Sunday, July 30, 2017

Loudini Interviews Moses Guest

Started in 1995, and named after Graham Guest’s fifth-generation grandfather, Moses Guest is a Texas-based southern rock band that has just enough pop, jazz, funk, jam, and country in its veins to appeal to audiences of all stripes. The current line-up, formed in 1997, was voted Best Rock/Pop in the 2001 Houston Press Music Awards (“HPMA”). At the 2003 HPMA, Moses Guest and its members were nominated in three categories: Best Guitarist, Best Keyboardist, and Best CD.
Moses Guest has shared the stage with many great acts over the years, including Moe., Steve Miller Band, JGB, Willie Nelson, Los Lobos, Leftover Salmon, String Cheese Incident, Robert Bradley’s Blackwater Surprise, David Nelson Band, Rebirth Brass Band, Jayhawks, Lisa Loeb, Colonel Bruce Hampton & the Fiji Mariners, and it played a HORDE Tour date in 1998 in Antioch, TN.
Nowadays, Moses Guest plays live shows every few months in Texas and in California and would be happy to play the larger summer festival circuit, but the band has largely been committed to working in the studio.




That studio focus is in evidence on their new album, Light, which marks the line-up’s twentieth anniversary and is their first album release since 2007’s Best Laid Plans. The super-tight, super-polished performances and arrangements hearken back to Moses Guest’s 2002 self-titled double-cd release. And the fact that Light was mastered by none other than Sean Magee at Abbey Road Studios, London, does not hurt.  

Light contains nine songs and features “Light” (the title-track), “Dawn,” “Emily,” “Free,” “Black Road,” and a rippingly Allman-esque revision of “California,” which revives the great southern rock anthem for us in epic fashion.
Light evokes a certain sophistication that can only come with twenty years of playing together, but the heart of the Moses Guest sound remains the same: it’s southern, it’s classic, it rocks, and it jams.
Rick Thompson: keys, vocals
Jeremy Horton: bass
James Edwards: drums, vocals
Graham Guest: guitar, vocals

The Best Horror Movies Based On Books

We all love a good scary movie. While many based on books have fallen flat. some have been excellent. This week on the Loudini Hard Rock & Metal Circus Lou and Keith reveal the greatest horror films based on books. Of course they also play some of the greatest hard rock that you've never heard too! Featured Loudini Artists:   Molasses Barge CrashDollz  As Darkness Dies





Molasses Barge
Genre
Doom Metal/Heavy Rock

Band Members

Brian "Butch" Balich - Vocals
/
Amy Bianco - Bass
/
Dave Fresch - Guitar
/
Justin Gizzi - Guitar
/
Wayne Massey - Drums

Hometown
Pittsburgh, PA

Record Label
Blackseed Records

About
The official home of the Molasses Barge ! Get yer doom on !

Current Location
Pittsburgh, PA

Press contact
justingizzi2@yahoo.com

Booking agent
mbarge09@yahoo.com

Crashdollz
Genre
Punk/Metal/Rock

Band Members
Nikki Darling- Vocals 
Rachel Rekkit - Guitar
Kevin "Krank" Kekes- Bass

Hometown
Detroit

About
CrashDollz

Biography
CrashDollz are Detroits wildest Punk Metal band!
**FULL LENGTH CDs AVAILABLE AT crashdollz.com**.
Finally here to re-ignite Rock and Roll, CrashDollz bring Punk sneer with Big Rock Power into a new unchartered area. Crossing demented aggression, punk attitude, heavy metal power, virtuoso musicianship and sexy/trashy/gutter punk image into a whole new music revolution that could only have come out of Detroit, CrashDollz are truly unique and one-of-a-kind. Listen to "Novocaine", "Dollhouse", "Dumpster Punk" or the radio-friendly "27 Tulip Pass" and you will hear serious songwriting talent at the core of a big explosion of rock and roll audacity the likes of which hasn't been heard in many years.

Current Location
Detroit, MI

Influences
Us

Press contact
For press, media, interviews and reviews contact 

crashdollz@rocketmail.com or 

RockFire PR.

https://www.facebook.com/rockfirepr?fref=ts

https://twitter.com/RockFirePR

rockfirepr@yahoo.com

Booking agent
crashdollz@rocketmail.com
Booking agent
crashdollz@rocketmail.com


As Darkness Dies
Originally formed in 2011 by Paul Coleman, A.D.D.’s current defining line-up came together in 2013 and stormed the CT metal scene with the band's first self-produced album, The Future Started Yesterday. The band's debut dominated the Number One spot on the CT Reverb Nation Charts for over 18 months and reached 16th in the Nation!

