Jon from Sandrider

Nat from Sandrider

Jesse from Sandrider

As a teenager in the late 90s and early 00s I can remember being enthralled by Northwest bands through the 107.7 locals-only show “The Young and the Restless.” While not living in Seattle, I could vicariously experience what was going on by being glued to my radio every Sunday night for two hours, obsessively taping first hand experiences with bands like Botch, Minus the Bear, Sunny Day Real Estate, Carissa’s Wierd, These Arms Are Snakes, The Lashes (ugh), and too many more to count or would want to admit ever liking. Both Akimbo and The Ruby Doe were bigger names on the heavier side of things, and the mark both bands have left on Northwest hardcore and metal is still felt. Luckily the lust to get loud still exists among their members, and they have combined forces to create their new project Sandrider.

“The associations with our other bands have definitely helped get attention, but I’ve also had a few people confess to me that they like Sandrider much more than they ever liked Akimbo, which I am totally OK with,” states Jon Weisnewski, who now plays guitar in Sandrider. The trio is rounded out by Nat Damm of Akimbo on drums and Jesse Roberts of the Ruby Doe on bass.

The timing couldn’t be more perfect for the group, as the resurgence of heavy rock bands in the Northwest seems to be even more common place with the growing popularity of artists like Red Fang and Helms Alee. Not to say that this was a calculated move on their part, this has always just been the realm in which these guys have existed.

“I feel lucky that Akimbo got to be a part of a pretty cool and thriving underground [scene] in Seattle from about 1998 to 2004, but it also made me pretty bitter when it started to evolve, as things usually do. Lately things have taken a very inspiring turn though, and it seems like there is a small group of bands and people who are super pumped on getting loud and being a part of brutal shows.”

Weisnewski attributes this to a lot of hard work from many energetic and passionate people involved such as Good to Die Records owner Nik Christofferson, who put out Sandrider’s self-titled full length. “Nik from Seattle Rock Guy and Good to Die Records has been tirelessly promoting and championing these types of bands and shows and that enthusiasm is infectious and inspiring. I’m really glad he started a label focusing on local bands, and I’m even happier he asked Sandrider to be on that label.”

Recorded by Seattle stalwart Matt Bayles in 2009, the album is a whirlwind of crushing riffs backed by Damm’s powerful drumming. This should come as no surprise considering the creators, but there are some marked differences between the sound of Sandrider and the member’s previous bands. Tracks like “Children” and “Corpse” do not thrash as much as older Akimbo songs, and for the most part the chaos feels a bit more contained. The riffs are slightly less violent and instead the songs have a chance to slow down and build towards epic climaxes, while never letting go of their heaviness.

With years of hard work, sweaty basement shows, relentless touring, and multiple recordings behind them, the members of Sandrider have a very relaxed demeanor towards the business of their band. “I am just as stoked to sit on my couch and play Xbox on a Saturday night than I am to play a crazy show with a bunch of awesome bands,” says Weisnewski.

But this attitude still doesn’t detract from the energy of Sandrider or their passion for Northwest music that rocks. “I would still trade 1,000,000 Modest Mouses for just one more Behead the Prophet show.”

Their show at the Shakedown on Jan. 13 will display Sandrider in all of their furious glory, and to miss it would be a disservice to all those who have a yearning for loud, aggressive music.

The Glacier Skate Park benefit held last year at the Wild Buffalo proved to be an excellent night of music as well as a very successful fundraiser. This most recent skate park benefit hosted by the Shakedown showed that once again people will come out in droves for a great show and a good cause.

This year the line-up was on the heavier side of things, and local noisemakers Torero started things off with a blistering floor set. The quintet had just played at the New Direction Festival, but any weariness did not show through whatsoever. In fact the band seemed even more invigorated, thrashing around the floor while passionately playing their brand of grind/metal core at piercing volumes. What separates them from their brethren is the emotional resonance of their songs. The introspective lyrics coupled with Jeff Debock’s passionate vocal delivery on top of the technical and often violent music made for a very powerful experience.

