OLD IRONSIDES Feb. 6th
San Francisco SACRAMENTO
Guitar Solo Comp. SOUR DIESEL THEGRUMPY GREY ATLAS
March 6th
A.P. ROOTS T.B.A. KINGSuhMIDTOWN The
BOARDWALK
Feb. 26th
Beneath The Rapture Zero Ground Enemy Inside, T.B.A.
March 19
YMO Finals Top 7 bands
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Interview: Busta Rhymes .....................................................................................8 NAMM Show 2010 Coverage .............................................................................12 NAMM Review by Pete from Mystic Rage ........................................................17 CD Reviews .........................................................................................................18 Interview: ‘Grunge Is Dead’ Author Greg Prato ...............................................20 Interview: Hip Shake ..........................................................................................22 Interview: Goatwhore .........................................................................................24 Interview: Lazarus ..............................................................................................26 Interview: Can’t Stop Us ....................................................................................28 Norcal Metal Report............................................................................................30 “In The Pit” Photo Centerfold............................................................................32 Interview: Salmon ...............................................................................................34 YMO Band Interview: Sour Diesel .....................................................................36 YMO Band Interview: Beyond All Ends ............................................................37 YMO Band Interview: Journal............................................................................38 YMO Band Interview: The Dead Ringers ..........................................................40 Your Music Olympicks Calendar .......................................................................41 SF Your Music Olympicks Winners...................................................................42 YMO Band Interview: Cylinder ..........................................................................46 YMO Band Interview: Vibrant EYEris................................................................47 Interview: Tattoo Artist Jesse Iris .....................................................................48 Interview: Mystic Roots .....................................................................................50 Interview: Tribal Seeds.......................................................................................52 Interview: Strung Out .........................................................................................54 California Concert Calendar ..............................................................................58 Your Music Magazine 1515 Capitola Rd. Unit: M Santa Cruz, CA 95062 (831) 477-0503
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Contributing Photographers Alan Ralph, D.J.Dougherty, Caroline Reid, Brian Crabtree Video/Online Media Daniel Lopez, Josh James ISSUE #75 February 2010 Copyright 2010 Lyon Entertainment Publishing. Your Music Magazine is a registered trademark owned by Mike Lyon. All rights reserved. No part of this publication can be reproduced in any manner or form without prior written consent of the publisher. Lyon Entertainment and the Your Music Magazine staff is not responsible for claims made by advertisers. Your Music Magazine is published monthly by Lyon Entertainment.
By Itay K
So I hear there’s some new music in the works? Absolutely. I’m working on a new album right now. It’s about 80 percent finished. It’s called The Chemo. What’s the significance of the title? You know we’re in a dying industry. I’m not talking about the spirit of hip-hop or entertainment but rather the industry. I think a lot of different things have contributed to the compromise of the value of entertainment overall. I think a lot of it has to do with the respect level of the content being compromised, and I think that there needs to be a cure for this shit. I feel that The Chemo, from a musical standpoint, is like a step in the right direction to
providing an antidote for the sickness that we’re all witnessing transpire in this business. I feel like it’s us doing the right thing for music right now. What are your thoughts on the decline of record sales in the music industry? What challenges do artists face nowadays? It’s not as difficult to get an album out as it is to get the younger generation to pay attention or respect the content that they should be valuing. That’s part of the sickness that’s going on right now. For example, we see Susan Boyle sell 700,000 her first week; the second week she sells 530 something. It’s because her generation is not as computer literate as the younger
generation. She’s damn near 50 years old, so her consumer is 40, 50 years old. They aren’t consumed and conditioned by all this technology. They’re still used to going to the record store where they’ll buy her entire body of work just because they know that it support’s the value of the content. That alone will maintain the value and quality of the musical content. A lot of the younger generation doesn’t even know what a record store looks like and all that buying an album actually means. They don’t hold the physical form and really look at the art, read the credits, understand all that went into making that album. We as hip-hop artists have to appeal to a younger generation with a totally different value system. Well, at least vinyl sales are picking up a bit . . . Yeah, because everyone knows it’s going to be extinct. It’s becoming a collector’s item. People have been saying that for years, but a lot of indie-rock and metal artists have been very successful with vinyl in the past few years. I know. I feel like we need hip-hop to be on that level. What I want to do, and what I want to do with this album, is to make the content the important part of hip-hop; so important that people feel obligated to spend their money on it for the sole purpose of keeping the content strong— making people want it the way they’re supposed to want it. Do you feel that hip-hop has become watered down, with rappers promoting and selling you everything from energy drinks to reality TV? Definitely. I feel that’s a big contributing factor to this sickness we’re seeing, and it’s compromising what makes hip-hop strong. I feel like a lot of these newer artists are more prone to representing certain shit as apposed to the golden age of hip-hop when people were more comfortable showing who they really were. Not everybody was a gangster, not everybody was a shooter or a kidnapper. Nobody had videos with big cars and flashy jewelry that they might have earned by their first single. It ain’t their car, it ain’t their jewelry. It’s all for show, and the consumer is starting to see that it’s not authentic. That disappoints a consumer and makes them talk about quality artists like: “Look at this rinky-dink mother fucker over there. . . .Does he really think I’m going to spend my money on that shit?”
So we’re trying to find the cure for that shit. Not only to prevent the bullshit that we see but also to weed out the bullshit artists that create a false standard so that artists have to be really effective with their marketing campaigns. True hip-hop is all about hard work. You’ve been a powerful force in hip-hop due not only to your lyrics being dope, but your personality that comes through on each track. When you hear a Busta Rhymes song, you know who it is. I feel like a lot of artists nowadays sound so watered down that you can’t tell one from the other . . . Music has definitely been watered down, but you can’t blame the artists. Well, you can’t only blame the artists. It’s really not the artist’s fault 100 percent; it’s really the people in power—record labels and radio stations only play a certain kind of music, so artists have to decide if staying true to their music is going to get them any attention. Some artists are willing to take risks and stay true to their craft, and others are just scared because they know that music
is business and they’re not going to get anywhere unless they do shit that their business affiliates will support. They don’t have the type of resources to go around all that bullshit, so they feel they have to compromise. That’s why we want this album to be successful despite all the sickness surrounding us—by making quality shit that doesn’t adhere to their standards. We’ll create a new standard—one of quality and substance, and have the faith restored to the consumer. Hopefully because of it, the record labels will be forced to acknowledge quality shit. The Chemo is the cure, baby! I hope so man, cause shit’s depressing right now . . . Don’t get me wrong, I love supporting new artists. None of us would be here had the older cats not had our backs, so I’m all about returning the love. I think a lot of artists are talented and have a lot to offer the game and need our support, but there is still a lot to be fixed. You need to put in work to make believers out of others and to show your consistency.
PRODUCT REVIEWS WITH JOEY ATKINS OF SCARS OF TOMORROW AND GATSBY’S AMERICAN DREAM
By Rawker Rachel With more than 15 years experience, Joey Atkins is no stranger to the art of the metal shred. Having played guitar for such bands as Gatsby’s American Dream, Scars of Tomorrow and a combined album sales totaling more than $150,000, Atkins knows the ropes of the industry as well as the products that drive it. During the annual NAMM Convention—the “who’s who” of music industry conventions—held in Anaheim, Calif, I followed Atkins to review which products were at the top of their performing class, and which were . . . not so much. The results (and debauchery) are as follows: Upon arrival to NAMM on Friday, Atkins immediately rushed to the Peavy Amps booth to explain to me why they are some of the best amps in the business. Atkins: I was endorsed by Peavy a few years ago, and [it’s] definitely, by far, the most reliable amp that I’ve owned in all of the years that I’ve been playing music. On the 5150 Amp, they had to change the name to 6505 because [the 5150] was endorsed by Eddie Van Halen and he owned the rights to the name. Peavy had to change the name to the 6505 once Eddie left the company, and then they had to create another amp. The 6534 Amp is the new version of the
5150/6505 Amp—it’s pretty brutal, pretty fuckin’ metal. If you want to slay some bitches at a show and want naked bitches in the front row, the 6534 Amp will rip their fuckin’ clothes off. It’ll actually rip their fuckin’ skin off, that’s how metal it is! Our second stop of the day was at Schecter Guitars. As a feeble-minded female, I was caught under the allure of the pretty shiny guitars. Atkins, however, as a man in the business, was not sold. Atkins: When I was in Gatsby’s American Dream we had a brief stint with Schecter Guitars. I wasn’t totally stoked on the guitars they sent us out because we used them for maybe one show before they fell apart. They are not road ready. They’re cool looking, but you can’t do anything with them really because they fall apart so quickly. If you’re a young kid just starting out and you need a cheap, affordable guitar, then I’d say buy one, but if you’re in a band, touring eight months out of the year then [the guitar] isn’t going to hold up. Another not-so-favorite of Atkins was Krank Amps. Atkins: When I was in Scars of Tomorrow we used Krank Amps for a while because we had a B-level endorsement. I wasn’t happy with the product. We had their black Revelation cabs, which were amazing; they sounded great. I played with the Krankenstein guitar heads, which are the Dimebag signature series that came out about four or five years ago. They kept blowing up though; that was the only problem we had with them. We used the heads for recording on our last
record, and Eric Rachel, who recorded Skid Row, Walls of Jericho and Saves the Day, wanted us to record with them. They sounded good [recorded] but as far as touring-wise . . . not the best amps to take on tour because they blow up. So, the cabs—awesome, but the heads—not so awesome. Over at ESP Guitars, which did not have a booth, mind you, but an entire room to themselves on the third floor of the Anaheim Convention Center, Atkins was very enthusiastic about his LTD EC 1000 guitar. It was a brand favorite because “they’re quality guitars at an affordable price.” Atkins: Scars of Tomorrow had an endorsement through ESP, so all of the tours we ever did we used ESP Guitars. Soulfly, Bury Your Dead, Hatebreed all use ESP Guitars. In all of our music videos, we use ESP Guitars; in the studio we use ESP Guitars—they’re amazing guitars. I wouldn’t necessarily say they’re better guitars [than other brands], but it’s all depending on your preference and what you want for your sound. As far as us being a metal band, they were straight from the factory guitars that we used that day on stage. We would go to the warehouse and pick them up and play them that night. In that aspect, they’re great guitars. I’ve never had a problem with their guitars in all of the years that I’ve played them. They look cool, they sound cool and you get hella chicks because all of the ladies are like “Sweet guitar.” And that’s a true story! Because girls have come up to me like, “that’s a sweet guitar,” and then they dome me up backstage; like hella
Well,Aloha...
