Somethin' for the stoner/Doom Retro fiends in the house: VOLCANA, feat. Vic Stown of Ohio thrashers Vindikator, just released their full length debut "Goddess of Fire." Downloads and cassettes (!) are avail from the band's Bandcamp page. Stormspell Records will be putting out a limited run of CDs in the very near future. They were kind enough to send me a digital promo of the album to review on my blog (which will be coming soon) and I'm diggin' it.
^^ Too-late-to-fix-in-my-previous-post edit: The title of that Volcana album in my above post should be "Goddess of Flame," not "Fire," dang it.
I give these guys credit for their open mind fullness. I doubt I could break down a Hip Hop or R&B song with such insight and appreciation. They also do a Master of Puppets review. Master of Puppets and Rust In Peace easily my favorite two thrash albums so these are fun to watch.
I read that Martin Ain (of Celtic Frost for those who didn't know), has died recently. Can anyone confirm this?
I'm stopping by the local record shop this week, hopefully they have it. I've only seen positive reviews so far plus I'm a pretty big LA Guns fanboy anyway.
Thanks for the Desertfest summary, I've always wanted to go. They should really have one in the actual Cali desert where it all started. Instead we have Psycho Las Vegas, which is unfortunately in Vegas. Even custom silicon earplugs wear out. It's recommended to replace every few years. I probably am due soon. I go to Sensaphonics, a place that gives a hearing test and is very thorough about getting the right fit, geared toward musicians. I think it was $240-ish with hearing test, and well worth it. Going from foam plugs to these was like lifting a veil, or removing toilet paper from my ears. When I used to get bored because it was muddy, I now hear the full range, and am much more engaged at shows.
Thanks! That suggests I really should get mine fixed - they are a decade old by now! If you have the chance to visit, please do. It's a great event with a temendous lineup of both established names and new ones to discover. Very much recommended! Pallbearer and Paradise Lost up next week
Picked up the Hair of the Dog CD a couple of weeks ago and love it. Got a buddy from work into it as well. Looking forward to the second album. Another band I "found" was WolveSpirit. They were actually on the playlist section of YouTube when I was checking out Hair of the Dog. I picked up the album "Free." The band kind of sounds like a meeting of Sabbath and Hawkwind being fronted by Stevie Nicks.
Interestingly, Wolvespirit stopped putting albums on Bandcamp after Dreamcatcher (2013). I think that's a big mistake, as it keeps them off the radar of many who follow this stuff. They have an album out this year, Blue Eyes, but it's the first I've heard of it. And they're good, like a mix of Blues Pills and Purson.
Martin Ain's death has made me go back and listen to Celtic Frost over the past few days whenever I've had some free time (or some drive time). During the 80s, that metal landscape changed at light speed. But Celtic Frost was shifting gears so quickly that even their most hardcore fans had difficulty keeping up.
Oh, spiffing; just pipped past the half century. As Raven once suggested, it really is now a case of 'Mind Over Metal.' On the other hand, I received an Ensiferum compilation CD, overcame my stifling prejudices and found myself knocked out by not just the production values, general technical adroitness at hand nor the time changes to clobber my Mk1 'Sabbath sensors into a cocked hat but the conquering fields of bucolic charm that spewed from so many pores I had to pause the disc and quickly post this before drawing on a quick horn of Blue Nun before getting back to 'One More Magic Potion.' As you were, hail and kill, etc.
Two Decades. Also marvelling at what Bruce Dickinson did on his own plus 'the two that got away' from Accept (Predator and Death Row) and a nicely reissued deluxe vat of seminal Pirate Metal. Plus a seasonal ode to the perils of plotting with fiery powder:
This 'ere copy of Accept's Predator is an original 1996 VICP-5673 Japanese Victor CD, complete with the foam insert disc protector... Is it just me or do issues from the twin isles o'th'East invariably sound superior? Was this record simply inherently, ridiculously well produced or is there something injected into the oriental pre-distribution process which inbues the soundstage with sublime depth and openness? I've just played 'Crossroads' and have had to stop in order for the rapture to subside. A world in which the mainstream culture is entirely given over to Rap and its various tributaries yet music of this calibre lurks in the shadows?