Avian Bones is a new band from the hands of Mausoleums' Andrew Brush. It also features Noel Regis of Marigold Crowns, and Jose Diaz. Back in 2008 Mausoleums released Blackened Fawns Cleanse The Earth With Fire which turned Black Metal inside out and used its ribcage as a wrecking ball across all kinds of genres - it was blown out, super loud, always held way out in the red but the riffs used insanely catchy elements of everything wild and loose; from hypnotic shoegaze buzz to surf jangle and ramalama rock&roll, at the heart of each was the potential for some kind of alternate universe pop music. Not totally sure how that's an introduction to Avian Bones, but know that this band has pedigree, even if it came in a run of about 50 handmade copies.
They have only had a handful of rehearsals and one spontaneous recording session but the tracks up on their MySpace are an intense indicator of great things out there in the wilds of San Francisco. They demo a sound that plays between cavernous atmosphere and acidic feral psych-outs - think Wooden Shjips channelling Darkthrone and Electric Wizard. As soon as Part 2 kicks in (which is pretty much as soon as it kicks off) you'll know what we mean, and we're pretty sure you'll feel it too.
From the twin musical centres of Montreal and Los Angeles come No Joy - a two-girl-duo playing raggedy treble-heavy psychedelia in the deep vein of the dense shoegazing 90's feedback dredgers, with heart bursting beach harmony rock at it;s centre, ala Best Coast, who they recently shared a stage with. They've also played with Harvey Milk and Coalesce, so you know these girls play heavy.
We are especially liking their repetetive use of 'No' in their song titles. A nod to Iggy, we would hope - No fuuuuuuuuuuuuunnnnnnnn
You can download two songs - No Summer and No Joy - from from their bandcamp page: http://nojoy.bandcamp.com
Mainstays on the NFR stereo, Thee Oh Sees are a band that can just do no wrong. It's hard to fail with such a solid base of garage noise rock, and John Dwyer is the best man for the sound (We have an awesome Dwyer related special post coming up in about a month - its been a long time in the making, getting honed to perfection, so you will want to stay tuned for that, we promise).
Their fourth album proper Weird Slime, is released on May 11th on In The Red and to trail it they've given out I Was Denied as a free teaser (garage rock + new technology - a juxtaposition I'm not sure will ever sit that conmfortably for us, but one we won't complain about).
It's The Oh Sees as loose, low slung and chaotically mean as ever.
Last winter, the Black Metal Theory bloggers held a symposium in New York discussing theories of Black Metal. Or as they say on their blog:
"Not black metal. Not theory. Not not black metal. Not not theory. Black metal theory. Theoretical blackening of metal. Metallic blackening of theory. Mutual blackening. Nigredo in the intoxological crucible of symposia."
The symposium is now available in book form - Hideous Gnosis. Looks incredible. We have ours on order. Here's the contents list. Brandon Stosuy's USBM piece is even titled with a fucking Bone Awl album name:
Steven Shakespeare, “The Light that Illuminates Itself, the Dark that Soils Itself: Blackened Notes from Schelling’s Underground.”
Erik Butler, “The Counter-Reformation in Stone and Metal: Spiritual Substances.”
Scott Wilson, “BAsileus philosoPHOrum METaloricum.”
Hunter Hunt-Hendrix, “Transcendental Black Metal.”
Nicola Masciandaro, “Anti-Cosmosis: Black Mahapralaya.”
Joseph Russo, “Perpetue Putesco – Perpetually I Putrefy.”
Benjamin Noys, “‘Remain True to the Earth!’: Remarks on the Politics of Black Metal.”
Evan Calder Williams, “The Headless Horsemen of the Apocalypse.”
Brandon Stosuy, “Meaningful Leaning Mess.”
Aspasia Stephanou, “Playing Wolves and Red Riding Hoods in Black Metal.”
Anthony Sciscione, “‘Goatsteps Behind My Steps . . .’: Black Metal and Ritual Renewal.”
Eugene Thacker, “Three Questions on Demonology.”
Niall Scott, “Black Confessions and Absu-lution.”
DOCUMENTS: Lionel Maunz, Pineal Eye; Oyku Tekten, Symposium Photographs; Scott Wilson, “Pop Journalism and the Passion for Ignorance”; Karlynn Holland, Sin Eater I-V; Nicola Masciandaro and Reza Negarestani, Black Metal Commentary; Black Metal Theory Blog Comments; Letter from Andrew White; E.S.S.E, Murder Devour I.
Watch this while you read on:
Until we get out teeth into it and bring you our own opinions, here's what Aquarius Records, arguably the nucleus of the USBM scene have to say about it:
"This one almost doesn't require a review, pretty much every truely obsessive black metal fan is gonna want this, whether they actually read it or not. And having only dabbled, it's hard to say how many folks, metalheads in particular, are actually gonna want to delve into this, a collection (often in expanded and revised form) of essays and documents that were presented late last year at "Hideous Gnosis", a symposium on black metal theory (yes, a symposium on black metal theory), which took place in Brooklyn in December of 2009. That said, we also can't imagine a metalhead who wouldn't feel like they had to have copy of this on their bookshelf, if they have any intellectual pretensions whatsoever (which this sure does), or sense of humor (which perhaps this does as well).
