Chicago metal trio Scientist (not to be confused with the Jamaican dub musician) are currently piecing together their debut album for release sometime this year. The album was recorded by Sanford Parker at Soma Studios and features guest appearances from The Atlas Moth's Stavros Giannopoulos, Dead Sheriff's Jeff Lyman, and Yakuza/Bloodiest frontman Bruce Lamont. Scientist's Eric Plonka was a founding member of Yakuza, and in many ways their forthcoming album picks up where 2002's Way of the Dead left off. We're proud to be offering a stream of four-tracks from Scientist's debut LP, which you can check out at the bottom of this post.

Scientist play the Ultra Lounge TONIGHT (Friday, February 22) with Wolvhammer, Czar, and Lord. Advance tickets for the show are still available. Like many other bands, Scientist will be heading to SXSW in Austin, TX next month. They've also got a pair of Chicago shows when they return from the festival: Cobra Lounge on March 22 with At Wolves, Rollo Tomasi, and Making Ghosts, and Reggie's on March 29 with Jucifer. Whether it's tonight or sometime next month, don't pass up seeing Scientist live.

A stream of four-tracks from their forthcoming debut LP are below...

Continue reading "Scientist prepping debut LP (song streams), playing Ultra Lounge this Friday with Wolvhammer, Czar & Lord"

Sanford Parker with Nachtmystium @ BV-CMJ 2012 (more by Greg Christman)

Metal supergroup of sorts Corrections House features Scott Kelly (Neurosis), Mike IX Williams (Eyehategod), Sanford Parker (producer/engineer, Nachtmystium/Minsk/Twilight), and Bruce Lamont (Yakuza, Bloodiest, etc). Corrections House was originally just a tour moniker for the four solo artists, who will hit the road together later this month for a US tour. What we did know was that they would be coming together that the end of each show for a group set. What we DIDN'T know was that they would be releasing material together. Today (Thursday, January 17), Corrections House have shared a video for their new single "Hoax The System." You can check out the video at the bottom of this post.

"Hoax The System" will be accompanied by B-side "Grin With A Purpose" on a forthcoming 7" from War Crime Records, helmed by Bruce Lamont and Sanford Parker.

Check out the video for "Hoax The System" and Corrections House's full 2013 tour schedule, which doesn't include Chicago, below...

Continue reading "Corrections House (members of Neurosis, Eyehategod, Nachtmystium & Bloodiest) share new video, releasing 7""

Sanford with Nachmystium at the BV Day Party, March 2012 (more by Greg Cristman)

Chicago musician and production powerhouse Sanford Parker has graced us with his best of 2012... and not just albums. Check out the Twilight/Minsk/Buried at Sea/Nachtmystium member's contributions below...

Continue reading "Sanford Parker shares his 'Top 10 Albums' and 'Top 5 Bloody Marys' of 2012"

by Parker Langvardt

An Aesthetic Anaesthetic

In January, Chicago post-rock quartet An Aesthetic Anaesthetic used Kickstarter to raise just over $2,000 to put towards their sophomore full-length album, NAMES, which was recorded by producer Sanford Parker at Engine Studios over the course of four days last week. NAMES will be released via Chicago's Artistic Integrity Records, with an estimated street date of July 2012. There will be a total of 500 vinyl copies (100 colored and 400 black), with art by Robert Donis. There are also 17-test pressings of the LP, four of which are claimed by Kickstarter contributors, with custom jackets by Grant Kersey.

An Aesthetic Anaesthetic released their second EP, Ghosts in the Red Wilderness, in February of 2011 and their debut full-length, Before the Machinery of Other Skeletons (a solid Allen Ginsberg reference), in August of 2011. They achieved a variety of moods through these mostly-instrumental recordings by combining elements of post-rock, math rock, punk, and metal. The band have stated that NAMES will be darker than previous efforts and that their goal in recording with Sanford Parker was "to harness the raw energy of their live show."

To experience that raw energy in the near future, head over to Schubas on Friday night (April 6) to catch them opening up for Cleveland's eclectic rock duo Mr. Gnome. Joining them will be Chicago dance-rockers Blane Fonda, who also used Kickstarter to raise funds for their recently released EP, Foolish Croon. Tickets are still available.