dome me up, with my guitar on . . . yo. After seeing all 1,681 exhibitors over a span of two days and a combined 10 hours of wandering, our last stop for review was the huge Fender Guitar room on the third floor. To Atkins’ delight, Fender’s show room was fully equipped with various guitar, bass and amp testing stations for everyone to try. Atkins: I’m playing the Fender John 5 [of Marilyn Manson] signature series Squire Telecaster guitar. It’s like a lower-end model of a Fender. It’s all right, not amazing. I would not recommend this guitar. I like John 5 a lot, but I would not recommend this guitar. The [G-DEC] amp is cool, though. It’s a good practice amp, and I would buy this amp! I tried this out yesterday and it’s really cool. It’s got a lot of cool presets. During our two-day NAMM wander-fest, Atkins and myself had rubbed elbows with the likes of Slash from Guns N’ Roses, Mick Mars from Mötley Crüe, Alex Skolnick from Testament, Gus G from Ozzy Osbourne, Shavo from System of a Down, Ryan Shuck and Amir Derakh of Orgy/Dead By Sunrise, Suicide Silence, John 5 from Marilyn Manson, Kerry King of Slayer, Chad Smith from Red Hot Chili Peppers, and even . . . Jermaine Jackson!? (Yes, HE was there!) And even after my interview with Atkins, reps from Fender politely interrupted us for an impromptu video interview on thoughts of the Fender products! You never know what can happen at NAMM!
The NAMM Experience By Mystic Rage’s Pete Schaaphok
www.myspace.com/mysticrage
My band Mystic Rage headed down from Oakland to Anaheim on Thursday morning to attend NAMM (National Association of Music Merchants) 2010, four days of fun, frolic, rock stars, gear, and parties. We have been going to NAMM for a few years to make industry contacts and garner gear endorsements. Mystic Rage has been quite successful in both categories, while having a great time in the process. It reminds me why I got into music in the first place…FUN! It is the best four days of the year, musically. It is also amazing to see all the bands from the San Francisco Bay Area. This is the only time I see some of my friends from other bands for the entire year, which is very weird to travel 300 plus miles to catch up with each other’s lives. I digress; NAMM is the place to be if you are in a band. You must find a way to get a badge and get down there in 2011. If you have never been to NAMM it can be quite overwhelming at first. That kid in the candy store analogy comes to mind. On my first trip to NAMM after walking the floor I had to sit down for a few minutes; I got pretty dizzy. Thursday and Sunday are the days to get work done. Friday and Saturday are the most crowded days, with everyone from Slash to Stevie Wonder making appearances. I have learned over the years to embrace Friday and Saturday as the party days and just have fun, finishing the work on Sunday. We attended the Jagermeister/Schecter party on Saturday at The Grove with Hollywood Undead. I have a major gripe with this one; this is the second year that the annual party has been moved from The House of Blues to The Grove and it has lost its luster. Getting a pass to this event was special and hard to get but now, because it is in a larger venue, everyone seems to get a pass. Other than that, it is hard to argue about free beer and Jagermeister. Maybe I am turning into some sort of NAMM snob. After that event we went back to the Hilton to attend the Nady party with Hot For Teacher (Van Halen tribute band) until closing. Needless to say we were all moving slowly on Sunday. Our 2010 highlights included adding Kustom Amps to our endorsement roster and taking Dave Ellefson (Megadeth) over to Nady Wireless and introducing him to Mike Perez, Artist Relations, for a gear endorsement.
Tom Waits Glitter And Doom Live Anti I see the music of Tom Waits as being presented through two distinct musical personas: the boozy, storytelling piano-man and the dusty, oddball carnival barker. Together they lead you through Waits’ latest disc, Glitter and Doom Live. Recorded at various shows on his Glitter and Doom Tour in 2008, this collection is modern Waits. All but one of the renditions draw from records released in the last two decades, with most of the focus being on material from Bone Machine and Real Gone. Even fans of Waits won’t recognize every song played. It’s not a greatest hits kind of live record, more of a none-of-the-hits, mad-science concoction that only someone like Waits, who has a long memory and wild imagination, can formulate. Waits the barker leads an electric band through herky-jerky waltzes and dirgey blues takes, while Waits the balladeer adds moments of repose, feeling out his soul on the piano keys. This is the duality. Conversely, a separate duality, the theme, lies not in the styles, but in the tone—in the lyrical outlook. The glitter is in the tracks like “Going Out West” and “Metropolitan Glide” and the doom is in songs like “Dirt in the Ground” and “Falling Down.” In the middle, there is understanding. It’s the Tom Waits take on Yin and Yang. At its best, a live record is a method of transportation, taking you out of your reality and into a new time and place. Glitter and Doom Live does just that, most notably on the final track, “Lucky Day,” when Tom brings down the house with the line, “When you get blue and you’ve lost all your dreams, there’s nothing like a campfire and a can of beans.” I’m there. - Kevin Madness
Converge Axe To Fall Epitaph Some records satisfy moment to moment, others become great when listened to in full. Axe to Fall does both. Alone, the songs are strong, chaotic and interesting; together, they make up an album that is multidimensional and challenging to understand. With an incredible balance of skill and spit, Converge lets out “Dark Horse” and “Reap What You Sow” to begin Axe to Fall. The pair feels like an adrenaline spike, readying
you for what follows; perfectly conducted chaos where every instrument seems like it’s screaming. Following a couple more stormy songs, they get into the genredefying “Worms Will Feed.” Slow and long are not adjectives commonly used to describe metal-core songs, but the bendy guitar phrasing and vocal dominated breakdowns are compelling. From the clever feedback into of “Wishing Well” to piano-led “Cruel Bloom,” Converge continues on by disregarding all the requirements of being hardcore, instead focusing on making character-heavy songs. The album closes with the heavy ambiance of the seven minute “Wretched World.” For any listener who walks the back alleys between metal and hardcore punk, this album is required listening. Prepare for a chilling experience. - Kevin Madness
Gallows Grey Britain Reprise If I had to pick my top three major releases of 2009, Gallows’ Grey Britain is unquestionably one of them. Their second record to date, this album shows just how much they have grown musically and conceptually in the past three years since Orchestra of the Wolves. And while that album was much more “hardcore” by today’s standards, Grey Britain reminds you of a time before the h-word meant death metal screaming, camo shorts and kids in the pit pretending to be windmills or retarded ninjas. But make no mistake, this album is 52 minutes of pure, pissed-off aggression. From the opening lines of “The Riverbank” (“Grey Britain’s burning down, we’ll be buried alive before we drown”) to the closing death toll of the final song “Crucifucks” (“we brought this on ourselves, when we could’ve been the change . . . so cut our throats, end our lives, let’s fucking start again”), this album bleeds with pain and anger towards the political and social standards we have come to accept as a people. Frank Carter’s voice is raspy with life and a Johnny-Rotten snarl as he snidely screams “Misery fucking loves me, but I love her more” in a tone that would make you feel sorry for misery if it was a person. The beautifully dreary classical instrumentals mix between the rage as well as the familiar sounds of street sirens and the eerie, soft crash of waves upon an empty boat, turn the record from a concept album to an auditory movie for the listener and an opus for the band worthy of a last album. And it just might be too. While Gallows is still touring at this time, they were recently dropped from Warner Brothers in December and have been on record in the past saying the band will probably be dissolved by 2010. Guess we’ll have to see what the future holds, but if they have to step down, it will be on a high note. - Mat Weir
Tether Horse In the House that Took Me Independent Santa Cruz’s own Tether Horse delivers a power punch of folk on their debut album In the House that Took Me. An appropriate name too, as the liner notes reveal it was recorded in the singer’s Soquel mountain home, which was originally built by his family. I’m a firm believer in setting, that where and how a band records an album rubs off on the recording itself; it can give or take away the soul of the songs, and I’ll point to House as the latest example. You can picture these guys jamming on the porch, moving inside the wood home to record and sounding just as good live as on the CD. Tether Horse understands and embraces their music, from fast paced, country jams (“Tick Bite”) to bluegrass harmonizing ballads (“Thick Like Molasses” & “Grave Earth”) and ambient folk songs as thick as smoke by the barest of instruments (“Trees” & “Instrument”). They capture the sound of the mountains and deliver their message of life, love, loss and hunger (“An After Word”) in a fiery and melodic way. As if that wasn’t enough, Tether Horse backs up their insightful words with guitars, drums, a mandolin, a fiddle, a banjo and even a cello on certain songs. So if you’re a fan of such
finger pickin’ artists like the Avett Brothers or Doc Watson, and you want to see how Santa Cruz delivers the goods, go check out Tether Horse’s CD release party on Jan. 27 at the Crepe Place, pick up the album and listen to some of the good things - Mat Weir they’ve taken from the South.
