MESA VERDE were a truly under appreciated band. They were on the cusp of being great but there was one tiny thing lacking (I don't even know what it was), and the band instead only reached 'really fucking good' status. The use of dual screams and a dizzying array of instrumental sections from serene and atmospheric to chaotic and driving are absolutely flawless. Fans of the bands mentioned above should get a kick out of MESA VERDE. The music is always amazing and very mature, and that's with me including the band's first demo titled 'In Silence We Will Slow Dance', which happens to house my favourite song named "Any Excuse for a Waste". This 2005 self-released EP was limited to something like 100 cassettes and was followed up with the 'Amor Fati' cdEP in 2006. This release is a bit more controlled but doesn't abstain from knocking you the fuck around, with "Clarity with Distance" being a great opener, "MRB" being fucking fantastic and the epic and spacey "Dance Dance Dance" which rolls through almost 12 minutes of mad Battle Of Wolf 359 feels. Hot damn what a record. Last came 'The Old Road' 12"LP. The instrumental opener "A Deep Sleep Without Dreams" is a nice start that blends Sed Non Satiata with Pelican. "For the Tree that Fell" the band takes a harsh, German emo-violence turn that reminds me of Danse Macabre with a short, warbly vocal section that Locktender must have jammed a million times before incorporating their vocals. "When the Canary Dies Run Like Fuck" begins heavy as all hell with nods to The Flying Worker! and quite possibly Orchid. "No More Bad Future" follows the same lines with the short, spastic cluster bombs of noise. "Post-Youth" is the closer and at 13 minutes in length it's no wonder. MESA VERDE also released a posthumous song "In '64" on a compilation called 'Make Yer Ane Comp II' in 2011 which while decent isn't necessarily mind blowing. It does remind me a lot of The Saddest Landscape as well as We Had A Deal and results in as a much quieter outing than all previous releases. So yeah, download the discography cuz this band is definitely worth your time.
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DISCOGRAPHY Click )==>here<==( to download the band's complete discography in mp3 form.
2005 - In Silence We Will Slow Dance cdrEP
2006 - Amor Fati cdEP
2008 - The Old Road 12"LP
2011 - Make Yer Ane Comp II compilation (contributed "In '64")
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(2005) MESA VERDE - "Any Excuse for a Waste" (from 'In Silence We Will Slow Dance')
(2006) MESA VERDE - "MRB" (from 'Amor Fati')
(2008) MESA VERDE - "No More Bad Future" (from 'The Old Road')
(2011) MESA VERDE - "In '64" (from 'Make Yer Ane Comp II')
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MESA VERDE out of print mp3 discography download / additional links
Genres: Punk / Noise / Screamo / Hardcore / Thrash / Experimental / Grind / Post-Rock Related artists: A Million Fucking Towers, Public Towers, Kick Rocks, The Combine, D'Amore, Elder, Fall On Deaf Years, Hot Bagels, Peter & Craig and AMFDM. Country: Philadelphia, Pennsylvania USA Years Active: 2004-2011 Song: "Awful Grey" Album: "Full Circle" Year: 2009 Label(s): Self Released aka Towering Sound / Init Records / Electric Human Project / React With Protest / Protagonist Music / Turnstile Records / Utarid Tapes / S.A.R.S. Records / Hardly Art / Shock Value Records / Erode Releases / Irrational Tentent / HIRS 666 / This post's artist is from the August 2015 Mix. This is track #6. You can download: the September Mix#9 right hereor get the new October 2015 Mix#10 here. For fans of: Rats Into Robots, Old Man Gloom, Loma Prieta, Me And Him Call It Us, (old) Botch, Combatwoundedveteran, Llynch, Cassilis, Bucket Full Of Teeth, The Now, Seventeen Again, The Exelar, Creeper, Takaru, Graf Orlock, Examination Of The..., Enkephalin, Crestfallen, Alpinist, Storm{o}, PG.99, Furnace and Spires aka PROPER SCREAMO.
Experimental screamy hardcore, sludge, grind and noise band TOWERS released from 2005 until 2011 with music that taps the buried, primal instincts of our ape ancestors and converts it into a very enjoyable, albeit volatile, audio listening experience. The resulting cacophony erupts sporadically with momentous force and I can't help but be pulled in by this whirling gravitational pull. Listening to TOWERS is a cathartic experience, as it is the audio equivalent of unearthing everything repressed in your life and beating the living shit out of it, and then spitting on the remains. TOWERS were truly a unique specimen and sounded like no one but themselves, but as you know I need to give some kind of relation, so a semi-decent comparison would be a clusterfuck of Spires (epic and sludgy), Rats Into Robots/Examination Of The (chaotic and spacey), Old Man Gloom (fucking nutso) and Me And Him Call It Us (grind and noise).
