Desert rock legend Brant Bjork will always be known as one of the founding members and drummer for Kyuss, but he has also built up an impressive collection of solo material under multiple monikers that somehow included his name.
His most recent effort, Once Upon A Time In The Desert, was probably my favourite of all of his expansive collection of solo work, under the name Brant Bjork Trio. Loving this record as much as I did prompt me go back and explore his back catalogue some more, where I found that I probably have under listened to a lot of his stuff, but now I have an excellent live record with a bunch of his best solo songs to rock out to in the form of Live In The High Desert. This is eleven songs, live and raw, in all of their hot a fuzzy glory, something fans of Bjork’s work will eat up.
Recorded on April 4th, 2009, this version of the band feature Dylan Roche on bass, Max Raddings on guitar, and Giampaolo Farnedi on drums, and boy do they sound tight over the almost 80 or so minutes of the two hour show that made it to the record. Some of the highlights include a killer version of Low Desert Punk, a jamming ten-plus minute version of Hydraulicks, and an almost twenty-minute, two track experience of Miss My Chick/Ultimate Kickback and Lazybones/Automatic Fantastic. The whole set is killer, but strap in, it is a long ride.
It has taken me a bit to warm up to Brant Bjork’s solo stuff. If you have had this issue too, you can get yourself right with the one-two punch of Once Upon A Time In The Desert and now this killer live record Live In The High Desert that has the man in all of his glory and in his element. 8/10
Unleashed - Fire Upon Your Lands (Napalm Records) [Mark Young]
The problem in playing catch-up is that sometimes you don’t give the music you are reviewing the right amount of love. Maybe the genre doesn’t inspire you, maybe you have reached saturation point with a given style or from a particular way it sounds. Now, Unleashed have been around awhile and have seen it, done it and come back for seconds. Despite being tagged as one of the Big Four of Swedish death metal this is my first time with them and I hope that they are gentle.
Left For Dead is about as old school as you can get. This is just straight up, boot to the face metal. No frills, just pure venom. They know that they have to grab you right from the off, its bang and we are off. Throw in a wild lead break and we have a refreshing, metal opening track, one that knows what its job is. There’s no time for resting on laurels here as they tear into A Toast To The Fallen, keeping that energy high and your interest with it. I’ll say it right now, it isn’t a revelation in that it’s something new, it’s a revelation that they can write music in this style and imbue it with the right amount of aggression given the length of time that they have been in existence. I didn’t expect this of them, which makes this all the more welcome.
Recorded on April 4th, 2009, this version of the band feature Dylan Roche on bass, Max Raddings on guitar, and Giampaolo Farnedi on drums, and boy do they sound tight over the almost 80 or so minutes of the two hour show that made it to the record. Some of the highlights include a killer version of Low Desert Punk, a jamming ten-plus minute version of Hydraulicks, and an almost twenty-minute, two track experience of Miss My Chick/Ultimate Kickback and Lazybones/Automatic Fantastic. The whole set is killer, but strap in, it is a long ride.
It has taken me a bit to warm up to Brant Bjork’s solo stuff. If you have had this issue too, you can get yourself right with the one-two punch of Once Upon A Time In The Desert and now this killer live record Live In The High Desert that has the man in all of his glory and in his element. 8/10
Unleashed - Fire Upon Your Lands (Napalm Records) [Mark Young]
The problem in playing catch-up is that sometimes you don’t give the music you are reviewing the right amount of love. Maybe the genre doesn’t inspire you, maybe you have reached saturation point with a given style or from a particular way it sounds. Now, Unleashed have been around awhile and have seen it, done it and come back for seconds. Despite being tagged as one of the Big Four of Swedish death metal this is my first time with them and I hope that they are gentle.
Left For Dead is about as old school as you can get. This is just straight up, boot to the face metal. No frills, just pure venom. They know that they have to grab you right from the off, its bang and we are off. Throw in a wild lead break and we have a refreshing, metal opening track, one that knows what its job is. There’s no time for resting on laurels here as they tear into A Toast To The Fallen, keeping that energy high and your interest with it. I’ll say it right now, it isn’t a revelation in that it’s something new, it’s a revelation that they can write music in this style and imbue it with the right amount of aggression given the length of time that they have been in existence. I didn’t expect this of them, which makes this all the more welcome.
The Road To Haifa Pier is more measured in attack, necessary to avoid punching themselves out and giving the material room to develop. The shorter run times are an absolute winner here, each track doing just enough to pummel without overstaying and they know how to write songs that avoid repeating the same trick each time. Yes, it’s melodeath but it makes sure that the melodies don’t crowd out the riffs. The break down on War Comes Again is served up in the sweetest of spots, so when they pick the pace up again it sounds excellent. This is what experience gives you, knowing when to do it within the song.