My Stupid Brother What U Need Nimrod My Stupid Brother from the Santa Cruz mountains has just released their new album, “What You Need.” Produced by Daren Chadwick and My Stupid Brother the album has a heavy garage sound and is full of the energy and excitement that these boys have been known for. Dropping soon after the band’s win in the 2009 Your Music Magazine Band Olympicks, “What U Need” shows the same passion that they brought to the finals stage at the Catalyst. Loaded with extra photos, lyrics, and general band info, “What You Need” proves that these boys are moving up to bigger and better things. For more details on ‘My Stupid Brother,’ check them out at myspace.com/mystupidbrother - Brian Crabtree
An Interview with
GREG PRATO
author of the book ‘Grunge is Dead’ By Matt Young
The “New Testament” of grunge has arrived. Several years ago, author Greg Prato started the process of interviewing key people from the Seattle grunge music scene, after he realized he had a jump-start from having done a feature on Soundgarden for a magazine about five years ago. A long-time fan of grunge music, Prato says he wanted to put it all together for fans old and new. “I set up the book as strictly quotes because I wanted just the people who were actually there to tell their stories, without someone who wasn’t even there saying things. Some of the books that are out there (which aren’t really even in print anymore), are kind of hard to follow and they’re not all written that well, and some of those books were written even before Kurt Cobain’s death or before Layne’s (Staley, of Alice in Chains, ed.).” One of the things Prato wanted to do was to avoid exposition and fluff, in order to connect people directly to the scene. “I just basically set out to do a book that would tell the whole story, and would also be pretty easy to follow [to appeal to] people who were both long-time fans, and to people who weren’t all that familiar with all the bands, just the big bands, and maybe are just curious to check out something that dug a little deeper.” Prato says he patterned his book after another one, called ‘Please Kill Me’, written by Legs McNiel and Gillian
McCain, which used a similar format. He says he was heavily influenced by it. “That was a book that I studied and I’ve read numerous times over the years. That’s kind of what I used as a basis for ‘Grunge is Dead’... I was always just a fan of reading straight Q-&-A’s of people, before I was even a writer. That was always the thing I liked the most.” Of course, when you’re interviewing people, you don’t always know what they’re going to say. Mudhoney’s Mark Arm was a bit of a loose cannon, as was the Dwarves’ Blag Dahlia. Prato says, “I think it was that most of those bands from that era were very honest and they spoke their minds, and you could say the same thing about Kurt Cobain or the guys from
Pearl Jam, they weren’t afraid to stand up and vent their views…” Prato enjoyed the honesty, even if it was initially off-putting, and captured interesting dynamics. “That’s what I think was totally different between now and back then; bands could definitely speak their minds and not worry about losing their tour sponsorships or something. It seems like now all the bands have to think twice before they say anything.” The similarities to today’s music scene were hard to miss, as well. “From my personal experience, I was in college when all the bands came out, and I was absolutely SICK of what was going on with rock. It’s really a mirror of what’s going on today with rock; so formulated, and it’s totally all this same-sounding crap, and bands sounding exactly the same because they’re trying to just have one hit and try to make quick money…” He notes some of the advantages today’s bands have as well. “Between now and the early ‘90’s, they have the internet and MySpace and social networking, and they can put up a song and maybe turn people’s heads and get them to pick up a following. With each era there’s gonna be different kinds of things- how you’re gonna plug your band and how you’re gonna get your stuff out there to as many people as possible. One of the interesting elements of the Seattle music scene was how bands were taking in different musical elements and combining them to greater effect. “Some of those bands embraced some of the bigger bands than others, but if you take Pearl Jam, or even Nirvana, they seemed to embrace both big bands and smaller ones as influences; they didn’t really have a “discrimination” against bands, as long as they wrote really good songs…” The varied influences were combined with real songwriting, he says, as opposed to the focus on technical ability evidenced in late-
‘80’s metal bands. With this do-it-yourself mindset came a certain level of distrust of outside control and major labels. “I think in the late ‘80’s there were some bands on small labels that then signed with big labels, like the Replacements, Hüsker Dü,….that their first album with the major labels weren’t that great- I don’t know if they got watered-down or if it might have been too much for them…. You can’t put your finger on exactly what the reason was, but it seems like the majority of the grunge bands were concerned about jumping to a bigger label- just considering their options before. Considering the celebrity status of many of the people, some of the interviews were hard to secure, until he gained a certain level of momentum. “Eddie Vedder was difficult to get a hold of, because I had to go through several different channels to get to him finally, but that was probably the coolest person to interview for the book- I spoke to him for like three hours. Also the Soundgarden guys. I first interviewed Ben Shepherd and then I interviewed Matt Cameron…. It would snowball - the more people I spoke to, the more people would vouch for me. So, Eddie from Pearl Jam was probably the hardest one, and also Kim Thayil from Soundgarden was hard to track down at first, but then after the more people I spoke to, I was able to get him on the phone, and we’ve actually become friends. Prato ended up with much more than was compiled in his book. He saved everything on tape, adding up to about a hundred tapes. “In ten or fifteen years I’m sure I’ll want to go back to the full interviews, just for curiosity’s sake.” Go to www.myspace.com/gregpratopage for links to order Grunge is Dead, as well as ordering info/ sample chapters of his other books – including one on Blind Melon’s Shannon Hoon. Be sure to check out the online edition of Your Music Magazine for the entire interview!
Interview by Brian Crabtree
Let’s start with you Frank. What instrument do you play? Frank: The drums. Any special kind of drums you like to play? Frank: Maypex Maple drums of choice, because that is all I can afford at the moment. I like Maple drums, they are nice. That’s about it; I keep it simple, small, and compact. How long have you been playing? Frank: Eighteen years, since I was a junior in high school. Found that there was a need for drummers in the area, there were not really any around, so I was just destined to be playing the drums in the desert Palm Springs area. Well moving on, Mike, what do you play for the group and for how long? Mike: I am the guitar player; pick a little banjo, and bass extraordinaire. I have been playing for about forty years. I hooked up with Hip Shake about two and a half years ago when they said, “you will provide the big fat bass sound.” Do you participate in any other groups before Hip Shake? Mike: The first group in California was in 1982, I am originally from Ney York. The First band was the Doc White Band. I have been with them for fifteen years. I also play with a band out of Boulder Creek called the Astroglides. Different music Blue and R&B, but also rock. Sounds awesome. What about you Greg? Greg: I am the guitar player. How long have you been playing? Greg: I have been playing the guitar for thirty-one years. Favorite guitar to play? Greg: I prefer Fenders; I have a whole fleet of them. On the road I have five different guitars
on me: three open keys and two standards. You say you bring five guitars out to shows, which is the favorite? Greg: All of them. Anything with six strings is good with me. I prefer Telecasters, that’s my thing. And last but not least we have Carie. What part do you play in the group? Carie: Singing Roadie is what I call myself. I have been doing this for three years. Greg: We sit back. And she sets it all up. Carie: Yeah I set it all up. So I have been with them for three years, and then fell into this guys lap and been having fun ever since. Can I get a general summary of what Hip Shake is? Blues? Rock? Carrie: Blues Rock. Greg: Some rock in blues, mostly a pre 47’ Harmonica style of Blues. We also do some traditional blues and all of those have a little tweak to them a little more updated and rocked out. We play a lot of slide. Mike: Get them on the dance floor and keep them hopping. Carie: I have heard from friends that we have a New Orleans sound. We got some psychobilly spice. We are true American mutts. Do you have any recorded material out? Greg: We are about to be releasing an album in February. So keep in touch. If you do see us we have T-shirts. We are going to have a CD release show, and Your Music Magazine will be the one pump it out there. Any last words to your fans? Hip Shake: Boogie like it matters….
Performing live February 6th @ On The Y March 27th, Springfest 2 @ On The Y Booking Contact: Steve Chastain - Adrenaline Trigger Productions ph: 916-835-2451 Or Sammy Karlin ph: 916-821-9805
www.myspace.com/omnidemic
JANUARY 8TH, 2010 SLIM’S - SAN FRANCISCO, CA
Review by Aline Miladinovich It’s times like these when I can understand why some might succumb to the allure of illicit drug use: the racing heart, the sweaty palms, the giddy euphoria, the elevation of the mind and spirit, feeling like “Alice, when she’s ten feet tall.” Mind you, I don’t encourage anyone to do self-harm with dangerous substances. My drug of choice is metal, and on January 8th, 2010, I received yet another big, whopping, mindaltering dose of Goatwhore, and my fate was sealed. I’m hooked, and the kind of rehab I need, no social services program can provide. I offer no apologies. This kind of addiction does the body good, and I don’t want to be helped. Supporting Devildriver and Suffocation on their Bound By the Road Tour, Goatwhore managed to tear the roof off of Slim’s in San Francisco by delivering the most calamitous aural assault one could possibly cram into a 30-minute opening set. From the scalding introductory notes of “The All Destroying” from their latest thunderous CD “Carving Out The Eyes Of God” to the final refrain of “Apocalyptic Havoc”, their entire set was nothing short of a glorious cacophony, delivered with dirty love, straight from the fiery pits of Hades. Now featuring the gargantuan James Harvey on bass, (replacing Nathan Bergeron who left the band last year) plus long standing members Sammy Duet on guitar, Zack Simmons on drums and Ben Falgoust
at the mic, Goatwhore was a tight, well-oiled, iniquitous machine who didn’t miss a trick in unloading a fiendish assault on the senses of the crowd, who responded with a significantly more enthusiastic response (and greater numbers) than last September when they came through with Obituary. Not that they were not well received in the last tour, but they really came into their own on this one. While most of their eight song set was rightfully comprised of material from the latest album, they did pull out ferocious renditions of “Blood Guilt Eucharist” from 2003’s Funeral Dirge Of the Rotting Sun, “Nocturnal Holocaust” from Eclipse of Ages Into Black, as well as the monumentally pleasing “Alchemy of The Black Sun Cult,” an infallible crowd favorite from 2006’s A Haunting Curse. Sounding bigger, better, and more treacherous than ever, Goatwhore proved on this tour that their future is bright, their ominous footprint, huge and their delivery, swift, blinding and violent. With this current line-up, and the
release of Carving Out The Eyes Of God, this up-to-now shamefully underrated band is finally beginning to receive some of the recognition that they have so richly deserved for so long. They are finally taking a seat at the table with metal’s “big boys” and are proving to everyone what I have been saying for years – they’ve got giant brass balls that you can hear clanging from a mile away when they step onto the stage. As immense as the group’s collective sound is, I cannot say enough about the individual members’ performances and the unique bit of dark charm that each brings to the table. James Harvey, not only colossal in his proportions but a monster on the bass, delivers the low tones with as much solidity as his physical presence imposes. He’s a mountain of a man, delivering a crushing onslaught of rhythm that compliments the rapid-fire staccato blasts offered by the prodigious Zack Simmons. Already a solidly adept drummer at the age of 17 when he joined Goatwhore in 2004, Zack, now 23, has the grit, stamina and style to rival many drummers twice his age and with decades more experience. Precise, nimble and supersonic, his double bass drum technique is nothing short of breakneck, and it’s as clean as it’s fast. This talented young man has nowhere to go but up and is a tremendous addition to an astonishingly good band. What can be said that hasn’t already about the mad, sick, blistering cruelty of the impish little sprite Sammy Duet’s guitar work and screaming-demon-from-the-bowels-of-hell backing vocals? With his mad eyes, lighting fast fingers and blood curdling voice, he is the ultra satisfying layer of black icing on the tasty metal cake. He’s pure evil, we all know it, and we love him for it. Administering the frontline defilement is singer Ben Falgoust, who delivers his violent vocal payload with both the searing brutality of a shotgun blast to the face, and the savage grace of a feral panther. A screamer, a slinker, a giant raw nerve wrapped in skin and ink, he’s been called “a force to be reckoned with” and I have to agree. He’ll rip the skin clean off your skull with the utter vehemence of his laryngeal prowess, and he’ll unapologetically advise you to like it. With a performance that was nothing short of a 30-minute eargasm, I suspect most of the crowd did not know what Goatwhore hit them with but were likely seized by the urge to chain smoke and eat red meat immediately afterward. If that feeling isn’t worth the price of admission and addiction, I’m afraid I don’t know what is. “Carving Out The Eyes Of God” is available now on Metal Blade Records.
