I’ve been lucky enough to see a lot of good shows this year, and the year is only halfway finished. I already have two more shows planned for the next couple months (John Carpenter and L7), and might be able to wrangle up a couple more before summer’s end.
Clutch’s (Neil Fallon – Guitar and vocals, Jean-Paul Gaster – drums, Dan Maines – bass, Tim Sult – guitar) 2005 album Robot Hive / Exodus was the rock record you needed in 2005, and is still the rock record you need right now.
“The Incomparable Mr. Flannery” is pretty much a salute to their metalhead fans, as Fallon gives shout-outs to Dokken, Boston, Kansas, REO Speedwagon, and George Thorogood and the Delaware Destroyers.
“Burning Beard” was the big single for the album. It’s about a man losing his mind as CNN, “the power of the Holy Ghost,” and the “same three dogs looking back” at him conspire to drive him nuts (although he was probably already there). Sult shreds particularly hard on this track, giving us some of his wildest guitar work on any Clutch record.
“Gullah” seems to be about a man coming to terms with his impending doom. “Ain’t no doubt Jesus sees us acting foolishly on American Bandstand,” Fallon sings. “Ain’t no doubt Vishnu missed you, then Kali kissed you. Better get busy. Days get shorter, air get colder…” Heavy stuff with slightly reverbed space-rock guitar and a wicked beat.
The robot hive mentioned in the album’s title is entered in “Mice and Gods.” It mentions “silver women on the OMNI magazine” and calls to “engineer the future now. Damn tomorrow, future now!” The guitar work on runs between the border of stoner rock and prog rock, which is to say it’s quite good.
“Pulaski Skyway” seems particularly relevant in 2016 as it mentions “real estate moguls, Chump Towers.” Maines and Gaster team up for a killer groove on it, as Fallon pleads that we must find salvation in trying times or lose our minds to the robot hive building up around us. “Never Be Moved” is, by its title alone, another exploration of religion. “Woe be the architect in his slumber, for the Watcher never sleeps,” Fallon sings, and almost raps the second verse. The use of organ (by guest Mick Schauer) in the song is also a nice touch, giving it a southern Baptist church call-and-response feel.
“10001110101” reminds us that we are in a robot hive, but we can have an exodus from it if we choose. “The shackles of automata will shatter like their bones,” Fallon sings, and who else but Clutch could pull off a song with a title and chorus in binary? “Circus Maximus” once again reveals the band’s love of monsters and oddities, mentioning manticores, Cthulu, dopplegangers, and even a “seven-legged sow.”
“10,000 Witnesses” is another call to escape the drudgery of the robotic world we’ve created by looking inward and outward for the spiritual. “Land of the Pleasant Living” has clever lyrics about Russian cosmonauts wondering what life is like below them in the U.S.
“Gravel Road” is floor-stomping, sweaty, honkytonk country blues…if that honkytonk was lit on fire by a dropped match and spilled bourbon. I love it when Clutch embraces their love of blues and rockabilly, and the whole band cooks on this track. “Who’s Been Talking?” is another salute to their blues influences, in particular Howlin’ Wolf, and they do him justice.
To make this album even better, they included a DVD of them performing most of the songs from Robot Hive / Exodus in Sayreville, New Jersey on July 13, 2005. You can’t miss.
Not ones to rest on their laurels during their triumphant return, LCD Soundsystem have created the Beach Vibesmusic festival in Riviera Maya, Mexico. Tickets go on sale to the general public July 11th, but you can get early sales on July 8th if you register for their mailing list. A word of caution for your wallet: The only way to attend is to buy a three-day package at one of the host resorts, and packages for even one person cost upward of three grand. You can put 30% down on a package and then pay it off over five months to make it a little easier.
Some of the resorts are all-inclusive, however, so that helps a bit. Airfare is not included in your price, but cheap airfare to Mexico from the U.S. isn’t hard to find.
LCD Soundsystem have announced they will headline two nights of the festival, and the lineup is already good. Hot Chip, Holy Ghost!, Juan MacLean, and Shit Robot are personal favorites, and more are to be announced.
Start planning now. This would be a great winter getaway.
Keep your mind open.
[We’d get good vibes from you if you subscribed to us.]