The real question regarding Hideous Gnosis is whether black metal does indeed have some sort of lofty academic underpinnings, or is this academic study of the genre simply another example of hipsters trying to legitimize something that appears to be, at its core, raw and underground and visceral and personal and pretty much diametrically opposed to any idea of scholarly study or academic examination? Which thankfully is discussed quite a bit in this book, in the form of several essays, but via the inclusion of comments from the symposium's website, both positive and negative, plenty of them mean, some of them funny, and a few measured and thought out. But it's good to know that the very fact that there exists an academic black metal symposium is in itself worthy of debate, keeps Hideous Gnosis somewhat grounded.
There are definitely some interesting essays here, one in particular that focuses on black metal's reliance on climate, as in grim and frosty and cold, etc. The most interesting to us, are also the ones that are easiest to read, the ones NOT mired down in academic grad school doublespeak, there are plenty of examples of essays that seem interesting, but require digging though a malfunctioning thesaurus to get to the root of what's really being said. There is an excerpt of Brandon Stosuy's in progress oral history of American black metal (featuring our very own Andee) which was also printed in a different form in a past issue of The Believer, which is definitely cool, there's Hunter Hunt Hendrix of Liturgy's confusional analysis and dissection of "Transcendental Black Metal", and so it goes, the collection slipping back and forth, striking a pretty good balance, between people who love black metal who just want to dig deeper, and explore a music they love and discuss it with other like minded metalheads, and the flipside, dry, academic treatises on various elements and aspects of black metal, a bit too removed from the actual sound, and the fucked up ferocious intensity that is what makes the music truly appealing for us. But again, that doesn't mean those pieces aren't a blast to read, some might win you over, others actually do offer up some keen insights, and some seem to exist simply as fodder for merciless mockery. But really, in some weird way that does essentially reflect the genre as a whole, there are dabblers, there are folks who take it WAY too seriously, people who love it and live it, others who are merely fascinated or curious or even repulsed. It ultimately doesn't matter, like the spate of recent black metal docs, online blogs, if you're into black metal, for whatever reason, you're probably gonna want to read this, even if it pisses you off. ESPECIALLY if it pisses you off. An essential, and maybe controversial [addition] to your metal music library."
Vulpiano Records is a relatively new web-based community label, run by Marilyn Roxie, that offers as many of their artists releases for free as possible. Each Vulpiano artist has at least one album, EP, or single for free download. The label is mainly folk or electronic-oriented, though the sounds within just one of their artists albums may stray beyond those boundaries; a label roster united more appropriately by a spirit of independence and experimentation.
The thirteenth release on the label is from a band who we have long admired - and paid a lod of money for too! Last year's Shadow Kingdom album being one of our all time favourite packages.
VULP-0013 is Natural Snow Buildings’ first release of 2010, the free-for-download double LP TheCentauri Agent! On Part One, the 41 minute Our man from Centauri sets the stage, a cosmic, sprawling opener with themes that continue on into The accidental remote viewer, before fizzling out into static. Part Two is comprised of nine beautiful and intense tracks (particular stand-outs including The Psychic Circle/Uchronia, The storm of resurrection, and Solar flares). Lovely and intricately woven as ever, while frequently heading off into new and challenging sonic territory, Mehdi and Solange have created yet another very special work of musical art with The Centauri Agent!
Part One:
1-Our man from Centauri
2-The accidental remote viewer
Part Two:
1-The Psychic Circle/Uchronia
2-Black holes
3-The storm of resurrection
4-Moscow signal
5-Phantom twin
6-Stuttering probe
7-Solar flares
8-Emergency network farewell broadcast
9-Memories found in a bill from a small animal vet
Yeah, that was obvious, sorry. Still, gotta be said and every time at that. First I thougth Infinity Guitars was the tune, but this totally wrecks a dancefloor like nothing else - glam violence, truly. Really into bands that push the needle way out the other side of red, and this Brooklyn boy/girl Alexis/Derek duo go for it and then some, but keep a sweet, chewy centre to bite down on again and again.
It's Friday afternoon, time to kick it up a gear. So chew on this:
This is me rendered speechless. All my usual cynicism about band reformations has nysteriously vanished in a cloud of overwhelming excitement.
Godspeed You! Black Emperor will perform on all three nights in the Centre Stage venue. Seems like they will be playing a few shows other than just ATP too.
They've announced the first handful of bands - Tim Hecker is a good choce. Teh others we can take or leave to be honest. Plenty more to come. EXCITING!
Everyone is writing about this track, but with good reason so we make no apologies for joining in the immense occasion of it all.
It's been a long time coming, but now his own Kapsize label has released Joker's massive Tron. A producer who has consistently thrown out tracks that are vastly greater than the sum of their genre parts - wobble/wonky/soul-step/dubstep/techno - The 20 year old from Bristol eats up all those and spits them out into instrumentals that sing - from Digidesign, Purple City, Snake Eater, Psychedelic Runway and now Tron. This is the sleeper hit that hasn’t really been sleeping, as a feature in his sets for the last couple of years it’s been gaining momentum until now when it is about to drop in fully formed 12" format.
And speaking of drops - get ready to be overwhelmed by a load of 'em:
