Triple Treat Theater

Ok, been forever since I last posted and a lot has happened.

Scion Fest fucking destroyed the known universe. If you give a shit about this monumental event, you were either there or wept while reading all about how awesome it was, so need need for further recap here at this late date. Suffice it to say it was a show for the ages and we must pray to the Dark Lord that they do it again next year.

What else? (Most of) The Mastodon album leaked. I'm sure you've all heard it and have formulated your own opinions by know. I'm actually waiting for a proper copy to listen again, but how well the new stuff slipped into their live set in ATL bodes well for how this record will eventually settle into our brains.

The Kylesa album leaked and it fucking destroys. Their best yet by far and sure to be one of this year's strongest releases. Truly one of the sickest bands out there right now.

WITTR's Dark Cascade also hit the pre-release download circuit. Another crushing four-song epic from these guys. Crystal Ammunition is a ridiculously sweet phrase/concept and a ridiculously sweet song. They're touring soon, can't wait to see them live again.

Ok, on to the new stuff.

How rad is it when you go to see two out of three bands on a bill and the third one turns out to be just as good? Love that shit.

That's exactly what happened to me last night. Went to Philly to see Woe and Javelina at the Kung Fu Necktie. Great venue, btw. Had never seen Woe before, but love the album. Was curious to see how the live show would turn out since Chris Grigg wrote and played everything on the record. Apparently last night marked the debut of their Iron Maiden style three guitar lineup and the good news is that the whole thing translated great live. Woe fucking ripped and were loud as shit. Hung with Chris for a bit after the show, really cool guy. Psyched to see what they come up with next.

Javelina headlined and were really sick. This was my second time seeing this awesomely fat, bald and bearded quartet and they slayed even harder in front of a home town crowd. Their album is solid, but it doesn't really prepare you for the shreditude of their live onslaught. If you get a chance, go see these guys live. You'll be psyched you did.

As for the pleasant surprise, the third band on the bill was a crew called Howl from Providence. These guys are fucking awesome. Huge, crushing riffs that veer between Kill Em All era Metallica and pummeling doom. And they have a hot chick bass-player. Doesn't seem like they have anything out yet, but peep their myspace- www.myspace.com/howlheavymetal . It doesn't really do justice to how sweet their show is, but it'll give you an idea. They're on tour now, see them if you can. I'm definitely going to make a point to catch them again at SXSW next week.

That's all for now. Hope to have some updates from Austin next week.

Impossible Decisions

Well, the schedule for the Scion Rock Fest has leaked and, as is to be expected at any festival featuring so many killer bands, there will be some very difficult choices to make. So break out your heavy metal day-planners and start penciling in your plan of attack.

The major overlap between Toxic Holocaust and Withered is stressing me, and navigating between Krallice, High On Fire and WITTR will take some nimble feet, solid clock management and a strong bladder. All in all I can't complain though, I will get to see at least some of every band I'm going to see. Can't ask for much better than that with 34 bands and four stages in one day.

Schedule is not confirmed as official, but this source has yet to be wrong about anything related to this fest. Of course, I'm sure all the standard disclaimers about schedule/lineup being subject to change can and will apply.

Masked Terror priorities bolded below. And yes, I am prepared for Neurosis/Pig Destroyer/Converge disciples to call me out on my heresy. Honorable mention to Zoroaster and Warbringer for just missing the cutoff.

OUTDOOR STAGE
1:00-1:40pm Kylesa
2:00-2:40pm Torche
3:00-3:40pm Baroness
4:00-4:50pm Boris
5:10-5:40pm Pig Destroyer
6:00-7:00pm High On Fire
7:30pm-9:00pm Neurosis
9:30pm-11:00pm Mastodon

HEAVEN
1:10pm-1:55pm Evil Army
2:15pm-2:40pm Trash Talk
3:00pm-3:45pm Skeletonwitch
4:10pm-5:00pm Toxic Holocaust
5:20pm-6:05pm Warbringer
6:30pm-7:30pm Septic Flesh
8:30pm-9:30pm Cryptopsy
11:00pm-midnight Converge

HELL
1:15pm-2:00pm Apocalyptic Visions
2:20pm-3:05pm Salome
3:25pm-4:10pm US Christmas
4:30pm-5:15pm Withered
5:35pm-6:25pm Krallice
6:45pm-7:45pm Wolves In The Throne Room
8:15pm-9:15pm Nachtmystium
10:25pm-11:25pm 1349

PURGATORY
1:00pm-1:35pm Gaylord
1:55pm-2:30pm Suidakra
2:50pm-3:35pm Alestorm
3:55pm-4:40pm A Storm Of Light
5:00pm-5:45pm Harvey Milk
6:05pm-6:50pm Rwake
7:20pm-8:05pm Tyr
8:45pm-9:30pm Coalesce
10:00pm-11:00pm Zoroaster

At Last . . . Crack The Skye

Thanks to a very cool and generous friend who got me into a listening session, I heard the new Mastodon album yesterday.

