Metal – Page 9 – 7th Level Music

Review: Pigs Pigs Pigs Pigs Pigs Pigs Pigs – Viscerals

Any album by the Newcastle quintet Pigs Pigs Pigs Pigs Pigs Pigs Pigs should come with a roll of duct tape to secure your face to your head due to the constant threat of band’s booming, fuzzed-out riffs blasting it to smithereens. Their newest record, Viscerals, is no exception.

Beginning with mosh-pit inducing drums by Christopher Morley, “Reducer” takes off like an experimental rocket car across desolate salt flats. It shifts momentarily into bass-heavy sludge from John-Michael Hedley and echoing vocals by Matt Baty telling us that “Ego kills everything.” He’s right, of course, and that statement is woefully apparent in the 2020 political climate. The swirling guitars of Ian Sykes and Sam Grant on “Rubbernecker” produce a pulsing effect that creeps up your spine and settles somewhere in your amygdala.

“I’m dancing with the devil with his two left feet,” Baty sings on the creepy, jarring “New Body,” which is over seven minutes of controlled chaos as Baty yells, “I don’t feel a thing!” to a red-tinged harvest moon while standing in a thaumaturgic circle. Or at least the ceiling in the recording studio while standing in comfy sneakers. I’m not sure. The short “Blood and Butter” is a haunting spoken word track that melts into the thrash metal-like “World Crust,” which sounds heavy enough to crack its namesake.

“Death is in bloom!” Baty shouts on the doom-psych killer cut “Crazy in Blood.” It’s a standout track on a standout record and the type of song that makes everyone stop and listen. “Halloween Bolson” is bubbles like a witch’s cauldron and then builds to a rapid boil of space rock guitars and enough fuzzy bass to awaken a hibernating grizzly. The song crunches for nine straight minutes and, just when it lets you catch your breath, it cracks you in the head again with another massive riff. The closer “Hell’s Teeth” is a great shout-and-response track (“Let’s rock! In peace!”) that is both radio friendly and potentially speaker-damaging.

Viscerals is true to its name, as every song is either savage or seething, often both. It’s a powerful record for bizarre times that brings things into focus through fuzz.

Keep your mind open.

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Rewind Review: Mars Red Sky – self-titled (2012)

Any album that is (apart from two songs) recorded in a Spanish national park is bound to be interesting. Any album recorded in a Spanish national park that is also as heavy as Mars Red Sky‘s self-titled debut album is stunning.

I mean, good heavens, the first lines of the first track, “Strong Reflection,” are “Dead stars are burning in the sky, their light reflecting in your eyes, and here the ravens don’t show. Where I’ve been, you don’t want to know.” That alone is metal AF, so the heavy bass that moves like a mastodon, the drums that hammer like its heart, and the guitar that wails like its trumpet blast is heavy enough to knock down your garage. “Curse” is a throwback to 1970’s stoner rock with its echoing lyrics, fuzzed-out guitars, and lyrics about acid rain and how “The greatest fun, it’s not fun at all.”

“Falls” is a wild instrumental blending guitar psychedelia with thunderstorm-like drumming and bass so gritty that you could probably sand lumber with it. “Way to Rome” is a tale of gladiators (or slaves, or both since they were often one and the same) preparing for death. You can’t go wrong with lyrics like “Ride the dark horse through the fire, through the storm, as we’re set to die in the heart of the sun.” Again, metal AF, and the song shifts like sand dunes back and forth between psychedelic rock, stoner metal, and even a bit of krautrock.

“Saddle Point” is another cool instrumental, and “Marble Sky” is a harrowing tale of burning entrails, crushed mountains, and beings emerging from holes in the sky. The vocals are covered in reverb through this track, bringing to mind Black Sabbath tracks. The guitar also takes on a bit of a blues flavor as well, which is a great touch. The closer, “Up the Stairs,” is a fuzz-heavy track about climbing what seems to be an endless stairwell into space and away from the “evil sound” of Earth. That was eight years ago. Where is this stairwell in 2020? I’d like to take a walk.