Todos Somos Lee has been playing more often in Bellingham in the last year or so and this has been a welcome change. Showcasing songs from their upcoming full-length, the trio still manages to dazzle audiences with their instrumental prowess. They can transition from soaring post-rock to riff heavy head bangers to guitar tapping grooves in the space of one song, while maintaining total cohesiveness. There is some obvious compositional talent and nuance at work here. A song like “Latin Password with a Russian Accent” is jaw-dropping in its technicality and yet it possesses a certain amount of melancholy and prettiness that adds multiple dimensions to the band’s sound. Their full-length will be fantastic.

Closing out the night was the mighty Devilry. The trio is a hard band to classify; their form of Primordial inspired, black metal balladry does not fit within any easy metal subgenre categorization or band comparison (which I lazily just did). What matters most is that their music is exceptionally heavy. Yes they do incorporate modern black and death metal tropes like screamed/growled vocals, satanic imagery, and blast beats. But where things get really interesting for Devilry is when they slow things down. With their songs sometimes running upward of 10 minutes, the band seamlessly switches from violent walls of sound and speed to slower, dirge-like ballads. It’s in these moments where they pack the biggest punch. All through their set the songs would reach a fever pitch that lead to climaxes that can only be described as epic. They are a band you have to be patient with, but that’s what makes them so rewarding. Their debut full-length, hopefully slated for this fall, will be a double disk, and it is going to be a beast.

Baltic Cousins

For the Hell of Us, the debut EP by Baltic Cousins, opens with the sure foot of Shawn Stalberger stomping on a kick drum while the hand of Bradley Lockhart finger picks and slides up and down the neck of his electric guitar. The country tinged proceedings are joined by the elongated notes of a gentle violin played by Tannananika “Nika” Munn. The mellow introduction to “Fatima (Make the Most)” is soon disrupted in the best way, with all three members taking flight in a raucous country-punk anthem that never lets up. It is riveting and joyous all the while maintaining a feeling of melancholy, as if the escape to the West Coast by the characters detailed in the song will not necessarily end in prosperity or happiness.

And the rest of the record only improves with every track, although this should come as no surprise to the many fans of Baltic Cousins. With their demos released last year and a west coast tour under their belt, the band has already come a long way from their origins nearly two years ago. Many of the songs were originally written by Lockhart for his band Wooden Wings, but the end of that band as well as local favorites Black Eyes And Neckties found him looking to collaborate with his roommate Stalberger, whose group The Russians had also just called it quits.

“Bradley and Shawn started playing together first in their basement, I think,” explained Munn, with the rest of the band, over beers and disco music. “They had some songs written already and then Bradley asked if I wanted to play violin. Then we practiced just him and me for a couple of months. We joined everything together and it worked out really well.”

Seeing them live displays the fantastic energy and musical kinship that the trio possesses which also exists in the band’s songwriting process. “It usually starts just with a riff. Then I show it to her (Nika) first. Then Shawn is the last stop on the train. Shawn will usually hear us playing it before we all practice and even just play drums on his legs and be like ‘oh yeah, I know exactly what I’m gonna do,’” stated Lockhart.

This sense of freedom permeates their music, and yet there is a definite nervous, tautness to their music which comes from the pronounced punk/hardcore influence. Many bands that possess Americana and country influences rarely sound this technical or ferocious.

Both live and on record Baltic Cousins manage to produce a huge sound, making the need for bass almost obsolete. This however has not stopped the band from adding new members; 2011 has seen them welcome Rabia Magnusson, of Biagio & the Argonauts, to fulfill piano duties. “I remember her seeing us the first time and saying to us that she could hear really deep and dark piano parts to the songs that would go wonderfully. We of course said yeah because we knew how good she was playing with Biagio,” said Munn.

Lockhart also agreed emphatically about the way Magnusson’s piano playing helps the band; “Everyone always asks to play bass for us, but the way we write these songs, they don’t need bass. But with piano, you get both bass and melody which is the perfect compromise.” The band has only played a handful of shows with Magnusson, but fans should expect her to appear consistently in the future.

