Review: Beneath Oblivion, Scumbag Playbook, Black Tar Prophet and The Grayces @ The Rake's End - 10/11/2014

(flyer designed by Allen Scott)

Last night at the Rake's End (in the Brighton District) was Beneath Oblivion's best set that I can remember. And I've seen a lot of them. Black Tar Prophet from Nashville was sick as hell, too. They played some of the most vicious stoner doom that I've ever seen and it was all without a vocalist. That's a serious accomplishment. The Grayces (also from Nashville) were good, sort of made me think of the Yeah Yeah Yeah's, but jammier. And last, but not least, ScumBag Playbook were freaking awesome. I rarely get into new hardcore punk bands, but these guys had it going on. Lots of youthful energy, tight live show, and an early D.C. vibe. Which is my favorite kind of that, but I don't see too often. Btw the drummer was the main vocalist, which is also rare. And incidentally, he's the the son of another talented punk drummer/lead vocalist - Albert of Hellnation. I guess it's genetic or something. Who knew?

Sunday Morning Afternoon Coming Down...

UNO:

PALLBEARER defies expectations in this song off their upcoming album.

http://profoundlorerecords.bandcamp.com/album/foundations-of-burden

DOS:

Music video for the new EYEHATEGOD is boring, but the song is good.  SABBATH meets FLAG?  I dunno, but it's faster than most of their older stuff.  They haven't lost anything, but I'm not sure how I feel about it yet...

 

TRES:

Actually like this WEEKEND NACHOS EP better than the new EHG song.  Sludge as hell, but as a friend who loves hardcore above all else put it, "worthy of mosh."

Recent Playlist (May 20, 2014)

wolf alice - creature songs ep (UK)
sharp tooth - live @ club rectum
sharp tooth - position of trust
sharp tooth - we are nothing
scant - face without a name
scant - in simulating drowning
smrznik - the static astronaut (Bosnia)
happiness and something psychotic - they were so loud that the quiet couldn't die peacefully (Australia)
nihlist holiday/bigotry - split ep (Pakistan)
multinational corporations - jamat al-maut ep (Pakistan)
kafir-e-azam & Bvlghvm - split (Pakistan)
guerilla growing - 12-1413 (Turkey)
mayan ruins - temple of ancient dub
the body - i shall die here
the bringer of everything - dianus
parlamentarisk sodomi - de anarkistiske an(n)aler (Norway)
short walk - don't be one
wovenhand - refractory obdurate
zombie X incest - live demo 2014 (Nepal)
victim of circumstance - primal high ep
narsamhaar - genocide euphoria (Nepal)
the saudades - s/t? ep

Against Me! - "Transgender Dysphoria Blues" is the Most Important Punk Album of the Century

It takes an incredible amount of courage to come out as a transperson, even in punk rock.  They went from anarchist folk/punk to burned-out, reactionary, generic pop punk to intense, emotionally naked Motley Crue-influenced rock about the singer's experiences with gender identity (which even involved surgery and hormone treatment).  Say what you want about the lack of ideological consistency in their early days and reactionary nature of their first two mainstream album, but there's nothing more punk than what they're doing doing right now.  Even the content of Rise Against's mainstream albums pale in comparison to this.  No one has ever played songs about this on top 40 radio and The Tonight Show With David Letterman.  If you consider yourself a punk, but are unwilling to support them for being on a mainstream label and playing a different style of music than they used to, fuck you and your hypocrisy.

Here are the lyrics to the song linked above:


All dressed up and nowhere to go
You're walking the streets all alone
Another night to wish that you could forget
Making yourself up as you go along

Who's gonna take you home tonight?
Who's gonna take you home?
Does god bless your transsexual heart?
True trans soul rebel

Yet to be born, you're already dead
You sleep with a gun beside you in bed
Follow it through to the obvious end
Slit your veins wide open, you bleed it out
Who's gonna take you home tonight?
Who's gonna take you home?
Does god bless your transsexual heart?
True trans soul rebel

You should have been a mother
You should have been a wife
You should have been gone from here years ago
You should be living a different life

Who's gonna take you home tonight?
Who's gonna take you home?
Does god bless your transsexual heart?
True trans soul rebel

- "True Trans Soul Rebel"

Sweeping Generalizations About Cincinnati That Mostly People From the Local Music Scene Will Get

If you're a hippie in Cincinnati, chances are good that you grew up on the Westside (or far out on the Eastside).

