Tuesday, June 18, 2013

New releases

Out now - Yoshiko Ohara - Ringing In Our Wrists - Ice Level Music
July 16 - Stomach Earth - Stomach Earth - Black Market Activities
July 16 - Phantom Glue - A War of Light Cones - Black Market Activities
July 23 - Body Stuff - Body Stuff (EP) - The Path Less Traveled Records
August 13 - Old Wounds/Trenchfoot - (split 7") - Melotov Records
August 13 - No Sir - The Future Is Bright - Twelve Gauge Records
August 27 - Self Defense Family - The Corrections Officer In Me (EP) - Family Drugs
August 27 - Bone Dance - Snakecharmers (EP reissue) - Melotov Records
August 27 - Calculator - These Roots Grow Deep (reissue) - Melotov Records
Fall '13 - Nervous - title tba - Twelve Gauge Records
Fall '13 - Tiger Flowers - title tba - label tba
Fall '13 - Meek Is Murder - title tba - label tba
Fall '13 - Czar - title tba - label tba
Fall '13 - Pyrrhon - title tba - Selfmadegod Records

Out now - YOSHIKO OHARA - Ringing In Our Wrists - Ice Level Music
Bloody Panda frontwoman Yoshiko Ohara has been compared to “Diamanda Galas and PJ Harvey” by The Village Voice. A Japanese-born vocalist and painter, Ohara’s new solo album was released this spring on Ice Level Music, the label owned by Kayo Dot frontman/composer Toby Driver. Her latest performances are ultra intense one-woman shows, often set to visual projections. She's a powerhouse and one of a kind. Look out for news of her next live appearances, coming soon.

July 16 - STOMACH EARTH - Stomach Earth - Black Market Activities
Transfixing debut album from the solo project of The Red Chord guitarist Mike “Gunface” McKenzie. Massive, creeping death-doom of the underworld, recalling the vast void of early Godflesh and the morbid grandeur of early Cathedral.

July 16 - PHANTOM GLUE - A War of Light Cones - Black Market Activities
Boston crushers, equally versed in sludge, doom, and noise rock, churn it out with nods to Neurosis, Trouble, and The Jesus Lizard, plus a heavy H.P. Lovecraft vibe throughout the lyrics and art. Recorded by Converge’s Kurt Ballou. Frontman Matt Oates was a bandmate of Ballou’s in the pre-Converge band The Huguenots!

July 23 - BODY STUFF - Body Stuff (EP) - The Path Less Traveled Records
The debut solo recording by me, Curran Reynolds! Ghostly little New York City street anthems. Me on vocals, programmed drums, and hooks galore. Maybe some Justin Broadrick, maybe some Walter Schreifels. To me, it’s all Billy Idol. Ryan Jones (Today Is The Day, Mutilation Rites, Wetnurse) helped me make the record, Colin Marston (Gorguts, Krallice) mastered it. Check out a song/video here: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=i8IO38WERTg

August 13 - OLD WOUNDS/TRENCHFOOT - (split 7”) - Melotov Records
O.W. are a killer young metallic hardcore band from Jersey, reviving the spirit of bands like Turmoil and Buried Alive for the next generation. They’ve been keeping busy since the release of their acclaimed debut album in February, touring back and forth across the US with Full Of Hell and others, and they’re playing the coveted Power Of The Riff Festival in August in LA. Trenchfoot are a like-minded bunch from upstate New York who have recorded with Converge’s Kurt Ballou, and the two set out to tour the nation today!

August 13 - NO SIR - The Future Is Bright - Twelve Gauge Records
A Bay Area hardcore punk band, coming out of the current California scene of poetic, artistic types keeping it raw and DIY - bands like Ghostlimb, Loma Prieta, and Trash Talk. No Sir balance gloomy introspection, forward-charging aggression, and a perfect use of rock hooks, reflecting influences like Negative Approach, Dead And Gone, and Nirvana. Recorded by Comadre's Jack Shirley (Graf Orlock, Deafheaven).

August 27 - SELF DEFENSE FAMILY - The Corrections Officer In Me (EP) - Family Drugs
A post-hardcore collective, formerly known as End Of A Year, among other names, known for its evolving lineup and its vast catalog of releases on a diverse list of labels (new album coming soon on Deathwish Inc, after this EP on the Family Drugs label, a collaboration between Twelve Gauge Records boss Jihad Rabah and producer Sam Pura). S.D.F. nod to the world-weary storytelling vibe of Lungfish as well as the driving tension of Killing Joke. This is a band of intelligent people doing their own thing by their own rules.

August 27 - BONE DANCE - Snakecharmers (EP reissue) - Melotov Records
Reissue of out-of-print EP by Boise, Idaho's finest nihilists, originally released in 2010. For fans of Botch, Gaza, Tiger Flowers. Features new art and packaging.

August 27 - CALCULATOR - These Roots Grow Deep (reissue) - Melotov Records
Reissue of out-of-print collection of early material, originally released in 2010. Bay Area hardcore punk with heart, for fans of Comadre, Hot Cross, Rites of Spring. Features new art and packaging.

Fall ’13 - NERVOUS - title tba - Twelve Gauge Records
With members of Loma Prieta, this Bay Area crew bang it out like a punker Nirvana on their awesome debut!

Fall ’13 - TIGER FLOWERS - title tba - label tba
In the studio now! Tiger Flowers build upon the darkest metallic hardcore vibes of bands like Deadguy and Kiss It Goodbye, and frontman Jesse Madre's intensity and sincerity are unmatched... and all this is oddly-yet-perfectly balanced by the fact that Madre riffs like a stand-up comedian and that the band cite early 80's Motley Crue as a key inspiration. They were a staple of my Precious Metal shows and they're now a standout of the New York scene at large. The debut full-length is being recorded and mixed by Elliot Geller (Malignancy, Dim Mak) and mastered by Shane Frisby (Turmoil, Revocation). 

Fall ’13 - MEEK IS MURDER - title tba - label tba
Recording this summer! Violent bursts of royal shred from this awesome Brooklyn band, possessing soul like Botch and chops like Yngwie. Features ex-The Red Chord guitarist Mike Keller and Metal Injection boss Frank Godla on drums. This is their second full length - and second to be produced by Converge's Kurt Ballou and mastered by Alan Douches (Mastodon, Dillinger Escape Plan, so many more...)

Fall ’13 - CZAR - title tba - label tba
Recording this summer! Direct support for Killing Joke on a full US tour this spring, Chicago’s Czar prepare to record their second full-length with Hum frontman Matt Talbott producing. Ominous atmospheres, machine-like metal and colossal hooks are the trademark. Glowing comparisons to Gojira and Mastodon abound.

Fall ’13 - PYRRHON - title tba - Selfmadegod Records
Recording this summer! A band I’ve called “NYC's best death metal band” for years will probably transcend that tag entirely with their new album, moving beyond any such simple description. The technical meets the visceral: these young virtuosos rip out dazzling, twisted, extreme metal yet without the stink of showboating. As sick as the playing is, this is music from the gut, perhaps inspired by Swans as much as by Gorguts, and intensified by a sincerely unhinged vocal delivery conveying true urban despair. Ryan Jones (Today Is The Day, Mutilation Rites, Wetnurse) produces.