Album Review: SASQUATCH - "MANEUVERS"

Alright! The fifth album from one of rock's unsung practitioners has been released. Any spin through any one of the, now five, albums put out by the Los Angeles retro/stoner rock trio Sasquatch will provide opioid level euphoria through a delivery system of dense metal and decibel distension, packaged in razor sharp hooks and monumental melodies. This is the case with the first song on the first album through to the last song on the latest album, the freshly available "MANEUVERS".

The musicians that recorded "MANEUVERS" include:

Keith Gibbs - guitar, vocals
Jason Casanova - bass
Craig Riggs - drums

Where's Rick Ferrante, the longtime drummer for the band, you ask? He's very much still a part of Sasquatch. How could he not be? He's been there from the inception, providing a quality of rhythm drumwork rarely matched this side of Ginger Baker. Craig Riggs, himself an accomplished drummer, as well as vocalist, for the stoner rock legends Roadsaw and supergroup Kind, has been tasked with the skin-thumping duties on #5 as Sasquatch launch their campaign through Europe in support of the new album. Many, if not most, of the gifted musicians that ply their wares in the underground world of stoner/fuzz rock, do so outside of their regular job work schedules, so making extended forays away from those jobs isn't always possible. Rick, though, has other venues lined up for his phenomenal skills, both as a full-time member of The Ultra Electric Mega Galactic and playing live venues with the up and coming underground superstars Aboleth (is that an oxymoron - underground superstar?)

"MANEUVERS" consist of 8 intensely amplified tracks of thick, syrupy mega-fuzz in which Keith Gibbs' wonderfully mellifluous vocals match perfectly his sledge hammer heavy riffs and ozone searing solos, where Jason Casanova's bass is forcefully wielded, relentless in muscular ferocity, and Craig Riggs' steady rhythms sting and pound in incessant brilliance. The overall tone is a soulful resonance, somber, edgy, and nostalgic, unyielding in its sheer power.

"Rational Woman" kicks off the show with gargantuan raggedness, beautifully laid down in primal tempo, showcasing Gibbs' rich, powerfully melancholy vocals. "More Than You'll Ever Be" is steady and relentless, advancing in magnetic forcefulness. "Destroyer" demonstrates the raw might of haunting tonality. "Bringing Me Down" is reminiscent of early Sasquatch songs in sentiment and style, a welcome memory for some, a fresh introduction into past glory for others. Funky and on fire, "Just Couldn't Stand the Weather" brandishes a unique melody and style, a departure that doesn't stray too far from the path marked 'Sasquatch', but is populated by some intriguing mutations, riff creatures at once familiar and uncanny. "Drown All the Evidence" is Americana, magnified, amplified, and wracked through with distortions of flagrant pleasure, punctuated by elegantly ragged, bruising solos. "Anyway" is a psychedelic charmer, a brightly colored panacea, recharging batteries in color and brilliance. The closer is the massive and melancholy "Window Pain". The blue pain and gray fog atmosphere of this song is punctuated by the rare use of keyboards, highlighting the feeling of loss and a damaged soul. Solos reminiscent of Ernie Isley rip through the gray morass in sharp, keen doses.

Overall this album delivers a massive load of essential feels. The music is nostalgic and new, familiar because it's crafted by masters of more than a decade of accomplishment, as well as fresh in a package of nascent material that expounds on a proven formula without a hint of staleness. It's a sound that hearkens back to the last decade when stoner rock was still new and Sasquatch were new kids on the block. The guitars come in every satisfying form, distorting the edges, and burning the center, tapping into those primal cords that run central to us all. Gibbs' vocals are solid, full of heft and strength, and forging soulful connections over and again. Fierceness and joy, the hallmarks of those who love the weapons they wield, are on perfect display through Casanova's masterful, subterranean riffs. And Riggs steps into what would normally be a massive void, shouldering expectations and delivering brilliance with his consummate rhythmic execution.

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RIFF RELIC: Mammoth Thunderpower - "I Am Thunder"

I don't know about you, but every now and then I like to go through my massive collection of great music and see if I can find something I haven't played in a long while, or perhaps discover an album I never had a chance to give a chance when it was first acquired. Today's focus is on a little jewel of an EP that's been sitting in my 'Doom Trunk' for five years waiting to be re-discovered.

Mammoth Thunderpower released the exceptional "I Am Thunder" EP in 2012 that delivered massive potential. The music is replete with stoner and doom tendencies, keeping things low, sometimes slow, sometimes at a more urgent tempo, but always in satisfying fashion with hooks that dig deep into musical cochlea, ripping a bloody hold that is eternal and yearning.

