came out. That’s the way it happened. That’s the way the thing wanted to be. You could very much say that at the moment of fertilization and gestation, you have some influence about how it will come out, but the moment it’s born, you are yourself surprised with its appearance and its structure. You have to learn to love it. The one thing that I can say is that was the song that I was most convinced of its power immediately, even though it’s a very simple and straightforward, to the point exercise. It really, for me, it captured the entire atmosphere and, you know, progress and process of the band.

Was it any coincidence putting that next to “Fire Burning” with the relation to Saturnalia Temple?

Oh! You know, that’s a good question (laughs). I really don’t know. The thing is that when you start compiling a record and when you start figuring out the structure of a record and not just the structure of a song, but very much the relationship of each song connected to every other song – where does it need to be, how long does it need to be, how will the cut of the record look like on vinyl, all stuff like that – it usually ends up that there is only one possible running order. There are no other options, and in the case of this record, especially as opposed to the previous one, where I did move around a lot of the songs for a long time before I really set on one certain running order, this time around I had the first song, I had the last song, I had the song in the middle, and everything else just really wanted this one certain place on the record and there was no discussion possible. In the case of “The Fire Burning” and “Everlasting Saturnalia,” they just seemed to be connected in a way. This was even before the lyrics to “The Fire Burning” were actually there, because they came a little bit later.

I know you’ve done a good deal of European touring in support of the album already. Will there be more leading up to the summer festivals?

Well, festivals, we’re going to be doing Hellfest, Bang Your Head and a few other things. Some high profile festival in Norway as well. Some other smaller stuff as well. Metal Magic in Denmark I think is confirmed. We’re coming to the United States for the Maryland Deathfest and we’ll also be doing an American tour in April, just before the Deathfest, so yeah, we’re looking at big plans. We’ll probably go home for like one week and then fly back in to do Deathfest. That’s just the way it goes (laughs). The thing is that I’m just excited that there’s no overlap. We don’t have to cancel anything. We can just keep going, which is a good thing.

Are you writing?

Not at the moment. I really deliberately – more or less the same thing as after the previous record – after being so engrossed in a work of this magnitude, in my case, I fall into almost a lethargic state where creativity seems to dissipate and seems to bleed away from you. The previous time, this really upset me, and it really frustrated me to an extreme point of self-loathing and everything that comes with that, but this time around, I kind of expected it would happen and I simply allowed myself to become null and void for a while. Just empty. Doing the promotional thing is a good way to keep my mind off it and doing a lot of concerts allows me to have my rituals and my connection to what it is we’re doing, and when the whole thing calms down a little bit, I’m pretty sure the voice will find me again and there will be more to say.

So there’s a difference for you between the sense of ritual in writing and in performing.

Yeah, definitely. I feel much more at home in my own little temple, at my own little altar, working in my own little way, and then taking that into the studio and perfecting and molding and shaping than I ever have on the stage. I truly appreciate being on the stage, and I think it’s a very important thing to do, but in a perfect world, I would just keep making records (laughs).

Is there an according difference between doing shows in smaller venues and these high-profile festivals?

There is, obviously, yeah. In a way, I think I still feel most comfortable in a 300-400 [capacity] venue with no support acts – just us, our music playing the entire night and then us coming to do the ritual and then leaving again and having this very close-knit, harmonious sense of togetherness with everyone who’s there and trying to capture as much of the energy as we can, as opposed to going on a very big festival and being one of many different bands and people wandering in and out. Then again, there are very strong benefits to that as well, because it’s a very good way to reach people that you otherwise wouldn’t reach. Doing that in 2010 in Europe garnered us a lot of support from what you might call unexpected people. Overall, it’s all a good thing.