The band was there and they were very cool and friendly. I've met them in passing a few times, but this was the only time I got to really talk and hang with them. Really good guys.

Crack The Skye is everything the band said it was going to be- proggier, more psychedelic, not as hard/heavy, spacier/airier, more melodic, more emphasis on lyrics/vocals (both in the mix and song structure), etc.

I'm sure folks who know me are expecting me to say I was disappointed at this point, but I'm not going to.

Here is the most important thing I can tell you about Crack The Skye- It is definitely a Mastodon album.

When you hear it, there is no other band in the world that could have made it. The familiar elements are there, just utilized in different ways. The guitar parts are signature Mastodon, lots of high-pitched noodling with lots of deep, riffy chugging behind it. There isn't quite as much room for Brann to break out the fireworks as much as he usually does, but when you do feel him, it's classic Brann. Throughout the album, the vocals make up more of each song than in the past and they are considerably cleaner than before. Best comparison would be to the melodic parts of Colony of Birchmen.

In the past, Mastodon has kept the soul-pummeling dial pretty much set to 9.5, with frequent forays into 11 territory, and only rarely dipping below 8. This album's primary setting is 7, ventures up to 9 now and then and even eases into the 5-6 zone at times.

The first song released, Divinations, is actually a pretty good indicator of what most of the album sounds like. It’s a sound that’s more compelling when the album is consumed as a whole than when broken up into individual pieces.

The Czar and Ghost of Karelia were my two favorite songs and they come back to back in the middle of the album. The Czar has a really sick change up in the middle where it transforms into what sounds a lot like a lost Sabbath track, all the way down to some very Ozzyesque vocals (and I mean that in an entirely positive way) . Like a lot of the album, Ghost of Karelia is hard to describe, but pretty damn kick ass.

The Last Baron is an insanely epic, multi-part, 13 minute epic that closes out the album. It’s so big and sprawling that it’s hard to describe more than its vast scope without repeated listens.

I haven’t been a big Brendan O'Brien fan, and his role as producer had concerned me, but I didn't really hear his stamp all over this. Yes, it's a SLIGHTLY cleaner sound than before, but that suits the material and it probably would have been foolish to approach it any other way, regardless of who was producing.

Given what I’d read prior to hearing the album, my cynical side was prepared to think “Well, it's their second major-label album, they've gone cleaner/more melodic/accessible, worked with the big commercial rock producer, etc.” and conclude that this is their Black Album and the Mastodon we know and love is no more. But it doesn't feel that way. Listening to it, you get the impression that this is the album they really wanted to make and would have made regardless of circumstances. Dare I say this may be a case of that creative evolution bands are always carrying on about.

Does evolution always equal a good thing from a fan’s perspective? Not necessarily. And does the fact that Crack The Skye may legitimately be the album Mastodon wanted/needed to make right now automatically place it in the same league as their previous work? Again, not necessarily. Personally, I’m not sure I’d rank it there, at least not after only two listens.

Might this end up being your (or my) fourth favorite Mastodon album? Maybe. But it's still very much a Mastodon album and given the standard they've set, even fourth best wouldn't be too shabby and is still better than 90% of the other records out there. That’s much more than we can say about plenty of other bands who have “evolved.”

Of course, all of this is subject to revision upon further listens.

Zoroastadon

Atlanta psyche/sludge outfit Zoroaster have a new LP on the way. It's called Voice of Saturn and it's hitting stores March 10th. It'll be available online (assuming this means iTunes and other digital retailers) Feb 10th.

You can check Spirit Molecule, the first track to surface from the album, by clicking the link above.

The Zoroaster boys also treated fans to the following update on Sunday-

"Special Guest on Voice of Saturn announced!!

