Lazy Sunday Afternoon Playlist

I listened to a bunch of stuff this afternoon while online and kept track of it.  Most of it was streaming audio (primarily on bandcamp), but the PSYCHIC BLOOD release was a free CDR I picked up at their recent show.  My idea was partly influenced by Shawn Abnoxious' posts on his blog ...THWART! where he lists what tracks come up on shuffle while he mows his lawn (which you should totally check out...).  Anyhow, like COOLIO once said let's "come and ride on a fantastic voyage, slide, slide, slippity-slide, with switches on the block in a '65..."

THE PLASTIC INEVITABLES - Loon

**This album was entirely "fan-funded".  It was engineered, produced, mixed, and mastered by Chad Wahlbrink.  The band did co-produce it, though.**

"desdemona" (An upbeat, "well-crafted pop song."  Apologies for the cliche, guys...)
"a lulling" (Nice little ballad.)
"the pace yrself" (This is a really good song... one of the best I've heard from a local band in awhile.)
"a rectangle song" (Good song, I enjoyed the rest of the tracks on here...)
"grow old"
"common knowledge"
"mary anette"
"albatross" (This is actually the album opener.)
"spellows"


PSYCHIC BLOOD - Nightmare Beaches (2013 Tour EP CDR)

"burning wave" (Boring intro.)
"jagged brain" (This is what I classify as "reverb revival rock."  It's good music buried under a wall of too much reverb.  Nowhere near as annoying as Fleet Foxes, but it's still enough to bug me.  I've seen them live and they were great, but this was kinda disappointing.  The other tracks are better, but I wasn't in the mood to listen to the whole EP today.)


KING KRULE - 6 Feet Beneath the Moon

"easy easy" (Didn't really grab my attention, but I wasn't in the mood for it.)


LA SERA - Sees the Light

"how far we've come now" (Great pop song!)
"i can't keep you in my mind" (AWESOME!  Very catchy...)
"please be my third eye" (Good track!)


MEGADETH - United Abominations

"never walk alone...a call to arms" (One of Megadeth's "softer" songs.  I think it's about God?  Great guitar work, duh...)


SOFT OPENING - Soft Opening

"1" (Slow-but-driving psychedelic rock.  Tasteful reverb on the vocals, some yelling towards the end.  Goes back-and-forth between tension-building and swirling guitars.)
"2"
"3"
"4"
"5" (A longer and somewhat droney psychedelic track with enough interesting stuff going on to maintain my attention.)
"6" (Same as above, but my short attention span got the best of me toward the last :30 or so.)


VARIOUS - Magic Bullet Records Free Digital Sampler Volume One  

**Note: This was not played in order.**

BOYSETSFIRE - "bled dry" (This is a more "chug-chug" hardcore track, which really threw me off, considering who it's from!!!  It's okay, but I didn't really get into it.)
INTEGRITY - "lucifer before the day doth go" (Awesome - I love the solos!!!!!!)
HIGHNESS - "crepuscular rays" - (This is really good...)
MUTOID MAN (memb. of CONVERGE) - "gnarcissist" (BEST TRACK ON HERE BY FAR!!!!!!  HEAVY ROCK AND ROLL!!!!!!!!!)
IRON REAGAN - "cycle of violence" (Good - reminds me of early-90's "old school" or "youth crew" hardcore.)
CORN ON MACABRE - "you're okay, i'm undead" (I liked this a lot!)
PERSEKUTOR - "power frost" (Sounds like a Bridge 9 band attempting to play black metal - it's too polished and doesn't come off well to me...)
ROT IN HELL - "parthenogenesis (clip)" (Tight, but boring intro!)
WORMWOOD - "hollow black eyes" (One of the best tracks!!!)
HEADLESS DOGS - "whites"
THE INFAMOUS GEHENNA - "crush opposition" (I'm not into metalcore anymore.  This was well-done, but I just wasn't into it.)
KILL LIFE w/DWID - "snake kills whole family" (I dig Dwid's vocals and the overall vibe.  It's good, but didn't blow me away.)
I AM HERESY - "seven wolves and the daughters of the apocalypse"
CHRISTIE FRONT DRIVE - "turn" (I miss this sorta stuff.  Emo-pop from a band you might remember.)
IDES OF GEMINI - "darkness at noon" (BORING)
CHARLIE AND BRENT - "07/18/11" (Charles Manson and MBR owner Brent Eyestone having a conversation.  It's hilarious and not in a creepy way.)
THIS WILL DESTROY YOU - "a three legged workhorse (live)" (One of the best instrumental bands today.  They've been featured on the soundtracks of movies and their music has been used by a number of Christian ministries in violation of copyright.  They're considered "post-rock", but I think that term does them a disservice.  There's a lot more to their sound than crescendos and "pretty parts" that follow some sort of formula and fit into an easily-labelled "sound".  It's just really good intrumental music that makes sense in a movie soundtrack, but anyone could enjoy.)