The Devil’s Blood’s website

Metal Blade Records

It’s also really, really long. At 74-plus minutes, The Thousandfold Epicentre is beyond what might usually qualify as expansive, but the atmosphere of ritual it creates – one can almost smell the dry-ice fog coming through the speakers – more than accounts for and justifies that expanse. Where The Time of No Time Evermore took the (in hindsight) formative elements of 2008’s Come, Reap EP in a more traditionally metal direction, The Thousandfold Epicentre seems bent in highlighting melodic grandeur. Following the intro “Unending Singularity” that builds to it, “On the Wings of Gloria” is resplendent. Farida’s vocals echo above a rocking riff from Selim and thudding drums. Among the varied approaches The Devil’s Blood take on the album’s 11 tracks, “On the Wings of Gloria” stands among the most effective combinations of the elements that make their sound their own, breaking after a ripping guitar solo into a vocal-led ritualistic invocation that in turn gives way to a wash of chanting and psychedelic noise, all anchored and given structure by drums and an overall forward movement. The duo of cuts that follows, “Die the Death” and “Within the Charnel House of Love,” are shorter and more geared toward highlighting Farida’s prowess as a frontwoman, while “Cruel Lover” takes rhythmic cues from ‘80s metal (as did a decent portion of the last record) and is less pop-based. Talk of possession and “tongues of fire” allures and adds sexualized danger without feeling outwardly exploitative, and the music behind chugs with a clear sense of structure without being as predictable as either “Die the Death” or “Within the Charnel House of Love.” Nonetheless, indulgence prevails.

As well it should for a band like The Devil’s Blood. They move from a long bridge back to the verse in “Cruel Lover” and end with the central riff, moving briskly onto centerpiece “She,” an immediate highlight. Layers of Farida’s vocals weave between each other to make The Thousandfold Epicentre’s most memorable chorus, while the verse singing has more clarity and make use of her range, which has impressed since the band’s beginnings. Sandwiched between “Cruel Lover” and the title-track, “She” is both a worthy single and a deep cut, adding to the atmosphere of the record without sacrificing the quality of songwriting or structural crispness. A final chorus stomps its way into the cerebral cortex and the song gives way to mellotron and keys that set the stage for “The Thousandfold Epicentre,” which tops nine minutes and is the longest song apart from 15-minute closer “Feverdance.” Like the album itself, the title-track does well with the time it’s so purposefully taking. Gone is the immediacy of hook that drove “She,” but instead, The Devil’s Blood begin to immerse the listener in the ambience that will typify the album’s back end and still have room for catchy delivery of the chorus line, “I call your name/Devil of a thousand faces,” though it doesn’t arrive until more than three minutes in. Like the opener and like the closer still to come, though, the build is what makes it work. Selim skillfully incorporates acoustics and gives a fullness to do more than just complement his sister’s vocals, and breaks into one of The Thousandfold Epicentre’s most impressive guitar solos just after 6:30. They named the album after the right song – pretty much every accomplishment of the whole is summed up in some way on the title-track.

“Fire Burning” revives the (relatively) straightforward chorus-centered approach of “She” and “Die the Death” with lyrics donated by one of the members of Saturnalia Temple. It’s a step down from the title-track and a moment to regroup with not as much complexity to it as “The Thousandfold Epicentre” had, but it also makes “Everlasting Saturnalia,” which follows, more of a surprise. Selim unleashes some thoroughly doomed lead lines, but the spine of the track is its quietness. Before a full two minutes have passed, the siren-esque backing line fades and what sounds like keys fall into position behind Farida’s far-off echoing vocal. Perhaps ironically, it’s among The Thousandfold Epicentre’s most hypnotic moments, and to the band’s credit, they stick to it until the transition to the more drivingly-riffed “The Madness of Serpents” begins. There are layers of singing backing Farida here, but the way the track presents them, it’s hard to tell if it’s another voice or her own, modulated. Either way, the blend is otherworldly and enhances the atmosphere of the track, which could just as well be the album’s closer. The first several minutes of its total eight and a half are a psychedelic wash, but the flow ebbs into improvised-sounding ambience for a while that gives way to gorgeously building melodic guitar and seems to act as a prelude to the finale in “Feverdance,” finally culminating in suddenly-dropped abrasive noise. Thus, the end of The Thousandfold Epicentre begins its own build from almost absolute silence.