As some of you may have figured out by now, Brent Hinds of Mastodon appears on the track, " White Dwarf ", on our upcoming release " Voice of Saturn". Brent's eery vocals and blistering guitar solo we're an incredible addition to the song. It was a pleasure to have him aboard for the recording!!!!"

Sounds pretty damn cool. Psyched to hear it.

Catch the pre-release excitement live and in person at any of the following shows-

Feb 12, 8:00P Drunken Unicorn Atlanta, Georgia
Feb 13, 8:00P Drips Coffeehouse w/ US Christmas Hickory, North Carolina
Feb 14, 9:00P Nara Sushi Richmond, Virginia
Feb 15, 8:00P Europa w/ Amenra Brooklyn, New York
Feb 16, 8:00P AS220 w/ Amenra Providence, Rhode Island
Feb 17, 8:00P The Church of Boston w/ Amenra Boston, Massachusetts
Feb 18, 8:00P 242 Main w/ Amenra Burlington, Vermont
Feb 19, 8:00P Katacomes w/ Amenra Montreal, Quebec
Feb 20, 8:00P Siesta Nouveaux w/ Amenra Toronto, Ontario
Feb 21, 8:00P Mac’s Bar w/ Amenra Lansing, Michigan
Feb 22, 8:00P Borg Ward w/ Amenra Milwaukee, Wisconsin
Feb 23, 8:00P The Empty Bottle w/ Amenra Chicago, Illinois
Feb 24, 8:00P Howards Club H w/ Amenra Bowling Green, Ohio
Feb 25, 8:00P Talking Head w/ Amenra Baltimore, Maryland
Feb 26, 8:00P America w/ Amenra New Brunswick, New Jersey
Feb 27, 8:00P Johnny Brenda’s w/ Amenra, Starkweather Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
Feb 28, 1:00P SCION ROCK FEST @ The Masquerade Atlanta, Georgia
Mar 16, 8:00P Downtown Music w/ Kylesa Little Rock, Arkansas
Mar 18, 8:00P
Reno’s Chop Shop w/ Battlefields, Irepress Dallas, Texas
Mar 19, 8:00P TBA - SxSW Austin, Texas
Mar 20, 8:00P TBA - SxSW Austin, Texas
Mar 21, 8:00P TBA - SxSW Austin, Texas
Mar 25, 8:00P The Nick Birmingham, Alabama
Mar 27, 9:00P Drunken Unicorn -VOICE OF SATURN release show w/ Hell Come To Town, Subrig Destroyer Atlanta, Georgia

Beyond Purgatory

In addition to the awesome announcement about their Southern Discomfort tour with Kylesa and Skeletonwitch, Blacktusk just dropped some sweet news for those of us fiending for more of their sludgecore goodness on wax (or digital format of your choice)- They're halfway through writing the follow-up to their crushing debut Passage Through Purgatory. Word is it's scheduled to be unleashed by Hyperrealist later this year.

Additionally, they've got a bunch of cool splits and a compilation track dropping soon. Here are the details from their latest blog entry-

"Our upcoming releases are as follows:

Blacktusk / Holy Mountain split 7" on No Idea Records (http://www.noidearecords.com/). It is currently available on itunes, look for the vinyl soon! It features cover art by John Baizley (Baroness) and was produced by Philip Cope (Kylesa).

Blacktusk / ASG split 10" on Hyperrealist records (www.hyperrealist.com). Both bands head up to the Jam Room in Columbia, SC to record this in the beginning of March with Philip Cope (Kylesa) producing. There will be a cd version of this also, details on that are still being worked out. It will also feature cover art and layout by John Baizley (Baroness)

Blacktusk / Fight Amputation split 7" on Brutal Panda Records (http://www.brutalpandarecords.com/). We are also recording this material at the beginning of March at the Jam room with Philip Cope (Kylesa) producing. This release will also sport artwork from John Baizley (Baroness).

We are also contributing a song to a Buzzov-en tribute album on Sleepy Village Records (www.myspace.com/buzzoventributealbum) We are doing Toe Fry. Not sure when this is going to come out. I'll keep this site updated with news about it."

A lot of sweet stuff on the way from these guys. Pretty damn cool.

UPDATE- Blacktusk's song from their Holy Mountain split is up on their MySpace now. It's called Beneath and is pretty F'in sweet. Especially digging the drums on this one.