On the strength of this release, A.D.D. forged their path, opening nationwide and overseas for legendary acts such as Anthrax, Testament, Death Angel, Queensryche, Fates Warning, Halcyon Way, Overkill, Prong and Obsession.

Together, the band blazed a trail of progressive metal that has its own unique style.

Personal Information
Press: http://www.asdarknessdies.com/press/

Current Location
Connecticut

General Manager
Michael Vescera

Influences
We are influenced by a wide range of artists from The 80's to current. We as individuals differ in our exact tastes in music, which helps contribute to the uniqueness in our songs.

Press contact
Jonna Ambur
jonna@asdarknessdies.com

Booking agent
Bookings
bookings@asdarknessdies.com


Sunday, July 23, 2017

Loudini interviews Leisure McCorkle

For Leisure McCorkle—the band, the man —life is about not standing still. The nomadic alt-rocker is a student of the journey. Each mile yields another lesson, story, or a meaningful moment with an old buddy or a new friend.

Leisure goes from city to city and country to country processing moments in motion like an intellectual, emotionally engaged troubadour. You could say he is something of an anthropologist, and you’d be right. Leisure is a cognitive and evolutionary anthropologist with his guitar and without it.

His latest travelogue—the album 5000 Light Years Beyond the Speed of Sound, to be the inaugural release on his own imprint, Nappystar Chocolates—is a landmark release. It features Leisure McCorkle’s classic lineup reunited on record for the first time in 17 years. It also showcases a new artistic vista for Leisure, finding him exploring a quality of mournful melodicism reminiscent of 1980s British new-wave/dark-wave within his signature rousing hook-laden alt-rock.



“My music is really about a journey of the ‘workingman’s musician.’ Each album is concerned with giving a different portrayal of living on the road and around the world as a musical artist, collecting the philosophical and emotive thoughts of human behavior,” he says phoning in from the road where he’s already racked up 8,000 miles. “I want the music to be about experience rather than commodity.”

Leisure’s aesthetic is instantly familiar, broadly resonate, and genre defying. He pens smartly written pop brimming with thoughtful lyric conventions like alliteration, unexpected turns of phrases, and fresh meter schemes. His work in this realm recalls the emotive, clever, and sophisticated songcraft of Elvis Costello and Joe Jackson. He also injects scruffy alt-rock, punk grit, and anthemic vulnerability into the mélange.

Lore has it that Leisure earned his moniker because the neighborhood kids sensed his free spiritedness. They were onto something. “I knew at 14, I wanted to drive around and play shows. I came from a punk rock DIY scene, and, over time, forged my own niche,” Leisure says. “At this point, I’m like a mid 20th century bluesman that gigs every day of the year.”

His endless itinerary has taken him through the wilds of punk rock, where he earned a cult following with pioneering pop-punk band Misguided Youth (pre Green Day), and through exploring the majesty of the groove with Funkenstein. However, he’s best known as the driving force behind Leisure McCorkle. The group’s classic lineup features bassist Big Mike Mitchell, bass (formerly of the Sire/Warner Brothers band Jolene), percussionist Gary Guthrie (Spirit System, Elevator Action), and Grainger Gilbert (Granger) on guitar. Since 1997, Leisure McCorkle, with various lineups, has released four critically acclaimed albums, earned prime sync licensing placements with MTV, and toured nationally and internationally. Select live performance highlights include dates with Cowboy Mouth, Glenn Tilbrook (Squeeze), The Rembrandts, Frank Black (The Pixies), The Lemonheads, The Connells, Edwin McCain, Mark Bryan (Hootie and the Blowfish), Southern Culture on the Skids, Blue Dogs, and Elliott Smith.

Somehow, along the way, Leisure has been awarded a Ph.D. in cognitive and evolutionary anthropology at the Institute of Cognition and Culture at Queen’s University, Belfast (Northern Ireland/UK) under the supervision of heavyweights E. Thomas Lawson and Harvey Whitehouse (Oxford), and amassed an impressive academic resume as a thought leader, writer, and professor. “Anthropology and music are a lot alike. You meet new people and reflect, and your songs are the results of your fieldwork,” opines Leisure.