AN INTERVIEW WITH BASSIST/VOCALIST Interview by Aline Miladinovich
Hailing from “America’s Heartland,” a region not typically associated with brutal thrash metal, comes a very heavy and pleasant surprise. Formed in Kenosha, Wisconsin, in 2005 and signed to Metal Blade Records in 2006, Lazarus A.D. are already becoming quite a force to be reckoned with in the metal scene— and with only one record under their belt. Having already logged tours with such heavy hitters as Testament, Anthrax and Vader, they’re currently gearing up to hit the road with Kreator in March. I know there has been a lot of buzz about the impressive old-school thrash sound that Lazarus A.D. has and how well you guys pull it off. People who grew up on Testament, Anthrax, etc., love you guys. Have you been finding the more established bands you’ve been touring with to be encouraging and supportive of you as a more upand-coming band?
JEFF PAULICK
Lazarus A.D. is: Jeff Paulick – Lead Vocals/Bass Alex Lackner – Rhythm Guitar Dan Gapen – Lead Guitar/Vocals Ryan Shutler - Drums Absolutely - you know we definitely have the “old school” feel. That’s what we were going for with this record, but we do have that modern influence, and you can definitely tell that in the production and in the songwriting. I think that’s why older bands are attracted to it, like Testament, and I keep saying Testament because that’s one of my all time favorites. They’re kind of doing the same thing. They have that old school sound, because they WERE in the old school, but their new stuff is so much more modern, there’s so much more production going on and that’s definitely what we’re going for as well. The old-school guys really appreciate what we’re doing, and they appreciate us trying to put it into the forefront as well. These bands are getting older, and they’re not going to be able to do it for too, too much longer. We realize that the next generation is
from the UK called Sylosis. They put out a brand of music that – well, is kind of a mix of thrash mixed with Killswitch…I don’t know, it’s just really, really good! The production on the CD is so unbelievably tight, and the musicianship and songwriting is so good.
going to carry it on. I guess they would much rather have bands who are trying to keep the sound how it was in the 80’s, maybe rather than this whole new “deathcore” or “metal revolution” or whatever that’s happening these days.
Last question: Your dream tour, the sky’s the limit, who’s on the bill, and where are you going? Aw, Jesus! (Laughs) Dream tour…oh, man! I don’t know? If I could pick any band…I wish Dime wasn’t gone, because I would definitely say Pantera. Because Metallica, Pantera, they’re definitely two ultimate bands that we love and adore, and would love to tour with. Metallica would be the number one that we could tour with. Anything – opening supporting, just let us ride on the tour bus! I don’t even care! I’ll set up some bongos and an acoustic guitar outside the venue if I have to, you know what I mean? Just to be on tour with Metallica, I think that’s everyone’s dream. They’re the biggest metal band in the world – they’ve sold the most records, back in the 80’s they took the most risks, and they just dominated all, you know? They’re the biggest and the best, no matter which way you look at it. There’s always going to be haters, arguers, stuff like that, but the fact remains, they are number one. I think all these bands that are touring with them now, you know like Slipknot, Machine Head, Lamb of God, Gojira, stuff like that…that’s so awesome. They can say that, “yeah, we toured with Metallica.” I think that as a metal musician, that’s your plateau. That’s your pinnacle. I don’t think you can get any bigger than that unless you’re headlining that tour, and the day that someone headlines over Metallica, we’ll all be spinning in our graves.
I know you have tours lined up for early in the year, but any ideas when you might go into the studio to start recording? Yeah, we’re actually going to be off until the Kreator tour in March, and we’re going to take that time to write and really prepare for the next record and have everything ready to go. Probably by next summer we’ll be back in the studio. So, even though we only released our last album a year and a couple of months ago, it was two years prior to that when we actually recorded it, you know what I mean? So, it’s old to us, while it’s only fairly old to everyone else. We’re just really excited to get the new material out and really show everybody what we can do now, versus what we did when we were nineteen. READ THE ENTIRE INTERVIEW AT YOURMUSICMAGAZINE.COM. I always like to take the opportunity in interviews to ask the musicians I’m talking to for a recommendation on who they think deserves some recognition. First and foremost, I’ll say our guys in Havok. They’re from Colorado, and they’ve been good friends of ours for a long time. They’re an up and coming thrash band, kind of like us, and they’ve just been working really, really hard. There’s also another band I enjoy listening to
Since you are representing Santa Cruz, what kind of image are you trying to portray? Write hard, be smart. You don’t have to live up to an image. Just be ourselves and let our talents speak for themselves.
Interview by Dani Negrin Can’t Stop Us is a determined hip hop group that is ready to take over the Santa Cruz hip hop scene. They’ve got energy, passion and drive to make it in the industry. Their music is catchy and creative, and it’s almost impossible to refrain from dancing or even tapping your foot to the beats of their songs. The group consists of 4 members, Krishan Simonpillia, aka Kshan, Alwa Gordon aka Shiesty Tracks, Emmanuel Diaz, aka eman, and Yogi Patel aka Yogsta. How long have you been together as a hip hop group? What brought you together and how do you get along? We have been together since 2005. We all went to school together, straight out of Santa Cruz. We are like brothers; we gotta love/hate relationship. We first started writing, no songs, just talking shit. And eventually they grew into original hip hop songs. Do you have any conflicts? What songs to do, where we want to go with our music, which songs will get us the best response. Sometimes we have conflicting ideas and we clash. That’s normal with brothers! Who are your major influences? We are definitely into raw hip hop like Bone Thugs, Tupac and Immortal Technique. We grew up listening to 90’s hip hop and got our inspiration from there.
Right on. I like that, comes from the heart. How has your music evolved overtime? The subject matter is different, maturity wise. We are now more in touch with our artist side, We have grown up a lot since 2005. At beginning there wasn’t really any substance, and now we are trying to paint a picture. Describe to me that picture... A beautiful place. Where everyone is happy. It takes struggle to get to the beautiful things. Speaking of struggles, what is the most difficult part about trying to make it in the industry? Attracting people to our music. Not critics of fans. We have to be ok with how people respond. We just have to constantly work on getting out there and connecting with people to get most exposure as possible. It takes a lot of work.. .but in the end, the music speaks for itself. I agree. If you could go back would you change anything in your musical career? To work 1,000 times harder. It started just as a hobby, there was no business aspect. Nobody taught us anything; we had no structure, mentor or manager. We don’t believe in management-we’re not trying to get pimped. We want to make it independently and not build any walls. Haha get pimped. Great analogy. Where do you see yourselves in the next 5 years? Famous. Taking over…in space! Any last words? We’re not going to get people to think before we get them to dance first!
I thought it would be fitting to lead in with some sort of commentary on the passing of another year, or the onset of a new year, but it just didn’t seem genuine. I’m just not a very philosophical guy like that, and I doubt that most of you aren’t either. The calendar may have changed but the world is no different; it just keeps on spinning. I’m still here writing the NorCal Metal Report, and you’re still here reading it – at least, I hope you are. Hmm . . . apparently I’m a bit philosophical after all.
By Dave Pirtle High On Fire are ready to drop their highly-anticipated fifth album (and first for new label E1 Music,) Snakes For the Divine. The date of impact: February 23. You know it’s going to be massive with Greg Fidelman – the man behind Slayer’s World Painted Blood and Metallica’s forthcoming live offering – handling
High On Fire production duties. The album combines riffmaster Matt Pike’s unique style with “blackened lyrical tales of ancient wars, frozen planets and doomed societies.” One new track, “Frost Hammer” is currently streaming online, but only officially at Stereogum.com. Abscess will release their new album Dawn of Inhumanity on March 9th (February 22nd in Europe) through Nocturno Culto’s (Darkthrone) Tyrant Syndicate Productions. Expect the usual splattering of gore and bizarre and nightmarish brutality, with plenty of twists and turns to further warp and distort the bands arsenal of sickness. Good to know that some things never change, especially in the ever-
evolving world of underground metal. From The Fog is ready to roll again with a revamped lineup, new recordings, and at least one live date scheduled February 12th at Pine St. in Livermore. For those keeping track, their lineup now consists of Scott Bowerman and Phil Ketchum (guitars), Jerry Langhorst (bass), Derek Thompson (vocals), and Coale Perry (drums.)You can hear the new stuff at their MySpace page, which will be getting an overhaul in the near future. In addition, as is rapidly becoming the norm, you can also become a fan of theirs on Facebook. The brutal entity that is Embryonic Devourment will release their sophomore album, Vivid Interpretations of the Void, in the coming months through an as yet undetermined label. The follow-up to Fear of Reality Exceeds Fantasy is based the Reptilian Agenda, a theory researched, written, and spoken about extensively by British author/reporter/ former pro football player David Icke for well over a decade. Sounds like I’m going to have to hit Wikipedia soon and find out just exactly what that’s all about. The long-overdue new release from Damnweevil has finally happened – but only in the digital realm. It’s Always Darkest Before It Goes Pitch Black has been made available through the usual variety of e-tailers, including iTunes, CDBaby, and Rhapsody. Damn you, weevil – don’t know you how much I like having a physical product? Well, whatever helps spread the disease, I guess!
