Friday, June 30, 2017
The Theory Of Abstract Light - The Theory Of Abstract Light
Label: Tortuga
Year: 2002
One half of the formidable heavy drone duo 5ive, Ben Carr further pushes away from Earth to float across the galaxy on a wave of pulsating guitar manipulations. From acoustic, to electric, to something barely recognizable as guitar, he weaves in and out of your conscious mind on the ebb and flow of a wash of sound that hints at something terrible just on the edge of you vision.
The clumsy name aside, this record is something to let take over your environment, not something you listen to "for fun". Try it out while doing whatever creative endeavor it is that you do (would you like to see my collection of charcoal nudes some day?), and let its dark ambiance ride across your mind. See what you get.
DL
Thursday, June 29, 2017
Breather Resist / Harkonen - Breather Resist + Harkonen split 7"
Label: Happy Couples Never Last
Year: 2004
Four songs that bludgeon their way across your frontal lobe(s) in ten minutes. Breather Resist come across as a noisy roaring thunderstorm that alternately peels paint and smashes holes the wall of your house (or, if you live in a mobile home...well...better get outside to your storm shelter). Harkonen are less meteorological in their path of destruction, and more of an off kilter factory line accident that pulls your arms out of socket. Make sense?
Breather Resist was a Louisville collection of volume mongers that came and went from Young Widows, Black Cross/Black Widows, The National Acrobat, Automatic, Trophy Wives, Black God, and Bad Secrets. Harkonen hailed from Seattle (area) and were equally well stocked with combative musicians that did/do time in Roy, Helms Alee, and Constant Lovers.
If you got down with the heavy Hydra Head strain of noise rock, then this one will do you right. Or wrong, depending on your tolerances.
DL
Back From Vacation
Survived another year of beach vacation, avoided shark attack and any major family meltdowns.
Success!
Will be back to posting...stick around.
Love your body,
Gray
Success!
Will be back to posting...stick around.
Love your body,
Gray
Friday, June 16, 2017
Cable - Northern Failures
Label: Hydra Head
Year: 2001
The album that Cable released prior to this one, 'Gutter Queen' is a minor classic in the destructo-rock pantheon (and let's not forget the album that preceded THAT one, 'Variable Speed Drive', a noisy punch in the Adam's Apple in it's own right). So, this follow up had some pretty big shoes to fill, and by getting Steve Austin to record the thing (and scream along here and there), well, that's a pretty good start. And then to double down on the "been drinking since 1:00pm on account of getting pink slipped today at work, but fuck it, that job blew anyway...want a shot?"staggering swagger, I like that approach too.
The riffs get a little more southern fried, but the animosity is still on overkill. This band for real knows how to drive home a point, and usually that point is some derivation of "fuck off", or 'life is hard'. Speaks to me.
Somehow this record seems even more warped than what they had been doing, and definitely separated them from the Botch's and Deadguy's of the world, although you can still hear some of their history as a hardcore band, but now with added thick 16 heft. Cable took a nose dive into a self loathing stew of damaged, cascading, sludgy bile. The resulting listen, though, comes across as exhilarating, not oppressive. It has enough swing that the groove keeps you on the up and up. Even when you're up and up above rotting prospects and a diseased future. But you're up there...for now.
DL
Saturday, June 3, 2017
Danzig - The Power Of The Dark Side
Label: bootleg
Year: 1994
Look, Danzig rules super hard, and if you think otherwise, you're just being obstinate and you can go eat shit accordingly. House rules.
With that out of the way, here's a super random bootleg that for whatever reason collects a couple songs from three different shows; the first in 1993 somewhere in the "U.S." (assuming that means United States, but still researching), and somewhere pretty big based on the audience response, the second group of songs are from 1989 in Los Angeles, and rip to the exact specifications you would expect of that vintage, while the last songs are from Buffalo, NY in 1994 and are of the worst sound quality.
But, like I said, Danzig rules super hard, so it's fine. You can have 17 songs and 3 of them be different versions of 'Mother'. Not an issue when, as previously stated, Danzig rules super hard, so don't sweat it.
Nothing bites like I do.
DL