Part II
Saturday at Psycho Las Vegas was no less impressive and perhaps the best single day of the fest band for band, especially if you were still able to stand after the first few days. Starting off with the public première of the Melvins documentary, The Colossus Of Destiny, followed by a Q & A by the director, Bob Hannam; this set the tone for the day.Continue reading
There cannot have been many more eagerly awaited releases this year than For This We Fought the Battle of Ages (Profound Lore Records), the fourth full-length from Utah Chamber Doom purveyors SubRosa.Continue reading
Cult of Luna will kickoff their brief fall tour tour tonight, co-headlining with Kylesa. Joining for the 9-date cross country jaunt will be Minsk, Subrosa and InAeona. This is the first tour of the US since Cult of Luna released Vertikal (Indie Recordings) in 2013 and promises to be an “event” worthy concert experience. Kylesa will use these dates as the warm up to the release of their new album Exhausting Fire, due out from Season of Mist on October 2nd.
Cult of Luna – Kylesa tour dates:
Sept 01: Gramercy Theater – New York, NY*
Sept 02: Cafe Campus – Montreal CAN*
Sept 03: Mod Club Theater- Toronto, CAN*
Sept 04: Reggies- Chicago, IL*
Sept 05: Rickshaw Theater- Vancouver, CAN**
Sept 06: Neumo’s – Seattle, WA**
Sept 07: Star Theater – Portland, OR**
Sept 08: Slims – San Francisco, CA**
Sept 09: The Observatory, Santa Ana, CA**
*with InAeona
**with Minsk
**with Subrosa
Cult of Luna has booked a brief fall tour, co-headlining with Kylesa. Joining for the 9-date cross country jaunt will be Minsk, Subrosa and InAeona at different stops.
Cult of Luna – Kylesa tour dates:
Sept 01: Gramercy Theater – New York, NY*
Sept 02: Cafe Campus – Montreal CAN*
Sept 03: Mod Club Theater- Toronto, CAN*
Sept 04: Reggies- Chicago, IL*
Sept 05: Rickshaw Theater- Vancouver, CAN**
Sept 06: Neumo’s – Seattle, WA**
Sept 07: Star Theater – Portland, OR**
Sept 08: Slims – San Francisco, CA**
Sept 09: The Observatory, Santa Ana, CA**
*with InAeona
**with Minsk
**with Subrosa
Crucialfest 5 will be held June 18-20, 2015 in Salt Lake City, UT. The confirmed line will include:
Goatsnake
Dead Meadow
Royal Thunder
Rosetta
Mothership
Kowloon Walled City
Giant Squid
Captured! By Robots
Uzala
Norska
Black Pussy
Ides of Gemini
Demon Lung
Castle
Lesbian
Wild Throne
Ghetto Blaster
Eight Bells
Cold Blue Mountain
Throes
With Locals:
Eagle Twin
SubRosa
Cult Leader
Settle Down
Baby Gurl
Worst Friends
Agape
God’s Revolver
Eons
Dethrone the Soverign
Dark Seas
INVDRS
Cicadas
Disforia
Odium Totus
The Wasatch Fault
Turbo Chugg
The Ditch and the Delta
Oxcross
Filth Lords
Die Off
Top Dead Celebrity
Anthems
Stickfigures
D∅NE
Exes
Hard Men
Magda-Vega
Schedule
Thursday June 18th
Area 51 / 4pm / $10 / 18+ Stage
Baby Gurl
Eons
Throes
Cicadas
The Wasatch Fault
Filth Lords
Area 51 / 4pm / +$5 / 21+ Stage
INVDRS
Eight Bells
Ghetto Blaster
Cold Blue Mountain
Hard Men
Area 51 / 9pm / $10 / 21+
Royal Thunder
Wild Throne
Settle Down
Top Dead Celebrity
Friday June 19th
Area 51 / 4pm / $10 / 18+ Stage
Cult Leader
Rosetta
Ides of Gemini
Norska
Dethrone the Soverign
Disforia
Area 51 / 4pm / +$5 / 21+ Stage
The Ditch and the Delta
Castle
Demon Lung
Oxcross
Odium Totus
Urban Lounge / 9pm / $15 / 21+
Dead Meadow
Black Pussy
Dark Seas
D∅ne
Saturday June 20th
Area 51 / 2pm / $15 / 18+ Stage
SubRosa
Kowloon Walled City
Captured! By Robots
Giant Squid
Mothership
Worst Friends
Anthems
Stickfigures
Area 51 / 2pm / +$5 / 21+ Stage
God’s Revolver
Agape
Lesbian
Die Off
Exes
Danger Hailstorm
Magda-Vega
Urban Lounge / 9pm / $20 / 21+
Goatsnake
Eagle Twin
Uzala
Turbo Chugg
CrucialREST – Sunday June 21st
FREE / ALL AGES / FOOD
Kids & Dogs Welcome! No Alcohol Please
Bands and Venue TBA
*Schedule subject to change.
