The Bucketlist With HOGAN’S GOAT

*In this series we pose the age old questions to a wide array of music lovers. As fans of music most of us keep a mental list of active bands we want to see live that we haven’t yet seen. The Bucketlist brings to you those lists of your favorite artists and why those bands mean so much to them*

 

Hogan’s Goat is named after a tale from Scottish folklore. The band initially formed in late 2014. As the story goes, a farmer (Hogan) owned a goat rumored to have an odor said to travel miles away. The goat’s been described as having patchy fur, an eye out of socket, and flies abound. For the band, this perfectly symbolized their unorthodox style, that which is anything but unnoticeable. They couldn’t have picked a better fable for their namesake. More like a powerful mountain ram the band roams through various styles of music never staying in one place too long. Their first show (at SXSW, on the rooftop of The Blind Pig) was part of an all Nashville (non-country) showcase. Soon after, Hogan’s Goat returned to Nashville, they competed in BMI’s “Road To Bonnaroo” (winning the fan vote) and played many other shows around the Nashville area. While most people think Nashville is only a country town, there is a vibrant rock and metal scene there as well. Hogan’s Goat has hoofed their way out of sea of country music to spread their music to the masses. While the band is based in Nashville it’s members migrated from all around the country like Billings, Montana, Denton, Texas , Southern Pines, North Carolina as well as Nashville. Like their music their roots run further than the eye can see. In March of 2016, Hogan’s Goat began recording their first LP, ‘Hogan’s Goat’ which released July 18th, 2017. The album was self-produced, mixed by Alex Gilson and Nathan Zensen at Gold Cassette and mastered by Tommy Dorsey. The band looks to tour regionally, nationally, and globally.  Their album was one of my favorite albums of the year and would likely be in the top 20 albums I heard last year. However, the stand out track “Shitkicker” from the album stayed in my listening rotation from the moment I heard the track until this very day. While that was one of the strongest tracks on the album the rest of the album is just as good including their most recent single they released a video for “Annie Off The Rails”. This isn’t your run of the mill Nashville band, forget about Nashville being the home of the Ryman, Nashville hot chicken and country music legends, Hogan’s Goat stands out more than those combined.  Continue reading

INTERVIEW: Anthony Vincent Of “SET THE CHARGE” and “10 SECOND SONGS”

SET THE CHARGE is a four piece “Diamond Rock” band hailing from Port Chester, New York. Mainly a studio band until 2014, founding members Anthony Vincent Valbiro, and Frank Valbiro connected with Derek Ortiz and Tom Dicarlucci. Anthony plays guitar/vocals, Tom on lead guitar, Derek on bass, and Frank on the drums. The band released their first E.P. in 2015 titled ‘Auditory Insemination‘ and has recently released their first full studio album on Sept. 26, 2017 entitled “Sky Goes On“. The band has a plethora of different influences between the members which has allowed the band to create a unique sound, and pay homage to musics past while staying contemporary and in the now. Continue reading

State Of The Art: ABDUCTED

This month on State Of The Art we decided to feature bands from the frozen northern state of Alaska, and we’re kicking it off this week with a phenomenal Death Metal outfit that brings the fires of hell to the land of the midnight sun. ABDUCTED is a 5 piece death metal project from Fairbanks Alaska that falls short in no aspects of what makes the genre great, they are heavy, groovy, fast paced, in your face, and unapologetic. ABDUCTED consists of Dylan Chioffe – Vocals, Rick Peirce – Guitar, Jake Benoit – Guitar, Zain Mitchell – Bass, and Kris Larson – Drums.  Started in 2016 by Dylan and Jake, the band has wasted no time in getting their name out in the metal world. They have released 3 songs, one of which being a sick lyric video for the track ‘Indoctrination’, and an official music video for ‘Remnants’, has garnered the band an impressive 10,588 fans on facebook since their debut in February 2017. Continue reading

Chicago Open Air Spotlight: AVERSED

*Every Tuesday and Thursday from now until Chicago Open Air gets here we will be releasing an article about a band playing the festival to get you familiar with them.*

Today’s artist is Aversed.

On Sunday, July 16th, students from the Berklee College of Music will bring their melodic death metal sounds to Chicago Open Air. Aversed is a 5-piece, female-fronted band that formed in Boston, Massachusetts in 2009. The band was added to the festival just a few weeks before the schedule was released so you won’t see them on the poster below. This was a much needed addition as the festival was lacking a female-fronted group. They hit the BlackCraft Stage on Sunday very early at 12:05 p.m. but it will be a performance you don’t want to miss. I’ve always found that some of the best performances of a festival will take place very early in the day. Read a little bit about how Aversed is preparing for the festival in this article from The Artery on WBUR 90.9 here.

