A horrendous screaking sound greets the listener on Licker’s Last Leg, an album as disconcerting as it is alluring. Goon Moon sees Chris Goss (Masters of Reality) and Jeordie White (Twiggy Ramirez from Marilyn Manson) come together to produce an album which displays a collage feelings and emotions. The riffs and vocals are somewhat catchy, however the feel of the album is delightfully eerie with some disturbingly beautiful lyrics.
Bake the children in the pies.
Licker’s Last Leg is a mix of experimental, eclectic, industrial, and gothic rock, but despite this is very accessible. All this is not too surprising given the ingredients which see Josh Homme (Queens of the Stone Age) and Josh Freese (Nine Inch Nails) join Goss and White on this “lovingly crafted journey”.
Sat at the bar with a skull mask on.
Chatty Cathy hasn’t spoke for weeks.
A few songs here could quite easily have appeared on QOTSA’s Era Vulgaris which was released the same year and, like all QOTSA releases, produced by Chris Goss. My Machine and Feel Like This in particular have the same feel about them and underline the impact Goss has on both Josh Homme and QOTSA. This album proves just as catchy, possibly even more so, however the dark tone is not so radio friendly and perhaps too misunderstood for Goon Moon to fully take off.
Toss the sisters in the ditch.
Every Christian Lion Hearted Man Will Show You is a cover of one of The Bee Gees early, pre-disco tracks. In this instance the song seemingly floats from its psychedelic upbringing into the loving arms of Goss and White where it becomes sharp and mature. Both this and An Autumn Which Came Too Soon could possibly be described as electro-folk, illustrating just how diverse his album is, all the while staying somewhat uniform.
I’ve got a pocket full of gum – Yum!
The album culminates in eight-part The Golden Ball which could be an album on its own and demonstrates Goss and White’s skill in seamlessly hopping from one style to another. This truly is a masterful blend where the boundaries of disturbing and dark experimentation have been pushed closer to a more popular form of alternate rock.
Mashed potatoes, Uncle Sam, apple pie, honey baked ham.
Burning Embers is a rock 5-piece originating from Wainuiomata, Wellington who have just completed a fairly extensive North Island tour. Their eponymous fist release is grunge bordering on alternative rock, and ends up sounding very much like Days of the New.
The Days of the New vibe is struck very early on with the first track, No Fear, borrowing heavily from the acoustic guitar sound of the 90’s rockers. However, some guitar overlays of the more electric variety add a heavier dynamic to the mix. The first four songs on the album (No Fear, I Bleed, Open the Door, and Crystal Ball) all follow this recipe with singer Robert Morgan's forceful vocals telling of troubled past. There’s a sense of calm to his aggressiveness and it’s clear that he has buried his demons and is looking forward from here. Crystal Ball may be the best of these four tracks and sees one of the three lead guitarists show off his chops with an extended solo.
End of the Rainbow sees a change in tempo. The slow burning number seems to be a nod to Led Zeppelin with its progressive rock element making the next track Playing With Fire all the more effective. The combination of deeper, devil-like vocals with traditional metal-like wailing give the song impetus and mark a turn back to their darker side. Wait for a Moment adds a slightly trippy element while Denial’s Easy has an old school punk feel its Jello Biafra type over powering vocals.
The rest of the album is somewhat of a letdown with about three too many angst-ridden grunge ballads. Climb Any Mountain is the best of these with its uplifting theme more fitting with the early part of the album. Get Out of My Way is a good way to close the album and displays their intentions showing that what these guys do best is show their raw emotion with an aggressive attitude.
Although I have not heard these guys live, the heavier, more aggressive tracks would definitely translate well to bars and small clubs and there’s no doubt they’d give a balls to the wall performance each and every time.
“Well son, a funny thing about regret is that it’s better to regret something you have done, than regret something you haven’t done. And by the way, if you see your mom this weekend would you be sure and tell her: SATAN!”
I had never listened to Butthole Surfers before but was kind of expecting an introduction like this. I was also expecting the experimental funk-rock style of lead track Sweet Loaf. I was not expecting the myriad of styles and bizarre bursts of adroitness which followed. The combination of funk, punk, heavy metal, noise rock, and psychedelics somehow has an overall industrial feel to it.
Most of the album could be described as gibberish. Interesting gibberish. Thoughtful gibberish. Maybe even meaningful gibberish. But gibberish none the less. There’s a lot of mixing, reversing, and stretching going on throughout the album. Hay is apparently a reversed version of 22 Going on 23, and sounds like it has a few farmyard animals thrown in the mix.
The first appearance of Graveyard (there are two tracks with this title) is slowed down to the point where the vocals are obviously warped but the music remains something which the Smashing Pumpkins would be happy to put out. U.S.S.A. is warped in some form or another; or more likely, some form AND another.