Accomodations
Crucialfest 5 on Facebook
Crucialfest 5 on Twitter
Saturday, April 11th
My impression of Acid Witch is that Heavy Metal has found an answer to drugs, and that answer is “Hell Yes!” This band is majestic mayhem on a stage, and their horror film inspired songs are a true pleasure to behold. Referencing Paul Verhoeven’s Robocop (set in their hometown of Detroit) for Metal Movie Marijuhana Massacre Meltdown, the bass player cheerfully yells out all of the song titles and their meanings. He also dedicates ‘Rabid Werewitch’ to all the ugly ladies. Besides the heavy grunting, the vocalist also has the best manic cackle I have ever heard. Despite having some technical difficulties leaving them occasionally unable to hear each other play, they really rocked their set and seemed to enjoy every moment of their performance. The audience sure enjoyed it, as the Patronaat was filled to the brim with head banging and swaying people.
Fields of the Nephilim, by Susanne A. Maathuis
Saturday saw the return of Fields of the Nephilim to the main stage of the 013, and the hall was almost as crowded as it was at their first set on Friday. With charismatic frontman Carl McCoy, this band is possibly the purest embodiment of Goth in existence. With a career of an astounding thirty years, they had no problem filling out two long sets with their soothing tones and hard edges.
Roadburn Audience, by Susanne A. Maathuis.
Taking the slot of a band who regretfully had to cancel their performance at Roadburn this year, Urfaust were perfectly suitable for Roadburn. Having performed at this festival before, it was no wonder they had the audience trying to cram themselves into the Green Room to witness their spectacular music. Comprised of only a drummer and guitarist/vocalist, Urfaust manage to make a spectacular amount of noise. As usual, you only miss the absence of a bass for about half a song, until you find the bass sound in the guitar. I have heard the vocals described as the cries of a baby seal in the process of being clubbed, and I must admit that this seems, at times, an apt description of the exclamations heard. It was such a shame that the show was cut just a little short by the unfortunate breaking of a guitar string. Since they were close to time anyway, there was no chance to restring the bugger and finish the show in style, and as much as the audience regretted it, the musicians themselves seemed devastated to have to leave us in such a way. Alas, such things do happen, and even the mighty Roadburn is not impervious to technical issues. The upside of the problems is that we have seen truly passionate people work their way around every obstacle, both from the bands dealing with the hurdles as the amazing crew bending over backwards to solve every problem as quickly and effectively as possible.
Sunday, April 12th, the Afterburner.
The afterburner is the final day of Roadburn, and it always has a unique atmosphere due to the composition of the audience, which is either completely mellowed out by the onslaught of the previous three days, or fresh-faced and new looking for a taste of the festival. It is a great day for people who have never been to the festival and want to sample the atmosphere before committing to the entire thing. The only open venues are the Main Stage, Green Room, and Cul de Sac.
While White Hills heated up the Main Stage, I headed over to the Green Room to get my socks rocked thoroughly off by Argus. They play Heavy Power Metal with a touch of Doom, and this blend has a very smooth sound. Their bass player has stunning stage presence, and plays superfast fingered bass that was almost as impressive to watch as it was to hear. The music is heavy and catchy as hell, and is performed with enough power to illuminate a small country. There were a lot of fans and enthusiasts in the audience, happily banging away.
