Pentagram, Hull, Bezoar, Judas Priestess @ Europa, Jan 6th, 2011

Pentagram are gods. This much is a given. They're just one of those unfukwittable things in life. Like loudly farting in a crowded library or beer for breakfast, they're always the right choice. More on them later though.

So I haven't been to many shows lately, one here or there, but hardly the number I was hitting 6 months ago. Anyways, many moons ago, my buddy Tyler of Bezoar/the Levee fame told me that he was opening up for Pentagram at Europa in January. I, of course, was fucking stoked for him because Bezoar is one of the best bands around Brooklyn right now and they totally fit that bill. On top of that, he mentioned that perennial favorites and excellent all around dudes Hull would also be on the bill. A fucking success before it even starts.

So I showed up nice and early to catch Bezoars set. Well. Fucking. Worth it. Everytime I see that band they get just a little weirder, just a little heavier, and just a little better. Straight stonerdoom morons, maybe sit this one out. This band involves though, and the ability to deal with a solo and some psyche. Now for the rest of us who can handle big boy/girl music, get this fucking album and see them live. Sarah's vox are eerie and evil as fuck, Tyler has some of the best tone in the city, and the new drummer Justin(?) totally gave the band new life. He's fucking heavy. 'Nuff Said.

Next on was Judas Priestess. They're good. They cover Judas Priest and they're all ladies. I'm sure plenny has been written about them elsewhere so I'm gonna move on.

After that, Hull. This band will be remembered in the future. Mark my fucking words people. They're one of the few bands out there tight enough to exist as a 5 piece with 5 singers and 3 guitars, claim having an awful night, and still have the entire audience raving like fucking lunatics at the end of their set. Fuck it, they're heavy enough to blow the power out of my old house, they're heavy enough to blow your fucking mind. Got it? Good. Go see Hull. Now. Asap. Stat.

Finally, Pentagram. Now, despite the fact that I truly believe in the unholy, unquestionable power of this band, I've seen them not at their best in the past. Every once in a while the sound just isn't up to par, the crowds fucking lame, Bobby's nodding off in a smack induced haze, etc. Whatever the excuse, they're not 100% reliable live.

This was not one of those shows. Easily the best I've ever seen them. Europa was a perfect fit for the crowd, the band, the vibe, just everything. Not too big or small, the sound was absolutely fucking killer, and they were tighter than a nun's cunt. Their tone was dialed, their set was on fucking point hitting a good mix of old and new, and Bobby was a fucking wildman. Now that shit, was a blast. If you missed em then, find them soon.

Weedeater, Black Tusk, Gates of Slumber, and Struck By Lighting @ Webster Hall. April 10th, 2010

I haven't posted in a long time. Basically because all I listen to is Weedeater. When that's all I listen to, I don't feel like it's necessary to repeat myself every day. Having just seen Weedeater, Black Tusk, Gates of Slumber, and Struck By Lightning at Webster Hall last weekend, I was forcefully reminded of the fact that yeah, maybe I do need to repeat myself.

WEEDEATER IS THE FUCKING SHIT. PERIOD. END OF STORY.

I am proud to report, yet again, that Dave, Keko, and Shep are still, entirely unfuckwittable. They are, undeniably, one of the heaviest, most reliably fucking awesome doom bands in the history of the Earth and nobody praise them enough.

Anyways, now that the WE cocksuck sesh is over, let's get down to the real biz.

The night opened up with this band "Struck By Lightning" who I'd never heard of but was totally blown away by. I showed up half way through the set to a lead singer in a his hero is gone shirt, blasting crusty doom, and good times already underway. Apparently one of the dudes in that band is formerly of Mouth of the Architect, all well and good, but SbL fucking destroys. Expect big things from these guys. I'm fucking stoked that Metal is getting more and more punk every day. Also, their drummer fucking kills it. Check out THEIR MYSPACE. Their live recorded shit is a lot more tech than it sounds like live but it's still awesome. I can taste notes of Disfear, HHIG, old school Baroness, classic Swedish Death Metal, and a buncha other good shit in here.

