andrew aircraft

POWERLOVE

2012-01-30T18:02:00.000-05:00

We’ve posted another demo song. The two that are up will be out on a cassette demo in the next few months on Swim Harder Cassettes. We’ve also added Tim Gault on drums making this band the exact same lineup as Lot Lizard up through Ornament era Moutheater. We should be playing shows by springtime.

http://www.pwrlv.net/
http://www.pwrlv.tumblr.com/
http://www.pwrlv.bandcamp.com/

"Colonial" review on Halifax Collect

2012-01-29T13:44:00.001-05:00

http://halifaxcollect.blogspot.com/2012/01/moutheater-colonial.html

"Moutheater's Colonial comes into my life with a little bit of everything. And that's good for a change. They sound to me as a well established band who are into differnt things and pretty good at mixing these influences into a coherent whole.

Colonial is similar in style to Moutheater's previous material in my opinion; heavy yet accessible, angry and I'd even say catchy at times. Opener "Keeping Secrets" is a strange combination of Queens of the Stone Age and heavier metal which switches up at the end of the song, like two songs tied into one. It starts of with a thundering Nick Oliveri-escue bass line and ends with screams of bloody murder, quite the opposite to where it started. An experiment that works.

"The Benefits of Self Mutilation" sounds like Kylesa, minus the blasting stoner type riffs. Like they stole Kylesa's rythm section and just sprayted some very simple and effective, brutal riffage on top. Also, again, the same bloody Neurosian screaming! Scott Kelly would be proud!

"Enslaved does sounds similar to Neurosis (before going all ambient) and also a bit slow and drony. It's a simple song, with a simple riff just repeated over and over again but somehow doesn't tire. Sort of like "Floyd the Barber" by Nirvana, which is an idiotically simple thing but somehow makes sense. I guess it's the delivery which counts at the end of the day. Simple verse chorus verse metal song, with a twist of lemon, as the man said.

Then to tie it all up the album ends with "Nauseous" which has these dreamy vocals layered on top of heavy rythms, leading to the hard rocking chorus. I can imagine this is what it feels like drifting in and out of a coma. Great way to end the (way too short) album.

Colonial clocks in at under 20 minutes so while listening on repeat it all somehow comes together as a consistent whole. I found myself leaving it on for long stretches of time, which incidentally also made it feel like a single long song. Next time I'd love to get a full LP out of Moutheater. It's one of those bands I really like when I listen to them but there isn't enough material to keep me hanging around for too long, although I always enjoy the time spent listening. Let's hope that changes soon."

- Theodór Helgason

DA/PGSB split cassette

2012-01-17T18:51:00.003-05:00

Debris Amour/Pan Galactic Straw Boss split cassette is out today. c30. Very small edition of 25.
SWIM HARDER CASSETTES WEBSTORE
SWIM HARDER CASSETTES WEBSITE
LISTEN AND DOWNLOAD FOR FREE

POWERLOVE

2012-01-15T00:26:00.001-05:00

This is the new band that I'm working on. It’s Aaron (the original bass player from Moutheater) and myself doing goth/post-punk with our usual “early 90’s alternative” twist. Possibly a third member joining us. There’s a free download/stream of a demo song at the bandcamp page. More demo tracks coming soon online, I’ll be releasing a limited cassette demo of the songs this spring/summer on Swim Harder Cassettes, shows and more info coming soon. Get in touch if you’re interested in doing a 7inch/LP/split/whatever later on down the road.

tumblr
bandcamp

Favorites of 2011

2012-01-01T13:03:00.000-05:00

In no particular order...

Favorite Releases:

Cold Cave-Cherish The Light Years
(Gothy synth pop FFO: The Cure, New Order, Depeche Mode)

Raspberry Bulbs-Nature Tries Again
(Blackened punk with post-punk influences FFO: Bone Awl, Akitsa, Circle Of Ourobrus)

Column Of Heaven-Ecstatically Embracing all that we Habitually Suppress
(Orthodox powerviolence FFO: The Endless Blockade, Iron Lung, Man Is The Bastard)

Fleshtemple-Secret Chiefs
(Evil, fast, pissed, hardcore FFO: Gehenna, Darkthrone, Pulling Teeth)

Prurient-Bermuda Drain
(Synth driven ambient power electronics FFO: Navicon Torture Technologies, Burning Star Core, Genocide Organ)

Prurient-Despiritualized
(Synthy industrial/power electronics FFO: Genocide Organ, Navicon Torture Tehnologies, The Bastard Noise)

Dead Language-s/t
(Blazing fast, tight as fuck powerviolence FFO: Iron Lung, No Comment, The Endless Blockade)

Brutal Supremacy (Iron Lung, Mind Eraser, Hatred Surge, Scapegoat-split)
(Some of the best in today's powerviolence on one record FFO: The Endless Blockade, Soul Swallower, Insect Warfare)

Soul Swallower-Devoured
(Unreal sounding weird, nasty, pv influenced hardcore FFO: Mind Eraser, Iron Lung, Double Negative)

Druglord-s/t
(Stoner/doom with what sounds like late 80's/early 90's northwest influences FFO: Electric Wizard, The Melvins, Tad)

Alberich-Psychology Of Love
(Synthy industrial FFO: Prurient, Genocide Organ, Ramleh)

Genocide Organ-:Under-Kontrakt:
(Death industrial FFO: Throbbing Gristle, MB, Navicon Torture Technologies)

Departure Chandelier-The Black Crest of Death, The Gold Wreath of War
(Droning ethereal black metal FFO: Akitsa, Ash Pool, Bone Awl)

Pig Heart Transplant/The Endless Blockade-split
(Excellent split of heavy, throbbing noise riffage and powerviolence FFO: early Swans, Iron Lung, The Bastard Noise)

Soft Kill-An Open Door
(Old school style goth/post-punk FFO: The Cure, Joy Division, Echo & The Bunnymen)

Joshua Norton Cabal/Disgust-split
(Noise/power electronics split FFO: The Bastard Noise, Deathpile, Macronympha)

Favorite re-issues:

Jesuit-Discography
(90's metallic hardcore FFO: Converge, early Cave In, and being sodomized by Brett Mathews)

Circle Of Ouroborus-Unituli
(Blackened post-punk FFO: Raspberry Bulbs, Joy Division, Akitsa)

Favorite sets:

Neurosis @ MDF
Iron Lung @ BFD
Jucifer @ Strange Matter
Jucifer @ Symphonic

Upcoming releases that I’m looking forward to getting my hands on in 2012:

New Pig Heart Transplant
New Walls
New Godflesh
New Swans
New Iron Lung
New Pharaoh

Mix for a Co-worker

2011-12-27T23:12:00.001-05:00

This is a mix I made for a co-worker that was retiring who would talk to me about music frequently. It never quite seemed like we were on the same page musically so I made this for him as a parting gift. I stayed away from putting a lot noise, grind, and black metal on it since we're talking about a 50+ year old dude. I would've put more slow heavy shit on it but there wasn't enough room.

Disc 1
1. Cursed-Polygraph
2. Mudhoney-Come To Mind
3. Echo & The Bunnymen-The Killing Moon
4. Godflesh-Heartless
5. Iron Lung-Shingles
6. Iron Lung-One Cure For Two Diseases
7. Neurosis-A Sun That Never Sets
8. Nirvana-Radio Friendly Unit Shifter
9. Nirvana-Milk It (Live)
10. Nirvana-I Hate Myself And I Want To Die
11. The Pixies-No. 13 Baby
12. Sonic Youth-Schizophrenia
13. Sonic Youth-100%
14. Leviathan-VI XI VI
15. Khanate-Commuted

Disc 2
1. Bikini Kill-Magnet
2. Bikini Kill-Capri Pants
3. Black Flag-My War
4. American Nightmare-I.C. You Are Feeling Drake
5. Converge-Bitter And Then Some
6. Refused-Protest Song ‘68
7. The Endless Blockade-Raised By Wolves
8. His Hero Is Gone-Voluntary Amputation
9. The Dead Kennedys-Well Paid Scientist
10. Bad Brains-The Regulator
11. Minor Threat-Screaming At A Wall
12. Rites Of Spring-By Design
13. Scratch Acid-Lay Screaming
14. Siouxsie And The Banshees-Spellbound
15. The Jesus & Mary Chain-Just Like Honey
16. My Bloody Valentine-Only Shallow
17. Sunn O)))-It Took The Night To Believe
18. The Melvins-Night Goat
19. Swans-I Crawled
20. Swans-Sex, God, Sex
21. Swans-Why Are We Alive?
22. Swans-Killing For Company

Disc 3
1. Bauhaus-In The Flat Field
2. The Cure-Prayers For Rain
3. Nine Inch Nails-Something I Can Never Have
4. The Sisters Of Mercy-A Rock And A Hard Place
5. Joy Division-Warsaw
6. The Jesus Lizard-Puss
7. Queens Of The Stone Age-Mexicola
8. Boris-Ibitsu
9. Project 208-The Sleeping Giant
10. Jesuit-The Malady
11. The End Of The Universe-Let The Gun Do The Talking
12. Prurient-Lets Make A Slave (De-Shelled)
13. Akitsa-Origine Mythique
14. Raspberry Bulbs-The Center Of The Earth
15. The Smiths-The Queen Is Dead
16. Cold Cave-Confetti
17. Cold Cave-Heaven Was Full
18. Fugazi-Last Chance For A Slow Dance

BRING. YOUR. EARPLUGS.

2011-12-10T08:52:00.001-05:00

Review of "Colonial" + other news

2011-11-06T20:34:00.001-05:00

Crucial Blast did a cool little write-up about "Colonial" on their site:

"I love no-bullshit hardcore. I adore scumbag noise rock. Mix the two together, and I'm all yours. Moutheater is the latest band that I've started to get all googly over in this regard, after the Virginia band bashed my goddamn brains in with this bruiser of a 12" that came out earlier this year. Never heard of 'em before this came in to the shop, but this band of thugs sound like a bunch of seasoned vets, combining the malevolent lurch of the Jesus Lizard and Melvins and that whole Am Rep/Touch And Go noise rock thing with grinding hardcore to lethal effect. The end result is equal parts twitchy and bone-shattering. The four songs found on Colonial go from full-force lopsided thrash assaults to slower, brooding heaviness, the apex of which is "Enslaved", the first song on the flipside that combines a lethal Helmet-esque anti-groove with a vat of venomous lyrics and snarling spiteful vocals, and some fantastic atmospheric guitar work that adds an interesting uneasy feeling to the angular crush. That's followed by another top-notch chunk of aggro with the swirling, crushing dirge "Nauseous", which manages to resemble something akin to Neurosis being fronted by David Yow. Sounds pretty killer, right? The real simple artwork and album design gives this a pure hardcore visual aesthetic, while the music is a more complex, seething mass of aggression that makes for one of the best new noise rock/ hardcore hybrids I've heard lately. Sounds like it could have come out on Iron Lung Records, as a matter of fact, and any of you mutants who lust after that label's output should tune your radar on to this record, STAT. Comes with a digital download."

Other news:

-An Afternoon Of Experimental Music Part II is November 19th @ Symphonic (430 West 31st St. Norfolk, VA) in their basement. Starts at 1pm. $3 donation requested. Artists playing are Panther Modern (blackened noise from Baltimore/new one-sided c60 out now on Swim Harder Cassettes), Debris Amour (if you're reading this blog then you already know), Sterilization (Head Molt member Josh Hickey's solo project), JM Wave (new jams from our buddy Jake Knibb).

-There are still copies of "Satanic Logic" by Panther Modern available at the SHC webstore. The Debris Amour/Pan Galactic Straw Boss split cassette will be out at some point in the near future. There are multiple items listed at discounted prices in the SHC webstore as well.

-I am currently working on/with a new band. It features a past Moutheater member plus a member of Pan Galactic Straw Boss. I don't want to say to much about it at the moment but it's happening and if you care then be on the lookout for upcoming info.

Panther Modern-Satanic Logic

2011-09-24T19:34:00.001-04:00

The newest release from Swim Harder Cassettes. Blackened noise from Baltimore, MD featuring members of T.O.M.B. The bleakest release and the most interesting packaging we've done thus far. Comes with color photographs and SHC transparency film. One sided c60. Limited to 30 copies. $4.99 plus shipping at the SHC webstore (link over to the right). FFO: Burzum, Abruptum, Striborg, Akitsa, Ash Pool, Xasthur, T.O.M.B.

Everything else in the webstore is discounted for the time being.

Up next is the Debris Amour/Pan Galactic Straw Boss split cassette.

Today:

2011-09-17T08:07:00.004-04:00

Tonight:

2011-08-26T14:52:00.003-04:00

One day...

2011-08-18T23:41:00.003-04:00

...all of us that collect physical media will be the same as the people that collect civil war artifacts.

Though we may be bailing water out of a sinking ship, the experience of acquiring music via physical media is something that we think is very valuable.

I'm proud to be a part of Anthems of The Undesirable.

Some recent...

2011-08-13T18:47:00.004-04:00

...scores from Anthems of The Undesirable. Working at a record store is awesome.
Dead Kennedys-Plastic Surgery Disasters LP
White Medal-Alone As Owt LP
Pig Heart Transplant-They Eat What We Eat/They Sleep Where You Sleep 7inch
Prurient-Bermuda Drain CS
Raspberry Bulbs-RB Tries Again CS

Upcoming

2011-08-05T10:10:00.004-04:00

"Satanic Logic" by Panther Modern should finally be out this fall on SHC. The delay on this was all my fault. One sided c90. Comes with photograph. Keep checking back here for updates. *Edit* This will actually be a one sided c60 *Edit*

There will also be a split between Debris Amour and Pan Galactic Straw Boss on SHC. I'm hoping to get this out at the same time as the Panther Modern cassette. It'll be a c30.