Anathema, by Susanne A. Maathuis.
Possibly the most anticipated show of the Afterburner was the one performed by Anathema, who performed the “Resonance” set that they are currently touring. Resonance is a show that spans their entire oeuvre, named after the compilation albums that appeared in 2001 and 2002. With their ten albums, their music embodies a diverse reach of genres, and has had a number of changes in band composition. Two of the former band members, Darren White and Duncan Patterson, join the current iteration of Anathema on stage tonight in their respective eras.
The show is divided into three sections, and the songs are played in reverse chronological order. This means that it started off with the atmospheric and melodious style that we know today, and ended with the Doom that they started with, fronted by Darren White. In between sets there were a few minutes break to give the band the chance to prepare and make the necessary line-up changes.
It was great to hear so many of their heavier songs performed live, and I really do hope they will play a few of them on their regular shows from now on, as they have an amazing amount of energy.
There is so much to see and discover at Roadburn, that there are likely to have been people at the festival who have seen none of the bands I saw or described here. You have to make hard choices between awesome bands, but no matter what you choose, in the end it is always going to have been worth it, because Roadburn is a festival that gets into your blood.
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WORDS BY LORRAINE LYSEN
PHOTOGRAPHY BY SUSANNE A. MAATHUIS
From April 9th to the 12th it was time for the festival of Stoner, Doom, and all things Alternative: Roadburn. This was the twentieth edition of the festival, and it was, as always, a spectacle. Music lovers from all over the world congregate in Tilburg and fill the streets with black shirts and beards. One of the streets is even re-dubbed “Weirdo Canyon” in honour of all the lovely and strange people who gather here in between shows to eat and drink. This year saw the return of the Weirdo Canyon Dispatch, a daily leaflet detailing the previous day’s highlights, shows recommended by members of the organisation, and other interesting titbits of information.
While it is of course impossible to convey the Roadburn experience in mere words, I will share some of the highlights from the main stages of this year’s festival to explain what makes this festival so special. The pictures are by Susanne Maathuis, who managed to shoot a mindboggling 62 acts this year.
Thursday
Solstafir, by Susanne A. Maathuis
The first day of Roadburn, and what a day it was! Opening on the main stage was Solstafír, who celebrated the thirty year anniversary of cult-classic Viking movie Hrafninn Flýgur (When The Raven Flies). Solstafír played the instrumental film score while the film itself was projected onto the screen. Unfortunately the balance in the music was just a little off, as the bass was too soft. This show did make me really curious to watch the entire film, which was hard to follow here since the subtitles were at the bottom of the projection, and thus hidden behind the lovely musicians themselves.
Diagonally opposite the 013 sits restaurant Dudok with the club above it, Het Patronaat. This venue holds about 500 people and really brings people together – much in the same way as sardines are very close to each other. This is just another part of the Roadburn experience, as is either leaving another show early to catch a show in this venue, or waiting outside in an orderly queue in the hope that enough people leave so that you can experience the show. One of the bands that filled Het Patronaat to the brim on this first day was SubRosa, an experimental Sludge-Doom band from Salt Lake City. With three female vocalists and two electric violins, this band has a really distinctive sound which is truly delightful to witness live. Their overwhelming stage presence combined with the quality of the music made this show one of my favourites of the festival.
Subrosa, by Susanne A. Maathuis
What I love most about Roadburn is the amazing diversity in musical styles. It doesn’t matter what your favourite style is, you’re bound to encounter it somewhere. This was highlighted by the show that followed SubRosa in Het Patronaat: Spidergawd. This Norwegian Heavy Rock extravaganza encouraged us all to dance to our hearts’ delight with their ‘Post Boogie’ style, characterised by a rumbling saxophone, hard rock vocals, booming basslines, and especially the drumming. Oh gawd, the drumming. Kenneth Kapstad owns his space at the front and centre of the stage, and he gives those drums such a beating that they need to be tightened every few songs or they’ll fall apart.