Looks like our friends in Early Man are making some progress on their long awaited sophomore effort as well. Here's some live footage of a new album track from a recent west coast date-



More on both these releases as things develop.

Finally, if you wanted tix to the Scion Rock Fest, hope you got them already, because according to the offcial website, they're not giving out any more.

Hard Times and Tribulations

John Joseph at Knitting Factory, NY 12/28/08. Photo by Ami.

Back in December, I caught the "Cro-Mags" (John Joseph & Mackie + A.J. from Leeway and Craig from S.O.I.A.) at one of the last shows at the downtown Knitting Factory. I won't get into whether this counted as a real Cro-Mags show or not, I was just psyched to get to see some of my favorite songs ever performed live in front of a crowd that loved them as much as I do. John and Co. did not disappoint, tearing through everything from Age of Quarrel, Demoniac off of Best Wishes and some well chosen covers. Only way the set could have been improved would be if they'd played Hard Times twice. If you missed it, looks like you'll get a second chance. They're doing it all over again at the Europa on March 29th with Maximum Penalty (!) and Dump Body (who?) on the bill. Tickets here.

(Quick note about shows at the Europa- They book some awesome bands, but make sure they're not planning on cutting the headliner off half-way through their set in order to get Polish Disco Night started like they did when I went to see Withered there in December. Not cool.)


From a life-long favorite to a new discovery- I just got ahold of The Horror, the most recent release from Sweden's Tribulation. I guess these guys have been around for a minute, but they are new to me. Maybe that's because despite dropping various demos and EPs over the years, this is their first proper full length. It fucking destroys. A brutal blend of classic death/black/thrash that manages to feel fresh and contemporary. If you love a great, evil, buzzsaw metal assault like I do, click the link above and check these guys out. They are on Pulverized, the same label as the mighty Watain, so maybe they'll take a cue from their labelmates and actually tour the States, unlike so many other Scandinavian bands. Would love to see these guys live.

Surprises In The Throne Room

Quick update on the WITTR news below- I just listened to the Malevolent Grain EP (can be found at all the usual spots).

Wow.

The first song, A Looming Resonance, is not what I was expecting at all. Melodic, clean vocals throughout. Yes, there were those melodic female interludes on the previous releases, but not a whole song like this. Oddly enough it works.

Works even better when you get to the B-side and you realize it is (probably) a one-off and not a new direction. The second song, Hate Crystal, has all the rasped, atmospheric darkness we've come to know and love from these guys.

Psyched to hear/see how this new stuff works out live.

Said and Done, Son

The first chunk of deep-fried sludge from Kylesa's upcoming album Static Tensions hit MySpace today. It's called Said And Done and it fucking rocks, especially when it really hits its stride roughly 2/3 of the way in. Check it out at the link a few dozen words ago.

In other awesome Kylesa news, they just announced an upcoming Southern mini tour with Skeletonwitch and Blacktusk that includes a stop at Austin's SXSW Fest. This is in addition to the previously announced outing with Nachtmystium and The Haunted. Kylesa, Skeletonwitch and Blacktusk are three of my favorite bands out right now, so you know I'm going to find a way to travel to one of these shows. The Austin date would be ideal, but I'll take whatever opportunity presents itself.

With any luck, I'll have more Kylesa news later this week after I see them tomorrow night at this-

(Hint- They're the "secret guest.")

In unrelated but equally awesome news, Wolves In The Throne Room's previously discussed vinyl EP, Malevolent Grain, is now available through their web store. As eager as I am to hear some new material from them, I think I'm going to wait and cop it in person when I see them at the Scion Fest.

Worth noting that free ticket registration for this insane show is now available on the Scion Fest website. I just registered and got a confirmation. You should do the same immediately.

New Kylesa Tour Dates-

March 13th @ The Milestone, Charlotte NC w/Skeletonwitch, Black Tusk

March 14th @ The Hideaway, Johnson City TN w/Skeletonwitch, Black Tusk

March 15th @ The Muse, Nashville TN w/Skeletonwitch, Black Tusk

March 16th @ Downtown Music, Little Rock AR w/Skeletonwitch, Black Tusk

March 17th @ The Hi-Tone Café, Memphis TN w/Skeletonwitch, Black Tusk

March 18th @ Club Dada, Dallas TX w/Skeletonwitch, Black Tusk

March 19th @ Rock Bottom, San Antonio TX w/Skeletonwitch, Black Tusk

March 20th @ Tone Deaf Touring SXSW Showcase, Red 7, Austin TX w/Skeletonwitch, Rwake, Black Tusk

