Archive for the ‘Melt Banana’ Category

Noiseweek: Tours and Reunions, Le Guess Who?, Miles Brown, Iommi and More

Friday, December 4th, 2015

The sights, sounds and words of the week in noise.

NEWS

It’s one of those so-crazy-it-has-to-work ideas: British grind legends Napalm Death, Washington sludge pioneers The Melvins and Japanese noise weirdos Melt-Banana teaming up for a six-week, 35-date North America tour, fittingly named the Savage Imperial Death March. The latest iteration of The Melvins will feature Steven McDonald (Redd Kross, OFF!) on bass, with a planned 10? War Pussy in the works ahead of the tour. King Buzzo and Napalm Death’s Shane Embury and Danny Herrera have previously collaborated as Venomous Concept – who’ve just released a new single from forthcoming LP Kick Me Silly; VC3, though without Buzz in the band this time around. Got all that? Good.

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With the trademark dysfunction for which they were often known, Texas post-hardcore giants At The Drive In are reportedly reforming for Rock On The Range festival in Columbus, Ohio in May 2016, though original member Jim Ward claims the line-up announcement is the first he’s heard of it. He ran a similar line prior to ATDI’s previous reunion for Coachella in 2012, so there’s hope yet.

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A cavalcade of punk icons have pledged support of US presidential candidate Bernie Sanders, with Jello Biafra, Wayne Kramer and Mike Watt all endorsing the the self-proclaimed socialist candidate. A lengthy list of ‘artists and cultural leaders’ have come out in support of the plain-speaking Vermont senator, whose policy platform includes an end to the federal prohibition of marijuana, fairer income distribution and a less-trigger happy US foreign policy agenda. With policies like that, it’s clear the Democrats and US media will never let him get elected, but it’s a nice idea.

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Finally, Radio Adelaide – Australia’s oldest community radio station – is seeking support in the form of a petition, after news that licensee the University of Adelaide is considering selling or closing the station. The decision comes after the university sold the CBD property that houses Radio Adelaide’s studios. Show your support by heading to www.saveradioadelaide.org. #SaveRadAd

READ

Le Guess Who? Proves That Experimental Music Doesn’t Have To Be Lofty And Joyless | Fact Mag

“The most refreshing thing about Le Guess Who? is how it gives a platform to more experimental strains of music without any of the associated loftiness. Faust were first to marry a challenging approach with humour. Sure, their sound was a heavy, delirious mix of magnificent acoustics punctured by industrial crashes, gas canisters and hurdy-gurdies, but Jean-Hervé Peron was yelling, “Pinochet! Stalin! Kartoffelsalat!” and three women were seated front-and-centre stage, nonchalantly knitting for the entire set.”

The Essence And The Purity: Rob Halford Of Judas Priest’s Favourite LPs | The Quietus

“For over 40 years, Rob Halford has been one of the most singular figures to emerge from the metal scene, and while some of his contemporaries have struggled to age gracefully, Halford is still out-performing many singers a quarter of his age, and his recorded output is as vital now as it has ever been.”

The Sober Proprietor Of A Bar On Avenue B | New York Times
“He started out as a roadie, which eventually turned into a job singing for the Dictators, in 1975. After the band disbanded in the early ’80s, Mr. Manitoba was part of various groups that included various iterations of The Dictators. In the early ’90s, he found himself driving a cab, addicted to heroin. He attended meetings, got clean and ripped up the hack license.”

LISTEN

Miles Brown – ‘Space Cadet’

The first taste of The Night Terrors’ theremin genius Brown’s forthcoming solo debut LP Séance Fiction blends Carpenter-esque gloom with 80s synth-pop sensibilities.

The Rival Mob – ‘Speak With Power’

Boston’s The Rival Mob carrying the mantle of classic Clevo/NYHC on this tape release being put out by Adelaide’s Nopatience Records.


WATCH

Tommy Iommi talks about his origins as a guitarist and what keeps him on stage after taking out the Q/Gibson Les Paul Guitar Award back a little while ago.

Peaches – ‘Rub’

Probably the most NSFW video since Rammstein’s ‘Pussy’. Enter at your own risk.

Peaches — Rub (Uncensored) from Peaches on Vimeo.

Anger Management: Melt Banana

Wednesday, November 13th, 2013

We check in with all things heavy on RTRFM’s Critical Mass show.

Something a bit different this time, because although Tokyo’s Melt Banana aren’t ‘metal’, they’ve shared enough split releases, stages and blastbeats with some of hardcore and grindcore’s bigger names (Fantomas, Discordance Axis, The Locust) to warrant a mention.

The bands new album Fetch sees them slimmed down to a two piece, the drums and bass all programmed and manipulated via midi. This hasn’t slowed the pace of the album down as there are still some lightspeed tracks, it’s just that this time around the spazzed/glitched out guitar lines and loops are more melodic and catchy.

There is a joyous mood to tracks such as ‘Candy Gun’ and ‘Infection Detective’ and slight melancholic edge to the sixth track ‘My Missing Link’ showing that even in their own sound they can still pull out some surprises.

The band’s experimentation with slight vocal effects and electronic dance elements has continued on from the ‘Melt Banana Lite’ live album (essentially a no-guitars version of the current lineup using synths and theremins). The album’s last track (‘Zero’) is a straight up catchy pop song.

Lead single ‘The Hive’ is a catchy hardcore song, just about 120 BPM faster than your average track. Littered with some crazy guitar loops and vocal manipulation, this jams more into two minutes than most can do in an entire album. Get stuck in for a heart starter.

Critical Mass is 9pm every Wednesday on RTR FM 92.1