Nothing much has been heard of Mammoth Thunderpower since the release of "I Am Thunder". Word is, though, that after laying low for half a decade the band have managed to get together in the studio and begin the process of making new music. Stay tuned to Heavy Planet and we'll be sure to let you know when the time comes. In the meantime, travel back down dark memories to relish in the mastery of their powerful first album.

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QUICK HIT: Shotgun Sawyer's "8 Bangers"

Fresh stoner/blues produce from the Auburn, California trio of Brett, Dylan, and David, better known as Shotgun Sawyer, has just been released on a split EP with fellow rockers BandMaster Ruckus. The split is appropriately titled "8 Bangers". Shotgun Sawyer's 4 contributions are sticky sweet, gingerbush salty, and euphorically addictive, hallmarks all of their entire, if brief and budding, atheneum.

You might recall that last August Reviewmeister Pete posted a review of Shotgun Sawyer's incredible LP "Thunderchief", one of the best rock album's of that year, or any year. A follow up in a mere six months is an unexpected and welcome treat, a high octane scratch for an ever-urgent itch.

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LP Review: Thunderchief by Shotgun Sawyer

Previously going by the name of Thunderchief (now the name of their record), the newly named Shotgun Sawyer have released a debut full-length record that’s filled with heavy blues and fuzzy riffs to get everyone off their ass and moving to their beat.

The Californian trio open things up fairly lightly (compared to the rest of the record at least) with the raw riffing of ‘Skinwalker’ letting you roughly know what to expect from these guys; bluesy twangs at a rock’n’roll swaggering pace, but the band like to go heavier, and it’s with tracks such as the angry fuzz of ‘Sudden Death in the Flesh’ mixing juggernaut drumming over heavy riffs and clear impassioned vocals that pricks up your ears and has you jigging around the room before you realise it. The band have a lot of range and power in their work, just take a listen to ‘Lawman’, the gentle country-style guitar picking eases you along before the heavy fuzz riffs bust your face in two with its power. These guys are great musicians.

The vocals of Dylan Jarman are one of the things that set Shotgun Sawyer apart from their fellow blues rockers, yes OK the riffs are also heavier and the drumming is relentless (in the best kind of way), but when the clear vocals filled with a sharp passion, and an aching for a better way of life, hit the speakers, they connect with you on a sonic level that outweighs any other band in this genre at the moment. For a blues record, Thunderchief is a lot of fun, from the self-depreciating ‘I’m a Bad Man’, the tribute to the mystery that is ‘Gravedigger Dan’, the delta blues riffs of the ptsd chills on ‘Soldier Song’, the punk ethos on ‘Left For Dead’, to the all-out heavy blues of ‘Strawberry Jam’, Thunderchief is guaranteed to have you at your funky best wherever your dancefloor may be!

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Band Submission: Amigo-Stoner Rock From San Diego, CA

Band Name: Amigo
Genre: Stoner Rock
Location: San Diego
Brief Bio/Description:Influenced by the lush palms, rural canyons, undulating landscapes, and little cliffs that make up the pseudo desert that is San Diego, Amigo was born. Led by front man Jeff Podeszwik, Amigo is a riff based rock band with heavy hooks, melodic vocals and fuzz driven guitars. Whether it be a tale of tragedy, a practice in prose, an untold story, or a rumor in the school hall, instructions have been given to let you in on these secrets. After all....that's what friends do. Join the cult of Amigo today!.....dudelings
Band Members:
Jeff Podeszwik
Anthony Mattos
Sufi Karaien
Anthony Alley
Links: Website | Facebook | Bandcamp

Band Submission: Ocelot-Psych/Rock/Blues From San Diego, CA

Band Name: Ocelot
Genre: Psych/ Rock/ Blues
Location: San Diego, CA
Brief Bio/Description: Hailing from the inbred musical community of north county San Diego, Ocelot mixes palatable psychedelia and old-attitude rock and roll. Ocelot began with the creative and personal entwining of James Upton, and his ghostly reincarnations of heavy blues riffs, and Stephanie Brown, whose abstracted tales of everyday tribulations are sung in a soulful mezzo-soprano with just a sip of Jack Daniel's.