After that will be a SHC mixtape. I'm in the process of getting artists for it. It will have new Debris Amour tracks for sure.

There are some upcoming Moutheater and Debris Amour shows. Check the links to the right or the previous updates for more info on those.

8/26/11

2011-08-04T09:32:00.001-04:00

Fran Lebowitz talks about elitism on Fallon.

2011-08-03T00:43:00.005-04:00

VIDEO

Take this and relate it to music. It’s time for elitism to stop being a dirty word in DIY/underground culture. If everyone cares and everyone gives and everyone strives to be the best that they can be at whatever they’re doing within the culture, then the culture is stronger and everyone benefits.

This culture wouldn't exist without elitism. Elitism is what built it from the ground up and people following in the footsteps of those "forefathers" for all of these years is what has and what will continue to maintain it.

As an extension of this blog...

2011-08-02T00:41:00.004-04:00

...I created a tumblr.

I haven't...

2011-07-26T00:20:00.005-04:00

...made one of these posts in a while. In the last few months I've been to NYC twice, Baltimore twice, and Jersey once. Here's the records I've picked up between all of those trips:

LP
Prurient-Bermuda Drain
Alberich-Psychology Of Love
Soul Swallower-Devoured
Cold Cave-Cherish The Light Years
Iron Lung-Sexless//No Sex

7inch
Brutal Supremacy-4way split 2x7 (Iron Lung, Hatred Surge, Mind Eraser, Scapegoat)
Prurient-Many Jewels Surround The Crown

CS
Raspberry Bulbs-Nature Tries Again
Departure Chandelier-The Black Crest Of Death, The Gold Wreath Of War

CD
Prurient-Bermuda Drain
Genocide Organ-:Under-Kontrakt:
Cold Cave-Cremations
Cold Cave-Love Comes Close
American Nightmare-s/t
American Nightmare-The Sun Isn't Getting Any Brighter
Pg.99-Document #5
Buried At Sea-Migration
Blackdeath-Katharsis: Kalte Lieder Aus Der Hölle
Hototogisu-Prayer Rug Exorcism
Maurizio Bianchi-The Self-Portrait Of M.B.
Demoncy-Joined in Darkness
Demoncy-Faustian Dawn/Within The Sylvan Realms Of Frost
Inquisition-Ominous Doctrines Of The Perpetual Mystical Macrocosm

And here's the stuff I've picked up from Anthems since it opened:
Inquisition-Magnificent Glorification Of Lucifer CS
Inquisition-Nefarious Dismal Orations CS
Cold Sweat-Severed Ties LP
Cold Sweat-Blinded LP
Best Coast-Crazy For You CD
Dead Language-s/t LP
Wolf Eyes/John Wiese-Collection CD
Pharaoh-s/t 7inch
PC Worship-Live Reduxion 7inch
Opiate-First Document CS

An Afternoon Of Experimental Music Part I

2011-07-25T17:11:00.002-04:00

This will be the first of what will be a once every other month free experimental music show series here in Hampton Roads. If you are an experimental, noise, drone, power electronics, true industrial, or avant-garde sound artist and you would like to play one of these shows in the future then please get in touch with me at andrewaircraft@hotmail.com

Saturday September 17th
@ Kerouac Cafe/Anthems of The Undesirable
617 35th St. Norfolk, VA
1pm
FREE!!!

Debris Amour (Andrew from Moutheater/Swim Harder Cassettes/Anthems)
Severance Replay (Terry Steel from Waiting Mortuary)
Matt Scott (Bottomfeeder frontman/Anthems record slinger)

Untitled

2011-07-21T16:21:00.003-04:00

When everything is _________, nothing is _________.

A healthy does of history is always important...

2011-07-01T17:05:00.002-04:00

...but wallowing in nostalgia when there's vital things right in front of you is counter-productive.

Anthems Advertising

2011-06-19T22:51:00.006-04:00

Ryan put together some awesome Man Is The Bastard/The Bastard Noise homage logos and fliers for the store (Note: my Slaughter Strike shirt, Ryan's The Bastard Noise shirt, and the fact that we're trying to sell a Blockade/Hatred Surge split in number two). There's talk of some fun homage logos/stickers/shirts for the store. Current ideas being tossed around are Swans, Nirvana, Autopsy, Fugazi, etc (as well as the MITB/TBN logo maybe becoming a shirt). I'll post more info when something's set in stone.

Ryan's putting a lot of work into this place and a lot on the line to make it happen. It'll be nice to have a shop in this area that sells truly independent and underground music.

Anthems Of The Undesirable

2011-06-15T19:47:00.003-04:00

My close friend Ryan has been running a distro for years that I've been helping him with from time to time. He is now opening a physical record store in Hampton Roads. This will be the only place in our area where you can get truly underground, ugly tunes. We need this around here, badly. The location is at 617 35th St in Norfolk (upstairs at Kerouac Cafe). The grand opening is Saturday June 25th and the hours for the store will be 5-9 M-F and 12-9 Sat/Sun.

He is very much in need of additional funding to get things ready for opening day. If you would like to help, there are two ways:

1) Click here to view some ebay auctions that he has up for some rare/OOP records. All proceeds from these auctions will go to helping get the store off the ground.

2) Paypal a donation to anthems@theundesirable.net. All donations over $10 will recieve 15% off their entire purchase on opening day. The highest donation recieves an extremely rare 2nd press of Black Flag's "Nervous Breakdown" 7inch (and trust me, you can donate a lot less than you think and still win that 7inch).

6/7/11

2011-05-22T09:53:00.002-04:00

Glad to finally be able to post this. Our old pal Chris got ahold of us and after a few days of getting everything worked out, Burning Love has been added to our 6/7 show with Pharaoh.

Vegas/Moutheater

2011-05-21T09:44:00.002-04:00

There is one lone copy of the Vegas/Moutheater split in the Swim Harder Cassettes webstore (link over to the right) for people who have asked about it. *Update* Already gone. Only lasted a few hours. *Update*

Update

2011-05-05T22:03:00.005-04:00

Moutheater went on a ridiculous three day trip up north with our friends Surrogate a few weeks ago. Though nothing major went wrong, the trip was plagued with issues. We rode the wave of shit all the way with smiles on our faces and a lot of laughs though. Despite what seemed like a black cloud over us throughout the whole trip, we had a great time with friends and that's all you can really ask for.

Debris Amour has a show at Plaza Del Sol in Norfolk on May 21st with Glass Pennies, Degollado, and Kingdom of Sharks. *Update* I had to bail on this show because of some conflicting family stuff. *Update*

Moutheater has a show at a new spot called Concrete in VB on June 7th with our buddies Pharaoh from New Jersey, Night Hag, and Ancient Torture Techniques. *Update* Concrete is having some issues and might not be back up and running in time for this show, in which case the show will be relocated to Double O Recording. I'll make a blog entry when I get the final word. *Update*

As for Swim Harder Cassettes news, Satanic Logic by Panther Modern will hopefully be out sooner than later. After that will be a split between Debris Amour and Pan Galactic Straw Boss.

Picture Time

2011-03-31T16:35:00.003-04:00

Myself, Kathleen Hanna, and my lovely wife after last night's lecture. If you get the chance to see Kathleen do one of these lectures then I highly recommend checking it out. I really enjoyed it.

Kathleen Hanna at ODU

2011-03-30T07:35:00.004-04:00

Tonight:

2011-03-29T16:35:00.005-04:00

The show is now $3 due to Trophy Wives having to bail. Trophy Wives had some issues on the road and contacted me this morning saying they were heading home. Moutheater and PGSB are still playing and this still starts promptly at 7pm. It'll be over early. Come hang.

I need to...

2011-02-21T07:27:00.004-05:00

...join someone else's band for a change. The "band dad" (as I like to call it) syndrome has worn me down too much over the years. I've never had the luxury of just being able to show up and play. I've never done someone else's thing. I want to try that sometime.

In order for me to feel comfortable taking the back seat, it would have to be a creative vision that I enjoy, find interesting, respect, and that I also don't think I could do any better if I did it myself.

There are genres and styles that I absolutely love, that I'd love to play, that I know I have the chops to play, but that I'm self-aware enough to know that it's not inside me to be the primary creative force behind a band of that genre or style. When it comes to those genres and styles, I know that I'm better suited to assist in someone else's vision that does have it inside them to create it. I have too much respect for these genres to go out and poorly attempt being a creative force within them merely because it's "fun to play with my friends". Have I done this from time to time in the past as a youngster? Sure. For the most part we all do it when we're young, dumb, cutting our teeth, and trying to find our way. But as I started approaching my mid-twenties I became very aware that in order to be the primary creative force behind something remotely worthwhile, it needs to be something that's in you, in the deepest way.

I listen to a lot of music and a lot of different types of music. When it comes to certain styles, I just know that I would be better off as more of a secondary force in the band, using my playing abilities to back up someone else's vision. I've never done that before and it's something I want to start doing.

I guess one final thought that I'd like to share is that, as musicians, we sit around with our friends from time to time listening to records and going "Holy fuck, we should do a band LIKE THAT!!!". But the reality is, that sort of thing isn't going to produce anything worth playing or hearing. Do the thing that's burning inside you and/or help someone else do the thing that's burning inside them.

Hex Records Review

2011-02-20T17:39:00.002-05:00

Hex Records did a review of Colonial:

http://hanginghex.blogspot.com/2011/02/new-reviews.html

"Here’s a band that I finally got around to checking out and man, was I floored! I immediately picked up as much of their output as I could find (as in, I paid for their records, you all should try it some day). This is exactly what I look for when I want a band that can make everything feel ugly and kick ass at the same time. This stuff is like heir apparent to the Unsane, it’s in the exact same vein and a worthy successor, should they ever keel over and die. So, onto the newest offering from Virginia’s Moutheater- this 4 song 12”. While 4 songs on a 12” might seem unnecessary it fits well as a couple of the songs break the five minute mark and the whole deal is on 45 rpm (sound quality geeks will understand). The A-side has two barn burners, more up tempo piss and vinegar rants. The B-side, which I like better, focuses more on slower material. While I have enjoyed everything Moutheater up to this point, I think they excel with the slower songs they write. Creepy guitar lines twist around the meaty low end and eventually blow up in a frenzy of mean spirited nastiness. This was even more apparent on their previous full length, “Ornament” (particularly on the track “Inept”), which I prefer over this record. but it’s still a damn good record. There is also a slight discrepancy over the recording between these two records, “Colonial” sounding a bit thinner than “Ornament”. I’m not sure what it is. All I can think of is maybe whoever mastered it played it a little safe for vinyl’s sake maybe? I’m not sure. Either way, get yourself something from Moutheater like now. It will be worth it to hate a little longer. This isn’t a bad place to start."

FYI

2011-02-15T18:13:00.006-05:00

We are officially completely sold out of the Lot Lizard 7inch. From what I understand, Deathwish and Rev are as well. If you're looking for a copy, the last of them are in the Last Anthem Records and A389 Records distros.

At this point the only records of ours that we still have in stock are the "Colonial" 12inch that just came out and the "Ornament" cd. You can get those directly from us at the Swim Harder Cassettes webstore and/or at shows or you can get them from fine labels/distros such as Last Anthem, Rev, Deathwish, A389, etc.

Moutheater Update

2011-02-12T08:43:00.002-05:00

Moutheater has some shows coming up. We're playing here in Virginia at the end of March with Trophy Wives (members of Coliseum, Young Widows, Breather Resist, Nixon, etc) and Pan Galactic Straw Boss. We're also doing a 3 day jaunt up north with our friends Surrogate in mid-April. Click the Upcoming Shows link over to the right for all of the details.

The new record is available at a bunch of different distros. If you'd like to buy it directly from us then click the Swim Harder Cassettes link over to the right.

Old Stuff

2011-01-29T17:07:00.004-05:00

Alright, I'm posting this as more of a record for myself but for those who care about reading through, allow me to explain. This is every online review or article (or at least every one that I know about) that Moutheater has gotten since the beginning of the band up through late 2009. The reason that it stops at the end of 2009 is because after that point I just started posting everything in this blog. Before that I was posting everything on our myspace. Since myspace is not something that I feel like keeping up with anymore, I've taken all of the reviews and articles that were posted there and have placed them in this entry. It's a lot of information but I did my best to separate everything so that it was at least somewhat easy to navigate. The titles of my myspace blog entries are what I used to separate each entry. All pictures and links that were in the original articles are not here. This is text only. There are also some notes from me from time to time, those were also in the original myspace blog entries. Essentially all I've done is copy and paste everything from there to here, so titles and notes that I'd written there are also here as well but pictures and links did not show up. Sorry if there's any confusion.

I'm going to get all of our printed reviews and articles (or again, at least the one's that I know about and have in my posession) scanned and post them in another entry similar to this one at some point. If you know of any others that I don't have (both printed and online), then please send them my way.

These are in order based on when I discovered them. Somewhat chronological with the most recent one being the closest to the top and the oldest one being closest to the bottom of the entry.

Moutheater review at metalsucks.net

http://www.metalsucks.net/2009/10/23/food-and-moutheater-respectively-wave-the-flag-for-grunge/

FOOD AND MOUTHEATER RESPECTIVELY WAVE THE FLAG FOR GRUNGE
Friday, October 23rd, 2009 at 2:30pm by Gary Suarez

I miss grunge, and if you read my posts with any regularity that should come as no surprise. Now far too many people dismiss the dormant genre for its commercial successes, or even because of a reviled legacy that yielded such aural abominations as Puddle Of Mudd and Staind. Yet the Pacific Northwest in the late 80s and early-mid 90s had so many exciting and delightfully disgusting artists that made truly grungy music while never selling out stadiums, artists like Green River and Tad. I would argue that we need to factor in the descendants of these artists before passing any final sweeping negative judgment of the so-called Seattle sound. Thankfully, the orallly-fixated Food and Moutheater help to counter the Seattle sound’s unwarranted bad rep.