Another spectacular and genre-bending band to wow the audience in the main stage was Wovenhand, who were as close to a headliner as you can get with a line-up like this Monday. This magnificent dark folk band fronted by David Eugene Edwards sounds as if someone managed to convert the American Gothic painting to music. After their stunning performance in 2011, we didn’t think they could do any better – we have never been quite so happy to be proven wrong. Playing mostly from their latest and heavier albums, the band performed with more energy than ever before, but with the same humility that brings them even closer to our hearts. Edwards may say that they “are out of [their] league,” but we know that there are few bands that can rival the show that Wovenhand gave us.
Wovenhand, by Susanne A. Maathuis
Friday, April 10th
Every year Roadburn has a curator, one person who gets the chance to handpick the Green Room and Stage01 bands for a day, as well as headlining the main stage. The choice of curator is important, because this person always gives a unique flavour to the festival by highlighting a genre. Last year Mikael Åkerfeldt bought the keywords of Swedish and Prog to life, as well as headlining with Opeth, but this year saw a veritable Viking invasion with its double curators: Ivar Bjørnson of Enslaved and Wardruna‘s Einar ‘Kvitrafn’ Selvik. Together they programmed Houses of the Holistic, an incredibly diverse program of bands in wildly varying genres, they all had one thing in common: this was pure and unadulterated music. From the eccentric but oh-so-amazing blues from Pekko Käppi to the onslaught of sound from Black Metal Svartidauði, the intensity and passion burst forth from every single musician and made this day an unforgettable experience for the audience. And these weren’t even the headliners!
For the first time since 2007, Roadburn sold one-day tickets alongside the 3 and 4-day passes and afterburner tickets. And the first day to sell out was Friday. The reason for this is quite clear: headlining the Main Stage were not just Wardruna and Enslaved, but also the amazing combination of the two that is Skuggsjá.
Wardruna, by Susanne A. Maathuis
Wardruna’s unique modern take on old instruments and chants is mind-blowing no matter how you hear it, but there are few bands that can rival the intensity of their live performance. Although Gaahl has decided no longer to perform live, the vocals were not lacking in any way. And how could they, when there are up to 9 musicians singing at once! With such a range of percussion, vocals, and traditional instruments on stage, this was an almost otherworldly experience, and the audience, in so far as I was capable of observing it at that point, was completely entranced.
What a contrast, then, was formed by the black metal attack of Enslaved. This is a whole different brand of Viking, but it is no less effective. Despite their heaviness, there was a certain serenity about the music when performed live that I had not anticipated, but that I very much appreciated. During this show I did have a good vantage over the crowd, and the Main Stage was packed with happy music lovers, all the way up to the furthest reaches of the balcony.
Enslaved, by Susanne A. Maathuis
Then it was finally time for Skuggsjá, the collaboration of Enslaved and Wardruna, and in this they seem to have found an amazing combination. The balance of which band’s style has the overhand shifts with each song, but the sound always comes together in a meaningful way. The chanting just works so well with the metal. Written by Selvik and Bjørnson for the 200th anniversary of the Norwegian Constitution, this truly is the best reflection of the diversity of Norwegian musical heritage. It was an absolute honour to witness this performed live at the 20th edition of Roadburn.
Fans partying at Roadburn 2015, by Susanne A. Maathuis
WORDS BY LORRAINE LYSEN
PHOTOGRAPHY BY SUSANNE A. MAATHUIS
Psycho California is now set for May 15, 16 and 17, 2015 at The Observatory in Santa Ana, CA with Sleep, Pentagram and Cult Of Luna as headliners.
