Dare I say this is a very, very textbook tribute to some of the "big names" in metal. There's nothing surprising or new about these bands. You probably own at least several, if not all of these bands albums. If you don't, go, now, spend your next pay check, your parents money on METAL!
I thought of making this mix at 6:30 this morning and stuck with it. This is not an end all list, and I know I'm leaving out some notable and more favorable bands, deal with it. There will be other 'tributes' to old school metal. So just wait. This is probably a mix I'd make a 10 year old who wants to learn how to kick ass. Parents: copy this for your children.
Here's the list (made in no particular order):
1. A.I.R.- Anthrax
2. (Lost the Title)-Death Angel
3. Sanctuary- Iron Maiden
4. The Conjuring- Megadeth
5. At Dawn They Sleep- Slayer
6. Brain Dead- Exodus
7. The Haunting- Testament
8. Stone Dead Forever- Motorhead
9. Screaming For Vengeance- Judas Priest
10. (Anesthesia) Pulling Teeth- Metallica
I'd like to take this brief break from the usual ramblings and vent for just a few paragraphs. I try not to use this blog for political means, but sometimes you just have to vent in front of an anonymous audience. Perhaps I'm not alone in how I feel.
For those of you who live and possibly drive in my beloved San Francisco, you know, or will know of the horrors of the driving in the City and the penalties that come as a consequence. This is for you. An article written by the usually disagreeable C.W. Nevius attempts break down the SFMTA's financial game plan for the 2011 year. This is my reaction:
One of the many hot button topics on the table, especially in recent months, has been parking enforcement. Because the SFMTA revenue is down $7 million over the last year the MTA has decided to crack the whip and cast down their fists of fury, ie attempt to hand out as many tickets as possible. That means, in the past year you gave out $7 million less in citations. One could speculate the many reasons why this drastic drop in funds took place. People are: driving and parking smarter (aka following the law), riding bikes or taking the bus (another source of income for MUNI and the SFMTA).
Because people are being good behind the wheel or seeking alternative forms of transportation, that makes the SFMTA furious. While they choose to deny this, they factor income from citations into the budget. I cannot prove this, but it sounds like a good idea.
The common parking ticket costs between $55 and $65, depending what part of town you're in. That's the almost as much as a person earning minimum wage makes in a day. OF COURSE THEY'RE GOING TO TRY REAL HARD TO AVOID A TICKET! I also find it hilarious that the city with the highest minimum wage also has some of the most costly citations in the country.
This increase in traffic and parking enforcement also sends a scare to anyone with a car. It sends a message that says, "Don't drive in the city because you're likely to get a ticket of some kind." Instead, go to shopping malls with parking garages, or stay home and shop online! This deterrent to drive into the city is also bad for small businesses. Neighborhoods are already tough enough to drive and park in. By scaring people away, you're scaring away business. Doesn't City Hall claim to defend small businesses?
SFMTA: quick trying to put your hands deeper into my pockets. Come up with less destructive ways to raise money. And why are you so strapped for cash anyways?
A few years back I vaguely remember hearing something about David Bowie and this infamous "I Fucked Mick Jagger" shirt. Somehow I made up in my mind a picture of the two in bed, I had convinced myself it was real. It wasn't This is what was found.
The point of that story was that through those means, real and fantasy, I thought it would be HILARIOUS if there was a picture of Henry Rollins in bed with either Jello Biafra or Glenn Danzig wearing the Jagger shirt. Part of that came true.
Thanks to the kind folks at Igloo Tornado made this a reality. Henry & Glen: Forever captures what would happen if Henry Rollins and Danzig were a gay couple and living together. While not a linear narrative, the authors and illustrators created a series of snap shots at would could have been. Not only does the comic take cracks at the individual personalities and careers of these punk icons, but they've clearly taken sides of who's who in the relationship. Clearly Henry is wearing the proverbial pants (in the form of shorts, naturally). Also included are excerpts from their the diaries. And to make things even more 'out there' Hall and Oates are the couple's satanic Neighbors. These guys have done their homework capturing the true essence of Henry and Glenn. I wish they would make a sitcom based on this comic.
