The Heavy: Les Discrets – Remembering Forgotten Arias JJ Koczan April 9, 2012 Columns Being a fan of the first Les Discrets album, 2010’s Septembre Et Ses Dernières Pensées, I was thrilled to find out the German label Prophecy Productions was releasing a follow-up early this year. The French... Read More...
The Atomic Bitchwax @ School Of Rock JJ Koczan March 2, 2012 Concerts EASTON, PA—Oddly enough, when I found out my New Jerseyan hometown heroes The Atomic Bitchwax were doing a show at the School Of Rock in Easton, Pennsylvania, right across the border, I knew exactly where t... Read More...
The Heavy: Interview with Joey Toscano from Dwellers JJ Koczan February 23, 2012 Interviews Salt Lake City trio Dwellers made their debut at the end of January in the form of Good Morning Harakiri (Small Stone), an album that takes its name from the Japanese suicide ritual—otherwise known as “sepp... Read More...
Interview with Blut: Drop Out And Kill JJ Koczan January 18, 2012 Interviews Lo-fi British duo Blut make their home in fucked-up drone and doomed riffing, working hard to sound as inaccessible as possible at any given moment. This is completely on purpose. The band’s warped vision o... Read More...
The Heavy: New Year’s With Clutch JJ Koczan January 12, 2012 Columns Clutch/Corrosion Of Conformity/Earthride The Trocadero December 31, 2011 PHILADELPHIA, PA—New Year’s Eve with Clutch, C.O.C. and Earthride—sometimes life just provides you with easy choices. I mean... Read More...
Interview With Eric Wagner: Doomed And Doomed Anew JJ Koczan January 6, 2012 Interviews It was a shock when Trouble vocalist Eric Wagner split from the long-running and influential Chicago classic doom outfit. The band’s much-awaited album, Simple Mind Condition, had finally been released, and... Read More...
Black Cobra, Zoroaster, The Body @ St. Vitus Bar JJ Koczan December 21, 2011 Concerts BROOKLYN, NY—Sunday inevitably rolled around after seeing Kyuss Lives! on Saturday and Cortez/Mighty High on Friday, and where one tour was ending, another was just getting started. This time it was Black C... Read More...
Interview with Scott Hill from Fu Manchu: Still Searching JJ Koczan November 9, 2011 Interviews 3 SoCal fuzz rockers Fu Manchu released their landmark In Search Of… album in 1996, which—in case you’re reluctant to do the math because of how it relates to how long you’ve been out of high school—was a ful... Read More...
Interview with artist Joe Wardwell: Sunset Going Down JJ Koczan October 6, 2011 Interviews The above headline, “Sunset Going Down” is a phrase taken out of context from my interview with Massachusetts-based painter Joe Wardwell. Wardwell, as it happens, uses a similar methodology in his work, pai... Read More...
Interview with Tony Aguilar from Totimoshi: Vengeance For The Curs JJ Koczan September 29, 2011 Interviews Formed in Oakland in the late ‘90s and since relocated to Los Angeles, heavy rocking trio Totimoshi have been chipping away a niche for themselves all throughout their career. Their songs are among some of ... Read More...