This was an auspicious debut in 2012. MRS are working on a new full-length album. Let’s hope it comes soon. The world needs heavy stuff like this to shake it awake.

Keep your mind open.

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Rewind Review: Zeke – Hellbender (2018)

I don’t know why Seattle punk legends Zeke took fourteen years off between albums, but their last album, Hellbender, shows that they didn’t slow down during that time. If anything, they came back faster (the longest song on the album lasts one minute and fifty-one seconds), louder, and rowdier than when they took a break.

The opener, “All the Way,” has drums that pop like the SKS rifle on the album’s cover, snapping you awake no matter where you are. “Two Lane Blacktop” covers one of Zeke’s favorite topics – racing – and will make you stomp your gas pedal to the floor, even if you’re sitting at a desk, with it’s sizzling guitar solo and pursuit driving beats. “On the Road” (the aforementioned “long” song) covers similar ground and could be the score to a 1970’s car chase scene in which competing muscle cars plow through an empty brewery.

“Working Man” is so frantic that you imagine the title subject is hopped up on Red Bull and Mini-Thins as he speeds down a country road in his pickup so as not to be late, again, to his job at the mobile home factory. The title track is, somehow, even faster. Zeke excel at blistering pace tracks, and this album is full of them. “Hellbender” and “County Jail” each last under a minute.

The vocals on “Burn” sound like they’re yelled out of a sore throat, and I mean that in the best possible way. The drums on “Goin’ Down” hit so hard that you imagine at least five snare drum heads were broken during the record session. “White Wolf” is, I think, about some ghost wolf or the spirit of rock and roll or some cool art Zeke saw on the side of a customized Chevy van. It shreds, that’s for sure.

Speaking of unknown song meanings, I don’t know if “AR-15” is a salute to the firearm or a punk raging against gun violence. I’m fairly certain, however, that “Cougar Rock,” is about shagging older women. The guitar and drums breakdown on it is outstanding. “Devil’s Night” will get your body moving with its heart attack beats.

The last three songs on the album are more tracks about driving fast cars and blaring your horn so everyone else gets the hell out of the way. “Ride On” is a song perfect for that fire-shooting guitar guy from the last Mad Max movie. “Red Line” moves into the red on your speedometer within seconds of its opening and doesn’t let up for a full minute. “Big Rig” is suitable for smashing everything in sight harder than Kool-Aid Man breaking through a brick wall.

Zeke albums are so fast and wild that reviewing them is difficult. They’re more experiences than albums. You’re not the same once you hear one, and Hellbender will shake you up and leave you in the dust.

Keep your mind open.

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Review: Brown Acid: The 10th Trip

It’s stunning to realize that Riding Easy Records has released ten Brown Acid compilations of long forgotten and buried stoner rock / acid rock / metal cuts in just five years. How do they find this stuff? The stories of how they tracked down these obscure bands, some of whom never released even a full LP, must be fascinating.

“The Tenth Trip” is one of the best compilations to date. It starts with the squelchy, groovy “Tensions” by Flint, Michigan’s Sounds Synonymous from 1969. The fuzz on it is cranked to the max and the organ stabs push the track into psychedelic territory. Yreka, California’s Ralph Williams and the Wright Brothers‘ 1972 track, “Never Again,” lays down a Black Sabbath-like groove mixed with swampy blues, and the backing vocals / grunts mixed with the wicked bass line alone should’ve made this a big radio hit.

“Relax your mind,” suggests Louisville, Kentucky’s Conception on their 1969 cut “Babylon.” The snotty vocals remind me a bit of MC5 and Thin Lizzy in their delivery, and man, that guitar breakdown is breath-taking. Atlanta, Georgia’s Bitter Creek proclaim, “I think I hear the sound of thunder.” on the 1970 heavy stoner metal cut “Plastic Thunder.” The drums certainly sound like a thunderstorm and it has enough guitar pedal effects for an entire record.

