Beyond The Earthless Ages

If you have never seen San Diego trio Earthless, you haven't lived. Admittedly, when I try to explain what Earthless is I get a lot of despondent, disdainful, and in one case pissed off response. That's because they are essentially an instrumental jam band with massive guitar solos... But I don't know one person, regardless of their taste in music, that has come away from an Earthless show and not been irrevocably converted. No one plays like these fuckers do. But when you have one of the best guitarists ever in Isaiah Mitchell and one of the best drummers ever in Mario Rubalcaba, the calibre of shredding and thumping going on here is mind melting. Mike Eginton has the unenviable position of anchoring everything here, but really, the dude merely adds adamantium to these killer skeletons.

They are about to unless a new record, From The Ages, on Tee Pee Records, and my chin is still smarting from the giant slice I took out of it when it hit the floor. This is uncategorisable stuff, as in that this rocks so hard and remains hypnotic throughout when anyone - ANYONE - else would fuck this up in the first fifteen minutes - just strap yourself in for an hour of WTF mind expansion.

You can pre-order From The Ages here. Do it now - it'll be like GTA V for your ears.

Going...OFF!

OFF! certainly killed when they came to Aussie shores December last year, even if their entire setlist had to be played twice so that they could play a decent running time. Their songs are pretty killer though - coming from the ashes of Black Flag, Circle Jerks, Redd Kross, Hot Snakes, Rocket From The Crypt and Burning Brides, it's not really a surprise. Their self-titled album comes out in May on Vice Records, and the song below is the first taste. So far, so awesome. Also, it is meant to be 16 songs in 16 minutes. Breakneck then. Looks like they'll still need a few covers to break that half hour playing time then...

Pre-order the album (and get it in white) here. (NOTE: since publishing this the vinyl has sold out - 1500 out the door like that! More will be on call soon, in black though, but stay tuned).

OFF! - King Kong Brigade

A Grizzly Trick

Another post from San Diego - things are heating up (not sure why I've thrown in a NBA Jam reference, but I'm pretty scattered today...)

The guys at the cool little label Grizzly records flicked me over the new 7" from San Diego's Mrs Magician. The band had an incredible coup recently when they were set up as the support for the newly reformed Hot Snakes for their Stateside tour this month. To celebrate they have the Prescription Vision 7" for sale, a two-track slice of throwaway surf rock. Sweetening their 2012 is a two-month tour with CULTS, culminating in their upcoming debut Strange Heaven LP that's coming out on John Reis (Rocket From The Crypt/Hot Snakes)' own Swami Records in May. Heady times. The 7" doesn't miss a beat either, offering some 60s inflected fuzzy doo-wop that would be more at place at a summer beach party in a parallel world where Malibu Beach was an apocalyptic wasteland. Actually...that is pretty much what it is now. So they are right on the money then...

Grab the 7" from here.

Mrs Magician - Prescription Vision

Obit - March on, Hot Snake...

The past week has been rough on me. Work has been a

maelstrom of manic meltdowns, forcing me to miss out on
Supergrass' apparently excellent gig, tone down at a 30th,
and generally howl at the moon.  Today however has been the
payoff - glowing review of my output and portfolio, as well
as my short story being submitted to a major national
competition.  So Im chuffed as fuck.  This news did a double
helix to the sun with the news that Hot Snakes were doing a
reunion!  Unfortunately, it wasnt exactly true.  However it
opened up a lot of amazing memories, and with rose tinted
Ray Bans firmly in place, I thought Id highlight a
criminally underrated act - and what they have since morphed
into.

It was a sad day five years ago when Brooklyn balltearers
The Hot Snakes decided to call it a day.  Made up of members
from already fucking amazing acts Drive Like Jehu and Rocket
From The Crypt, Hot Snakes offered the world tightly wound,
tension filled garage rock to the point that your body would
secrete out every ounce of fluid - blood, sweat, tears, piss
- as its only recourse.  Three albums (Automatic Midnight, 
Suicide Invoice, Audit In Progress) and incendiary live
shows put Rick Froberg, John Reis, Gar Wood and Jason
Kourkounis (briefly replaced by Mario Rubalcaba near the
end) on a underground pedestal, elevating them into punk
demi-gods.  I was lucky enough to see them in 2005 just
before their demise - it was damned special.

None of the band have stayed idle.  Reis' 'day band' Rocket
From The Crypt also closed up shoppe in 2005 ( a sad year
indeed...), and since then he has continued work with his
independent label Swami Records, his artwork as seen on the
remarkable Hot Snake LP sleeves very much in evidence,
whilst playing in bands such as the Sultans (2000-2007) and
current act Night Marchers (which sees him reunite with
Snakers Wood and Kourkounis).  Froberg has been kicking
around with his new act Obits for just on two years now.

And now the exciting part - they are touring together!  No
Hot Snakes reunion yet, but Obits and Night Marchers are
stamping their seal of (dis)approval all over the US this
July.  Obits are taking it one step further, bringing their
admittedly "Hot Snakes with less vitriol and more melody"
schtick (which is actually a good thing - although not as
good as HS, still a damn sight better than most other stuff
out there) to Europe in October!  No exact dates for the UK,
but we'll keep you in the loop...

Anyway, here's a track from Obits' to date only LP, I Blame You.  Also
included is some Night Marchers (taut and fierce
guitars, drums pounding but not over-bearing, the occasional
shouted backing vocals mix well with Reis' powerful everyman
vocal delivery, nastily catchy chorus hooks - everything
we've come to expect from the big man), one of Hot Snakes'
best...and hey, what the hell, you only live once - some
Rocket From The Crypt and Drive Like Jehu!  Now how about
draining that keg?  What, its only Monday?  The vicious
cycle begins again...

Obits - Pine On
The Night Marchers - Jump In The Fire

The Hot Snakes - Let It Come

Drive By Jehu - Do You Compute
Rocket From The Crypt - Pigeon Eater