by BBG

Salome at Union Pool (more by kolored)

"I'm no longer in Salome because of personal conflicts within the band. I wish them well if they decide to continue on, and I hope they're successful with all their projects. I'm continuing with Agoraphobic Nosebleed and will hopefully be forming another project in the future.

Thanks for everyone's support over the years. I greatly appreciate it." - Kat

As Kat pointed out in an interview in 2009, Salome started playing together in 2006.

by BBG

DOWNLOAD: Thou - "By Endurance We Conquer" (MP3)

Sleep at Brooklyn Masonic Temple (more)

Lists are very subjective. A "best of" list is always an amalgam of personal experiences - that fateful moment when you press "Play" for the first time, in addition to a grade of excellent songwriting. The records I've listed below had a profound impact on me this year, as did many of the shows that I attended and put on in the past twelve months. I'd like to thank all the artists who made this list as well as the ones who didn't, in addition to people like 1000 Knives, Osiris, Bill Dozer, Ian Dickson and venues like Union Pool, The Studio at Webster Hall, Acheron, Santos Party House and a slew of others for keeping heavy music alive in NYC. But mostly, thank YOU, the reader and the listener!

Alright, enough with the sappy bulshit, let's RAGE...

Continue reading "the year 2010 in Metal (BBG's favorite records & live shows) "

by BBG

Salome wrecking Union Pool (more by Paul Birman)

I've seen Salome my fair share of times in the past year, with each performance somehow inching further down the "mouth-agape-with-awe" scale than the last. They destroyed at my SXSW day party, then proceeded to better that on Dark Castle's gear at the Profound Lore/20 Buck Spin showcase. Then over two nights in July, the band decimated both Union Pool and Cake Shop with assists from Landmine Marathon (on both nights), Wetnurse, and Batillus. Get Salome on stage, and they are a juggernaut.

Every single time I saw live, them they trotted out a new jam from their forthcoming LP Terminal, like "Master Failure". Roaring with doom power, yet thrashy-at-moments, and rife with tension, new songs like "Master Failure" and title track "Terminal" are raw, punishing and emotional, and demonstrate the band moving into different territory than they explored on their impressive debut. Stream/download both mentioned new songs below, and look for Terminal on Profound Lore on 11/9. This record will end up on a few year-end lists.

In addition, be on the look out for some live dates when they appear. You'll thank me for it later.

Dig on those tracks and some video of some other new tracks from the LP including "The Message", part of "Epidemic", below.

Continue reading "listen to new Salome tracks from 'Terminal'"

words by BBG, photos by Chris La Putt

Landmine Marathon

Salome, from northern Virginia, is a doom-metal band with no bass player: one of the few... At Union Pool on Tuesday night, early in the band's second song "Master Failure" [vocalist] Kat brought the microphone to her face with both hands, enveloped two small fists around it and began a deep, dreadful growl, altering the tone with the shape of her mouth, something like yawwheeawhhhheee... It was more an earth sound than a body sound; the imagined howl of undersea canyons.

... Before Salome came Landmine Marathon, from Phoenix, dealing out a combination of death-metal and hardcore punk... The band's music can be rushed and impersonal, with riffing and shifts of tempo predetermined by its genre. But [vocalist Grace] Perry's real-time reactions to it were extravagant. In "Shadows Fed to Tyrants" she opened her eyes wide and rolled them back in her head, drew her hand across her neck, beat her fists on her collarbone and finally went marauding through the crowd for a few quick turns, pushing and being pushed. She's magnetic as she re-enacts boiling over, but then leaves her work at the office. Quickly after the last riff, she was smiling, gregarious, normative. - [The New York Times]

Last night, July 15th, the two marauders destroyed Manhattan, specifically Cake Shop, where they teamed up with Batillus (Cleanteeth unfortunately was forced to cancel due to a funeral). As to be expected, both Salome and Landmine delivered, but I found myself transfixed by Batillus who seems to grow by leaps and bounds every time I see them. The band showcased three new songs, one of which was captured on video which you can watch below. In addition, Batillus was joined by Salome's Kat on vocals at one point, a special treat which added a touch of grimness to the proceedings.

More pictures and some video from Cake Shop below...

Continue reading "Landmine Marathon, Salome & Batillus played Cake Shop, NYC (pics & video)"

photos by Paul Birman, words by BBG

Salome

The first night of the Salome / Landmine Marathon madness struck Union Pool last night (7/13), leaving a wake of overheated bodies and bruised/unprepared mosh casualties in it's path. The show saw the return of Wetnurse, who have been hiding as of late while the band works out new material and 40% of the band concentrates on performing as new members of Today Is The Day. Some of that new material, albeit in instrumental form, surfaced at the show and definitely shows potential.

Landmine Marathon primed the fourth pit that I have witnessed at the venue (the others being Skeletonwitch, Krallice last year, and Misery Index / Magrudergrind), with vocalist Grace personally instigating one of those. Salome were beyond brutal, showcasing a few new songs in their set.

The madness continues with Batillus (No Cleanteeth or Wetnurse) on Thursday (7/15) at Cake Shop, but until then, bear witness to the Union Pool show in pictures and video below...

Continue reading "Salome, Landmine Marathon & Wetnurse played Union Pool (pics, video) "

Landmine Marathon photos by Taylor Keahey, words and photos of Failures & Mammoth Grinder by BBG

Landmine Marathon at Kimo's

Salome and Landmine Marathon are in NYC, and are ready to tear the roof off of Union Pool TONIGHT (7/13) as part of a two night campaign of obliteration. Wetnurse, who have been on the low this year to work on new material, will get the assist on tonight's shindig, while Batillus will support the pair two days later (7/15) at Cake Shop (unfortunately, Cleanteeth had to cancel their appearance). Want tickets? I have THREE pairs available for giveaway for EACH show. Details on how to win are at the bottom of this post.

