Artist: Angelspit

Album: Hideous and Perfect

Genre: Industrial

Vocal Style: Male & Female, distorted, vocoder, auto-tune (used right)

Label: Metropolis Records

Parental Advisory: Yes

Recommended if You Like: KMFDM, Excessive Force, MDFMK

Hideous and Perfect Album Cover

In their bio they are heralded as the new wave of industrial music, well that is an awful big boast to live up to and one that Angelspit falls short of.  Do you like KMFDM?  If so then you’ve heard this record before.

From the trade off of female and male vocals to the pounding beats and metal guitars Angelspit fails to really tread new ground.  In the bio it talks about them creating their own instruments for the recording of this album, and while that may seem novel and a unique idea today for those people that have forgotten about Einstruzende Neubauten or Throbbing Gristle those of us old enough to remember those bands don’t really see that as anything new at all, and quite honestly the lack of experimentation despite the fact they recorded this album in a warehouse is a let down for the listener.

Instead of getting Angst part 2, I would have liked to have heard a bit more of perhaps Tabula Rasa 2, especially if you are going to make a claim that you are honoring the past while moving forward.

While my review my sound like a bit of a bummer, it’s not, because what Angelspit lacks up for in originality or even song writing they make up for in production and over all product.  The album is a solid album from beginning to end and where other acts in the genre decided to get a little over long, Angelspit knows when it’s time to end the record and thus you don’t get worn out or bored with the lack of dynamics on the record.  Angelspit are definitely in a place to grow and I hope they do.  I also hope they find their own voice, we already have one KMFDM who continue to put out solid albums, we don’t need two per say.

3 out of 5 stars.

Angelspit’s Hideous and Perfect was provided courtesy of Metropolis Records.

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Are you catching a theme from me here lately?  Female fronted groups with dynamic vocals and interesting instrumentation have been my thing lately.  Another of of my favorite bands of the new breed is IWrestledABearOnce.  Completely original and totally insane, what these guys and gal are doing isn’t for everyone, but if you listen closely you’ll hear some real beauty in here.  They were recently in Des Monies on the GhostbusTour and I so wish I could have gone and seen them!  I’m hoping to snag an interview with them here sooner than later too, although they are taking off for Japan shortly!  So with out further ado, here is the new video for IWrestledABearOnce and their song “The Cat’s Pajamas”.

For all of my Japanese reader here are the tour dates:

The Iwrestledabearonce tour dates are as follows:

Date                City                              Venue

Japanese tour dates with FACT and Closure In Moscow:

Nov 26             Tokyo                          Zepp Tokyo

Nov 28             Koriyama                     Hip Shot Japan

Nov 30             Matsuyama                 Salonkitty

Dec 1              Takamatsu                  Dime

Dec 3              Hiroshima                    Club Quattro

Dec 4              Okayama                    Image

Dec 7              Osaka                         Big Cat

And for a bit more info on the band click here Myspace

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About 4 years ago I got to see Bob Dylan and Willie Nelson in Cedar Rapids and it was an experience that I thought I would never ever experience again.  Part of me wondered if wasn’t Dylan’s last go round on tour and part of me didn’t think I’d ever be able to see that kind of musicianship on stage ever again.  I’m used to sloppy, heavy and loud and when I do get to see a performer of Dylan’s caliber I’m always moved by the experience.  Last night was no exception to the rule.

Four years ago I was enthralled by the way the band watched Dylan for changes in the songs.  These guys have been playing these songs with Dylan for a long time and yet they still watched him as if they were playing with him for the first time.  Amazing.  Four years ago, Dylan didn’t interact with the crowd.  He kept his head down low and rarely looked at the crowd.  He didn’t smile, he didn’t laugh, he went through the motions.  The Dylan I saw last night was not the Dylan of four years ago.

Dylan was energized and on fire last night.  Laughing and giggling at lyrics and the crowd.  Smiling at people and staring at the crowd.  He even danced.  I saw some posters where it said Bob Dylan in Concert and Show and they weren’t kidding this was a show.  I recognized some of the musicians with him from the last time but one addition that was new and welcome was Charlie Sexton.  Sexton had played with Dylan for awhile in the late 90′s up until 2002 and I’ve know Sexton’s name for session work and work with other Austin musicians, but Charile brought a sex to the music.  He’s kind of like a Nick Cave meets Bilxa Bargeld on stage.  Dark, tall, lanky with some fabulous hair.  But his guitar playing was AMAZING.  I could hardly take my eyes off of his fingers last night.  He brought almost a Punk Rock energy to the show.

Not only was Dylan firing on all cylinders last night but so was the crowd and his band.  This is easily one of the top five shows I’ve ever seen in my life.  I was simply amazed by the performance and the experience last night.  I’d like to give a shout out to my Aunt Paula and my cousin Brandon Lash who hooked me up with a fifth row ticket for the night!  I was so close I could see the wrinkles on Dylan’s face!

So if you get a chance to see Dylan live this year, do it, no matter what the cost.  You won’t be disappointed!