After SbL, Gates of Slumber, looking more than a little like a marauding viking hoard, took to the stage with their vengeful old school doom sounds. Like St. Vitus? Go buy a GoS album. Now. These large, hirsuit barbarians from the midwest play a brand of Doom rarely seen or heard done properly these days. Classic, Sabbath worshipping, Wino copping, old school no bullshit slow ass, riff driven heavy metal. I just recently got into these guys but I feel like they'll be around for a while to come. They're headed to Europe for the upcoming festival season over there and you can bet your ass that they're gonna fit right in with the bekutted, longhaired Hessians over there. I still have massive fucking neck pain from when they busted out "Blood and Thunder." Hesh on.

Finally, Black Tusk was the last "opener." I use quotation marks around the word opener because I feel like that term is slightly less than fitting for a band that the entire audience is going ballistic for. I'd heard some BT before and always though they were pretty good. I never really paid too much attention (probably because I was listening to Bongzilla or something) before, but after this show, my eyes (and ears) are wide fucking open to the greatness of this band. Black Tusk did something that I haven't seen a doom band do in ages. The put the goofy fucking rock star shit back into metal, and it totally rules. These dudes are possibly one of the most fun shows I've seen in ages. Fucking awesome. Jumping around, ripping shit up, headbanging, crossing the fucking guitars, wailing, all of it. No shame, no mercy, all metal. If you get a chance to see these guys, especially in a kinda small venue, be there. It's totally worth it.

Which brings us to Weedeater. Yeah, there's just nothing you can say about their set besides:

1) It fucking rules.
2) It's fucking mindblowing that these dudes are still alive.

The thing about a lot of sludgier bands is that live they tend to speed shit up. WE does the opposite. The slowly strangle the last drops of life out of every fucking note they hit. They crank the fucking volume to earsplitting levels, the bash drums harder than anyone else out there, and you could pave a fucking highway with Dave's voice. Just watch the videos and try to ignore the fact that I gave more of a shit about going nuts than holding the camera steady. Sorry bout that, it's fucking Weedeater.

CLICK THE PIC OF DIXIE FOR A LINK TO THE FLICKR PAGE.

Weedeater - God Luck and Good Speed @ Webster Hall. 4/10/10 www.nogodsnovegetables.com from Jack Crank on Vimeo.

Weedeater - "Gimme Back My Bullets" @ Webster Hall 4/10/10. www.nogodsnovegetables.com from Jack Crank on Vimeo.

Weedeater - "Time Served" @ Webster Hall Basement. 4/10/10 www.nogodsnovegetables.com from Jack Crank on Vimeo.

Weedeater - "Monkey Junction" @ Webster Hall 4/10/10. www.nogodsnovegetables.com from Jack Crank on Vimeo.

Black Tusk @ Webster Hall. 4/10/10 www.nogodsnovegetables.com from Jack Crank on Vimeo.

Gates of Slumber @ Webster Hall 4/10/10. www.nogodsnovegetables.com from Jack Crank on Vimeo.

Harvey Milk, Coalesce, and The Atlas Moth @ Le Poisson Rouge in NYC - March 8th, 2010

Here's a bunch of shots from the Harvey Milk/Coalesce/Atlas Moth show put on by the folks at Blackened last night at Le Poisson Rouge. All the bands put on a killer show despite the Monday night crowd. It's tough as shit fighting a slack audience but somehow all the bands managed to rip shit up. I've got movies coming in the near future, stay tuned.

Check some more shots on Flickr

Phases of the SunnO)))

Yesterday I went to see the Eagle Twin/Pelican/Earth/SunnO))) show at the Masonic Temple in Brooklyn. I got there pretty late which led to missing Eagle Twin, who by all accounts were pretty rad, and Pelican (meh whatever).

Here's my recap of the show:

Phase 1: Get to show, up since 4am. Excited to see Earth possibly play old stuff through big sound system. Meet friends. Slayer playing as in between bands jams. Feeling: joy

Phase 2: Earth plays all new stuff. No earplugs required. Feeling: hard to tell, drifting in and out of sleep.