New Orleans’ Rubber Memory put down a serious psychedelic show with “All Together” from 1970. Dallas’ First State Bank might be the most cleverly named band on the whole compilation (as you would see their name in practically every town in the country), and their 1970 track “Mr. Sun” has a sweet groove that drifts along for a little over three minutes as the singer asks the sun (who appears to be the only thing around to give him the time of day) how to win back his girl.

The double entendre of Brothers and One‘s “Hard On Me” (New Waterford, Nova Scotia, 1974) is another criminally unheard rocker with a floor-stomping beat that should’ve made it a cult classic if nothing else. Naming your Tucson, Arizona band Frozen Band is a nice touch, and their 1969 track “Electric Soul” has serious Jimi Hendrix vibes in both the guitar chords (with a bit of Santana, too) and the vocal styling. Birmingham, Alabama’s Brood encourage you not to throw out your old weed on “The Roach” from 1969. I love how unapologetic they are about it. The anthology ends with Iowa City’s / West Minister, Colorado’s Tabernash and their 1969 track “Head Collect.” It’s a nice, trippy end cap to the record as they sing about death, the afterlife, and cosmic things seen while lounging under the stars.

This is definitely a trip worth taking and it makes you wonder how many more forgotten bands and singles are out there if Riding Easy Records has already found ten anthologies’ worth in just five years.

Keep your mind open.

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[Thanks to Dave from US / THEM Group.]

FUZZ are “Returning” with new single.

FUZZ, the raw power trio comprised of Los Angeles-based Ty Segall (drums, vocals), Charles Moothart (guitar, vocals), and Chad Ubovich (bass, vocals), announce their first album in five years, III, out October 23rd on In The Red Recordings. It’s the follow-up to 2015’s II, “an impressive double album made for headbanging and the cultivation of bad vibes” (NPR Music). In conjunction with today’s announcement, the band present III’s lead single, “Returning.”

III was recorded and mixed at United Recording under the sonic lordship of Steve Albini. Keeping the focus on the live sounds of the band, the use of overdubs and studio tricks were kept to a minimum. Albini’s mastery in capturing sound gave FUZZ the ability to focus entirely on the playing while knowing the natural sounds would land. It takes the essential ingredients of “guitar based music” and “rock and roll power trio” and puts them right out on the chopping block. It was a much more honest approach for FUZZ — three humans getting primitive, staying primitive. The goal was never to reinvent the wheel. Sometimes it’s just about seeing how long you can hold on before you’re thrown off.

Album opener “Returning” serves as a sort of mission statement for the album. It’s an auditory meditation on the power of one and the different perspectives of one, whether it is the singular person looking inward, or a group of people coming together as a single unit. Not only is it an echo of the return of FUZZ, but also a broader return to form – raw and empowered through vulnerability.

A pyramid of sonic destruction and psychic creation, all shades of color, truth and lies. III is the pillar of unity and singularity. Log out, drop thought, turn up.
Listen to FUZZ’s “Returning”

Pre-order III

III Tracklist
1. Returning
2. Nothing People
3. Spit
4. Time Collapse
5. Mirror
6. Close Your Eyes
7. Blind to Vines
8. End Returning