The Landmine/Salome dates are two of three BV shows scheduled for this week. The Funeral Pyre will team up with Early Graves, Mutilation Rites and the recently added Valdur(!) play Union Pool on July 17th (Sat). Valdur, who shared a split with the great Lightning Swords of Death (check out our interview), are in the NYC area to play a second show as well. The Cali black metal crew will also take on Precious Metal at Lit on Monday (7/17) alongside Mutilation Rites (again) and Syphilitic Lust.

Landmine Marathon recently played Kimo's in San Francisco on their way out east, a trek which would eventually lead them to Dudefest (pics from Dudefest) where they crossed paths with Failures and Mammoth Grinder. Failures played Acheron on Sunday (7/11) with Vaccine, Raw Nerves and Rats In The Walls, and though I missed all the support. Pics from that show are below.

Mammoth Grinder played the Thrasher party during SXSW, and a set of unpublished pics from their appearance are below as well. The band plays The Charleson on July 15th as part of a tour that was originally supposed feature Lewd Acts, who have now officially called it quits...

Lou Dax succumbed on June 20th, 2010 to the coma brought on by a head wound sustained in New York City on May 6th. Lou is survived by his 4 sons. In lieu of flowers, pick up a Lou Dax memorial shirt or record at www.lewdacts.bigcartel.com or www.deathwishinc.com to help his legacy live on. Thank you to everyone who ever listened, saw, helped, or cared about Lou. - [Facebook]

Continue reading "Landmine Marathon & Salome are here (win tickets) ++ LM, Failures & Mammoth Grinder live pics, Lewd Acts & more"

by BBG

Landmine Marathon & Salome @ Emo's (more photos by Tim Griffin & Brian Reilly)

It's with the utmost excitement that I can announce Landmine Marathon and Salome will team up for a TWO nights of carnage in NYC! The pair will swap headlining duties over the two dates. LM headlines Union Pool on July 13th (with the return of Wetnurse). Then two days later Salome will headline at Cake Shop (on 7/15) with Batillus and Cleanteeth. The pair of dates are part of a stretch of shows that Landmine & Salome will do together, and part of a longer set of dates for Landmine Marathon that will also land them at Dudefest 2010 (alongside Arab on Radar, Voetsek, Trap Them, Weekend Nachos, Coffinworm, and many notable others). Most of these dates are still TBA.

Current tour dates, some video and the show flyer is below...

Continue reading "Landmine Marathon & Salome teaming up for shows (dates)"

Metric @ SXSW 2010 (more by Tim Griffin)

tonight in NYC
* comedy @ Union Hall
* Warm Ghost, Rowan @ Zebulon
* Metric, Bear in Heaven @ Terminal 5
* Aa, Wild Yaks, Steel Phantoms @ Cake Shop
* Arms, Honey, Translations, Mitre @ Death By Audio
* Kidrockers w/ The Dig, The Grates @ The Living Room
* Archipelago, Lux Perpetua, Alina Simone @ Silent Barn
* Descender, Wizardry, Music Hates You @ The Charleston
* Pistola, Fake Hooker, Manawi Thorn, Cloudblues @ Don Pedro
* The Postelles, Xylos, Infernal Devices (DJ) @ Brooklyn Bowl
* Silver Apples, Burning Star Core, Love Like Deloreans @ Coco 66
* The Lindsey Buckingham Appreciation Society, Fleetwood Mike @ Union Hall
* Lord Jeff, Invisible Circle, Guardian Alien, The Needy Visions @ Shea Stadium
* Thee Silver Mt. Zion, Sam Mickens' Ecstatic Showband & Revue @ Bowery Ballroom
* The Pharmacy, Golden Triangle, Electric Tickle Machine @ Rocks Off Concert Cruises
* Veronica Falls, German Measles, Frankie Rose & the Outs, Surprisers @ Bruar Falls
* NineLives the Cat, Anton Glamb, Roofeo, 1Dad & DJ Fred Mertz, John Barera @ Glasslands

The Fifth Avenue Street and Record Fair is today in Park Slope. Check out the link to see who is playing on multiple stages near Southpaw and The Gate.

In case you were wondering whatever happened to the Spiderman Musical...

...New York Post theater columnist Michael Riedel is reporting that the in-question production is indeed on, with rehearsals starting this summer, previews beginning in October, and an official opening in November. The column also claims that the production has a new Green Goblin in Patrick Page, and producers are apparently seeing potential Mary Jane replacements. Producers for the show, and its publicity team, have not made any official announcements.... [EW]

A video of Salome playing the BV day party at Emo's during SXSW this year, below...

A video of Excepter playing Knitting Factory last week, below...

What else?

Continue reading "What's going on Sunday?"

words by BBG, photos by Samantha Marble, BBG

Coffinworm (by BBG)

If there was a single SXSW show that intrigued from top to bottom, it'd have to be the Profound Lore/20 Buck Spin official showcase at minuscule Headhunters on 3/19 (we were proud to be a sponsor). With an estimated capacity of no more than 100 people (and probably considerably less), the show was packed from top to bottom with a wide palette of heavy music that dabbled in doom, noise, powerviolence, and everything in between. All my favorites were present and delivered predictably blistering sets (Salome, Dark Castle, White Mice, Liturgy, others), and there were other bands on the lineup that delivered to the fullest (Yakuza, Coffinworm).