The band recorded primarily as a trio for their first non-demo recording, the six-song EP For the Hell of Us. “It was recorded in August over a week or two by Rich Canute in his studio called Lab Partner. Then we got it mastered by Paul Turpin in January,” Lockhart said.

Recording the EP proved to be a very positive experience for the band, who delighted in regaling stories of Canute as both a producer and a musical collaborator. “We recorded it and then came back and he had just added some trumpet to the songs. Just him playing that on his own is awesome, but it sounded great on the record so we kept it. And he’s an analog man; he has all these reels of tapes of early Black Breath demos and stuff,” recalled Stalberger.

Lockhart laughed as he talked about Canute’s added instrumentation; “I even had to tell him not to play saw this time. ‘Sorry Rich, but this is going to be a sawless record.’”

Released independently online and in physical copies last month, For the Hell of Us is an amazing document of a still young and yet musically mature band. From its celebratory title right down to its grainy Polaroid cover image (taken by Munn) of the infamous Matthew “Buddy” Rennick offering a swig of champagne in the snow, the record is wonderfully consistent in both its imagery as well as its thematic material. Over six songs, the band forges dark and foreboding American melodramas that oscillate wildly between despair, anger, and joy. And Lockhart’s lyrical themes are always hard hitting, especially with the mesmeric closing track “You Are Bound,” which displays his knack for first person narratives that shine light on the alienated lives inhabiting the dark corners of the new American West.

This spring, Baltic Cousins will perform at the Yellingham festival with Helms Alee and have also been applying to play other fests. Also on the horizon are shows with Cold Lake and performances at the Shakedown.

For more about Baltic Cousins, check out www.myspace.com/balticcousins

An illustrated version of Marriage. Courtesy drawing

Some people prefer consistency for their music, but there is something to be said for a band that is wonderfully malleable in the way it presents its songs. I have seen Marriage (formerly Mary Mary) only three times, but each time the incarnation of the group has been different, as well as the sound. Not to say that they do not have a defined or cohesive sound, but each time the amount of group members varied and each time brought new light to the songs.

The first time I saw them was in 2010 at the Cabin while the band was still a three piece. Lead singer and songwriter Alexandra Song was on guitar, strumming elegant minor chord progressions and singing into a telephone, while Zach Zinn played bass. Jeff Traeger was playing sparse, almost dirge-like drums, all of which culminated into the band’s dark, art rock sound. This line-up was soon changed when Traeger moved out of town, forcing Song and Zinn to seek out new band members.

This change proved to be fateful; they added Rooftops’ Drew Fitchette on drums and Peter Woiwod of Go Slowpoke to bass, which allowed Zinn to move to guitar. The level of musicianship in the band was raised considerably, while giving the songs a more fleshed out feel. The band incorporated elements of shoe gaze and psych to their music, which had become much larger and more expansive. It was this lineup that I saw at Cap’s that really blew me away, with the original songs in all of their weird and obtuse glory still intact, while they were backed by a great rhythm section and Zinn’s airy, washed out guitar. That night Marriage had played tightly and with real muscle; they were truly a band to be reckoned with.

“All four of us are songwriters so I think that we influence each other. But for the most part Alexandra or Zach will have a part and they either will collaborate or bring it to the table on their own,” described Fitchette when asked about the band’s songwriting process. “I feel like we experiment with the structure more than the actual melodies or anything,” added Woiwod. But their contribution is paramount to the band, with Fitchette adding a certain level of technical ability with his tight drumming and Woiwod with his incredibly melodic bass lines. This is even more impressive considering that this is the first time either of them has played those particular instruments in bands before.

The third time I saw them live proved to be even more of a revelation. In a crowded house show Song and Zinn, both armed with guitars, played as a duo. The tunes were not buried under any noise, and the beautiful and haunting side of the songs came to the light. Song’s lyrics were audible and the strong imagery coupled with her pained melodies added rawness to the music that had the room completely stunned. Marriage’s set was also broken up by seamless interludes of instrumental guitar drones that added texture and experimentation to their already layered sound. “I feel like Zach and I have complimentary playing styles,” stated Song when discussing that particular show. “It feels almost effortless and we just do what we do naturally which is what is unique when we just play with each other.” Zinn also enjoys the experience of playing live as a duo; “I don’t like it necessarily when everything is so structured and rigid. I like to let things breathe a little bit.”

