photos by Lukas Hodge; words by Fred Pessaro // BBG

Dawn of Humans @ 285 Kent, 12/20/2012

Just in time for the holidays, antisocial punk crew Dawn of Humans headlined a set at 285 Kent last night (12/20) joined by incredible sets from Kremlin, Bloodkrow Butcher, Creem and La Misma (who I missed, as did our photographer). Packed to the gills and heaving with the pomaded, pit bosses and stringheads alike, the show was a fantastic evening of brutal punk that featured a fair share of nudity and a whole lot of moshing. More pics (slightly NSFW) from the show are below...

Continue reading "Dawn of Humans played 285 Kent with Kremlin, Bloodkrow Butcher, Creem & La Misma (pics)"

by Fred Pessaro // BBG

One Tail One Head at Inferno Festival, April 2012 (more by Fred Pessaro // BBG)

2012 was a year of considerable personal growth for me, as a person, a photographer and a music fan. As I recounted in my favorite photos of 2012, I got to shoot some of my favorite bands of all time and travel the globe in search of new ones. The beginning of the year was spent dealing with personal drama, and if it werent for key records in my life I shudder to think at where I would be right now. To every band on this list and many who aren't, I cant thank you enough.

First order of business, my musical pallette is much much larger than just a series of metal records. This is NOT a list of my favorite records of the year, because that would surely include other entries from across many different genres. This is, however, a list of some of my favorite heavier records.

To me, the term "heavy" can be defined in many ways, from the elongated riff on a doom record to a noise squall to a particularly punishing punk-rock beatdown. While most of the following records are "heavy" in the traditional "distortion and loud guitars" sense, a few are not. You'll see metal, you'll see deathrock, you'll see raw punk, you'll see hardcore, and many spots in between in the numbered list below. And to answer your question, yes you'll see Swans... right beside D-Clone and Asphyx.

My favorite records of 2012 are below. Hopefully you'll see a connection in favorites or maybe discover something new. Regardless, I hope you found your own favorites of the year whether in this list or outside of it.

Continue reading "The Year in Heavy (Fred Pessaro // BBG's favorite metal, punk & other records of 2012)"

by Fred Pessaro // BBG

Chain of Strength / flying trashcans at Acheron 10/11/2012 

Chain of Strength played Acheron last night (10/11) joined by support from Clear and Creem, a prequel to their two-night stay as part of Revelation 25. As expected, the lines at Acheron were massive by the time door hit at 11PM, with Brooklyn's Creem hitting at 11:30 sharp and the entire affair all wrapped up by 1:30AM. The room was wall-to-wall stagedives, X'd-up hands and energy for the entirety of their set. Pictures and video from Acheron are below.

Sick of It All is scheduled to headline Irving Plaza tonight (10/12) as part of the second night of Revelation 25, joining CoS, Mouthpiece, Damnation AD and Popeye.

Meanwhile across town, the punk antidote to Chain of Strength was playing Lulu's: Japanese noise-punks D-Clone with Perdition, Nomad, Bortgang and more. Who went?

More pictures / video from Acheron are below, along with set times for the remainder of the Revelation shows.

Continue reading "Chain of Strength played Acheron w/ Clear & Creem (pics, vid), play Irving tonight with Sick of It All "

by Fred Pessaro // BBG

Speaking of Rev25, Chain of Strength, who are scheduled to play two nights of the celebration, have added a late show THURSDAY (10/11) at Acheron (!) with Clear (ex Have Heart) and Brooklyn's own Creem. There will be very limited tickets at the door for civilians, with many of the tickets allocated to VIP wristbands for the Revelation Records attendees. Get there early! It should be nuts.

In other Revelation-extracirricular activites news, On the Might of Princes at Saint Vitus on Friday (10/12) is waaaay sold out, but luckily the band will play the venue TONIGHT (10/10) as well, part of a bill with Gameface, Descender, Model Home. The show is FREE and 21+. The show also promises "another possible special guest"... could it be Texas is the Reason (who have a sold-out show at MHoW tonight)?

