YOU'RE TOPS IN MY BOOK, KID

I decided to make lists of my favorite albums of 2009 and my favorite albums of 2000-2009. Here they are. (Not going to link to all of them; find 'em yerself)

TOPS OF 2009
1. Pygmy Lush/Turboslut split LP- Everything here rules. Two great bands ensure that this LP is ugly, beautiful, sad, angry, you name it. A very important release to me.
2. Divisions- Fin CS- Briefly sums up the hardcore of the last five years. Absolutely crucial/the best of the "hype" bands.
3. Iron Age- The Sleeping Eye- In a year when I learned to embrace the riff wholeheartedly, this album delivered some absolutely great ones.
4. Teenage Cool Kids-Foreign Lands- More complex and experimental than their demo or Queer Salutations, but everything is still charming and wonderful with this band.
5. The Hunches- Exit Dreams- This one totally took me by surprise. I guess I would call it "raw garage indie," so not normally my bag, but most of the songs here are just flat-out great.
6. Darkest Hour- The Eternal Return- This album does exactly what they wanted to do, it combines the best parts of their previous three full-lengths. The solos are sick as usual, the vocals have a bit more of a roar to them, and a lot of this is just anthemic. A great album.
7. Protestant- Antagonist- This band doesn't need my shitty rave review. Super-heavy, super-dark, super-well-written, all on the perfect format, the 7". Points for packaging too.
8. Villains- Lifecode of Decadence- This album slowly grew on me, but man, it delivers. The songwriting is never mathematical, conventional, or forced, the riffs are just dirty, the whole record seethes with pure hate.
9. Hatred Surge- Deconstruct- Hatred Surge has become one of the most talked-about bands in hardcore, and it's not hard to see why- this album rips.
10. Graf Orlock- Destination Time Today- So what if this band's a gimmick? My favorite Gorlock LP, somehow more accessible than the others despite the fact that this is still just another testament to the power of cinema-grind.
11. The Horrors- Primary Colours- I never would've guessed that I would ever like these guys, but hey, they got good fast. This album takes risks, but everything works.
12. Mala Suerte- The Shadow Tradition- I'm so glad that new bands keep appearing and releasing very high-quality stoner metal. This one goes a little more towards the doom end, but man, some heavy shit.
13. Converge- Axe to Fall- Converge continues its progression. More shred than usual, overall really good.
14. ANS- Pressure Cracks- With Annihilation Time broken up, ANS picks up the flag of pizza punx and runs with it. So, so fun.
15. The Catalyst- Swallow Your Teeth- This band is sick. Some seriously intense and riffy skramz-influenced hardcore (or something). This band can just throw it out and have it rule.
16. Ancient Sky- S/t- Awesome record. Psychedelic rock can go very wrong, but Ancient Sky is perfectly melodic and pretty trippy. Far, far better than Ghastly City Sleep, with whom they share members.
17. Iron Lung/Walls/Pig Heart Transplant- Public Humiliation- A great bro-down in lieu of a new Iron Lung LP this year. Adds new depth to everything they play here.
18. Black Dice- REPO- BD continues to get more beat-driven, but for some reason I'm still really into it.
19. Cult Ritual- S/t- The most-hyped of the hype bands, but not without some justice: CR was a really, really good hardcore band.
20. AA Bondy- When the Devil's Loose- I think I like American Hearts slightly more, but Bondy can seriously get you down.
21. Nazi Dust- ?-I don't even know what Nazi Dust has released in '09, but I do really like this band, myriad releases and all.
22. Vile Gash- I and II-A very good year for hardcore, at least in Florida, yields at least one more solid, short-lived band.
23. Mariachi El Bronx- S/t- A very legit mariachi record. The first song is really, really good, and everything else is nice and fun.
24. Skeletonwitch- Breathing the Fire- Another band with riffs to spare.
25. Candlemass- Death Magic Doom- This band is fairly critically-acclaimed for the doom scene, but they definitely deliver the goods.