March 21st @ Numbers, Houston TX w/Skeletonwitch, Black Tusk

March 22nd @ Candle Factory, New Orleans LA w/Skeletonwitch, Black Tusk

March 24th @ The Orpheum, Tampa FL w/Skeletonwitch, Black Tusk

March 25th @ The Jinx, Savannah GA w/Skeletonwitch, Black Tusk

March 26th @ Lucky's Pub, Wilmington NC w/Skeletonwitch, Black Tusk

March 27th @ The Rocket Club, Asheville NC w/Skeletonwitch, Black Tusk

March 28th @ The Nick, Birmingham AL w/Skeletonwitch, Black Tusk

March 29th @ The Gypsy on College, Fayetteville AR

March 30th @ The Conservatory, Oklahoma City OK

March 31st @ Launchpad, Albuquerque NM

Mastodon Monday Continues

As promised, here is the newly revealed cover art from Crack The Skye-

Click it to see a big ass version.

The Rasputiny guys are pretty sweet, if a little too made-on-a-computer for my taste, and the bear is bad ass (sure to inspire some ink). I dig that they included all the previous album symbols. Stay tuned for more Mastonews as it breaks.

First Taste of Skye

As mentioned below, Divinations, the first song from Mastodon's forthcoming album Crack The Skye, was supposed to debut on BBC tonight. Apparently it leaked a little early.

You can check it out here.

My first impression, despite being a borderline fanatical Mastodon fan, is that it's a little underwhelming. Like I said before, I've had some concerns about this album for a minute since I'm not a big fan of Brendan O'Brien as a producer and the band's description of the album as a step away from the crushingly heavy stuff was troubling to me. Unfortunately, listening to Divinations doesn't eliminate those worries about the album. Yes, it still sounds distinctly like Mastodon, which is great, but I'm not sure about the cleanish vocals (which is funny, because I love the clean vocals on Naked Burn), it's a little more wanky than ballsy , and even my favorite part, the surfy guitar that comes in at 2:14, is more interesting than awesome. Lyrics involving Vikings are definitely a plus though.

All that said, I've loved everything these guys have done so far and have been to more than a dozen of their shows, so I will reserve judgment on Crack The Skye until I get to hear the album in its entirety. With luck, that will be soon.

Divine Revelations

Next week promises some cool first glimpses at anticipated new albums from Mastodon and Kylesa.

Mastodon's Crack The Skye teaser campaign is picking up steam.

In addition to Monday's album art reveal that I posted about yesterday, it looks like they'll be debuting the first single from the album on Monday too. Then on Tuesday a limited edition single/t-shirt thing will become available.

Here are the details from their website-

"Jan.22, 2009 – (Burbank, CA) – Atlanta-based, Globally-revered hard rock behemoths MASTODON will reveal a brand new song, “Divinations,” from their highly anticipated, long-awaited new studio album, CRACK THE SKYE, this coming Monday, Jan 26, on BBC Radio One’s “Rockshow” in the U.K. American fans can tune in to the radio debut via the internet by following link: http://www.bbc.co.uk/radio1/rockshow/.
The follow day Tues. Jan. 27, fans will have the opportunity to buy the “Divinations” bundle which will be comprised of a two-track CD-single (“Divinations,” along with an instrumental, non-album version of the track) and an exclusive album art T-shirt unavailable anywhere else. The single will also be available digitally as well from iTunes and all other participating digital retailers.
This direct to consumer bundle is only available through http://www.mastodonrocks.com
Supplies will be extremely limited so don’t delay."

In case you're wondering, that radio show airs from midnight-2am Tuesday morning in the UK. So 7pm Monday Feb 26th in NY and 4pm Monday in LA. (The rest of the world can do their own math.)

I'm cautiously optimistic about checking out the new single (Brendan O'Brien behind the boards and the band's self-described less aggressive approach have me a little worried), but it would have been cooler if the debuted it on their site or myspace or something.

Can't say i really care about the single/t-shirt, but I'm sure some collectors will dig that. Personally, I just want to hear the album already.