THE CHAMELEON IS STILL DOING PUNK SHOWS, SPREAD THE WORD!!!!!!!!!

SHOWS ARE 21+ AND YOU WILL NEED TO SHOW I.D.

NO MOSHING! RESPECT THE SPACE! CAPS LOCK!!!

AUGUST 13TH @ CHAMELEON - DROMEZ, DIAPHGRAMATIC, RYAN MATTOX, DISCRETION, MBD

https://www.facebook.com/events/641411882538638/

DROMEZ (Austin,TX piercing Harsh Noise)
DIAPHRAGMATIC (Dayton junk abuse)
RYAN MATTOX (Dayton blackened noise)
DISCRETION (Cincy dense HNW)
MBD (Cincy brutal HN)

9:00 PM
CHAMELEON 
21+


AUGUST 15TH - FRANKIE TEARDROP//BRITCHES//GAZER @ Chameleon

 

https://www.facebook.com/events/587192861324921/

Come get loud, weird, and noisy on a Thursday at Chameleon!

FRANKIE TEARDROP (Athens, OH)
http://frankieteardrop.bandcamp.com/

BRITCHES (St. Louis, MO)
http://britchesbritches.bandcamp.com/

GAZER

https://soundcloud.com/gazerband
9PM // $5


21+


SATURDAY AUGUST 24TH - SOFT ROCK NITE W/THE FLESH PETS, THE SOCIALS, THE MUDLARKS, AND MR. PILGRIM

https://www.facebook.com/events/326877787446615/?ref=2

+21...YOU WILL NEED TO SHOW ID. $3 admission with ALL of the door money going to the band. Drink specials: $2 pbrs, $3 Yuengling drafts, and $10 domestic buckets

Live music featuring:

The Flesh Pets
https://www.facebook.com/pages/The-Flesh-Pets/174630062561311?ref=ts&fref=ts
 
The Socials
https://www.facebook.com/TheSocialsBand?ref=ts&fref=ts
 
The Mudlarks

The Mr. Pilgrim https://www.facebook.com/mrpilgrimsound?ref=ts&fref=ts



AUGUST 30TH @ THE CHAMELEON - DESPERATE HELL DIY GOTH PARTY!!!!!!!

https://www.facebook.com/events/482672235157946/

DESPERATE HELL!!! 
Cincylvania DIY goth party!!!
 
Friday, 30 August 
@ Chameleon 4114 Hamilton Ave.
 
9pm / no cover / only threatre ov pain mummyfucker

legit DEATHROCK
punishing INDUSTRIAL
deviant PUNK from HELL

hosted by DJ INHUMAN and other cretins...
don't you dare act like you never heard of Halloween
so dress deathrock and put the "FUN" back in FUNeral

CRUSHED VELVET TAPE RELEASE WITH STOIC VIOLENCE (CA), ABDUCTION, GNAT! - 8/5/13

(CRUSHED VELVET and STOIC VIOLENCE, photo by...?)

GNAT! were good as usual, playing their snotty and perverted "degradation punk" with bratty vocals that reminded me of X-RAY SPEX.  They had some equipment problems, but I mean, it's punk, so who cares?  Their debut CD, Gnasty, is out now on Realicide Youth Records.  You can buy and listen to it here.