There are a few verses to “Feverdance” in the beginning, but they’re so deep in the mix and so echoed that they sound like they’re being sung to someone on the other side of an ocean. An instrumental build ensues and takes place over the last nine of the 15 minutes, Selim leading the band to The Thousandfold Epicentre’s massive conclusion. The linearity of “Feverdance” isn’t so much what’s striking as the largeness of sound it achieves. Drums seem to fade in eternally, but are clearly there around nine minutes in, and remain steady through the end, which is topped by swirling guitar solos and dramatic synth. The melodic achievements aren’t forgotten and stay prevalent in that synth, and the whole thing acts as one more example of the patience and purpose at work behind what The Devil’s Blood are doing musically on their second album. They’ve impressed all along with musicianship, but what’s more striking on The Thousandfold Epicentre is the breadth ad scope with which they apply it. Selim, who seems to be the only master the band knows other than the Devil himself, is firmly in control across these tracks, and with Farida’s powerful delivery and marked presence, The Devil’s Blood strike with a potency befitting their otherworldly and occult thematics. It would be easy to lapse into hyperbolic praise of The Thousandfold Epicentre’s gorgeousness, but to do so seems somehow to undercut the real value of the work and its place as a step in the overarching progression of The Devil’s Blood. That said, how they’re going to top the orchestral feel of some of these tracks, I don’t know. Whatever devilry compels them has its work cut out for it in building on this majesty.

The Devil’s Blood’s website

Metal Blade Records

Go figure, here I am kicking around various options for who to close out the week with, and lo and behold on Thee Facebooks, along comes word that Dutch heavy psych trio The Machine have just — today — uploaded a new song from their fourthcoming opus (the extra ‘u’ because it’s their fourth album), which bears the awesomely Lebowski-referential title, Calmer than You Are. Given some of the subdued atmospheres they got down with on last year’s charmingly-fuzzed Drie (review here), they might just be calmer than everyone, but as you can hear on “Sphere (…or Kneiter)” above, there’s more to them than just Hendrix noodling and a killer pedal collection.

There’s heavy jamming, for crying out loud! And given how all over the place this past week was, starting with an Amebix review and capping last night by seeing Monster Magnet perform Dopes to Infinity front to back in Brooklyn, I can see no better way to chill out on a Saturday afternoon than basking in The Machine‘s heady approach. Dig these guys. Glad to have seen them twice now, and though I didn’t know they’d have a new record so soon, I’m glad it’ll be hitting this year. Something else to look forward to.

Speaking of, we’ll kick off Monday with that Monster Magnet review, and even before that, I will have a new podcast up this weekend. It probably won’t be until tomorrow night, but it’ll be up, anyway. If you missed the notice, I’ll be talking on this one, and I decided the theme will be the best of Buried Treasure so I can chat a little bit (with myself) about different record stores and buying albums. Incidentally, that’s pretty much my topic in the world. I don’t know how it’ll turn out, but even if it sucks, it’ll be fun, and you’re more than invited to mock me as you see fit. I can take it.

Or, more likely, not. But anyway, goes with the territory on that whole internet thing. There’s more coming too aside from the podcast. I’ll have new music posted from heavy-hitting Danish riffers Rising, whose album by no coincidence is out this week on Exile on Mainstream (we’ll give a couple of those away), as well as a track from Swedish doomers Anguish, whose debut is due out in February on Dark Descent. If that’s not enough — first of all, seriously? It’s not? — I’ll be revealing the three winners from among the many entries in the C.O.C. vinyl contest and I’ll have my interview with Clay Neely from Black Pyramid posted.