Food’s stellar self-titled, vinyl-only debut on the Molsook imprint makes several nods to the good old days of grunge, yet would also be quite at home next to Bison B.C. and even classic Melvins. The riffs are deep and grimy with ever-present support from a potent rhythm section. Frontman Johnny Fink screeches as much as he screams his lyrics on powerful uptempo cuts like “Cascadia” and “March Fourth,” though the band really hits its stride on the ten minute low-n-slow sludgefest “Love.”. Here, the bass rumbles and roars over the spare-sounding drum kit, while Fink plays dissonant guitar, sometimes stepping out of the mix completely to let Jeff Grant and Ryan McLennan show off. One of the best releases I’ve heard this year, this five-song LP is a mean motherfucker that will please fans of Mastodon and Mudhoney alike.

Where Food counts grunge among its influences, Moutheater pretty much embodies grunge. In fact, Ornament, the band’s latest, could easily have come out on Sub Pop in 1992. (Then again, the band’s previously 7″ was produced by Steve Albini, who you should already know was behind the board for Tad’s Salt Lick.) Drenched in feedback and teeming with vitriol, tracks like “Inept” and “Obsolete Rhythm” don’t try to reinvent the wheel, making for some sinister sentimental listening. “Guts” is a jump-up-and-riot banger with howled verses and wailed choruses, while slow n’ sleazy “The Big Breath Before The Deep Plunge” possesses a categorically uncomely bassline that wouldn’t have been out of place on Nirvana’s Bleach. I could do without the disruptive, unremarkable noise tracks like “Honesty” and “Negative Life”, but barring this Ornament doesn’t disappoint.

Food, “s/t”
(4 out of 5 horns)

Moutheater, “Ornament”
(3 1/2 out of 5 horns)
-GS

Moutheater and Debris Amour reviewed on Colors Of The Dark

Reviewed by J. Canady of Deathpile and Angel Of Decay. Very exciting!!!

http://colorsofthedark.blogspot.com/2009/11/moutheater-debris-amour.html

Saturday, November 21, 2009
Moutheater / Debris Amour

(Shirt design by Ben Sears)

Andrew Aircraft from the bands Moutheater and Debris Amour was kind enough to send me a couple of CDs. He also allowed me to host one MP3 from each release. I enjoyed these discs but sadly, I don't have time to go into a serious critique. My little blurbs below even took me a lot longer to get down than I'd like to admit.

First up, Moutheater's "Ornament." To put it simply, this is some dark, heavy, pissed but not one dimensional ROCK bordering on metalcore. When I say ROCK, I am thinking something in the vein of Melvins and Jesus Lizard but, Moutheater sounds like neither band. They also had the balls to throw in some atonal experimental and noise to mix it up. There's a lot going on here and it's all done with a nice rich production.

You can download an MP3 for the song "Obsolete Rhythm" here.

You can also check out more Moutheater on their MySpace page and pick up their album over at Thrashed Records.

Andrew's solo experimental project is Debris Amour and this disc is called "Notations in Negativity." The sound ranges from totally crushing power electronics to nearly ambient pieces. I won't even try to describe this any further except to say it's a very ambitious combination of experimental styles. This release is limited to only 40 copies so don't wait to get it if you are interested.

You can download the download an MP3 for the song "Hate Letter/Love Letter" here.

Here's a link to the Debris Amour MySpace page and "Notations in Negativity" is available from Swim Harder Cassettes.

Review of "Flawless Embrace" at New Noise Zine

http://newnoisezine.wordpress.com/2009/10/26/review-moutheater-flawless-embrace/

by newnoisezine

A new track from Virginia’s punk/metal act MOUTHEATER was posted just recently. I came across this band almost a year ago when they posted some new songs for their record “Ornament” that came out on Thrashed records and I was really impressed, I was really into their sound and what they were going for. Not many bands do what they do and I think they have a lot of creativity with their songwriting, they seem like they are not afraid to go outside the box, which I like a lot.
This new song, “Flawless Embrace” is no exception. Moutheater keepa bringing their own unique sound clashing post-punk and metal with influence from bands such as The Melvins, Cursed, Nirvana, and the Jesus Lizard. The vocals have a bit of a cursed vibe going on, but a little more calm, and the guitar work is very technical, using a lot of weird power chords, bringing out a lot of low end but there are also parts that sound like the guitar player is working the fretboard.
I was not expecting to come across a new song from this band, and I had no idea they were working on new stuff but im glad that they are. Im curious to see what release this will be on, looking forward to getting my hands on a copy when it is out.
Check out their other releases here.
http://www.myspace.com/moutheaterva
I will be doing a review for “Ornament” as soon as I get my hands on a copy of the cd, but in the meantime I suggest you go and pick that up its a great record!

Ornament review at Sea Of Tranquility

http://www.seaoftranquility.org/reviews.php?op=showcontent&id=8191

Moutheater: Ornament

Virginia's MOUTHEATER take their influences from the late 80's early 90's grunge and metal explosion sighting NIRVANA, THE JESUS LIZARD AND NEUROSIS as focus points. With their debut single recorded by legendary man STEVE ALBINI things look promising for them from the offset. The three piece pound your head with a jack hammer rhythm not unlike a very angry MOTORHEAD, imagine telling Lemmy that he can't smoke or drink for a week and this is the sort of vocal you get from MOUTHEATER. 'Swallowed Whole ' soon pumps you up for the MEGADETH riff of 'The Big Breath Before The Deep Plunge' a bass heavy anger strewn little ditty about being pissed off with the human race. From there on in we get happy flower filled titles like 'Negative Life, Inept, and Negative Death', performed with varying degrees of anger. MOUTHEATER have come to crush your skull and leave you feeling battered and bruised, a good start from these Virginian noise mongers.

Review of the Doomriders/Acid Tiger/Moutheater show at Brooklyn Vegan

http://www.brooklynvegan.com/archives/2009/08/doomriders_acid.html

Doomriders & Acid Tiger played Union Pool
words and photos by Black Bubblegum
DOWNLOAD: Moutheater - "Swallowed Whole" (MP3)
While I managed to catch most of the "North America is Doomed" show on 8/9, I did scoot over to Union Pool just in time for the mighty Doomriders and Converge-related breathren/new Deathwish signees Acid Tiger. That means that I missed Moutheater (mems-Jesuit) as well as I Hate Our Freedom (mems-Pilot To Gunner, Milhouse).
Fortunately, I was able to catch up with the Moutheater guys prior to Acid Tiger, picking up a copy of their newest LP, Ornament. This noise-crust-core band's long-player sits comfortably in a groove between the Albini-produced greats of yore (Jesus Lizard, Neurosis, Shellac, et al) and in fact, Mr Albini lent his considerable weight to the band's debut 7", Lot Lizard. That LP is out now via Thrashed Records, and you can grab a hold of an MP3 from it above!
Acid Tiger is cut from a similar cloth as Doomriders. Featuring Ben Koller of Converge on drums, the band's vaguely hardcore, vaguely sludge, vaguely punk chug carries less of the party vibe that ran through the center of Black Thunder, but a good portion of the power. Besides the catchy riffs, J Rattlesnake is a riveting frontman and Acid Tiger has the energy to make their debut worth a listen.
New Doomriders material seemed to be the focus of the show on Sunday, and from the sound of it, their upcoming LP Darkness Comes Alive will be less "the soundtrack to chugging beers" and more "the soundtrack to smashing a bottle over another man's head". Great set as usual from this foursome, who closed with "Black Thunder" which ignited a mosh pit (in Union Pool!) but... GUYS! Whats up with being more amazing on Sunday than you were at Europa? Gr.
Converge will join Mastodon, High On Fire, and Dethklok at Hammerstein Ballroom on 10/30. The band's new LP, Axe To Fall, is due via Epitaph on 10/20.

Moutheater on the Halifax Collect site

We are on the Halifax Collect site. Here's what they had to say (*also just for the record, the "hey"s that he's reffering to in the song "Guts" are actually "hate" in the first chorus and "high" in the second chorus*):

http://halifaxcollect.blogspot.com/2009/07/moutheater-ornament.html

Wednesday, July 29, 2009
MOUTHEATER - Ornament

MOUTHEATER
Ornament
Thrashed!

MOUTHEATER's star has risen fast and continues to do so because Ornament is already in the running as one of 09's best full lengths.

The question I asked myself after many dedicated listens to their two previous seven inch releases - who by the way, got me by the balls (read the review here and here)- was: can these guys write a proper full length? And the answer is yes. They bloody can. The progression MOUTHEATER shows on Ornament is by all means natural. They do not blow the lid off their founding material and leave the listener feeling like an outsider stranded in the wrong party with annoying people. Instead they build on the foundation cemented with their early releases and pull the music into new but subtle areas that are by no means forced, but yet refreshing. So, by not forsaking what hooked me so hard when getting into the band they also manage to show me a couple of new and exiting things. And that is a clever move. It feels loyal yet hungry.

MOUTHEATER are still slowish and mid tempo but never ever boring because the riffs have too many hooks, the drums boom and crash too hard and the bass will rumble in your rib cage. All this is helped by the punchy, open and airy production of one of the band members. Namely, Tim. Well done! And then there's the singing. Never forced but always biting and grim, in a shouty and audible way. The accents are great and the fluctuation is surprising - adding even more flavor to the over-all experience, as if the quality of the music wasn't enough. I'm hard pressed not to mention the semi David Yow homage in 'Paths'. Such a good move considering from which sub-culture MOUTHEATER originates in. It just gives yet another sharp edge that cuts through much of the garbage people color awesome these days.
And no one should have prolonged "hey's" in their songs. It's a recipe for horribleness. But these guys go there and pull it off with an infectious triumph. This happens on a raging track called 'Guts'. The grim sounding verse leads into the hey-driven chorus that works so well in all it's headbanging motorcycle laden glory. Jesus. It's too cool.
I was going to mention outstanding tracks but there's no use. All of them fucking rule. It's all here, groovy and super tight and focused drumming ala Jesus Lizard and Shellac. The riffs are simple, mature and instantly memorable, be it power chords, single stringers or some evil chords. And then there's the element of cool. Ornament is so fucking cool. You can rock it at a party with your friends and people will break out their air guitars and grind their teeth. It's a given. At the same time it is also perfect for bitter loners such as myself, locked in in their little flats thinking that nobody is wise to MOUTHEATER and that they are theirs to keep.
Much has been said about the grunge influence in the band's sound. I can get behind those statements but I'd like to add that we are talking the heavy and dirty grunge bands of old. There's no Screaming Tree's or Pearl Jam to be found here. And damn it if I don't hear Fudge Tunnel in the mix. And they are better for it.
It's a wonderful thing. I mean, how many bands have the ability to plow through brick walls yet bedazzle that pesky know-it-all art student in "ironic" and uncomfortable shoes, who pretends to know anything Sub Pop, Touch & Go, STT related?

Ornament is a heavy, considerably bold, exciting and stimulating collection of hard hitters that stands out in today's climate of metal, punk and hardcore that too much of the time seems to seek influence in all the wrong places and add to it the worst ingredients and inadequate personal twists.
By far the best underground power trio going today and Ornament is an essential item on your to-buy listen.
All this rambling aside, the fact remains; MOUTHEATER has proven themselves to be a real band. Musical and mature at that. Real musicians can write a commanding and self-assured full lengths. Welcome to the big league, boys!

Ornament review in The Metal Observer

*Disclaimer* Before you read this review I need to clear up a few things. We are NOT southern metal, Ornament was NOT recorded with Albini, and when he's referring to the song "Negative Death" he means to be referring to the song "Paths". "Negative Death" is an ambient track at the end of the record. "Paths" is the song before it.

http://www.metal-observer.com/articles.php?lid=1&sid=1&id=16335

Moutheater - Ornament (7,5/10) - USA - 2009

Genre: Stoner Rock / Garage Rock
Label: Thrashed Records
Playing time: 34:30
Band homepage: Moutheater

Tracklist:
Swallowed Whole
The Big Breath Before The Deep Plunge
Inept
The Center Of The Universe
Negative Life
Guts
Honesty
Obsolete Rhythm
Paths
Negative Death

My “handlers” here at TMO have described MOUTHEATER as Southern Metal – which is not exactly my forte – but I decided to give it a shot anyway, if for no reason other than the fact that my interest was piqued this Virginia-based outfit’s decidedly dumbass band name. That and the fact that advance word on the album seemed quite positive.

Based on the Southern Metal tag I had these guys pegged as some sort of mix between NASHVILLE PUSSY and, well, ALABAMA THUNDERPUSSY, with perhaps a little Stoner-Prog a la LITMUS thrown in the mix. I do love the fact that I just used the word pussy twice in one sentence... Ehr, back to the actual music, which, it turns out, is quite different from what I had originally expected. Yes, “Ornament” ticks quite a few of the requisite Southern/Stoner Metal boxes (heavy downtuned riffage, straightforward beats and a generally whiskey-fuelled vibe of sonic debauchery) but at its core this album is more in line with early Seattle Grunge than anything else. Not the more melodically-inclined Grunge of ALICE IN CHAINS or SOUNDGARDEN mind you – this is more along the lines of “Bleach”-era NIRVANA or “Superfuzz Bigmuff”-era MUDHONEY. Rough, fuzzy and goddamned ugly, in other words! The focus seems to be more on an overall wall of sound rather than song-to-song intricacies, and in this way their music is also similar to a band like NEUROSIS. A scraggy bulldozer of hostile soundscapes.