FUZZ Tour Dates:
Thu. Dec. 3 – Los Angeles, CA @ Teragram Ballroom
Fri. Dec. 4 – Los Angeles, CA @ Teragram Ballroom
Sat. Dec. 5 – Los Angeles, CA @ Teragram Ballroom
Fri. Jan. 22 – Sat. Jan. 23 – San Francisco, CA @ Great American Music Hall
Mon. Jan. 25 – Portland, OR @ Crystal Ballroom
Tue. Jan. 26 – Vancouver, BC @ Rickshaw Theatre
Wed. Jan. 27 – Seattle, WA @ Neptune Theatre
Fri. Jan. 29 – Sacramento, CA @ Harlow’s
Sat. Jan. 30 – Felton, CA @ Felton Music Hall
Thu. Feb. 4 – Chicago, IL @ Thalia Hall
Fri. Feb. 5 – Cleveland, OH @ Beachland Ballroom
Sat. Feb. 6 – Toronto, ON @ Danforth Music Hall
Sun. Feb. 7 – Montreal, QC @ La Tulipe
Mon. Feb. 8 – Cambridge, MA @ The Sinclair
Wed. Feb. 10 – New York, NY @ Music Hall of Williamsburg
Thu. Feb. 11 – New York, NY @ Bowery Ballroom
Fri. Feb. 12 – Baltimore, MD @ OttoBar
Sat. Feb. 13 – Philadelphia, PA @ Underground Arts
Sun. Feb. 14 – Pittsburgh, PA @ Mr. Smalls Theatre
Sat. March 13 – Istanbul, TR @ Zorlu Art Center
Tue. March 16 – Nimes, FR @ Paloma
Wed. March 17 – Barcelona, ES @ Upload
Thu. March 18 – Madrid, ES @ BUT
Sat. March 20 – Bilbao, ES @ Santana 27
Mon. March 22 – Biarritz, FR @ Atabal
Wed. March 24 – Paris, FR @ Trabendo
Thu. March 25 – Lille, FR @ Aeronef
Fri. March 26 – Köln, DE @ Gebaude 9
Sat. March 27 – Berlin, DE @ Columbian Theater
Tue. March 30 – Manchester, UK @ Gorilla
Wed. March 31 – London, UK @ Electric Ballroom

Keep your mind open.

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[Thanks to Jessica at Pitch Perfect PR.]

Exhalants’ first single from upcoming album is a “Bang.”

Austin, TX trio Exhalants announce their forthcoming sophomore album Atonement today and share the lead single via Metal Injection. Hear and share “Bang” HERE. (Direct Bandcamp.)

Exhalants began in 2017, sprouting from their local DIY and club scenes with one goal in mind: be loud as f*ck. The three-piece quickly cut a demo, played some shows around town, and then set out to record their first full length not long after that. That first LP yielded a strong collection of songs that balanced the moody experimentation of indie heroes like Unwound and the harsh distortion and feedback-drenched noise rock of Unsane, coupled with raw emotion on display. The record received a great amount of acclaim, which helped Exhalants tour throughout the U.S. During this time they also recorded a split 7″ with fellow Texas trio Pinko (Hex Records) to have while both bands were out on tour together.

Immediately following the release of their self-titled debut album, Exhalants started working on new material. They spent most of 2019 writing and touring, fleshing out newer material on the road while still promoting their 2018 debut. While on their West Coast Tour, Hex Records spent a couple days getting to know the people in the band and offered to release their next record for them. After wrapping up both West and East Coast tours, Exhalants focused on finishing the rest of the record and decided to take Hex up on the offer. Plans began to emerge for what would become their second LP, Atonement.

The band began recording the album in the spring of 2020 in their practice space, with a pandemic looming on the horizon. While the pandemic caused some hiccups with getting things finished in the studio in a timeframe they had planned on, it eventually came together with a great deal of DIY know-how and taking some of the mixing duties into their own hands.

Exhalants hail from Austin, Texas. The members all have roots with playing in multiple bands around the area and have been employed by various venues in town, so they are no strangers to the community aspect and DIY nature of playing the sort of decidedly non-mainstream music they do. With a mountain of amps, precision pounding drums, eardrum-rattling feedback, and a healthy dose of experimentation Exhalants are easily one of the more exciting newer bands to gain attention within the punk/noise rock arena in recent memory. Atonement aims to push that sound further for anyone willing to listen.

Atonement will be available on LP, CD and download on September 11th, 2020 via Hex Records.(Pre-order HERE.)

Keep your mind open.

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[Thanks to Dave at Us / Them Group.]

Review: King Gizzard and the Lizard Wizard – Live in Brussels ’19

One of three live albums released by King Gizzard and the Lizard Wizard for Australian wildlife charities, Live in Brussels ’19 is a wild, heavy set drawing on a lot of material from Murder of the Universe, Nonagon Infinity, Infest the Rats’ Nest (their newest album at the time of this tour – October 2019), and Fishing for Fishies.