October 24th Set List: Cedar Falls Iowa

Rainy Day Women # 12 & 35
Don’t Think Twice, It’s All Right
Stuck Inside Of Mobile With The Memphis Blues Again
Just Like A Woman
Rollin’ And Tumblin’
Tryin’ To Get To Heaven
High Water (for Charlie Patton)
Blind Willie McTell
Summer Days
Tangled Up In Blue
Highway 61 Revisited
Workingman’s Blues #2
Thunder On The Mountain
Ballad Of A Thin Man
Jolene
Like A Rolling Stone

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Greetings and Salutations all.

You know it seems like for years I ignored music videos.  They didn’t play them on TV any more and I’m not a big fan of watching them on the computer, but lately it seems like there has been some really great stuff out there that I keep finding that’s worth sharing with you all.  This is no exception.  Over the last few years I’ve discovered a lot of bands in the post rock and math rock genres but none have inspired, shocked and made me fall in love like Made Out of Babies, and more precisely Julie Christmas’ dynamic vocal performances.  She creates a world of powerful sound with her vocals ranging from beautiful melodies to horrific screams from the deep pits of Hades.  She is probably one of the most dynamic vocalists working today and it’s a shame she isn’t a household name.  I’m going to do my best to change that.  Her is her latest video from her first solo album titled The Bad Wife.  It reminds me a bit of the French masterpiece Le Bete by Walerian Borowczyk.  Here see for yourself.

I adore this song, the video and Julie Christmas.  Here is what the press release has to say so you can find out more for yourself as opposed to my aimless gushing.  I have her new album in my hands and am working on a review for it right here on this blog.

“Metal’s most riveting frontwoman…a smart, eccentric post-kid just becoming aware of the unearthly power she wields.” — Decibel Magazine “Julie Christmas sings, screams, snarls and sobs her heart out with terrifying naked abandon.” — Revolver Brooklyn singer Julie Christmas releases her first solo album, The Bad Wifenext month. Today, Stereogum has posted the exclusive premiere of the first videofrom the album, for the song “Bow.” Directed by James OBrien, Pastor Alvarado and Genn Leong, the fairytale style clip sees the singer being pursued through the woods by a lanky, furry beast. Often celebrated for her intense vocal acrobatics in heavy-hitting bands like Made Out of Babies, Battle of Miceand the supergroup Spylacopa(featuring members of The Dillinger Escape Plan, Candiria and Isis), Christmas’ solo debut finds her pushing the range of her already iconoclastic genre-melding work. Ahead of the album’s release, the song “July 31st” is featured on the soundtrack for the Paramount movie, Wrong Turn at Tahoe, starring Harvey Keitel and Cuba Gooding Jr.  Check out the tracks “July 31st” (HERE) and “Bow” (HERE) from The Bad Wife. Fans can also listen to songs and pre-order the deluxe LP edition and CD via Bandcamp. Of late, Christmas has been busy expanding her repertoire. She is currently is collaborating with Nix Turner, renowned illustrator of worldwide counterculture icon, Emily the Strange, to create a book titled The Scribbles and Scrapes of Amy Anyone: (A Multiple Personality Autobiography).  Christmas wrote the story and is working on music for the release of an accompanying CD, featuring a tone signaling the reader to turn the page. In addition, the singer recently worked on the soundtrack for a French indie film “Le Debut,” in which a young couple resorts to infanticide when faced with the challenges of poverty, depression and parenthood. “I use sounds to express feelings and ideas that I am too clumsy to get across with words alone,” the singer explains. “Working with amazing visual artists – people who speak in images – gets me one step closer to really communicating with anyone nuts enough to listen.” Christmas’s band, Made Out of Babies, is currently writing their fourth full-length album, scheduled to be released in the spring of 2011.  Live shows and exhibitions with visual artists are being arranged. The Bad Wife will be available on CD/LP and digital download via Rising Pulse Records on November 9th, 2010.

Artist: Julie Christmas Album: The Bad Wife Label: Rising Pulse Records Release Date: November 9th, 2010 Track List: 01. July 31st (MP3) 02. If You Go Away 03. Bow (MP3) (VIDEO) 04. Secrets All Men Keep (Salt Bridge, Part II) 05. Six Pairs of Feet and One Pair of Legs 06. Headless Hawks 07. The Wigmaker’s Widow 08. I Just Destroyed the World 09. When Everything is Green

So do yourself a favor, watch the video and pick up her new album (and her back catalogue) on November 9th.  You won’t be disappointed with it at all if you like the video and song above.

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A year or so ago my buddy Eyeball from St. Louis introduced me to a band called Torche on Hydra Head records.  If you like sludgy rock in the vein of Black Sabbath with incredibly catchy vocals and some of the finest groove rock happening out there today then check them out.  I know I really like them an awful lot and today I discovered something that just made me love them even more.  It appears they have a love of Gojira too!  Check out the debut of their new music video for their new single “U.F.O.” off of their new album Songs for Singles.

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A long time ago in a galaxy far far away in a land called Myspace I made a friend and his name was Mark.  He played in bands that I liked from working at Steb’s and we became friends.  Then he went on tour and I played a show with him and we strengthened that friendship.  Then we drifted a part for awhile as our lives changed yet again.  Then we drifted back into each others lives yet again.  Just about the time Mark was releasing his latest musical offering Nu Pretty Dead!  So I decided to give Mark a ring and run him through the question gauntlet! So here it is the long awaited interview with my friend and fellow musician Mach FoX!

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