CRUSHED VELVET fucking slayed.  One of the best performances AND crowd receptions for a local hardcore band in Cincinnati in ages.  They started with what sounded like the b-side of BLACK FLAG's My War, which had people a bit confused at first.  Someone even leaned over to me and "Is this what all their stuff is like???".  I wasn't real into that part of their set (or even that part of My War) and it probably went over some people's heads, but I think it accomplished its purpose.  After that, they ripped into some crazy hardcore punk that turned the room into a giant mosh pit, with people going nuts.  You really can't ask for more out of a demo release show, especially here.  They're pretty low on copies, but you can listen to and download it on their bandcramp.

STOIC VIOLENCE from Long Beach, California, had the misfortune of following CRUSHED VELVET up, but were just as killer.  Very, very fast hardcore punk.  And despite the weather, they were all decked-out in jackets made of leather.

ABDUCTION were the final band and they played tough, moshy hardcore with an X-Files theme.  They drew a lot of people from the straightedge hardcore crowd here and just fucking destroyed.  Easily the best local band playing this stuff in a long time.  They played a Nirvana cover.  I highly recommend checking them out.

The show ended and cleared out early.  Some spangers, acid casualties, and a few people who came from Junker's Tavern (which closes early) wandered in.  Jen queued up some ELECTRIC WIZARD on the jukebox and asked me to put on some music with the rest of the credits.  Some comical awkwardness between me and a few drunk people afterward occurred and I caught a ride home just before closing time.

Unfortunately, some property damage at this show and the one the night before contributed to the club owner deciding to not have hardcore, metal, and shit there anymore.  Way to go, guys.  Now we have one less place for shows.

[ EDIT: The Chameleon is still having punk shows.  Don't know what happened to cause the confusion, but all shows there are back on. Also, Abduction did a Nirvana cover, not Stoic Violence.  Lastly, I am an idiot. ]

Thanx to Mammyspanx for Parodying That Awful "Cincinnati USA" Video

If you've seen the recent abomination that the Chamber of Commerce paid for and approved, then you absolutely need to watch this. It's made by local comedian Mammyspanx (aka Kristen Lundberg) and it made me genuinely lol.  Thanks go out to Tim Willig for hipping me to it.

How I feel right now...

Burgundy years.
I remember everything.
Burgundy years.
Death tolls ever dark its cheers.

Dark the days that beckon me
throughout the Northland country,
but there was hope once in my heart
when minstrels sang sweet their song.

From the cup you made me drink
the potions of uncertainty.
My love never did perish.
I have kept the memories inside.

Blood it lingers still yet stirring
where goodwill was once endearing.
I've become the caretaker
dutifully, a saint forlorn.

Marriage to the brotherhood
by oaths sworn in magicians' woods.
The martyr of my Christian name
slain by the scarlet crusades

Shall the words of misfits spoken
be treated as jesters' tokens.
There is but a glimmer full
of the dim light you have cast.

In time all heroes depart,
but there was hope once in my heart.

WARNING: RANT AHEAD

It's really sad when people act and talk in an utterly vile way while being casually racist, selfish, consumeristic, and completely lacking in self-awareness.  I know this is pretty much the normal state of many people in America and the "first world" in the West, but when you go to shows at bars and clubs, it's much more prevalent and totally in-your-face.  That and the inevitable consequences of living that way are why so many people leave punk, hardcore, metal, "indie rock", counterculture movements, and even the "bar scene" to become hardline, holier-than-thou Religious Right conservatives, annoyingly self-righteous "P.C. fascists", or nihilistic misanthropes.  I used to be on of the latter and sometimes people make me feel that way again.  Like tonight, for example.

That said, I will leave you with this.  It's the full album stream of When Fire Rains Down Upon the Sky Mankind Will Reap As It Has Sown by the English blackened death/grind/noise band ANAAL NATHRAKH.  They boast former BENEDICTION vocalist Dave Hunt, who goes under the name V.I.T.R.I.O.L. when doing vocals for A.N.