Leisure McCorkle has always been a solo project with a band personality. When the owner of a popular Charlotte, North Carolina Freehouse popped the reunion question, the band members found that special founding-band chemistry was still there, and thus launched a creatively fertile new era for the band.

5000 Light Years Beyond the Speed of Sound, was produced by longtime bass player “Big” Mike Mitschele, and is the darkest entry in the Leisure McCorkle oeuvre. “The latest album has morphed this idea into a ‘time traveler’ similar to Dr. Who. The idea is to play with concepts of time and space while creating a musical space for meaning, experience, and raw emotions,’” he shares.

The 10-track album begins with an ambient sonic snippet that slowly comes into crisp clarity, yielding to the opening track, “Warehouse.” Atmospheric keys, yearning harmonies, and winsome hooks subtly adorn this acoustic pop-rock tune. Within it is a sweetly nostalgic peek into vet indie musician touring life.

Other album standouts include the Americana-tinged “Transmission” replete with lonesome pedal steel melodies, the burly power-pop of “Turn It Up,” and the wistful ballad “Ghost Angeles.” On “Transmission” Leisure metaphorically filters the deep human need for meaningful relationships through the sacred Buddhist text for the Lotus Sutra. “The message is that someone who cares about you will always be a lighthouse no matter where you are,” he reveals

“Turn It Up” is a raucous paean to Charlotte’s famous Milestone club, a CBGB’s like underground icon. It’s an anthem that boasts beefy riffs, sublime melodic guitar interplay, and that classic Pixies-esque soft verse/loud chorus dynamic of 1990s alt-rock. The dreamy “Ghost Angeles” is about the haunting reality that physical relocation can never really distance you from heartache or emotive connection.

Up next, Leisure will tour endlessly solo, and, for select dates, with the reunited classic lineup of the Leisure McCorkleband. Thinking about the miles, the stories, the lessons, and the music, Leisure says: “Well, I’ve slept in a lot of airports,” he laughs. “I’ve met thousands of people around the world. Some of them have become my best friends. That’s the catalyst for me—the relationships and the stories. The adventure is sort of like The Hobbit crossed with Dr. Who.”

Who are THE MOST Unique Voices In Rock

You know them from the first note of the first word of any song that they sing, even if you have never heard the song before. These are the most unique, distinctive and sometimes down right strange singing voices in rock. Love them or hate them... that's the topic of this week's Loudini Hard Rock & Metal Circus.  Featured Loudini Artists:    Dark Hound  Angelical Tears  A Course Of Action






Dark Hound
With the unlikely home base of Nashville, Tennessee, one might wonder just how Dark Hound managed to achieve a heavy metal sound that seems so distinct and distant from the country music heroes spun off of Music Row. "Though we live in the capital of Country music, Nashville really is Music City, USA. There is such a rich and diverse musical community in this town, you don't have to go too far off Broadway to escape the honky-tonks filled with tourists in boots and cowboy hats and find amazingly talented musicians from all walks of life playing all sorts of great music. I think where we're from is an important factor as to why we don't sound like your typical modern-day metal group", says ET Brown, vocalist and bassist of the decidedly different Nashville act.

Formed in 2009, Dark Hound is comprised of ET Brown, Josh Brown (Enfold Darkness, Nashvillbilly) and Evan Hensley (Nightfall). Both the band and their sound were forged out of mutual friendship and respect for the musicianship and song-craft that define top-tier heavy metal music.

“We’ve all been friends for years”, says guitarists Evan Hensley. “Something special happens when you create music with people you have a real history with – it’s just very natural. I think it’s also safe to say that we’d all love to help put Nashville on the map for metal!”
With a finely-tuned focus and a rock-solid debut record, Dark Hound is poised to become the bright star to watch as it peaks from Nashville's horizon.
Gender
Current Location
Nashville, TN
General Manager
ET Brown
Influences
Megadeth, Iron Maiden, Pantera, Arch Enemy, Testament, Dream Theater
Press contact
info@dark-hound.com
Booking agent
info@dark-hound.com

A Course of Action

John Culberson and J.T. Silvestri make up A Course Of Action, a hard working rock band from western North Carolina. The band is known for tight live shows, great music and solid original material. 


Hailing from North Carolina, South Carolina and Florida, they bring many years of musicianship and a genuine love of music for the sake of music.

Once the band was asked, "what is your gimmick?" The answer was, "there is no gimmick. We are just normal guys from the South making great rock music."