The rest of the previously announced acts include:
Kylesa
Earth
OM
Russian Circles
Orange Goblin
Bedemon
Conan
Eyehategod
Indian
Earthless
Pallbearer
Crowbar
Stoned Jesus
Old Man Gloom
Cave In
Acid Witch
Truckfighters
Tombs
Bang
Electric Citizen
Coffinworm
SubRosa
Eagle Twin
Mammatus
True Widow
Anciients
Bellwitch
Lord Dying
Death By Stereo
Radio Moscow
Ancient Altar
Samsara Blues Experiment
Elder
Mothership
The Well
Deathkings
Wo Fat
Rozamov
Destroyer of Light
Highlands
Bloodmoon
Slow Season
Crypt Trip
Lords of Beacon House
Tumbleweed Dealer
Sinister Haze
Blackout
Red Wizard
Banquet
Loom
The epic single-track issue isn’t quite unique, but an uncommon level of creativity and musicianship is required to make the product entertaining and involving. Virginian quintet Inter Arma possesses an outrageous level of inventiveness and aptitude, and 45-minute opus The Cavern (Relapse) is certainly not shy of it.
The sheer gravity and fulminating power of much of the music here is oppressive yet it carries the weight easily, positively gambolling through more intricate moments whilst retaining intensity. A journey through the galaxies begins with eerie then soothing atmospherics, sparing acoustic and strings before the titanic, savage yet occasionally complex riff fires home and gradually introduces the plaintive hollers of Mike Paparo, delivered from atop Kilimanjaro. It’s a powerful flexing of muscle, the soundtrack to Atlas stirring after a deep sleep. That riff deals crushing blows, aided by TJ Childers’ mammoth drums, his sticks pulverising with the power of Thor’s hammer.
It would be simple to dismiss the early stages as the product of adventurous Conan wannabes but the magic of unfettered imagination shines through, not least with some staggering lead guitar play. Some fabulous intricacies at seventeen minutes lift the track to the heavens with the assistance of some SubRosa-like mournful strings, while Thin Lizzy-esque dual leads introduce the final third; a mournful howling pattern accompanying lush orchestration, the soaring beauty of Paparo’s clean vocals aided by Windhand‘s Dorthia Cottrell, all the while retaining the tracks unearthly power and superiority. It’s this blend of raw animal force, aching melody and immeasurable creativity which marks out this fantastic band. More duels bring a gloriously overblown 70s heavy prog passage to a pounding, crushing coda, a gradually slowing yet swelling reprise of the opening structures which is close to orgasmic.
This is an ambitious effort but Inter Arma haven’t merely managed to navigate it, they’ve ridden it into the skies upon Apollo’s chariot. Euphoric, moving and gut-wrenching, quite simply this is a piece of monumental greatness, a game-changer, and essential for all fans of low-end prog.
We should all pack up and go home now. Anything else will seem average after this.
10.0/10
PAUL QUINN
This has been a mighty year already for quality heavy and experimental music. When Boris puts out new music, it is a major happening across the fan base of many genres of music. Praise from critics is always nice, and Ghost Cult gave Boris a 9/10 for their new album. But when you hear more people talking up Noise (Sargent House) than many other big-ticket band releases this year save for a few, you know something cool is happening. Adding to that mix, The Atlas Moth, riding high off of their June album The Old Believer (Profound Lore), you have two of the most dynamic and interesting bands right now on the same tour. Then top it off with some avant-doom madness from Subrosa, and you have a can’t miss show top to bottom. While having three bands of a certain mystique and quality (especially Boris) brings out the super fans, it was a weird mix of indie hipsters, death metal beardos, bro dudes (hey it’s Boston) and even a few vest wearing dudes and chicks all together in a weird soup of humans on a Tuesday night in Beantown. Every metal show is basically an interesting social experiment!
Subrosa was up first and I was a little stunned at the hefty early crowd, already entranced by the first notes. Playing their deft, drone-y sludge, they hit you hard and deliberately. It’s hard not to be transfixed on the performance of front woman/axe slinger Rebecca Vernon. Her soul shaking vocals and skillful playing just smokes fierceness. Violinists Kim Pack and Sarah Pendelton pack in the drama with their intense, layered parts. I have spent reviews complaining about the the weird room that The Paradise is, and how it doesn’t do bands any favors sonically. Some of the highs from the strings were eaten up by the depth of the room, which is a shame since on record they are towering. Kim’s vocals were also a highlight tonight. The set leaned heavily on No Help for the Mighty Ones and More Constant Than The Gods (both on Profound Lore), and between the two, I favor the earlier album. Despite that, the bands’ best song on the night was ‘The Usher’ from More Constant…, and featured Dave Kush from TAM on guest vocals. Still, it was impossible at the end of their set not to feel tipsy from the strength and creativity of this band. I need to see Subrosa play a headline set, just once in my life. Just once.