As such it is hard to pick out individual tracks, but I’d have to say that ones like “Guts”, “Swallowed Whole” and the dreary closer “Negative Death” are among the more instantly impressive ones. The former is especially potent, being more straightforward and even a little Punk-y than the rest, with a heavy galloping tempo that recalls MASTODON to some extent. Oh, and on a side-note I have to mention that “Negative Death” would make an excellent band name (if it isn’t already).

The fact that the renowned Steve Albini twiddled the knobs on this thing should also give you a good indication of the sound MOUTHEATER were after on “Ornament”. A scraggy bulldozer of hostile soundscapes. I wouldn’t have minded a few more standout songs but as far as these kinds of bands go this is not too bad. The sludgier sections tend to drag (as is mostly the case) but the faster moments have real bite to them, and the Albini production highlights every steamrolling riff very nicely. “Ornament” is not exactly album of the year fare as far as my tastes go, but it will suffice just fine when I’m in the mood for blunt heaviness with attitude, kinda like a buffalo on weed.

For fans of: NEUROSIS, MUDHONEY, NIRVANA, MELVINS, FACEDOWNINSHIT.

Another review of Ornament

http://www.popmatters.com/pm/post/73819-moutheater-guts/

Following in the Virginia metal workhorse tradition of Gwar, Municipal Waste, and Pig Destroyer comes Moutheater, a band rooted in ‘90s grunge tradition via the Melvins and Jesus Lizard, yet falling in the line with the minimalist approach of heavy up-and-comers Tombs. The one quality that helps the band standout above the white noise of their peers comes from the vocals of Andrew Aircraft (and what a name). With enough roar power to require a new set of drawers, “Guts” is a short and sweet statement of raw power. The band’s first 7” was recorded by the king of heavy, Steve Albini, and their new album Ornament is due out June 30th on Thrashed Records.

Ornament review

http://www.live-metal.net/cdreviews_moutheater_ornament.html

MOUTHEATER
‘Ornament’ (Thrashed Records)
RATING: 7/10

By JEFF MAKI

In music, every style comes and goes. From punk to thrash metal to alternative and classic metal, all of these genres are either making--or on the verge of making--a comeback. As I write this, it wouldn't even surprise me if nu-metal made a successful return. One style that currently seems obsolete is grunge. Even though we still hear Nirvana and Alice In Chains on a daily basis, there are no new bands emerging, and the trends and lifestyle that went along with grunge are long gone. Maybe Virginia Beach's Moutheater is here to change that.

The only thing I've recently heard to compare Moutheater's Ornaments to is a band called Sirhan Sirhan. Both bands play a distorted, fuzzy-garage style of grunge rock, mixed with punk and even metal. And Moutheater seems more than happy to carry on the grunge torch and wear their flannel with pride, claiming “they were sent here from a time capsule from 1989 Seattle.”

But this isn't radio-friendly grunge; this is more of what was coming out of the underground before Pearl Jam and Nirvana became mega-stars. The band sights Neurosis, Nirvana, The Melvins, Tad and His Hero Is Gone as influences, and their combination of guitar distortion, raw, crusty punk rock and grunge embody all of those bands. You could make case for “The Big Before the Deep Plunge” sounding like a lost track from Nirvana's Bleach. The vocals are raw and aggressive, leaning on more of a hardcore/metal side. This is nothing new or groundbreaking, but it's also more than a retread. It's a heavy grunge-rock effort and I can appreciate it for what it is. Others songs worth mentioning include “Swallowed Whole,” “The Center of the Universe” and “Guts.”

New review of Lot Lizard from Halifax Collect

http://halifaxcollect.blogspot.com/2009/03/moutheather-lot-lizard-7.html

MOUTHEATHER - Lot Lizard, 7"

MOUTHEATER
Lot Lizard
Thrashed!

I've marveled MOUTHEATER before in these pages and some sweet words and claims were dropped with their music in mind. Let it be known; I'm all over this band. This is their first seven inch on Thrashed! records, so it preceded the split with VVEGAS. The only thing left to do is to tell you how much this rules.

The title track "Lot Lizard" starts this affair with a bang. It is un-fuck-withable in it's swagger. The intro grabs you. Its hard hitting self assurance will instantly win you over. The verse rounds them up and the chorus knock everybody down only to drag you on to their feet for a groove that forces the headbanger to come out. The end-part that leads you out of the song has a curiously evil vibe to it.
The lyrics bring to mind Shellac, both in its subject and also its simplicity and repetition. Nice.

Lets get some Jesus Lizard talk out of the way. Much has been said about the Chicago quartet's influence on MOUTHEATER but few reviewer have articulated that opinion. Someone mentioned the name of this release and the art work. Fair enough. But not enough writers mention this, but Andrew's vocal approach is often similar to David Yow's. Not so much the sound of his voice but his accent breathing. It is somthing to get your ears around and fucking cool, might I add. Nobody braves this in modern hc/punk these days. Most people settle for less.
Throughout this release you will hear echos of Jesus Lizard, added in, in all the right moments and this is easily detectable in have the bass and guitar play off each other. I'd say there much more Lizard in these recordings than on the VVEGAS split.
The musically most Lizard'ish moment comes in the verse in "Lick The Stamp, Turn It On", the second track on side-A. It the chorus and final part reminds me of Scandinavian beat heavy noise rock acts like HAM, Drep and Brussel Kaupalinen.
You can't help to gnaw your teeth to their words: I can't watch all these pigs take it and break it and make it their own. You are the drudge of the earth, you are the hunter of names. I can relate to that. Even more so with the factory like pummeling of the beats and crushing riffs.

"History" is the only track on the b-side; almost as long as the first two tracks combined. I feel as if this number is more rocky and less grungy than the other two. Speaking of rocky, I kinda regret calling their second track on the VVEGAS split rocky. I take that back. Anyway!
This song has the most exhausting urgency to it. Like being in a car that is gonna hit a brick wall. It has a lot of drive to it. My least favorite song on here but still good as shit. That is saying much.

In concluding this ass-kiss of a review I wanna get in on all the grunge talk surrounding this band. We need to be careful in all such talk 'cause what grunge means to most people are the big radio friendly moments that sprung from said "movement". Like the later day Soundgarden, Screaming Trees and of course Pearl Jam, to name but few. All good bands in their own right but MOUTHEATER represents the harsher and dirtier side of that era, early Sub Pop, Deep Six compilation and Bleach/In Utero era Nirvana... Just wanted to put that out there.

MOUTHEATER deserves much more talk than they are getting but I think that will change soon, judging by the new track on their myspace. Not that they didn't have their own thing going already but that new track oozes with character. These gues are onto something. They are making something that is their own. Tell your friends 'cause you are gonna get bulldozed over, soon.

Blurb about the new record @ Dead Horse Zine

http://deadhorsezine.blogspot.com/2009/03/new-moutheater-track-up.html
New Moutheater track up

New Moutheater track up

Virginia's Moutheater posted a new track entitled Guts. The song comes from the band's new LP, Ornament, due out this Spring. There are no words to describe how excited I am for this.

Moutheater is one of the top 10 band's currently creating music.

Halifax Collect review of the Vegas/Moutheater split

http://halifaxcollect.blogspot.com/2009/02/vegas-moutheater-split-7.html

VEGAS / MOUTHEATER split 7"

VEGAS / MOUTHEATER
split
Thrashed!

If you can't appreciate this split, odds are you aren't into hard music.

I know it's a big statement, being it features two songs bys two bands that have little in common other than the standard combination of instrument, distorted sounds and heavy beats but damn it, I was sold on first listen and that rarely does happen. Let me try to explain why.
The first VEGAS track starts with acoustic guitars I thought would only serve as an interlude but they form the core of an eerie and dark sounding instrumental track that sucked me in and haunted me from the get go. I was especially impressed with how well thought out this track is. Sure enough, tons of heavy bands try to do something like this but the results are usually somewhat awkward and far from being scary. This track also features electronic sounds "in the back" that really make it what it is. Nice. Totally unexpected.
Then they rip into a heavily metallic bulldozer of a track that brought to mind Integrity and early 100 Demons (without the beatdowns). Why Integrity? Because of the simplicity and tempo of the song and dive bomb solos during its main riffs. Normally I'm not too keen on this style being taken on by other bands than Integrity. Hell Integrity haven't written this good of a song in years. It's nasty. The vocals are fucked up and mean and give it a unique and evil edge. What's 100 Demons about it? The riff-catchy part with fever snare hits - yeah the one that makes you wanna bang your head into nails. That one.
The overall sound is dirty and alienating. Somebody told me their other stuff has a more crusty edge to it. I can't wait to hear more.
Utterly impressed I found myself wondering if VEGAS are amble to write a whole record in this vain without losing my attention. Can't wait to find out.

MOUTHEATHER is a totally different beast but a one that I'm more familiar with, sonically. Keep in mind I only recently found out about this band and this is the first release to my name.
The first track is instantly catchy. That dissonant guitar riff and the cold as hell bass that accompanies it, nailed me. I knew I would love this. Then it breaks into a Unsane / Dazzling Killmen sledge hammer and the whole thing sounds like a sonic head crusher that could have come out in the 90's via Wreckage/Exit and Amphetamine Reptile records. I kid you not.
This vibe, this cold and uninviting mood (contradictory to MOUTHEATER's catchy song writing) is much needed in today's padded down musical climate. The bands steamroller of a second song is just like the opening track; uninviting, yet compelling and endearing, dark and noisy yet oozing with maturity at the same time. But here there is a different tempo and a slightly rockier riff going on.
In all honesty, the first track was catchy enough to leave me humming it's riffs as soon as their side was over, so I instantly played the whole thing again.

Get this release now.

p.s. Story has it that this release is out of press and therefore hard to get. I know for a fact that http://www.HolyTerrorRecords.com still have some copies.

Dead Horse Zine review of the Vegas/Moutheater split

http://deadhorsezine.blogspot.com/search?q=moutheater

Split
by Vegas & Moutheater
Thrashed! Records

This fall saw the release of one of my more anticipated releases of 2008 - a split 7" between Germany's Vegas and Virginia's Moutheater. Both holy terror acts offer up two new tracks a piece, in sheer chaotic, driving fashion. I've never known much about Vegas, other than their vocalist's involvement with Roses Never Fade, and I've always been hard pressed to find much else. Becoming the Night is a stark, brooding track with ambient qualities of RNF; whereas MMVIII is a clevo-hardcore throwback, with all the apocalyptic chaos and guitar leads in tow. Moutheater's side of the split starts off with the bass-heavy Misperceptions and leads into the downtrodden Ulcer. Everything I love about this band is showcased in two, head jerking, flawless punk and grunge infused jams. Heavy, warm tones mixed with musical elements of the Jesus Lizard, the Melvins, and early grunge. This piece of vinyl is great contrast not only between the bands themselves, but shows the diversity of both as well. This is modern hardcore & punk done right.

AVERSIONONLINE REVIEW of lot lizard

http://www.aversionline.com/blahg/2008/10/29/moutheater-lot-lizard-7/

Coincidentally, after remarking in my write-up of the Vegas/Moutheater split 7" a couple of weeks ago that I'd really like to hear more from Moutheater, I got an email from Thrashed! Records letting me know that they had actually already sent me a copy of "Lot Lizard". Released in late-2007, I believe this was the band's debut EP - recorded by Steve Albini, appropriately enough - and as anticipated these three tracks offer up the same high-quality dose of lightly noisy AmRep-ish influence. Think plodding basslines, angular riffing, some slick post-hardcore dissonance, perfectly harsh vocals, and that expertly warm, natural tonality you'd expect from Albini's handiwork. While slightly less "heavy" (and that's not a derogatory remark here) than the tracks from the split with Vegas, I'd say these three tunes offer a smidge more variety in terms of unexpectedly energetic bursts and tempo changes, but the overall aesthetic is definitely right in line with what I've now come to expect from the band. At this rate, the full-length they're slated to start recording at the end of the year should indeed yield some damn solid results. Good stuff…

AVERSIONLINE REVIEW

www.aversionline.com/blahg/2008/10/13/vegasmoutheater-split-7/

This long-awaited split 7" between Vegas and Moutheater comes courtesy of Thrashed! Records, offering up two tracks per band for a mere 11 minutes of surprisingly diverse excursions. I believe this is the first new material from Vegas in almost four years, and "Becoming the Night" kicks things off with a dark, relaxed twist that's actually quite comparable to vocalist T's work with the Roses Never Fade project, while "MMVIII" then builds into an explosive two-minute assault of straight-up Cleveland hardcore worship, complete with a slew of chaotic leads mixed deep in against the backbone of the composition. Moutheater, on the other hand, operates in an entirely different space, loaded with grungy, AmRep-styled "noise rock" that's a little more aggressive and in your face compliments of some forceful vocals and an incredibly warm, natural recording that really lets the plodding, bass-centric rhythms shine. I had never heard this band before, so I wasn't entirely sure what to expect, but this is great work, and I'd quite like to hear more. I believe the 7" is limited to 500 copies, and from what I understand it's selling rather quickly, so… check out the excerpts below, and make the grab while you still can if you like what you hear!

Moutheater in Portfolio Weekly.