I find the songs are either good or fantastic, which is better than mediocre or fantastic which seems to be the case with most bands. What I mean is when listening to a record there are still standouts, but pretty much everything is more than decent. Some big blows are dealt in the following songs. "Time Clock Therapy" is Me And Him Call It Us but slowed down, and just as heavy. "Jupiter Jazz" unravels into a nuclear meltdown. "Orange Iguanas" boasts some killer palm muting that reminds me a bit of Furnace and is easily one of my favourites. "Mutagen/Stoner's Pot Palace" beckons whirling guitars at the beginning that dissolve into bombastic noise that is continually ripped apart at the seams and then sewn back together, aka Bucket Full Of Teeth style. This track also incorporates some fantastic palm-muting goodness. "Man With Rocking Horse" is an eerie romp through a post-apocalyptic wasteland that builds for two minutes before going all sexy Graf Orlock at 2:31. "Song of the Dead pg 1" is abrasive and jarring with a very uncomfortable ending that sounds like a post-riot police station while "Song of the Dead pg 2" explodes and dissipates in less than 30 seconds. From the quintessential release 'Full Circle' that was released in 2009 there are amazing dual vocals at 1:35 in "235 Ways to Suck Seed" that are preceded by very interesting carousel/circus music and proceeded by a killer close. "Swells" screams 'We are the Architects of Desire'-era Examination Of The... with the incessant screaming and pulsing nature of the song. A fucking gem, I tell ya. "Awful Grey" may be my favourite TOWERS track, clocking in at 3:27. It begins with a fucked up and sludgy intro that bleeds into palm-muted and screaming heaven 49 seconds in and doesn't let up. This song in particular brings to mind This Ship Will Sink, but with a subdued metallic element and heavier emphasis on sludge and be fucking weird. Speaking of fucking weird, the song from the 2010 split 10" with Dogs Of Ire is called "Priest With Lazer Eyes". The first minute is grating, invasive noise. The remaining three minutes showcase some of the band's most mathematical and precise instrumental work before going apeshit as one would expect TOWERS to do. Many of the band's best work was rerecorded for the 2007 'Towers' LP which I haven't posted many songs for, as I became accustomed to the originals and have discussed many of the already.
It's crazy and difficult to open up to, but once you give it your undivided attention you'll notice that all the parts work and fit together to be a very cohesive whole. Unstable, but whole nonetheless. I have yet to mention the trippy, drug-induced spaciness that lies dormant on some tracks, but eventually comes to the forefront and is reminiscent of the stuff Rats Into Robots used to do. So do yourself a massive favour and download the semi-discography that I've posted below. If you can fill in any mp3 gaps please post them for everyone to appreciate!
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DISCOGRAPHY Click )==>here<==( to download the band's discography in mp3 form.
2005 - D'Amore split 7"EP
2005 - Take Down Your Art split cassette/10"EP
2006 - Early Demonstrations (split w/Exelar) 12"LP
2006 - US Funk Team split 7"single
2006 - They And The Children split 7"EP
2006 - Summer 2006 cdrLP semi-discrography (have this? please post it!)
2007 - Towers cassette/12"LP
2009 - Full Circle cd/cassette/12"LP
2010 - Ryan Howard's Magical Mystery Tour II (split w/Public Restroom and AMFDM) cdrEP
2010 - Dogs Of Ire split 10"EP
2010 - Hello Kitty Police cassetteLP
2011 - HIRS spilt 5"single
2011 - 424 Bel Air Demos cassetteEP
2011 - 424 Bel Air Highrise Plantation digitalLP
AOKIGAHARA blew me away when I first started this blog and my label, but in the last two years I've seen nothing materialize. This is most likely due to the fact that Nolan Arthur from Off Cloud Nine Records seems to work on a million projects, his most notable being The Truth About Dreaming.
So what does the two-piece sound like? AOKIGAHARA play a violent and spastic mix of screamy hardcore with an emphasis on early 2000s emo/screamo punk music. The songs are very short (less than two minutes, and usually around one), intense, screamy and hint at older bands such as early Mara'akate, Dispensing Of False Halos and Deers!. Truly, there is a striking balance between chaos and repetitive riffs, thus creating a stunning hybrid of power and hooks. As they have only released three songs, there really isn't much more I can say, other than I'm beyond stoked for new material. They have a new EP coming out in Nov/Dec 2015. Hold on to your butts.