By the time their set rolled around at Headhunters, I had already seen Coffinworm once (one day earlier) at the BV show at Hoeks Death Metal Pizza. Promises offered on their demo were delivered, and the band played a punishing set that realized all of the bite of their recorded output. The theme of focused and taught blackened doom continues on their new album, When All Became None, which is a contender for one of my favorite debuts of the year. Must.

Another band that I hadn't caught in the flesh, Yakuza, is a bit of a peculiar character. This Chicago band's progressive metal is punishing live, with seriously heavy and catchy riffage that, in itself, would be very distinctive.... and in comes the saxophone! Frontman Bruce Lamont's replaces guitar leads/solos with a saxophone that, despite what you are thinking, sounds nothing like a metal Dave Matthews Band. Though it was admittedly off-putting the first time I heard it, I have come to find the sax to be a crucial part of their sound, with all of the parts tailored around it compelling and awesome. Yakuza ripped it at Headhunters.

More pics from the show (except The Atlas Moth and Liturgy ones which are forthcoming) are below, as well as a few videos of Coffinworm, White Mice, Hatred Surge, and Salome...

Continue reading "Coffinworm, Yakuza, Dark Castle, Hatred Surge, Salome, Endless Blockade & White Mice @ Headhunters (SXSW) - pics"

words by Kim Kelly, intro by BBG, photos by Christopher Mumma & BBG

Thou

SXSW was a blast, but days before that the Scion Rock Fest shook the college town of Columbus, Ohio (March 13th) with it's mix of metal gods of the past (DRI, Cannibal Corpse, Voivod, Shrinebuilder, etc) and killers of today (Ludicra, Landmine Marathon, Yob, Thou, etc). The one-day fest was spread throughout four of the town's venue, meaning any one person could only see a limited amount of the full lineup. Luckily I went to Columbus with my own camera, two other photographers (Jessie Barber and Christopher Mumma), and crossed paths with writer Kim Kelly along the way. If there is a metal show worth a damn within hundreds (thousands?) of miles from Kim, she'll be there. Her version of the story along with half of the pictures from the day (the rest HERE), below...

Continue reading "Scion Rock Fest in pics & review (part 1) - Ludicra, Liturgy, D.R.I., Yob, Thou, Lightning Swords of Death & more "

words by BBG, photos by Samantha Marble, Tim Griffin, Brian Reilly

"Emo's Jr. is way too tiny to handle [Torche and] their enormous sludge, enormous hooks, enormous energy, enormous crowd." - Rolling Stone.com

Landmine Marathon (by Tim Griffin)

While Fucked Up and six other bands were causing a ruckus on the bigger stage at Emo's (3/17), the BrooklynVegan day party began early and STRONG with a hot blast of Kill The Client at noon on the indoor stage. The newly Relapse-d and semi-local (partial Austin/Dallas) grinding four piece was a metallic triple-espresso to kick start the day.

Trophy for busiest metal band goes to The Atlas Moth, who booked a whopping seven shows in Austin during SxSW. Their trek began with Emo's and a killer set from their new album A Glorified Piece Of New Sky. Jovial singer Steve was all smiles at the show, and the band's epic sound echoed throughout Emo's.

Philadelphia's Javelina followed The Atlas Moth with their positively pummeling sludge filth, keeping momentum going. Bands like Buzzoven, Eyehategod, and others come to mind when listening to this quartet, but their driving sound is decidedly more punk rock in it's gallop but just as "fuck you" in it's 'tude. A big thank you goes out to the band, who also went on to fill in for the broken Nebula at Red 7 on Saturday (3/20). They rule, and can't wait to see them again on Wednesday (3/25) at Cake Shop with Howl, Sea of Bones, and Flourishing.

Though the band spent a good hour circling Emo's, Dark Castle did manage to squeak into the venue and be only a touch late for their designated set time. Again the Florida duo impressed. Dark Castle's sound is positively mammoth, and through the large PA at Emo's they sounded bigger than ever.

Salome was similarly massive, and I felt fortunate to have the band booked for their only unofficial appearance at SXSW. With the band having issues unloading gear due to street closures and general parking malaise, it seemed like vehicular frustration bred more stage-side fury. The trio's sludge doom caused numerous screams of joy and lots of recitations of the word "amazing". Agreed, and I truly believe that Salome was one of the best bands at SXSW this year.

Grace Perry may have been given the dubious ranking of one of the "hottest chicks in metal" according to Revolver (even though I agree), but don't think that Landmine Marathon's success is attributable to anything but hard touring. This band's strength is in the live show, which was firing on all cylinders at Emo's and leading to circle pits, including one with Perry on vocals! Video of that is below.

Withered's icy blasts were the antithesis of Torche's pop bliss, but the band were as sinister and powerful. I caught them again at Mohawk later that night (pics coming). I was honestly worried about Withered and Dark Castle's lighting rigs, and their ability to translate on stage during the day time, but I forgot about the most important part of those bands: both have intense and kinetic live shows, whether with or without a fancy stage setup.

Torche closed out the room with an assist from a fill-in drummer in the absence of Rick Smith (who broke his hand while touring with his side project Shitstorm). Although Smith's theatrics were missed (you rarely ever see anyone standing and jumping down TOWARD the kit, save for Rob Shaffer of Dark Castle and a few others), the band played a well-executed set of bubblegum pop which contained one song from their upcoming split with Boris, and a ton of thundering but sugary classics. The band closed with my favorite Torche track ever, the sickeningly heavy "Tarpit Carnivore" from their killer In Return EP.

More pics and some videos from the show are below...