Human Cannonball stands out mainly because it has nothing out of the ordinary going on. It has a very 80’s punk staple drum line and vocal setup. The O-Men is just plain amazing. It’s as if Tweety Bird and the Tasmania Devil have formed a heavy metal band with the Devil himself. The album is rounded out by a track named Kuntz which is a remixing of some Thai recording where apparently the word “itch” (or maybe the Thai word for itch) has been altered in many different ways to make it sound like “cunt”, and we also get a second helping of Graveyard. Here it is not so warped and actually sounds pretty good.
I’m not really sure how to sum up the Butthole Surfers after this. Genius? Ingenious? Anarchic? Eccentric? Grotesque? I think I’ll just describe them, quite simply, as interesting.
On the face of it Mini Mansions is a modern take on playful pop music of the 60’s and 70’s. However, it has some creepy and sinister undertones making it delightfully compelling.
Queens of the Stone Age’s Michael Shuman is the brainchild behind this project, and along with Zach Dawes and Tyler Parkford, they produce a sound which most have compared to The Beatles. The album also contains a psychedelic element reminiscent of Pink Floyd, an artful playfulness reminiscent of David Bowie, and a modern touch reminiscent of Arcade Fire; putting it somewhere towards the back end of The Beatles existence, possibly even a indication of what The Beatles would have gone on to become.
Right from the first track, Kiddie Hypnogogia, the tone of the album is set with a lighthearted and upbeat opening quickly giving in to slow melancholic chords which create a sense of mystery and fear of the unknown. The Room Outside introduces a Beatles-esque tone and with lyrics about astro-psychical realms points more towards their progressive side. Majik Marker later continues this and is possibly the strongest track on the album, providing a wonderful throwback into the world of 1960’s psychedelics.
Mini Mansions maintains a strong piano element throughout which give tunes like Crime of the Season and Girls and lighthearted and at the same time worryingly dark feel. Monk stands out as the creepiest track on this chilling album. Lyrics such as “If I promise that my hands don’t move, you wanna tuck me in?No touching or feelin’ anything / If I promise that my lips stand still, you wanna run your mouth?No touching or feelin’ anything” stand in stark contrast to the catchy beat and vocal harmony of the song.
Wunderbars is slow and brooding, Seven Sons is upbeat and uplifting, and mixed in throughout are Vignette#’s 1, 2, and 3 creating a range of moods and emotions and a something quite unique from what is around right now and what has come before.
Darcy Clay was a New Zealand born musician who put out two six track EPs before taking his own life at the age of 25. The first of these two EPs, Jesus I Was Evil, was recorded mostly in his bedroom on a 4-track recorder. The result is part rock, part blues, part electro-pop, and all Darcy.
Through the title track, Darcy gained some airplay and notoriety throughout New Zealand. The catchy Jesus I Was Evil has been described as a “Kiwi cult classic. It sounds like nothing you’ve ever heard before, and yet it’s everything you’ve ever heard”. He maintains high levels of enthusiasm and energy, especially on All I Gotta Do which, with its low production values, sounds exactly like it would in a small club, surely with a lively bunch of 20 to 30 students flailing their bodies about.
Darcy has certain twang to his singing voice, something that would have Dolly Parton fans cringing if they ever heard his cover of Jolene. Here it fits perfectly with a swagger and confidence befitting of Mick Jagger. The only track on the EP that was produced in a studio, In the Middle, is (for 1997) ahead of its time with an infectious electro-pop groove that would see him fit in somewhere between Disasteradio and Kids of 88 in today’s musical landscape.
Sadly Darcy’s musical brilliance was lost too early. On his next EP he covered Elton John’s tribute to Princess Diana, Candle in the Wind (Darcy named it English Rose), this song could suitably be used to describe Darcy also; “your candle burned out long before your legend ever will”.
Polkadot Cadaver comes from the strange and creative minds of Dog Fashion Disco. Vocalist Todd Smith is the closest thing I’ve heard to Mike Patton and on Purgatory Dance Party Patton’s influence is noticeable. However, where Dog Fashion Disco had a large Mr. Bungle feel to them, this sways more towards Tomahawk with a heavy dose of programmed drums. There is more to Smith, Stepp, and the rest gang being rip-off artists though; there is a whole lot of originality and mind-boggling themes going on here.
After an acoustic introduction, singer Smith shows off his Patton-esque vocal chords on A Wolf in Jesus Skin which also has the classic Dog Fashion Disco keyboards. Title track Purgatory Dance Party is about, and sounds like exactly that; a purgatory dance party. Picture a group of brainwashed sinners getting together to let off some steam. Deathwish carries on this morbid theme, keyboards more appropriate for a funeral introduce the story of a girl who will soon be joining the party, while Phantom Limb does the same except this time the keyboards would be better suited to a circus.
By now the dark theme is pretty well implemented, however Long Strange Trip to Paradise has a fun electric pop feel giving off a humour similar to that of the Eagles of Death Metal but here sounds more like the Eagles of Experimental Metal. Bring Me the Head of Andy Warhol is well and truly a pop song, but with an anti-Hollywood spin. Think Britney Spears meets Tomahawk (the chorus sounds exactly like Pop 1).