Gender
Neutral (It)

Current Location
US

General Manager
searching!!!!

Influences
Alice In Chains, Alterbridge, Chevelle, Sevendust, Tool

Press contact
John Culberson, Jt Silvestri

Booking agent
John Culberson

Angelical Tears
Since forming in October of 2006, Angelical Tears has stood as a unique musical voice in the Oklahoma music scene. The band's heavy but melodic sound is the result of a variety of musical influences such as Hard Rock, Goth, Classical, Metal, and Electronica. These elements all combine to create a powerful metal sound with strong symphonic Goth elements.

The combination of the ethereal vocals of Russian native, Julia Flansburg, heavy guitars of Steven Bittle, and pounding bass of Glenn Flansburg give Angelical Tears a style and sound that sets them apart from their peers in the Oklahoma music scene.

The band's first show was in the "March Bandness" battle of the bands contest organized by 94.7FM "The Buzz". The band quickly proved itself by placing in the top four final bands. Fueled by this initial success, the band sought further opportunities to perform, refine their sound, and develop a fan base. Performances at regional/national venues like The Samurai, Reggies, and The Rave/Eagles Ballroom; at festivals such as Rock Jam, Dame-Nation, Rose State College's Festival of Modern Music, and The Oklahoma State Fair; appearances on KSBI-TV's "Oklahoma Live", Oklahoma University TV's "The Set", The Oklahoma Gazette's Annual Ghouls Gone Wild Halloween Parade, and The All-Stars Tour have helped propel Angelical Tears into the top tier of bands in Oklahoma. These successes have also allowed Angelical Tears to share the stage with numerous local/regional artists while opening for national acts such as Bang Tango and The Misfits, as well as serving as direct support for the internationally-reknown Japanese metal band, Loudness.

Angelical Tears released their debut, self-titled E.P. in August of 2010. Music from this CD has gained local/regional airplay on stations like KATT 100.5FM, Oklahoma City's most popular rock radio station. The EP has received glowing reviews both domestically and internationally by Femme Metal Webzine, Sonic Cathedral, as well as numerous others. The track "No More" was featured on Australian record label Blue Freya's compilation CD "Born of Sand and Snow" as well as in the soundtrack for the motion picture "Dark of Moon". The track "Save Me" will appear on the soundtrack of the upcoming horror movie "Waterfront Nightmare". The combination of their active fan base, reception of live performances, and EP success have also earned Angelical Tears such honors as being named Unleash the Furies' Band of the Month (Sept., 2011). 

With their sights now set on national and international tours, the band has branched out beyond the Oklahoma area playing shows in Wisconsin, Colorado, Illinois, Kansas, Nevada, Tennessee, and Texas. In addition to actively touring, Angelical Tears has completed the recording of their debut LP, "The Eleventh Hour" which was released June 23rd of 2012.

Gender

Current Location
Norman, OK

General Manager
Glenn Flansburg

Influences
Lacuna Coil
Within Temptation
Evanescence... See More

Press contact
info@angelicaltears.com

Booking agent
info@angelicaltears.com





Monday, July 17, 2017

Loudini Interviews Abby Krizner of Fist Fight In The Parking Lot

Fist Fight In The Parking Lot
Members
Abby Krizner - vocals, guitar
Jason Sichi - guitar
John McCallough - bass
Chris Ruane - drums

After years of running in likeminded musical circles in their hometown of Pittsburgh, PA the members of Fist Fight In The Parking Lot came together on Thanksgiving Eve of 2009. It would their first on stage debut, and they would make it without ever having played a note together.
At a local showcase, a last minute cancelation left a lull of “time to fill.” Battle tested players, a quick off stage discussion would be the only preparation before embarking on a quick four song set. The on-stage chemistry was immediate. A few years later, their first release would be in front of a sold out crowd in the same year they would be voted as the best metal band in the city.
Fist Fight released their self titled debut album in February of 2012, playing off their name with punchy, concise and vitriolic welcome. A darker turn would follow in 2014, with the sludgy yet soaring “Year of the Ox.” Even Motherhood wouldn’t slow them down. As lead singer Abby Krizner was pregnant with her first child, the band was completing writing and recording for their next release.




The venom spitting groove of Fist Fight In The Parking Lot returns on “714,” to be released July 2017.