Phase 3: Go to bathroom, drink water so as not to fall asleep for longer during Earth. Too relaxing after long day. Feeling: Hippy mellow

Phase 4: Earth Ends set after 3 songs/45minutes, set up for SunnO))) starts. Between band music of "Lhopsang and Tenzin's Greatest Sherpa Chanting Jams Of The Late-Colonial Period" start. Feeling: Anticipation

Phase 5: ~12:05-12:10 Set up stops, lights go down, smoke machines start. "Lhopsang and Tenzin's Greatest Sherpa Chanting Jams Of The Late-Colonial Period" continues, on itunes repeat one song. Sound check can be described as, "Yup, sounds like SunnO))) alright." Also known as "loud." Amp count 1 Massive Earth something or other bass amp I think, 8 vintage Sunn Model T's. Total for the guitar amps: somewhere between 960 and 1200 Watts. Feeling: Still anticipation, wonder at how they're going to fill a space that's at least 5000sqft with 30ft ceilings entirely with fog.

Phase 6: ~12:40 "Lhopsang and Tenzin's Greatest Sherpa Chanting Jams Of The Late-Colonial Period" still playing for the 6th time at least, room now entirely filled with smoke machine fog. Feeling: bored as fuck, sore feet, sleepy.

Phase 7: ~12:45. Monks finally show up, shit gets real loud. Cool. Feeling: Um... vibratey. Zonked.

Phase 8: Emperor Palpatine shows up for guest vocals. Sounds like 45rpm record of Bill and Ted futuristic dudes and Beavis and Butthead being played at 5rpm to mimic "Lhopsang and Tenzin's Greatest Sherpa Chanting Jams Of The Late-Colonial Period". I swear to fucking Satan himself I hear/saw this dude do the "Be excellent to each other" salute. Also, pretty sure I heard the emperor say "I need Teepee," and "Bungholio" real real slow. Feeling: Supreme amusement. Slight confusion.

Phase 9: Trombone player shows up to join Emperor Palpatine Guitars back off. Sounds a bit rusty... Feeling: Officially confused.

Phase 10: Emperor leaves, guitars come back. Still sounds like SunnO))). Feeling: Back to vibratey zonked feeling. Relief.

Phase 11: Kaiju Big Battle man sized spikey mirrored shard covered sea cucumber appears from dense green fog. Feeling: Ok seriously? What the fuck?

Phase 12: Kaiju-Big-Battle-man-sized-spikey-mirrored-shard-covered-sea-cucumber turns into even more ridiculous Hybrid-of-Emperor-Palpatine-Kaiju-Big-Battle-man-sized-spikey-mirrored-shard-covered-bird-demon-with-huge-even-spikier-crown-of-mirror-liberty-spike-horns-with-laser-pointer-in-his-fingers. Returns to singing about bungholes in the style of "Lhopsang and Tenzin's Greatest Sherpa Chanting Jams Of The Late-Colonial Period." Feeling: Unsure... Mind hasn't fully processed this yet

Phase 13: ~ 15 seconds after phase 12, mind processes Kaiju Big Battle man sized spikey mirrored shard covered sea cucumber turns into even more ridiculous hybrid of Hybrid-of-Emperor-Palpatine-Kaiju-Big-Battle-man-sized-spikey-mirrored-shard-covered-bird-demon-with-huge-even-spikier-crown-of-mirror-liberty-spike-horns-with-laser-pointer-in-his-fingers. Feeling: Laughing too hard to even watch as Hybrid-of-Emperor-Palpatine-Kaiju-Big-Battle-man-sized-spikey-mirrored-shard-covered-bird-demon-with-huge-even-spikier-crown-of-mirror-liberty-spike-horns-with-laser-pointer-in-his-fingers shines laser pointer fingers into his spiky mirror crown of thorns

Phase 14: ~1.5hrs and 30 chords since the beginning of the set. Feeling: This is fucking ridiculous, I'm out.

Yup that's a SunnO))) show for ya. Verdict: Not enough drugs in the world.

EDIT: After sending this review to Josh of the Sleepies, we had a conversation that can be summed up as

Josh: "I kinda figured out that I don't really like SunnO))) at all."

Me: "Josh, nobody actually likes SunnO))). We all just pretend to because everyone else is pretending to."