If you have allergies, asthma, or are bipolar and live in Cincinnati, chances are good that you live in Cincinnati.

If you moved to Cincinnati for a job, you're probably from an economically depressed rust belt city... or a small Ohio town with nothing interesting going on. 

If you're straightedge in Cincinnati, chances are good that you grew up in Norwood.

If you broke edge in the past ten years, you probably ride a bicycle everywhere.
   
If you're graduating from DAAP or the Art Academy soon, chances are good that you're about to move to a major city far away from here.

If you're a metalhead in Cincinnati, chances are good that you have no friends. If you do, though, then you probably live in NKY. And are afraid of crossing the river.

If you've been into crust punk for over twelve years and lived in Cincinnati for a lot of that time, you probably write for Profane Existence.

If you're offended that photos of something as boring as vaginas were displayed on the grounds of your city's largest university, chances are you're from Cincinnati. 

If you live in Cincinnati and still listen to screamo, chances are good that you were or are in a band that plays it.
 
If you're a crust punk in Cincinnati and somewhere around 21 years old, chances are good that you went to SCPA.

If you listen to noise in Cincinnati and didn't go to DAAP or CCM (or are under 35), chances are good that your interest in it is due to Robert Inhuman in some way.
   
If you know what gabber music is and you live in Cincinnati, it's definitely because of Robert Inhuman.  And if you listen to deathrock at all and are under 25, it's for the same reason.

If you live in Cincinnati and got into grindcore and powerviolence in the past three years, chances are good that it's because of shows Justin Lakes booked and Forced Opinion plays. 

If you live in Cincinnati and got into black metal within the past year, it's because you saw Ethicist.

If you posted on the Neus Subjex a lot and don't go to shows anymore, you probably listen to WLW, play fantasy football and lost your faith in punk when Against Me! signed to a major.

If you live in Cincinnati and reminisce about local metalcore shows, you're probably friends with me.

If you've been online almost every day of your life for the past 19 years, are always complaining, spazzing out, and pissing people off online, and ramble constantly about metal and grindcore, chances are good that people call you "Treebeard."

Deafheaven and mala in se @ the Taft Theater (2/19/2014)

 (photo by Tom Spray, ganked from pitchfork dot com, not from this show, unfortunately!)

This was my first time going to a show at the Taft Theater.  It was held in the ballroom.  Turnout was great and there was a very large amount of people who showed up that I'd never seen at a metal show here before.  There was also the highest amount of women at a metal show that I've ever witnessed and many of them were incredibly beautiful.  That said, thank you, Deafheaven, for what you're doing and I hope to see that happen even more.

I've read in a lot of places about how Deafheaven's release last year, Sunbather, has garnered praise and interest from people who weren't even into metal.  They've gotten a lot of flack from the underground metal scene (mostly strange people like myself, for whom that is a place of refuge from "normal" people) for their sound and aesthetics.  Some of the insults accusations made against the band include such things as "ruining black metal" and causing hipsters to "infiltrate" it.  While I understand the paranoia and fear metalheads have about their beloved music (which is one of the few places where many of them find some level of happiness), I think their fears in this case are ill-founded.   Outside of a Deafheaven show, these people are very unlikely to rub elbows with hipsters or "posers".  It's not like the band is likely to have a gold record or make it onto rock radio.  And they're certainly not "infiltrating" the black metal scene like deathcore and slam bands have with death metal.  Which is a reason why the few large death metal shows that come through here have been replaced with bills of the aforementioned genres.  But, at least at this point, I don't see that happening anytime soon.  Especially with a band who has album cover like THIS:

So yeah, that's just plain silly.  Anyhow, back to the review...

Despite the poor acoustics of the venue, both bands had strong performances that were met with a positive response.  Deafheaven's singer's moves on stage made me think of something akin to a black metal David Bowie and their psychedelic, shoegaze-influenced sound was powerful and moving.  Unfortunately, about halfway or three-quarters into their set, they just seemed to run out of energy.  Their playing was still very tight and on-point, though.  I think this was mostly because of how much people's interest in them exploded, suddenly making them a headlining band so early in their existence.  That's something that will take them some getting used to and I'm sure that they'll adapt.  The final song of their set was from Roads to Judah.  Don't ask me the name of it, though.  I managed to completely forget it (sorry!).