After a slew of quiet restaurant shows and bar gigs, Ocelot found its rhythmic voice with the interlocking jello-bounce of bassist Kyre Wilcox's dextrous fingers, whose steady groove is covered in the drumstick shards and frenzied sweat of drummer Andrew Ware, and is steeped in the lush, manic soundscapes of Evan Wenskay's keyboard and Echoplex loops. Together they took to local stages, charming the ears of local promoters, and catching the eye of Studio West engineer Daniel Bourget.
Their new EP is from an off-hours live session at Studio West in Rancho Bernardo.
Band Members:
Stephanie Brown- Vocals/ Harmonica
James Upton- Guitar
Kyre Wilcox- Bass
Andrew Ware- Drums
Evan Wenskay- Organ/ Echoplex
Links: Website | Facebook | Soundcloud | Bandcamp

Album Review: Red Wizard - COSMOSIS

Yeah!

I have to admit I'm at a loss on how to begin without sounding like some overstimulated fanboy.

But I LOVE Cosmosis by Red Wizard. It ticks most of the boxes for what I love about heavy rock music. The deep, dark, melancholy guitar. Raw, edgy, unrefined vocals that don't resort to yelling, yet having plenty of range. Melodies, hooks, riffs, and solos that are fun, interesting, primal, and spiritual. Muscular, athletic rhythm with a thick, brawny bass and vigorous, virulent drums. Hell, there's even some bone chilling harmonica in places.

It's possible that my interest in this album, this band, is seated in the similarities the album bears to Ozzy's Black Sabbath. Okay, so what. That could very well be. But Red Wizard in and of themselves don't sound like Black Sabbath so much as Cosmosis does. Red Wizard's first release, 2013's self titled, 5 song EP, doesn't sound anything like Sabbath......well, except for the cover of The Wizard at the end of the album. Who knows, perhaps covering this song inspired them to create their own Ozzy/Geezer/Iommi inspired album. Whatever the case may be for their motivation the effort put forth by this California pentatet has knocked it out of the park, as they say.

Hailing from San Ramon, California Red Wizard are:

Travis Baucum - vocals, harmonica
Miles Von Ricketson -  lead guitar
Casey Lamontagne - guitar
David Wilburn - bass
Shane Kepler - drums

Cosmosis was released April 8th by the awesome Ripple Music and can be found on bandcamp. I highly recommend checking it out, and trading in a few hard earned dollars for some primal hard metal.



BANDCAMP || FACEBOOK || LABEL

Band Submission: Sssssss!-Psychedelic Space Doom From Los Angeles, California

Band Name: Sssssss!
Genre: Space Doom
Location: Los Angeles, CA
Brief Bio/Description: We are female-fronted psychedelic rock from Los Angeles. Thick sounding 5-piece with winds and keys.
Influences are Blue Oyster Cult, Church of Misery, Joy Divsion, Black Sabbath, Hawkwind, Dinosaur Jr., Blood Ceremony, Blondie, Pink Floyd, etc...

Band Members:
Jilly Ann - Vocals/flute
Akiko Jones - Bass / Synth
Rick Goosewind - Guitar / Vocals
Richard Jones - Guitar
Gerry Hernandez - Drums / Vocals
Links: Web | Bandcamp | YouTube | Facebook

Album Review: Mountain Tamer – Self-titled

Turn up the stereo, turn down the lights and twist up a hog leg.  These three dudes from Santa Cruz, CA are putting out the prescription and you don’t even need a medicinal card.  This is a band you have to hear.

Where to begin with this amazing debut?  Remember watching skateboard videos backintheday and hearing a song you liked so much that you would pause the credits to find out who it was?  Mountain Tamer reminds me of that.  The perfect balance of heavy psych with a punk attitude and a perfect tone that brings it all together into a sound that is truly unique to them.  They are not easily comparable to anyone, it is all their own and for a first album they have already done something many more established bands are still trying to figure out.

But don’t think this is all just juicy riffs and jutted jaws, there is really solid musicianship throughout.  Dave Teget’s bass work ranges from the classic driving thump of the opening track Mind Burner and the third song Dunes of the Mind to the mellow, undulating hypnotism of Satans Waitin.  The drum work by Casey Garcia shows serious chops.  He goes from working expertly in the pocket in Wolf and Mind Burner to forcefully turning the drums into the lead in Vixen and Sum Peeps.  As for Andru Hall on guitar, he gives you a taste of everything from the desert inspired glory of Mind Burner to the utter space mayhem of Dunes of the Mind  and Pharosite to the classic blues styling in Wolf.  He does all this while working the microphone with the style of a man who just walked out of his last day at the job he hates giving the boss the elusive double handed, one finger salute. 

The overall production is rock solid making this an excellent choice for your headphone listening pleasure or blasting on the stereo.  Anyone looking for tracks for a new snowboard or skate video, look no further, you found what you are looking for right here.  For the rest of us, we just found ourselves a great new band that is putting down some seriously kickass rock and roll.           

   

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- WM