Aversed released their debut EP last year in November titled ‘Renewal’. “Prison of Existence” opens the EP with a ferocity that shows they are more than just a band to get the day started off. Drawing influence from several bands playing the fest that day like Behemoth, Ozzy Osbourne, and Slayer, they create an extreme sound similar to that of the most recent Arch Enemy record. Even with only 5 songs, the EP clocks in at about 30 minutes with its epic combination of death metal growls, melodic vocals, fast-paced rhythms, and god-tier shredding from the guitarists. Check out “Prison of Existence” and a music video for the title track “Renewal” below. The video shows that the band puts a lot of energy into their live shows so I’m looking forward to seeing them own the stage very soon. This will be the quintet’s first time playing a Danny Wimmer Presents event. Buy your tickets to see Aversed make their festival debut at Chicago Open Air here. Follow the band on Facebook for upcoming news on brand new music and tours. Also follow the festival page for updates and additions to the festival in the coming days. 8 more days people!!

Aversed is:
Haydee Irizarry – Lead Vocals
Sungwoo Jeong – Guitar/Vocals
Alden Marchand – Guitar
Martin Epstein – Bass
Jeff Saltzman – Drums


Review: WOODHAWK – ‘Beyond The Sun’

Artwork by Mark Kowalchuk

Just this Friday, Calgary, Alberta band Woodhawk released ‘Beyond the Sun’ independently. They dropped their first EP in 2014 and are now here with their first album. With slamming, groovy riffs, the band’s first full length record brings you back to the early 70s rock n roll sound with several different lyrical themes to keep it interesting. The trio recorded this album at Rain City Recorders in Vancouver BC. It was mixed by Jesse Gander, mastered by Brad Boatright, and produced by Gander and the band. The album artwork was created by Mark Kowalchuk. You can purchase ‘Beyond the Sun’ on Bandcamp or stream it below.

‘Beyond the Sun’ leads us in with a relaxed intro from the title track before taking off into a space-like dimension of riffs to prepare us for what is in store for the rest of the record. “The High Priest” (music video below) is a hard rock anthem filled with remarkable instrumentals and catchy choruses from Turner Midzain. Woodhawk continues to pack a huge punch in their sound with the thunderous “Living in the Sand”. This track features guest vocals from Kevin Keegan (Dead Quiet, ex-Mountain Dust, ex-Barn Burner). It’s a six minute epic with a full dose of 70s hard rock storming into your door with power and emotion overflooding your stereo.  “Magnetic North” is a slow tempo, bluesy with booming bass from Mike Badmington and is plentiful of riffs that will put the listener into a trance. The album picks its pace back up with “Lawless” shredding through with that classic rock sound with a psychedelic edge. “Quest For Clarity” has an marvelous bass intro before exploding into another musical adventure with splendid work behind the drum kit from Kevin Nelson. The more relaxed guitar solo near the end is a beautiful work of art and builds tension before roaring back into the chorus. “A New Hope” has a  neat guitar echo effect and obviously rotates around the theme of Star Wars. It doesn’t get much better than rock’n’roll about Star Wars! “Foresee the Future” is a slick two-minute instrumental with a desert-like tone to set the mood for the final song on the record. “Chrononaut” is definitely the most rifftastic song on the album with these huge sounds rushing to you at the speed of light. It takes a more mid-tempo turn towards the middle before closing out in dramatic fashion. Woodhawk has released a killer 9-track debut record not to be forgotten soon by fans of stoner rock. Make sure to follow Woodhawk on Facebook at the link below.

‘Beyond the Sun’ Tracklist
1. Beyond The Sun (3:57)
2. The High Priest (4:46)
3. Living In The Sand (6:03)
4. Magnetic North (4:13)
5. Lawless (3:06)
6. Quest For Clarity (4:14)
7. A New Hope (4:49)
8. Foresee The Future (2:12)
9. Chrononaut (5:19)

Woodhawk is:
Turner Midzain – Vocals/Guitar
Mike Badmington – Bass/Vocals
Kevin Nelson – Drums


 

State of the Art: New York – CAR BOMB

*This is part of our State Of The Art series, showcasing bands every Monday from the featured State*

This month’s State is New York

If you’ve been keeping up with the heavy music scene, you’d know that Car Bomb is about to take it by storm. The experimental mathcore band from Long Island released what was widely considered one of the best released of 2016 in metal with ‘Meta’. The band has a very raw, but technologically advanced sound that very few bands have perfected. The forming of the band started as early as 2000 when two New York bands Neck and Spooge shared a studio together. Soon, two members from each band decided it was time for something new and Car Bomb was formed as a side project in 2002. Impressively, the band has managed to keep the same lineup throughout all these years. They build their own equipment which allows them to create a sound exactly how they want it. Car Bomb has definitely gotten some high recognition having played shows with the likes of Dillinger Escape Plan, Gojira, Meshuggah, Ion Dissonance, and Ulcerate. The quartet has slowly but surely made their way up and are ready to dominate 2017. Continue reading