Continue reading "BrooklynVegan Emo's day party pics (SXSW 2010 - Torche, Withered, Salome, Dark Castle, Landmine Marathon, more) "

words by Ilya Blokh, photos by Meghan McInnis

If the biblical Salome got John the Baptist's head for her seductive performance, then Salome the band deserve all of our heads on sticks. This Virginia trio opened Thursday's epic show at NYU (3/11) with a crushing set of stripped-down, primal doom. No hiding behind post-metal noodling or stoner fuzziness here - just massive down-tuned riffs, earth shattering drums and ungodly vocals bellowed from deep below. They know how to build tension and are at their best when they take a mid-tempo riff down to a snail's pace, then slow it down some more. My favorite performance of the night.

Wolves in the Throne Room don't revel in corpse-paint and goats' heads; their focus is squarely on the music, hence their request for the house-lights to be dimmed and that photographers refrain from using flash. Despite brief sound issues, WITTR played a powerful and haunting set of their majestic, trance-inducing "shamanic black metal". There were a few kids moshing in all the wrong places (the band suggested they take a break), but the majority of the crowd looked appropriately transfixed.

Despite the storied past of each individual member, Shrinebuilder are not exactly pushing any boundaries; instead, they've settled into familiar stoner rock territory and are comfortably - effortlessly - retreading old ground and turning up stones in search of forgotten riffs. It was epic watching these guys jam together; with nothing left to prove, their bombastic, bluesy sound is more soothing than intense. Really, the polar opposite of the two preceding bands, who are still carving out new niches for themselves.

Props to the organizers of the show for pulling together these bands and keeping security hassles to a minimum (despite the messy ticket situation). Salome are on a brief tour that takes them through SXSW (to the BrooklynVegan Day Party on 3/17 and the BV-sponsored Profound Lore/20 Buck Spin Showcase on 3/19) and around the South, Shrinebuilder played the Scion Rock Fest right after NYC (pics are on the way), then take a month off before heading to Europe. WITTR are doing a brief West Coast tour with Earth in April, then heading off to Europe (and Roadburn!) as well.

Full tour dates and more pictures from the show, below...

Continue reading "Shrinebuilder played NYU w/ Wolves in the Throne Room & Salome (pics) - pics & more tour dates"

As previously mentioned, we've lost our minds and are doing seven shows in Austin during SXSW this year. The first of those parties kicks off at Emo's at noon on Wednesday, March 17th, 2010 (doors @ 11:30am) on two 100% FREE stages:

Outside/Main Stage
12:00 YellowFever
12:45 The Rural Alberta Advantage
01:30 The Morning Benders
02:15 Japandroids
03:00 Titus Andronicus
03:45 The Black Angels
04:30 GZA
05:15 Fucked Up

DJs: Finger on the Pulse

Inside/Metal Stage (Emo's Jr)
12:00 - Kill The Client
12:35 - The Atlas Moth
01:20 - Javelina
02:05 - Dark Castle
02:50 - Salome
03:35 - Landmine Marathon
04:20 - Withered
05:05 - Torche

FREE DRINKS COURTESY OF: Magic Hat & Firefly Vodka & Vitamin Water (while supplies last)
FREE VEGAN BREAKFAST TACOS COURTESY OF: Mr. Natural
(starting @ noon. while supplies last)
MORE FREE FOOD COURTESY OF: Daily Juice (catering from 2-5)
MORE FREE FOOD COURTESY OF: Raw Revolution Bars
MORE FREE FOOD COURTESY OF: Hail Merry

Thanks Zach Jaeger for the sweet flyer.

The Morning Benders, The Rural Alberta Advantage, Austin's own YellowFever, AND GZA are all being announced for the first time in this post. Those following along already knew about Fucked Up, The Black Angels, Titus Andronicus, and Japandroids.

It should be a wild first day in Austin and needless to say, we're very excited for this one. And did we mention this was all free? No RSVP. No Badges. Just stop by. Get there early if you want a free vegan breakfast taco. Stay around if you want even more catering by Daily Juice. Drink for free from our 10 kegs of Magic Hat beer and the many bottles of Firefly Sweet Tea Vodka that we'll be pouring. Then after the show, if you're still hungry (and standing), get dinner quickly and head over to the official BrooklynVegan SXSW showcase at Club DeVille right down the block (Dawes go on at 8, Serena Maneesh finish things off at 1am). Then get some rest because you've got 19 more bands to catch on Thursday afternoon at Spider House.

And for those in NYC, don't forget that we're also hosting a free Morning Benders show, TONIGHT (3/8).

We also just announced the full lineup of our Saturday day party at Red 7 which is happening at the same time as our Saturday day party at Galaxy Room.

GZA's "Liquid Swords" video below...

Continue reading "BrooklynVegan presents a day party @ Emo's (Fucked Up, GZA, Black Angels, Torche, TRAA, Withered & much more) "

by BBG

Withered with Mayhem at Irving (more by Paul Birman)

Enough of the onesy-twosy crap! We've already let it slip that the BrooklynVegan Day Party at Emo's on 3/17 will feature some heavy hitters like Torche, Fucked Up, The Atlas Moth, Dark Castle, and Salome. But now we are proud to announce more details! Kicking off at noon, the first (of a few) free BV Day Parties will be held across the two stages at Emo's (not the Annex). The "outdoor stage" will feature a headlining set from the hardcore hooligans in Fucked Up with a jawdropping lineup to fill out the rest of the bill (including Titus Andronicus, The Black Angels and Japandroids). The "indoor stage" will be where the darkness happens, and will feature the following lineup:

Wednesday, March 17, 2010 @ Emo's Indoor Stage - daytime lineup::
Torche
Withered
Landmine Marathon
Salome
Dark Castle
The Atlas Moth
Javelina

We will announce a third heavy music leaning show at Red 7 on 3/20 in the coming days Stay tuned for that along with more information on our seven shows in Austin this year, and don't forget to follow @bvSXSW on Twitter for lots more SXSW coverage!