As for Kylesa, they posted the following on their MySpace page today-

"It's high time for some updat​es and we'​ll be updat​ing our site and news in the following days.​ We'​re going​ to uploa​d a​ track​ from our new album​ "​Stati​c Tensi​ons"​ on Tuesd​ay.​ It's the third​ track​ on the new recor​d and it's calle​d "​Said and Done"​.
​
We'​ve also got a 7" featu​ring anoth​er song off the new album​ (​with a B side)​ comin​g out on Hyper​reali​st Recor​ds.​ We'​ll have a handf​ul to sell at the upcom​ing Amebi​x shows​ with silks​creen​ed cover​s.​.​.​.​more info on these​ pups soon.​.​.​."

Have high expectations for this album based on their previous releases. Can't wait to hear the new song. They don't specify, but I assume Tuesday's debut will be on their MySpace or website.

An Addendum To Holy Fucking Shit

The final nine bands have been announced for the Scion Rock Fest in Atlanta on Feb 28th.

They are-

Converge
Pig Destroyer
Septic Flesh
Coalesce
Trash Talk
Evil Army
US Christmas
Gaylord
Apocalyptic Visions

Can't say any of those additions mean that much to me, but nine of my favorite bands are already playing this thing, so no complaints here. Plus, I know a lot of folks love Pig Destroyer and Converge.

You can check out the revised flyer here.

Word on tickets is that the first step will be an online registration via the Scion website. The site says registration will be available "by 1/28" and to "check back soon." Apparently you give them your zip code when you register and if you live within 60 miles of one of the participating record stores (list below) you will get a confirmation code that allows you to go the store to pick up your tickets. The registration step is mandatory, you can't just show up at the store and score tix.

If you don't live near one of these stores (like me), you'll get added to a list that allows you to pick up your tix at will-call the day of the show (should be a total clusterfuck).

Stores are-

ATLANTA
Criminal Records
1154-A Euclid Avenue
Atlanta, GA 30307

Wax N' Facts
432 Moreland Ave NE
Atlanta, GA 30307

Low Yo Yo Stuff Records
432 Moreland Ave NE
Atlanta, GA 30307

Wuxtry Records-Atlanta
2096 N Decatur Rd
Decatur, GA 30033

Decatur CD
404.371.9090
356 West Ponce de Leon Ave.
Decatur, GA 30030

Full Moon Records
1653 Mclendon Ave NE
Atlanta, GA 30307


NASHVILLE
Grimey's
1604 8th Ave. South
Nashville, TN 37203


LOUISVILLE
Carmichael’s Bookstore
1925 Bardstown Rd
Louisville, KY

Underground Sounds
2003 Highland Ave.
Louisville, KY 40204


CHARLOTTE
Lunchbox Records
1419-A Central Ave.
Charlotte, NC 28205

Manifest Records
6239 South Blvd.
Charlotte, NC 28217


KNOXVILLE
Lost & Found Records
865-687-5556
3714 Walker Blvd.
Knoxville, TN 37902


TALLAHASSEE
Vinyl Fever
(850) 580-3480
2256 W Pensacola St
Tallahassee, FL 32304


GREENVILLE
Horizon Records
864-235-7922
2-A West Stone Ave.
Greenville, SC 29609

Earshot
864-232-1623
1418 Laurens Rd.
Greenville, SC 29607


CHARLESTON
52.5 Records
843-722-3525
561 King St.
Charleston, SC 29403

Start Booking Those Tattoo Appointments

Mastodon will be revealing the cover art for their eagerly anticipated album Crack The Skye on Monday. Thanks to the crafty marketing geniuses at Warner Bros, you'll have to be signed up for their mailing list to see it. Get all the details here.

For those of you who fear Big Brother Bunny, I will try and post the artwork here when I receive it Monday. Stay tuned.

Crack The Skye hits stores March 9th.

Out Come The Wolves

Courtesy of our friends at Brooklyn Vegan, awesome news about some upcoming Wolves In The Throne Room releases, in including a NEW ALBUM March 31st!

"Wolves In The Throne Room have emerged from the dark forests of the Pacific Northwest to announce a pair of new releases and drop more details on their previously announced upcoming live LP, Live At Roadburn 08! First up, the Malevolent Grain EP will hit Southern Lord with a 180-gram LP bang, with Conspiracy Records dropping a small pressing of picture discs for the record (a limited batch of CDs will be available on tour). Then on March 31st, the band will drop Black Cascade their new full-length on Southern Lord! Both Malevolent Grain and Black Cascade were recorded by Randall Dunn/Mell Dettmer and are the first to feature new guitarist (former touring member) Will Lindsay of ex-Middian / Age Eternal fame. In addition, WITTR's Live at Roadburn 08 will be released with a companion DVD available with the first pressing of 500 copies, with 150 coming in gold vinyl with a silkscreen. Full WITTR tour dates are below, including their date at Scion Rock Fest."