This is a few weeks old but I just now saw it. The first half is about a rapper, the second half is about us. -Andrew

http://www.portfolioweekly.com/ME2/dirmod.asp?sid=&nm=&type=Publishing&mod=Publications%3A%3AArticle&mid=8F3A7027421841978F18BE895F87F791&tier=4&id=9716B9C084EA448CA6951A865A9CC06Aloop

LIVEWIRE: I've long fancied myself a champion for undiscovered talent. For as long as I can remember, I've always felt a sense of pride when a band or artist that I "discovered" in the early stages of their career became widely recognized or critically lauded. On the other hand, I also become inexplicably frustrated whenever a worthy artist goes unnoticed by the rabble. Especially when you consider all the BS that the radio stations force-feed us and/or the kind of bile that goes platinum despite the absence of any logic for its success.

Take, for instance, Canibus. He got a little shine during his well-publicized feud with LL Cool J, but the ADD-riddled majority quickly lost interest and dismissed him as just another one-hit battle rapper. The problem, of course, is that Canibus is an incredibly imaginative and cerebral emcee who puts more thought into one verse than—oh, who's a current overrated rapper?—Lil Wayne puts into an entire album. I'm not claiming Canibus isn't crazy, I'm just telling you that he writes great songs. This guy pens some of the most intellectual and conceptual rap songs since GZA was still relevant. Why not give the guy another chance? Canibus will be at Steppin Out this Friday, July 11. You'll also get to see the winner of last week's freestyle battle amongst local emcees for the opening slot. Go see what you've been missing.

And you've also got to check out promising local upstarts Moutheater this week at The Boot. I mean, you really have to. They recently recorded their Lot Lizard EP in Chicago with the legendary Steve Albini, whose creative output is far too vast to detail here. Moutheater's heavy yet intricate sound is more than vaguely familiar to the keen listener, but there's a specific freshness and intended defiance in their tunes. I think Moutheater has the potential to be a really important band in the grand scheme of music that actually matters. You can certainly form your own opinion this Monday, July 14, when these local boys will be supported by the amazing Prideswallower from Louisville and Richmond's The Catalyst. I'm truly hoping things work out better for these cats than they did for Canibus.

It's your call. You don't have to see what Canibus is really about or bear witness to the best local band since 1888. What do I care? That's just more untapped talent for me to gripe about next week. No, I take that back. Go see Moutheater.

–Jerome Spencer

Moutheater at Dead Horse Zine (Band of the month for May)

www.deadhorsezine.blogspot.com

Moutheater is easily my favorite find of the last six months. Down-tuned, bass heavy jams leaning towards a hardcore version of Jesus Lizard. Releasing only six songs to date (between 7" and cassette/cdr formats), Moutheater shows more promise and originality than most of the current hardcore and punk staples at the moment.

Lot Lizard EP review on diatribeinc.com

http://www.diatribeinc.com/April08_reviews.htm
Moutheater Lot Lizard 7"
Thrashed!
I'm going to call it: if this isn't the only album to be named after a truck stop hooker…it is definitely the best one. You don't hear of that too often. This is something else you don't hear too often; well at least not for about twelve or so years anyway- Grunge!

That's right, Grunge; you weren't just witnessing a typo that managed to get through the editing process. Well, I'm not going to say this is full blown flannel shirt, bad hair and thermal bottoms Grunge, but it certainly has that feel to it. Moutheater make it a point to add a little metallic screaming occasionally to an otherwise powerful but sometimes sluggish delivery. The vocals are raspy and vicious; so much so that you fear the vocalist is going to lose his voice at any moment and the music is driving.

Altogether, I'd say this is a pretty solid release…Lot Lizard definitely receives an A for effort with me. I have to admit that the songs tend to run together a little, but not to the degree where you feel the band is amidst a mindless creative standstill; they just have their own style and they stick with it. The only negative comment I have for this release is the fact that nobody bothered to mark the album with Side A or Side B, which really is just a minor inconvenience, I just needed to put that out there.

Despite how interesting and surprising this is, please refrain from digging in your closets and pulling out those ball chain necklaces and Nirvana t-shirts…the Grunge revival is not here. But you can and should revel in the one of the few Grunge releases that Courtney Love doesn't have her grubby little hands on.
CS

Interview

2011-01-26T16:11:00.004-05:00

I did this interview last summer and it looks like the zine isn't coming out so here it is:

Who are you and what do you do in Moutheater?
My name's Andrew and I play guitar and "sing" in Moutheater.

How did the band come together? Can you give us a little background on what you have done thus far as a band?
Tim had been running Double O Recording and a lot of my previous bands would record there. Eventually we became friends and started hanging out making music late at night in the studio. Tim and I are both huge fans of late 80's early 90's stuff like The Melvins, Tad, Helmet, Nirvana, The Jesus Lizard etc and I had this idea to do a band that was the heaviest elements of bands like that but also throw in other influences like Neurosis, His Hero Is Gone, Swans, etc. That's the basic beginnings. We've toured multiple times, mostly in the northeast, midwest, and south. We've put out two ep's, a full length album, a split with a band from Germany called Vegas, some comp tracks, and we've got a 4 song 12inch ep in the works right now that will be out in the fall/winter of 2010.

How did the name "Moutheater" come about?
We spent a lot of time making lists of words we liked. My thinking when naming a band is that you're never gonna come up with some sort of word or phrase that completely describes every aspect of the band. I'm more fascinated with words and the images they evoke and the ways they sound. Two of the words that we all liked were the words "mouth" and "eater".

What are some of your main influences when writing songs?
I write lyrics a lot while listening to Swans. That band really pulls something out of me when I'm putting words together that I can't quite explain. As far as the music, I'd say the main things I've got in my head are The Jesus Lizard, Cursed, Swans, His Hero Is Gone, Scratch Acid, Godflesh, The Melvins, Tad, Neurosis, and Nirvana. I know that for Tim, Dave Grohl is probably his single biggest drumming influence. He's a huge Helmet, Failure, and Hum fan. I think those things play into his drumming a lot.

Your first 7" was recorded in Chicago at Electrical Audio Studios and recorded by Steve Albini, what was it like working with him and how much time did you spend on it all together?
We recorded and mixed that record in one 12 hour session. It was a great experience. He's obviously a fantastic engineer and has recorded some of our favorite records over the years so it was great to get the chance to work with him.

I bet he had a lot of great stories to tell, did he find any time to share some with you guys when you were not working in the studio?
We obviously had time to talk with him about a variety of different things. There were definitely some memorable moments. He's a really interesting dude.

You have been putting out cassettes and other various releases on your tape label Swim Harder Cassettes, how did that come about and why did you decide to start up a label?
I've been releasing mainly noise oriented stuff for some really great artists lately. It initially came about because we had been approached by another tape label to do a release. Things didn't work out with that so I just decided I'd do it myself. That became the No Ballet ep that we did. After that I released some things for a few friends' bands and then started focusing more on releasing noise stuff after that.

How many releases have you done so far and what are you working on for the future?
I work at an extremely slow pace with SHC. I've been doing the label since 2007 and I've only done 12 releases so far. I just finished a cassette for my noise project (Debris Amour). Coming up, I'm doing a cassette for the Joshua Norton Cabal which is one of Andrew Nolan from The Endless Blockade's projects. The tracks are great. It should be available soon.

The "Ornament" CD was released on Thrashed Records, what was it like recording your first full length as a band and what did you guys shoot for differently if anything?
With Ornament we decided that we wanted to go somewhere else again for a few days to record. We packed up all of Tim's gear and hauled it over to a ballet studio in Norfolk, VA and basically just lived there for four days to record the album. I'm really glad we did that. In regards to shooting for something different, we always just do whatever comes naturally to us at the time. I'm very proud of that album.

There are a lot of strange noises in between a few of the songs, there are parts with a lot of different feedbacks and effects, and there is even a piano in the mix, were you guys experimenting in the studio a lot or did you originally intend to incorporate that?
I wanted to put noise tracks on the album from the beginning. The idea was for each of us to be the primary creative force behind one of the 3 noise tracks. "Negative Life" is Aaron's, "Honesty" is mine, and "Negative Death" is Tim's. We did all of the noise stuff at Double O after we had finished all of the tracking at the Ballet studio. As far as feedback and guitar effects, I love noisey guitar sounds and playing and I've always tried to incorporate that sort of thing into the band, I don't use any guitar effects though other than just cranking my amp to get some distortion. I really have a "less is more" attitude to a lot of things in my life, including my guitar setup, I try and keep it as stripped down as possible. No effects pedals, I save those for my noise setup haha.

I see that a lot of your influences are from 90's grunge and experimental bands such as The Melvins, Nirvana, and even the Jesus Lizard. Did you guys grow up listening to these bands and how much of an influence have they had on your music and even in your own lives?
I grew up on a lot of that stuff. I came of age in the 90's when there were fortunately some credible artists actually making music that was appealing to the masses, . Nirvana is probably the biggest overall music influence on the band and on me as a person. That's the band the opened the doors of "punk", underground art and music culture, etc for me when I was around 11. Through them I got into a lot of other bands, Sonic Youth, Mudhoney, The Melvins, etc.

In your own words how would you describe Moutheater's overall sound?
Ugly. For me the band represents (both musically and lyrically) all of the most miserable and horrible parts of me as a person.

Favorite Nirvana and Melvins record?
Nirvana=In Utero. The Melvins=Houdini.

What touring have you done in the past and are there any plans on getting back out there in the future?
We've toured the northeast, midwest, and parts of the south multiple times. We'd obviously love to do more. We're playing DC at the end of July. We'll get another tour together soon hopefully. As with a lot of bands, the van situation is an issue and that's one of the main obstacles that we're dealing with at the moment.

Whats the status on the LP version of the full length? Will that see the light of day anytime soon?
I hope so.

What keeps you guys still excited about playing music and going to shows? What also makes your frustrated and disappointed at the same time when you step foot into a hardcore or punk show?
I'm going to skip this to avoid typing a novel length answer and/or having a mental breakdown. Some of my thoughts on some of this type of stuff can be found on my blog for those who are interested.

What are some new and great upcoming local bands from the Virginia area that people should check out?
Some of these bands have been around for a while so they're not "upcoming" but Balaclava, Vicegrip, Cough, Bastard Sapling, Lord By Fire, Heathens, Last Remaining Pinnacle, and I'm probably forgetting a bunch of others. *Edit*If I were asked about upcoming VA bands right now I would add Surrogate, Flechette, Druglord, and Pan Galactic Straw Boss to that list*Edit*

"Ornament" has been out for a while now any plans on writing material for a new record, possibly full length?
We have a new record that will be out in the fall/winter of 2010. It's a 4 song, 45rpm, 12inch, EP called "Colonial". It'll be out on Last Anthem Records.

Where do you see the band going five years down the road, where would you like to end up and what are some goals you want to set for yourselves? I'll answer each of those questions individually and then give a final explanation. I have no idea. I don't care. None. I believe that as an artist you shouldn't think about your art in that type of manner. We play our music, our way, and nothing else matters.

While I dont' think...

2011-01-25T15:50:00.004-05:00

...that the end of music on physical media is the best thing for the culture behind the music, I do realize that my viewpoint on the issue (which I've discussed previously in this blog if you care to read it) is in the minority and that it is probably inevitable that we will see physical media completely die (after all of the retro "oh my gosh, it's a record/cassette/cd" fads pass) in the next 20 or so years.

So with that said, I'm going to look on the bright side and be glad that while this means the end of something that I love and think is important, it's also the end of the disgusting, lowest common denominator, soulless, money-based, "big 4" major label music industry (and those independent labels operating in similar ways). We will finally see at least some of the people that have done nothing but feed off of music and art for financial gain fall to wayside. There will always be people looking for a way to exploit music and artists to make a buck and there will always be people playing music for the "wrong reasons" but at least we will see a good portion of it go away.

So while I'm sad to see physical media go, I'm glad to see it go out with a bang and drag some of the blood suckers down the hole with it.

"Colonial" in the SHC webstore

2011-01-24T18:06:00.004-05:00

You can now order the new Moutheater 12inch "Colonial" directly from us at the Swim Harder Cassettes webstore.

www.swimhardercassettes.com

Care

2011-01-23T07:35:00.005-05:00

I'd like to clarify what I mean when I'm expressing certain thoughts or ideas or using any variety of terms or phrases that could be labeled as elitism, pretentiousness, exclusiveness, etc when I'm talking about indepenent/underground music and art culture. I'm talking about weeding out the people that don't care about our culture and only those people.

Anyone from any background or lifestyle should be able to participate in this culture if they choose. This culture should celebrate individual thought and open-mindedness. But at the same time if you're going to be involved then get off your ass and fucking devote yourself and be involved. Care. It's really that simple in my mind. This culture can't sustain itself on people's casual interest.

I honestly don't see why people get so offended about this. Isn't having a culture full of people that care intensely about that culture the best possible thing for everyone involved?

There is plenty...

2011-01-15T15:24:00.002-05:00

...of gray area and room for interpretation as far as what the ethics of punk, DIY, and independent/underground music and art culture are, and what should be allowed within those ethics. At the same time, there is a certain amount of black and white area with no room for interpretation.

The hard lines of what is and is not are often what truly make something what it is. Nothing is an inexhaustable well, as far as it's ability to include or exclude various elements. Everything has it's limits. Those limits are the framework.

A Response

2011-01-12T21:29:00.004-05:00

I recently got an email from a young man who I've never met and who is a decent bit younger than me, asking for advice. He wanted to know about Moutheater's "success" (I know I know, I laughed too), about Albini, about labels, about recording, about touring, about all of the things you wonder about when you're young and trying to figure everything out.

Below in red is the response I sent to him:

We weren't a band long before we went to Albini. We'd all been playing in various other bands for years prior to that though. We didn't have a label when we went to Chicago to record. We just called, booked the time, and did it.