Saint Vitus will also host the sold-out Into Another show on 10/13.

by Fred Pessaro / BBG (not vegan)

There is a risk of locally damaging thunderstorms Tuesday evening and again on Independence Day, which could not only impact daytime picnics and festivals, but also evening fireworks in the Northeast.
Just about every major city and small community has some sort of fireworks display on or around the Fourth of July in the Northeast (many displays have been canceled elsewhere, due to dry conditions). However, storms erupting in over a dozen states could impact activities and have some folks running for cover.
Another surge of humid air and a warm front/cool front combination could have the atmospheric volatility index on the rise for July Fourth from the Ohio Valley states to the mid-Atlantic and New England. [Accuweather.com]

A good friend of mine once said "Who cares what's going on outside? Make your own fireworks." Here's a primer to figuratively do that on Independence Day 2012, all while avoiding any pesky arson indictments.

As discussed, the NYC fireworks are in the Hudson River this year, which means you can see them fine on the West Side Highway or in NJ or on your TV, but not very well from most of Brooklyn.

Spend the wee, early hours of July 4th (meaning, starting TONIGHT, July 3rd) getting down with the undead at the Zombie Rave at Webster Hall. DJs Alex English and Jess x Mischief will man the tables for the evening.

If you do choose the West Side Highway for viewing the fireworks, you won't need to go very far for a party right afterwards thanks to Pictureplane who is hosting a free July 4th bash at Westway (75 Clarkson in Manhattan) with DJ sets from himself, Physical Therapy, Heems (Das Racist) and a live show from Mykki Blanco. The event kicks off at 10PM, runs until 4AM and features free Budweiser for the first hour. More details can be found at the FB event page, and the flyer is below. Pictureplane no longer playing Cheap Storage and/or 285 Kent on the 4th.

As recently mentioned, Francois K, King Britt, FaltyDL and Infinity take over the daylight hours at Dekalb Market Brooklyn.

DIY Brooklyn venue Shea Stadium will celebrate their fourth anniversary with another July 4th blowout! The venue will host Afu Ra & The Shea Stadium All Stars, Dope Body, Roomrunner, Fuckton, Alan Watts, Ami Dang, Eleven Swords (mems. GDFX/Extreme Animals), Smhoak & Pals and The Jazz Massagers along with DJ sets from Beachballs, Magic Dan and the Impose DJs for the budget friendly price of $10.

In the spirit of summer, you can head to Secret Project Robot (389 Melrose Street, Brooklyn) for a "Sounds of Jamaica" dance party. The daytime event will last from 3PM until 9PM, and your vinyl "selectahs" will be Queen Majesty, Grace of Spades and Sweet V. Food and drink will be on hand and it'll only set you back a cool four bones. Details are at the FB event page.

If you aren't in the mood for a bit of reggae but still are in the mood to shake it, head to LP 'n Harmony (683 Grand Street) for a day-time-until-evening event (3-11PM) called "Beats & BBQ". For every drink you are entitled to a plate of BBQ (whaaaat) and tunage will be supplied by a bevy of DJs including Jose G (Face The Bass Radio), Ali Coleman (Voice of Voices NYC), Siren (Save the Robots), Ruby Red (Velvet Factory Production), Kyle McNeil (WBAI Pacifica Radio), Pinkie Tuscadero (Memoirs of a Party Girl), Ras (Hotter than July BK), and Herb Martin (Amadi). More details are available HERE.

I won't be anywhere near there (obviously), but you could spend tomorrow (or tonight) at Jones Beach with Phish. (both sold out)

July 4th is always a good day to fire up the grill and crank up some old tunes over a few cold ones. If you dont have/can't grill, accomplish two of those three at Mercury Lounge with Led Blimpie (Zeppelin cover band), AC/DC Done Dirt Cheap (wild guess?), and Guns N Hoses. Tickets are still available.

Brown Sugar lead a benefit at Acheron (57 Waterbury St, Bushwick) along with Creem, Deformity, Death Camp and Altered Boys.

The Spy Music Festival is still going and July 4th it's happening at The Stone with performances fromn John Blum (8PM) and Trevor Watts + Veryan Weston (10PM).

Wyclef (who may or may not also be playing the CBGB Festival later in the week) & Lil Jon will play the waterfront at Pier 92 on the Hudson (52nd and 11th Ave) as part of a day-long celebration (noon - midnight). Tickets are on sale, and pimp cups are optional.

Feeling anti-social? Trying to escape any impending rain? Stream all of The Roots's Philly 4th of July Jam featuring performances from the Philly Crew, as well as Queen Latifah, Common, Daryl Hall and Joe Jonas. You could also just go see it live in Philadelphia. Or watch the annual Twilight Zone marathon on SyFy.