Our good friends Total Eclipse have come back with an update after a long period of silence. Andy Draconis Giardana (vocals/guitars) has been hard at work in the studio since last March working on their next slab of US heavy metal along with drummer Brian Davy. Nine songs have been completed for the still untitled album that sees Giardana handing all lead and backing vocals as well as guitars and bass. Expect a heavier, darker affair than previous releases. Speaking of previous releases, they have continued to promote the release of Spellcaster, which was originally recorded in 2000 with the band’s original lineup. With all that in place, and work on the album scheduled to resume any day now, the band is back to searching for a permanent bassist (hint hint) and an agent to facilitate their affairs (HINT HINT!) Decrepit Birth recently entered Sharkbite Studios with Zack Ohren to record their new album Polarity. The follow up to 2008’s critically acclaimed Diminishing Between Worlds will mark the bands first release for new label (and home to several other NorCal acts)
Decrepit Birth Nuclear Blast Records. Guitarist Matt Sotelo states, “The lyrics reflect on the world around us, visions of the future, the coming together of energy, and the balance of life both positive and negative. We also feel that the music actually embodies the emotions of the lyrical concepts. We describe it as ‘death metal from the soul.’” Expect a total of nine tracks of epic-ocity. Is the world ready for it, though? See? I told you the world keeps on spinning. However, I’ve had just about
enough spinning for now so I’m gonna wrap this up. As always, if you have news of or own, or just want to drop a line, you can e-mail me at norcalmetal@ ksjs.org. After all, they say that 2010 is the year we’ll make contact, so why not get ahead of the game and make a little contact of your own? Ah, bad jokes – I love ‘em.
NORCAL UNLEASHED
Top 10 Playlist for 11/26/09 – 1/7/10
(NorCal Unleashed airs on 90.5 FM KSJS on Thursday nights from 11pm-midnight. Contact madman@ksjs.org for information on how to submit your music for airplay) 1. Potential Threat SF – A New Threat Level 2. In Virtue – Delusions of Grandeur 3. Vengince – A Turn For the Worst 4. Taunted – Bleeding Black 5. Fog of War – S/T 6. Cormorant – Metazoa 7. Antagony – Days of Night 8. Red Fall – Para Los Muertos 9. Becoming – Sonic Revelations 10. Repaid in Blood – Follow the Blood Trail QUICK BITS: Brain Drill has completed work on their second full-length album for Metal Blade Records, but has not yet announced a release date . . . relatively fresh off a tour supporting Norma Jean, Arsonists Get All The Girls are gearing up for more road action: ten West Coast dates with Lionheart and Antagonist, followed by five weeks all around Russia and Europe . . . Desecrater have posted a new track, “Cursed,” on their MySpace page . . . Cylinder are gearing up for the release of their debut album, Fueled By Fire . . . speaking of new albums, Savage Machine will release Sinister Redemptions in February, and follow it up with a West/ Southwest tour . . . one album that you can get now is Avenues With Anatomies, the debut effort from In The Absence . . . 66Seven has changed their name to Hellbeard, and can now be found online at http://www.myspace.com/hellbeardband . . . Potential Threat SF will tour Europe this Spring in support of death metal legends Master . . . Imagika recently debut a new song from Portrait of a Hanged Man, “Scared To Death,” through MetalRules.com.
C I S U M L A C A O L R U SAN JOSE, C YO y gendar from le Salmon. r e m m band iz, dru h Pat Ru entral coast c iew wit
Interv
YMM: What was the last show Salmon on played? Pat: Salmon Reunion Show, July 6th 2007, 07, @ P.B.J.S. Hall in San Jose. YMM: The last gossip I heard was Salmon had a record deal, and then the band retired. What’s the official story? Pat: In 1996 we did get signed to Red Ant Records, owned by the CEO of Capital Records, Al Teller. Everything was going good till we got back from touring the West Coast and we were going to leave on a East Coast tour with 311. Right before we were going to leave, they said the record company was going bankrupt, and they didn’t have any more money for us. So, the company went down and closed at the end of 1997. We tried to get resigned by other labels, but we had no luck.
. It’s such a good cause there was no way we could say no. YMM: Is this a one-time deal, or will you be playing other special events? Pat: For right now it’s a one-time deal, but if other special events/good cause shows come up, I would do it in a heartbeat if all the other guys are down. YMM: What songs will you be playing? Any new songs? Pat: No new songs, but we will be playing all the oldies but goodies from Paco… Drop The Chicken.
YMM: Can we expect the same pit-inducing Salmon or has the style changed? YMM: Why has the band decided to get back Pat: Oh, yeah! We might be older now, but we are together for this show @ The VooDoo Lounge on still slamming it out like we were in our twenties! Friday February 19th? Pat: Because we had such a good time at the YMM: Tell us a little about the other bands reunion show, and also our old manager Gary performing? Avila asked us if we wanted to do this for The City Pat: It’s a way sick bill for that night. It’s kinda like Of Hope Cancer Hospital (www.cityofhope.org). an old school Cactus Club night. We got Los Bastardos de Amor opening the show, then Tribal Disco Noise, which they haven’t played together in 10 or so years. Everybody is looking forward to them! Then we have local heroes Insolence. They always draw big and put on a kick ass show. Then we have a special appearance by Butterscotch, the girl singer/beatboxer from America’s Got Talent. She made it to the top twenty. She’s so amazing at what she does. Hope to see everybody there. Come out and help us raise money and help find a cure for this disease.
www.myspace.com/salmon www.cityofhope.org
LIVE MUSIC HOSTED BY DEEZ NITZE Wednesday February 3 Better Days Record Release Tour Live Hip Hop 9pm-1am Friday February 5 Glorified HJ 8pm-10pm Wednesday February 10 Letters Make Words, Vae Victus & The Burn 9pm-1am Thursday February 11 Northern Son, Almost Honest Friday February 12 Powder Train 8pm-10pm Saturday February 13 Joe Bazooka 8pm-10pm Wednesday February 17 Sharkstyliens Presents Live Hip Hop 9pm-1am Thursday February 18 Northern Son, Bird By Bird Friday February 19 Cocktail Monkeys 8pm-10pm Saturday February 20 Bad Habitt 8pm-10pm Wednesday February 24 Pounders & more to be announced 9pm-1am Saturday February 27 Dangling Mango's 8pm-10pm Wednesday March 3 To Be Announced 9pm-1am
S A C R A M E N T O
Sour Diesel: Video Interview by Jon Hermison Your Music Magazine is continuing the Sacramento Band Olympicks coverage and today we’re here with Sour Diesel who plays their “Live Performance” Event on February 6th at Old Ironsides in downtown Sacramento. Jon: Alight guys lets start with the lineup, who are you and what do you play? Volcano- vocals, Doug- guitar, Levi- guitar, Dennis- drums Jon: So, Volcano, I have to ask; where did you get the name Volcano? Volcano: Man, my mom was a hippie, I’m old dude! Jon: Has SD had any line-up changes or has this been the same line-up since the beginning? Dennis: It’s been like this since the beginning. Jon: How long ago was the “beginning”? Levi: We started in the late part of 2008. Doug: Yeah, we played for a few months to get a set list going then had our first show in February of 2009. We’re a little over a year old so the band is still pretty new. Jon: Yeah, that’s quite new for a band; sometimes it takes months for a band to get just an eight-song library. Volcano: Even cover bands take longer than that. Jon: Exactly, and that’s already laid out for you. I noticed on Sour Diesel’s Myspace page, there’s already seven or more tracks recorded. Is there a full length in the near future? Doug: Yeah, we’re shooting for the end of this summer. Dennis: We’re in no hurry, it’s just fun. We’ve all known each other for years, and played in different bands with each other. Volcano: I’ve known all these guys for at least ten years. Doug: We are brothers bonded by bud! Some are bonded by blood; we’re bonded by bud. Jon: Okay, let’s go into that… Doug: Well yeah, here we are called Sour Diesel. Jon: I got to be honest, when I Googled your name, I didn’t expect that result, but now I know where you guys are coming from. Volcano: (laughing) Levi, didn’t your mom try to find us or something? Dennis: Yeah, Levi’s mom works for the city and she wanted to show some co-workers our band and when she Googled the name, all she got were cannabis sites. She panicked a little.
Jon: What would you guys classify your sound as? Dennis: Alternative Metal. Volcano: There’s a little bit of vulgar comedy. Doug: Some porn references. Jon: That’s right, you guys had your song “Girl on Girl” spun on 98 Rock during the “Local Licks” segment. Did you guys know this was coming? Doug: Yeah, Mark Gilmore is cool guy and we’re always trying to get him to spin some more. He has the show on Sunday around midnight so all the kids have to stay up and request us. Dennis: Yeah, don’t sleep! Doug: You can sleep in school! But Mark does support a lot of local music and same with YMM. Jon: So the search for a bassist continues? I’ve heard some tracks and it doesn’t seem like a bass is extremely necessary, how do you guys get that sound? Doug: Well, Levi and I play with seven string guitars so it gives us that nice deep crunchy sound. But, you know, if there is bassist that wants to be a part of SD and can hold it down, that will allow the guitars to have a lil’ more fun. Volcano: Yeah, there’s no way I can play the bass, I can barely walk and chew gum. Jon: Definitely. So to the show coming up on Saturday February 6th, are you guys familiar with the other bands and do you like the “Battle of the Bands” feel? Volcano: We’ve played with TheGrumpy before. Levi: TheGrumpy kicks ass. Doug: That band is cool and Grey Atlas is really good too. It’s gonna be a good show. The guitar solo competition should be cool. Dennis: Yeah we’re just happy to be a part of it, these shows are always fun. Volcano: We can adjust how we play, we have plenty of songs to choose from so Battle of the Bands shows are always fun. Jon: All right guys. The show is February 6th at Old Ironsides in Sacramento. Thanks for your time and good luck at the show. All: Thanks! Peace.