The Best Guilty Pleasure Songs Of All Time

You know that there are those certain songs that you find yourself rocking out to, cranking up or day dreaming to that you would not want any of your metal or rocker friends to catch you in the act. We all have favorite guilty pleasure songs. On this episode of The Loudini Hard Rock & Metal Circus, Lou and Keith come clean about some of their guilty pleasures as well as outing many of you who confessed yours on our Facebook posts.  Featured Loudini Artists:  All Them Witches  Fist Fight In The Parking Lot  
Sky Valley Mistress










All Them Witches
Heavy, heady and hypnotic, All Them Witches concoct a powerful and potent psychedelic sound that fuses bluesy soul, Southern swagger and thunderous hard rock. With their transfixing releases, 2012’s Our Mother Electricity and 2014’s Lightning At The Door, and a jam-filled live show where no two shows are the same, the band has amassed a devoted following and have become something of a sensation in the underground rock scene. “The band seemingly channels the churn of the universe and connects with a big, bad, uncaring cosmos,” wrote the Boston Globe, adding, “There is a primal ebb and flow at the core… The band’s mystic atmosphere, dark but not brutal, is the result of a tireless work ethic, a grueling tour schedule, and a tape trader’s compulsion for documenting every show.”
Current Location
Nashville, TN
General Manager
Wes Kidd - Red Light Management
wes.kidd@redlightmanagement.com
Influences
divine energy
Press contact
Jake Lanier
New West Records
jakelanier@newwestrecords.com
Booking agent
North America
Zachary Cepin
zachary@highroadtouring.com.

Fist Fight In The Parking Lot
Band Members
Sven. We're all named Sven.
About
Formerly fast, now slow and cunty.
Awards
"Elitist Corporate Pigs," a love story.
fistfightintheparkinglot@gmail.com
http://www.fistfightintheparkinglot.com



Sky Valley Mistress
We're the best thing you've never heard.
Popped Music - "A brash and bold outfit sounding like PJ Harvey fronting Lenny Kravitz’s backing band."
The Blues Magazine - “SKY VALLEY MISTRESS mean business as they come swaggering out of
Blackburn to set hips shaking and pulses racing with a blend of dirty blues and
raw rock and roll”.
TeamRock - "Fronted by the formidable Kayley 'Hell Kitten' Davies, the quartet take their musical cues from Zeppelin, Sabbath and the meanest, low-down urban blues, to deliver bruising rock 'n' roll thrills."
Rhythm Magazine - "...Their sound remains defiantly stripped down, fuzzy and dirtier than a ghetto dumpster."
Filtered Magazine - "They show their generation the way that rock and roll should be done."
Manchester Rocks - "Sky Valley Mistress are a cacophony of rock n’ roll excellence."
Louder Than War - "Sky Valley Mistress are a force to be reckoned with."
God Is In The TV Zine - "Their passion for loud old school rock’n’roll is oozing from every pore. A must for any Led Zeppelin enthusiast or a QOTSA fan."
Quenched Music - "Bands like Sky Valley Mistress are a rare breed and should be celebrated."”
Press contact
Matt Reynolds - matt@savagegringo.com
Booking agent
info@skyvalleymistress.com

Friday, July 14, 2017

Loudini interviews Ashley Smash

Smash Attack is coming out swingin' in the local music scene. Only being a hardcore promoter for the past two years, Smash is finally building a name for herself. Working with various people, groups, and bands in the tri-state ( Western, PA) area, she is currently working her way into management.

Everything that she's been doing for the music scene has started off as a dream and is now turning it into a reality, not only for herself, but her clients as well.









Tuesday, July 11, 2017

Who are the Most Underrated Guitarists of All Time ?

They don't always get their due, usually because these six string slingers are doing some other great musical thing like fronting the band, writing amazing songs, or being great singers. Somethings though, they playing a supporting role with other band member who for one reason or another are more well know. But these guitar players are all world class and playing iconic riffs and solos that you know and love! Featured Loudini Artists:  Four Sticks  The Sword  Bridge To Mars










Bridge to Mars
"Quality from start to finish, Bridge To Mars have the potential to make some serious waves in the world of classic rock with this debut album"
Jim Rowland, Uberrock

Not just a copy of course,Bridge To Mars have made their own wonderful way. They learned from a master, they run with the best, they make a stupendous noise.
All aboard!
9 out of 10
Steve Swift, Powerplay magazine UK

"Bridge To Mars is spot on target. If you like the genre, you will love this album"
Craig Hartranft, Dangerdog

"So I think it’s fairly obvious that I rather like this release and if 70’s rock / hard rock is your bag , then you will too."
Dan Mann, Rockposer