What you find as the album progresses is that they never settle into one pattern or build. Fire Upon Your Lands occupies a medium tempo but manages to still feel as though its flying whilst Hail The Varangians! Runs almost the same length but comes at you in double time. No riffs are wasted, everything is streamlined to a ruthless level and you can bet that they applied a laser beam like concentration to each song. What I love is that they are unafraid to drop a solo in, even on the shorter tracks because as we know metal has to have solo’s. I mentioned energy before, there is no drop off in intent or execution here. Each track is written in a way that you know will gain a few BPM’s when they play it live.
What you find as the album progresses is that they never settle into one pattern or build. Fire Upon Your Lands occupies a medium tempo but manages to still feel as though its flying whilst Hail The Varangians! Runs almost the same length but comes at you in double time. No riffs are wasted, everything is streamlined to a ruthless level and you can bet that they applied a laser beam like concentration to each song. What I love is that they are unafraid to drop a solo in, even on the shorter tracks because as we know metal has to have solo’s. I mentioned energy before, there is no drop off in intent or execution here. Each track is written in a way that you know will gain a few BPM’s when they play it live.
However, all good things must come to an end and with this in mind we come to Unknown Flag. It ends the album in the same way that Left For Dead started it, on the front foot continually pushing forward beating all in its path. Its great stuff, ending in squealing feedback and you know, I loved it. Each track just had the right vibe about it, a delicious metal vibe where they remind you why you got into metal in the first place. 8/10
Giants Dwarfs And Black Holes - Cherrytree Stories And Other Innuendo Tales (Self Released) [Rich Piva]
The most 70’s thing you will hear all day (maybe all year) is the new record from Germany’s Giants Dwarfs And Black Holes. Not because of monster 70’s Sabbath riffs, or proto stylings, or early NWOBHM vibes. This is psych prog with some jazz and lounge leanings. Yup, and it is pretty damn cool. Cherrytree Stories And Other Innuendo Tales is four long tracks that makes you feel like you are in 1974 (I assume) in the best, and not the most common, sort of way these days.
Some of the positives here: first, Christiane Thomaßen’s vocals are just gigantic and killer. Her voice is perfect for the vibe of this record. Second, the production is exactly where it should be for these four songs. Next, the instrumentation, especially the guitar work, is top notch. Some might think there is too much going on, but give the record three or four spins as it will eventually click for you, like it did for me. At least for those of you who have the attention span for a 19 minute 70’s prog jam, A Cent For The Old, Hollow And Stuffed Guy.
Giants Dwarfs And Black Holes - Cherrytree Stories And Other Innuendo Tales (Self Released) [Rich Piva]
The most 70’s thing you will hear all day (maybe all year) is the new record from Germany’s Giants Dwarfs And Black Holes. Not because of monster 70’s Sabbath riffs, or proto stylings, or early NWOBHM vibes. This is psych prog with some jazz and lounge leanings. Yup, and it is pretty damn cool. Cherrytree Stories And Other Innuendo Tales is four long tracks that makes you feel like you are in 1974 (I assume) in the best, and not the most common, sort of way these days.
Some of the positives here: first, Christiane Thomaßen’s vocals are just gigantic and killer. Her voice is perfect for the vibe of this record. Second, the production is exactly where it should be for these four songs. Next, the instrumentation, especially the guitar work, is top notch. Some might think there is too much going on, but give the record three or four spins as it will eventually click for you, like it did for me. At least for those of you who have the attention span for a 19 minute 70’s prog jam, A Cent For The Old, Hollow And Stuffed Guy.
The opener, Reframe, is some soft psych, into heavy prog, into lounge, and back around again over the seven-plus minutes of the track, in the most glorious way. The eight-plus minute Electric Black has quite the groove, with the opening sounding like the theme song to a 70’s cop show or maybe an alternate universe Roger Moore era Bond theme. The jazzy guitar work on this one is excellent. There are serious Grace Slick vibes while the band goes all funky on us. Speaking of funky and groovy, check out Under The Cherrytree. Weird and wonderful. The production sounds like a Cream record, which is exactly how this song should sound. This record is a lot, so strap in for a wild ride.
Not for those looking for big riffs, screamed vocals, and up tempo stoner jams, but for those who want to expand their mind, trip a bit, and get nerdy, Cherrytree Stories And Other Innuendo Tales is Giants Dwarfs And Black Holes bringing all sorts of 70’s goodness to the party, just not the ones you would always expect. 7/10
Blackbraid - Blackbraid III (Independent) [Mark Young]
Now, I have definitely missed the buzz around Blackbraid. I’ve seen them mentioned on socials, but like a lot of bands I’ve never heard anything by them. In case you are in the same boat as me, Blackbraid is a solo act, presenting black metal through an indigenous filter which makes the music unique amongst black metal circles. I mentioned the buzz, and as I understand it each release has been highly regarded amongst metal circles and as a result expectations are high that this is going to be a ripper.
I’m not cross, just disappointed. It starts off with Dusk (Eulogy), an acoustic introduction which now seems to be de rigueur with a lot of metal releases. It Is different as it has a distinct old west flavour, one influenced by the spaghetti westerns of the 60s as its sudden end explodes into Wardrums at Dawn On The Day Of My Death, a supercharged black metal missile of pounding drums, rapid fire guitars and of course those harsh vocals, all courtesy of Sgah’gahsowáh, the driving force behind this cacophonous sound. It still follows traditional black metal steps though; the rapid pulls back into a measured tempo which denotes how the tale is being told. It is impressive without blowing my mind but as my first introduction it’s a very strong start.