Continue reading "BV Wednesday day party @ Emo's - full metal stage lineup "

by BBG

The Atlas Moth @ Union Pool (more by Samantha Marble)

BrooklynVegan is proud to announce Salome, The Atlas Moth, and Dark Castle as on board for the BrooklynVegan Day Show on 3/17 at Emo's along side Torche, Fucked Up, and Javelina! Stay tuned for more announcements, it's gonna keep getting bigger, I assure you!

In addition, BrooklynVegan is also proud to announce sponsorship of one of the best official metal showcases at SXSW 2010, the 20 Buck Spin/Profound Lore showcase at Headhunters on 3/19! Featuring an absolutely jaw-dropping lineup of Yakuza, Liturgy, Coffinworm, White Mice, Salome, and The Endless Blockade, the show will be punched up by some of our favorite bands that currently don't reside on either label, The Atlas Moth, Dark Castle, and Hatred Surge! Set times and the show flyer is below, so get there and stay there... it's gonna be pretty amazing.

Both The Atlas Moth and Salome will be in NYC in the coming weeks, and both on unmissable shows. The Atlas Moth will open the night at LPR on 3/8 with Coalesce and Harvey Milk (tix), while Salome will play NYU on 3/11 with Shrinebuilder and Wolves In the Throne Room. Tickets for the NYU show are currently on sale for NYU students, while details for non-NYUers are forthcoming.

20 Buck Spin/Profound Lore flyer and some videos below...

Continue reading "Shrinebuilder NYU tickets on sale (sort of) ++ Atlas Moth, Salome & Dark Castle playing BV shows @ SXSW "

by BBG

Salome at BV-BBG at CMJ (more by Samantha Marble)

Wow just turned into OMFG. Wolves In The Throne Room and Salome have been announced as support for the previously discussed 3/11 Shrinebuilder show at NYU. Ticket Info is forthcoming, but NYU students can expect to pay $2 and non-NYU-ers pay a whopping $5.

And while we are on the topic of killer bands, we'd like to announce that Salome will play the two-stage BrooklynVegan Day Party on March 17th at Emo's in Austin, Texas! For those counting at home, that's Salome plus Torche and Fucked Up! More artist announcements are on the way.

Salome will also play the 20 Buck Spin / Profound Lore official SXSW showcase at Headhunters in Austin on 3/19. As expected, the labels have teamed up for a killer lineup of underground metal greats: Yakuza, Liturgy, The Endless Blockade, Coffinworm, White Mice, + two more bands TBA.

That same night (3/19) at Spiro's, just down the street from the 20 Buck Spin/Profound Lore Showcase will be the WFMU/Aquarius showcase which, much like last year, is brimming with great and forward thinking music of heavy/punk persuasion. Liturgy will also be featured at the two-stage show along with Speedwolf, Iron Man, Moon Duo, Shit and Shine, Pierced Arrows, Dengue Fever, Epileptinomicon, Drunkdriver, Home Blitz, Headdress, Sonny & the Sunsets, True Widow, and Todd. For more on the upcoming WFMU show, head to their site. Decisions!

Drunkdriver's other upcoming shows include other SXSW gigs and Cake Shop in NYC on 3/14 with Todd.

Pierced Arrows are scheduled for two NYC area shows with Lullabye Arkestra, March 5th at Mercury (tix) and March 6th at Maxwell's (tix).

by BBG

Laura of Kylesa (more by Paul Birman)

Earlier I discussed my favorite LPs of the year, but why leave the fun to just one? I asked some of my favorite artists and promoters for their 2009 highlights. The responses were great. You already saw some of them. Justina listed some quotes, Liam Wilson talked about Philly, and Josh Graham listed good things about 2009. They continue below. You'll find lists of favorite songs and albums of the year, not to mention answers to crucial questions like:

• What are Coalesce's favorite pizza toppings?
• Which one of my top 20 artists of the year tried to get in a cab with Kirsten Dunst?
• What is the #1 sauce/condiment of 2009?

Continue reading "The Year in Metal continued (BBG asked countless others to make lists... and here they all are)"

words by BBG, photos by Samantha Marble

Kat of Salome

After a massive afternoon, the party was just getting started when Gloominous Doom kicked off the BrooklynVegan-BBG/Relapse CMJ showcase at Fontana's on 10/23. Nebula, Ume, Goes Cube, Naam, and Crystal Antlers all played killer sets in the afternoon, but I was itching for sheer brutality. Fortunately, I had seven great preformances to keep my energy going on through the night.

The Gloominous Doom opened the show, and every metal bill could use a band like this. Metal is a very self-serious genre which is great in some respect, but laughable in others. It's always refreshing to see a band like this, Municipal Waste, or on a local level, Copremesis, come in an make people realize that metal can be fun/wacky too. GD plays what has been described as kitchen sink metal, a bit of death metal, grind, and even ska (!), playing songs with titles like "Urine Trouble". Good times, and by the way, NO ONE rocks a cowbell like Jeff GD (on his prosthetic leg!).

Howl followed GD, and obviously I have gone on record about how killer this band is on its EP and live, but in the basement of Fontana's, their sound seemed especially large. If you dig EARLY Mastodon, crust, and even (Stockholm) Swedish Death Metal (Entombed, etc) make sure and pick up their EP. Look out for an interview with vocalist/guitarist Vincent coming soon.

Complete Failure was after Howl, a band that I have been a fan of since seeing them with the great Antigama at Europa. Anchored by the killer fills of Mike Rosswog (ex-Circle Of Dead Children/Today is The Day) and featuring a thrashing wildman in Joey Mack on vox, Complete Failure do a great crusty grind hybrid that is absolutely fierce live. ComFail recently let me post their entire album for FREE DOWNLOAD, which thankfully has popped up all over the net. These guys rule.