Screaming Femalesare taking a month off from their tour of the U.S. and Canada and are then off for six dates Down Under for the first time. Fans are already excited for their first shows in the land of Oz, so don’t miss them if you’re there. They put on a fantastic show and might not get back to the land that gave us Mad Max and Razorback soon.
Austin, Texas continues its tradition of being the music festival capital of the U.S. The latest is the Sound on Sound festival November 4-6th, which is located in McDade, Texas and a short eastbound drive from Austin.
The lineup is impressive. Phantogram, the Descendents, Guided by Voices, the Dead Milkmen, Thee Oh Sees, Bob Mould, and Metz are all worth seeing. It would be a great way to spend a couple fall afternoons. A three-day pass will cost you less than $200.00.
The final Levitation festival of 2016, Levitation France, has announced the first batch of bands playing in Angers September 16th and 17th.
It’s a great lineup so far. Thee Oh Sees are psych-fuzz giants, La Femme puts on a great, trippy show, Dead Meadow are a great psychedelic outfit, Zombie Zombie make horror-electro, and Golden Dawn Arkestra are a funk band from another dimension.
It’s been a good year so far for music. I’m finding excellent stuff every month. We’re halfway through the year, so here’s a quick recap of my top 10 records of 2016 so far.
King Gizzard and the Lizard Wizard – Nonagon Infinity: Easily the craziest record of the year so far. You can play it on an infinite loop beginning with any track and it will repeat without any noticeable pauses, stutters, or breaks.
WALL – self-titled EP: WALL are currently my favorite discovery of 2016. They’ve brought back a fierce post-punk edginess that I didn’t know I was yearning for until I heard them.
Radiohead – A Moon Shaped Pool: One word to describe this record – Heartbreaking. Most of the songs are about the end of Thom Yorke’s 20+ year relationship with his girlfriend.
[Rewind Reviews are reviews of albums that are at least a year old by the time I hear them.]
Cosmic funk rockers / shapeshifting aliens / voodoo acid trip Golden Dawn Arkestra’s self-titled 2014 debut EP is a lesson on how to release your first record: You come out blowing minds on the first track.
“Afropocalypse” is full of fat horns, shredding guitar, echoing vocals delivering messages from the boat of Anubis…or maybe from Texas. I’m not sure. I was too stunned by the track to figure out its meaning. It’s probably planted in my head like a Zen koan that will enlighten me when I’m not thinking about it.
“Oasis (The Legend of Nathaniel Thorne)” is part-spaghetti western film score and part-space lounge jam. Imagine Django walking into a 1960’s sci-fi movie space station bar while carrying a Theremin instead of his Gatling gun and you’ll have a slight idea of what this song is like. I have no idea who Nathaniel Thorne is, but Golden Dawn Arkestra has given him a badass theme song.
“Dimensions” has a bass lick that the Crystal Method would envy and joyful flute, handclaps, and lyrics inviting us to join Golden Dawn Arkestra on their journey beyond the five senses and the nine planets. “Masakayli” is pretty much a chant used to invoke the Egyptian god of funk (which I think might be Hathor), and the funky organ and wicked drum beats help.
“Saharan Knights” has some of my favorite guitar licks on the record, mixing psychedelia with surf. I also love how the horn section sounds a bit drunk throughout it. The EP ends with a song that at first sounds like a Chemical Brothers track from the mid-1990’s, “Selemat,” but soon turns into a hot space disco jam that will have you jumping. I love that Golden Dawn Arkestra ended with EP with a track that leaves you wanting more (and, thankfully, they gave us Stargazer earlier this year).
Get on this cosmic pleasure yacht while you have the chance. Sip cocktails with ghosts, otherworldly creatures, warlocks, shamans, witches, and priestesses. Listen to Golden Dawn Arkestra.
File this under “Best News You’ve Heard Today.” Jazz / soul / funk queen Betty Davis, former wife of jazz legend Miles Davis, has worked with Light in the Attic Records to remaster nine previously unreleased tracks from 1969 sessions featuring Miles Davis, Herbie Hancock, Mitch Mitchell, and many more rock and jazz greats. The Columbia Years 1968-1969 is now available for pre-order.