This Is One of the Scariest Things I've Ever Listened To and It's From a Christian Experimental Noise Project (No, seriously...)

The singing, the metallic clanging and scraping... it's disturbing and sends chills up my spine.  It's one of the tracks on a free compilation of Christian experimental noise titled "The Blood of the Saints is the Seed of the Church".  The theme is martyrdom and the artist is VICTIMES DE REGIME, from Tennessee.

Check out the track here:

http://comearmageddon.bandcamp.com/track/my-godmy-god-why-have-you-forsaken-me

The other tracks on the comp are good, but none of them impacted me as much as VDR's.  Here are the other artists on it, all of whom I'd recommend checking out (preferably on other releases): CLANG QUARTET, BAPTIZER, CHRISTOPHER S. FELTNER, ATARAXY (Germany), BLACK MAGIC MARKER, CISTERN, and SIGNAL BLEED.

All My Favorite Current Garage Rock Bands Are From Ohio (and I Used to Hate That Stuff)

(Photo by Cassidie Mae at The Coup)

ARMY OF INFANTS

Hail SDayton, Ohiyer
Inderpendents (SIGN THESE THAR BOYS!!!!!!!!)
phaserbook
blandcamp

Blown-out, rockin', *nsane, and yes, melodic, you puss-puss.  Seen'em these thar hairfarmers twice and the second time it was twice as nice.  I haves their seven-incher, "Main St. Blues" b/w "Busted in B.G." (SPOILER: that stands for Bowling Green!), and lurv its.  Ye can gets halves of eet on thar blandcamps and thuh other by harassin'em on the phaserbooks.  I dern't know how good dey 're wit dem technologies, but thems fools rock it hards.  If'ns ye gets a chance ta see'em, be'a sures to do dats!!!!!

Glasslands Gallery in Brooklyn, NY (photo by ...?)

TWEENS

Shittynati, Blowhio
Frenchkiss Records (Ooh-la-la!!!!!)
facespacers
bandcramps

TWEENS are the first garage rock band I really got into from here.  They're blown-out enough to grab my attention and catchy enough to hold onto it.  We have wayyyyyy too many bands here who want to sound like THE BLACK KEYS (who, since the early 2000's, have found a second home here), but come up short.  Thankfully, TWEENS are definitely not one of them.  Rather than going for a slicker, more-produced sound, they have more of a 60's girl-group, doo-woop, trash rock, and power pop thing going on.  THE SHANGRI-LA'S, GUN CLUB, BOBBYTEENZ, and EL VEZ are all cited as influences and I have to agree (I'm not familiar with Bobbyteenz and El Vez, though... yet).  A lot of writers lazily refer to them as "sticky-sweet" and "syrupy", which has reached the point where it's become a cliche that I feel does a disservice to them, though.  This is not just some catchy bubblegum shit.  It's more like a slap in the face and a kick in the nuts from your about-to-be-ex-girlfriend while her friends are cheering her on because she should've kicked you to the curb awhile ago.  Which might explain why when THE BREEDERS asked Jim Blase (owner of Shake-It Records) who they should take on tour with them recently, he recommended TWEENS.

It should obviously be said that that the rhythm section of this band is made up of 2/3 of the one-and-only VACATION, who have been breaking new ground in pop-punk since the late 2000's.  The crazy-assed bastard Jerry Westerkamp plays drums in both bands and the more relaxed Peyton Copes plays bass in TWEENS and guitar in VACATION.  Part of why TWEENS has been more active than their main band may be due to the fact that their bass player, Evan Wolff, currently lives in Columbus and is also a member of PRETTY PRETTY (who you should be sure to check out!!!).

(From Lamont "Bim" Thomas' facebook - "Puttin my hood up for Trayvon! Let my niggas live!")