The only thing which saves Chloroform Girl from being a boring, radio friendly karaoke hit is the dark, disturbing, and downright weird lyrics; I guess that’s the point. This leads us to the heaviest opening and strongest song on the album What’s the Worst Thing that Could Happen?. The changes in tempo and vocal range make this standout; Smith whispers, growls, howls, and provides some striking harmonies to great effect. Brainwash is more of their bizarre take on pop, Pure Bedlam for Halfbreeds could be considered avant-garde metal, and Sole Survivor ends with twenty minutes of the word “Satan” on repeat… no need… but every need.
Despite the dark, death-like theme of the album Polkadot Cadaver manage to maintain an fun, upbeat feel throughout, and in doing so create a sound best described as death pop.
Today's review comes courtesy of long-time Beezy Listener, Christ Pearce. Christ is a well traveled festival-goer who last week made the pilgrimage over to Sydney for the mostly metal/punk festival Soundwave, taking in bands such as Monster Magnet, Millencolin, Primus, Gang of Four, and Melvins. No mention of Third Eye Blind, however. Here's his take on the day's action:
Sydney Showground - 27 February, 2011
A change of venue from Sydney’s Eastern Creek Speedway to the more accessible Olympic Park Showgrounds meant that Soundwave 2011 became more like a heavy Big Day Out. So although most of the same stages remained from Australasia’s biggest music festival, the ironic t-shirts were replaced by black Slayer and Iron Maiden merchandise and the normally fluoro accessories were more of the permanent ink variety here. Mid strength beers and mixers were still being peddled however, although it presented little barrier to intoxication (I suspect the frozen cocktails had a bit more venom). The forty degree heat which plagued last year’s Soundwave was thankfully absent, and the occasional rain shower maintained an ideal atmosphere for accepting punishing aural attacks.
British legends Saxon should have appeared first on one of the twin main stages but had pulled out in the days prior to the event, reportedly in order to finish recording their new album. It sounded a bit weak to me, since I don’t know anyone likely to buy such an album, though plenty who were keen to see them perform. So instead we arrived a bit later to see Saxon touring partners The Sword play a very loud and energetic set on a smaller stage. With a clear Sabbath influence these Texans knew how to kick off a festival, and the large and ever increasing crowd were receptive. I passed by British band This Town Needs Guns who began by admitting that although they were neither metal nor punk, they were at least pleased to be at Soundwave. So what would they be then? An At the Drive-In derivative from what I could tell. The wavering vocals were spot on if a little wimpy, but the jumpy guitar riffs not quite as melodic as some of the better bands of their type.
Waiting for Monster Magnet to start at the main stage, I caught the last few of songs from skate-punkers MXPX with some dismay (I had planned on a more heavy agenda). Although the loyal crowd screamed along to every lyric – their closer Let’s go to the Punk Rock Show is classic sing-a-long punk – I am sure the band could have squeezed in another two minute rocker rather than carry on with their inane stage banter which included plugging a DVD in which singer-guitarist Mike Herrera apparently stars half-naked. This sort of time-wasting rubbish seems to be typical of a lot of pop-punk bands of late. As the feedback faded, space rockers Monster Magnet strode out with real purpose and frontman Dave Wyndorf announced they would start this one off slow and build it up. He wasn’t kidding. Beginning with sludgy cruiser Nod Scene and the drug-addled Tractor, the set became ever more erotic and by the middle of Look to Your Orb for the Warning, Wyndorf and guitarists Garret Sweeny and Phil Caivano were gyrating all over their monitors. I was sweating at this point myself, despite keeping a safe distance. Wyndorf’s vocals sounded a lot more gruff than on their records, and I’m certain he cranked up the levels of growling and heavy breathing as well. For their final song Spacelord, we were told that the chorus would sound a lot better if we all sang “mother fucker” at the same time, which of course it did. And the scene was complete with Wyndorf pelvic thrusting all the way to the end. Brilliant.
Bullet For My Valentine followed immediately after and with a unexpectedly powerful intro. I almost thought Slayer had come on early as the three guitarists charged out and swung their hair and flying V’s to the punishing Your Betrayal. It deserved applause but I had other tasks to attend to such as wrist-banding, gaining some more friends, and booze. On the way I made a stop at old Swedish punk favorite Millencolin, who were playing their classic Pennybridge Pioneers album to a packed tent. Millencolin are one of only a handful of pop-punk bands who can get away with touring an album over ten years old, and by all accounts the sound was better than most of the outdoor stages.