The songs themselves are almost like living, breathing entities. They are able to change forms organically with every performance, and this is what makes the band special. Yet it is in the spirit of collaboration as a four piece that Marriage appears to really excel. “The reason why our dynamic works is because everyone’s input does end up being really complimentary. It’s a reflection that we play really well together,” said Song.

Trevor Spencer has recorded the band at Champion Street Sound Studio (formerly Bayside), and it will be interesting and exciting to see how this reflection sounds on record. They don’t have any specific plans as to how they are going to release the recordings, so salivating fans will have to settle for their many shows in the future, including a concert at Glow with Todos Somos Lee and Leatherhorn on Feb. 21. This must see line-up will showcase three very different Bellingham rock bands, and I myself am excited for a wholly unique Marriage experience.

Coming up: Catch Marriage at Glow on Monday, Feb. 7.
For more info about the band, visit myspace.com/listentomarymary or facebook.com/#!/wearemarriage

Caulfield and His Magical Violin

Caulfield and His Magical Violin

Caulfield and His Magical Violin

There have been many formative musical awakenings for Candysound’s Teo Crider. One that stands out to the young musician was the sight of a decrepit and empty pink hotel in Los Angeles. “We kind of had this ongoing idea about fixing it up and turning it into a show space/art gallery on one floor, a record store on another, and a recording studio in the basement,” he says. The plan never came into fruition, and yet years later Crider would create an infrastructure that would not be located in just one building, but all over the Northwest.

The Pink Hotel Collective is a group of roughly 11 bands, all of them hailing from the greater western Washington area, with Crider and his band Candysound at its center. “It is do-it-yourself turned do-it-together; as a resource under which bands could meet, network, tour, show swap, record, and collaborate,” states Crider. The collective is still in its infancy, but they do have a MySpace page http://www.myspace.com/pinkhotelmusic that features updated concert calendars, music, and band info. They also plan to release a compilation that will be available for free and feature songs from all of the Pink Hotel bands, including Anacortes’ Caulfield and His Magical Violin.

Yet another important moment for Crider was seeing Caulfield at a house show nearly a year ago. “I instantly fell in love with them. Their songs are really catchy with great lyrics and pop hooks,” he claims.

This is a very accurate statement; the band mixes more contemporary indie-pop with a rough-hewn 90′s sound akin to the slacker anthems of Pavement and Dinosaur Jr., and yet they sound nothing like anyone making music today. Tracks like “Hit Hard” almost communicate a feeling of ennui before the song erupts into passionate screams and triumphant choruses.

“The person who wrote the song generally knows the ‘vision’ best, and therefore has the last word on what will and won’t go into the final version,” said Stephen Steen, Caulfield’s bassist and sometimes vocalist, describing the band’s egalitarian writing style. “But for the most part, we all write our own instrument parts and vocal harmonies.”

Steen shares songwriting credits with two other members, Mike Ferrario and Tyler Jones, who both play guitar. Katie Jennings rounds out the five-piece on keys along with the 17-year-old Sterling Laws on drums. Laws and Ferrario have been playing together since they were in elementary school, forming the band Squid vs. Shark. Their experience in the Northwest music scene would be impressive for people twice their age, and they even played the Seattle all-ages music competition SoundOff when Laws was just 11 years old.

It seems that young kids in Anacortes have a wonderful advantage in that they grow up in a community that fosters musicians and artists. A lot of this can be attributed to the fantastic venue the Department of Safety, which sadly closed a year ago. “The DoS introduced us to live music, and to so many Anacortes artists who we still draw inspiration from. There are still shows in Anacortes, but much less touring bands come through. There is no go-to venue now, which makes it more difficult for new bands to book and promote shows. But the Anacortes community is as supportive as ever of local and young artists,” states Steen, who directly attributes the venue for Caulfield’s impetus to play music together.