Tragedy/Morne/Brain Killer/Brainhandle live in Brooklyn 7/12/09

Last Sunday was apparently the last show ever at Studio B in Greenpoint, Brooklyn. Now, as an opening line, this may sound all kinds of dramatic and sad and shit but really, who gives a fuck. Studio B was(/is still? Who knows, this place has been "closing" for over a year now.) usually some shit üntzüntzdiscodancepartyfunkytime club that usually attracts the santorum of Brooklyn (read: coked out Royal Oak rejects and thickneck fake tan Jaegerbombs dudes) that featured the occasional rock/punk show. That being said, due to it's status as like Dubstep discodanceland, they have a fucking annihilator of a sound system featuring like a fucking wall of massive subs. Shit is epic. Anyways, to close they doors I guess they figured they'd go out on the crustiest note they could muster and managed to snag Tragedy for one US date before they head off to Europe for their summer tour.

When I first heard that Tragedy was coming to town I was totally fucking stoked. They are the Amebix of this decade and easily one of the best bands around. Then I remembered the kinda meh last Tragedy show I saw (my first time seeing them...) at the Knit last year some time and was a little hesitant. I mean this show was the first of the tour, that one was one of the last. Either way I was gonna fucking be there, especially with Morne and Brain Killer playing.

I was not let down. At fucking all. Not even a little. Brain Killer, Brainhandle, and especially Morne and Tragedy turned it in to a slaughterhouse. Brain Killer and Brain Handle are both definitely acts to catch. In fact, I'd say that BK at 538 Johnson was easily one of the best house shows I've seen in ages. Morne was way more monstrous/epic/heavy/etcetcetc than I was imagining. Actually kind of reminded me of Amebix in a few ways (you know, more than just the obvious influence on their songs). They had a great balance between slow, doomy parts, and crusty hardcore parts. The sound was excellent and they sounded like the end of the world live. Dual vox/dual guitars approach really laid down the weight.

If you're paying attention, you'll notice that I haven't really mentioned blacklisted. There's a reason for that. That reason is because brocore is fucking lame. Especially when it brings out the thickneck throwdown crew to an otherwise friendly affair. If I had to write a letter it'd prolly look something like this:

"Dear Blacklisted, while your music isn't the worst thing I've ever heard, in fact it occasionally borders on the enjoyable, your fanbase of collarwearing khaki short roundhousing kids, thickneck pound-the-shit-out-of-little-kids-for-no-reason linebackers, and awkward Boston post mall-punks isn't exactly the most enjoyable. Keep up the good work... back in Boston.

Love and Cheek Kisses,
Crank"

Anyways, it all came down to Tragedy at the end of the night. They did not disappoint. Lemme just put it this way. I usually follow the "No crowd-surfing/stage-diving for kids over 175lbs" rule pretty fucking strictly. It definitely makes the show more enjoyable for the majority. For Tragedy, I smashed that rule to fucking pieces for the first time in years. I definitely heard "Not Fucking Fodder", "Call to Arms", "The Day After", and "The Ending Fight". They also played one, possibly 2 new songs as well. Could this mean a new album? Who knows?! Shit dude, for a bunch of semi-drunk dudes they were tighter than Nancy Reagan's asshole and heavier than a 10 ton weight. EURO-FRIENDS: GO SEE TRAGEDY.

Here's some shots from the show. Sorry I don't have more of the FSU dudes trying to bludgeon my friend Matt's Gold lame clad ass. Oh yeah, and sorry I don't have better pics of Tragedy, I was busy losing my shit and going buckwild.

BRAINHANDLE








Best gameface ever




MORNE










TRAGEDY

Tragedy - The Day After Live at Studio B. July 12th, 2009 from Jack Crank on Vimeo.

Part 1: Morne - Eyes live at Studio B, Brooklyn NY July 12th, 2009 from Jack Crank on Vimeo.

Part 2 Morne - Eyes at Studio B, Brooklyn NY July 12, 2009 from Jack Crank on Vimeo.

MAD SHOWS COMING UP!

So my bands have a shit ton of shows coming up this sunday, next monday, and next tuesday.

FLYERS BY TRON TONGOY AND THE UNDEFEATABLE DAN BONES respectively.




And then on tuesday (no flyer yet) Rats in the Walls is playing Matchless Bar in Brooklyn (corner of Manhattan and Driggs) next tuesday as a benefit for Juliet (the tall lady bartender) who shattered her pelvis and broke and arm and a leg.