Labels really aren't important. Most independent labels are just a guy doing records out of his bedroom. People make a big deal out of being on a label and it's really not a big deal at all. Worrying about labels and records and people liking your band is the absolute last thing that should be on any artists mind in my opinion. We all have day jobs, we make very little money off of records or touring (or anything to do with the band for that matter). The labels we work with pay for our records being pressed and do a little promotion and for the most part, that's it.

Do your art, do it as best you can, and give everything you have to it. Everything else is trivial crap that is going to make you focus less on what's important, which is making the best possible music that you can make and doing it in a way that you can be proud of and that has integrity. If people like what you're doing then that's awesome. If not, then it really doesn't matter because you're making music for you. We all played in bands for many years that had zero success before Moutheater. We just played for ourselves and happened to do a band that a few people ended up liking.

Don't ever adjust what you're doing to meet someone else's standards or to try and get people to pay attention to you. My opinion is that if your band is good enough and is really on to something then it wont need to be adjusted, it wont need to be hyped. People will come to you. We've never tried to get on a label, we've never approached anyone about a record, we've never sent out a demo or anything else like that. We played our tunes the best we could and eventually a very small amount of people started paying attention.

So in the end, my best advice is, do your thing, do it the best you can, give everything you have to it, mean it from the bottom of your heart, and don't ever compromise it for anyone or anything. Don't worry about any of the other stuff. If things are meant to happen, they will.

Also don't take anything I've said as a "don't push your band forward". I'm not saying that at all. Instead, if you feel that you're ready to do a tour or put a record out then do it. Make it happen DIY style, don't beg other people to do any of it for you. When you have to ask people to do things for you it puts you in a weak position where they're going to try and control what you're doing. If the label comes to you, then you have the upper hand and can do what you want. And maintaining complete control of your music is THE most important thing. We paid for Albini ourselves with no idea what we were going to do with the recordings. When we got back, a label happened to approach us about doing a record. When we were ready to do our next record (No Ballet), we put it out ourselves on cassette. Since then, we've been very lucky in that labels have consistently approached us about doing records. But in 6 months, if we were ready to do another record and no labels had offered us a deal, we'd put it out ourselves again in a heartbeat.

One thing that I'd like to add to this is that I have no problem with an artist being successful and enjoying that success. What I have a problem with is when an artist lets success matter and/or alters his/her art to get that success.

Tonight:

2011-01-08T12:19:00.006-05:00

NO ALCOHOL ALLOWED AT THIS SHOW!!!

"Colonial" is officially out today.

The things that I create...

2011-01-02T05:03:00.002-05:00

...are my outlets for the most negative, dissatisfied, and horrible parts of me as a person. They are figurative compartments that I use to place these parts of me in, so that I always have them, but so that I can also get joy and satisfaction out of life.

It's important to try and get as much happiness out of life as possible. Sometimes it's easy to get caught up in unhappiness especially when you (as I do) put all of that unhappiness into a thing that is one of the most defining aspects of you as a person (my art). If you let that unhappiness seep into every aspect and moment of your life, you will make yourself completely mental. Life needs to feel worth living, and finding happiness as much and as often as possible is extremely important in it feeling that way.

This is something that I've been struggling with and am working through at the moment so I figured I'd share it.

Favorites of 2010

2010-12-31T19:22:00.005-05:00

I wasn't really aware until I made this list but apparently I bought and enjoyed a lot of Blockade related releases this year. Mr. Nolan, you put out some quality tunes this year in my humble opinion.

Lists are in alphabetical order but not limited by a number.

Favorite releases:
Akitsa-Au Crépuscule De L'Espérance
Ash Pool-For Which He Plies The Lash
The Bastard Noise/The Endless Blockade-The Red List (split)
The Bastard Noise-A Culture Of Monsters
Double Negative-DayDreamNation
Druglord-demo
The Endless Blockade/Unearthly Trance-(split)
Carlos Giffoni-Severance
Joshua Norton Cabal-Inner Light
Juhyo/Joshua Norton Cabal-Human Cargo (split)
Slaughter Strike-At Life's End
Swans-My Father Will Guide Me Up A Rope To The Sky

Integrating my 2010 cassette purchases into my yearly list proved to be a trying task for some reason this time around. I ended up with a lot of really great ones during 2010. Of note, was that Hospital Productions put out a whole slew of really interesting cassettes this year. I was fortunate enough to acquire a good number of them among my cassette purchases throughout these past 12 months. The killer “Lone Gunman” cassette by Raspberry Bulbs is worth noting as well.

Favorite re-issues:
Burning Star Core-Inside The Shadow
Jesu-Heart Ache
Prurient/Cold Cave-Stars Explode (collaboration)

Favorite performances:
The Bastard Noise in Raleigh, NC
Cough in Norfolk, VA
Double Negative (twice in one night) in Richmond, VA
Druglord in Richmond, VA
Druglord in Hampton, VA
Ocean in Richmond, VA
Swans in New York, NY
Wolf Eyes in Baltimore, MD

Untitled

2010-12-30T17:46:00.007-05:00

Art being made for the sole purpose of sale (and on top of that being marketed as something authentic or something possessing the quality of artistic integrity, which obviously makes it the exact opposite of those things) completely goes against the human spirit of creativity and what art is even supposed to be.

A lot of people don’t notice what’s going on and plenty of people that do notice might even tell you that they don’t care. I can see that side of it but I think that this sort of thing is extremely dangerous, even if you don’t notice or care. One of the primary functions of true art is supposed to be it’s representation in some way of the human condition, it’s supposed to mean something and evoke emotion in some way, both for the artist and admirer. That’s my opinion at least. When those things are turned to nothing but business deals and marketing strategy devoid of any emotion it undermines the entire institution of art. It cheapens it for everyone and contributes to the ever growing plastic nature of the modern culture that we live in. True underground/independent culture is the last haven for true art by true artists (but that’s something that I’ve covered multiple times in this blog so I’m not going to focus on it too much in this entry).

Music in the mainstream with any sort of authenticity at it’s root has been on a steady decline. Sure, there’s always been people making and marketing music for the sole purpose of making money but at least in the past you had some “real” artists with integrity to look toward or even cut your teeth on as a youngster. These days things seem to be more horrible than ever, people will no longer embrace anything unique the way they might have in decades past. Within the context of rock music, since it’s creation in the 50’s, even when shit was looking really bad, you’d at least always have these shake-ups roughly every ten years or so where something would rise up and take over, completely underneath the major labels’ noses. Then they’d have to scramble for a few years to reign it in and find a way to turn a profit on it (rock’s creation in the 50’s, the psychedelic/hippie movement of the late 60’s, punk in the late 70’s, “alternative rock” in the late 80’s/early 90’s).

We haven’t truly had another revolution like that in the mainstream since the early 90’s. I’m scared that we may not see another one. Over the years, every time something like this rose up and threw the major label system into a frenzy, they learned. They got better and better at quickly reigning things in every time it happened. They’ve gotten so damned good at containing, manipulating, and marketing youth culture, the concept of artistic integrity, and “coolness” over the years that it’s very rare that anything of quality or with an actual artistic vision can get through their filters untarnished anymore. Unfortunately the majority of consumers don't notice and/or don’t care so nothing gets done about it and something will usually make money whether it has any properties inherent to art or not. Often times, the more homogenized it is, the better it sells these days, only reinforcing the behavior.

I think that the state of things is disgusting and is only going to breed more of the same and create a more oppressive environment for true art and true artists. The money making lowest common denominator is being allowed to have complete control over what the majority of people see as art. There is no longer any room within the mainstream for anything different or authentic or interesting. Anything that might alienate anyone is deemed a financial risk.

I don’t care much for mainstream culture anyway, so I guess this is mostly just commentary from an outsider. I do think this sort of thing is dangerous for all of us in the long run though.

Moutheater-Colonial

2010-12-26T08:35:00.004-05:00

The new Moutheater record "Colonial" is now for sale on the Last Anthem Records site. The official release date/release show is Saturday Jan. 8th but you might get yours a little early if you order. It's a 45rpm, 4 song, 2 sided, 12inch, EP (about 20 minutes long). It's $10 and comes with a download card.

The break up of the vinyl colors/alternate covers is: glow in the dark w/ regular sleeve (/100), black w/ record release sleeve (/25), black with regular sleeve (/375).

Ordering from Last Anthem is your best bet for getting a copy on glow in the dark vinyl and obviouly coming out to the record release show is your best bet for getting a copy with a record release sleeve.

There will be two separate raffles for a test press. One online and one at the record release show. For the online raffle, you get a chance to win a test press with every record you order (1 record=your name 1 time in the pot, 2 records=your name 2 times in the pot, etc). Phil will be announcing the winner on Feb. 1st. The raffle at the record release show will be based soley on sales that night at that show and the winner will be announced at the end of the night. You will get a raffle ticket for every record you buy at the show (1 record=1 raffle ticket, 2 records=2 raffles tickets, etc).

Last Anthem also has copies of "Lot Lizard" (7inch) and "Ornament" (CD) in stock.

The things that you won't (and don't) do...

2010-12-23T20:18:00.002-05:00

...as an artist are just as important as the things that you will (and do) do.

Future Breed Zine/Halifax Collect Interview

2010-12-21T21:12:00.005-05:00

I did an interview over the summer with Birkir from Halifax Collect for the first issue of Future Breed Zine. The issue came out recently. It's a nice little zine and is well worth your $2. Pick up a copy here and check out Future Breed here. You can also read the interview here on the Halifax Collect site.

Tonight

2010-12-20T13:38:00.003-05:00

Moutheater
Surrogate

@ The Boxx in VB (for their "Metal Mondays" thing)
Starts at 10pm
Free
21+

Surrogate got added to this a few days ago. I'm really glad to have some friends playing too. Maybe it wont be so awkward now haha. I think people are DJ'ing music as well.

"Colonial" Record Release Show Info

2010-12-12T18:02:00.006-05:00

ABSOLUTELY NO ALCOHOL ALLOWED AT THIS SHOW!!!

Saturday January 8th
@ Double O Recording
(223 Salter's Creek Rd #19
Hampton, VA 23661)
8pm $5 (donation)

Moutheater
Vicegrip
Last Remaining Pinnacle
Debris Amour/Pan Galactic Straw Boss (collaborative set)

This WILL START ON TIME so don't be late or you're gonna miss a set.

There will be 25 record release covers. The pressing is 500 (100 glow in the dark/400 black). Record release version will be on black vinyl. This means there will be 3 different options at the show. Black vinyl w/ record release cover ( /25), black vinyl w/ regular cover ( /375), and glow in the dark vinyl with regular cover ( /100). There will also be a raffle for a test press. A raffle ticket will be given away with every record purchased.

Check out the previous post for info on other shows and various happenings.

Flier:

Upcoming Turds

2010-12-08T18:28:00.005-05:00

Moutheater show on December 20th @ The Boxx in VB for their "Metal Mondays" thing. It's free and starts at 10pm. 21+. No one else is playing. It's just us and then I think people are DJ'ing some music afterward.

Moutheater show on December 29th @ The Candle Haus in Washington DC (Fairfax, VA) w/ Natural Law and Lotus Fucker. This should be a real fun show. Probably $5 and probably starts at 7pm. All ages. Has to be over early so don't get there late or you're gonna miss shit. *Edit* We are no longer playing this show. Sorry for the inconvenience. *Edit*

"Colonial" should be in our hands soon. Record release show is in the works.

Swim Harder Cassettes 50% off sale is still going on. Now thru Christmas (or until shit runs out). Everything in the webstore is included in the sale.

Swim Harder Cassettes has a new release planned that will hopefully be out (if I can find some time to sit down and get it done) in January by Panther Modern (members of T.O.M.B.) called "Satanic Logic".

Lastly, I'm in the very earliest stages of getting my shit together for a new Debris Amour release.

Untitled

2010-12-06T17:17:00.005-05:00

I think as an artist, the things that you are sort of unconsciously drawn to can be very important and often times say just as much about you as any other aspect of your work. The words and images and actions (etc) that you feel an unexplainable connection to (and desire to implement), all mean something. Even if you don't know it.

Recent Interview

2010-12-05T10:09:00.005-05:00

I've posted the text below (with my answers in red) or you can check it out on the actual site with pictures and whatnot here.

1. Tell me about the origin or Debris Amour, Moutheater, and Swim Harder Cassettes. Moutheater started out as Tim and I. I met Tim through his studio (Doubloe O). My old bands used to record there with him and long story short, we became friends and started working on music together. The initial concept for the band was for it to be the most aggressive elements of the 90's stuff that we both love combined with various other influences. Swim Harder Cassettes started as a result of another cassette label offering to put out a Moutheater release. Things didn't pan out with that label so I decided to do it myself, this became the No Ballet ep and SHC's first release. Debris Amour started as a result of my growing interest in "experimental" (for lack of a better all encompassing word) music over the past 6 or so years. I needed an outlet that allowed both pure sonic freedom and for me to somewhat step outside of the box of the guitar (which I've been playing for 16 years) and guitar oriented music.

2. Do each of your projects fulfill different needs from the other? If so, how? Yes and no. They allow me to do different things and have a wide range of places for my ideas to go but at the same time I sort of look at them as all one big thing underneath the umbrella that is my creativity.

3. Where do you tend to draw inspiration from, creatively? The most horrible parts of existence and me as a person are often the focus.

4. The first Moutheater recordings had a more Jesus Lizard/Shellac kind of vibe going, but a little more aggressive. Recent material seems more direct and heavier. Why has the band progressed this way? To be honest, we just do what we want, how we want, when we want. There's not any conscious effort to steer the band in any certain direction so it's hard to really look back and analyze something like that. We write, and whatever comes out comes out.