After joining the Pink Hotel collective, booking and playing shows has become a lot easier, and has allowed the band to play outside of their hometown. Even with this advantage, the band has no plans to undertake an extensive tour in the near future.

Instead they have been hard at work on their 11-song debut full length, Before You Die. The band recorded it in November in Anacortes at Fontee Fount Analog Recordings, and was fortunate to have Bellingham’s own Paul Turpin master it at Bayside Studio. “We tentatively decided to not tour beyond the Pacific Northwest this year; we think it would be best to focus on building local draws in areas closer to home before we launch any national campaigns,” says Steen, who is hopeful that Before You Die will be released in February.

There are positive outcomes of local communities fostering and supporting their music scene, and Caulfield and His Magical Violin are the evidence. Young people are consistently seeking more involvement in music as well as taking on more prominent roles in the networking and preserving of hard working young bands. The Northwest is a great breeding ground for these types of organizations, and with groups like Pink Hotel, WhAAM, and Make.Shift, Whatcom County has been especially lucky to possess a large population of musically minded people brimming with energy and ideas.

Keep your eyes out for the activities of these groups, and watch out for Caulfield and His Magical Violin, because you never know when the band that blew your mind at the house show will be blowing minds all over the world.

Catch Caulfield and His Magical Violin on Jan. 8 at the Contra House, and listen in on Jan. 18 for a special in-studio performance at KUGS (89.3 FM). For more, visit myspace.com/caulfieldahmv/.

Yard Dogs Road Show

Yard Dogs Road Show

Yard Dogs Road Show

Yard Dogs Road Show

The inspiration for the show can be found in Cotton’s autobiographical book Hobo: A Young Man’s Thoughts on Trains and Tramping in America. A memoir and a manifesto of sorts, the book details Cotton’s exploits hopping trains and searching for an America in which the nomadic/gypsy life was still possible. With the publication of the book and the subsequent creation of the show, Cotton and the Yard Dogs slowly became a fixture in alternative and underground media, eventually playing shows in bar venues reserved for touring bands. Their popularity as an incredible live act grew and today they perform in bars as well as larger theatre venues. They also participate in annual cultural exchange festivals with the Quechan and Mojave tribes.

Creative anachronisms that the YDRS tout often tow a dangerous line. Those who are nostalgic for a bygone era will habitually look at it through a lens that doesn’t see the wider picture, or tell the whole story. Is the financially destitute and dangerous America of the depression that spawned this hobo culture something we really ought to celebrate? But the YDRS are dedicated to the art form, preserving the legacy of vaudeville and side-shows in what they view as an increasingly sterile America.

Sansa Asylum is dedicated to the YDRS mythos that retrieving normal, detailed answers from him was nearly impossible, and yet never unpleasant. “By magic and mysticism we will hypnotize you to break free the bondage of the material world and enter our realm of dreams come true.”

Even recounting the way in which he joined the Yard Dogs yields a fantastic tall-tale. “In 2000, I was standing on a bar in a tutu playing accordion songs. I kicked a tumbler glass; it shot off the bar and smashed just in front of the door. At that very moment Eddy Joe and Miguel walked through the door and realized that fate had brought them their new accordion player.” For the Yard Dogs, it’s all about putting on errs.

This is also the case when trying to find the true story behind the origin of the show. In keeping with tradition, Cotton and his misfits stay wonderfully cryptic about their history. Depending on where you look, you will find stories of Cotton and his three piece jug band in the late 1990′s having visions of the show at a camp fire near a place called Dog Creek road. There are also stories of participating in the modern incarnation of the acid tests with Ken Kesey on his Oregon farm. All of these stories are highly suspect, but serve a higher purpose in shrouding the Yard Dogs in myth. Even Asylum has his own take, “As I understand, they started the project pretty much the moment when one of the girls stripped off her mechanics suit to a bikini and started dancing on top of a pool table while they were playing music.”