Genres: Punk / Powerviolence / Hardcore / Thrash / Crust / Emo-violence / Screamo / Skramz / Noise Related artists: ?. Country: Moscow RUSSIA Years Active: 2014-present Song: "Город" Album: "EP" Year: 2015 Label(s): Friendly Otter / Confusion Specialist This post's artist is from the August 2015 Mix. This is track #5. You can download: the September Mix#9 right hereor get the new October 2015 Mix#10 here. For fans of: Combatwoundedveteran, Buran, Me And Him Call It Us, Usurp Synapse, Aspergers, Yusuke, Graf Orlock, The Great Redneck Hope, Hassan I Sabbah, Love Lost But Not Forgotten, Loma Prieta, Acme, Systral, Assuck, Orchid, Kelut, Jowls, Carol, мятеж and Terror Eyes aka PROPER SCREAMO.
LORA play dirty, caustic emo-violence from Moscow. This shit is fast, intense and littered with screams, but thankfully they retain enough melody and structure to make the explosive listen enjoyable. The violent and cathartic eruptions spin in a whirlwind of noise that generally last between 30 seconds and 2 minutes. They utilize dual vocals with some shrill and deep screams, with the high shrilly stuff going over a little better than the darker stuff. Thus far they have only released a four song EP but have a 4-way split with Pepi Rössler (hungary), Nausae (germany)and Unable To Fully Embrace (austria) coming up in the near future as well as an EP or LP on my boy Olin's Friendly Otter Records and a split with the one man screamo/grind/black-metal project The Ultimate Screamo Band from Montreal. Considering that this band recently formed, it seems quite likely that they will bet much better and they're already great at what they do. What do they do again? Oh yeah, melt your goddamn face off.
Genres: Punk / Screamo / Hardcore / Thrash / Skramz / Emo-violence Related artists: Cloud Mouth, Fix The Sun and Victor!. Country: Grand Rapids, Michigan USA Years Active: 2011-2014 Song: "Questioning Yourself (aka Dan)" Album: "The Reptiliansplit" Year: 2011 Label(s): The Ghost Is Clear Records / Mayfly Records / Tiny Engines This post's artist is from the August 2015 Mix. This is track #1. You can download: the September Mix#9 right hereor get the new October 2015 Mix#10 here. For fans of: Loma Prieta, The Catalyst, Carrion Spring, JR Ewing, Bucket Full Of Teeth, Ampere, Maths, Blue Friend, Reversal Of Man, Улыбайся Ветру and Orchid aka PROPER SCREAMO.
JOWLS were a band that were really hit or miss with me. Each of their releases pressed prior to their demise house one song which is so good that the rest of the album pales in comparison. That's too bad, but getting those stellar songs is without a doubt a positive thing. So instead of me rambling on forever with my opinion of their pros and cons, why not just listen to the songs I've posted and decide if you'd like to hear more. What's that? You'd like to hear more? Okay, download their discography here. I'll say this, they played short, violent, caustic, screamy hardcore with amazing vocals that remind me of Loma Prieta and Carrion Spring the most. Dave out.
note ~ I got to see one of their last shows and it was killer.
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DISCOGRAPHY Click )==>here<==( to download the band's complete discography in mp3 form.
Genres: Punk / Rock / Indie / Folk / Acoustic / Alternative / Ambient Related artists: New End Original, Far and Gratitude. Country: Massachusetts USA Years Active: 1990-present Song: "Swamp (live)" Album: "Masculine Makeover" Year: 2002 Label(s): Satellite City This post's artist is from the August 2015 Mix. This is track #4. You can download: the September Mix#9 right hereor get the new October 2015 Mix#10 here. For fans of: Eerie, dark post-punk/indie rock.
Sometimes I really like a song by a band and it's so good that I'll throw it on a blog mix, unsure if they have more material but ready to delve into it all directly preceding the discography review. Usually it works out with me finding some more killer tracks or an obscure release somewhere. But then there's this - I heard ONELINEDRAWING (aka Jonah Matranga) material from 1990-2014 and I'm not going to bother discussing the rest of it. The live version of "Swamp" that I heard off of my 'Masculine Makeover' 12" compilation back in 2001-2002 (I'm still uncertain exactly when the thing was released) was a very engaging and unique song that gives me goosebumps to this day. It's cathartic, eerie and tribal its delivery. If I had to liken it to some bands I'd throw in a super chilled out Criteria, Elliot and Stephen Brodsky. Too bad I didn't like his other stuff. Perhaps you will.