You can check out Deafheaven's latest album, Sunbather, on their bandcamp.

 (photo taken from cincymusic.com - not sure what the date or venue on it is...)

The opening band, mala in se, I found much more interesting.  They also played a better set where they maintained a high energy level the whole time.  It's of my opinion (and a number of the people I know, not to mention a lot of music critics in multiple publications) that they're one of the best bands in Cincinnati.  Made up of longtime scene vets Andy Perkins, Joe Thompson, and Danny McPherson, they have a very unique sound.  It's noisy, heavy, and has multiple layers.  The song-writing is unusual, with odd time signatures.  Also, the guitar riffs are angular, like the classic "noise rock" bands of the 90's.  For their set, they used auxiliary percussion (including a propane tank), samples, and disturbing visuals.  It left a strong impression on everyone, leaving some of the audience confused or repulsed, while others "got it" and were totally stoked.

I would recommend checking out mala in se's tracks on a 2x7" compilation that local label Phratry Records released.  There's two songs on it (one on the 7" and one available only as a digital download).  It took me awhile to wrap my head around the first one, "Crowd of Dead Grandparents", but I connected with "Cats" right away.  If you like those, you'll like the single "Dragon" even more.  Be sure to check out their self-titled album, as well.  The single and full-length are both available for free/pay-what-you-want on their bandcamp.

Here's some video from the show, shot by Jon Krech of local metal band Silver Cypher:, who you should absolutely check out.  If you didn't, you would be doing a great disservice to yourself.

He took more video of Deafheaven's set, which you can find here, here, and here.

Enjoy!

+++

Favorite Albums of 2013

Welp, I finally got this thing finished.  It's probably lacking some things in the metal category, but whatever.  This took long enough to compile as it is.  Deal with it.

_ - THEE BEST ALBUM OF THE YEAR OVERALL

bold - one of thee best albums of the year overall
* - Cincinnati/Northern Kentucky artist
+ - Ohio artist

- Post-Punk, Noise Rock -

iceage - You're Nothing (and the version w/two bonus tracks - LP/CD/digital)
*Mardou - Cardigan EP (CDr/digital/two songs are on a 7" lathe)
New Tongues - We Are the Ones We Have Been Waiting For (CD/LP/digital)
*Vacation - Candy Waves (CD/LP)
*The Socials - The Beast Bites (7")
Beastmilk - Climax (LP/CD/digital)
*Gazer - Phone Commercial EP (CDr/digital)
Pissed Jeans - Honeys (LP/CD)
Raspberry Bulbs - Deformed Worship (LP/CD/digital)



- Metal -

Vestiges/Panopticon - Split (LP/digital)
Merkstave - s/t (LP)
Portal - Vexovoid (LP/CD/digital)
The Body - Christs, Redeemers (2xLP/CD/digital)
Uncle Acid and the Deadbeats - Mind Control (LP/CD/digital)
Suffocation - The Pinnacle of Bedlam (LP/CD/digital)
Darkthrone - The Underground Resistance (LP/CD/digital)
*Funerary Box - Defiling Sacred Ground (7")
*Ethicist - s/t EP (tape/digital) and the new digital tracks
*Highgate - Survival (CD/digital/LP coming?)
*Grey Host - Dawn for Vultures (CD/Digital)
Deafheaven - Sun Bather (LP/CD/digital)
*Valdrin - Beyond the Forest (CDr)
Ash Borer - Bloodlands EP (CD?/LP?/digital)
Usnea - s/t (LP/digital)
Woe - Withdrawal (LP/CD?/digital)


- Hardcore Punk, Crust, Screamo -

Narcoleptics - demo (digital, tape)
Hoax - s/t (CD/LP/digital)
Rifle Diet - s/t (7")
Left for Dead - Devoid of Anything (CD?/LP/digital)
Nails - Abandon All Life (LP/CD/digital)
Doomriders - Grand Blood (CD/LP/digital)
*Various - Wheel in the Sky: A Tribute to Metallica (CD)
*Crushed Velvet - Exiled on Abbey Road demo (tape/digital)
*Trees (US) - demo 2013 (tape/digital)
Wartorn - Iconic Nightmare (LP/CD/digital)


 - Punk Rock -

+All Dogs - s/t (7"/digital)
Son of a Gun & the Morons - split (7"/digital)
*The Subsets - Ape Facin' EP (CDr/7")
*The Lockland Brakes - Unwelcome in My Head (CDr/digital?)