It is this type of energy and wild abandon that characterizes a YDRS performance. They change and make additions to their act every four months to keep audiences surprised, but Bellingham audiences should expect magic shows, dancing, fire eating, burlesque, and everything in between. This will all be accompanied by Asylum and the YDRS band, which play a fantastic mix of klezmer and gypsy jazz, as well as carnival, Tin Pan Alley, and music hall. Imagine a dark, sexy cabaret in which Tom Waits is the conductor, and you can get a little closer to picturing what the Yard Dogs Road Show is like.

Their performance at the Wild Buffalo on Nov. 9 will surely not disappoint. Sansa Asylum certainly doesn’t think so. “Dear Bellingham, come dressed for the party and bring your biggest smiles. We’ll quickly sweep you off your feet in astral flight, through sensual dreamscapes of tropical isles, ponies, carousels, singing showgirls, and more.” With a preview like that, it would be shame to miss an American performance style that has lost some its popularity, but never its charm.

Catch the Yard Dog Road Show on Nov. 9 at the Wild Buffalo. For more about the group, visit www.yarddogsroadshow.com.

The newest incarnation of Helmet has a brand new record out this month, entitled Seeing Eye Dog. They perform at the Wild Buffalo on Sept. 14. Photo by Tom Hoppa

Once saddled with the phrase “thinking man’s metal,” the band Helmet rose to prominence in the alternative rock scene of the early 1990′s. The term perhaps referenced their lack of metal style and flare, as the band opted for a sparser t-shirt, jeans, and chucks look. On top of this they played smart, well written music that was highly aggressive. Rather than metal guitar histrionics and evil lyrics, Helmet utilized time signature changes with a cynical attitude that made them accessible to those outside of the metal community. Thus “thinking man’s metal” was born.

“A reviewer came up with that years ago. I don’t care what the genre or label is. I know we sound like Helmet!” said lead singer and songwriter, Page Hamilton. Though the group started in 1989, Hamilton has been the chief songwriting force and only permanent member since its inception.

Hamilton grew up in Oregon but moved to New York to study jazz guitar in the early 1980′s. He fell in with Glenn Branca and his guitar orchestra, along side future Sonic Youth axe men Thurston Moore and Lee Renaldo. It was this clash of classic forms with modern avante approaches to composition with the electric guitar that lead to Hamilton’s unique style of playing. After a brief stint in Band of Susans, Hamilton started Helmet, which brought his musical vision to the fore.

When listening to Helmet’s certified gold major label debut, Meantime, which originally came out in 1992, the listener is struck with it’s long reaching influence. Stop and start rhythms and time signature changes are abound, while the band perfectly acknowledges how to rely on a single repetitive riff or musical idea to drive the song. Tunes like “Unsung” and “In The Meantime” leave their mark on modern math rock, metal core and drone, all the while remaining catchy and sometimes brutal. Helmet’s sound satiated many different listeners, fulfilling an intellectual listening experience that did not sacrifice hooks or head banging. “Jazz harmony and groove is certainly part of my musical make-up. I start with a theme or riff which is essential in any writing. Beethoven wrote riffs and developed them with sonatas. I write rock songs.”

This classically minded approach to composition and musicianship has garnered Hamilton some amazing credits, including composing the soundtracks to a few films. He has also worked with the likes of David Bowie, Nine Inch Nails, Norma Jean, Caspar Brotzmann, and Joe Henry.

Helmet originally disbanded in 1998, which allowed him to pursue these other musical courses. The need to reform his main band took hold in 2004, without original drummer John Stanier, who went on to drum for the Brooklyn based Battles. The reunion yielded two albums, 2004′s Size Matters and its follow up Monochrome. “It has been almost all word of mouth since I reformed Helmet. I tell friends I’m looking for a bass player and fortunately there are a lot of great musicians out there that love Helmet and want to audition,” said Hamilton, who currently has made the band a revolving door of musicians.