Opener “Evil Star” is a fuzzy instrumental appetizer to the meaty, heavy “Venusian 2.” The crowd is in full battle mode when they arrive at the sludgy “Superbug.” Lead singer Stu Mackenzie‘s vocals sound shouted to the moon and I’d be remiss if I didn’t mention Lucas Harwood‘s bass rooting the tune in a solid stoner metal groove. “The Lord of Lightning” begins as a neat psychedelic jam that gets the crowd clapping and grows into the powerful story of a wizard fighting a monster.

“Altered Beast IV” has some of Michael Cavanaugh and Eric Moore‘s best double drumming. The crowd goes wild for “People Vultures” – and rightly so, since it seems to be played at double the normal speed of the album cut. The groove of “This Thing” is undeniable, and Ambrose Kenny-Smith‘s harmonica work on it is always top-notch.

“Sense” slows things down to a happy vibe. “The Wheel” might be the trippiest song on the album. Kenny-Smith’s vocals are warped, and Mackenzie, Cook Craig, and Joey Walker‘s guitars move around each other like cats high on catnip. “The Bird Song” is always a delight – live or otherwise. The band always sounds happy while playing it, and you can’t help but partake in their joy.

“Down the Sink” has a fun new wave vibe to it. “Work This Time” floats the audience about five feet off the hall floor with its hazy, meditative feel. Plus, the guitar solo on it is great. The band then gets the crowd roaring again with “Robot Stop.” The opening chords alone make the audience frantic before it explodes into chill-inducing mania. “Big Fig Wasp” continues the chaos with its microtonal riffs. “Gamma Knife” comes at you like a whole swarm of the aforementioned wasps.

The closer, “Float Along – Fill Your Lungs,” is jaw-dropping. It’s a stunning piece of psychedelia that floats along for over twelve minutes and probably left the Belgian audience euphoric.

It’s another great slice of the King Gizzard and the Lizard Wizard pie and does what any good live album should do – make you want to see them live as soon as possible.

Keep your mind open.

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The Death Wheelers crush us with “Divine Filth” on their new single.

Canadian heavy rock instrumentalists The Death Wheelers share a video single for the title track to their forthcoming album Divine Filth via Metal Injection. Watch and share the B-movie ode “Divine Filth” HERE (or on YouTube.) Hear & share the single via Bandcamp.

From beyond the gutter, The Death Wheelers bring you their second album, the soundtrack to the fictional bikesploitation flick that never was: Divine Filth. Drawing inspiration from instrumental rock, proto-metal, punk and funk, the band embalms the listener in their sonic world of decay, groove and debauchery. Surfing the line between Motörhead, The Cramps and Dick Dale, the Canadian quartet uncompromisingly blends rawness and power in their riff fueled compositions. Recorded entirely in 48 hours in a live setting just like in the good old days, this second opus is a testament to what the band stands for: a no BS attitude spiked with a heavy layer of crass. Just like their previous offering, the album is devised to serve as a soundtrack loosely based on a plot synopsis of a B-movie:

It’s 1982. Spurcity is run-down. The crime rate is up and so is drug use. A new kind of kick has hit the streets and it ain’t pretty. DTA, a powerful and highly addictive hallucinogenic drug, is transforming its loyal citizens into undead trash. Its users experience an indescribable high, but it leaves them rotting away within days, craving human flesh. No one knows who is dealing this new potent drug, but rumour has it that the motorcycle cult, The Death Wheelers, is behind this concoction. Could this be the end of civilization as we know it? What is motivating this group of psychotic individuals?

The cycle of violence indeed continues with this sordid slab of sounds. So hop on, and enjoy one last ride with The Death Wheelers.

Divine Filth will be available on LP, CD and download on September 11th, 2020 via RidingEasy Records. Pre-orders are available at RidingEasyRecs.com.

On The Web: ridingeasyrecs.com

facebook.com/thedeathwheelersband

Keep your mind open.

[It would be divine if you subscribed.]

[Thanks to Riding Easy Records.]