- Hip-Hop -

Gucci Mane - The State vs. Radric Davis: The Caged Bird Sings II (digital/?)
*Eugenius - Fugue State | the mixtape, Beast Extraordinaire volume II, both singles (digital)
Kanye West - Yeezus
Death Grips - No Love Deep Web


-Grindcore, Powerviolence, Noisecore-

Sick/Tired - King of Dirt (digital/LP)
0cadavernamedalison0 - 0cadavernamedAmyblue0 (digital)
Agents of Abhorrence - Relief (LP/?)
Sick/Tired - Lowlife (tape/digital)
Standing on a Floor of Bodies/Hiroshima Vacation - "Falling Into Hell From the Grave" - split EP (digital and vinyl)
Lifes - Demo (tape/digital)
Sea of Shit - s/t (10"/digital)
+Pizza Hi-Five - 2010-2012 vinyl collection (tape)
Archagathus/Nak'ay - Split (10")
+Pizza Hi-Five/Sorcerer Torturer - Split (tape)
*Self-Surgery - [all three demos] (digital) and Split w/Sorcerer Torturer (tape)
*Erectile Dementia - 25 More Songs! (tape)
*Forced Opinion - Life in Fear (tape/digital)
Weekend Nachos - Still (LP/CD/digital)
Total Fucking Shit - Noise Core Fuck Ups (digital, tape?)
Hatred Surge - Human Overdose (LP/?)


- Noise, Power Electronics, Industrial -

*hunterquinn - VanitySelector (digital/CD/tape)
Baptizer - 2013 tour demo (CDr), Dark Age (CDr), split w/Wampo (tape/digital), split with xNephalistx (tape/digital), Untitled 5-minute ep (digital), Mindkamph (tape/digital)
+Shrive - Nothing Works Here (tape/digital)
*Uncle Dave Lewis and Troy Gallagher - The Rats Eat the Cats (CDr/digital)
Scant - Not Guilty by Reason of Mental Disease or Defect (tape/digital)
Penchant - Hot Hoodrat (tape/digital)
*Shredded Nerve - Failing to Maintain (tape/digital)
Swollen Organs - Hypocrite Scum (3" CDr/digital)
Ritual Sex Glutton - The Great Dismal Swamp (CDr)
Citizen 2-13 - 2013 Tour (3" CDr)
*Clavicula Salomonis - Capsizing In Seas Of Endless Woe (tape/digital)
*MBD/FELDI - split (tape/digital)
*MBD/Clavicula Salomonis - split (tape/digital)
Rosarium² - Sigillum (CD/digital)
NIN - Hesitation Marks (digital/CD/LP)
*Treebeard & FELDI - Long-Forgotten Indian Tribes Fight Battles On My Chest (digital)


- Garage Rock -

+Obnox - Corrupt Free Enterprise (2xLP/CD)
The Nervous Ticks - Appalachian Hunger (tape/digital)
+Army of Infants/The Black Shades - split (tape/digital)
*Tweens - demo (CDr)
Foxygen - We Are the 21st Century Ambassadors of Peace and Magic


- Shoegaze, Indie Rock -

My Bloody Valentine - mbv (digital/LP/CD?)
True Widow - Circumambulation (LP/CD?)
Chelsea Wolfe - Pain is Beauty LP/CD
*Sailing Stones - demo
*Even Tiles - The Lower Tangent (CD/LP?/digital)
Speedy Ortiz - Major Arcana (CD?/LP/digital)


- Rock, Psych Rock -

Can - The Lost Tapes (CD/LP/digital)
Mutoid Man - Helium Head (CD/LP/tape/digital)
*Electric Citizen - both 45's (vinyl/digital)