Blitzen Trapper and the Moondoggies both have new songs and new albums coming out. Blitzen Trapper will be releasing Destroyer of the Void, their fifth full length on June 8th. The Moondoggies are releasing an EP, You'll Find No Answers Here, on the same day. Both bands will be at the Knitting Factory on June 2nd.
The Moondoggies "It's a Shame, It's a Pity" from Yours Truly on Vimeo.
Despite many bumps in the road, the Metal as Art tour made it to the Cretin Hop in Spokane, WA. After a dinner of hot pockets and ketchup, the bands took the stage.
Local openers were Odyssey. They played 3 or 4 of their spacey prog-metal jams. A very solid set with surprisingly good sound for such a small venue.
The Binary Code from New Jersey was next. They brought a fast tempo with technical riffing. The riffs were the spotlight mixed in with a couple slow pieces off their Metal Sucks sponsored album.
The highlight of the show was Boston's Revocation. Last year's album, Existence is Futile (stream), should probably be on my year end list. They play an aggressive form of thrash metal that bludgeons you without getting monotonous. Quick time changes and unique leads keep you enthralled. They do not shy away from humor either, with song titles like "None Shall Be Spared (All Shall Be Speared)" and "Exhumed Identity". The guys from the Binary Code matched their onstage energy, getting up front in the tiny space to support their tour mates.
Headliners Hypno5e from France were the Art in the tour. They mixed their riffs and growled vocals with spoken word samples. The Binary Code once again provided support for their tour mates when others seemed confused about what to do.
Revocation - "Dismantle the Dictator" (MP3)
Vultures 2012 is a new sludge metal/stoner rock group from Seattle. Check them out if you like High on Fire, Doomriders or Kyuss.
I first heard them on the new KEXP metal show "Seek & Destroy". Host Hannah Levin had a write-up on them at the Seattle Weekly website. They will be playing live on KEXP on January 30th at 8 PM. Their 4-song demo is a free download at Last.fm.
"Burn All Your Own" (MP3)
"Hang Up Your Guns" (MP3)
"With Heavy Hearts We Dig Our Holes" (MP3)
"Cast Your Shadows Long" (MP3)
Speaking of High on Fire; Stereogum has the premiere of their new song.
1) Skeletonwitch - Breathing the Fire
2) Doomriders - Darkness Come Alive
3) Baroness - Blue Record
4) Kylesa - Static Tensions ("Said and Done")
5) Mastodon - Crack the Skye
6) Agoraphobic Nosebleed - Agorapocalypse Now (stream)
7) Slayer - World Painted Blood
1) The Maldives - Listen to the Thunder (stream)
2) Port O'Brien - Threadbare ("My Will Is Good")
3) The Decemberists - Hazards of Love
4) Joel Smith - The Filibuster
5) The Thermals - Now We Can See
6) David Bazan - Curse Your Branches
7) Andrew Bird - Noble Beast
8) Them Crooked Vultures - Them Crooked Vultures
9) Animal Collective - Merriweather Post Pavilion
10) Grizzly Bear - Veckatimest
That's it. Nothing else needs to be said. This is both a good and bad thing. The record stands on its own, both simplistic and powerful, but it doesn't aspire to much greater heights. The title track has already grown to be commonplace for me. The production and the "oh we oh" chorus seems forced. I don't want to be one those fans who is like, "I like them better when they had that raw sound on their demos", but it is partially true. "I Let It Go" was the song that got me excited for this album when I saw a clip of them performing it on a short documentary about Portland music. They were in a basement, with no drummer, just playing.
This is a good album. Hutch and Kathy are great songwriters. My expectations were high, probably too high. I'm already excited for the next album and for when I finally get to see them live.