I was intrigued to hear what Terror would sound like – terrific, terrible? My initial experience turned out to be not of the band but of a fan wearing a Terror t-shirt being dragged away from the stage. Perhaps I’d already missed the best of them... you had to assume the guy had been enjoying himself. Unlike him, I managed to catch the end of the Californian hardcore act, which sounded heavy enough but didn’t seem to offer much more than what hardcore from the late 90's has already given us. Though to be fair I didn’t hear or see enough to pass a considered judgment.
Having bought a can of beer and a can of whiskey and dry I mulled over what to drink first. They were both barely satisfying cold so I decided to drink the beer first on account of the whiskey RTD being most likely to keep its flavour when warm. As I later found out, the superior drink choice was the multi-coloured, multi-flavoured, oozing frozen cocktail. Music festivals demand many such considered decisions as this from all punters. Pizza, hot dog, noodles, nothing? Spew on the ground or in the toilet?
Choosing Primus over High on Fire was an easy decision. I was drawn immediately to the front after watching opener To Defy the Laws of Tradition from afar. Having only listened to Primus’ albums I had never guessed at how much of their overall sound actually comes from Les Claypool’s bass. The man is simply a magician. While rapidly slapping and finger tapping his various basses (bass is not even the appropriate name fro them, he produces the whole range of pitches as well as percussion) he strutted about the stage at times like a prancing parading moustached soldier, his distinctive vocals instantly appealing even when chatting to the crowd between songs – “there are so many things I’ve been wanting to say to each and every one of you, but they told me to just get up and play this four-stringed piece of furniture”. There were no let-ups throughout the whole set, with American Life, My Name is Mud and Tommy the Cat all producing spontaneous freak-outs from the crowd when they weren’t staring mesmerised by one of the most unheralded groups of the last twenty years. A large gathering of backstage admirers was testament to the genius on show. My highlight of the day. I later heard that the High on Fire set was halved by technical difficulties.
On to the eagerly anticipated Gang of Four. The British post-punk band immediately engaged everyone by destroying a Fender before the first song was over. After replacing it, besuited guitarist Andy Gill announced oddly “I’m like ya dad”, singer and tambourinist Jon King added for clarification “he’s like ya dad... after a bottle of rum... on Christmas Eve”. There was so much energy in this performance they made the rest of the bands look like a rehearsal. King repeatedly crashed into equally as sharply dressed bassist Thomas McNeice who barely noticed, and knocked his mic stand to all parts of the stage. Whenever he managed to calm down King would go into what appeared to be a sort of ‘rock trance’. It was reminiscent of a younger Peter Garrett, although unlike his also politically motivated band, Gang of Four haven’t compromised anything and are still going strong. Highlights included Do As I Say and closer To Hell With Poverty which King screamed himself hoarse and soaking wet.
Just as anticipated were thrash legends Slayer, and naturally a sizeable crowd was building. After a ten minute delay the murmuring crowd was silenced by the arrival of some kook coming on stage to say “I hate to be the bearer of bad news, but...” - cue a shower of bottles and cans. Apparently singer Tom Araya was ill in hospital and unable to perform. The fence I was leaning against shook dangerously and air was tense, but everyone eventually gathered control. Although I later heard reports of fans pissing on their Slayer shirts and burning them (or probably the other way around). A few quotes overheard from fans moments after the cancellation – “he’s gonna get his arse reamed!” (metal is occasionally homoerotic); “let’s go and see Foxy Shazam” (I don’t think anyone did); in response to the surprising calm - “that’s why we’re on mid-strengths”; and the sensible “let’s visit him in hospital and bring him donuts”.
Queens of the Stone Age turned up on time and played a set from most of their catalogue, opening with Rated R classics Feel Good Hit of the Summer and Lost Art of Keeping a Secret. Always tight and heavy, frontman Josh Homme sculled from a bottle of Smirnoff and urged the crowd to dance. Before the show I’d been led to believe they were touring partly to promote a reissue of their self-titled debut, so I was looking forward to hearing at least a couple of tracks from the Kyuss era. But no such luck with this set. Anyhow, every song had the crowd rocking out from kick off and the closing three from Songs for the Deaf – Go With the Flow, No One Knows, and A Song for the Dead and made it a solid, if a little predictable, performance.
I traversed the festival grounds so quickly to catch Melvins that I managed to experience the end of a pumped up Rob Zombie finishing up at the adjacent stage. Now this was some serious entertainment. Seeing the end of a faithful cover of Alice Cooper’s School’s Out had me a little confused as to who was playing at first, but there was no doubt when he came out for encore Dragula, introduced by hot rod horror visuals. Surely this is as close as metal can come to dance music. After directing guitarist John 5 to smash his guitar to pieces “I hate that fucking guitar”! Rob and his band screamed over fading feedback.
For what I assume was a piss-take, Melvins came on and screamed over their own feedback for a minute or so before launching into the furious riffing and call-and-response vocals of The Water Glass. All wearing slightly strange outfits, Buzz Osbourne’s veteran band powered flawlessly through jagged rhythms and timing changes, although they occasionally flashed a grin across the crowd to confirm that it’s all really just a bit of fun. Billy Fish, Let it all Be, The Bit created the greatest amount of head-banging that I saw all night (pretty closely in time with Buzz’s swaying hair). Good heavy shit.
