Measurements of Sound

It’s no secret that I love Guns N’ Roses. But one thing you may not know is that I consider “It’s So Easy” to be the most bad ass song ever recorded. It’s got some of the best vocals Axl ever laid to tape, punk as hell and the lyrics are dripping with attitude. When you were hearing this for the first time as a 13 year old in 1987, you knew why they were the most dangerous band in the world.

I had the chance to see GN’R the other night. My wife was in full on bootlegger mode and got some great footage of the band laying down “It’s So Easy”. She even managed to get a few seconds of me schooling the crowd on how to rock around the 2:40 mark.

Enjoy the video and go check out the original. I may even lend you my Appetite for Destruction cassette if you ask nice.

Around the end of December I always hear the odd complaint about the lack of good music released over the past twelve months. But as each year passes, that thought never seems to enter my head. Sure, there were a couple of clunkers in 2009 – the Dead Weather and Yeah Yeah Yeahs, I’m looking at you. But overall I’ve been more than impressed by what my ears have digested, sometimes even pleasantly surprised. Hello Goatwhore!

However it was rather hard to commit to my favorite album of the year. When Baroness’ Blue Record was released mid-October, I was pretty confident that we had a winner. Each subtle flourish hinted at on 2007’s Red Album paired up with something new, humped it and gave birth to something even more exciting. Pretty much everything I was hoping for. But there was one problem. A week later Converge released Axe to Fall.

As Baroness did on Blue Record, Converge also explored new sonic territory. But experimentation wasn’t what sold me. Simply put, Converge are a fine tuned killing machine on Axe to Fall. Track after track they destroy everything, burn it and feed the ashes to your children. Well, maybe not. But it sure as hell feels like something must be getting fucked up somewhere when these songs are pounding out of my speakers.

Converge made a perfect album. It’s as simple as that and when something is that obvious, you give credit where credit is due.

1. Converge – Axe to Fall
2. Baroness – Blue Record
3. Goes Cube – Another Day Has Passed
4. Ancestors – Of Sound Mind
5. Goatwhore – Carving Out the Eyes of God
6. Mastodon – Crack the Skye
7. Wolfmother – Cosmic Egg
8. The_Network - Bishop Kent Manning
9. Buried Inside – Spoils of Failure
10. Cobalt – Gin
11. Coalesce – OX
12. Javelina – Beasts Among Sheep
13. Doomriders – Darkness Come Alive
14. Obscura – Cosmogenesis
15. Them Crooked Vultures – Self Titled
16. Isis – Wavering Radiant
17. Naam – Self Titled
18. Pissed Jeans – King of Jeans
19. Iron Age – The Sleeping Eye
20. Culted - Below the Thunders of the Upper Deep

I live in the woods. Therefore I usually have an hour plus drive on my hands to get home after checking out some live music. I don’t mind that, but sometimes it would be nice to be a little closer to the action. Well, a couple of evenings ago I was.

Buried Inside just did a tour through Atlantic Canada and decided to hit a basement that happened to be 10 minutes from my house. This would be my second time seeing the band. The first was in a slightly larger venue, but still a rather intimate setting. At that show, they shut all the lights out and played in complete darkness. They did the same this time, but being in a room the size of my kitchen and having roughly 15-20 people in attendance, made it a very unique setting. Pretty much like seeing them at my own house. Only without the inconvenience of neighbours complaining,  or a bunch of strangers hanging around.

The set mainly consisted of songs from Spoils of Failure. Which was fine by me. Through repeat listens over the past few weeks, it’s greatness has been revealing itself layer by layer. Definitely some highly recommended next level shit.

The band is headed to Europe soon with Relapse label mates Tombs. If you live across the ocean or anywhere else they happen to be playing in the near future, go see them now.

I love it when one of my favourite bands sneaks up on me with a new album. It doesn’t seem that long ago that I was playing Baroness’ Red Album nonstop. However I just found out that on October 13th they will unleash the Blue Record.

As usual John Baizley’s stunning artwork will grace the cover (see above). The new track “Bullhead’s Psalm/The Sweetest Curse” is streaming on their MySpace profile now.

You need to see this. Seriously - just watch it.

As if their upcoming collaboration with A Storm of Light wasn’t enough, I just found out that Nadja are about to crush us a little more. On April 28th the Toronto duo will release an album of covers titled When I See the Sun Always Shines on TV.

Here is the full track listing for When I See the Sun Always Shines on TV:

1. Only Shallow (My Bloody Valentine)
2. Pea (Codeine)
3. No Cure For The Lonely (Swans)
4. Dead Skin Mask (Slayer)
5. The Sun Always Shines On TV (A-Ha)
6. Needle In The Hay (Elliott Smith)
7. Long Dark Twenties (Kids in the Hall)
8. Faith (The Cure)

Nadja - “Dead Skin Mask” (Slayer)

Nine Inch Nails, Dillinger Escape Plan and “Wish”. Need I say more?

You might have heard already, but Faith No More are getting back together for some shows. Your excitement level regarding this will obviously vary depending on your latitude and longitude, or willingness to travel. Personally I think it’s very cool, but don’t see myself having an opportunity to see them. As of right now it is just European dates, but there has been some talk of doing shows in the states.

If you want to keep informed on exactly what is going on, bassist Billy Gould has been rocking things over on Twitter. Apparently they aren’t doing any press – just straight to the fans communications. What else that will involve other than Twitter remains to be seen.

Faith No More - “Midlife Crisis” (Edit)

When I was in grade eight my friend Jason bought a Guns N’ Roses bootleg that had a really shitty recording of a live show, along with a couple of unreleased demos. I got a dub of it and played that sucker frontwards, backwards and sideways. I’m not kidding. Somehow the tape got all twisted around and the only way it would play is in reverse.

Here’s a copy of “Shadow of Your Love” from that bootleg. I can pretty much guarantee will not get chewed up in your walkman and will only play in one direction.

Guns N’ Roses - “Shadow of Your Love”

So did anyone out there actually make it to the very end of my first podcast? Those who did were treated to some next level shit courtesy of Cult of Luna. If you happen to be one of those lucky people and liked what you heard, then you should know about their new DVD Fire Was Born.

It will be available for visual digestion March 23rd and features a full live show recorded in London, along with interviews and music videos for “The Watchtower”, “Leave Me Here” and “Back to Chapel Town”.

Also, good news if you haven’t picked up a copy of their latest full length Eternal Kingdom. Fire Was Born will be included in the next pressing of it as a bonus disk.