ID 286062429 | Dinosaur © Jay Dunbar | Dreamstime.com
2025 will see Desertfest Berlin undoubtedly invite for its perhaps best and most eclectic line-up to date, featuring an incredible line-up consisting of Dinosaur Jr., The Hellacopters, Elder, Eyehategod, My Sleeping Karma and many more high-class acts the stoner, rock, doom, sludge, psych, and metal scene has to offer! Today, the festival has revealed its first line-up splits for Friday, Saturday and Sunday!Continue reading
The Hellfest Open Air festival 2025 has booked a huge lineup. Taking place from June 19th to 22nd in Clisson, France, the fest features headlining performances from Korn, Muse, Scorpions, and Linkin Park, as well as, Knocked Loose, Judas Priest, Electric Callboy,Turnstile, Exodus, Dethklok, Refused, Jerry Cantrell, Jinjer, Turnstile, Unto Others, The Warning, VOLA, Alcest, Abbath (Doom occulta set), SUNN O))), HEALTH, Russian Circles, Chat Pile, Savatage, Dream Theater and more out of a total of 184 bands. A “very special guest” yet to be revealed for June 20th.Continue reading
My Sleeping Karma proffers a heady instrumental in Atma (Napalm Records). The six tracks on Atma are ripe for playing over and over and over again and, at times, are mesmerizing to the point of feeling insensate. As this is a fully instrumental album, it’s up to the listener to provide sense and meaning to the aural sensations. Continue reading
Desertfest London will announce next spring’s first bands next week on October 13th. Tickets will go on sale to coincide with the release at 10 AM local time GMT and will be £100 for the 3 day weekend fest, with no increase from this year. Continue reading
German instrumental space rockers My Sleeping Karma have toured relentlessly for the last year behind their album Moskha (Napalm Records), and recently hit the UK for a string of dates. The bands blend of psychedelia, stoner metal and incredible instrumental prowess, makes their shows much more lively than your average band of navel gazing, self-important nerds. MSK gets the “rock” part of this and they always put on a fine show. Opening tonight’s show was Aussie no-nonsense heshers Mammoth Mammoth. These guys know how to write party rock anthems and feel good jams. MSK’s Napalm Records label mates Greenleaf of Sweden, themselves have a brand new album they are promoting, Rise Above The Meadow. Their blend of Sabbath-like retro grooves and well written psych explorations are as intoxicating as the many beers consumed in the bar this night. At The Garage in London recently, all the bands packed the club to nearly sold out, further proving the worth of this type of bill. Thanks to Jessica Lotti Photography for capturing the show for Ghost Cult.
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Greenleaf is streaming their music video for “A Million Fireflies,” off of their upcoming album Rise Above The Meadow, out February 26, 2015 via Napalm Records below. The band has a string of upcoming tour dates which are listed below.
Dec 10: The Ritz – Manchester (UK)(with Clutch)
Dec 11: Wulfrun Hall – Wolverhampton (UK)(with Clutch)
Dec 12: Shepards Bush Empire – London (UK)(with Clutch)
Dec 26: Sankt Hell – Hamburg (DE) (with Clutch)
Dec 27: Scheune – Dresden (DE) (with Clutch)
Dec 28: Pitcher – Düsseldorf (DE) (with Clutch)
Dec 29: Alte Hackerei – Karlsruhe (DE)(with Clutch)
Dec 30: Coq d’Or Olten (SI) (with Clutch)
Feb 02: Trix – – Antwerp (BE)(with My Sleeping Karma)
Feb 19: Garage – London (UK) (with My Sleeping Karma)
Feb 20: Divan Du Monde – Paris (FR)(with My Sleeping Karma)
Feb 21: Le Ferrailleur – Nantes (FR)(with My Sleeping Karma)
Feb 22: Z 7 – Pratteln (SI)(with My Sleeping Karma)
Feb 23: Feierwerk – Munich (DE)(with My Sleeping Karma)
Feb 24: Lido – Berlin (DE)(with My Sleeping Karma)
Feb 25: UT Connewitz – Leipzig (DE)(with My Sleeping Karma)
Feb 26: Universum – Stuttgart (DE)(with My Sleeping Karma)
Feb 27: Arena 0 – Vienna (AT)(with My Sleeping Karma)
There are many festivals naming themselves –stock, all of them trying to refer to the legendary summer festival Woodstock. Yellowstock keeps true to the vein of that legendary inspiration, with a line up filled with jazzy psych, 70s and 60s rock and trippy space projects. She is thankfully blessed with better weather than her famous inspiration though, and the sun stays on the grounds and playground of the youthcenter the fest is held at.
Crowd at Yellowstock 2015, photo by Susanne A. Maathuis
Yellowstock is a small-scale labor of love, and this is felt in nearly everything, the no-nonsense food trucks, the hard plastic cups that can be turned in for more drinks, and the poster beautiful art. There is however a small hitch getting in, as the first band already takes the stage it takes a surprisingly long time to scan everyone inside. It turns out people not printing their tickets but keeping them on their smartphones was the culprit, slowing the line down. This sadly meant that we missed almost the full set of Coogans Bluff, as we only heard them from the distance, and managed to catch their last two songs.
