photos by Stephanie Crumley

"I rarely listen to metal," says Brooks, 37. "I grew up on it, so there's a part of me that's influenced by old metal. I'm a child of [music of] the late '70s, '80s and '90s, and I hold all those eras with me. Sometimes I have to be edited by my much younger bandmates [when I say things like,] 'Hey, that reminds me of Talk Talk or Adam and the Ants.'"

One of those young'uns is guitarist Andrew Elstner, who makes his recorded debut with Torche on the band's upcoming, still-untitled album (the follow-up to 2010's "Songs for Singles") and on a new split EP with British rockers Part Chimp that features three Guided by Voices covers.

"It really inspired all of us," Brooks says of Elstner's contributions to the writing process. "We related to him so much more than our last guitar player [Juan Montoya] in many, many ways. ... I think it's the most mature work we've done."
[Expressnightout]

Torche and Part Chimp played NYC on Wednesday 11/9 at Mercury Lounge as part of their tour together and Part Chimp's US farewell. Though the bands' split together is sold-out via Chunklet, the band had copies on hand at the venue, so head to the merch table if the duo is heading to your town.

All tour dates, some recent video from earlier in the tour, and more pictures from Mercury Lounge, below...

Continue reading "Torche played Mercury Lounge with Part Chimp (pics, video)"

Codeine

On the weekend of the 25th-27th May 2012 at Alexandra Palace, London, All Tomorrow's Parties will present the second UK I'll Be Your Mirror event. Tickets are on sale via ATPFestival.com from Friday 11th November at 10am.

ATP are incredibly excited to announce that this year the event starts on Friday 25th May when the incomparable SLAYER will present their undisputed classic Reign In Blood live in it's entirety during their headline set to celebrate it's 25th anniversary! Released in 1986, it is widely considered one of the greatest albums of all time - in 2006 Metal Hammer named it "The best metal album of the last 20 years." Joining Slayer on Friday night are influential doom metal trailblazers SLEEP - this will be their first UK visit since reforming for two amazing ATP festival shows in 2009, and legendary Washington sludge group MELVINS, with more to be confirmed.

On Saturday 26th May, the first ever ATP festival curators MOGWAI will return to headline, and to curate the rest of the day's line-up - this will be their only show in England in 2012 and their first choices to play alongside them are another great Washington band in the form of the fantastic MUDHONEY, and playing their first shows since 1994 with their original line-up in anticipation of also re-issuing their astounding back catalogue, reformed slow-core heroes CODEINE return to the UK. More of Mogwai's choices are to be confirmed very soon.

While any festival that features Slayer playing Reign in Blood in its entirety along with Sleep & Melvins is an absolute mind-blower, the really impressive addition in this announcement is the reunion of the great Codeine! The slow-core greats passed this mortal plane in 1994 after five years as a band and the release of their final LP The White Birch for Sub Pop. The band says:

"These are Codeine's first public performances since 1994. We are performing to celebrate the release of WHEN I SEE THE SUN - the reissues of all our music by the esteemed NUMERO GROUP, of Chicago, Illinois, coming in the spring of 2012. The 3 albums will be released as vinyl double albums, which will include compilation tracks, 4 track demos, peel sessions, and entirely heretofore unreleased songs. The six albums will also be released as a limited edition boxed set, possibly with a bonus 7-inch. Our hope is to make our music and legacy available to all who are interested. To spotlight this release, we will be performing a very limited series of concerts in the US, UK and Europe.

In related news, Mogwai released multiple releases by UK's Part Chimp on their own Rock Action imprint. TONIGHT (11/9) marks the band's last ever NYC appearance (they are calling it quits after this tour) as part of a round of dates with Torche. Tickets are still available for tonight at Mercury Lounge.

Slayer played Fun Fun Fun Fest in Austin on Sunday (and they got everything they needed). Pictures from their set are HERE. Their setlist is below...

