Zac's "Quik Drag": Sleestak

Sleestak: Book of Hours 

Sleestak is back! And I must say in a fresh and very experimental way. After dropping the phenomenal Fall of Altrusia in 2011, these Milwaukee natives released a lo-fi collection of space rock ditties, entitled Altrusian Moon in 2012, get yourself over to bandcamp to stream Altrusian Moon if you missed it. Further challenging themselves Sleestak have continued their yearly release with Book of Hours, earlier this year. Further challenging their listeners, Sleestak have taken one step away from their doom and stoner roots to quench the progressive fire blazing in their psyche. With that being said there are still loads distorted RIFF'ing and repetitive grooves. New to the Sleestak arsenal is a very operatic and Phantom of the Opera style ambiance, dark and authentic. Something that I, personally, am missing in Book of Hours is Matt Schmitz's tremendous gritty and vehement vocal delivery. Don't let that keep you away from Book of Hours though. Schmitz's cleans surface with a vibrant Jim Morrison vibe. Sleestak haven't only employed experimental song structures and timing in Book of Hours, they have also departed from their familar lengthy run times for a snappy and poppier form of psychedelic rock, this latest piece runs under the twenty-five minute mark. Be sure to spin my favorite track Lone Wolf, the regular version. This steady blues based track begins with a haunting spoken piece of poetry, which brings to my mind a deranged soul drenched in whiskey entertaining his thoughts of freedom. Lone Wolf takes a sudden turn to experimental region of the netherworld with a smooth transition from blues driven guitar RIFF'ing into an Jethro Tull and Opeth-ian inspired jazz measure. Don't miss it!

Members: 

Dan Bell - Bass 

Marcus Bartell - Drums 

Matt Schmitz - Guitar // Vocals // Keys

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New Stoner and Doom Book Out

From Tom Denney, illustration,Motion Graphics:

I have been an illustrator in the metal scene since 2002, doing t-shirts/posters and album covers for the heaviest bands to walk the earth such as Kylesa, Rwake, Buried at Sea, Weedeater, Lair of the Minotaur, Job for a Cowboy, Sourvein, and tons more. I have compiled these images now into an art book. Over 76 full color pages of the best of the best from my portfolio. It is now available to you for your discretionary visual consumption. Stoner rockers should love the ocular feast of bright psychedelic colors and nude type women in alien landscapes. Please check it out at www.tomdenney.com.

BLACK SABBATH: "33 1/3: Master Of Reality" Book Now Available

BLACK SABBATH's "Master of Reality" is the focus of the first book about a heavy metal album in Continuum Books' popular 33 1/3 series. The 33 1/3 series documents some of the most important recordings ever made.

The 33 1/3 series are low-priced, pocket-sized books. Each is about or inspired by a classic LP. They range from rock and roll's foundations to modern classics. Previous books have explored records by PINK FLOYD, DJ SHADOW, THE KINKS, SONIC YOUTH, VELVET UNDERGROUND, RADIOHEAD, BEASTIE BOYS, and many others. Launched in September 2003, the series now contains over 50 titles and is acclaimed and loved by fans, musicians and scholars alike.

Released on April 15, "33 1/3: Master of Reality" (cover) was written by Decibel columnist and MOUNTAIN GOATS mainman John Darnielle. He describes "Master of Reality" through a fictional character, a fifteen-year-old boy being held in an adolescent psychiatric centre in southern California in 1985. Adolescents in treatment are often required to keep a journal, and they write letters by the dozens: to their parents, to their friends on the outside, to the nurses who confiscate their belongings, to the teachers back at school who've offered them an outlet for their creativity. Our narrator has arrived in treatment with a Walkman and some tapes that are precious to him, only to have them taken away on the ground that their content is part of his greater problem. His various writings, aimed mainly at getting his tapes and Walkman back, will explain how BLACK SABBATH differs from their Satan-worshipping popular image, and how "Master of Reality" is an overtly Christian album, which it is. Our narrator will try to explain BLACK SABBATH like an emissary from an alien race describing his culture to his captors: passionately, patiently, and lovingly.

For more information, visit Amazon.com