Not for those looking for big riffs, screamed vocals, and up tempo stoner jams, but for those who want to expand their mind, trip a bit, and get nerdy, Cherrytree Stories And Other Innuendo Tales is Giants Dwarfs And Black Holes bringing all sorts of 70’s goodness to the party, just not the ones you would always expect. 7/10
Blackbraid - Blackbraid III (Independent) [Mark Young]
Now, I have definitely missed the buzz around Blackbraid. I’ve seen them mentioned on socials, but like a lot of bands I’ve never heard anything by them. In case you are in the same boat as me, Blackbraid is a solo act, presenting black metal through an indigenous filter which makes the music unique amongst black metal circles. I mentioned the buzz, and as I understand it each release has been highly regarded amongst metal circles and as a result expectations are high that this is going to be a ripper.
I’m not cross, just disappointed. It starts off with Dusk (Eulogy), an acoustic introduction which now seems to be de rigueur with a lot of metal releases. It Is different as it has a distinct old west flavour, one influenced by the spaghetti westerns of the 60s as its sudden end explodes into Wardrums at Dawn On The Day Of My Death, a supercharged black metal missile of pounding drums, rapid fire guitars and of course those harsh vocals, all courtesy of Sgah’gahsowáh, the driving force behind this cacophonous sound. It still follows traditional black metal steps though; the rapid pulls back into a measured tempo which denotes how the tale is being told. It is impressive without blowing my mind but as my first introduction it’s a very strong start.
Things settle a little on The Dying Breath Of A Sacred Stag, occupying a middle tempo feel, absorbed on providing more melodic touches into the savagery displayed earlier. This lands like black metal from the Scandinavian wastes, especially when the speed is dialled in and we hit some serious BPM’s. Its failing is that it goes on a touch too long, and whilst I appreciate that it sounds good it would have been better to have been shorn of a minute or two, especially as the outro re-treads what has gone before. I love those short blasts of maniacal metal; they get the blood pumping and keeps you off balance. Now, I have made no secret of my feelings on instrumentals, especially when they turn up relatively early in the running order.
My problem is that unless it shares the same pace as the song before it, any momentum built is expelled like a bag of crisps being stepped on. This is exactly what happens once The Earth Is Weeping comes in and goes nowhere. It is obvious that I am not looking at the context around the song and the inspiration for its creation I am looking at how it affects the flow and it brings things to a juddering halt. God Of Black Blood is next up and its back to normal service. It relies on a steady pace, nothing more and works because of it. A powerful track but one that takes a lot of cues from traditional metal, the building movement as it nears its end, the pull back into a lead break, all done without unnecessary speed. It would have been easier for them to bust out another 1000mph blaster but in doing this it allows for things to breathe.
So, fully expecting them to now achieve take off velocity, another instrumental is dropped into play. Traversing The Forest Of Eternal Dusk has more going for it than its earlier counterpart, but not enough to suddenly make me change my mind. It must take supreme confidence in one’s ability, or in the music recorded to do this and, in that respect, I doff my hat. The trouble is that I have lost interest in what happens next, especially when faced with the 9-minute Tears Of The Dawn.
So, fully expecting them to now achieve take off velocity, another instrumental is dropped into play. Traversing The Forest Of Eternal Dusk has more going for it than its earlier counterpart, but not enough to suddenly make me change my mind. It must take supreme confidence in one’s ability, or in the music recorded to do this and, in that respect, I doff my hat. The trouble is that I have lost interest in what happens next, especially when faced with the 9-minute Tears Of The Dawn.
It is amazing how one thing can change your perception, because as it unfolds Tears...is a decent track, its just that I’m no longer invested in it. It doesn’t shout to me that this is the benchmark from which all other black metal releases should be measured against. I’m not even shocked when its followed by another instrumental, just bored. There’s nothing wrong with Like Wind Through The Reeds Making Waves Like Water but at the same time feels like it is a placeholder.
Segueing into And He Became The Burning Stars we are back on the same path that Tears walked down. I’m desperately trying to be down on this, and it’s difficult because it is like the early promise has fallen off a cliff. There is nothing on this that you haven’t heard elsewhere, and it suffers from the same problem in its length is just too long.
After what feels like an interminable age, Fleshbound brings proceedings to an end. A Lord Belial cover, as ending statements go it doesn’t rage or go for broke in the way I would have expected. You have to have those explosive moments that kick off and close out an album, they have to embed themselves in you, bring a visceral thrill and stomp a hole in you.
I was hoping to come away from this with a newfound love and I haven’t. Rather than say anything else, I’ll stop before I start being unnecessarily snarky. 6/10
I was hoping to come away from this with a newfound love and I haven’t. Rather than say anything else, I’ll stop before I start being unnecessarily snarky. 6/10
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