Beyond All Ends Photos/Interview by: Brian Crabtree
YMM: This is Brian Crabtree with Your Music Magazine at the Boardwalk in Sacramento. I am here with the guys of Beyond All Ends. Band: Hey... YMM: How about we start with a little introduction? Chris: I am Chris, the manager of Beyond All Ends. Nate: I am Nate the drummer. Chris: I am Chris and I do vocals. Holden: I am Holden and I play guitar. Hunter: I am Hunter and I play guitar. Joe: And I am Joe, going to be playing the keys. YMM: Can you guys give a little description or bio of Beyond All Ends? Holden: While you are looking at the cutest guy in the world. (Points to Chris) Chris: Beyond All Ends is a band from Sacramento, California. They play hardcore music; straight metal core. Holden: We play in the sticks. Chris: Yeah, we play out in the middle of nowhere. We all drive far to come together as one. Holden: Yeah we come together… YMM: Do you guys mostly play in the Sacramento Area? Chris: Yeah, for sure. Holden: We have a tour coming. Chris: We practice out past Placerville. YMM: Since you mostly deal with the music scene in Sacramento, how do you feel about? Is it supportive of the metal scene? Chris: As of lately, it has been more towards the screamo crowd. The hardcore and metal core scenes are getting a lot better here. Just the fan support has been growing stronger and stronger. It seems that people here have been looking for some metal core here. Something to really throw down to. And we are trying to bring that all back to the Sacramento scene. YMM: Do you have any material out? Holden: We have a song and other stuff out, but we just got a new singer, Chris. Nate: We just changed singers. We have been a band for about eight months. We had a guy and girl singer at first… Holden: But what about the tour? YMM: What is the tour all about?
Chris: It is called the Left Coast Takeover Tour. It is going to start in Sacramento with the release of their new EP. It is going to be a spring tour. A couple of Nevada dates, the whole point is go get out there and play. We are not really in it for the money. It is just getting up there and playing. Getting the music heard, the more people that come to hear us the better, so our music will grow. YMM: Is that your tour, or are you doing it with a group of bands? Chris: It’s our tour. YMM: Are you going to be teaming up with other Sacramento bands to do the tour? Chris: Maybe, but if not we are still going to do it, because there is not time like the present. There are a couple of bands that we are in talks with, but we don’t know what is going on yet. The tour is happening; it is on lock. YMM: What are the dates so if people are looking for the tour? Chris: For Sacramento and all those people out there who are going to see this in Sacramento, it is going to be around May 28th. More than likely , it is going to be here at the Boardwalk for the EP release, so please be looking for that date. YMM: Well do you have any last words to the fans? Holden: Well we don’t have any fans… thanks for coming out the shows. Chris: Anyone who comes out, thank you so much. Holden: We’ll dance for you. Chris: Thanks for supporting Beyond All Ends, and we will be there for you. Nate/ Band: And we will dance…
S A C R A M E N T O
S A C R A M E N T O
Journal’s Journey Words and Photos by Jon Hermison All hail Journal! The Sacramento metal scene is burning strong and Journal is creatively fueling the fire. Within their years of existence, Journal has slightly changed its roster and is more focused than ever with their new full-length, Unlorja, which is being deployed in February. All they need now is a full-time singer! Actually, when you hear their talent, just the four of them are doing quite well for themselves. Your Music Magazine caught the Sacramento Band Olympicks contestant to see what’s in stored for the year to come. Joe Van Houten: Guitar - Tony Juvinall: Guitar - Danny Paul: Bass - Justin Tvetan: Drums
Jon: How long has the roster been this way? A lot has changed in the last year. During the writing of our new album, we lost a bass player, guitar player and a vocalist. We are still really good friends with past members. Most of them left Journal because of big life changes (jobs, etc.) Jon: So who are the new additions? We were very fortunate to find Tony Juvinall for guitar about nine months ago. He is a great guitar player and person. About four months ago, we found an equally amazing bass player, Danny Paul. Jon: I’ve noticed you guys have been continually searching for a vocalist. Is the journey close to an end, or do you plan on remaining mainly instrumental? We are not completely sure yet about the vocal situation. We are tossing this idea around though: we could get a vocalist but play some shows with vocals and some shows as “Journal, the Instrumental.” Be sure to read flyers for our shows very carefully, in case you have a preference, so you aren’t disappointed. Jon: The band just performed in one of the YMM Band Olympicks shows at the Boardwalk in Sacramento and from where I was viewing the show, you guys looked like you were enjoying yourselves. How did the band feel walking offstage? Man, playing on that stage felt awesome! Music is fun, but it is also a lot of hard work-- writing it, learning it and simultaneously handling all of the business aspects of the band. So playing a show (especially a Boardwalk show) is like pay day for us – even if we don’t get paid. It’s an opportunity for other people, besides us, to hear what we’ve created. Everyone in the band is very mellow, but we are different on stage (we like to act like fools). We want to make sure the performance is visually stimulating for the fans. We think it’s funny watching the people in the front row, bug-eyed and genuinely shocked by what we are playing. So…. in response, we flail the guitars like maniacs who have run loose with giant swords, and we sometimes pretend to battle each other. It is very rewarding for us to be able to play for an audience. We had sooooo much fun that night. It was also our first performance with our new bass player, Danny, and our first show in the last five months. Danny knew three of the four songs for that show, and so we were excited to share the stage with him for the ones he was fluid with. We played pretty well that night, but there is definitely room to get “tighter.” I expect us to sound even better at our next show on February 5th. Check our myspace page for details. Jon: So I’m sure everyone was wondering who was the guest singer that night?
Haha! I thought this might come up. The vocalist who jumped on stage is Akoni Berman. He is one of three vocalists that helped us record the vocals on our new CD along with Jesse Alford (Embrace the End) and Drew Winter (Fate, Shadows of the Colossus). Akoni performed the “singing” vocals on the cd, as opposed to the yells and screams, handled by Jesse and Drew. Originally, we thought it would be awesome if Akoni performed all of the vocals that night for one of the songs, just to give the audience a small taste of what is in store for them on the new album. Akoni had blown out his voice, the day before, and decided that he wouldn’t perform with us that night…. But then at the last minute, Akoni got really fired up and couldn’t resist the urge to jump on stage. We thought it was funny and pretty awesome at the same time. Ha! People did seem confused by this stunt. At this time, we have not officially selected a vocalist for Journal, but we are discussing a variety of options. Jon: How has 2010 been treating Journal so far?
www.myspace.com/ journalmusic
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X B M L J O T X F M D P N F
S A C R A M E N T O
The Dead Ringers By Brian Crabtree
YMM: Let’s start with introductions: Morgan Pax – lead singer/ professional Robert Plant sound-alike (also currently lead singer/ guitarist of Pariah Faction, playing at Coaster’s on February 5th in Santa Cruz with The Dead Ringers) Tim Burke – Drummer Extraordinaire (also currently the drummer for Pride Subject and Retribution) Chris Burke – Sexy Stage Dancing & Bass (also currently in Barely Breathing, previously in Mercy and Retribution) Brian LaPlace – Best lead guitarist in the…….. (also in Pariah Faction, previously in Plaster) Erick Ocho – Brick lifting, rhythm guitar (also currently drummer for Blood Print, Pariah Faction and May89 (a funk project with Gizmo & Brian)) YMM: Can I get a little introduction to what the Dead Ringers are about? TDR: The Dead Ringers strive to play the best rock n’ roll hits from the 60s to now, just like they sound on the radio. We dead ring the songs we cover to a “T.” We do Alice in Chains, Soundgarden, Slayer, Jimi Hendrix, The Beatles……. YMM: As a cover band, how do you go about picking the songs you play? TDR: We play what we like, and there’s
nothing more fun than playing my favorite songs live. I think we all listen to the radio a lot (the Hippo…..) and hear tunes we wanna do. No one ever says “no” to a new Zep or AC/DC song. Most of the time a song gets suggested at rehearsal, then we play it by ear and nail it. Eventually the song ends up in our set list. We’re all fast learners, but Brian tends to have the lyrics and guitar leads for every rock tune memorized. That definitely speeds up the process. YMM: Do you guys enjoy taking part in the Your Music Magazine Olympicks Vocal Solo competition, as the house band for the event? TDR: It’s pretty kick ass. We get to use different singers, so it’s kinda like live karaoke. That’s actually how we got Morgan to sing for us. He sang “Black Dog” at one of the competitions and just blew us away. When our original singer named Chuck moved away to Missouri, we asked Morgan to take over. Plus, sometimes we get to play Janis Joplin and Pat Benatar when girls compete in the contest. Dudes won’t sing those songs. YMM: What is a good place to find information about The Dead Ringers? TDR: myspace.com/ thedeadringerscoverband Don’t be shy to book us for bars, clubs, weddings, bar mitzvahs…. You pay, we’ll play! YMM: Any last words? TDR: “For those about to rock………….. We salute you!”
Santa Cruz
2010 BAND OLYMPICKS
brian@yourmusicmagazine.com
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YMO FINALS Saturday May 21st @ The Catalyst
Friday 4/30 @ THE CATALYST CYLINDER-TBA-TBA
VIBRANT EYEris-ELIQUATE-TBA
Friday 4/23 @ CYPRESS LOUNGE
Saturday 4/17 @ THE BRITANNIA ARMS
Friday 4/2 @ COASTERS LOUNGE Friday 4/9 @ CYPRESS LOUNGE Friday 4/16 @ COASTERS LOUNGE
Friday 3/26 @ COASTERS LOUNGE
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OLYMPICKS
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Beneath The Rapture Zero Ground Enemy Inside, T.B.A.