Anyone who's a fan of either Rollins or Danzig's careers would enjoy the hell out of this comic. It's super cheap and it's the size of a CD case.
I'll say this 'til the day I die: Bottom of the Hill might be thee best place to see semi-big bands in the city. The place is small, always looks packed, and it's far more intimate than Slim's. Southern California fuzz lords graced this club with their presence to celebrate the 15 year anniversary of the album In Search Of, and decided to play it start to finish. As a whole, I prefer No One Rides for Free but the classics on tonight's set list are far more timeless.
I'm developing a soft spot for openers Dust Angel. They are where I'd like to be, musically, in 10 years, if I have a day job. Featuring members of B'last, Dusted Angel are a bunch of guys who've decided to pay tribute to stoned and heavy music from the last 30 years. They're great: super rockin' and totally heavy. The vocalist, Clifford, sings a little like Wino meets Pepper from C.O.C. but since he doesn't play any instruments, he's left to whirl his lion's mane of hair. These guys were fun! They played just long enough that I wasn't bored of them, but not wanting more. As far as I'm concerned they're a Bay Area cult classic.
The information regarding Fu Manchu's set for the night (aside from playing In Search Of all the way through) would also include selections strictly from their other early works, the first two albums, I was told. I was hoping to see them play 'Ojo Rojo' and 'Evil Eye', but instead, they played jams from all over their cache of albums, never a bad thing. While I like the whole vintage era sets, the 'Chu have a reliable and predictable career for the most part and to deprive the fans of tunes like 'Wierd Beard' would be a crime, fortunately that was the encore. After almost 25 years the band looks likes what I imagine every dad who grew up on the beach, smoking pot, skate boarding and listening to Black Flag would look like. I imaged them getting out of their van and a billow of pot smoke masking their faces. "Which way is the club, man". Their set was heavy and high energy. Hearing their tone live makes your whole body vibrate, but not like it does when you see the Melvins. It doesn't hurt as much. It made me want to relive 14 years old, skating down the block and kickin' ass, but I'm too lazy and frail to do that anymore. To witness this show was to say the least fucking sweet. I'm never a huge fan of band's playing albums in their entirety, but sometimes you have to make an exception.
I really wanted to post something but I couldn't think of anything to write and this particular volume of the Mix Tape Series was burning in the back of my head for over a week. This is another 'locals only' ordeal, except maybe you haven't heard of these bands. Most of this is shameless promotion of friends' bands. I'm spoiled enough to live in a musical climate that breeds rad bands, some of whom I know or see live regularly. This is a small celebration of the working man's band. This is hopefully one of many 'local ordeals'. (Sorry for the lack of song titles to those involved in this mix tape. Please feel free to make those song titles available.)
I strongly encourage everyone to check out any and all of these bands. These are all amazing local talent. Go to their shows, buy them albums or demos. Bands involved: thank you for making this music. Much obliged.
Vol. 3: Keep it in the Family
1. Slugtura (Book One)
2. (Untitled)- Angkor Vat
3. (Untitled)- Mutual Abuse
4. Population Control- Pigs
5. Prayer of the Hunted- Hazard's Cure
There's too many awesome bands from the Bay Area that were, to me, a big deal, but to the rest of the world, maybe not so much. Some of them broke up, some of them have gone on an indefinite hiatus, or play once in a blue moon. These are tunes from bands that really opened my eyes to underground talent and helped change my view of the music scene. This by no means a definite list, but it features bands that are to this day in heavy rotation.