Genres: Punk / Rock / Post-Rock / Post-Hardcore / Post-Metal / Alternative / Doom / Ambient / Noise / Related artists: Seriously, too many to mention. Country: Los Angeles USA + Glasgow SCOTLAND Years Active: 2006 Song: "Low Tide" Album: "In the Fishtank 14" Year: 2006 Label(s): Konkurrent / Daymare Recordings This post's artist is from the August 2015 Mix. This is track #12. You can download: the September Mix#9 right hereor get the new October 2015 Mix#10 here. For fans of: Ira, Radiohead, Old Man Gloom, Godspeed, You! Black Emperor, The Pax Cecilia, Red Sparrowes, Black Love, Pelican, Atsuko Chiba, Tool, Cave In, Supermachiner, Shy Low and Mogwai.
vocals don't make an appearance until three minutes into "Low Tide", the EP's lengthy opener. This song would be considered the most chill and approachable song by ISIS ever, but that wouldn't be accurate as it is AEREOGRAMME vocalist Craig Beaton who whisks us away to dreamland. The guitars and bass combine with the vocals to really anchor this song in a repetitive, catchy and semi-awkward rhythms that don't sound too far off from Botch's grooving masterpiece "Afghamistam". The song ebbs and flows for 10 minutes before coming to a most righteous.
"Delial" is much more of an ISIS sounding track with a distorted, palm-muted intro that are slathered in an echo laden, tribal cave. Although this isn't really all that heavy for ISIS, this would be considered AEREOGRAMME's heaviest song. The track clocks in at 3:55 and is over almost as soon as it begins and the last half could also be likened to some Old Man Gloom and Jacob Bannon's solo material (aka Supermachiner), as the song is torn apart and peppered into a static soup.
The Radiohead 'Kid A'-esque "Stolen" closes out the EP in the lulling, dreamy, mostly instrumental soundscape that meanders for over ten minutes and is decent but certainly nothing to write home about...so I guess I should stop.
All in all, this is a great release with "Low Tide" being worth the purchase (or download) alone.
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DISCOGRAPHY
2006 - In the Fishtank 14 cd/12"EP (download here)
On September 15th, 2015 I put on my 9th show under the Zegema Beach Records moniker at Doors: Taco Joint & Metal Bar. Coming in from the US were HARRIS HAWK and BLOOD PHEASANT which I set up because SHAHMAN asked me to. As amazing as the show was I'll probably not be doing 6 bands because the show ran until after midnight on a Wednesday. Regardless, all the bands were amazing and below is a brief account of each. To watch all of the videos (13, to be exact) including Harris Hawk's full set, click here.
HARRIS HAWK
Harris Hawk. Goddamn. Harris Hawk. So good I had to ask them after the show if I could help out with their next record because holy moly they played all new material (save one) and the shit was exhilarating. Massive classic rock (think Thin Lizzy) meets heavy (Edhochuli) with soaring female vocals. Check out their entire set here. Facebook Bandcamp
BLOOD PHEASANT
Bloodpheasant came in from Rhode Island and blew my socks off. The country-tinged sludge/classic rock must have been birthed in some eerie swamps and forests. The layering of female and male vocals accompanied by screams here and there with very dense instrumentals prompted me to pick up an LP following their set. Facebook Bandcamp
SHAHMAN
Shahman played a pretty heavy set which was surprising as they'd been going softer from the recent shows I've been frequenting. The two fine fellas pumped out twenty minutes of invasive and cathartic post-hardcore/rock that always has people saying, "goddamn Shahman rules" after every freakin' show. Facebook Bandcamp
FOSSIL
Fossil continues to impress me with their States Faults sounding screamy hardcore with a bit of pop/emo to it. The dual guitars and drums (no bass) mix with the screaming to create a very engaging listen. Definitely check them out. Facebook Bandcamp
SALEM WITCHES
Salem Witches closed out the show and probably put in the most amount of physical energy out of any band that night. For christ's sake the guitarist/vocalist popped his knee out before the show and was in a removable cast, but that didn't stop him from flying around the floor along with the other guitarist/vocalist Drew who moved around so much that his hat kept flying off his head, which he would promptly recover after the song finished. A lot of energy and a lot of raw talent. Facebook Bandcamp
YOU ME & THE MACHINE
The openers You Me & THE MACHINE played a poppy Reggie And The Full Effect/Cursive hybrid that was a very positive start. The band has been together for a decade and it shows with the sweet, dual harmonies on vocals, as well as the general tightness of the band. Facebook Soundcloud
***To watch all videos from this show CLICK HERE***
When I first started this blog and Zegema Beach Records I noticed a name that kept popping up in facebook groups, band submissions and record orders - JESSE MOWERY. Attached to said name is one of the most solid people I've ever encountered. Jesse has played in a plethora of bands and continues to do so to this day, my favourite of which was ALTAR OF COMPLAINTS. Jesse sent me this band's first/final full length 'A Sea of Decency With Some Swells of Greatness' and I lost my shit. Before I go on another Dave tangent and fill up a few thousand words, I'll just tell you to read the ALTAR OF COMPLAINTS discography review and all the random thoughts I have here.