Over the years I have learned how to spot greatness in bands, sometimes before they even know it. Usually, I am usually right about these things and The Atlas Moth is going to be a band that years from now, we point to this moment when they took off. They hit the stage tonight with a purpose and the poise of a veteran band that they have become. I have seen others shoot their collective load too fast when opening for Boris (because Boris is Boris), but not these guys. They just went up like any other show and eased into their set with ‘Jet Black Passenger’. The now mostly full room was just feeling it big time! Or it could have been some of the superb herb I sensed going around nearby me. Bathed in a wash of blues and reds (cool to watch from the crowd, crap for photographers), front man Stavros Giannopoulos and Kush on the conjoined vocals of shrieking despair and smoothness just melted the entire room. The entire band was just crushing tonight, as they jammed mostly new material from The Old Believer. The now modern classic of ‘Holes In The Desert’ was also welcomed to my ears on this night, and its a track that I hope never leaves the set. Kim from Subrosa came out and lent her playing to ‘The Sea Beyond’, which also was a treat. When the entire band gets to singing, screaming together as it does, it can be quite moving. Andrew Ragin, who produced the new album, also chimes in with synths, guitars and vocals is a powerhouse live. He is a difference maker. The secret weapon of the band is Dan Lasek on the drums. He has really upped the ante in terms of power and groove since he joined. Not since the mighty ISIS played some of their final shows in this very building a few years ago has post-metal been so well executed here. Bring on the headline tours boys!
Finally it was time for Boris. Some of the beardos had left after the penultimate act and there were some drunken bros who were loud as fuck the rest of the night, which pissed me off to no end. Moving right a long, Boris hit the stage with a boom, launching right into ‘Melody’ from Noise. Professional;, perfectly played, and most of all fun; Boris knows how to start an album or a party with uptempo, melodic bliss inducing rock. Takehashi Ohtani rocks the double-neck guitar/bass and moves flawlessly between either neck depending on what the parts require. Vocally he is a wizard: able to morph his voice to whatever the style of the songs call for. Atzuo Mizuno behind the kit is a powerhouse, as both a drummer and a performer. His vocals are also excellent and when he and Takehashi sing together, it is magical. Plowing right into ‘Vanilla’, another new song, the crowd let out a loud cheer. It was almost like a sporting event atmosphere in the room with many “oohs” and “ahhs” all night long. The opposite of her cohorts, Wata on guitar is quite restrained in her performances physically, but she is a beast on the axe. Her stoicism is only matched equally by her mastery of riffs, the occasional lead part, and feedback of course.
Although the band leaned heavily on the just released Noise, they mixed it up well with Pink and Amplifier Worship also represented too. The set list was constructed expertly as you would expect from this band. Raging rock and metal, introspective mellowness, followed again by waves of crashing melodies and other weirdness. Mid-set cuts such as ‘Ghost of Romance’, ‘Heavy Rain’ and ‘Cosmos’ just send you on an emotional rocket ship to space and back . Speaking of space, Boris has never been afraid of the space rock, but really labels can barely describe what this band does. They are reference points for those who need a paint by numbers experience. It’s much better than to let go and feel the show, rather than make mental notes such as “pop song, drone song, instrumental, thrash number”. Or maybe that is just me.
Closing out the night with panache, they chilled out with the somber ‘Angel’, then rocked with ‘Quicksilver’. After a drawn out feedback and noise rave-up, a friend of the bands’ came on stage and there was a sudden wedding proposal! The things you see at a show, man. Then the band returned and played ‘Vomitself’ and bid us all a good night!
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Boris Set List:
Melody
Vanilla
Pink
Statement
Ghost of Romance
Heavy Rain
Taiyo no Baka
Cosmos
Angel
Quicksilver
Encore:
Vomitself
WORDS: KEITH (KEEFY) CHACHKES