BOARDWALK
Feb. 26th
The
A.P. ROOTS T.B.A. KINGSuhMIDTOWN
BRONZE WINNER
SILVER WINNER One Punch Machine Gun
The Paper Sons
GOLD WINNER
March 6th Company Car
Guitar Solo Comp. SOUR DIESEL THEGRUMPY GREY ATLAS
Feb. 6th
OLD IRONSIDES YOUR MUSIC
S A N F R A N C I S C O
ELEMENT LOUNGE
Photos by: Brian Crabtree
COMPANY CAR
San Francisco YOUR MUSIC MAGAZINE BAND OLYMPICKS Gold Medal Winners
ONE PUNCH MACHINE GUN
Bronze Medal Winners
THE PAPER SONS
Silver Medal Winners
COMPANY CAR
THE PAPER SONS
ONE PUNCH MACHINE GUN
TOKYO RAID
After much anticipation, the San Francisco Your Music Olympics finals went off without a hitch this Friday at Club 6 (60 6th street, 6th and Mission). Six bands competed for the top three slots and a chance at $5,000 worth of cash and prizes. None of this would have been possible had it not been for the support of our sponsors: Epiphone Guitars, Doja Clothing and Noisy Planet. One Punch Machine Gun received the Bronze, earning them a membership to Noisy Planet. net and a brand new Epiphone Prophecy SG Custom EX (for those of us who speak “guitar” this is a stallion of an instrument.) The Silver medal winner, The Paper Sons, walked away with a membership to Noisy Planet. net, a black and white half-page ad in Your Music Magazine and a new Epiphone Prophecy Futura Custom Ex, (very, very nice... to put it simply.) And the grand prize Gold medal, which included $1,000 in cash, an Epiphone Les Paul Prophecy Custom Ex, an Epiphone Thunderbird Pro IV Bass, a color half-page ad in YMM and a membership to NoisyPlanet. net, went to San Francisco hard hitters, Company Car. First off, Club 6 is an independent artists’ dream come true. Aside from recent expansion of the club, the Dark Room (the location used for the finals) is set up with a stage that faces the bar directly; patrons can enjoy a drink and the show simultaneously, and not have to choose between booze and music (because we all know how well those two work together). With the crowd in high suspense and amps turned up to 11 band, as SF locals Disgust
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ELEMENT LOUNGE
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of Us ripped up the stage with an awesome acoustic indierock mix, that (though I can’t describe in words) sounded killer and set the bar high for the remaining acts. The next group to grace the stage was Tokyo Raid, who just released their self-titled album and packed the stage with a fast-pace indie edge that not only rocked sox, but also set the night up well for the next band and Bronze medal winners, One Punch Machine Gun. Next to the stage was our Gold medal winners, Company Car, who packed the house and kept them singing, earning them a slot in the Your Music Olympicks hall of fame. Without loosing any of its momentum, the show continued with Silver medal winners, The Paper Sons, leaving their blood and guts on the stage and keeping the energy alive for the sixth and final act, the heavyduty nose-breaking energy of SF metal band Ratchet. All and all, the night was a great success, with this being the first year the contest has graced San Francisco. It was great to know we had the support of all the bands that participated and the fans that made the finals stage as insane as it was. Your Music Magazine would like to thank all our sponsors, as well as the six finalists for enabling a great first year. Be sure to look for all the bands in our up coming issues and keep an eye out for us next year. And remember, it could be your band that walks away with all the glory and prizes. -BY ELLIOT WRIGHT
TOKYO RAID DISGUST OF US
RATCHET
RATCHET
COMPANY CAR
PAPER SON
YOUR MUSIC OLYMPICKS-Santa Cruz By: Danielle Negrin
THE MUSIC TREE
Britannia Arms
SM AO NN T A T E C R R U E Z Y
Dani: We have all been waiting for your new CD Fueled By Fire to be released. How is it coming along? Cylinder: It’s been about a year and four months, and it’s done! Dani: Well, we are all on the edge of our seats waiting for it to come out. When is it going to be released? Cylinder: We are going to be releasing it in Santa Cruz on April 30th at the Your Music Magazine Olympicks, hosted by the Catalyst. Dani: From hearing clips of your CD, it sounds clean and refined but your lyrics sound pretty aggressive. What inspires your lyrics? Cylinder: A lot of personal life experience; anywhere from relationships to work. Overall we are just trying to be real: real with ourselves and real with people. We are being honest and have integrity with what we have to say. That is definitely the best approach to touch somebody and spread our message. Dani: Well continue on that path and keep it real! So where did you record the record? Cylinder: At Sonic Rooms Studio in Livermore. Dani: Where can we get it? Cylinder: iTunes is definitely an option, but we are going to hold out and see if we can get signed with a record label. But we will definitely be capitalizing on all of the online avenues to reach our music. Dani: Yeah, online is where it’s at right now, for sure. So you are the only band to ever win the Your Music Magazine Band Olympicks in two separate markets: San Jose and Santa Cruz. What’s your secret? Cylinder: Ha, we want to know the answer to that too. It definitely caught us by surprise. What it really comes down to are promoting strategies; taking time to personally hang out with our fans and draw people in by creating personal connections. Dani: Right on, I definitely appreciate that. What did you do with the winnings? Cylinder: We put it all towards recording and make this dream come true. Dani: I definitely think that is what the magazine was going for by giving you the money! Since 2008, how has your music changed or evolved? Cylinder: We feel like a whole different band. We have matured a lot; it’s been easier to write…songs come naturally to us now. We are also trying to push everything to the next level with our live performance. Dani: So I see you have some shows coming out locally, but do you have any plans of going on tour? Cylinder: Eventually, yes. Dani: Well I have high hopes that when the CD is released that it is going to blow up! What is the most important thing you really want your fans to know about your band or music? Cylinder: Keep it real and find a way to apply yourselves to stay positive.
www.myspace.com/cylinderband
YOUR MUSIC OLYMPICKS-Santa Cruz By: Danielle Negrin Vibrant EYEris is a local hiphop group from Santa Cruz, California that is sponsored by Doja Clothing. They are spreading their music like wildfire, from house parties to the main stage at the Catalyst. Here is a glimpse into the background of this rapidly developing band. Throw up the deuces! Dani: Hey guys, I know you are a pretty new band . . . only been around for about a year and a half. How did the band get started? VE: We met in the fall, and initially Jake (the main M.C.) and Logan (the beat-maker) collaborated and started the band after a few months. Dani: How did you come up with the name “Vibrant EYEris?” VE: We played the brainstorming game for a while, exploring different rhyme schemes. We then came up with the third eye concept that sees the world in a different way than your normal eye does. The third eye is the source the music takes you to. Dani: Wow, I really like that analogy; that’s deep. Music is definitely a universal language. VE: Ya, we see music as a very spiritual thing. It brings you to something different. Dani: I couldn’t agree with you more. Your compilation of instruments is so complex and unique. How would you describe your sound? VE: The album is definitely open-ended hip-hop style, with a fusion of electronica and elements of dub-step. In addition, Logan has a vast range of beats that he samples that go through so many different ethnic tastes and cultures. We call it open-ended hip-hop because we are always open to see where it will take us. By the way, our album is called Hip Hop Don’t Stop! Check us out online at Vibrant EYEris.com. Dani: Hip-hop don’t stop baby! Any ideas for your next album? VE: Yes, it is called Illadellica. Dani: That is the sickest name for an album I have heard in a while. VE: Yeah, we are really aiming to blend dub-step and electronica with hip-hop in a unique way. It’s going to be quite the psychedelic experience. We plan for it to be all over the board but still within the lines of songs that fit with each other. Dani: Well way to step out of the lines. Hip-hop can be so safe and generic. Obviously your music has been rapidly improving and getting a great response from people, but what areas do you see that need improvement? VE: Definitely on the general administrative business end. From booking shows to going on tour, we can’t do it all so we actually just got a manager. We also want to increase our fan base. Dani: I am sure you will have no problem with that. Alright, name 3 goals that you have for 2010? VE: To play in at least 10 different states, play a string of festivals in the summertime and do at least a couple tracks with a female vocalist. So if you’re out there, holler at us! Dani: Those are some solid goals and you are already making headway. VE: Oh definitely. Our next big show is February 13 at the Catalyst in Santa Cruz. We are opening up for Dead Prez on the main stage. Come check us out, and much thanks to all of our fans! www.vibranteyeris.com
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If there are only two types of people in this world, you have the ones who let life pass them by and the ones who seize opportunity by the jugular and squeeze that sucker dry. It’s safe to say Jesse Iris at Love Dog Tattoo in Santa Cruz is one of the latter. At only 22, he’s not only an accomplished tattoo artist, he has also taught tourists how to surf while living in Hawaii and now has acted in Cheri Lovedog’s second full-length feature film. I first met Jesse while on the film’s set, but I had been familiar with his tattoo work and greatly admired its classic style. We started talking about local rock shows, but the conversation quickly turned onto tattoos, art, skating and all the finer things in life. So the idea to have Jesse be my next interview victim was quick and painless.
Interview by Mat Weir How does it feel to be a professional tattoo artist so young? It feels good. It’s weird, I feel like I should be older. But I got into it young and just ran with it. I started working at Love Dog at 19, and then I got an apprenticeship. I started actually tattooing a couple months before turning 21. Now I’m about to turn 23, so I’ve been tattooing for two years and at the shop for four. Were you always an avid artist? I was always into art, and when I started working here, I definitely didn’t know how to draw tattoo style artwork. It was a more cartoon/comic book style with graffiti. It wasn’t until I started working here that I was introduced to the tattoo art form, and then I got really into it. I used to do a lot of acrylics and spray paint, but now I do mainly watercolors because that’s what they told me to do when I first started working here. Once I got used to it I started liking it a lot more than other mediums. Favorite things to tattoo? I love anything I can do traditional style. When people can just let me run with an idea, like they bring something in and just say, “Go for it, do it your own way.” Any favorite tattoos on you? Klem at O’Reilly’s, I definitely look up to him as an artist, he’s phenomenal! He did my neck and I love it. The back of my neck was Nick Vargas over at F.U.Tattoo who’s also been around for along time and another one I look up to. The other side of my neck was done by Woody. I love his stuff. I also have a tattoo from this guy Paco from Seattle. He came down and did a guest spot; that was fun. I have a lot of random tattoos. I have to say my most recent favorite is a big bearded lady on the back of my leg by Stephen. Let’s talk about the The Jesus Factor for a minute. How was it working in a movie? I’ve never done anything like that before. It was a brand new experience and I had no idea what to expect, so it was intense; lots of work. I’d tattoo until 5 p.m. and then go shoot the movie until 4 a.m., then going home for 3 hours of sleep just to go back to work. It was this insane cycle for a month, and I ended up getting sick from running my body too hard. So I was sick and having to shoot. Luckily we did some drunk and high scenes while I was feeling like shit, so I was naturally slow (laughs). I played Eric who’s just a Santa Cruz guy; he surfed, skated and was into cars. He was a tattoo artist that worked at a shop with his best friend in the movie. It was a pretty normal role to do, basically just be myself. Any advice for someone who wants to start tattooing? Don’t just start at your house. Get in with a shop, work your way in there. And it takes a long time. You have to be very, very patient and realize that you’re not the shit. You’re not the best at the art form that you’re trying to do. Study it, learn it and try to get an apprenticeship with someone. Because honestly, I think that’s the best way to go. A traditional apprenticeship where you have to make needles, clean tubes, sweep the shop, clean the bathrooms, clean everyone’s stations, that way you learn everything, especially sanitation and cross-contamination. What advice do you have for someone who wants to get his or her first tattoo? I find that a lot of people are intimidated by tattoo shops; people will come into the shop fairly nervous. So my advice is to just go, talk to the artists—we’re fairly harmless [laughs]. Just come in and talk to people. Find an artist you like, someone who you can relate to or whose art you really like, that kind of stuff. Whether you have an extensive idea or no idea of what you want, just go in and look at the books. Feel it out and piece it together. Any last words? Oh god, well I don’t know [laugh]. I’m just stoked on where I’m at and what I’m doing. I get to live in a beautiful place and do something I love. It’s a pretty amazing life.