This post was birthed to let you all know about the new 4-way split 12" with ALTAR OF COMPLAINTS, Thetan, SeeK and Stubborn Father. It is being released on Meatcube Label (north america), Kakusan Records (europe) and LongsLegsLongArms (japan) on September 29th. Until then just stream it in its entirety here. I've had the mp3s for a few months now and I can definitely say that this is a killer release. I can't wait to get a physical copy!
1) How did the split come about?
The split has been in the works for over 2 years now. We had been wanting to a split with our friends in Thetan, and also wanted to a split with a Japanese band, and then Dan from Thetan told us Ryan from Meatcube wanted to do a 4 way split with 2 Japanese bands and 2 Nashville bands, and so our wants were fulfilled with one release. Ryan found the Japanese bands cos he's a nerd about Japanese music.
2) This 12" is special in terms of the production of
the vinyl, how so?
Dan from Thetan has his own mastering thing called Black Matter Mastering, and in the past year has been doing some really cool stuff with etchings and stuff. The label on the vinyl has raised etchings, I can't remember what is on it though, but he's done a lot recently for Off Cloud Nine Label that are beautiful, and has been working on playable etchings and just all sorts of weird stuff with vinyl. Dan has always been a positive force in the Nashville diy scene since before I was in it. His old band Moral Decay was a huge influence on my old band Dawn, and Dan took us high schoolers and showed us the possibilities of diy by recording us, releasing us and other local bands, showing us how to screen print, helping us play out of town, among other things. His label Anti-Corporate Music Inc. is basically the only label in Nashville that puts out more extreme bands of the hardcore/grind/crust/black metal variety and has been mostly local oriented. He's slowed down on the label and doesn't really go out to shows too much since he has a kid now, but he still is doing more than most people for the scene there by providing great cheap mastering and awesome affordable vinyl etchings.
3) What would you like to say about your songs as well as
the split itself?
Our songs on the split were written in very different times of us being a band. "Leif" was one of the first songs written by Roy and Justin before I started playing with them. "Alone In the Middle Of All That Madness" was one of the last songs we wrote before recording our first album, the song is "inspired" by the guy who walked the tightrope over Niagra Falls, most of the lyrics and the title being quotes from the commentators. "Tuffcoupleoctopus" was one of the first songs written as a 4 piece, I'll come back to this song though.
4) What were your influences during this writing period?
We all had our own individual influences, but Roy, Elias and I all drove from Nashville to Murfreesboro together to practice so we spent our drives listening to Nitro Mega Prayer, Mihai Edrisch, Mahria, Envy, Tristan Tzara, Gameness, Mew, the cabs, Capsule, Dip Leg, Kaospilot, Kulara, and La Quiete, plus others. Justin tends to listen to mostly jazz, metal, and old rock n roll, but that was cool cos it made it so we didn't sound like the things we wanted to. Elias joined us in the middle of recording our first album because we realized we sounded empty, but having a badass bass player helped us move forward as a band too around this time.
5) "Tuffcoupleoctopus"...wha?
"Tuffcoupleoctopus" is a weird one. The song was created from Justin playing a New Orleans jazz beat, and Elias started thumping along with him. Somehow we winded up with the rest of the song, including homages to Kulara and Iron Maiden on ecstasy at the end. The song was so fun to play and all over the place so we just kept it. We had too much fun naming our songs, sometimes spending more time debating the name than it took to write the song. I was trying to say tough snuffleupagus but ended up saying Tuffcoupleoctopus, and we kept that name in the reserve until this fitting song was born.
6) I heard you were on some MRTEX tour. What's the deal with
that?