"All in all a killer debut for this power trio, a band I’d really like to see live, where I think the songs will really come alive. Highly recommended!"
Janne Starck

So, on closing, if your into MetalCore, Djent, Thrash metal etc. then you may think this isn’t gonna be your cuppa tea. However, like everyone else who is into Rock or Metal or every genre and era, you will always listen to the likes of Zep, Cream, The Who etc., and if you liked these, then you will love Bridge To Mars. This albums sound, has its roots well and truly planted in the late 60’s and 70’s early classic rock, psychedelia era, but with an all important 2016 contemporary take on it. This is one classy album. Buy it! You sure as hell won’t be disappointed.

Would I buy it? – Yes, and I did, and so should you!

Would I recommend it? – Most definitely!

Would I pay good money to see them live? – Without hesitation. JJ Marsh is without doubt one of the greatest guitarists to grace this planet.

Overall –
Rating – 5 out of 5
John J O´Neil, Firestorm.com


10 out of 10 cd review by Sleazethiscity, France

5 out of 5 cd review by Radio-Barbarossa, Germany

8 out if 10 cd review by Sweden Rock magazine, Sweden

Etc.....etc.

BRIDGE TO MARS, a three-piece powerhouse from Stockholm, Sweden. 

JJ MARSH: Regular co-writer and guitar player with Glenn Hughes for 13 years and played on a number of his albums, and also recorded and toured with Glenn and Joe Lynn Turner's 'Hughes Turner Project' (HTP). Has also played with the Swedish band Spellbound. 

THOMAS BROMAN: Worked with many artists and bands including Great King Rat, The Electric Boys, Send No Flowers, Magnus Lindberg, John Norum, Silver Ginger 5, Glenn Hughes, Hughes Turner Project, Firebird, Joe Lynn Turner, Michael Schenker and many more.

ROBERT HANSEN: Also bass player in the swedish progressive band Beardfish and has been a part of many other projects.

The Sword
There’s an unspoken edict handed down through the ages when it comes to rock bands: there are no rules.

Nobody picks up a guitar to be constricted or oppressed. It’s all about feeling free artistically. Now, The Sword—John Cronise [vocals, guitar], Kyle Shutt [guitar], Bryan Richie [bass], and Santiago Vela III [drums]—cutout boundaries since day one. Their style never stood predicated on a trend or a template. They always create what feels right and let the results speak for themselves.

When it came time to record the group’s fifth full-length album, High Country [Razor & Tie], Cronise landed at something of a spiritual crossroads. Following the final tour for their critically acclaimed Apocryphon, he holed up in his North Carolina home and eventually began writing new songs. The material began to veer into a different space that at the time Cronise felt was somewhat outside of The Sword’s sphere.

“I didn’t even intend for the demos to be Sword songs,” he explains. “But then I realized that I had taken on a sort of limiting view of what The Sword was, and that wasn’t actually what I wanted it to be. I think the new album is more reflective of the music I listen to and where our heads are at collectively. With each of our albums, it’s become less about fury and bombast and more about trying to write good songs. We realized that our music can go wherever we want it to go. There’s no pre-determined course here now, and there never was.”

High Country became new territory for The Sword, and they began doing things differently. That approach included more attention to backing vocals and harmonies, implementing more synthesizers and percussion elements, and tuning to E-flat instead of all the way down to C. As a result, the guitars stand out as more vital and vibrant than ever.

“I felt like the low tuning had become more of a crutch than a tool,” he says. “It was all a matter of trying to keep things fresh, and not fall prey to habits or expectations. We wanted to break out of any classifications and just putout a good rock record.

”Inspired, the boys headed to Church House Recording Studio in Austin, TX to cut High Country with Adrian Quesadaof Brownout and Grupo Fantasma producing, Stuart Sykes [The White Stripes] engineering, and J. Robbins mixing.Over the course of four weeks, they hammered out the album’s 15 tracks in the old converted church. Thematically though, Cronise’s head was still in North Carolina.

“There are a lot of lyrical themes that run throughout the album,” he explains. “I live out in the mountains, so nature really inspired the whole record. That’s a large part of the lyrics.

”The title track and first single “High Country” springs from a transfixing guitar melody into a sweeping refrain,illuminating the group’s inherent dynamics. Over those rolling riffs, the singer paints a thought-provoking topography.