5. Your performance style (from what I've seen), or approach, seems a bit different between Debris Amour and Moutheater. Is it just a matter of Moutheater being a full band, or is there some other significance to facing the crowd, talking more, with Moutheater, versus knelt down, back to the crowd, with Debris Amour? Sort of like the last question, it just sort of is what it is. I do what I feel during every performance. So any of it could potentially be different every night. Some Moutheater sets I might talk a lot and interact with people inbetween songs, some I might not say much at all. With DA I just sort of feel that's the best way to present it. I like being right in front of the amp and feeling the sound rain down on me and push against me. There are often points in Moutheater sets where I'll stand in front of my amp and push my head against the speakers for very much the same reason. It all really just comes down to what I'm personally feeling at any given moment.

6. While I haven't read the lyrics to any of the Moutheater songs, the lyrics to Debris Amour seem very hopeless, desperate, and, to a degree, self-loathing. Where does this stem from? Do Moutheater songs tend to follow the same suit? Moutheater and DA lyrics are very similar. When I'm putting together lyrics for either project they're all coming straight from the same source, which is the ramblings and thoughts in my head and notebooks. In reference to where it stems from, I look at my projects as sort of an outlet for the most awful, ugly, horrible parts of me as a person.

7. You performed in both the noise/experimental and metal scenes... What are some of the differences you've noticed between the crowds, or is there any real difference? Do you tend to enjoy one over the other? People tend to be a little bit more open minded in "experimental" circles but for the most part I think they're pretty similar. I enjoy both very much.

8. You run the tape label, Swim Harder Cassettes. What's the reasoning behind the label, and what are you hoping to accomplish? I sort of stated the reasoning earlier. I really have no goals or anything that I feel I need to accomplish. It's something I enjoy doing so I do it.

10. How did you first discover "underground" music? Is there truly such a thing, anymore? The very first band that sort of opened the door for me to underground culture was Nirvana. I write a lot about my thoughts on underground culture in my blog so for the few that might care about what I have to say about it, I would recommend checking that out. It's just too much for me to sum up here in a few paragraphs.

11. What is one movie, one album, and one event that has had the biggest impact on you? Movie: Apocalypse Now, Album: Nirvana Unplugged in NYC, Event: Picking up the guitar for the first time at age 11.

Test Press Problem Solved

2010-12-04T09:30:00.006-05:00

After going back and forth with the plant (who have been very helpful during this process) for the last 2 weeks and after coming back to everything with fresh ears and minds, we’ve accepted the test presses for “Colonial”. The issue we had with them was minor, and after doing some further examining under the microscope at Double O Recording and consulting with the plant on an almost daily basis (together, resulting in us finding out that the issue is a lot more insignificant than we had originally thought and/or is very possibly not there at all) we’ve decided to move forward.

Tim and I are a difficult bunch to work with, you can ask almost anyone who has worked with the band on some level over the years and they’ll tell you the same. Nothing ever goes smoothly when we’re involved.

The records and covers are both being pressed at their respective plants now and should be available very soon.

Tonight:

2010-12-03T10:40:00.003-05:00

The Swim Harder Cassettes holiday sale apply's tonight (and any other time you see me out between now and Christmas) as well.

Sale

2010-11-28T13:36:00.005-05:00

It's time to clear some things out. Everything in the Swim Harder Cassettes webstore is 50% thru X-MAS (or as long as stuff lasts). This includes Moutheater releases. Also there is literally 1 copy of the Werewolf Jerusalem/Forced Orgasm cassette left. Click here for the Swim Harder Cassettes site.

Rejected

2010-11-22T20:21:00.004-05:00

We rejected the "Colonial" test presses this past weekend. Bummer, hopefully they'll fix the problem and get a new batch in our hands soon.

Tonight:

2010-11-20T13:21:00.004-05:00

I'll have Swim Harder Cassettes stuff at the merch table as well. Copies of our Joshua Nortan Cabal, Debris Amour, and Werewolf Jerusalem releases as well as a few distro items.

Upcoming

2010-11-14T20:22:00.004-05:00

-Saturday November 20th: Moutheater, Druglord, Flechette, Surrogate at Double O Recording in Hampton, VA. Starts at 8pm. $5 donation please. This is being recorded. Come out and yell stuff at all of us, you might hear yourself on a record one day. We're playing a few new tracks off of the upcoming record.

-Friday December 3rd: Debris Amour, Pan Galactic Straw Boss and others at 37th & Zen in Norfolk, VA. Not sure of cost or start time. I've got some new live material that I'll be playing for the first time at this show.

-Monday December 20th: Moutheater at The Boxx in Virginia Beach, VA for their "Metal Mondays" thing. It's free. From what I gather it's only one band per show and then people DJ afterward.

We (Moutheater) are currently waiting on the "Colonial" test presses to come in. Hopefully they'll be hear soon and we'll be able to approve them and get this thing out in the next month or two. More details on a record release show once we get a little more solid info on a release date.

I've been taking a short break from Swim Harder Cassettes. I should have a new release out early in the new year by Panther Modern (which features members of T.O.M.B.) called "Satanic Logic". It's going to be a good one so be on the lookout for it.

Hopefully many more Moutheater and Debris Amour shows will ensue in the new year. The pickings have been slim lately unfortunately.

Feel free to contact me if you need any additional info on anything mentioned above.

Went up to Richmond...

2010-11-06T18:37:00.003-04:00

...with some friends to see Trap Them last night. They were killer. Check them out on this tour if you get a chance. Thanks again RJM.

Picked up a few things at the show and at Vinyl Conflict:

Trap Them-Filth Rations (CS)
Diapsiquir-Virus STN (LP)
The Endless Blockade/Hatred Surge-split (LP)
Assuck-Blindspot (7inch)

Halloween Mix

2010-10-31T10:35:00.003-04:00

I did this one almost exclusiviely by song titles that had something to do with an aspect of Halloween (there are some very slight exceptions). I tried to stay away from putting both obvious shit like Monster Mash/The Misfits on it and from putting a bunch of metal on it merely because the songs had words like "death" or "evil" or whatever in the title (which would've resulted in an almost endless mix of black metal, doom, and whatnot).

-Sonic Youth-Hallowe'en

-Born Against-Prank

-The Beatles-Helter Skelter

-The Cramps-Voodoo Idol

-The Melvins-If I Had An Exorcism

-Pig Destroyer-Terrifyer

-The Dead Kennedys-Halloween

-Jimi Hendrix-Voodoo Chile Blues

-Echo And The Bunnymen-The Killing Moon

-The New York Dolls-Frankenstein

-Black Flag-Scream

-The Smiths-Girl Afraid

-Halloween (movie theme)

-Bad Brains-Fearless Vampire Killers

-Electric Wizard-Black Magic Rituals And Perversions

-Werewolf Jerusalem-Werewolf Shadow

-The Brian Jonestown Massacre-Monster

-Tad-Candi

-Sunn O)))-Hell O))) Ween

-Dropdead-Witch Hunt

-Bauhaus-Bela Lugosi's Dead

-Prurient-Mask Of The Boys

-Unearthly Trance-Blind Driving Through The Ghost Mountains

-Mudhoney-Halloween

"Colonial" Cover

2010-10-20T13:50:00.008-04:00

Got the cover and final layout for our new record from my good friend Ryan the other day. I'm extremely happy with how it came out. After my miserable experience with the "Ornament" layout, I decided that I'd like to work with a close friend this time around. Someone who's house I could go to and we could sit and brainstorm and work on it together while listening to records. I did just that. It was a learning process for both of us and it took a little longer than expected because of that but after everything is said and done, I'm glad I did it the way I did. Working with a close friend who understands both the band and what were were going for visually with this cover was the most important aspect of this for me.

The classic SWANS artwork, the minimal artwork of Man Is The Bastard, and the "Feeding" artwork done by members of Iron Lung were the main things we had in our heads during the brainstorming process for this.

The image within the circle was something that didn't come to me until after the initial brainstorming process for how the cover would look. Once the idea entered my head, nothing else could compare. I was obsessive about how much I wanted to use it.

Pocketknives are something I've collected since I was very young. For me they are a symbol of innocence, childhood, weapon, and tool. The inclusion of the pocketknife blade with zero pretense (no blood, no hand, no fear, nothing) is something that speaks powerfully to me. I think about the cover in many different ways, much like the "Ornament" cover. In also the same way as the "Ornament" cover, I invite you to find your own interpretation.

SWANS

2010-10-11T19:46:00.008-04:00

My wife and I flew to NYC on Saturday to see Swans at the Bowery Ballroom. They were incredible. I had a great spot up front (stage right).

I stopped by HP earlier in the day to get some new tunes. Picked up some killer stuff, got a few recommendations per usual, and chatting with Dominick was a pleasure as always.

Scores for the weekend:

*CD*

Aaron Dilloway/C. Spencer Yeh (collaboration)-The Squid

Aaron Dilloway-Chain Shot

Carlos Giffoni-Eternal Noise

Inquisition-Into The Infernal Regions Of The Ancient Cult

Thoth-Zamglenie

Swans-My Father Will Guide Me Up A Rope To The Sky (ltd. 2xCD tour edt. pre-signed)

*Cassette*

Custodian-IV

Akitsa-Au Crépuscule De L'Espérance

*Random*

Swans "Holy Money Holy Love" shirt.

New MGM zine.

And I won a long OOP, Japanese only copy of "El Mundo Frio" on ebay for $12 which came in the mail this weekend as well.

Why would you bother...

2010-10-04T19:39:00.002-04:00

...putting art into the world if you're not going to give everything you have to it and make it the best that it can possibly be?

Often times the answers to this question are only excuses for laziness, failure, or total lack of any real ideas, inspiration, or creativity.

Obsession...

2010-09-14T21:37:00.002-04:00

...is the force behind most great creations and achievements. Without it you are nothing.

Drove...

2010-09-11T09:51:00.006-04:00

...to Richmond last night with some buddies to see Ocean (the one from Maine that's on Important Records/the only one that matters). They were great. I was really amped that they played "Salt". This other band called Druglord (which is people from some older bands like White Cross, Unseen Force, and Ugly Law, among others) played. I hadn't heard them and had no idea what to expect and holy fuck, they were amazing. They haven't recorded anything yet but definitely check this band out if you get a chance.

I also just realized that I never mentioned on here how awesome Double Negative was a few weeks ago. Again, that was another Richmond drive. Saw them play two sets in one night. Once in a basement and then downtown an hour or so later. New LP rips.

New Moutheater Songs

2010-09-02T23:50:00.002-04:00

We've posted 2 new songs ("Keeping Secrets" and "Nauseous") on the myspace (a link is over to the right) from our upcoming 12inch EP "Colonial". It'll be out this fall/winter on Last Anthem Records.

The general masses...

2010-09-01T20:01:00.005-04:00

...don't want anything better, deeper, or more meaningful. They're content with that which is set directly in front of them. The trivial, the mundane, the homogenized, the artificial, the fraudulent, the lifeless, the spiritless, the souless, the mindless, the heartless, the lowest common denominator. And for that, I share as little as possible with them. For that, I cut myself off.

Last night...

2010-08-17T10:59:00.002-04:00

...I did a short DJ set at a show my friend Dave booked. Here's the set list:

Greymachine-Vultures Descend
Akitsa-Antithese
Alberich-Open Warfare
Double Negative-Endless Dissapointment
Swans-In The Eyes Of Nature
Bastard Noise-Interior Warfare

Untitled

2010-08-16T00:11:00.001-04:00

Perfection Through Imperfection

Untitled

2010-08-15T13:51:00.000-04:00

Love Through Hate

Untitled

2010-08-14T12:02:00.002-04:00

Strength Through Vulnerability

Internet/Downloading Killing Music?

2010-08-13T11:19:00.005-04:00

No. It is hurting aspects of it though. The obvious example is the record sales issue. But that has more to do with the record industry, and the reality is that downloading isn't going away. As a business they are going to have to learn to adapt or go the way of the dodo. That's not what I want to concentrate on here though, I've illustrated my thoughts on physical medium here before. The aspect that I'm most concerned about is cultural.

People no longer appreciate anything when everything is at their fingertips. For underground culture this is a particularly troublesome issue. The result is less dedication to the culture behind the music.

The records you listened to and the things you knew used to be a reflection of who you were. Now they're just a reflection of how fast you can type something into google or wikipedia. You used to have to actually put effort in and really get down and dig. Now you don't have to do anything. It's all right there in front of you, ripe for the picking. This sort of touches on some aspects of an article that Ryan McKenney wrote a few weeks ago that I really enjoyed (it's a good read and I suggest you take the time to check it out). People not putting the time and effort in and being more concerned with getting those great seats at a sporting event and tickets to the latest flick instead of getting out and supporting something that they claim to love, and that actually NEEDS their support to stay afloat. This is sort of the classic example of the weekend warrior within underground culture. They want to take the tidbits that they're comfortable with and be involved when it's convenient for them. I believe that when looking at the big picture, that sort of thing is harmful to the cultural aspect of underground music.

On a larger scale, records coming back is probably just a passing fad. I used to not feel that way, I used to think that maybe they could actually come back on a grand scale. But I really just don't think it's possible. The reality is that the majority of people are lazy and careless. Right now within mainstream culture, records (and also cassettes on lesser level) are "cool" and "hip" and "making a comeback", but not something necessary to listen to music anymore. Things that are "cool" and "hip" go out of style. Things that are necessities stick around because people have no other choice. Records no longer serve a necessary purpose for your average, mainstream, music consumer. In 15 years cd's will be "retro" and thus "cool" and "hip" and "making a comeback" again. They're all bullshit passing fads, not a revolution in the way people look at music. The mass of people don't give a fuck about ideals or preservation and aren't going to cling to something that's expensive and makes life/listening to music more difficult after it's not "cool" or "hip" anymore. Especially when there's an easier option right in front of their faces.