TOP SHOWS, 2009
1. Eyehategod, Unearthly Trance, Tombs- Europa, Brooklyn, NY 26 Oct.
2. Iron Lung, Mind Eraser, Brain Handle, Nomos- Cake Shop, Manhattan, NY 10 Nov.
3. Iron Age, Hatred Surge- Living Room, Tucson, AZ 30 July
4. Mark Kozelek- Music Hall of Williamsburg, Brooklyn, NY 6 Aug.
5. Comadre, Trainwreck, Saddest Landscape- ABC No Rio, Manhattan, 13 June

TOP RELEASES, 2000-2009
1. Fugazi-The Argument- This record is one of a handful ever to make me shudder with its brilliance. The songwriting here is utter perfection; my favorite album from one of my favorite bands.
2. Electric Wizard-Dopethrone- The Wizard answers the question of who will push stoner metal to its slowest and heaviest once and for all. Pure hate, pure heaviness.
3. Radiohead-Kid A- Everyone does this one, but it's so obvious. This is a legitimately great band recording their defining record. One of the few "electronic" records I can totally get behind.
4. Majority Rule-Interviews With David Frost- This album is so ass-thrashingly good. So many risks are taken, yet nothing feels out-of-place. The only problem is that it's too short!
5. City of Caterpillar-S/t- Intense, emotional, and gripping. Things don't ever really seem drawn-out even when they are. Super-creative.
6. Fucked Up-Hidden World- Another critics' darling, but this beast delivers 70-and-change minutes of awesome innovation. I prefer this over The Chemistry of Common Life, but that one's very cool too.
7. Black Eyes-S/t- I've been debating whether to put this one or Cough first, but I'm going to go with this one because I have fond memories associated with it and because I've listened to it more.
8. Black Eyes-Cough- The second great statement by one of the most creative bands of my lifetime.
9. Pygmy Lush/Turboslut Split (see above)- The best material from both bands. Pure greatness all around, a fantastic LP. Unfortunately, the best Turboslut will ever release (RIP).
10. Pg.99/Majority Rule-Document #12- Pg.99's side finds them at their most awe-inspiring, and that's saying something; Maj Rule's side is not quite as good, but is still absolutely great.
11. Dillinger Four-Versus God- D4 are just one of those bands where you feel like you can do what they do, but you just can't. This is my favorite of their albums, it rules.
12. Annihilation Time-III: Tales of the Ancient Age- This band laid waste to everything in its path. Who cares that this album contains basically one uniform tempo? Riffs, riffs, riffs. I love this album.
13. Skitsystem-Stigmata- Fast, loud, heavy, and angry. This album relentlessly crushes, and this band's back together! Fuck yeah!
14. Black Ships-Omens- The sole LP from a band which will never gain any recognition for anything other than sounding sort of like Cursed. This band was beyond heavy, beyond miserable, beyond loud, and could write a song with the best of 'em.
15. Black Dice- Broken Ear Record- My favorite BD record. The perfect combination of the Beaches and Canyons- and Creature Comforts-style weirdo-sounds with just enough rhythm to move it along.
16. Darkest Hour-Undoing Ruin- I think this record is Darkest Hour right when they reached the perfect blend of metal and hardcore. It's technical but not too technical, and just raw enough. This album really got me into metal.
17. Pygmy Lush-Bitter River- This is such a fantastically good album. I like it more than Mount Hope because the loud songs on here absolutely rule, and the quiet songs are among some of my favorite PL songs. Not as good as the Turboslut split, but very, very close.
18. End of a Year-Sincerely- I'd say this is one of the most "solid" releases I've ever listened to. The lyrics, as always, are a huge strong point, but everything just meshes together so well, it's all just so well-done.
19. The Locust-New Erections- I'm never ashamed to say I like this band because their music really does back up the hype. This was a perfect progression. I like every release even more than the last one, and the darker edge here really suits the band.
20. Eyehategod-Confederacy of Ruined Lives- Not as good as Dopesick, but then again, nothing is. A great album by a great band. Hurry up and release the fucking follow-up already, dudes!
21. Teenage Cool Kids-Queer Salutations- This band is just so charming in its simplicity. Overlapping catchy melodies backing up lyrics I can really get behind.
22. Hot Snakes-Suicide Invoice- Whenever Froberg and Reis get together magic happens. This band was so, so good and I think this is their best. A great album to listen to at any time whatsoever.
23. Darkthrone-Sardonic Wrath- I don't honestly mind their more recent crust outings, but I think that this is the best effort Nocturno and Fenriz put together this decade. The riffs are so evil and so good, and the production here may be my favorite on any Darkthrone release.
24. Iron Age-The Sleeping Eye- To me, this album stands up to a lot of what was put out when anyone could play great thrash. Iron Age can throw out great riffs with the best of 'em. The lyrics are pretty stupid, but who the fuck cares? THRASH!
25. Divisions- Fin CS- Sweet.