Such good news. Looks like March is going to be an insane month with new albums from WITTR, Kylesa and Mastodon all dropping then. Can't fucking wait.

If you've never seen these guys live, I urge you to do whatever you have to do to make it happen. They fucking destory. Drummer Aaron Weaver will blow your mind.

Here's a cool flick of their candlelit set from when they played Reggie's in Chicago with Nachtmystium and Velnias in the fall. Great show, well worth the trip.



The band has a couple of shows this weekend in Washington-

SEATTLE
Friday, January 16th 2009
Benefit Concert for Green Scare Political Prisoners
with lots of other bands
at the UnderGround Event Center
2407 1st Ave, Seattle
Doors Open 7pm
$5

OLYMPIA
Saturday January 16, 2009
With Mt.Erie and Son Skull
The Big Room (All Ages)
508 Legion Way, Olympia, Washington
$8

Other currently scheduled tour dates are below. Word is US dates will be announced shortly.

WOLVES IN THE THRONE ROOM - 2009 TOUR DATES
January 16 Underground Events Center, Seattle, Washington
January 17 The Big Room, Olympia, Washington*
January 22 Vera, Gronigen
January 23 JAZ, Rostock
January 24 Loppen, Copenhagen
January 25 Cassiopea, Berlin**
January 27 DNA, Brussels
January 28 Underworld, London
January 29 The Croft, Bristol
January 30 Barfly, Birmingham
February 1 Star and Garter, Manchester
February 2 Engine Rooms, Brighton
February 3 Boule Noir, Paris
February 4 Heretic Club, Bordeaux
February 5 El Balca de la Lola, Bilbao
February 6 Sala Whippoorwill, Oviedo
February 7 Porto Rio, Porto
February 8 Ritmo Y Compas, Madrid
February 9 Be Good Club, Barcelona
February 11 Magnolia, Milan
February 12 Circolo Degli Artisti, Rome
February 13 Cage Club, Livorno
February 15 Kunstverein, Nurnberg
February 16 007, Prague
February 17 Arena, Vienna
February 18 Beatpol, Dresden
February 19 Scheldapen, Antwerp
February 20 Willem 2, Den Bosch
February 21 Festung, Bitterfeld
February 28 Scion Rock Fest- The Masquerade, Atlanta, Georgia
April 23 Roadburn 013, Tilburg Roadburn 2009

Static Age

Savannah hardcore/sludge superheroes Kylesa are getting ready to drop their new album Static Tensions on March 17th through Prosthetic Records. Should help us all destroy both our brain cells and our eardrums come St. Patty's day. Word is there will be some sweet limited/special edition vinyl too.

Bad ass cover art is by John Baizley of Baroness, of course. Dude is the Pushead of Southern metal.


They've also got a bunch of US and international tour dates coming up, including a Northeastern run with crust punk legends the Amebix and a longer run supporting The Haunted and Nachtmystium. The whole thing kicks of with a sweet NYC one off at the Charleston Jan 28th. Should be pretty sick to see them at such a small venue. I'll be there for sure.