Clutch to perform virtual concert for charity with three opening acts on May 27th.

Clutch will perform a streamed concert titled “Live From The Doom Saloon Volume 1” on May 27th. They will be supported remotely by Crowbar, Blacktop Mojo, and Saul. This unique online concert format has been produced in conjunction with Sound Talent Group (STG), and LiveFrom Events and will use cutting-edge streaming technology to close the distance between the bands and the fans for an amazing virtual concert experience.

Tickets are on sale now at this location: www.livefrom.events/DoomSaloon

The show will be available for On Demand Viewing starting at 4PM EST on Thursday May 28th and will be available for 48 hours into Saturday, May 30th. The ticket price will remain the same for those viewers that were not able to join the live broadcast. A portion of the proceeds will be donated to Angel Flight and Musicares.

Through a network of more than 1,800 volunteer pilots, Angel FlightWest provides free air transportation for people who need to travel long distances to access medical care and other essential services across the 12 Western states. In response to the COVID-19 pandemic, AFW pilots have flown 150 missions to deliver more than six tons of PPE and other crucial supplies to the Navajo and Hopi Nations and other rural clinics, while also arranging commercial flights for medical personnel who are traveling to serve on the front lines, with tickets donated by Alaska Airlines.

For more information, visit https://www.angelflightwest.org/

Doors – @ 3:50PM EST Saul – 4PM EST (9PM UK time) Blacktop Mojo – 4:30PM EST (9:30PM UK time)Crowbar – 5:05PM EST (10:05PM UK time)Clutch – 5:50PM (10:50PM UK time)

For more information, check out the band’s website: www.pro-rock.com

Facebook: www.facebook.com/clutchband

Instagram: www.instagram.com/clutchofficial

Twitter: www.twitter.com/clutchofficial

Official: www.pro-rock.com

YouTube: www.youtube.com/user/officialclutch

Keep your mind open.

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Maggot Heart unleash “Mercy Machine” from upcoming sophomore album.

Berlin based hard rock band Maggot Heart shares the title track to their forthcoming sophomore album Mercy Machine today on all DSPs. Yesterday, the track premiered via Brooklyn Vegan HERE. Hear & share “Mercy Machine” via Bandcamp, Spotify and Apple Music.

Linnéa Olsson‘s Maggot Heart is back with their sophomore album, which will be released on Linnéa’s brand new record label Rapid Eye Records. The Swedish guitarist and songwriter, based in Berlin since 2012, has made her band a much talked about force in the underground with their extensive touring (alongside Earthless and Voivod among others), cross-over hard rock sound, and punk ethos.
The city as a throbbing organism is one of the fundamental themes of Maggot Heart, explored in several songs on City Girls (2017) and Dusk to Dusk (2018). On Mercy Machine (2020), the machinery of night runs on the steam of many bodies. Locked inside a prison of flesh the spirit will not soar, only in unity with the body can divine alchemy be achieved. Mercy Machine is a rock album about sex, death and the pursuit of freedom.

This album was put together by Linnéa, long-time drumming partner Uno Bruniusson and bassist Olivia Airey (as well as on-and-off collaborator Gottfrid Åhman) at the end of 2019, and once again recorded in Stockholm, Sweden with award-winning producer Martin “Konie” Ehrencrona (Viagra Boys, In Solitude) in February 2020. It highlights Olsson’s catchy, but strangely jarring songwriting in ten cutting tracks, swerving back and forth on the rock genre-spectrum. These songs contain a highly entertaining blend of urgency, bleakness and undeniable attitude which may or may not appeal to fans of Voivod, The Stooges, and The Jesus Lizard.
The incredible cover artwork is by Kristian Valbo, known to metal fans as the drummer for Obliteration.

Mercy Machine will be available on LP and download on July 10th, 2020 via Rapid Eye Records. Pre-orders are available HERE.

On the Web: maggotheart.bandcamp.com / maggotheart.com /
rapideyerecords.com

Keep your mind open.

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[Thanks to Dave at US / Them Group.]