photos by Jonathan McPhail & BBG, words by BBG

Ringworm @ Lovejoys (by BBG)

Ringworm headlined the BrooklynVegan/1000Knives Day Show at Lovejoys on 3/18, the third of four BV-BBG metal shows at SXSW this year. Kicking off a little after noon, the show featured nine bands that mostly were of the hardcore/grind ilk, with the exception of doom overlords Cough.

Owen Hart was the first band of the day and could have been the band of the day. Their furious riffy hard-grind was an excellent way to kick things off, and was one of my favorite sets of the week. Owen Hart fucking rules, so get out and catch 'em at a local house show before they start playing bigger stages.

Salvation left the Lovejoys floor bloodied and battered with their furious hardcore, and were followed up by the always incredible Kill The Client. Vocalist Morgan spent as much time shredding his throat as he did crowdsurfing during the Dallas grinders' killer set. They're an incredible live band propelled by the great Bryan Fajardo (Phobia, Noisear, etc) behind the kit.

KEN Mode's set mirrored the set they played two days earlier at Emo's in intensity and power, and slowed things up a bit before Richmond's 10-ton doom monster Cough. Primarily focused on their latter material, Cough is never anything less than impressive, and the walls shook outside the venue with their high volume doom riffery. Magrudergrind was on tour with Cough and sharing backline, so their slower parts packed an extra umph on Cough's (considerable) gear. Another quick and ballsy set from the always awesome Magrudergrind.

Gaza arrived a bit later than the rest of the gang due to their set at New England Metal & Hardcore Fest, and their off-time, dissonant hardcore was a big hit to the capacity Lovejoys crowd. Inciting gang chants of "He! Is! Never! Coming! BACCCCK!", vocalist Jon Parkin paced back and forth in front of the crowd as his Salt Lake City backing band concentrated their set on latter material.

Wormrot is one of the hardest touring and most impressive grind bands on the scene, and for good reason. Drummer Fit and his lightning fast feet clobber the bass drum and propel the tunes forward with unbelieveable precision and velocity. Meanwhile, guitarist Syid matches Fit's pummeling timing, but does so with a calm/collected manner; at these speeds you'd think Syid would be huffing, puffing and drenched in sweat. Amazing live set.

Ringworm's setlist was focused on Birth is Pain, the band's LP released in 2001 and were every bit as blistering as they were a few months earlier at Fun Fun Fun Fest. Pitting began, Human Furnace's drenched hair whipped about, and the band bruised the crowd past the 7pm curfew playing on an awesome full set. Cleveland's finest, indeed.

In all, I'd like to thank Lovejoys for being so accomodating, Left Hand Brewing for fueling the mayhem, all of the incredible bands, Andy, Merrick, Ron, my partner 1000Knives, and most importantly, everyone who came out to the show! More pictures & some videos, below...

Continue reading "Ringworm, Wormrot, Gaza, Magrudergrind, Cough, KEN Mode, Kill The Client, Salvation & Owen Hart @ Lovejoys (BV-BBG Austin Day 3 pics & video)"

by BBG

Ringworm at FFF Fest 2010 (more by BBG)

I've been super busy booking bands for FOUR upcoming metal shows in Austin, TX. Let's recap what's announced so far. You know about the free show with Profound Lore on 3/19 at Lovejoys (with Tombs, Dark Castle, The Body, many others) and the free Full Metal Texas (with Trap Them, Hull, Rwake, and more.. stay tuned for the rest of the lineup, including one last addition to our stage).

Now I'm happy to announce the third party which is happening 3/18 at Lovejoys! BrooklynVegan/1000 Knives are proud to present eight more bands including Ringworm! The gods of Clevo-core who will headline an unfucwitable day of 10,000 MPH speed and destruction! Well, destruction for sure. Speed? For the most part.

3/18 at Lovejoys (noon -7pm)
Ringworm
Wormrot
Gaza
Magrudergrind
Cough
KEN Mode
Kill The Client
Salvation
Owen Hart

As if the door price wasn't great enough (FREE), Left Hand Brewery will provide gratis suds while supplies last. More details are forthcoming, but if you're headed to Austin (or already there), for now make sure and block off noon - 7PM on 3/18 for this (21+) event!

Check out some videos of some of the bands below...

Continue reading "BrooklynVegan/1000 Knives Austin Day Party @ Lovejoys (lineup includes Ringworm, Wormrot, Gaza & more)"

by BBG

So a few weeks ago,I sat down with Crustcake.com and Rich Hall (1000 Knives) to decide the greatest Austin venue for a metal show. BrooklynVegan metal is already going HUGE this year between a show on 3/17 at Emo's (with Torche, Fucked Up, Salome, Dark Castle, The Atlas Moth, Javelina and more TBA), and another day party at Red 7 on 3/20 (lineup TBA), so we figured why not go small. REALLY small.

BrooklynVegan/Crustcake/1000 Knives Present a Pizza Party at Hoeks Death Metal Pizza! The day show happening on Thursday, March 18th will be headlined by a special guest we can't announce yet and feature nine of our favorite destroyers. This show promises to be one of the biggest- um, I mean SMALLEST metal shows during SXSW. Who's on board?

lineup:
* Special guest
* Zoroaster
* Coffinworm
* Kill The Client
* Landmine Marathon
* Book of Black Earth
* The Atlas Moth
* The Funeral Pyre
* Speedwolf

Anyone from or who's been to Austin knows Hoeks. Even if you've never eaten there you can't miss their appropriately themed locale, conveniently located right on 6th Street between Red River and Neches. It's practically spitting distance from Emo's. The show itself will take place in the new venue that is actually the backyard of the restaurant.

The party kicks off at noon. More details are on the way. Check out the flyer and some videos of other recent shows at Hoeks below...

Continue reading "come to a metal show @ Hoeks Death Metal Pizza in Austin"

by BBG with photos by Samantha Marble

Rich Hall, aka 1000 Knives, is a NYC-based booker that is responsible for some of the most forward-thinking hardcore shows in NYC since he started working at CBGB in the early 2000s. After CBGB closed, Rich took a break, but has been back booking shows independently again for about a year.

During his career he's booked early shows by Isis, Botch, Daughters, The Red Chord, Blacklisted, and many, many more. Recently he put together the upcoming Disembodied show at Santos as well as the recent (and possibly final?) Burnt By The Sun show at Cake Shop (pictures here and here) which was a co-production with Brooklyn Vegan... a relationship that continues into the future as BV & 1000 Knives are proud to present three more shows together in January alone. Check out the list at the bottom of our interview with Rich...

Continue reading "an interview w/ NYC talent booker Rich Hall (1000 Knives)"