Vol. 2:
1. Backseat Astronaut- Night After Night
2. 6th Street Paradise- Old Grandad
3. Chosen Child- Parchman Farm
4. Assed Out, Passed Out- Drunk Horse
5. Bitter Pill- Lost Goat
It's Sunday night, and you still want to party. Right? Good. Here's a special treat courtesy of my main man, Eli. This is a recording of the might Drunk Horse playing the Auto Art Gallery on 5/12/2005. As far as I'm concerned, this was during their peak. Right before "In Tongues" was released.
Here's the set list, if memory serves me right: 1. Plastic Doll 2. Howard Phillips 3. Nice Hooves 4. Secret Ingredient 5. On the Beach (Neil Young Cover) 6. Priestmaker 7. National Lust
You know your day is going to be good when you wake up and realize that you're going to end your day by going to see Neurosis. If you listen to heavy music, and don't live under a rock, you very well have crossed paths with this musical juggernaut at least once. At this point in their career Neurosis doesn't have to do much to please fans. So when they decided that it was a good idea to maybe play only 10 shows a year, at most, you best be at one of them. Usually seeing Yob or Neurosis by themselves would be a treat on its own, but back to back, on the same night? You're spoiling me.
U.S. Christmas is one of those bands that until this show I've heard of, on paper, but never actually heard. The band took the stage, all of it. I believe there were at least seven members. What shocked me the most is that you could tell how much effort they put into their live set. Two drummers, a hand percussionist and a violinist were the standout members. To be truthful, they didn't need all of them. The more members took up the stage, everything began to blur together. The rhythms weren't all too complicated and you couldn't hear the bongos at all. I'm guessing they added so much stuff in their recordings that they thought they could bring it to their live show. The outcome was something heavy enough for the heavy fans, but artsy enough to open for Sonic Youth. To top it off, their sing sounds like Wayne Campbell when he does an extreme closeup, "WOOOOOOOAAAAAAAH!"
Yob is another band that doesn't play a whole lot, but always worth the wait. I've said it many times: next to maybe Joe Preston, Mike Sheidt might be one of the heaviest dudes alive. His rig, his tone, HEAVY! Yob=HEAVY. What made their set even more amazing is that I had a giant plate of nachos sitting in front of me. Talk about awesome. Mr. Sheidt apologized to the crowd, saying that he was sick and that his vocals might not be up to snuff. They were perfect. They go through enough effect pedals that you couldn't even hear a sniffle. His voice is the doom version of Geddy Lee. Every time I seem them, he's 'sick'. Perhaps he's just insecure? Throughout most of their set, you could only heavy the thick dialogue between the bass and guitars, the drums seemed almost non-existent, but somehow it worked. Aside from on-and-off technical difficulties, their set was crushing.
In what seemed like no time at all, Neurosis bombarded the stage and brought their visions of the apocalypse to life. This is a band that is always in control of their vision. With the lights dimmed over the band, A visual overload was shown above. Josh Graham's visual translation of the band will never be matched. As they played 'Through Silver And Blood' it was the first time I actually panicked from listening to this band. I'm sure we've all heard 'evil' music before, but this music is truly the sound of the end of the world. They are the sounds of a world coming down. Live, with the music and visuals, it's so easy to get lost in the whole experience. It's fucking intense. It doesn't help that the two people screaming at you look like bears ready to maul your face. I find it amazing that a band, whose members' live in different states, can come together and create such a masterpiece. I was expecting a mosh pit, but everyone was too spellbound by the band. You couldn't do anything else. It's almost like Neurosis plays in front of people to prove that the sounds they've created are real and crafted from the hands of men, perhaps even gods.
This is what will hopefully be the first installment of many. I like the idea of mixtapes. I don't want to post entire albums and give it to you, sometimes that almost too easy. This is meant to encourage you to seek bands out and support music, not feel entitled to freebies. Enjoy! (Download under the track list)
My hopeful goal with this 'segment' is to get demos, albums, etc. of local bands. Whoever reads this, please help spread the word. my email is melvinsfink@gmail.com. If you can send me a digital copy that would be rad, or just email me and we'll work it out.