Oh I dunno, some guy who writes some blog and runs a label asked me to play bass for MRTEX, so I put a bass amp in a suitcase and took a bus from Nashville to NYC, took a train to Long Island to meet up with the band, practiced for 2 days, and went on a 10 day tour. It was easily one of the coolest things I've been a part of, our tourmates People's Temple Project instantly became one of my favorite bands, and I got to meet a bunch of people I only knew on the internet besides you.
7) How did you meet and get involved with Christer and his
label as well as Ryan Lewis of Meatcube/Cease Upon The Capitol fame?
Christer I met on an online group and we talked a little about music, and then he told me Ryan had asked him to help release the split, which is awesome. Ryan we had all known for years, he was originally from Nashville and Roy played in Sanctions, Cease Upon The Capitol, Baldwin Mass Suicide, and Robber Barons with him, plus ran I've Come For Your Children Records with him too. I first met him when i was 17 and my old band played with Sanctions and ended up doing a split with them a few years later when we changed our name to Dawn. He helped record my old band Karoshi, during which he turned me onto a lot of Japanese and European bands that I still listen to constantly. Since we had been friends with him for so long and at the time were the only screamo band in Nashville we talked about him releasing us, but he couldn't help with the first album so we put it out ourselves, but he offered us to be on this 4 way and we have been excited about it since.
8) What would you like to say about Altar Of Complaints
post-mortem?
Altar of Complaints was one of the best experiences I've had playing music. I've been in at least 15 bands, and at one point was in 7 with 3 practicing weekly and touring. Before I started playing with them I was getting too serious with my music, getting frustrated when things didn't turn out how I wanted, not thinking about the compromises that come with doing stuff with other people with different schedules and concerns and influences. I saw Roy at a show in 2010 and we talked for a long time. He ended up telling me him and Justin had been jamming and that I should join them, but over ANYTHING it was about having fun. Once I started playing with them it brought me back to why I play music, which is cos I enjoy it. I had forgotten how practice was one of the most enjoyable parts of being in a band, if not the best. It was great for a long time, including once we added Elias, even though there was a big age gap, since he was 18, I was 25, Roy was 29, and Justin 31. Many dick jokes and dumb jams happened. I started having a lot of big losses in my life and near the end of us as a band, and it started to be a hassle getting everyone together, so Justin called it a day, which I was very butthurt and upset about for a while, but I now realize was a good thing for everybody. I miss it though, those dudes will always be some of my favorite people in existence, but I doubt we could ever play together again, especially since Roy doesn't practice.
9) You've just moved to Virginia with you partner, tell us
about that.
My wife Jazzi and I just moved to Richmond, VA with our friend Nikki who plays drums for us in our band Van Hagar. Jazzi and I had spent our whole lives in Nashville for the most part, and the city has nearly doubled in population in the past few years and has become more and more expensive without wages or anything like that growing, so we moved so we could afford to live. We had been to Richmond on tour and had booked a bunch of bands from here, so we decided to try it out. It's wonderful so far, but we're still settling in. We're planning on starting more bands as soon as we can though. It's exciting to live in a place where there are so many bands that I love from the past and present.
10) What is next for the former members of Altar Of
Complaints and Jesse Mowery?
Currently Justin and Roy play in Subjects/Rulers with
Matt from Dolcim/Cease Upon The Capital/Baldwin Mass Suicide. Justin plays old
rock n roll with his family a few times a month too. Elias plays bass in Chasm
Of Teeth and Phoebos, who are both comprised of mostly the same people, and is
part of the hip hop group BZRK. I play bass in Van Hagar, and I'm hoping to
find people to help me turn my solo project Apostles of Eris into a full band,
but if not I'll just keep recording by myself. I've got a few jams in the works
with other people that will hopefully lead to something, but I'm definitely
trying to do more musically, especially now that I'm in a place where I don't
feel like I have to book shows for shows to happen. Jesse, I love you buddy.