The only other confirmed band is God Fires Man who are supposed to be pretty great modern hard rock shit.

3 FOR FUCKING 1 ON DRINKS PEOPLE! 3 FOR FUCKING 1!
They're also raffling off a custom chopped motorcycle, yanks and mets tix, moto gift certificates, other restaurant gift certificates, and some other shit.

There's a $10 cover but the entire cover/half the bar/all the tips are going straight to her. She just got out of the hospital after like 2 weeks. Brutal.

Sleep's Night 1 Setlist from ATP

Oh yeah, just remembered I had this. Here's the first night's setlist from Sleep at All Tomorrow's Parties

Massidioci with Masshysteri 4/6/2009

Just because foreigners don't look down on us quite enough, I gave Robert and Erik from Masshysteri a few more good reasons to be glad they were born in Sweden. Hylariti ensues... sorta.

PS: Thanks for the time dudes, have a good flight back.

Masshysteri's Myspace


Massidiocy with Masshysteri 4/6/2009 from Jack Crank on Vimeo.

5 Minutes of Pleasure with NJ's The Measure

Last night Brooklyn's brand new venue, Bruar Falls (where the old Lucky Cat used to be) played host to NJ's The Measure and Sweden's Masshysteri. Super fucking fun times. Everyone in the bands were cool enough to spare a couple of minutes to answer the most inane questions I could think of on the spot. Here's 5 minutes with the Measure. Who are a blast.

The measure's myspace: NGNV WARNING this may be too much "fun" for the doom crowd. The Measure's Myspace


The Measure 4/06/2009 from Jack Crank on Vimeo.

Full Amebix/Kylesa review is up

Hey all, I finally got around to writing about the Amebix show. It's a few posts down but if yer too fucking lazy here's the link.

Amebix Review

Amebix/Kylesa Review

Holy fuck. That was unreal.

Sorry about the slow day/lack of detail. I'm currently in a world of fucking pain from Tombs/Kylesa and kylesa/amebix back to back + stacking super hard on my bike. Something more substantial will come out of this later.

EDIT: Right so it's later and now that I've had nigh on a week to process what I witnessed I think I can write some more about it. The Atakke/Thought Crime/Kylesa/Amebix show will definitely go down as one of the best shows of the year if not my life. Every aspect of this show came off flawlessly in a show that could have gone so horribly, horribly wrong (read: fat old ex-crusties digging out their old vests and slogging desperately through songs they don't remember to a crowd aghast at the patheticness...)

Anyways, I don't think I've ever been part of a crowd that was more stoked to be at a show in my life. Seeing a room of hundreds of people all in black, mostly denim, mostly covered in patches, all grinning from ear is truly a site to behold. Hell I even saw the dudes in Atakke smiling. It was that good.

I missed Atakke but Though Crime and Kylesa were great as well. It was definitely visible this wasn't any old show for the guys in thought crime. They were totally on top of their game and the sound was fucking killer. Todd looked like a little fucking kid he was so stoked to be onstage with Amebix. Kylesa just looked happy not to be being trampled like they were at the Charleston the night before, accordingly they sounded killer.

When Amebix came out it was madness. Instead of the fat old squatpunks I was expecting it was three, very well preserved, semi-goth looking dudes who had no pretension, brought no bullshit, and threw down nothing but the best. They played fucking everything the crowd wanted to hear, they played it well, and for real it sounded better than on the albums. I've now officially had Axeman and Chain Reaction stuck in my head for a week straight. These dudes know how to put on a show and I sincerely thank Roy Mayorga (who fucking killed it all night on the drums/samples) for convincing them to finally come to the states. Dudes, even the fucking backdrops eye's lit up! How sweet is that shit?

After the show I got to meet Rob and Stig for a minute while they were getting some beers. Two of the nicest guys I've ever shook hands with.

Long story short, it was everything I hoped for and more. Call me a shill or a panderer or whatever, I don't give a fuck, Amebix fucking kills it.

Here's some pics by Ralphy from that night. Ralphy's Pictures Apparently brooklyn vegan also took some.
BrooklynVegan's shots

Unholy Hell, When Does it End?

HOLY FUCKING SHIT! PENTAGRAM IN NYC!

If you wanna meet me I'll be there. With a Pentagram patch on.