After foregoing the first half of their two hour set, I made the pilgrimage to TheRoyal Iron Maiden Symphony Orchestra. A set full of long operatic songs (incidentally, latest album The Final Frontier is their longest ever album), the majority of tracks seemed to come from post-90’s albums which surely only die-hards must listen to. The backdrop changed for every song and Bruce Dickinson pranced around in a torn shirt labeled ‘Psych Ward’, gesturing like he was reciting Shakespeare. It resembled a school production more than a metal concert. I wouldn’t have been surprised if their mums were in the audience to watch it. The song Iron Maiden from the album of the same name by the band of the same name (a couple of whom also wear t-shirts of the band of the same name) was notable for the entrance of a giant mechanical, possibly robotic, possibly real, probably a guy in a suit named Eddie who came out on stage to terrorize the band and then play guitar (well, hold a guitar) and finally simulate masturbating over Dave Murray! The final act thankfully included Number of the Beast and Hallowed Be Thy Name, and finished with Running Free which was interrupted by a brief singing of ‘happy birthday’ to guitarist Adrian Smith and Dickinson’s bizarre ramblings - he joked that it’s Sunday so we have all probably been to church and then immediately pointed out a pair of tits in the crowd! And then like any practiced theatre performance they finished precisely on schedule. Apparently a band called Polar Bear Club played at the same time.
Remember those series of books about useless Japanese inventions? Well, this album is exactly like one of those; utterly ridiculous… but at the same time so wonderfully absurd that you can’t get enough.
Cell-Scape starts off innocently enough; Phantasmagoria, a noise-metal-ish intro leads into Shield for Your Eyes, a Beast in the Well on Your Hand which has a math-rock Battles type feel. All well and good until BANG! The vocals hit you like a tonne of duster slippers for cats (socks for your cat, with little mops attached, so that the cat dusts the floor as it moves around). Melt-Banana are a strange band and Yasuko Onuki’s vocals are one of the stranger elements; her voice sounding like something out of Pokemon having a disagreement with a tantrum throwing Japanese schoolgirl.
In addition to Onuki’s vocals, the fact that they are from Japan and some of the song titles make Melt-Banana an intriguing band. But apart from having song titles like A Dreamer Who is Too Weak to Face Up to and A Hunter in the Rain to Cut the Neck Up in the Present Stage, they are more than just a novelty act due to the strength of guitarist Ichirou Agata who displays an amazing array of techniques and effects, he is particularly brilliant on Lost Parts Stinging Me So Cold and Like a White Bat in a Box, Dead Matters Go On.
Joining Onuki and Agata on Cell-Scape is bassist Rika Hamamoto and a drum machine. Together they make music which is like Isis on speed; Key is a Fact That a Cat Brings is like someone swinging a cat at a Fantomas concert, If it is the DeepSea, I Can See You There is like someone swinging a cat at a J-pop concert. Melt-Banana is the cat being swung.
Un Disparo al Centro is the second album by Chilean band Como Asesinar a Felipes. Their style is unique, mixing rap vocals, jazz drumming, a piano, the Juvenile National Symphony Orchestra of Santiago, and DJ Sp@cio providing scratches and samples. Vocalist Koala Contreras’ rap vocals, all in Spanish, give a ghetto feel to the album which is in deep contrast to the orchestral arrangements; it’s street yet lounge, savage yet affectionate.
The first two tracks seem to act as an introduction to the album, providing just a hint of what may be coming before La Puerta No Se Abre Sola features all the aforementioned characteristics and more. A jazz arrangement is quickly layered with scratches, samples, and aggressive vocals creating something quite dramatic, this theme is followed until the music starts to mimic the vocals and become somewhat wild, calming itself down ever so slowly thereafter.
Title track Un Disparo al Centro adds another element with a female operatic vocals complimenting, and at the same time contrasting, Contreras’ street rhymes. Cuando La Verdad No Encaja is the centerpiece of the album; the title, meaning “when the truth does not fit”, is enforced by Contreras and accompanied by heavy bass and a delightfully delicate piano arrangement.
Nuevo Dia Para Comenzar rounds out the album with DJ Sp@cio’s turntable tricks giving way to a dramatic and enchanting arrangement void of Contreras vocals. And then it’s over… all too soon. Just seven tracks make up the album, two of which barely register a minute long, but it is a bargain and well worth a listen as it is definitely something different and unlikely to be replicated.
The Company Band is a rock supergroup consisting of Neil Fallon (Clutch), James Rota (Fireball Ministry), Brad Davis (Fu Manchu), Jess Margera (CKY), and Dave Bone. That alone tells you that this album is going to be pretty darn good and it doesn’t disappoint.