Kylesa tour dates-

01/28/09 The Charleston, Brooklyn NY, with Tombs, Tournament, Black Anvil
01/29/09 Bowery Ballroom, New York NY w/Amebix
01/30/09 AS220, Providence RI w/Amebix
01/31/09 Starlight Ballroom, Philadelphia PA w/Amebix
02/06/09 Huck Finn, Nagoya JAP w/Birushanah, Eternal Elysium
02/07/09 Earthdom, Tokyo JAP w/Birushanah, Coffins, Church of Misery, Revolt
02/11/09 51, Gifu JAP w/Birushanah, Eternal Elysium
02/13/09 Graf, Fukuoka JAP w/Birushanah, Hydrophobia
02/14/09 Club Squad, Yamaguchi JAP w/Birushanah, Hydrophobia
02/15/09 Club Drop, Osaka JAP w/Birushanah, Swarrrm, Garadama, Mortalized
04/02/09 The Glass House, Pomona CA w/The Haunted, Nachtmystium
04/03/09 Key Club, West Hollywood CA w/The Haunted, Nachtmystium
04/04/09 Slim's, San Francisco, CA w/The Haunted, Nachtmystium
04/05/09 Hawthorne Theater, Portland OR w/The Haunted, Nachtmystium
04/06/09 Neumos, Seattle WA w/The Haunted, Nachtmystium
04/07/09 Commodore Ballroom, Vancouver BC w/The Haunted, Nachtmystium
04/08/09 Starlite Ballroom, Edmonton AB w/The Haunted, Nachtmystium
04/09/09 The Warehouse, Calgary AB w/The Haunted, Nachtmystium
04/11/09 Royal Albert, Winnipeg MB w/The Haunted, Nachtmystium
04/12/09 Station 4, Minneapolis, MN w/The Haunted, Nachtmystium
04/13/09 The Pearl Room, Mokena IL w/The Haunted, Nachtmystium
04/14/09 Majestic Theatre, Detroit, MI w/The Haunted, Nachtmystium
04/15/08 Opera House, Toronto ON w/The Haunted, Nachtmystium
04/16/09 Club Soda, Montreal QC w/The Haunted, Nachtmystium
04/17/09 The Palladium, Worcester MA w/The Haunted, Nachtmystium
04/19/09 BB King's, New York, NY w/The Haunted, Nachtmystium
04/21/09 Mr. Smalls, Millvale, PA w/The Haunted, Nachtmystium
04/22/09 Jaxx, Springfield, VA w/The Haunted, Nachtmystium
04/23/09 Volume 11 Tavern, Raleigh, NC w/The Haunted, Nachtmystium
04/24/09 The Masquerade, Atlanta GA w/The Haunted, Nachtmystium

Season of the Witch

Turns out a night of pummeling metal mayhem is the best possible antidote to a soul-crushing NY Giants defeat.

Caught the second installment of Brandon Stosuy's Show No Mercy series at Public Assembly in Brooklyn last night. In case you don't know, Brandon writes an excellent metal column, also titled Show No Mercy, for Pitchfork. There hasn't been a new one in a minute though. Hope that changes soon.

The first SNM show last month featured the killer lineup of Nachtmystium, Javelina and Velnias (see these guys immediately). Was a truly sick night despite some major delays that resulted in a good and sloshed Blake Judd taking the stage sometime after 1am.

Skeletonwitch at Public Assembly, BK 1/11/09

Round two ripped pretty damn hard as well and even managed to stick to a more conventional schedule. Skeletonwitch headlined and they fucking destroyed. Been a fan for a while, but this was my first time catching them live. They did not disappoint. Also on the bill were Cannabis Corpse and Atakke. Only caught the end of Atakke's set, but I liked what I heard and what I've checked out since. Cannabis Corpse were fucking hilarious- Sentenced To Burn is a genius song title.

Looks like this is going to be a pretty sick ongoing series. There are so many sweet bands out there right now, nice to see someone making an effort to bring them through NY, especially at a cool, no bullshit venue. Psyched to see who Brandon lines up next.

HOLY FUCKING SHIT

What better way to kick off the weekend than a post about what may possibly be the sickest show ever?

Talking about the Scion Rock Fest (lame name, insane lineup).

Check this out-



Saturday, February 28, 2009
12 p.m. - 12 a.m.
18 and over

The Masquerade
695 North Ave. NE
Atlanta, GA 30308

Confirmed lineup so far-

Mastodon
Neurosis
High on Fire
Boris
1349
Cryptopsy
Torche
Nachtmystium
Wolves in the Throne Room
Baroness
Harvey Milk
Kylesa
Zoroaster
Withered
Krallice
Toxic Holocaust
Skeletonwitch
Rwake
A Storm of Light
Warbringer
Salome
Suidakra
Tyr
Alestorm

Look at that lineup! The Dark Lord truly has answered our prayers.

More bands are going to be announced soon. I have it on good authority that Converge and Pig Destroyer will be among them.

Believe it or not, this show is FREE. The silver lining to corporate sponsorship, I guess.

Details on how to get the free tickets are going to be announced soon, so stay tuned. Tickets do not guarantee admission. Once the venue is at capacity, it's one-out, one-in. In other words, plan on getting there early.