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Days of the Doomed Fest IV

June 25, 2014 by A.S. Van Dorston

Days Of The Doomed IV (2014)What better way to celebrate the summer solstice by ducking in from the 15.25 hours of daylight in a Wisconsin metal bar and doom out to up to a dozen bands (22 if you also went Friday).  I was unable to make it the first day, missing out on what were reportedly great sets from Bible Of The Devil (who I get to see every year at the Alehorn Of Power festivals), Apostle Of Solitude, Orodruin, Blackfinger (former Trouble singer Eric Wagner’s band) and Las Cruces.  I was most excited to see Brimstone Coven, who’s second album II (2013) made my year-end top Lucky 13 last year, and the mighty and mysterious Jex Thoth, who despite being from Madison, WI, rarely performs in the U.S.

But it turned out to be the most consistently entertaining 12 hour chunk of live music I’ve ever experienced. The collective goodwill of a tight knit community that made up the audience elevated the mood and energy of every band I saw. That’s one advantage of a fest like this, is some of the bands are not suffering tour fatigue, most having made a special trip to perform in front of some very stoked fans. And the ones who have been on the road made it clear that this was a special gig had been looking forward to. It was a bittersweet affair for a couple reasons. It was dedicated to the memory of Jason McCash, the former bassist of the much loved Gates Of Slumber, who passed away on April 5. It’s also the last time organizer Mercyful Mike Smith will be doing the fest. The drive took longer than I hoped and I missed hometown heroes Moon Curse. I’d been enjoying their self-titled debut, a promising mix of stoner occult psych-doom since discovering it last year. It’s been available since 2012 on Bandcamp, and will be reissued on vinyl by Bilocation Records. They probably have enough material to start their next album, but bassist Rochelle couldn’t confirm any solid plans for a new full-length yet. They did release a new track, “Seminary Woods” in February which bodes well for their evolution. Sanctus Bellum, from Houston, TX, played a great set of rough and rockin’ doom with a keenly sinister edge. I really got into their album The Shining Path (2012) in anticipation of the show.

Brimstone Coven

Brimstone Coven were as great as I hoped, though the sound seemed a little flat but most likely due to a glitch in the mix rather than their performance. Their great multi-part harmonies were spot-on, and the band boasts some of the most brilliantly arranged and written songs at the fest, dipping into obscure early 70s proto-metal and psych prog along with the requisite Sabbath.  Deservedly, they have just been signed to Metal Blade, who will remaster and reissue both albums on one disc on August 5th. I had to miss Spillage and most of Stone Magnum in order to check into the hotel and get something decent to eat before I start drinking and eating regrettably disgusting things (like their frozen pizza). Stone Magnum are from Indiana, and their second album From Time…To Eternity (2013) is some great, hooky trad doom, well worth checking out (just $5 for a download on Bandcamp).

Egypt

Egypt (from Fargo, ND) exceeded all expectations. While I liked their last album Become The Sun (2013), it kind of drifted off my playlist by the end of the year. Live, however, they were simply magnificent, which has me revisiting the album with fresh ears. They really brought the heavy in the kind of thick, sludgy tones that I love. They made my teeth vibrate. It makes them a great match with one of my favorites Wo Fat, who they shared the split EP with last year, Cyclopean Riffs. In preparation for the fest, I revisited Indianapolis’ Devil To Pay’s fourth album, Fate Is Your Muse (2013), and was glad I did. More hard rock than stoner/doom, the band has some really great tunes, and at his most impassioned, Steve Janiak’s vocals are a nice juxtaposition of Nirvana and Truckfighters. I wasn’t as into Beelzefuzz’s vocals as much, but it’s really just a matter of preference of style, as they were technically spot on, and the band rocked.