Continue reading "Codeine reunited, planning US shows, playing ATP in the UK (that Slayer are also playing 'Reign In Blood' at)"

by BBG

Leviathan's True Traitor True Whore

Leviathan's True Traitor True Whore was hands down my most anticipated release of this year, especially considering my reverence for his last LP Massive Conspiracy Against All Life. True Traitor True Whore is Jef Whitehead's personal statement toward the recent charges brought upon him, according to his interview in Pitchfork, and it is also one of his most daring and overtly "rock" leaning records yet. TTTW is one of my favorite sort of records, opening itself up more and more with repeated listening, and is definitely another notch in his already storied career as an outsider artist. Stream three Leviathan tracks below, which previously posted at Pitchfork (x2) and Invisible Oranges, and get your copy via Profound Lore.

The same night that Torche and Part Chimp attack Mercury Lounge (11/9), Exhumed will team with Goatwhore and Havok to play Europa. Tickets are still available to both Europa and Merc, but I have a pair of tickets available for giveaway for the Europa show. Head below for more details on how you can win. The Torche/Part Chimp split, which we previewed recently, is currently streaming in full at Spin.

Concussion will hit Public Assembly on 11/10 with Worms In Women And Cattle (Pippi Zornoza from the live incarnation of Wold), Syphilitic Lust, and Sannhet.

And last but not least, The Ocean have added a show at Saint Vitus on 11/8 with Family, Alekhine's Gun, and The Binary Code. All US dates and some in their home base of the EU, are below.

More details on how to win those Exhumed tickets, an incredible Neurosis video and more suggested NYC shows are below.

Continue reading "Evillive (special Leviathan edition)"

by BBG

Part Chimp

While Torche stretches their covers muscle with three Guided By Voices jams on their forthcoming split on Chunklet, the mighty Part Chimp have other plans. Since the split and corresponding tour will act as the band's swan song to US audiences, the UK band has blessed us with a pair of new tracks on their side of the spinning black circle. Stream one of those Part Chimp tracks, "The Watcher", making its debut here, and Torche's rendition of "Exit Flagger" (which first appeared on Pitchfork) below. Fans of Torche's molasses-guitar tone and sugary-sweetness will enjoy Part Chimp's side of the proceedings. Pre-order the 12" now.

In other news, Torche have signed a deal with Volcom Entertainment to release their next LP. Details are forthcoming, but the currently-untitled effort will be recorded in their hometown studio of Pinecrust, with Kurt Ballou behind the mixing board.

As previously mentioned, Part Chimp and Torche hit Mercury Lounge on 11/9 with Dirty Fences. Tickets are still available. All tour dates, that Part Chimp Stream, and some video is below.

Continue reading "listen to a new Part Chimp track (and Torche cover GBV)"

by BBG

Torche at Webster Hall (more by Greg Cristman)

As previously predicted, Torche and Part Chimp are hitting the road in November in celebration of their upcoming 12" on Chunklet Records. The record has Torche covering three Guided by Voices songs and two new Part Chimp songs. Head over to Pitchfork to check out a stream of Torche's cover of "Exit Flagger". "Postal Blowfish" and "Unleashed! the Largehearted Boy" are the other two.

As previously mentioned, the tour hits Mercury Lounge in NYC on 9th. Tickets are on sale. These shows will reportedly be, like Guided By Voices before them, Part Chimp's final US appearances. All dates and some videos below...

Continue reading "Torche covers 3 GBV songs on split w/ their tour-mates Part Chimp (all dates announced)"

by BBG

Torche at MHoW (more by Justin Tyler)

Torche will hit the road with the UK's Part Chimp for a string of East Coast dates, according to recent tweets by the band. Though the full tour routing has yet to be revealed, the dates will include an appearance at Mercury Lounge on November 9th with Dirty Fences, and tickets go on sale at noon on 9/16.

US audiences have had limited recording-interaction with noise rockers Part Chimp, who released the bulk of their output on Mogwai's Rock Action Records in the UK. The band will share a split 12" with touring partners Torche in the near future though, according to Part Chimp member Iain Hinchliffe. More details are forthcoming. For now check out some Part Chimp video below...

Continue reading "Part Chimp coming to tour w/ Torche (NYC show announced)"