“That was actually the first song I wrote that ended up going on the record,” he says. “The title can have quite a few meanings. Physically, it might mean mountains and literal high country, but it can also refer to a plane of being; a place of wisdom and enlightenment.”

“Empty Temples” opens with a psychedelic buzz that quickly ramps up into towering guitars and another robustvocal display evocative of rock’s golden age.

“It’s loose and swinging, but it has these epic moments,” says Cronise. “Lyrically, it’s about letting go of the past and moving on. You just have faith if you embrace change and be unafraid, and you’ll find where you need to go.

”The gathering storm of “Early Snow” eventually gives way to a rapturous horn section, another first for the band,while “Mist and Shadow” stirs up a haze of blues that’s instantly thunderous. “That song is based around riffswritten by Bryan, which is a new thing for us. He contributed quite a bit of music to this album, and in many ways it’s our most collaborative work to date.”

Both “The Dreamthieves” and “Tears Like Diamonds” have titles inspired by the work of science fiction author Michael Moorcock, though Cronise insists the lyrics have lives of their own. “I’d prefer to let people interpret the songs how they want,” he says, “which is one reason the lyrics aren’t printed in the album sleeve this time. I think they’re pretty intelligible and accessible, and I didn’t want them to distract from the music.

”The Sword’s impact continues to expand. 2012’s Apocryphon debuted at #17 on the Billboard Top 200, marking their highest entry on the chart. Since first emerging with 2006’s Age of Winters, the group has been extolled by everyone from Rolling Stone and The Washington Post to Revolver and Decibel. Metallica personally chose them as support for a global tour, and they’ve earned high-profile syncs in movies including Jennifer’s Body and Jonas Åkerlund’s Horsemen. However, High Country is the band’s biggest, boldest, and brightest frontier.

“I want to make positive, uplifting music,” Cronise leaves off. “High Country has moments of darkness and thoughtfulness, as anything I write probably will. But at the end of the day I want to put smiles on people’s faces.”

Monday, July 10, 2017

Loudini Interviews Space Diaries

Space Diaries is a band from Los Angeles founded by Eddie Olguin in 2015 under the original moniker Sunset.  In the year previous to this, Eddie had lost hope in the “band experience” (having dealt with the typical scenarios that accompany being in a band in L.A.) and after the disintegration of his last band he found himself navigating through a turbulent period in his life.  He took time off and began writing songs that encapsulated the trials and tribulations he was facing.

Once he had composed a batch of songs, that he felt strong about, his desire to create a brotherhood with which he could play live was reborn.  He reached out to friend and former bandmate, drummer Marty Witt (Death of a Star), and they embarked on the process of trying to complete the lineup.  One year into this process (having gone through an ever changing roster) Eddie was ready to pull the plug as his frustration with L.A. musicians and their lack of commitment/drive resurfaced.  Following the departure of the original guitarist, in a last ditch effort and purely for shits and giggles, Eddie posted an ad looking for a guitar player.






In comes Raymond Lacsamana who might as well have fallen from the heavens straight into Eddie’s hands.  He was the first person to respond to the ad and Eddie never checked the ad again.  Raymond stepped in and, with two weeks notice, helped the band perform a gig to which they were contractually bound.  Soon after this show they parted ways with the bass player.

Raymond mentioned to Eddie that one of his idols, bass player Buwi Meneses  (from multi-platinum bands Parokya ni Edgar and Franco) had just moved to Los Angeles and may be looking to start or join a project.   On pure hope and a prayer Raymond reached out to Buwi and upon hearing some demos Buwi’s interest was piqued.  From the first rehearsal, with Buwi, Eddie was convinced that this was the definitive lineup and that the band, since its inception, was finally complete.

They spent the latter half of 2016 working on new material and developing their unique sound (which they describe as Space-wave).  In 2017 they headed into the recording studio, with producer Joseph Holiday, and recorded their debut, self-titled, EP.

The stage is set and the lights are up as Space Diaries is ready to share their music with you.

Monday, July 3, 2017

Who Did It Better... Van Halen or the Kinks?