Fallon, a small man with a big beard and even bigger voice, sounds aggressive and disgruntled on lead track Zombie Barricades, providing the listener with an immediate wake up call. From there the mix of Fallon’s harsh, Southern vocal styles contrast with the catchy guitar hooks and fun, Californian styles of Rota and Davis. It’s a Confusing World has a real Fu Manchu feel to it while Fallon’s lyrics about quantum mechanics for Djinn and Pentatonic are more akin to the intelligent wordplay used in many Clutch songs.
The band keeps the album fairly straightforward; Rota and Bone provide guitar licks during breaks in Fallon’s raspy vocals while Margera effortlessly bangs away on the drums throughout. Inline Six reads like a Hitcher type horror movie where a man is about to get rundown by a truck, although it all seems a little inevitable rather than scary. Who Else But Us? contains the line “defibrillate 'em, sedate 'em, then kick 'em in the nuts!” which is pretty much what this song does and CDANDW, standing for “chaos, destruction, and war” sums up how this track sounds.
Love Means Never Having to Say You’re Ugly is possibly the strongest track on the album with a lift in tempo and energy. This provides a final punch for the listener before the album concludes with a slow, grandstand finish on Lethe Waters where all members have a chance to show their wares.
It seems as if the star lineup just got together, jammed, and banged out these ten tracks for The Company Band, it sounds effortless and rocks from start to finish; heavy enough to thrash around to but also restrained enough to sit back and enjoy. Fans of any one of CKY, Fireball Ministry, or Fu Manchu would definitely get a kick out of this release with Fallon’s distinctive vocals making it most appealing to fans of Clutch.
The Melvins and High on Fire arrived in Wellington a day later than planned after the Christchurch earthquake left them stranded at Christchurch airport the night before. Every measure was taken to ensure the touring party made it to Wellington including getting the ferry over from Picton. These two bands were now ready to rock the Bodega; just like they themselves had been rocked in Christchurch.
First was High on Fire who came highly recommended and they certainly didn’t disappoint, the first two songs (I have no idea what they were) had heads banging and bodies flying. The band was tight, and the sound was better than usual for the Bodega; it had me already anticipating what the Melvins would do once onstage. There was still much more of High on Fire to be seen though and I found my eyes glued to bassist Jeff Matz’s rapid finger work while guitarist/vocalist Matt Pike’s beer belly was also a sight to behold. This was stoner doom heaven; a full on rocking set was played before they finished off with Bastard Samurai and Snakes for the Divine, dedicating the show to “anyone who got fucked on by the Christchurch earthquake”. The performance best summed up by someone remarking; “Fuck Metallica; this is heavy metal!”
By the time High on Fire were finished the Bodega was packed. The late cancellation of Queens of the Stone Age (who were due to perform a few blocks away at the Town Hall) may have been a factor; Josh Homme was probably scared some “cocksmoker” would throw a shoe at him. Most were in attendance to see timeless sludge rockers the Melvins. King Buzzo and Jared Warren came out looking larger than life, imposing figures on the tiny stage, while Dale Crover and Coady Willis could hardly be seen behind their monstrous drum kits. Buzz sported a turtle neck and moo moo, the other three looked sort of like vikings.
Opening track The Water Glass had the Melvins declaring they were ready; the raucous crowd in attendance were certainly ready, ready, ready. The band ran through a relentless set which included The Kicking Machine, Bar-X-The Rocking M,AMAZON, The Bit, Blood Witch, and the more recent Evil New War God, and Electric Flower; the only let up being early on when some idiot tried to look cool by dancing on stage. Jared did his best Josh Homme impersonation explaining that the idiot not only did not look cool but he also kicked a plug out of Buzz’s guitar, forcing them to stop while Buzz calmly fixed himself up.
The highlights of the show were Civilized Worm, Let It All Be, and Coady’s frenetic drumming. I could only see Dale’s sweaty hair from my position, but he would have done well to keep up with the younger, fitter Coady who was constantly pounding away. The show finished after Buzz casually strolled off leaving Coady and Dale providing a thunderous drum duet while Jared screamed into the microphone. The three of them then waved their goodbyes; a half-expected encore did not come but was not really necessary.
If the band were a little “freaked out” by their experience in Christchurch it certainly didn’t show. They gave the Bodega a magnitude 6.3 earthquake of their own, leaving the still shaking crowd to wind down to the Disney classic Zip-A-Dee-Doo-Dah.
Nick Oliveri has a penchant for pissing people off. This is clearly evident on A Drug Problem That Never Existed which was inspired by Oliveri’s divorce, substance abuses, and the death of his father. The opening track Meth I Hear You Calling sets the tone for the album and is filled with abusive messages from a fuming (ex) girlfriend, before Here We Come (“We’re coming to get you!”) signals Oliveri’s intentions with his signature screams.