Of course you can always count on the annual Nathan's Hot Dog Eating Contest in Coney Island at noon, but did you know that there is the Crif Dog Classic at Roberta's that day too? (and it's going to stream at Sports Illustrated).

Looking for something in the "free" range? Noam Pikelny and Friends, The Sweetback Sisters, and Spuyten Duyvil will head to Madison Square Park as part of the Oval Lawn Series.

BBC DJ Benji B brings Deviation to Le Poisson Rouge at 10PM with Kode9, Lunice, and more

What did we miss?

Flyers below...

Continue reading "a 4th of July NYC event guide (fireworks, Pictureplane, a zombie rave, the Roots, Shea Stadium anniversary & much more)"

Crazy Spirit at Tommy's Tavern, April 2012 (more by Sarah Coulter)

July 4 isn't till Wednesday but you can catch fireworks -- the sonic kind -- at The Acheron in Bushwick, Brooklyn (57 Waterbury St) in the days leading up to and including Independence Day, with three punk shows in a row occupying an otherwise dry spell of NYC hardcore/metal.

It begins tonight (7/2) with a record release show/European tour kickoff for NYC wildmen Crazy Spirit. The band, who will be joined by Smart Cops (from Italy!), Warthog (formerly Chain Wallet, ex-The Men, demo here) and Deformity, is celebrating their new self-titled LP out now via Toxic State. Order yours now, but try before you buy. Video and the flyer are below.

Tomorrow night (7/3) will feature headliners Deadly Reign, which features members of World Burns to Death, Century of War, Scarred for Life, Kegcharge and more. Joining the Austin band will be supporting acts Broken, Trenchgrinder and Zatsuon.

Last but not least, Brown Sugar will head up a five band benefit for Brandworkers on Independence Day (7/4), an organization who's goal is "protecting and advancing the rights of retail and food employees." The great Creem will join said bill, along with Deformity, Death Camp and Altered Boys.

Flyers, videos and streams of some of the bands are below.

Continue reading "Crazy Spirit, Deadly Reign, Brown Sugar, Creem and more punk bands playing at The Acheron this week"

Mouth of The Architect is back from self-imposed exile to record a new LP and do a string of East Coast dates! The shows include stops in the Midwest and the East Coast, including on June 16th at Saint Vitus. Ticketing info is forthcoming.

With the reissue of Warrior Kids's Les Enfant De L'Espoir in the open (download it for free, buy it via Katorga Works), the band will hit the road for a string of US dates leading up to an appearance at Chaos in Tejas. The dates include two NYC stops at Acheron on May 22nd with Crazy Spirit, Creem and Goosebumps and Tommy's Tavern on May 24th with 45 Adapters and Offensive Weapon. Full tour schedule is below.

Fight Amp are currently working on their new LP Birth Control for Translation Loss. Reminder, Fight Amp will appear with Harkonen, The Atlas Moth and Whores for a show at Union Pool on June 16th. Tickets are still available, or get into this BV/Brutal Panda event with your Northside Badge.

Philadelphia punks Leather are working on a new long-player and will play a string of East Coast dates including a stop at Acheron on June 9th with Shoxx (ex-Pollution). Full tour schedule is below.

More suggested NYC shows, video from Autopsy last week (pictures are here), a new Ulver video, and more are below. What did I miss?

Continue reading "Evillive (Mouth of the Architect, Autopsy, Leather, Warrior Kids, Ulver & more)"

by BBG

Members of Torche and Asshole Parade converge to form Post Teens, a five piece punk crew welcoming their new The Heat EP on June 5th via No Idea. Clocking in at a short-but-sweet six minutes over as many songs, Post Teens mine the snotty melodic punk territory occupied by current favorites like The Spits and recently seen on the latest Toys That Kill record. Stream the title track for the first time below. The new EP is the follow-up to last-year's debut 7" which hit via Sound Study Recordings and features "Fucked Up Perception", available in video form below.

Post Teens are on the road in late May with the great Mauser, playing a string fo dates on their way toward Chaos in Tejas on June 2nd, where they'll team up with Dopamines, Joyce Manor (who recently played NYC), Shoppers, Wiccans and Creem (who have a new 12" due via Deranged) for a whopper of a show at Scoot Inn.