POLLUTED BITCH-HOUND-HUNGRY DEMO

So I decided to plug the new band I am in before the year is out. I spent all day yesterday recording and mixing this demo. I came out very well and I am happy with it. My new band is called Polluted Bitch-Hound. We play riffy psychedelic/hard rock stuff, I guess somewhere in the ballpark of Sabbath, Flag, Deep Purple, Blue Cheer, Bl'ast, etc. We have played some shows and done some basement demos, but this was done in a studio with nice mics and such. Anyway, please give it a listen!

download

HAPPY HOLIDAYS//HEAVY 101

I doubt I'll be posting on here again before the New Year, so I thought I'd end the first full year of Girth Crisis, one of few posts, with a special Holiday treat. I believe I've used ELECTRIC WIZARD as a reference point when describing various bands on here, but have failed to post anything by the good Wizard itself. Well, a little background, then I'll make with the links.

I'd heard Electric Wizard was mind-blowing from some pretty respectable sources, but it took me a while to check them out. For whatever reason, the concept of slow, heavy, weed-reeking, disgusting vibes had limited appeal for me, so I kept listening to Pg.99 and really didn't budge on the issue. One day, on a whim during a particularly depressing day or evening in my old dorm room, I read one last time that Dopethrone was a bona fide classic, making every other "heavy" band look like lightweights.

In retrospect, it was a great idea to start there. Dopethrone begins with what probably is the Wizard's most accessible song, "Vinum Sabbathi," a three-minutes-and-change introduction to what instantly became one of my favorite bands. Calling Dopethrone "heavy" is like saying that Rush are "good musicians" or George Carlin was a "funny guy." The record flat-out crushes, every riff sounds like something Master of Reality-era Sabbath wrote, forgot about, handed off to Jus Oborn, and asked for it to be tuned down like five steps, the drummer, Mark Greening, hits the drums harder than anyone I've ever heard, with the possible exception of Bill Ward himself, and Tim Bagshaw's bass just adds to the heaviness. Jus' vocals are distorted, low in the mix, and pure hate, spewing some of the coolest lyrics I've ever heard. Dopethrone is a modern-day classic.

From there I went to Come My Fanatics..., Dopethrone's full-length predecessor, which is a tad less heavy and hateful (but only a tad), but about 99% the classic Dopethrone is. "Return Trip" and "Wizard in Black" are both up there with the Wizard's best songs, and I count them among my favorites. No song on the album proper clocks in at under 6:42, making this record a slightly more challenging listen, which is probably the only thing keeping it from reaching the heights of Dopethrone. The first record, the self-titled, doesn't quite run with those two, but still shows a band reigning far above most any other band daring to play heavy and slow. The two EPs I'm putting up, Supercoven and Chrono.Naut, only add to the madness, and "Supercoven" is a particularly great track.

Alas, all was not all in the Wizard camp. After the somewhat-disappointing follow-up to Dopethrone, Let Us Prey, Bagshaw and Greening left to form the great Ramesses, whose EP was covered in a recent post. Electric Wizard Mk. II soon emerged with 2004's We Live, which was an improvement over its predecessor but failed to reach the heights of vintage Wizard. 2007's Witchcult Today was a much more solid effort, and though I did not include it here, it is thoroughly worth checking out. Anyway, you probably want me to shut up and post the links:

Dopethrone: buy/download
Supercoven: buy/download
Chrono.Naut: download
Come My Fanatics... (Incl. bonus tracks): buy/download
Electric Wizard: buy/download

MIDNIGHT-FAREWELL TO HELL; TURBOSLUT-ORDER OF THE TURBOSLUT; BLUE CHEER-OUTSIDEINSIDE

MIDNIGHT-FAREWELL TO HELL

This is definitely one of those bands that formed to do exactly what its collective members like about music: balls-out fucking rock. Hailing from the once-great rock 'n' roll city of Cleveland, these guys put on grim reaper hoods and do their best to reclaim the throne. I came across their myspace because they're tight with some other great bands and was blown away by the whole spectacle. Awesome.

d/l



TURBOSLUT-ORDER OF THE TURBOSLUT

I really can't decide whether I'm more bummed about Turboslut's breakup or Annihilation Time's. I'm actually going to go with Turboslut because I've seen AT and those dudes got to release three sweet full-lengths before calling it quits. Turboslut only did this and the Pygmy Lush split covered earlier (you find it) and I missed the boat on them. Whatever, I can't even describe how blown away I was the first time I heard "Speed" off the Pygmy Lush split and that release is the superior of the two, but Order of the Turboslut offers more Turboslut songs, so what the fuck. Miserable, pissed, dark, and grungy, this band hits a spot for me that nobody else really can come close to. I'd be lying if I said it wasn't an uncomfortable spot, but I will continue to defend my love of this band. Contains my second-favorite Turboslut song, "Running in the Family." Check it out.