And somewhere in there, I’ll also find room to stop by Kings Destroy‘s practice on Tuesday to hear their new material — I’ll write something about it, not sure yet what exactly — and to review records from The Hedons, The Devil’s Blood and a couple others, so stay tuned, because as you can see, there’s a ton going on.

In the meantime, I hope you have a great and safe weekend. I’m gonna go start putting together the podcast playlist, but I’ll be checking in on the forum, so feel free to say hey.

Stoked to see The Wounded Kings as well, as their In the Chapel of the Black Hand (review here) was a highlight of the year in doom. Dig the news:

The Wounded Kings return to Roadburn Festival on Saturday, April 14, 2012 at the 013 venue in Tilburg, Holland (With the addition of The Wounded Kings to Roadburn 2012, the lineup for Saturday, April 14 is complete).

A new era of apocalyptic doom approaches!  Featuring the dark and chilling vocals of Sharie Neyland along with Alex Kearney (guitar), Myke Heath (drums), Jim Willumsen (bass) and founder member Steve Mills (guitar).

Despite, or because of the hardships the Kings have endured over the last 12 months their determination and unique vision for heavy music remains as strong as ever. This new phase in the Kings‘ development undulates with vintage amplification, the riffs seething with menace and danger  – things fans have come to love and expect!

It is a journey to ghostly worlds – suffocating and claustrophobic – where ancient terrors slowly seep into the blood stream. Roadburn will be grateful to get out alive with its soul and sanity intact – just as it should be!

Guitarist Richard Schouten (who also works as an illustrator and plays guitar in the death metal outfit Acrostichon) started the project with himself on guitar, bass and programming, and soon signed Astrosoniq‘s Marcel Van De Vondervoort on to handle drums and other percussion. The only voices on “First Test Recording” — which you can see on the YouTube clip below has been renamed “Black Sunday” — are from samples, but with Bart Smits (formerly of The Gathering) handling vocals going forward, some singing is bound to show up.

So if nothing else, then, “Black Sunday” serves as first notice for some of the stylistic territory House of Exorcism might be working in, though the band seem quick to point out their doom isn’t limited to the traditional. It should be interesting to see what these players of varied backgrounds can come up with working together. Seven and a half minutes of woeful plodding isn’t a bad start.

Check out “Black Sunday” from YouTube:

If anyone needs me, I’ll be cowering in a fireproof lock-box until next April. Here’s the latest news:

UK‘s Conan will be part of Voivod‘s special Au-delà du Réel event (Friday, April 13th) at Roadburn 2012.

Conan approach from the North West of England on a devastating, droning, charging warbeast of heaviness, to lay waste to Roadburn 2012 in a barrage of galloping crust and aching tone. Their performance at Roadburn will be their first ever show outside of the UK and Ireland. Worshipping at the Altar Of The Riff, they summon the Gods of fuzz, distortion and blazing valves to join them in their sonic ritual. In response to the special invitation extended to them from Voivod, Conan will be destroying the innards of all those who enter Stage01 (formerly known as Bat Cave) on Friday, April 13th, 2012.

Priestess and Danava have also been confirmed for Voivod‘s Au-delà du Réel. However, Priestess will play the 013 venue in Tilburg, Holland on Thursday, April 12th instead of Friday, April 13th to accommodate their spring 2012 tour schedule with Red Fang.

UK‘s power-trio Admiral Sir Cloudesley Shovell will play on Saturday, April 14th, while Atlantis has been added to the lineup for the traditional Afterburner event on Sunday, April 15th.

Voivod and Roadburn are equally thrilled to announce that seminal post-punk pioneers Killing Joke will perform at Roadburn 2012 on Thursday, April 12th as part of the newly expanded Au-delà du Réel event.

Killing Joke was at the top of Voivod‘s wish list as soon as they accepted the curator invitation.