Band: ROSETTA Genres: Metal For Astronauts / Post-Rock / Post-Hardcore / Post-Metal / Doom / Ambient / Noise / Drone / Space Rock Related artists: Rise Of Because, Fraud, Junius, City Of Ships, North, Memories Of A Dead Man, Mykado and Zodiak. Country: Philadelphia, Pennsylvania USA Years Active: 2003-present Song: "In & Yo / Dualities of the Way" Album: "The Anaesthete" Year: 2013 Label(s): Self Release / Level Plane Records / Translation Loss Records / E-Vinyl / Radar Swarm / Denovali Records / Vega Vinyl / Cavity Records / Debemur Morti Productions / War Crime Recordings / Tokyo Jupiter Records / Golden Antenna Records / Init Records / The Mylene Sheath / Bird's Robe Records This post's artist is from the August 2015 Mix. This is track #3. You can download: the September Mix#9 right hereor get the new October 2015 Mix#10 here. For fans of: Cult Of Luna, AmenRa, Monuments Collapse, Isis, Nous Etions, Tephra, Amber, Light Bearer, Downfall Of Gaia, Envy, Milanku, Buried Inside, The Alaskan, Kraken, Meshugga, Intronaut, Lentic Waters, Anodes, Old Man Gloom, Zozobra, Knut, Old Soul, From A Second Story Windowand Cave In.
Self-dubbed "metal for astronauts" post-hardcore/metal behemoths ROSETTA are a must for any fan of the above "ffo" section. They took the epic instru-metal with vocals and added heavy texturing and space-rock ambiance to the package, which went over very well and continues to do so at the time of this writing, September 21st, 2015. Although I'm a pretty big fan of the band's catalogue, ROSETTA seems to have a lot of songs that don't do too much for me, but the select few that do floor me every time. For the first few years they would include some phenomenal tracks scattered amongst semi-decent tracks but as of about 2013, in my opinion, they've harnessed their true sound and are refining their work to include less and less fillers.
As mentioned above, the newer material, 'Quintessential Ephemera' (2015) and 'The Anaesthete' are powerhouses. 'Quintessential Ephemera' in particular has some clean singing which is welcome and a little odd at the same time, although "Untitled I" is the cream of the crop in that regard. "Untitled II" brings everything back to typical ROSETTA fashion without the sparsely included vocal melodies and peaks as one of the band's best songs to date with "Untitled III" and "Untitled "VII" coming in close behind. Also released in 2015 was 'Rosetta: Audio/Visual Original Score' which is a completely instrumental soundtrack that could easily be used in a plethora of different movies. This band from Philly is obviously a very talented bunch, although this soundtrack doesn't do anything for me.
From my limited ROSETTA experience online I've gathered that 'The Galilean Satellites' is their most revered album, but I personally thought 2013's 'The Anaesthete' was their strongest outing. Simply put, they have gotten better, more consistent and have been able to straddle each end of the musical spectrum like fucking champs from this release onward and I love it. There are two songs in particular that absolutely demolish the listener. The first being my personal favourite "In and Yo / Dualities of the Way" which is unbelievable with galaxies of spacey riffs that bounce around and collide like atoms. At 1:46 the song detonates like a massive star and shoots seeds into space via those incredibly amazing guitar riffs. The song later gets pretty Old Man Gloomy at 4:49 when things condense to the point of becoming a black hole. "Myo / The Miraculous" is one of the shortest bursts that the band has ever concocted. In 3:02 they go ballistic and utterly destroy everything in their path. The pummeling breakdowns coincide with heavy as fuck vocals that never dip into growly territory, thank science. A truly harrowing experience.
From the band's lone Level Plane release, the split with Balboa comes "Clavius". This combines drone with nifty guitarwork that peaks just before four minutes before being distorted and stretched to Cult Of Luna and Downfall Of Gaia-esque vastness. After expending what I assumed to be all of the energy in the song it slides into a slow, instrumental lull before a cataclysmic explosion at 9 minutes that fucking makes this song. Hot damn that is some heavy and commanding shit. "Lift (part 1)" is one of ROSETTA's most playful and uncharacteristic songs which, for the most part, just sounds a lot more optimistic in its sound and sounds like Isis more than anything else. The opener from 'The Galilean Satellites' "Departe" begins with a sexy bassline that paints the backdrop instantly. The spacey guitars chime in with the drums that are obviously leaning towards something massive in the future. The foreshadowing becomes redundant two minutes in as the song truly departs during liftoff. I love the bellowing vocals that careen to screams quite quickly.
Truly, metal for astronauts.
editor's note: I've been rewatching Cosmos. A strange coincidence.