Vol. 1: "Grinding Into the New Year" 1. Agorapocalypse Now- Agoraphobic Nosebleed 2. Conform- Nails 3. Gestation of Smegma- Cattle Decapitation 4. Decontamination- Insect Warfare 5. Living Next Door to Malice- Nasum 6. Targets- Rotten Sound
http://www.mediafire.com/?1sx4802o4yone
(Sorry if the whole download thing isn't what you're used to. I'm still figuring all this stuff out. thanks for the cooperation.)
Nails' 2010 album 'Unsilent Death' is probably the best grind album I've heard in a while. You can tell from the card stock slip and captivating album art, that looks like it was xeroxed or silk screened first, that this album will fuck you up. It has all the signs of a band that's going to crush you with their music (not to discredit the time spent on the album artist). This album, which is only just over 13 minutes, is why I love grindcore. The opener, 'Conform' wastes NO time smashing your face into the sidewalk. I've heard this expression, and have used it before, but I really mean it this time. There's no build up, no soundclips, just grind. Nails conjure the spirits of their brothers in grind from Sweden without sounding like them. Okay, they like Nasum, but they hide that notion more than, say, Rotten Sound. The album, recorded by Converge's Kurt Ballou, captures the rawness of the grind. Having someone like Ballou behind the mixing board was the right choice, he knows how to capture raw energy without too much cacophony. The genius behind the song writing on this album is that it doesn't rely on technical musicianship, just sheer brutality. The music is not very complicated, which allows the songs to get right to the point. It possess a lot of the good parts of early crust grind and some hints of 90s hardcore. The lame part of this record is that it's so damn short! I want more! Simply put, go buy this record.
Simply put, Iron & Wine sucks. No, really. I hate that band, a lot. Here's why:
In the Fall of 2004 I had just started my schooling at the University of Oregon in Eugene, OR. I shared a dorm room (for all of you who have attended this school know calling those cubicles 'rooms' is a generous offer) with a kid named Paul. Paul and I bonded over 90s hardcore and the occasional fart joke, but that was it. When we were both in our shared space we'd have to compete for who got to listen to music without headphones. On one of those days he happen to put on Iron & Wine.
"Is this the Foo Fighters?" I asked. At the time I thought it sounded very similar to Dave Grohl's acoustic recording of the song 'Everlong'
(Scroll down to hear the song).
"No," Paul replied. "It's Iron & Wine."
For the next few months I would live in a recurring state of annoyance. I'm not saying that Iron & Wine sounds exactly like 'Everlong', but c'mon, it threw me off every time I'd hear it. The album I was hearing had that similar, perhaps exaggerated, whisper Grohl uses on 'Everlong'. And every time he'd play that album, I kept on waiting for Dave Grohl to chime in. This fucked with me for quite some time. Then everyone was listening to Iron & Wine, which made things worse.
Okay, let's all say what Iron & Wine really is: The 'mastermind' behind Iron & Wine, Samuel Beam, happened to get lucky. The basis of his music is essentially playing an acoustic guitar and whispering into your ear. Really? It's that simple? Maybe not, but it sure sounds like it.
Mr. Beam has done what thousands of people with an acoustic guitar, and perhaps a four-track recording device, can do. He's doing the same with guys with musical ability have been doing with their girlfriends for ages, but in the privacy of their bedroom, where it should stay. This music, to me, comes off like you're being sung at directly in the ear. As far as execution of a mood goes, he's hit the nail on the head. But why are people paying money for this? There's nothing original about it. You know there's some dude who heard this guy and said, "Shit! He beat me to it." I have friends that have been making recordings like this for years, how come they aren't making the big bucks? Mr. Beam's music doesn't even deserve the title of 'Indie'. I see people in cafes doing the same thing for chump change. I'm not saying that this kind of music shouldn't exist, it's just not worthy of a record contract and possibly large sums of money and notoriety.