So High, So Low displays a collection of feelings ranging from love to regret, and was later re-produced for the 2006 Dead Planet album but became over polished and radio friendly which nullified the raw emotion seen here. Do The Headright is my pick off this album, it chugs along violently with Oliveri screaming throughout but a bouncy, fun vibe comes across.
Mondo Generator is largely Oliveri’s work; however he does call up some big name friends to help him out. Josh Homme features on Detroit and gives it a real laid back Queens of the Stone Age feel, a welcome respite from Oliveri’s screaming. Brant Bjork, Dave Catching, Josh Freese, and Alain Johannes also make an appearance or two and Mark Lanegan puts his stamp all over Four Corners, a slow, retrospective way to wind down the album.
Jr. High Love is a fun track from the past coming off Volumes 3 & 4 of the Desert Sessions while Girls Like Christ is the reworking of an old Dwarves track and, although interesting, does not really fit in with the rest of the album.
All I Can Do and Day I Die are sombre acoustic numbers and a prelude to later years when Oliveri undertook an acoustic tour. When I saw him in 2009 he seemed appreciative and humbled that the small crowd had come along to hear him, just happy to be playing music; a far cry from the intense and, at times, brutal delivery of A Drug Problem That Never Existed.
Look What I Did are an American post hardcore/info-punk band. I caught up with vocalist, and co-founder of upcoming music service Gazzmic, Barry Donegan. He touches on hot topics such as Mr. Bungle, the CIA, Atlas Shrugged, and changing the history of music. Here's what he had to say:
Beez: Can you give a brief background of when and how you guys got together to form the band?
Barry: The band formed in 2001 in Nashville, Tennessee. The original lineup included Colby Shea and Miles McPherson (who now plays drums for Kelly Clarkson). Jake and Ty joined us at different intervals during the heavy touring cycle after Minuteman for the Moment, and they both have been involved in the writing process fully from that point on including on Atlas Drugged and Zanzibar III which is being written right now.
Beez: When I first heard Atlas Drugged, it was the music itself with its lack of traditional song structure which I found quite unique and interesting. What influences do have (either musically or otherwise) which help create this and separate you from other bands which likely grew up listening to the same artists as you?
Barry: Mr. Bungle was influential on us in the sense that they paved the way for bands who enjoy the counterculture and the heavier and punkier side of music to actually experiment as a true musician rather than just ramming power chords down and calling it a day. While there is always room for simpler and more traditional musical styles, someone has to break new ground. I think what differentiates us from a lot of our peers in other bands is that we intentionally resist trends and try our hardest to deviate from our influences rather than trying harder and harder to sound like a preexisting thing and thus becoming a somewhat simpler version of an existing band. I'm not in the business of hating on other bands, but originality is just a serious focus for Look What I Did, and I'm not sure it is for most bands right now.
We could have played rap metal in 1999. We could have played youth crew in 2001.We could have played breakdowns in 2003. We could have played arpeggio sweeps in 2008. It's not that we didn't know how or didn't realize that it would have made us more popular, it's that it is not our job to do that. It is Look What I Did's job to innovate and experiment and break ground for other bands to use in the future.
Beez: Upon listening further, I found the lyrics on Atlas Drugged make it a truly great album. You question topics such as religion, the Federal Reserve, CIA conspiracies, and have a dig at Leo Strauss. Was it always the intention of the band to raise issues such as these or were you just particularly irked by certain aspects of society at the time?
Barry: Lyrics for me flow with inspiration. I have always been somewhat interested in those subjects, but they are especially pertinent in modern times. We are living through a paradigm shift, and I don't pull punches on the message. At the same time, I take caution to pick very specific and less obvious subjects so as to not force people to accept the views in the songs in order to enjoy them.
On the other hand, some issues transcend even ideology and politics. The Federal Reserve, the CIA, the impact of Leo Strauss, those are intellectual subjects forever tied to the modern era that should be expected to appear in art, in my view. However, I write about nearly any subject in lyrics, and no subject matter remains on the table or would ever be off the table. It is important to flow with what inspires you at the time. In my mind, that's the most efficient way to make good stuff consistently.
Beez: Can you describe the process you go through in coming up with songs. Are the lyrics totally Barry’s ideas or does the band sit down and work out what messages they want to convey?
Barry: The lyrics are more my idea in most cases, though Chris wrote a few lines on Atlas Drugged. Sometimes the core idea comes from another band member, and I've had some lyrics vetoed by everyone else as well. Everyone has their own contribution to the writing process. Ty and Chris are the most concerned with the overall sound once the song begins taking a bit of shape. Skeet and Ty often come up with the basis of riffs. Chris is usually the most involved on the back end. I feel like Jake might have written some guitar riffs as well, and he is charged with keeping the chaos together.
During the Minuteman for the Moment phase, Colby and Miles were the most dominant during the writing process, so that was an entirely different procedure. Overall, we have a very democratic process when we write music, and that makes it take a little bit longer than a band who uses the Nirvana formula where a single member pretty much writes the song and everyone else just adds flair. We write by debating the parts out until they become something completely else than what they were in the beginning.