Unfortunately, Jaz Coleman (vocals, keyboards and arrangements), Geordie Walker (guitar), Youth (bass) and Paul Ferguson (drums) could not make it to Tilburg on Friday, April 13th due to prior commitments. However, in the spirit of Roadburn and true to the Outer Limits theme, it was quickly decided to expand Au-delà du Réel and turn Voivod‘s dream of sharing a stage with Killing Joke into reality.

Please note that Voivod‘s second show originally scheduled for Saturday, April 14th has been moved to Thursday, April 12th as part of the specially extended Au-delà du Réel. The main stage lineup for Thursday, April 12^th (in alphabetical, not official running order): Agalloch, d.USK/diSEMBOWELMENT, Killing Joke, OM, Ulver and Voivod.

While Swans’ intensely heavy headliner performance at this year’s Roadburn is still resonating in our collective minds, we’re elated to announce the return of Michael Gira for an acoustic solo performance on Thursday, April 14th at the Midi Theatre in Tilburg, Holland.

In related news: Reunited Dutch doomsters Celestial Season will perform their influential, groundbreaking second album, Solar Lovers in its entirety for the first time ever at Roadburn Festival 2012 on Saturday, April 14th, Midi Theatre in Tilburg, Holland.

Barn Owl, Jucifer, Urfaust, The Mount Fuji Doomjazz Corporation, Purson, Hammers of Misfortune, Orchid, Sigiriya, Lord Vicar and End of Level Boss have also been confirmed for Roadburn Festival 2012.

Tickets for Roadburn 2012 will go on sale Saturday, November 26th, 10:00 Central European Time. There will be a 2 ticket limit (per order) for 3-day and 4-day passes and Afterburner tickets –the same goes for the Campsite Tickets. More info here.

Here’s the announcement:

As curator for the 17th edition of the Roadburn festival, Voivod will transport you into Dimension Hatröss as part of their special headline show during the Au-delà du Réel event on Friday, April 13, 2012 at the 013 venue in Tilburg, Holland. As if the promise of the band’s classic fourth album in its entirety performed live for the first time ever wasn’t enough, the set will conclude with a not-to-be-missed surprise.

Psychedelic doom metal giants YOB will return to Roadburn Festival 2012 for two one-off performances, each time performing an album in its entirety. YOB has been personally invited by Voivod for Roadburn 2012. For their first show, they will be playing their seminal album, The Unreal Never Lived, on Friday, April 13th at Au-delà du Réel, and then in order to reach the greatest of heights (and doom depths), they will follow up by performing Catharsis in full at the additional Afterburner event on Sunday, April 15.

We’re also very pleased to announce that Black Breath and Celeste are the latest confirmed acts for Voivod‘s Au-delà du Réel at Roadburn 2012. They will join Anekdoten, Aun, Dopethrone and YOB on Friday, April 13.

Beer-driven, groove-heavy hard rock are what Portland’s finest, Red Fang, deliver on their latest opus, Murder the Mountains. Catchy, fun, cool, and downright awesome, Red Fang bring a welcome return to great rock that still has a sense of humor. Roadburn is really pleased to welcome Red Fang to Midi Theatre on Thursday, April 12.

Black Cobra will be playing a one-off show at Roadburn Festival Afterburner in support of their new album, Invernal.

Tickets for Roadburn 2012 will go on sale Saturday, November 26, 10:00 Central European Time. There will be a two ticket limit (per order) for 3-day and 4-day passes and Afterburner tickets – the same goes for the Campsite Tickets.

Please visit www.roadburn.com for more info.

Their formula is pretty simple, melding jam-intensive European heavy psychedelia with desert riffing and landmark grooves. Of course that balance is much easier said that achieved, but on both Sungrazer and Mirador, guitarist/vocalist Rutger Smeets, bassist/backing-vocalist Sander Haagmans and drummer Hans Mulders sculpt laid back vibes and heavy tones from warm low end and flowing rhythms. As a band, Sungrazer are able to shift smoothly between stonerly riffs and open-ended stretches that, like the Mirador highlight “Behind,” feel so natural it’s as though you’ve known them all your life.