OBNOX

The River's on Fire, Oh My-Oh!
Smog Veil, Slovenly Recordings,
sandyclouds
face your books
spotify webplayer

Holy.  Fucking.  Shit.  When I saw them recently at MOTR Pub here, it was the most punk thing I've ever seen.  Just a couple of black dudes, one singing and blowing people's minds with just a few guitar chords while the other went nuts on drums, showing a bunch of white kids how rock and roll is done!!!!  Vocalist Lamont "Bim" Thomas is the drummer for the politically-incendiary THIS MOMENT IN BLACK HISTORY and was formerly in THE BASSHOLES, COMPULSIVE GAMBLERS, FLIPPING HADES, MY UNCLE WAYNE, and THE CHEATER SLICKS (you can google those yourself!!!).  Listen to OBNOX and TMIBH immediately!!!!!!!!

Listen to this if you have anything remotely resembling good taste in music

 Atlanta grindcore trio Dead in the Dirt are staunchly vegan, straight-edge, and anti-human; they once sold stickers from their website boldly proclaiming, “Euthanize People Not Pit Bulls.” Nuanced reflection is not their aim. They're not subtle with their views, and their music follows suit. On August 6, Southern Lord will release their full-length The Blind Hole, which was produced by Andy Nelson of Weekend Nachos and Like Rats. That album's “The Pit of Me” lets their His Hero Is Gone influence shine more, as Nelson's touch lets Dead in the Dirt take up all the space they didn't consume on their previous efforts. “Pit” could very well be a reference to that above cover, as it possesses enough black space to create an ambiguous bottom.

CLICK HERE TO LISTEN TO IT

Show Review: MUTANT SUPREMACY (NYC), ETHICIST, VALDRIN @ MAYDAY - 7/18

Photo taken by Reid Raley

I just saw MUTANT SUPREMACY (from New York City) at Mayday in Cincinnati and partied with them all night.  I have yet to get to sleep (please keep that in mind while reading this)  Had no idea that the main vocalist was a member of ATAKKE (female-fronted crusty death/thrash also from NYC).  They're all pretty cool dudes.  They played late 80's/early 90's death metal (my favorite kind) very well and while they didn't "break any new ground" (as if that matters...), they avoided all of the annoying trends in death metal today, like "br00tal slamz", super-techy bullshit, ripping off AUTOPSY, or trying to sound just like CANNIBAL CORPSE.  It was a total breath of fresh air.

A new blackened death/thrash group from the suburbs (Fairfield?) played, as well.  Their name is VALDRIN.  They were very young and left me very impressed.  And not just because of their performance - the lead vocalist had an embroidered BLOOD FEAST patch (an obscure death/thrash band from my hometown) and at the party after the show, they out-nerded everyone on black metal (even me).  They were also the only band to get people moving (which is very hard to do in this city) and holy shit, I don't think I've seen a pit that crazy at a metal show here since Sudsy Malone's was still around.  It was more nuts than even RAMMING SPEED and MUNICIPAL WASTE's pits at recent shows   Keep an eye on these guys.

However, it was the opener, a local black metal band on only their third or fourth show, who completely blew everyone away...  Their name is ETHICIST and they sound like WEAKLING and (early) WOLVES IN THE THRONEROOM with maybe a little DEAFHEAVEN thrown in there.  They soundchecked one song and over twenty people came in to watch and were very disappointed that they had to wait 10 minutes for the show to start.  :).  It's unbelievable that three people can make as much noise as they do.  The set was absolutely incredible, the sound job was perfect yet again (thanks to the talented hands of Mark Light, who is widely considered to be one of - if not THE best sound man in the city...), and I had the horns raised for probably their entire set.

This was a free show and the bar did so well that they sold out of everything they had that came in cans - everything.  If you didn't go to this, I feel bad for you, because it RULED!!!!!

Right now I'd like to give a shout-out to the lovely and wise waitress who served me at the end of her shift at an empty Waffle House this morning just after 6 AM.  Her advice for my headache worked perfectly.  I don't know if she believed me when I said that it wasn't from drinking (for those of you new to this site, I'm straightedge), though...

Btw if you've ever wondered what a "reek of putrefaction" smells like, just walk around Clifton Heights just before the crack of dawn early Thursday morning in the summer.  Trash day there is worse than walking by a cow pasture.  And yes, I'm quite acquainted with that - my grandfather and those who came before him were dairy farmers...