2010 - A Determinism of Morality cd/2x12"LP
2010 - 3-Way split (w/East Of The Wall & Year Of No Light) cd/1.5x12"LP
2010 - Rosetta / Restorations 12"EP
2011 - Junius split cd/12"EP
2012 - City Of Ships split cdEP
2013 - The Anaesthete cd/2x12"LP (stream/donate/download here)
Genres: Punk / Rock / Post-Rock / Post-Hardcore / Alternative / Grunge / Shoegaze Related artists: Beliefs, Fleuve and No Bones. Country: Montreal, Québec CANADA Years Active: 2015-present Song: "You're Waving at Me" Album: "Self Title" Year: 2015 Label(s): Self Released This post's artist is from the August 2015 Mix. This is track #13. You can download: the September Mix#9 right hereor get the new October 2015 Mix#10 here. For fans of: Make Do And Mend, State Faults, Terry Green, Hum, Sed Non Satiata, Helmet, Envy, Nothing and The Cure.
PLUUM is a new band from Montreal in Québec on the east side of Canada. They just released a 3-song demo EP called 'Pluum' and will be playing in Toronto (linked here) but I can't go due to a Big Dick concert in Hamilton. Anyway, to PLUUM. They play groooving screamo/post-hardcore with some 90s alternative/grunge residue that is thick enough to slow down the pace enough to pretty much take all but remove the screamo aspect, except perhaps the vocals. The band hits their stride in pretty much every song, with "You're Waving at Me" standing out as an excellent example. The song employs the softer, subdued approach which bodes quite well for the band as well as good hard parts like the climax which is situated, oddly enough, at the end of the track. "Monday" has serious 80s The Cure and The Smiths overtones with Hum seeming like the primary influence. I also hear hints of The Used screamy vocals, not a knock, but this isn't too far from said band's debut self title LP, which is a guilty pleasure of mine. The closer "Being Busy" is my least favourite but doesn't sound too far off from "Monday" in it's very rigid song structure and throwback 80s and 90s feel.
Genres: Punk / Rock / Ambient / Noise / Electronic / Disco / Dance Related artists: 60-Watt Kid and N.O.W.. Country: Long Beach, California USA Years Active: 2001-2006, 2014 Song: "I Want Your Sass" Album: "We Are From Nowhere" Year: 2003 Label(s): Dim Mak / Art Fag Recordings This post's artist is from the August 2015 Mix. This is track #8. You can download: the September Mix#9 right hereor get the new October 2015 Mix#10 here. For fans of: Devo, These Arms Are Snakes, Big Dick, The Blood Brothers, The Vogue,Soiled Doves, Fatboy Slim, Moby, Q And Not U, The Rapture and Xiu Xiu.
I know I'm not the most eclectic person around, as about 70-90% of what I listen to on a daily basis is pure screaming. I'm always excited when a band that I really dig don't fit a particular mould and isn't all screamy based. DANCE DISASTER MOVEMENT does just that, mixing lo-fi electronic looping with garage noise pop and the occasional break into disco (see "I Want Your Sass").
I'm pretty sure that it was the second time that I saw The Blood Brothers when DANCE DISASTER MOVEMENT opened for them in Toronto. The band employed a myriad of tricks to make two people sound like five, primarily due to the guitarist/vocalist using a nearly constant evolution of looping his guitar as well as keyboard. At said show the band closed with "The Shots" and had Jordan Blilie helping out with the vocals near the end. The song itself is repetitious in a way that does not get stale but instead produces relatively brief, infectious, building sing alongs. There is also a very interesting slide into a Middle Eastern sounding ending.
"C'est la Vie" goes from jagged and caustic to serene and relaxing. The first half sounds like industrial dance pop. The sassy croon that leads the cacophonous collection of noise has some fantastic solo transitions that'll have you to break your own neck as the instrumentals crash back in. For a prime example check out 1:21 and the shriek at 2:37. At 3:52 the song changes over to subdued electro-pop and it fucks oh so fucking well. The guitar outro that begins at 5:41 brings the song to a close in catchy as shit fashion.
I have been unable to acquire the band's 2005 discography but have included my vinyl ripped to mp3 for 'We are from Nowhere'. It has some decent tracks like the three mentioned above but the album itself can be a difficult listen.
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DISCOGRAPHY
2003 - We are from Nowhere cd/12"LP (download here)
2005 - Snow on the TV cd/12"EP (download here)
2005 - On 7"EP (does anyone have this? please post it!)
2005 - Beautiful Guns (collaboration w/Kill Me Tomorrow) 12"EP (does anyone have this? please post it!)
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(2003) DANCE DISASTER MOVEMENT - "I Want Your Sass" (from 'We are from Nowhere')
(2003) DANCE DISASTER MOVEMENT - "C'est la Vie" (from 'We are from Nowhere')
(2003) DANCE DISASTER MOVEMENT - "The Shots" (from 'We are from Nowhere')