Sungrazer hit the road in Europe earlier this year with RotoR and Colour Haze as part of Elektrohasch‘s “Up in Smoke” traveling mini-fest, and are currently on tour with similarly-minded German purveyors Grandloom. In the meantime, they’ve also begun the writing process that will take them through the follow-up to Mirador and doubtless to another level of well-deserved recognition. They are the heralds of a new generation of European heavy psych, and their organic approach can only get stronger with more time on the road.

Prior to leaving for the shows with Grandloom, Smeets took the time to field an email interview with some questions about the inner workings and processes of the band, and some of the differences and similarities in his mind between their work on Sungrazer and Mirador, as well as their time touring in support of both albums. It’s brief, but Smeets gives some insight as to Sungrazer‘s decision making process, and, fittingly somehow, the kebabs are key.

Complete Q&A is after the jump. Please enjoy.

It seemed like a quick turnaround, but the self-titled had been self-released before it was out on Elektrohasch. How long has it actually been since the first record was recorded, and how do you feel the band has grown between the two albums?

Yeah well, it’s been one year in between both albums. We call it “the year of the sun,” and it had many many gigs, from shady bars to TV shows, from big festivals to small; we found out that

Roadburn, Duna Jam, Stoned From the Underground and Yellowstock are absolute highlights that turn out to be highly addictive. So, basically, we just kept on jamming, in the meanwhile we also did some writing, and at one point we just felt like recording, so we did! I think we’ve made a great album that shows more depth, soundscaped riffs, experimental stuff; more of the expected and more of the unexpected.

How was recording with Maurice Huyts again for Mirador, and was there something in particular that made you go back to him?

Recording with Maurice is like relaxation; he knows what sound we want, knows how to put the pure thing on tape. That’s how he and we roll. He’s like a fourth band member that thinks in the same direction most of the time, plus he tells us a lot about gardening certain flowers…

There’s a kind of jammier feel in the songs on Mirador (though the self-titled had plenty of jamming as well). Was there something in particular you wanted to develop in the band’s sound coming off the first album?

We love to jam. That’s where the songs come from: jammin’. So that’s what we do. We record jams at our rehearsal room and from there on we start shaping a song. It’s a beautiful process that I miss right now. I am already looking forward to write and jam new stuff. To be honest, we didn’t really set an idea for Mirador, all pieces fell into one along the way. We like to take our time and watch a record grow, that’s the way we also wrote the first one. No pressure, only observation and a bit of lemon added to the final sketch.

Are you conscious of balancing heavy rock and psychedelic jams in your songs? It seems like on the last record, there were riffy songs and jammy songs, but on Mirador the styles are more blended.

Yeah, we use a blender now… Well, on Mirador, we spent some more time on writing. Some songs we already played live by the time we went into the studio at the Muziekgieterij, our homebase in Maastricht. Some others, like “Behind,” our longest and most dynamic song of all, we finished just before recording.

Everything I’ve seen about both albums has been really positive. Are you surprised at the reaction you guys got from the records since they were released?

Absolutely, and still are! The amount of mails we get, from people all over the world, from Japan to Canada, Mexico, Brazil, Australia, Hungary, USA, Russia, Poland and from all the countries you always wanted to visit dudes and dudettes send positive vibes, that’s incredible good stuff!

How was it for you guys doing shows with Colour Haze and RotoR on the Up in Smoke tour?

One of the lines I picked up that tour: “Total der hammer!” I saw Colour Haze and RotoR playing each night, so that was 18 times in a row and it was one big trip! The whole crew was absolutely great and I just hope that this will happen again!

What was Roadburn like for you? You did Stoned From the Underground as well. What were some of the differences between the two fests? What’s the vibe like at Stoned From the Underground?