Highs: "I Let It Go", "Liquid In, Liquid Out"
Lows: "Now We Can See"
Mp3: "Now We Can See", "I Was Afraid (Demo)"
Rating: 7.7
Elkfest is taking over Cannon St. again for 3 days of music, sun, and beer. Elkfest runs Friday through Sunday, May 29th through May 31st. Artfest is also taking place down the street at Coeur d'Alene Park. Here's the Elkfest Lineup, check out the Elkfest page for artist links.
Friday May 29th
4 PM - The Booze Fighters
6:30 PM - Silian Rail
9:15 PM - The Globes
Saturday May 30th
2 PM - Kaylee Cole w/ Adam David, Dane Ueland, and Kevin Long
3:30 PM - Joel Smith & the Hands of Plenty
5 PM - Whiskey Dick Mountain
6:15 PM - La Cha-Cha
8 PM - The Maldives
9:15 PM - Shim
Sunday May 31st
3 PM - Pickwick
4:15 PM - David Dondero
5:30 PM - The Moondoggies ("Changing" MP3)
7 PM - James Pants & the Royal Zodiac
8:15 PM - Velella Velella ("Do Not Fold/Do Not Bend" MP3)
So how are those spring albums coming along.
The Thermals - Now We Can See
Release Date: April 7
Songs: "Now We Can See", "I Was Afraid (Demo)"
Tracklist:
1 "When I Died"
2 "We Were Sick"
3 "I Let It Go"
4 "Now We Can See"
5 "At the Bottom of the Sea"
6 "When We Were Alive"
7 "I Called Out Your Name"
8 "When I Was Afraid"
9 "Liquid In, Liquid Out"
10 "How We Fade"
11 "You Dissolve"
Grizzly Bear - Veckatimest
The Grizzly Bear album has a title and a couple more songs. They are slated to bring their act to some of the usual summer festivals.
Release Date: May 26
Songs: "Two Weeks", "While You Wait For the Others", "Cheerleader", "Fine for Now"
Tracklist:
1 "Southern Point"
2 "Two Weeks"
3 "All We Ask"
4 "Fine for Now"
5 "Cheerleader"
6 "Dory"
7 "Ready, Able"
8 "About Face"
9 "Hold Still"
10 "While You Wait for the Others"
11 "I Live With You"
12 "Foreground"
The Decemberists - The Hazards of Love
Release Date: March 24
Songs: "The Rake's Song"
Tracklist:
1 "Prelude"
2 "Hazards Of Love 1 (The Prettiest Whistles Won't Wrestle the Thistles Undone)"
3 "A Bower Scene"
4 "Won't Want For Love (Margaret In The Taiga)"
5 "Hazards Of Love 2 (Wager All)"
6 "The Queen's Approach"
7 "Isn't It A Lovely Night?"
8 "The Wanting Comes In Waves / Repaid"
9 "An Interlude"
10 "The Rake's Song"
11 "The Abduction Of Margaret"
12 "The Queen's Rebuke / The Crossing"
13 "Annan Water"
14 "Margaret In Captivity"
15 "Hazards Of Love 3 (Revenge!)"
16 "The Wanting Comes In Waves" (Reprise)
17 "The Hazards Of Love 4 (The Drowned)"
EDIT: Added Veckatimest info (3/4/09)
The first song from Hazards of Love is out. I have to say I really like the song. "The Rake's Song" is much heavier than the normal Decemberists fare. If this the direction their rock opera is going, I can see why their single series didn't quite fit in. Click here to get the MP3 from Decemberists.com. The album is out 3/24.
Neko Case is making available the first song off her upcoming album Middle Cyclone (due in March). Her label, Anti-, will donate money to Best Friends Animal Society for every blog who posts it, so here you go. Sweet album cover and the song's alright too.
Neko Case - "People Got a Lotta Nerve"
Since I discovered most of these albums through other year end lists, this is a little late. These are the metal albums I enjoyed that were released in 2008. It's harder to find good metal albums, and I'm sure I missed a few this year.