Moe’s Alley, Santa Cruz || January 7, 2010 Review by Dani Negrin One of my all-time favorite bands notified me that they were going to be performing in my hometown, Santa Cruz, California. This band travels and spreads their positive vibes throughout the country, so I felt truly blessed to have the opportunity to see them. Although I have listened to their CD an infinite number of times, I had no idea what I was about to witness live. I placed myself at the front right next to the stage, though I made sure to make room to dance. This eclectic reggae band I was anticipating seeing is called Mystic Roots. If you are unfamiliar with them, it is time to become familiar. Their fan base is increasing by the minute, and I suggest that you be a part of it. Mystic Roots has a very unique sound that is unlike any other band I have ever heard; it is magnetic and immediately draws the audience to the stage. They predominately mix reggae, funk and hip-hop, though throughout their performance, I heard influences of rock, dancehall and even jazz. I think that it is very bold for musicians to step out of the box and take reggae to a whole new level. The stage was packed with instruments: drums, a keyboard, bass, guitar and even a saxophone. They each individually rocked their instruments with passion; it was apparent that they have a true calling for music. Not only were these musicians extremely talented, they were complimented by a very powerful M.C. named Coot, who radiated throughout their set. Coot spoke of positive
vibrations, influential messages and even threw in his awesome beat boxing skills. He made his voice his own instrument. He united the crowd, which is so important because we all tend to live such individual lives. All of the sudden a beautiful girl confidently appeared on stage. Microphone in hand, with her diva vibe, she blew me away with her stage presence and powerful voice. The addition of a female vocalist made this band very special. She opened the door to all of the female fans to feel more of a part of the music. It is rare to see a woman be a strong addition to a reggae band but not Katherine, she was the cherry on top of their performance. Many of Mystic Root’s jams were their original songs, although they stepped up to the plate and surprised me with re-mixing some covers of popular songs in a way that I didn’t even know would be possible. All of the musicians really put their hearts and souls into the performance. I felt so connected with the band and for once, felt a part of something. Mystic Roots band proved that there is always room for new approaches to music. It was not just a concert that I went to; it was an experience. Although this might sound generic, Mystic Roots is a perfect model of what music is all about: energy, love and unity. Watch out America, Mystic Roots is taking over.
NEW ALBUM “Cali-Hi” out March 16th
OLD IRONSIDES
PRaetorian
Live March 12th AT Jose’s Underground
BOOK PRAETORIAN NOW!! CALL DREW FROM FSU PRODUCTIONS (831) 206-2146
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PHOTOS BY BRIAN CRABTREE
Feb. 6th
San Francisco SACRAMENTO
Guitar Solo Comp. SOUR DIESEL THEGRUMPY GREY ATLAS
March 6th
A.P. ROOTS T.B.A. KINGSuhMIDTOWN The
BOARDWALK
Feb. 26th
Beneath The Rapture Zero Ground Enemy Inside, T.B.A.
March 19
YMO Finals Top 7 bands
Check web-site for current top bands
SANTA CRUZ CALENDAR
2010 BAND OLYMPICKS Santa Cruz
Friday 3/19 @ CYPRESS LOUNGE
Friday 3/26 @ COASTERS LOUNGE
Friday 4/2 @ COASTERS LOUNGE Friday 4/9 @ CYPRESS LOUNGE Friday 4/16 @ COASTERS LOUNGE
Saturday 4/17 @ THE BRITANNIA ARMS
Friday 4/23 @ CYPRESS LOUNGE
VIBRANT EYEris-ELIQUATE-TBA
Friday 4/30 @ THE CATALYST CYLINDER-TBA-TBA
YMO FINALS Saturday May 21st @ The Catalyst
Santa Cruz Bands Sign Up Now!
brian@yourmusicmagazine.com
Interview by Dani Negrin Tribal Seeds is a young band of six talented artists, currently on tour throughout the West Coast spreading their unique reggae music. They’re a close-knit band who work very well together, and they have the ability to pump up the crowd immediately. Their songs are catchy and original, though far from mainstream. Watching their performance completely blew me away, and they have the potential to really make it big in the industry if they work hard and maintain the drive that they currently have. I had the opportunity to speak with the band and find out what they are all about: How long have you guys been together? And how did you meet? We have been together for about five years, and we came together collectively.
hard starting off, getting our foot in the door and getting our name out there. Although we want to stay independent, we are lucky enough to have a manager who books everything.
Wow, seems like you have really made headway for only being together for five years. On another note, what is the most nerve-racking thing about performing on stage? First of all, the anticipation and waiting process. We really strive to pull in a good audience and hope that they dig our music. When there’s a dull crowd and no dancing, that’s a let down.
Yeah, that’s definitely a plus. It’s hard to do it all on your own. Any conflicts in the group? Hell no. We spend weeks and weeks together. We better get along!
I can imagine. But not in California! You guys are rockin’ it here. Speaking of California, what do you think of the California reggae scene today? There are definitely a lot of good bands out there, and we see high hopes for the future. I agree. I’m definitely a California reggae lover. So, what is one of the hardest aspects of being in the industry? Well, there are many components. Of course, trying to get by. It is really
Right on, that’s good to hear. What goals do you have for your group in 2010? Continue to get our name out there through the internet, shows and every aspect of publicity. We also hope to continue touring and eventually make it out to the East Coast. Well, I see high hopes for you in the future. Last but not least, what message do you have to say to young people today? Respect each other and the environment, believe in yourself, be aware of the system and stay conscious. Most importantly, stay positive! New album “The Harvest” available on iTunes, Napster, Facebook, Reverb Nation, Pandora and Myspace.
www.tribalseeds.net
Presents
Friday, February 19th Rooster's Rooster s Roadhouse Alameda, Ca. Saturday, March 20th Bands4Bands 10th Annual Awards Program Oakland Metro Operahouse Mystic Rage Contact Info:
www.mysticrage.com
myspace.com/mysticrage mysticrage@mysticrage.com
510.278.9695
Interview & Photos by Brian Crabtree Let’s go around to all of you... Who are you and what do you do in the group? Jordan: I am Jordan Burns and I play the drums for Strung Out. Jake: And I play guitar for the group. Jordan: That is Jake Kiley.
personally, but for Jason and Rob the band has been going for twenty some years.
So you guys have a new album that has just dropped. How is that going for you? Jake: Since the release people have said they have liked it a lot. It has been pretty positive so far. Jordan: When you’re in a band, you always think that it is the best stuff ever. The true test of the album is with the fans, and the critics a little bit too. So far... Jake: Not really. Jordan: Somewhat...we all have different opinions. But in my opinion, that is what kind of matters. On that note, everything has been really positive. People are calling it our best album again, so this far into our career and to have people say it is our best album that is a really good feeling.
How does the new album compare to your older stuff? Jake: They all come from the same spot: when we all get together to write and jam. It is never premeditated or conceived. We get together some stuff that sounds good to us. So it is really nothing different than we have done preparing for other records. We bash them out and sometimes things click and go well, and overall it is really solid to what we have done in the past. But it is all hard because we are all looking at it subjectively. It is up to the fans to like which ones they like to like. Jordan: The cool thing about it, each album has it each individual sound to it. I think that comes from the band where everyone is putting in input. It is not like one songwriter writing everything. All five of us, and our producer, put in a good amount of input too.
Yeah, hasn’t it been like twenty years as a group? Jake: It is coming up on that, we got into the band in 92’... Jordan: It is eighteen years for me
Where did you record the album? Jordan: We recorded at our producer’s studio, Cameron Webster in Santa Anna. Jake: We never really had name for it. Sorry Cameron.
Jordan: Cameron Webster Studio. Had you recorded there before? Jake: No. He is a really cool guy to work with. Easy to work with. Smart and gets to the point quick. And he knows what he wants to get out of us. It was a real direct experience. Other records we spent a lot of time doing other stuff and sometimes you lose the immediacy of the song and the vibe with it. He has a lot of background, and is a good mediator amongst us. How has it been on Fat Wreck Chords, supportive-wise? Jake: The label has gone through changes over the years. They are not the label they were ten or fifteen years ago, but they still get our records out and to stores. They give us complete control of the album. Control of the artwork and songs on the album. They don’t say that we need to have more songs or they dont like the songs; they give us total control, which is one of the best parts of working with them. Jordan: I agree. So you are finishing up these couple of shows, then are you heading over the Europe? Jordan: I think the plan is to stay as busy as
possible. I hope that we are a lot more busy in 2010 then we were in 2009. Jake: Well, we only put out two albums in 2009, and toured two US tours. Yet this next year we have a lot more international touring to do. So we are going to do Europe, South America, Japan and Australia. Do you find that you have a big draw outside of the United States? Jake: You know, it is hit or miss, like here in the States. Some cities are really good and some are smaller. But yeah, there are some great places overseas. Everywhere there is a little bit of education about where you are at. You get to meet those kids that have something in common with you and yet they are thousands of miles away. Well wrapping up, any last words to the fans? Jake: On behalf of the whole band, thanks to though that stood by us and came out to the shows and supporting us. Never stopping. Jordan: Take a look at our Myspace page, Facebook. Jake: One day we will have a new website. Jordan: Check it out. Jake: So stick with us, we wont be stopping any time soon.
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