Beez: Are you looking forward to the release of the Atlas Shrugged film/s?
Barry: Absolutely! What strange timing! I believe in individual freedom and detest subjugation by institutions. I resist institutions, institutionally. So, Atlas Shrugged is right up my ally in that sense. Ayn Rand is a controversial figure, but her influence on society is undeniable, and she has introduced a very cohesive philosophy for those of us that don't like submitting to arbitrary and unchecked authority in life.
Beez: You recently wrote a blog entry on the Gazzmic website about the selection of band names. Would you go back and change the name Look What I Did (Liquid Eyelid) if you had the opportunity?
Barry: Actually, I'm pretty satisfied with the name personally. It's probably possible to pick names in different ways now, but it is a good phrase, and we've managed to continue to keep the front page of Google full despite the fact that the phrase is used by millions of people online every day, and we're competing head-on with a corporate television show by the same name and generally winning according to the algorithms of notability online. We've been using the name substantially longer, so that helps quite a lot I'm sure.
Beez: Staying on the topic of Gazzmic; can you give a relatively simple description of how it will help both bands and fans to easily connect with each other and find (new) music?
Barry: Regarding Gazzmic, I can only talk about certain things at this phase due to the non-disclosure agreements involved in starting a new online music service that is still in development. The first thing we have on the menu is a band iPhone app platform that will also be portable to the Android Market. Bands need a presence they can control on a mobile app since so many people are using smartphones now. There is a much bigger picture to this, though, that I can't go into great detail on just yet. We're taking Gazzmic one phase at a time, and our first objective is creating the platform and all the technology involved in that. From there, it will expand into something that changes everything.
Beez: What stage are you at with Gazzmic, and when could we likely see a launch of the iPhone/Android app? Can you give any details on what it will provide for users?
Barry: Gazzmic is in the development stage, and we are close to the start of closed beta. A launch date isn't set yet, but will be in time. I can't discuss too many specific features of the service yet, simply because too many of them are unique and innovative, and we don't want to begin explaining them until we can demonstrate them in action.
It will also have all the traditional stuff that people expect from a content delivery system for a band. Obviously, musicians will be able to offer the typical material like MP3 downloads, tour dates, biographical information, and streaming content, but there will be a lot of unique and new features that will be true game-changers. Each of them will be announced in great detail when they are about ready to be implemented.
Beez: How have “mainstream” artists and labels reacted to Gazzmic? Have any become involved in the project?
Barry: Mainstream artists are very receptive to what we are doing with Gazzmic. Some major artists and noteworthy labels have already requested beta keys so that they can be involved in the beta testing process. I won't spill the beans on who just yet, though, but I'm sure everyone will know when their profiles launch. We have a mind-blowing number of bands signed up to beta test Gazzmic already, and we haven't even started closed beta yet. We get a growing number of requests every day. The hype has definitely taken on a life of its own.
Beez: I think everyone (except the major labels themselves) can agree that the current business model of selling records/cd’s is dead/dying. Where do you see the future of music headed?
Barry: The current model is dead, and there will be a new way to monetize music. I am certain that we have it figured out, and I have typed up this new system into a manuscript which we will allow everyone to read just as soon as we finish building the technology to make it possible. Ordinarily I would be more transparent with my thinking, but the Gazzmic team is investing serious financial and sweat-equity resources into making this happen, so I must conduct myself in a manner befitting of a founder of an online service that is about to change the world and the history of music.
Beez: What are the upcoming plans for Look What I Did? I’ve seen rumours of a possible tour with Polkadot Cadaver and Creature Feature, plus also a trip to Europe.
Barry: There will be a specific announcement regarding this general subject very soon which I can't specifically comment on right now. :) I can say though that we would love to tour Europe some day, and if any of our European fans can assist us in reaching new fans, getting press, developing booking contacts, and anything else, we'd appreciate your support. The more grass roots support we receive in Europe, the easier it will be to tour there.
Beez: Do you know if you have any sort of fan base in Australia or here in New Zealand? If so, any chance of a tour?
Barry: I know that we do, and those would be great places to tour. Once again, the more support we get from our fans on other continents, the easier it is for us to tour in those specific places. Generally, Look What I Did is more popular in other countries than we are in the United States. I'm not sure why that is, because we've toured the US 12 or so times, and we've never toured in any other country. But online, our stats are very favorable in other countries around the world.
Beez: Any other comments/opinions you would like to add?
Barry: I'd encourage your readers to check out the Look What I Did blog http://ihatelookwhatidid.blogspot.com and, if they are musicians, to visit http://www.gazzmic.com and apply for the closed beta program which will allow them to use the band iPhone and Android app platform for free before it launches to the general public.
Once again, thanks Barry for your time and effort. It is greatly appreciated, you rule!