Crowd at Yellowstock 2015, photo by Susanne A. Maathuis
This minor hitch isn’t too bad though. Good beer and surprisingly decent white wine flows freely, and while wasps are a real nuisance, no-one is really bothered to the point of not enjoying the day. In true spirit of the hippies this festival caters to, many people are dancing barefoot or letting out their inner child on one of the many. Especially during Black Flower, a jazzy Belgian troupe, with flute and saxophone, and a vitriolic drummer that carries much of the show, people let their minds and limbs flow free to the music. The band members themselves have shunned shoes as well, as the connection to the earth is clearly sought by this jazzy ensemble.
Black Flower, by Susanne A. Maathuis
Because the weather is so lovely and the second stage inside rather small, we decide to take it easy and enjoy the company of some new made friends between bands on the outside stage, instead of trying to press into a small room that will undoubtedly be hot and sweaty. This meant we missed a number of interesting acts, some of which I have seen before and know give excellent live shows, including the final band on the fest, Radarmen From The Moon. Another band known for excellent live shows, are Yama, with their sludgy stoner-rock. Both I’ve seen many times before and decided to pass up for the rare enjoyment of sunshine and wine.
Terra Craft, by Susanne A. Maathuis
We’re taken to even hotter climes by the most diverse band on the billing, Terra Craft, whose middle psychy music make our lovely warm summer evening seem like a blessed relief. The mirage like effects layered into their music really managed to make you drift along on a journey to far away lands with them, and together with their vocalists impressive stage garb, world music is excellently represented.
Hawkwind, Susanne A. Maathuis
Hawkwind, by Susanne A Maathuis.
Expected and completely deserved highlight of the night for everyone present had to be Hawkwind, who played an incredibly strong set aided by visuals and lights, as the sun finally sank beneath the horizon. After this spectacular show we leave the find the buses to the campground, Radarmen From The Moon thumping hypnotically as a wine addled world flows by and the bus drives to the quiet of the campground. Quiet now, but in the deep of the night the party continues here, and many keep dancing until daybreak.
Crowd at Yellowstock, by Joep Koks
Crowd at Yellowstock, by Joep Koks
Crowd at Yellowstock, by Joep Koks
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WORDS AND PHOTOS BY SUSANNE A. MAATHUIS
ADDITIONAL PHOTOS BY JOEP KOKS
Sometimes small festivals catch big fish, and Yellowstock in Geel, BE seems to have caught a very big one indeed. The summer edition of this twice a year intimate festival of everything psychadelic and 70’s this year is headlined by none other than Hawkwind. This in itself is enough reason to have a look at the cosy country of Belgium, where the fest is held, and see for ourselves.
Apart from the esteemed Hawkwind who are one of the founding groups of the psychrock scene, bands of interest at this 5th edition are the expansively instrumental My Sleeping Karma, the hypnotic three-piece Radarmen From The Moon who played the Roadburn – party last year, and the exotic Terakraft, who will bring us to the musical equivalent of the 1001 nights tales!
So for all lover of psych, space, the summer of love or some general summer mind expansion, and able to make it to Geel Belgium this Saturday, August 8th, there is 400 of 1000 tickets reserved for door sale only, and with a line-up like this they’re bound to sell fast! Maybe we will see you there, and otherwise there is always next year!
SUSANNE A. MAATHUIS
AHAB have unveiled details behind their upcoming album The Boats Of Flen Carrig, out August 28, 2015 via Napalm Records. The cover artwork was created by Sebastian Jerke, who was also responsible for the latest album artwork from the likes of Zodiac, The Answer and My Sleeping Karma.
The Boats Of Flen Carrig Track Listing:
01: The Isle
02: The Thing That Made Search
03: Like Read Foam (The Storm)
04: The Weedmen
05: To Mourn Job
06: The Light in the Weed (Mary Madison) (Bonus Track)
Jun 03: Out & Loud Festival – Geiselwind (DE)
Jun 19: Hellfest – Clisson (FR)
Jul 04: The Boston Music Rooms – High Wycombe (UK)
Jul 25: Ragnarock Festival – Langendorf (DE)
Dec 12: Eindhoven Metal Meeting – Eindhoven (NL)
Ahab on Facebook
Napalm Records on Facebook
With an album cover gracing a very detailed picture of Ganesh from Hinduism lore, whilst sporting the devil horns, you’d be forgiven for thinking that My Sleeping Karma would have produced an album with a cartoonish nature. That this will take newcomers to the band by huge surprise is just a part of the fantastic aura of mystique that these German’s have shrouded themselves in. With a returning album structure that breaks up songs with interludes throughout and their immersive sonic palette and Moksha (Napalm) is further evidence that MSK occupy a territory of their own.
Where previous album Soma (also Napalm) offered a continued, dreamlike state throughout, Moksha evolves this further; still serene for the most part but with more a more overt metallic edge. The shoegaze elements sitting comfortably with the album’s more doom metal like moments, with psychedelic shades giving deeper detail. The title track is the perfect example of this, as it begins with delicate majesty before building tension and heaviness, without detracting from its tranquility. Further listens highlight the Hinduism influences creeping in, from Eastern instrumentation to mysterious chanting and unusual time signatures.
Previous album Soma received rave reviews from the underground and was a master class effort, yet Moksha is a stunning evolutionary step for the band, adding an extra dimension to their sound, which is very stand out yet flows into their formula exceptionally. With such a rich detail in their sound, combined with the atmosphere they create, not only is Moksha a tremendous effort but one that showcases My Sleeping Karma as one of the undergrounds best kept secrets, with a sound and method unique to themselves.
8.0/10
CHRIS TIPPELL