Jex Thoth, "Badass wiotch) (Photo courtesy Tomiiko Baker)

Jex Thoth was definitely one of the key highlights of the fest. While the band wasn’t as hard and heavy as many of the others, and the song structures are somewhat liquid and amorphous, bandleader Jex put on the most powerfully intense, psychedelic performance of the day. Rather than the easygoing rapport with the audience that most of the bands had, by no means a bad thing, Jex stalked about the stage like panther and set about ritualistically lighting a fat stogie of incense that might as well have been serious preparations for a ritual sacrifice. The most similar experience I could compare it to was a performance by The Devil’s Blood a couple years ago. It makes sense, as Jex has been doing this since 2005, when her band was called Totem, and is a major influence on the recent explosion of occult psych-doom bands, including Blood Ceremony, Jess & the Ancient Ones, Purson and Mansion. The band’s second album (not including several EPs) Blood Moon Rise (2013) is one of the most original statements within the genre, and is unfortunately remains underrated. Much more appreciated and respected in Europe, it’s easy to understand why, as it was released on Swedish label I Hate Records, and not distributed at all in the U.S. Most of the audience seemed to have been anticipating the show as much as me and were just as mesmerized. As my bestie/partner-in-doom Tomiiko said, “The baddest wiotch!”

days-doomed-jex-2  days-doomed-jex-3

I was wrung out after that, but Brits Age Of Taurus rose to the challenge and rocked it hard and loud. Extremely loud. Though their debut Desperate Souls of Tortured Times came out just last year on Rise Above, they’ve been at it since 2009, and sounded like seasoned vets who took utter command of the room. However, even after switching from musician earplug to the fat foam plugs, I was getting serious volume fatigue and had to retreat to the back at the end. It’s fairly traditional for bands to be mixed louder than the previous bands, but when there’s twelve bands throughout the day, that gets to be a problem. Sure enough, Trouble were even louder. Formed in 1979 in Chicago and one of the key architects of doom as we know it alongside Pentagram, Saint Vitus and Witchfinder General, they definitely deserve the headliner spot. While I’m not crazy about last year’s album, The Distortion Field, they were much better that night than when I saw them headline Alehorn Of Power in 2008 with original vocalist Eric Wagner. It’s not like replacement Kyle Thomas is a newcomer. He was originally with the band from 1997-2000, and brings his own style that’s more influenced by AC/DC’s Brian Johnson rather than Wagner. The band were simply bludgeoning, and kept it up with by far the longest set of the night, approaching 2 in the morning. I was exhausted, it felt like my ears were bleeding, but I couldn’t leave. This was history being made, and by god or Satan I was going to doom the fuck out until the last note was played.

Age Of Taurus   Trouble

I just hope this isn’t the last doom fest in the U.S. With the Stoner Hand of Doom Festivals ending last year, that would leave almost nothing other than the occasional label showcase, some bands at Austin Psych Fest and the Scion Rock Fest in Pomona, CA where High On Fire, Jex Thoth, Windhand, All Them Witches, Aqua Nebula Oscillator, Hot Lunch, Red Fang, Orchid and Moab played on May 17. Meanwhile stoner/doom/psych is getting lavish attention in Europe with at least a dozen festivals, including Roadburn (Tilburg, Netherlands), Desertfest (Berlin, London and Belgium), Stoned From the Underground (Erfurt, Germany), Up In Smoke (Pratteln, Switzerland), Reverence (Valada, Portugal), Totem Psych (Rocca Sinibalda Castle, Italy), Sonic Blast (Moledo de Minho, Portugal), Keep It Low (Munich, Germany) and Heavy Days In Doom Town, (Copenhagen, Denmark). A lot of folks who showed up last weekend wouldn’t be able to afford the trip to see any of these, and the bands are missing out on a loyal audience who deserve to hear them.

My hope is to someday see someone like the ambitious organizers of the three Desertfests hook up with American supporters and have a Desertfest in the actual desert where it all started, which would be much more fitting than the freakin’ atrocity that is Coachella. Better yet, have two of them. The CA one focusing on stoner and desert rock, and one on the East Coast that celebrates the doom scene that originated in and near Maryland.

The Metal Grill, Cudahy, WI

Lol “good food.” Hot dogs, nachos and frozen pizza! To be fair the “grill” part isn’t up and running properly. But there’s no excuse not to have some New Glarus or some other local brews on tap. It is a good little rock ‘n’ roll bar though, and I hope they can continue to book great gigs.

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