Totally cool! In a way you can compare those two festivals with each other and in some way they are totally different. I mean, there’s a good vibe at both festivals for sure, but Stoned From the Underground is outside at a lake with a campsite… sounds like summer, no? And for us this was the day after our release in Maastricht, so we had a party until the next morning in Maastricht, then tossed about who was gonna drive, arrived (at) Stoned and kicked ass! At Roadburn, we were already there the day before to see some bands we love (Wolf People and Imaad Wasif!) and the next day we stood there on the Afterburner to play “Behind” for the very first time, so that was a blast! It’s Roadburn, it’s THE biggest stonerfestival on the whole fuckin’ planet, it’s in the Netherlands and there’s a coffeeshop around the corner called Grasscompany, need I say more?

What can you tell me about the new 7” you just recorded? Are there any plans yet for a release?

We’re really good at making plans at the local Döner Kebab stand. It’s called Musti and Sander actually had an endorsement at it… which entitled Hans and me on free sauce, essential ingredient of a decent dürüm, of course. So yeah, at Musti’s we started off talking about making a 7” record and ended in doing a split record with a friend of ours. We never know when, how or where but it always starts at Musti’s somehow.

Any idea when you’ll settle in to start jamming for a new album? Will you continue to work with Elektrohasch?

We already started jamming for the new album, you were already able to listen to some new stuff … In case you didn’t, check this [video below -- ed.].

And we’re still very proud to be part of the Elektrohasch family, yeah!

Any touring in the works or other plans you want to mention?

We’re getting ready for a tour with Grandloom (from Berlin) as we speak. This one’s gonna hit Portugal, Spain, Belgium, Austria, Germany and Switzerland — sooooo looking forward to BBQ on the beach in Portugal!

Sungrazer on Thee Facebooks

Elektrohasch Schallplatten

That’s badass enough, honestly, but Roadburn has also made available a couple more audio streams from this year’s fest, namely Candlemass‘ 25th anniversary show (featuring original vocalist Johan Längquist and Caspar Brotzmann Massaker. Here are those links, followed by the latest on Bongripper and Fleshpress being added:

Candlemass 25th Anniversary show featuring Johan Längquist:

http://3voor12.vpro.nl/speler/ondemand/45167181#ondemand.45167181

Caspar Brotzmann Massaker at Roadburn 2011:

http://3voor12.vpro.nl/speler/ondemand/45167199#ondemand.45167199

Today, we’re excited to announce that Bongripper and Fleshpress have joined the lineup for Roadburn Festival 2012.

Chicago’s Bongripper invade Europe for the first time through the Roadburn 2012 Festival. The instrumental doom entity coalesced in 2005 and built a cult following through word of mouth of their seven self-releases. The band is set to record for two upcoming splits before working on their next full-length.

Bongripper will be playing the first of two sets at the Midi Theatre in Tilburg, Holland on April 14, 2012. Additionally, the band will perform its 2010 album, Satan Worshipping Doom in its entirety for a special Afterburner set on Sunday, April 15, 2012 at the 013 Venue in Tilburg, Holland. Satan Worshipping Doom ranked among the best albums of 2010, as voted by the Roadburn staff and readers alike. Hail Satan. Worship Doom!

Indomitable sludge / doom behemoths Fleshpress will be playing a one-off show at Roadburn 2012′s Afterburner, set to be held on Sunday, April 15 at the 013 venue in Tilburg, Holland. Combining massive riffs, searing vocals and tense atmospheric interludes, Finland‘s Fleshpress is a must-see for the misanthropically inclined.

Fitting for a band named after a song on a Grief record, Fleshpress make malevolent, crushing music punctuated by snarling screams of pure hatred. Interspersing noise-riddled, forbidding ambience between bouts of neck-snapping riff assaults, they provide no solace for the timid and spasms of delirium for fans of filthy sludge and doom. We look forward to seeing the smoking crater they leave behind…