Saturday, August 29, 2009

CHICKEN SWITCH - One Month to Go


On September 29, 2009 my all-time favorite band - The Melvins - will be releasing a remix album entitled Chicken Switch. Remixes have been around for decades but are generally just an extended version of a popular song chopped and edited by other musicians and DJs. The Melvins however are doing something entirely different. They are presenting their remixers with an entire album to play with. Here's the lowdown from the band's website:

The Melvins will release Chicken Switch, the long rumored(since 2003) remix cd with a twist, on Sept. 29 via Ipecac Recordings. Unlike usual remix cds where the remixer is given a single track to work with, for Chicken Switch each remixer was given a full album to work with and pull from to create their track (and in some cases, more than one full album was used as source material). The song names were also newly selected by their remixer.


Tracklisting:
  1. Eye Yamatsuka — Washmachine Sk8tronics
  2. Christoph Heemann — Emperor Twaddle Remix
  3. V/VM — She Chokes Her Dying Breath and Does It In My Face
  4. John Duncan — AAHHH…
  5. Matmos — Linkshänder
  6. Lee Ranaldo — EggNog Trilogy: i) She’s Ivanhoe ii) Cancer iii) Inebriated
  7. Merzbow — SNOW REM REM IBVZ
  8. David Scott Stone — Prick Concrète/Revolution M
  9. Panacea — Queen (Electroclash Remix)
  10. Sunroof! — The Silky Apple Butter of Youth
  11. Kawabata Makoto — 4th Floor Hellcopter
  12. Farmersmanual — disp_tx_skel_mach_murx
  13. Void Manes — Overgoat
  14. RLW — Over from Under the Dog, Girl & Boy Treatment
  15. Speedranch — Hard Revenge Milly Bloody Battle VS. The Melvins Ozmatized Gore Police (Feat: Cardopusher of the Five Deadly Venoms)

Friday, August 28, 2009

Gettin' Down with The Melvins

The Melvins rolled through town Wednesday night and brought a heapin' helpin' of RAWK with them. They've been one of the opening acts on Down's current tour. Down has a knack for taking several nights off during the week so this has given The Melvins the opportunity to do some headlining shows along the way. Attendees of Down shows are being treated to a solid 45-minute Melvins set. But those catching one of The Melvins headlining shows are getting treated to a bonus second set [that's actually the first set]. Overall the two sets leaned more heavily towards older faves than the last couple of tours have [excepting the 25th anniversary tour a few months back].

The first set [the bonus set] started out with just Buzz and Dale onstage ripping through "The Ballad of Dwight Fry." After about 20 minutes Coady and Jared joined them onstage and together they player for about another half hour. They ended by playing about half of "Dies Iraea" before whispering "To be continued" and leaving the stage. After a twenty minute intermission the band returned and finished "Dies Iraea." Check out the previous post for a photo of the setlist for the second set.

Overall this was the best Melvins show I've seen in some time. It certainly ranks up there with the "three set" tour they did in 1996 and the set they ripped through when they were opening for Tool in 1998. This was the kind of show that reminded you why you love this band so much.























Thursday, August 27, 2009

SETLIST: Melvins @ House of Blues Cambridge Room

I just got in from tonight's Melvins show. Pics will be up in the next couple of days. In the meantime, here's a photo of the setlist for the second set they played.

NOTES: "DNA" was a cover of Devo's "Mr. DNA." They performed an a capella cover of Merle Haggard's "Okie From Muskogie" after "The Bit."

Wednesday, August 26, 2009

Holy Hell...Marduk is Returning to The States!



Legendary black metal band Marduk had planned on trekking across our shores several months ago with Mayhem. After three shows the band dropped off the bill. This ultimately led to the slow unraveling of the remainder of Mayhem's tour as the other supporting acts withdrew from the tour for various reasons. Trust me, the whole thing's one big soap opera with a lot of finger pointing and blaming to be shared all around.

So color me surprised when I stumbled upon this little press release from the Marduk camp:

Following three very special US appearances earlier this month in Baltimore, Philadelphia and New York (effectively breaking their streak of visa issues), Swedish black metal battalion Marduk will return for a full North American headlining tour this November. The band will be joined by Nachtmystium, Mantic Ritual, Merrimack and Black Anvil (on select dates).

Dubbed "
US Plague Tour 2009", the trek will kick off on November 20th at the Palladium in Worcester, MA and run through 21 more dates before coming to a close in New York City on December 16th at the Gramercy Theater, where the band recently played to an overwhelming crowd response.