Black Anvil followed, and hopefully you know by the amount of times I have seen them, that these ex-Kill Your Idols folk would tear Fontana's a new one, and they did. The band also previewed some new tracks from their upcoming LP.

Revocation was next up, dispelling the notion that technical death metal can't still be brutal. Tons of live energy from these youngn's, and you can expect to hear much more for them in the near future. Their new, and highly praised album, Existence is Futile is out NOW.

I have a soft spot for Salome, and this band was beyond destructive at this show. Bowel-shaking riffs and stunning vocals were only equaled by tense moments of feedback and silence before the world came crashing down again. A seriously epic performance from this band... I can't wait until their new album blasts off on Profound Lore! And to the wise-ass audience member, it is NOT pronounced "salami" (ha).

Misery Index capped off the night, opening with what could be one of my favorite intros this side of the "Imperial Theme" from Star Wars... "We Never Come in Peace" from Traitors. Brutal, intense and unbelievable set from this Baltimore crew who pulled mostly from their latest LP, Traitors. Misery Index is currently cranking out new jams for the follow up to Traitors, so look for that next year!

To conclude, thanks again to everyone who made it out to Fontana's during the day and/or night. I'd like to personally thank all bands that played, Fontana's, CMJ, Betsey and Relapse Records, and especially Dave Ehrlich from Relapse. Most impoortantly, I couldn't have done it without the support of you. Many thanks!

More pictures below...

Continue reading "BV-BBG official 2009 CMJ show - pics (Salome, Misery Index, Howl, Revocation, Black Anvil, Complete Failure & more)"

by Black Bubblegum

Trap Them played BV-CMJ in 2008 (more by Leia Jospe)

Besides the killer Coalesce show at Europa, and the upcoming Shrinebuilder @ Le Poisson Rouge, you can mark you calendar with ANOTHER important day before the year is up.

I am proud to announce my FIRST OFFICIAL CMJ SHOWCASE (BrooklynVegan - BBG) which we are co-presenting with the good folks at Relapse Records. It's scheduled to go down on Friday October 23rd as part of an all day extravaganza at Fontana's on the Lower East Side!

The "official" part of the party kicks off at 7:30pm. That's the part of the night that costs money and will be listed in the CMJ guide (and is open to a limited number of CMJ badgeholders for free). Earlier in the day we'll be hosting the "unofficial" part, a 100% free day party at the same venue.

The shows will feature guitar cabinets courtesy of our good friends at Main Drag Music, stiff drinks by Hornitos, as well as FREE Miller Lite and High Life and Vitamin Water while supplies last! (more sponsors TBA if we get them)

The daytime lineup (one of three BrooklynVegan day parties during CMJ this year) will be announced in full soon, but will focus on the heavy side of things (and is partly revealed below). The official show lineup (one of two BrooklynVegan official showcases this year) has a little bit of everything for the heavy music fan: thundering political deathgrind, rumbling doom, crusty grindcore, and even thrashy-ska performed by a man with a prosthetic leg! It goes like this....

Continue reading "Black Bubblegum & Relapse Records do CMJ - a 2nd BrooklynVegan official showcase & a day party"

by Black Bubblegum

DOWNLOAD: Batillus - "The Division" (MP3)
DOWNLOAD: Thou - "The Song of Illuminate Darkness" (MP3)
DOWNLOAD: Salome - "With Hell For A Mouth" (MP3)

Batillus

Batillus have scheduled one final NYC show before the quartet hit the road to play a string of dates with the mighty Salome and locals Hull as part of the "Beard Destroyer Tour". That show takes place this weekend, 9/5 at Lucky 13 Saloon in Park Slope. The band was originally scheduled to play The Charleston with Overmars & Battlefields TONIGHT (9/3), but that show has since been cancelled (pics from Europa are here).

If you manage to catch the band in the coming weeks, make sure and hit up the merch tables for a copy of their limited-to-75 tour-only EP which includes "The Division" available for download above! The Tour EP was mastered by Josh Bonati and produced by Brendan Tobin of Made Out of Babies fame.

Salome who recently premiered a new track at MetalSucks as part of their split Our Enemy Civilization EP with Thou. Download that Thou as well as the Salome track above. Release details on that split EP are forthcoming.

Batillus, Salome, and Hull will also cross paths with the incred-amazing Planet Caravan Festival, which will feature (among countless other notables) Pentagram, Orange Goblin, Clutch, Tombs, The Gates Of Slumber, Kylesa, and YOB. Who wants to go? I have a pair of passes for the weekend as well as a custom screened poster (below) and t-shirt to give away! Details are at the bottom of this post.

Speaking of Brandon Tobin, I recently ran into Mr. Made Out of Babies who told me he is working on new MOOB material! So far the band has written two new songs and have the skeletons for an additional five. Described to him as "happy doomy", the tracks are still in infancy bu he promises that the new LP will signify a change in direction, similar to The Ruiner. In addition, word is that Julie Christmas's solo LP is inching closer toward completion, as all for Babies recently recorded the final track together. Bassist Cooper also plays with the Austin band Ratking.

Tobin moonlights in Red Sparowes (though not a permenant member), and they recently put their entire catalog on Bandcamp.com for free download! (Although it seems that the site is missing both a limited tour EP and their split with Grails)

Dates and more below...