All tour dates, those Post Teens streams, and a full album stream of the new Creem LP are below.

Continue reading "Post Teens ready new EP for No Idea (stream a new song)"

by BBG

Kiss it Goodbye are no longer just a reunited band:

After calling it quits in 1998 and more than a half dozen attempts at a jump start since then, Kiss It Goodbye have returned to active band status. Original members Tim Singer and Thom Rusnak... have finally found the missing components, adding Alex Miller (of Triplehorn) on guitar and Thom's longtime friend and band mate, Neal Witmer on drums. West coast dates including the Revelation Records 25th anniversary are scheduled for this June. Kiss It Goodbye is slated to tour Europe in September and are working on dates for the east coast, Japan, Australia and South East Asia later this year.

Backtrack, who play United Blood this weekend, will headline a show with Urban Blight, Creem, Violent Future at Acheron on April 6th. Backtrack will undoubtedly bring the ruckus, but make sure and get there early to catch the also awesome Urban Blight and Creem. The show jumps off at 11PM.

Wolfbrigade has welcomed "Feed The Flames" a new track from their upcoming Damned LP due via Southern Lord. Stream it at below.

Acephalix have revealed a new song from their forthcoming Southern Lord LP Deathless Master. Check out "On Wings.." at Cvlt Nation and look for the LP on April 10th. Word has it that the band may be on the East Coast sometime soon....

Black Monolith, a black-metal/d-beat project loosely related to Deafheaven, have released a new song via bandcamp. Stream that below. Reminder, Deafheaven team with Alcest & Vaura at Public Assemblyon Saturday (3/31), I'll be DJing. Advance tickets are gone, but there will be some available at the door on the day of the show.

Suggested NYC shows, that Black Monolith stream, a stream of a Trevor de Brauw (Pelican) performance, a new Municipal Waste video, a new Ufomammut video, and an Ancestors album trailer, below....

Continue reading "Evillive (Wolfbrigade, Ufomammut, Acephalix, Municipal Waste, Kiss it Goodbye & more)"

by BBG

Saint Vitus @ Irving Plaza in 2011 (more by BBG)

Chaos in Tejas (May 31-June 3 in Austin) have announced ANOTHER batch of bands to add to their ridiculous lineup including Saint Vitus, Church of Misery, No Statik, Toys That Kill, Pegasus, Martial Canterel, Anasazi, Bloodwing (mems of The Spits, who are on tour soon), Harm's Way, Hatred Surge, the Hex Dispensers, John Wesley Coleman, Joyce Manor, and many many others. The current full lineup and flyer is below and tickets are FINALLY going on sale TODAY (1/31).

Doom legends Saint Vitus are currently preparing their new LP Lillie: F-65 for Season of Mist. The record, their eighth and first in seventeen years (!), is tentatively set for release at the end of March. More details are forthcoming.

In related news, members of Mind Eraser also serve as personnel in Magic Circle, another Chaos in Tejas band. Look for Magic Circle to team with Pilgrim (who we recently interviewed), Windhand, and Natur at Public Assembly on March 1st.

The updated Chaos in Tejas lineup is below along with the flyer.

Continue reading "Chaos in Tejas 2012 expands again; tickets on sale today"

by BBG

Ted Leo & The Pharmacists at Bell House (more by Erik Erikson)

The Chaos in Tejas lineup expands more with another round of additions including the first Breakdown show in 25 years with the 87 demo lineup, Ted Leo & The Pharmacists (one of two upcoming Austin shows for Ted), the Clean (first Texas show ever), Deviated Instinct, Death Evocation (1st show), Mass Grave, Pierced Arrows, Australian garage rockers Royal Headache, No Fucker, New Orleans Bounce artist Katey Red, the Impalers, Cold World, Creem, Avon Ladies, Backtrack, Bi-Marks, Phobia and many others. Full list of new additions and the latest flyer is below.

The additions joined previously announced bands like Antisect, Winter, The Mob, Varukers, Best Coast, Moss Icon, Dropdead, Ringworm, Midnight, and many more.

Chaos in Tejas will add another 40+ bands in the coming weeks and tickets will go on sale on January 31st. More details are forthcoming.

Show flyer, video, and the list of all new additions below...

Continue reading "Chaos in Tejas lineup expands again"