"US Plague Tour 2009" announced dates are as follows:

Nov. 20 - Worcester, MA - The Palladium (w/ Black Anvil)
Nov. 21 - Montreal, QC - Les Foufounes Electriques(w/ Black Anvil)
Nov. 22 - Toronto, ON - Wreck Room (w/ Black Anvil)
Nov. 23 - Baltimore, MD - Sonar
Nov. 24 - Atlanta, GA - The Masquerade
Nov. 25 - Tampa, FL - Brass Mug
Nov. 28 - Austin, TX - Red 7
Nov. 29 - Ft Worth, TX - Ridglea Theater
Nov. 30 - Tulsa, OK - The Marquee
Dec. 02 - Albuquerque, NM - Launchpad
Dec. 03 - Tempe, AZ - The Sets
Dec. 04 - Hollywood, CA - The Key Club
Dec. 05 - San Marcos, CA - The Jumping Turtle
Dec. 06 - San Francisco, CA - DNA Lounge
Dec. 07 - Portland, OR - Satyricon
Dec. 08 - Seattle, WA - Studio Seven
Dec. 10 - Denver, CO - Cervantes Masterpiece Ballroom
Dec. 11 - Kansas City, MO - Riot Room
Dec. 12 - Chicago, IL - Reggie's Rock Club
Dec. 13 - St Paul, MN - Station 4
Dec. 14 - Detroit, MI - Blondie's
Dec. 15 - Cleveland, OH - Peabody's
Dec. 16 - New York, NY - Gramercy Theater (w/ Black Anvil)

Marduk + Nachmystium = I am so there!!!

Marduk's eleventh album - Wormwood - will be released in North America on October 13. Check out the track "Phosphorous Redeemer" at the band's Myspace page.


KISS Announces North American Tour!


KISS has released dates for the North American leg of their "Alive 35" tour. KISS promises two-plus-hour sets full of the old hits we know and love as well as a sampling of tunes from their soon to be released new album, Sonic Boom.

Say what you will about whether or not KISS is still relevant. The simple fact remains that the band puts on a SHOW! They're bringing a new stage setup [as opposed to recreating one of the classic 1970s stage setups as they have been on prior tours], new costumes, and an assload of pyro! Joke all you want...you know you're gonna be there.


Sep. 25 - Detroit, MI - Cobo Arena
Sep. 26 - Detroit, MI - Cobo Arena
Sep. 28 - Cleveland, OH - Quicken Loans Arena
Sep. 29 - London, ONT - John Labatt Centre
Oct. 01 - Montreal, QC - Bell Centre
Oct. 02 - Toronto, ON - Air Canada Centre
Oct. 03 - Uncasville, CT - Mohegan Sun Arena
Oct. 05 - Boston, MA - TD Garden
Oct. 09 - Uniondale, NY - Nassau Coliseum
Oct. 10 - New York, NY - Madison Square Garden
Oct. 12 - Philadelphia, PA - Wachovia Center
Oct. 13 - Washington, DC - Verizon Center
Oct. 16 - Hampton, VA - Hampton Coliseum
Oct. 17 - Greenville, SC - Bi-Lo Center
Oct. 19 - Pensacola, FL - Civic Center
Oct. 21 - Tampa, FL - St Pete Times Forum
Oct. 22 - Sunrise, FL - Bankatlantic Center
Oct. 24 - Birmingham, AL - BJCC
Oct. 26 - Atlanta, GA - Phillips Arena
Oct. 28 - Nashville, TN - Sommet Center
Oct. 29 - Little Rock, AR - Verizon Arena
Nov. 06 - Chicago, IL - United Center
Nov. 07 - Minneapolis, MN - Target Center
Nov. 09 - Winnipeg, MB - MTS Centre
Nov. 10 - Saskatoon, SK - Credit Union Centre
Nov. 12 - Calgary, AB - Pengrowth Saddledome
Nov. 14 - Vancouver, BC - GM Place
Nov. 15 - Seattle, WA - Key Arena
Nov. 17 - Portland, OR - Rose Garden
Nov. 20 - Sacramento, CA - Arco Arena
Nov. 21 - Oakland, CA - Oakland Arena
Nov. 24 - Anaheim, CA - Honda Center
Nov. 25 - Los Angeles, CA - Staples Center
Nov. 27 - San Diego, CA - Sports Arena
Nov. 28 - Las Vegas, NV - [To Be Determined]
Dec. 01 - Glendale, AZ - jobing.com Arena
Dec. 02 - El Paso, TX - UTEP
Dec. 04 - Austin, TX - Frank Erwin Center
Dec. 05 - Houston, TX - Toyota Center
Dec. 06 - Dallas, TX - American Airlines Center