d/l



BLUE CHEER-OUTSIDEINSIDE

Apparently this beast was recorded both in and out of doors, hence the title. These dudes were serious hippies. Whatever, this is my favorite Cheer record, which I don't think is a hugely controversial claim to make- they were still a young band, but their jamming is tighter and even trippier than it was on Vincebus Eruptum. This one has my favorite Cheer song, the just-plain-heavy "Just a Little Bit," which boasts an absolutely great riff and one of Dickie's best vocal performances. They also do a great version of "I Can't Get No Satisfaction" and a mix of other great covers and originals in the way that only they could. Dickie just died and you should feel bad. Worship.

buy
d/l

SOURVEIN- S/T; RAMESSES- BAPTISM OF THE WALKING DEAD; ENTOMBED- WOLVERINE BLUES

Sup internet?! I've just been chilling and going to school and shit. Daniel and Mike have been doing the same I guess. I just got internet at my haus and it's pretty fast so I decided to do a post. I was going to upload a rip of the Fin cassette by Divisions, which is some of the most ripping shit ever, so I forgot and instead just uploaded some of the other music I've been digging lately. Some new, some not. Enjoy.

Sourvein- s/t

Sourvein represent a good deal of what I've been listening to these days: slow, sludgy, riff-driven, fucking loud. This band is very bluesy and my closest approximation of their sound is a slightly less abrasive Eyehategod. The vocals are pretty sweet and this is overall a very good release by a very good band. I think they may have broken up, because one of their guitarists married Jus Oborn and now plays in Electric Wizard mk. II. I considered putting Dopethrone up in this post, but if you don't already have that you have little business checking out a Sourvein record.

OUT OF PRINT
d/l

Ramesses- Baptism of the Walking Dead EP

Continuing the trend of bands featuring sometime members of Electric Wizard, Ramesses features 2/3 of the "classic" EW lineup, the one that cut fucking Come My Fanatics..., Supercoven, and Dopethrone and therefore have earned themselves a lifetime of doom cred. I honestly like Ramesses slightly more than the Wizard's Witchcult Today. There's some sonic similarity between the two, but Ramesses does have a distinct black metal influence, most obviously in the vocals. At first I couldn't get into this but holy shit, this crushes. I guess these three songs are going to be rerecorded for their new album, so get stoked.

d/l


Entombed- Wolverine Blues

I find the direction this band took hilarious, even if I do love this shit, in all seriousness. Entombed cut two seriously legit death metal albums (I mean, they did that shit as well as anyone), then I guess decided that they wanted to have verses, choruses, and solos in their songs; thus, death 'n' roll was born. I feel ridiculous when I listen to Wolverine Blues, but I just can't resist.

UPDATE: I'm an idiot and forgot to post the link.
HERE

SCUD MOUNTAIN BOYS

Daniel was in San Diego recently and picked up a cassette by a band called Scud Mountain Boys, for some reason. Anyway, turns out they're great. Joe Pernice, later of the Pernice Brothers, was in this band, which may or may not be of interest to you. Daniel and I have been fucking huge on Pygmy Lush for a while, and I covered Red House Painters in an earlier post so this is a welcome precursor to that: a little more country, a little less folk, and just as depressed, which is awesome. I uploaded two full-lengths, Dance the Night Away and Pine Box, and they're both excellent. I find that Pine Box is of slightly higher quality, but they share a sound and are entirely worth having.

buy them both!
download Dance the Night Away
download Pine Box

STABYOUINTHEHEADANDEATYOURFACEOFF

Herbs Get Wet

This release is the longer and better of the two. I think they released this after they got back together, and the production and songwriting are generally better than on Killin Toys. The drummer definitely took the snare off, so it kind of reminds me of St. Anger- era Metallica, except good and not "thrash metal" or whatever you want to call that one. Ehh whatever, it's good, get it if you want it.

buy
d/l

Killin Toys

ALMOST AS GOOD.

buy
d/l

Oh right, background: xStabYouInTheHeadAndEatYourFaceOffx is a hardcore band from Connecticut. They kind of remind me of Dangers and that school of hardcore, only with some Boston HC influence. They do the guitar-drums-vocals thing, and their guitar work is pretty impressive considering. I like this band.