The newest incarnation of Helmet has a brand new record out this month, entitled Seeing Eye Dog. It captures everything that the band does well, with aggression and complexity dished out in equal measures. The band has spawned many imitators and followers, but very few can match the raw energy that they possess. The show at the Wild Buffalo is the perfect place to see this old school rock band make your neck ache with their hypnotic riffs, while divulging your needs for a more substantive and rewarding listening experience. It truly is one of the great balancing acts in music.

From the very first tremolo picked guitar line of Black Breath’s debut full-length, Heavy Breathing, the Bellingham/Seattle band has the listener by the throat. Lead vocalist Neil McAdams’ bile spitting howl sustains a long scream as the band launches into a death metal tirade.

There were many whispers of excitement and anticipation when rumors circled in town that Black Breath had signed to the seminal metal label Southern Lord, and Heavy Breathing delivers on all of the promises of such an evil marriage. While the raw hardcore/Discharge influence that was so apparent on the band’s self-released Razor To Oblivion still exists (“Escape From Death”), Heavy Breathing benefits from a strong Swedish death metal influence, complete with satanic imagery, driving double kick drums, and more impressive songwriting. The dual guitars twist dark and foreboding riffs into sinister harmonies while the drums speed the songs into break neck tempos.

Perhaps what the album benefits most from is its surprising accessibility. The opener “Black Sin” breaks down into a mid-tempo bridge that is impossible not to nod your head to. Songs like “I Am Beyond” and “Eat The Witch” have choruses and verses that are about as catchy as any music can have with a strong blast beat. The mix is raw but never muddy, with the bass often buried among the clear guitar tones, which is a stark departure from Southern Lord’s more detuned drone/doom fare.

In fact the album is a study in reservation, with the guitar riffs often choosing to remain repetitious and catchy rather than displaying distracting virtuosity, which is all too common among many death metal acts. Black Breath seems more concerned with writing actually memorable songs rather than memorable parts, which is shown on the title track. The instrumental is a heavy dirge with both guitars piling riffs on top of each other before finally getting in sync, which then leads to the thrash of “Children of The Horn.” It sounds meticulously crafted, and it’s these musically thematic links that make Heavy Breathing more than just a grouping of strong songs, but also a solid album.

The strongest tracks of the record definitely come in the first half, and yet later songs like “Unholy Virgin” break up the consistency of the blast and d-beats by slowing things down. The song is unhurried without being lumbering. It also has some of the heaviest riffs that the album has to offer, and employs McAdams’ forceful growl with just bass and drums. The vocals are fantastic throughout, and always very high in the mix. The guttural quality of his voice is sometimes jaw dropping, and he has the ability to stretch out long screams that sound painful to sing.

A band like this has attitude as its biggest weapon, and with so much modern metal out there seemingly nothing more than tough guy posturing, this record is both scary and refreshing. Its reference points are pretty obvious, but honestly, Black Breath would have slayed in Gothenburg, Sweden in the 90′s, and they definitely do now. There just aren’t metal records being made like this any more, and there are few bands that can bring it like Black Breath.

Released by Southern Lord
myspace.com/blackbreath

Artwork by Jess Hara

Those who saw Baltic Cousins in front of Avalon on Record Store Day in April were treated to a rousing performance. Bradley Lockhart’s full-throated howl matched the impressive, finger picked guitar riffs as the trio bashed out their unique brand of raw and often sinister alt-country. That designation isn’t even befitting of the band, even though there are pronounced elements of Americana in their music. Theirs is a sound that is darker and filled with more venom, relying on the attitude of punk without sacrificing nuance or dynamics.

These dynamics were apparent in their live performance, and the band has proved with their six song demo that they have ability to maintain that intensity on record. The opening track “We Were Home” has Lockhart’s finger picked guitar ringing out a jaunty country line as his pleading voice dramatically details small town life and frustration. This builds before the rest of the band joins, creating a maelstrom of noise as the vocals become more pained, moving from a howl to a near scream. Lockhart’s force as a vocalist is a trait left over from Black Eyes and Neckties, and it still manages to send chills up the spine. His singing, coupled with his guitar playing, which is the sound of an extremely metallic Telecaster reverberated in a canyon, is a lethal combination.