"Covers" or "remakes" have always been a great way for a band to gain access to an audience that may have overlooked them. Sometimes a bands effort to reach a new audience yields some remarkable results with new versions of old tunes that are better than the original. That's the topic for this week's Loudini Hard Rock & Metal Circus! Featured Loudini Artists: The Muggs  Martin J Andersen   a.k.a Martin Jepsen Andersen  Motorgun









http://recordings.talkshoe.com/TC-135370/TS-1190280.mp3



The Muggs
The Muggs formed in February of 2000. Guitar player Danny Methric and Bass player Tony DeNardo were playing in two bands at that time: The Detroit Underground Blues Band and Fat Belly Brown. Danny was hanging out at The Music Menu in downtown Detroit when he ran into Matt Rost, a local drummer that had actually been in Fat Belly Brown for about two weeks before leaving, as he decided his band workload at the time was too heavy. They got to talking and Danny found out that Matt had just quit his main project, The Immortal Winos of Soul. Danny mentioned that he was looking to do something different than Fat Belly Brown, something more "bluesy", and Matt said he'd be interested. Photo by Jason Seaman
It didn't take long for the band to start gelling as all three players had been musicians for at least seven years. DeNardo and Methric have always played together in every band they were in and Rost was a consummate drummer in his own right. In October 2000, the Muggs recorded their first EP demo so that they had something to play bar owners to get gigs. "They were good enough for the money that we spent, but keep in mind, those songs are only demos," says Tony. In March 2001, the Muggs were invited to play the Hamtramck Blowout, a music festival that involves hundreds of Detroit bands at about twenty different bars in the city of Hamtramck, a city contained entirely within Detroit. This show, played at Paychecks to a packed house, seemed to solidify the group as an established act in Detroit. From March to September 2001, the Muggs continued playing more and more shows, gaining a solid fan base in the process. In August of 2001, they were asked to play the very last show ever in the famed Gold Dollar before it went out of business. Neil Yee, the owner of the Gold Dollar, asked the Muggs to play to "sell me out of my remaining imports." The Muggs accepted and played by themselves to about sixty guests. On September 2nd, 2001 the Muggs played a high energy show to a packed tent outdoors at the Cadieux Café's "Mussel Beach Music Festival." They did not know that this would be their last show for quite some time.



Motorgun
By Joe Romagnola (Grooveyard Records)
Outstanding debut studio disc by this mega-awesome heavy guitar power trio from Brazil featuring 10 tracks (57 mins.) of brain-damaging, killer, powerful, dynamic, blues-based, hard/heavy rock riffage that lands monumental. The "Self-Titled" disc by Motorgun kicks serious ass, landing supreme & authentic with Classic, timeless, heavy rock excellence.
Motorgun are an amazing heavy rock riff:machine who give the term "Power Trio" new meaning. Combining strong songs, awesome vocals and killer riffage with impressive musicianship, Motorgun have landed with strength & power on their excellent debut disc and have given us hope & faith that real heavy rock is still alive. Fronted by the insanely talented Bebeto Daroz on guitar & vocals, "The Man" is a true bad-ass riff:master of world-class magnitude who also nails down killer, serious legit lead guitar solos that speak the six string language of the guitar hero greats. Our #1 good, heavy, riff-rockin', ass kickin', guitar slingin' Motorgun Brother Bebeto Daroz also handles the vocals and delivers excellent, stand-out, vox with power and melody. Motorgun also features Edinho on low end bottom kool bass and Leo Mello on thunderous drums. Both Edhino and Leo Mello are killer musicians in their own right who both combine their excellent musical talents to nail down the kick-ass, powerful Motorgun sound. For Those About to Rock with Motorgun, We Salute You.
The Motorgun: "Self-Titled" disc is an essential, impressive heavy rock slab of monstrous proportions that is Highly recommended to fans of Black Sabbath, Ozzy, Randy Rhoads, Zakk Wylde, Soundgarden and all other Classic hard/heavy guitar rock bands from the 70s to current times. An Epic, modern day heavy rocker that stands tall, shines brightly and sets new standards for bad-ass power trio greatness.


Martin J. Andersen
Blindstone discography:
- Manifesto (2003) (Karma Music KMCD 2003 / Grooveyard Records GYR044)
- Freedoms's Calling (2008) (Grooveyard Records GYR043)
- Rise Above (2010) (Grooveyard Records GYR061)
- Greetings From the Karma Factory (2012) (Grooveyard Records GYR091)
- Rare Tracks (2012) (Grooveyard Records GYR092)
- Live in Denmark (2015) (Grooveyard Records GYR133)
- The Seventh Cycle of Eternity (2016) (Grooveyard Records GYR151)
Solo album: (as 'Martin J. Andersen')
- Sex String Renegade (2015) (Grooveyard Rcords GYR132)