1) The Sword - Gods of the Earth (Stream)
2) Nachtmystium - Assassins: Black Meddle Pt. 1 (Stream)
3) Torche - Meanderthal ("Healer" MP3)
4) Gojira - The Way of All Flesh
I don't normally like Christmas songs, but I do like them when they are free and by Blitzen Trapper. Amazon is giving away "Christmas Is Coming Soon" off of the recently released Christmas Compilation I'll Stay 'Til After Christmas for a limited time. The album has some Christmas tracks from other NW bands like Au and Arthur & Yu. Merry Christams!
Satanic Messiah is a series of four low-key piano rock songs. John will throw in an acoustic guitar here or there, but these are very simple songs for the most part. The music is simply a vehicle for John's great songwriting. He can tell simple stories or intense narratives, but both are delivered in his own quirky style.
The album starts off with a strummed acoustic guitar and single piano notes. John then draws you in with his unique staccato delivery. It's just different enough not to be boring and leaves you wanting more. Then the next song starts and you do get more, but it's more of exactly the same sadly. It starts with a simple, strummed guitar this time backed with a simple synth line. It's not bad, but it doesn't grab you like before.
These songs are not bad. They are all quite pleasant actually. It's just that they sound like the continuation of the same song and when John's songwriting isn't grabbing your attention, it can get boring. On the last song, "Gojam Province 1968", John's songwriting takes over and finishes the album with anthemic lyrics that draw you in.
The best part about the album is that you can get it for free or with a small donation here in MP3, FLAC, AAC, or AIFF (apparently the domain name satanicmessiah.com wasn't already taken).
Highs: "Sarcofago Live", "Gojam Province 1968"
Lows: "Wizard Buys a Hat"
Mp3: Album (.Zip)
Rating: 6.8
If you want more Blitzen Trapper, Daytrotter has some live Mp3's from when Blitzen Trapper three seperate times. Session three has a live version of my favorite song of the year "Furr" and the Neil Young-like "Not Your Lover" off the album Furr. Here's the links.
Blitzen Trapper - Session One
Blitzen Trapper - Encore
Blitzen Trapper - Session Three
Blitzen Trapper - Session Four
EDIT: added session four (7/14)
Blitzen Trapper's music is hard to describe. They draw comparisons to alternative country acts like Wilco and Drive-By Truckers, but they are not afraid to change styles track to track and sometimes in the middle of tracks. They inject a healthy dose of country twang into many tracks on this album. "Stolen Shoes & a Rifle" could be considered a straight forward country song by anyone from Nashville, and a good one at that. "Not You Lover" could be an outtake from After The Gold Rush.
Blitzen Trapper is at their best on this album when their influences aren't as easily discernable. "Saturday Nite" is a funky ditty with lyrics about "shakin' it on a saturday nite". Electric keyboard breaks and classical guitar interludes emphasize the point. "God & Suicide" has a driving piano beat backed up by a Ray Manzarek style keyboard line.
As much as Blitzen Trapper is great at writing powerful head-bobbing songs, the high points of this albumare when they slow it down. These are where vocalist Eric Earley's lyrics shine through. The first single "Furr" tells the story of boy turning into a wolf and back again with the help of folky guitars and a harmonica. This is my song of the year right now. The lyrics on "Black River Killer" could have been stolen straight out of Johnny Cash's diary.
"It was just a little while past the sunset strip, they found the girl's body in an old bent pit. Her mouth was sewn shout, but her eyes were still wide, gazing through the fog to the other side.
They booked me on in and threw me deep in jail, with no bail, sitting silent on a rusty pail, just gazing at the marks on the opposite wall, remembering the music of my lover's call."
Drew Laughery and Marty Marquis's keyboards are the driving force behind every song. They take the chorus of "Black River Killer" and make it their own. The lyrics on this album can change from catchy and fun to haunting song to song.
Highs: "Furr", "Black River Killer", "God & Suicide", "Saturday Nite"
Lows: "Fire & Fast Bullets", "Lady on the Water"
Mp3: "Furr"
Rating: 8.6
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