Continue reading "Overmars show cancelled, Batillus playing Lucky 13, Salome & Hull tour dates, win Planet Caravan tix, new MOOB & more"

by Black Bubblegum

DOWNLOAD: Asphyx - "Scorbutics" (MP3)
DOWNLOAD: Gods & Queens - "Head To Wall" (Quicksand cover, MP3)
DOWNLOAD: The Catalyst - "I Hate The Future" (MP3)
DOWNLOAD: Planks - S/T (Rapidshare, Zipped MP3)
DOWNLOAD: They Are Cowards - Demo (Mediafire, Zipped MP3)
DOWNLOAD: Overmars - "Born Again" (MP3 Snippet)

Asphyx

Thanks all who came out Sunday night to Public Assembly. Full recap and pics coming soon HERE. In the meantime, pics from Friday's Repulsion show are HERE.

Asphyx's Death... The Brutal Way is due out in the US on August 18th, but it's shipping NOW at the Ibex Moon site. It's a sickening death/doom trip that's part down-tuned riff fest, part beastly conjuring, but 100% heavy heavy heavy. Recommended for fans of old school death metal, Entombed, Dismember, Autopsy, and the like. Check out one of the tracks, "Scorbutics", available for download above.

Gods & Queens currently have a new split 7" on the way via Hawthorne Street with the mighty Medusa, and have taken the time to drop off a killer cover of the Quicksand classic, "Head To Wall"! Download that above.

Weedeater have announced that Steve Albini will record their new album, which will be available in Spring 2010.

Swallow Your Teeth is the end of a long road for Richmond's The Catalyst, as the band has dropped multiple releases over their seven year history but THIS is their first LP! The noise-core merchants are currently streaming their Swallow Your Teeth at Scene Point Blank, but you can download the sick opening track, "I Hate The Future", above! The Catalyst have a few shows in the very near future, including The Glass Door on August 14th and a TBA show lined up for Aug 15th in Manhattan. Full tour dates are below. Pick up a copy of Swallow Your Teeth here.

Attention hardcore fans! Lambgoat is reporting that the legendary Disembodied will release Psalms of Sheol on Prime Directive in August, comprised of thirteen tracks of rare and unreleased material that includes the Existence In Suicide MCD and the Confession 7". Disembodied has reunited and sporadically played shows recently.

Baroness has a new album on the way, which we knew, but we now can attach a name to that effort Blue Record! The LP was recorded in Dallas, Texas with producer/engineer John Congleton (Explosions In The Sky, Black Mountain) and will hit the racks in October. Meanwhile, dig on the cover art (to the left) and the tracklisting below!

First of all, The Endless Blockade would like it be known that they "have not broken up". As a matter of fact, they finally released their split with Agoraphobic Nosebleed and have a split with The Bastard Noise out soon (stream the new BN track here). The boys in TEB "just figured another band would give us even less time in our lives to do anything else". That new band? Slaughter Strike.

Candlelight records has signed the mighty midwestern band The Atlas Moth, whose new album A Glorified Piece of Blue Sky will be released on Oct 6th. The band dropped their massive EP, Pray for Tide, on Witch Trial last year.

Planks have reissued their 2008 split with Tombs as the "European edition" featuring artwork by Mike Wohlberg. If you never got a hold of the Black Box Recordings version, it is highly recommended. Pick that up through the either of the bands on tour. Meanwhile, Planks recently made their massive S/T LP (where these two songs came from) available for free download! Pick that up above. Mike Hill of Tombs has posted all of the lyrics from the massive Winter Hours via his blog.

Crucial Blast is set to release Overmars's 2008 LP Born Again. The LP combines electronics, ambient soundscapes, Swans industrial dirge, and the thunder of Neurosis to create a different and powerful take on post-metal. The band is scheduled to hit the US with the mighty Battlefields, logging a pair of dates in NYC: Europa on August 16th and September 3rd at The Charleston. This will destroy.

Mastodon, High On Fire, Converge, and Dethklok announced dates (and a presale).

The premiere of the NEW Goes Cube video for "Saab Sonnet", more news on Black Sun, Absu, Trap Them, Kylesa, Anaal Nathrakh, and Darkthrone as This Week In Metal continues.....

Continue reading "this week in Metal (8/5/09) (includes new Goes Cube video)"

by Black Bubblegum

DOWNLOAD: Crucifist - "Honor" (MP3)
DOWNLOAD: Flood - "Aphelion" (MP3)
DOWNLOAD: Culted - "Social Control" (MP3)
DOWNLOAD: Fall Of Efrafa - INLÉ (Zipped MP3 Album)

Fall of Efrafa

Though the rain is mostly gone, it's still a doomy gloomy day here at Week In Metal, where we kick things off with Fall of Efrafa, who have dropped their FINAL album of thundering post-hardcore sludge on Denovali. It's called INLÉ and takes inspiration from an extremely unlikely source, the book Watership Down. The final in a trilogy of LPs that also included OWSLA and ELIL, INLÉ is available for FREE download above of for purchase via Denovali or Sound Devastation.

More details on Shrinebuilder have surfaced, including the FULL album art, as well as the tracklisting for the upcoming self-titled LP. Dig on that art here and the tracklisting below. Speaking of Al Cisneros, Vice blog recently interviewed Sleep and Om are on their way to NYC.

Roadburn has announced that 2010's Roadburn event will be partly curated by none other than Tom Warrior of Celtic Frost/Hellhammer/Triptykon fame! His new band Triptykon will headline Only Death Is Real, the Friday 4/16/10 event, and Tom will choose an additional 16 bands for the festival! Stokeage. More info is to come.

San Francisco's Flood, who take a line or two from the great Khanate with their low & slow doomy funeral marches, recently dropped their new LP Native on the esteemed MeteorCity (get that here). Check out a track from that massive LP, "Aphelion", which is downloadable above. Flood currently has no plans to head out east, but here's for hoping!