The band is at its best when playing their take on the melancholy, country ballad. Songs like “Fara” or “Feel Different” are slow burners that have a huge emotional resonance, and plainly display the many facets of the band. Shawn Stalberger’s (ex-Russians) drumming can be at one point restrained and the next chaotic. Even when slowed down the calamitous percussion gives the songs urgency as if they are going to fall right off the rails.

Tannananika Munn’s violin is lilting and always pretty, and is often heard floating on top of the rest of the band’s racket, which provides a nice contrast. Her violin is usually employed as the instrument that sustains long notes over Lockhart’s frantic guitar picking, and this can be truly haunting like on the raucous closing track “Indianapolis.” There were times though when perhaps she needed to let loose and compete with the rest of the chaos, to really assert the instrument into the mix, both to make it more audible (these are demos) and to match the intensity of the rest of the music, which she does on the pounding, melodramatic “How I Look.”

The slower songs are where the band really excels, and the track where they reach their perfect sound is the gothic, country ballad “Break Bread”; seething and downhearted, the tune is the soundtrack of a desolate place like a high lonesome plain. Stuttering, dirge-like drums are accented by intricate guitar picking that sounds like the soundtrack to a Cormac McCarthy novel. Lockhart achingly yells as if a gun were pointed at his head while the music achieves colossal highs before it calms down again, eventually ending with a fast-paced country stomp. The song perfectly displays the polarities of Baltic Cousins; their songs alternate between violence and melancholy, often reaching the melodramatic. But don’t think their music is mired in depression or misanthropy. Quite the contrary, rather than give into despair, Baltic Cousins rage against it.

Self Released
myspace.com/balticcousins

Even in its fledgling months as a venue, Plan B has already booked an array of diverse shows and welcome surprises, which bodes well for the resilience of Bellingham music and nightlife. This show presented Bellingham with two newer bands that will surely invigorate local metal and hardcore fans.

First up was Tearamanapart, which includes former members of The Russians. The band was a warhorse, relying on sure aggression and ferocity, not to mention volume, as they thrashed their way through their technically dexterous songs. Front man Kyle Roe stocked the stage and bent down to forcefully scream into the mic, while the music, with many nods to early metalcore bands like Botch and Cave In, raged behind him. The energy of the music was frantic and often violent, and yet the band seemed reserved while playing on the cramped stage of Plan B. They are definitely worth checking out, especially in a setting where you can see them really get a chance to explode.

The second act, Nine Worlds, hailed all the way from Salt Lake City, and they appeared grateful to get a chance to play for the diminutive Plan B crowd. With classic Orange amps stacked high behind them, the band was incredibly loud but sounded dialed in. This was probably what was most inspiring about them, because the music was mostly an un-inspired mix of heavy post rock and sludge, with the detuned guitars and dirge like drums slowly evolving to dramatic climaxes over pained vocal growls. The closing number was rousing, and yet their Isis worship was so obvious, it detracted from the music. Still, the band put on a good show and played with an incredible amount of enthusiasm.

Leatherhorn has already gotten some press here in town, and yet nothing prepared me for the spectacle of their stage show. Comprised of members from Dog Shredder, Full Frontal Assault, and others, the four piece have melded together many disparate elements to form an unholy hybrid of heavy metal. Vocalist Jeff Kastelic looked demonic in makeup that would even scare Burzum, while his vocal growls and screams evoked a possessed Atilla Cishar. Drummer Noah Burns traded short bursts of black metal blast beats with more standard thrash, giving the song structures a chaotic sense of improvisation. Leatherhorn’s music has obvious roots in thrash, black, and death metal, and yet their amalgamation sounds completely unclassifiable. They would be right at home on Southern Lord.

The haunted and otherworldly music was perfectly matched by the stage props created by local artist Corey Urlacher. Kastelic howled into a microphone that stood on a staff of bones and medical bandages, while on both sides of the stage stood two similar bone columns with mounted deer skulls. These chilling objects contained projected lights that would turn on when the music started and turn off abruptly when a song would come to a halt, rendering the band nothing but dark shrouded figures on the stage. Incredible!