Some song streams from both AAA and Blane Fonda, below...

Continue reading "An Aesthetic Anaesthetic recorded an LP w/ Sanford Parker; playing Schubas TOMORROW w/ Mr. Gnome"

T-shirts from Local H's NYE show @ Bottom Lounge

Chicago's Local H were working out of Engine Music Studios this month (they just finished tracking) recording their first LP since 2008's 12 Angry Months, tentatively titled Hallelujah! I'm A Bum, with well-known metal producer Sanford Parker. The duo, consisting of guitarist Scott Lucas and drummer Brian St. Clair, have regarded the recording experience as a positive one."Sanford's awesome," Lucas says. "He's been at the forefront of the most interesting things happening out of Chicago for a while, and it's truly an invigorating experience to work with him." He goes on to add, "And, if he would quit feeding me all this whiskey, I'd be alright." The new album is scheduled to hit stores this summer.

Two tracks that will definitely be on the LP are audience favorites "Paddy Considine" and "Another February." Check out a live video of the former and a behind the scenes studio clip of the later, below. You can also find more studio clips at their Facebook.

Stay tuned for upcoming hometown shows and more album information.

Continue reading "Local H recorded their new LP w/ Sanford Parker"

Bruce Lamont @ St Vitus in Brooklyn (more by BBG)

We've been compiling and posting 'Best of 2011' lists by many metal/heavy artists and posting them on BrooklynVegan (with more to come). Today's roundup includes a list of the "11 recordings, events, people, and places that made 2011 awesome" by Chicago's Bruce Lamont (solo artist and member of Bloodiest/Yakuza). Here it is:

11. winters in osaka-clandestine
10. Bloodiest Manor BBQ Oct. 9th Chicago il
9. anatomy of habit-self titled
8 indian -guiltless
7. Mans Gin-live at st vitus brooklyn ny
6. roadburn-April 2011 tilburg holland
5. seldon hunt
4. sanford parker
3 fred pessaro (i mean it)
2 the soft moon- self titled
1. empty bottle chicago il

Bruce played the Empty Bottle last week and will again during the first week of January.

BBG (AKA FRED PESSARO) also listed Chicago bands Indian and Anatomy of Habit in his year end list.

Bruce Lamont with Bloodiest @ IL Centennial Monument (more by Grant MacAllister)

The A.V. Club Chicago completed a massive, four part analysis of Chicago's metal scene yesterday (11/3), dubbed simply An oral history of Chicago's metal scene. Featured throughout, is commentary from only the most important figures in the movement.

A short list of these gentlemen is below..

Scott Carroll and Mike Perun of Cianide
Bruce Lamont of Yakuza and Bloodiest
Blake Judd of Nachtmystium
Stavros Giannopoulos of The Atlas Moth
Chris Connelly of Ministry
Will Lindsay of Indian
Sanford Parker producer/engineer

...AND MANY MORE

The A.V. Club's timeline runs from the early '80s all the way up to present day. The most standout exchange of the article, is between Will Lindsey (Indian) and Bruce Lamont (Yakuza, Bloodiest).

WL: Bruce Lamont has at least made guest appearances on everybody's record here. And there's the connection that Sanford [Parker] has really developed with his studio. So many of us all go record there. People from everywhere record with him. Indian recorded with him. Nachtmystium recorded with him. Bloodiest recorded with him. And there's all his own projects--Circle Of Animals, High Confessions, and whatnot.

BL: Yeah, there's a lot of that going on. This is a very incestuous musical town, and a few of us are just outright whores. I'll freely admit that. I think that's healthy, as well, because you get a fresh perspective on creating with those people, and you might be able to bring that back to another project, and kind of look at it from a different angle or go about it differently than you would have if you just stay with the same people all the time. That's always been my thought behind it. That's why I've played in a number of bands in all the years I've been ... collaborating, and all that stuff. We're all friends, man. We just like to jam with each other. We just love music.

Check out the early years (Part 1), location, location, location (Part 2), the '90s (Part 3), and a scene resurgent (Part 4) over at the A.V. Club Chicago.