Kirk Lloyd is currently shopping an EP of unreleased material by legendary southern dirge merchants Buzzov*en!

It was recorded in Brooklyn by Shane and mixed by Mike Davidson and Brian Hill. Its 4 songs including "Nod" which was previously released on a split with Sourvein. The 3 other tunes are "Paintake","Breed" and "Mainline". "Mainline" got redone by the At A Loss lineup, but is actually a good bit different... with the original lineup of Brian Hill on bass, Ash Lee on drums, ...and this is the only recording with Johhny Brito on gtr. [Also look for] ...Pat Vigil now in Watch Them Die doing 2nd vocal on "Breed"!!

The legendary Autopsy will reunite at Maryland Deathfest 2010 bringing along with them Coffins, Melechesh, and Jesus Crost! Chris Reifert's current home, Abcess, recently released a split with Population Reduction.

More on Brutal Truth, Culted, Salome, Napalm Death, Torche, a new grind-fiesta in Williamsburg, and so much more, below...

Continue reading "This Week In METAL (07/22/09)"

by Black Bubblegum

DOWNLOAD: Buried Inside - "V" (MP3)
DOWNLOAD: Salome - "The Vivification of Ker" (MP3)
DOWNLOAD: Salome - "Black Tides" (MP3)
DOWNLOAD: Salome - "White Tides" (MP3)
DOWNLOAD: Rosetta - "Europa" (MP3)

Salome @ Public Assembly (last time) (more by Justina Villaneuva)

Exactly two months after wowing the crowd at Scion Rock Fest, Salome have scheduled a new show in NYC. The June 7th date is at Public Assembly in Brooklyn, and it's part of the ongoing Show No Mercy series... which the band also played in February. Haven't seen Salome before? You. Must. Go.

Salome's June appearance at Show No Mercy is preceded by the May edition, which takes place this Sunday, May 3rd, at the same venue. A Life Once Lost, Buried Inside, Rosetta, and Wetnurse are on that bill. Want to go? We have two free pairs of tickets to give away. More information is below.

Kat of Salome's other band, Agoraphobic Nosebleed, recently dropped their latest album Agorapocalypse on Relapse. We interviewed Kat in February.

Wetnurse recently added dates with Lord Mantis, and played Union Pool with The Austerity Program and Tournament.

Rosetta has one additional NYC date on the calendar, June 5th at Death By Audio, before they ship out to Europe with new Translation Loss signees City of Ships.

A Life Once Lost recently returned form a tour of Alaska(!), and after a few dates with Buried Inside, they'll hit the road with Thy Will Be Done. All dates below...

Continue reading "Salome returning to Brooklyn, a Show No Mercy contest & other 2009 tour dates"

words by Black Bubblegum, photos by Steven Brown & Anthony Childs

DOWNLOAD: Rwake - Leviticus (MP3)
DOWNLOAD: Kylesa - Said And Done (MP3)

"How about this fuckin' lineup man? Whoever put this thing together, I'd like to shake their hand" - CT of Rwake

Boris (Steven Brown)


I'd like to think it was the jawdropping lineup decreed by the gods upon Mt Scion that brought people out in droves to The Masquerade in Atlanta on February 28th, but I would imagine that some of it was also due to "free show" factor. Either way, there is something ridiculawesome about bands as great as Harvey Milk, Wolves In The Throne Room, and Coalesce having to turn people away due to reaching capacity. That is my idea of sweet metal justice... some of my current favorite bands in front of the audiences they deserve.

The Masquerade is a 2+ level club. The biggest stage, dubbed "Heaven", is located on the second floor and houses somewhere in the neighborhood of 1000 people. Two adjacent clubs on the main level, "Hell" & "Purgatory", house considerably less: "Hell" is primarily a dance floor, so there were some obstructed sightlines. "Purgatory" had multiple tiers, no elevated stage and very little room in front of the band. Behind the venue in a grassy area which was muddy due to the prior night's rain, a 4,000 person capacity tent was constructed for the main stage.

continued below...

Continue reading "Scion Rock Fest in review & pictures (Boris, Neurosis, Kylesa, Salome, Withered, Krallice, 1349 & more)"

by Black Bubblegum

Who has the gnarliest throat? The answer may suprise you...

Scion Rock Fest in Atlanta is just a couple days away (Feb 28th) and until the opening tones of Kylesa's guitars, we'll present a series of discussions with some of the key artists taking one of the four stages at the Masquerade. Tuesday we spoke to CT of Rwake, yesterday we spoke with Jacob Bannon of Converge, and on Monday we spoke to Scott Hull of Pig Destroyer and Agoraphobic Nosebleed. Today, we speak with Scott Hull's ANb band mate Kat (pictured above, top left, with long blonde hair).

Turns out the whole "big things, small packages" thing is not just a way for your family to cheat you on birthday gifts. Case and point: Kat from Salome. This pint-sized terror could scare the "grrr" off a tiger with the ferocious voice showcased on two recent releases, Salome's self-titled debut and the coming Agorapocalypse by ANb (due via Relapse on April 14th). A few weeks ago, Salome scared the pants off us at Show No Mercy and as a result, we felt it necessary to confer with said instigator using a few choice interrogatives. Check 'em out below.

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How long has Salome been in existence? What were the circumstances behind the formation?

We started playing together in 2006. I met Aaron at a music store and we started talking about music and realized that we liked a lot of the same stuff. We were both interested in doing a doom type project. Rob and Aaron had played together in other bands before Salome, so we started jamming and the fit was really natural.

continued below...

Continue reading "an interview with Kat of Salome & Agoraphobic Nosebleed"