I'm a huge supporter of music as a physical medium and I've stated that many times in this blog. To get to my end point, the underground needs to burrow further down and I believe that physical medium is one way to do that. In this day and age when every aspect of underground culture is accessible to every asshole on the internet, I think it's important for the underground to hold tightly to physical mediums as an attempt to burrow further away from the mainstream and the weekend warriors (because again, their fixation with phyiscal media will be over in a few years and it'll be a downloading feeding frenzy). It's a way to limit the access of our culture to the people that truly have their hearts and minds in the right place. It's also a way to slow down the information overload and allow time for reflection and appreciation of art/music.

So I guess to sum up, the internet and downloading aren't killing music. People thought the same thing about records ("people wont go out and see music anymore if they can listen to it at home") and cassettes ("people will just tape everything and stop buying music") when they first came out. Evolving times might change the way people hear music but they can never kill the artistic spirit. The desire by true artists to make true art is something that very few things in this world can stamp out all together. But I do think that the internet/downloading is aiding in the destruction of the culture of underground music. It's allowing people that don't care to have access to our culture and to hurt our culture. As I've said before, what makes underground culture so unique and potent is it's self-imposed exile from the mainstream. We can't ever give that up.

Supporting mediocrity (in all of it's various forms) only leads to...

2010-08-08T11:44:00.002-04:00

...more mediocrity.

Joshua Norton Cabal-Between Two Fires

2010-08-03T21:05:00.006-04:00

Out now on Swim Harder Cassettes.

Noise project of Andrew Nolan (of The Endless Blockade). Unbelievable recording from this long running project featuring field recordings, bass, vocals, found sounds, and extremely well orchestrated harshness. c20. Limited to 60 copies.

$5. Shipping to anywhere in the USA is $2. Shipping to everywhere else is $4.

Click on the Swim Harder Cassettes link over to the right to order.

Everything in the Swim Harder Cassettes webstore is on sale through Friday.

2010-07-28T14:27:00.004-04:00

www.swimhardercassettes.com

Trying to get a little extra loot together for my next two releases. Sale ends Friday at midnight. Moutheater titles are included in the sale.

Upcoming:

Joshua Norton Cabal-Between Two Fires
Joshua Norton Cabal is the noise project of (ex)-Shank and The Endless Blockade member Andrew Nolan. I have the tracks and they are incredible. More details to come.

Panther Modern-Satanic Logic
Featuring members of Philly based black noise band T.O.M.B. I'm being told this release will come with religious propaganda. Should be very interesting. More details to come.

Tonight:

2010-07-25T10:09:00.004-04:00

Moutheater (If you're reading this blog then you already know.)
Pharoah (Friends from NJ, members of The Banner, new tape on Free Cake.)
Surrogate (Heavy VB punx.)

@ The Candle Haus
Fairfax, VA (Washington DC suburb)
5pm $5
Sunday July 25th
I've head talk of a keg.
Hit me up on email (posted over to the right) if you need the address.

Swans Tickets/NYC Music Scores/Moutheater Recording Update

2010-07-18T12:19:00.007-04:00

I have Swans tickets!!! Enough said.

/////

I was in NYC again this past weekend to take care of a couple of things. I hit Hospital Productions and Generation Records. I didn't have any luck at Generation unfortunately but I grabbed a bunch of stuff at HP:

LP
The Endless Blockade/Unearthly Trance-split

Cassette
Raspberry Bulbs-Lone Gunman
Immaculate:Grotesque-Once Proud
Whorebutcher-Libertine

CD
Carlos Giffoni-Arrogance
Carlos Giffoni/Prurient (collaboration)-Heavy Rain Returns
John Wiese-Circle Snare (Limited Edition version w/ book)
John Wiese/C. Spencer Yeh (collaboration)-Cincinnati
John Wiese/C. Spencer Yeh (collaboration)-New York/Atlanta
Alvars Orkester-Organic Woodtrip (in handmade wooden box 174/200)

I grabbed a neat little book of Warhol stuff from the Museum of Modern Art too.

/////

So Jeb and I have both been out of town (separately). While we were gone, Tim re-recorded his drum tracks for the new Moutheater record. This puts us a little bit behind schedule because Jeb will have to re-record his bass tracks but I think it'll be for the better. We're doing bass and guitar on Monday and Tuesday.

I enjoy hiding the things that are important to me...

2010-07-12T14:06:00.001-04:00

...from the people I hate, almost as much as I enjoy sharing them with the people I love.

Drums and Bass are done...

2010-07-11T18:15:00.003-04:00

...I track guitar in about a week. If time permits then I'll get my vocals done then as well. Then there's backing vocals and we'll be done tracking. I'm hoping we'll have this fucker mixed and mastered sometime in early August.

Recording for the new Moutheater record...

2010-07-08T09:10:00.002-04:00

...begins today.

I drove up to Baltimore to see Wolf Eyes last night...

2010-07-07T13:27:00.002-04:00

...and they were incredible.

4 Things

2010-06-26T11:21:00.004-04:00

1. The show last night was one of my favorite local shows that I've played/been to in quite some time. Cough and Balaclava were great. Hopefully there will be more to come. This area needs some re-invigoration and diversity.

2. I went down to NC to see The Bastard Noise a few nights ago and they were incredible. Catch them on this tour if you can. You will not be dissapointed.

3. I made a Swans mix for a few friends who were asking for one. Here is the track listing:

1. I Crawled (from Young God)
2. Sex, God, Sex (from Children Of God)
3. Half Life (from Cop)
4. Coward (from Holy Money)
5. Weakling (from Filth)
6. Cop (from Cop)
7. In The Eyes Of Nature (from Love Of Life)
8. Failure (from White Light From The Mouth Of Infinity)
9. Trust Me (from Children Of God)
10. Empathy (from Soundtracks For The Blind)
11. Real Love (from Children Of God)
12. Helpless Child (from Swans Are Dead *live version of the song – originally on Soundtracks For The Blind*)
13. Killing For Company (from The Great Annihilator)
14. Why Are We Alive? (from Various Failures *alternate version of the song – originally on White Light From The Mouth Of Infinity*)
15. I Crawled (from Swans Are Dead *live Jarboe version of the song – originally on Young God*)

4. This is something I posted in another blog in response to a podcast on the relevance of analog media in the digital age. I'm posting it here to help keep my thoughts together:

I finally got a chance to sit down and listen to this. I think having a physical medium is important for many of the same reasons you've stated. I think the internet has made things too easy. It's made more people take art and music less seriously and view it as a casual interest rather than something that they need to put lots of time and energy into.

I collect music on all formats. Vinyl, cassettes, cd's, whatever. I consider myself a music collector rather than a record collector. For me, having the physical representation of the artist's vision and having to take the time hunt it down somewhere is what's important. Not whether it's a cd or record.

One thing that I hate about this recent popularity in vinyl culture is the myths that it's founded on. There's a whole lot of people repeating bumper sticker style slogans about vinyl that don't have a fucking clue what they're talking about. The whole thing about vinyl recordings somehow being better drives me insane because if you own a recording on vinyl that came out in the last 10 years, there's a 99% chance that it has touched digital at some point. Whether it be during recording, mixing, mastering, or at the plant. The idea that all of these records that are coming out right now are somehow more "pure" if you buy the vinyl is nuts. It was converted to digital at some point during it's process of ending up on wax if it's anything that has come out recently. So how is listening to something that is the equivalent of playing a cd into a record making machine any better than just listening to a cd. It's digital in either case?

Vinyl is cool, and I love records but they don't sound "better". They sound different, and you can like that difference all day long but they are, in the grand scheme of what you're hearing, an inferior version of the recording. The closest thing you can get to what the band heard coming out of the moniters at the mixing desk is gonna be a cd, as uncool as some people might think that is.

Steve Albini has an interesting take on this. He believes that analog is important because it's more permanent, not because of any of the warm, fuzzy reasons that most people claim to like analog. Audio computer files have to be constantly updated. A reel or record does not. We'll always know how to play a record. There's no wires for it to get lost in. It's physically engraved on that record.

For me, the idea of losing the physical medium all together is what's scarey. Vinyl vs CD doesn't matter because like you said, one day people are gonna sit around getting nostalgic about cdr demos haha. Whether it be a cd or a tape or a record, the important thing is the process of obtaining and learning in a way that takes time and energy rather than a click on the mouse pad.

Tonight:

2010-06-25T11:00:00.003-04:00

I haven't mentioned this on here yet...

2010-06-15T17:19:00.004-04:00

...but "Colonial" will be a 4 song, 45rpm, 2 sided, 12inch, EP. The total running time of the record will be somewhere around 18 or 19 minutes.

There's talk of a coinciding t-shirt.

The artwork for both will be done soon.

Another Debris Amour track...

2010-06-14T16:24:00.001-04:00

...used in one of my friend Nathan's short films. NWS. Check it out here.

Recording for the new Moutheater record...

2010-06-13T17:50:00.003-04:00

...("Colonial") begins on July 8th and ends when Tim and I have a mental breakdown during mixing and mastering. More details to come.

Another Music Buying Extravaganza

2010-06-12T22:22:00.005-04:00

Had to make a quick trip up to New York City to handle some stuff this weekend. Picked up some gems in the process.

Sometimes I debate whether to make these posts or not because it's not like they combine to make a definiteve list of my overall music consumption or anything. For example I don't make a post every time I get a new cassette or cd in the mail. I guess these posts are more just when I have a significant find, or when I take a trip where I hit multiple record stores, etc.

Anyway, the list:

12inch
-Black Leather Jesus-Trocar (/100)
-Cold Cave/Prurient (Collaboration)-Stars Explode
-Burning Star Core (feat./ Robert Beatty of Hair Police)-West Coast Spring Tour 2004 (85/300)
-Aaron Dilloway/Carlos Giffoni (Split)-Live At No Fun Fest 2007 (/350)
-John Wiese-Circle Snare
-Swans-Young God

7inch
-Snake Apartment/Landed (Split)-(Untitled)
-Bastard Noise-The R.A. Sessions

CD
-Carlos Giffoni-Adult Life
-Carlos Giffoni-Severance
-Bastard Noise (feat./ John Wiese)-Decent To Mimas
-Assholeparade-Embers
-The Body Lovers/The Body Haters (Double Disc Re-issue)-(Untitled)

Cassette
-Tortured Hooker-An Offender's M.O. Can Change. Static And Rigid Remains The Signature.

Tonight:

2010-06-05T08:33:00.002-04:00

"Colonial"...

2010-05-30T09:28:00.000-04:00

...is the title of the new Moutheater record.

Less Is More

2010-05-27T19:10:00.001-04:00

The concept of "less is more" is something that brings a great deal of comfort to my life. For me I need to strip things down as much as I can to create and often even just to live. It's how my mind functions. My guitar rig is as minimal as I can get it, my noise rig is as stripped down as possible, I'm constantly thinking of ways to weed out "filler" from my music collection, etc. I want the things in my life to be only the few essential ones, I want the tools I use in my creative processes to be only the few essential ones, etc.

I think my real need for this sort of aesthetic in my life stems from my overall hatred of the general watering down and over-saturation of everything that means anything (something I touched on two entries ago). I don't need a bunch of extra baggage watering down the things that are important to me. I don't need 500 effects units (or any effects units at all when it comes to Moutheater) watering down my ideas and what I want to express on a record or during a performance, for example. There are those rare gem-like artists out there that can somehow create masterful work with a billion different options and tools at their fingertips but in my mind those are few and far between. For the most part you end up with some over-saturated, over-worked, contrived piece of garbage by some asshole who didn't have any real thoughts in the first place.

For me, it's much more interesting to see what someone can create with almost nothing. I think that's what separates the real artists from the fakes, the men from the boys if you will. I wanna see how your fucking mind works, inside and out. Are you a true creative mind or are you hiding behind a bunch of shit that in the grand scheme of what creativity should mean, is totally obsolete.

When you strip away all of the meaningless non-essentials, the posers quickly fall to the side of the road.

Today:

2010-05-23T00:32:00.004-04:00

Conversations/Ranting

2010-05-09T14:07:00.013-04:00

So I write a lot of my thoughts about underground culture on here and in my notebooks and I'm always trying to consolidate and compile small essay type pieces for my own sanity and just to try and keep my ideas/ideals focused. What you're about to read are two public conversations that I had with friends on the ole' interweb. The reason that I'm posting them is because they contain a lot of thoughts of mine that I've been trying desperately to consolidate into one piece. Every time I try and create that one piece though, I don't feel like I get the point across as well as I did when I was in the heat of the moment during these two conversations. Both of these have been chopped down a little bit so as to weed out un-needed information and personal stuff.

The first conversation started as the result of someone posting a link to a preview of a movie called "To Have And To Hold" which is a documentary about vinyl culture:

Me: Gonna check this out when it hits Netflix/The Naro. My only real problem with movies and books like this is that they tend to get presented in a way (as this appears to) that feeds into this culture of people that don't really have any real interest in preservation or underground music culture. They just buy records because a movie made it look "cool".

Friend: I agree with that mentality except- isn't that better for music overall? (When it's facing death) Maybe those posers will learn in time to become real contributors.

Me: I definitely see the side of it where maybe if 1,000 people get into it because of a movie or something then maybe 4 or 5 of them will actually stick with it. But I also have a "glass half empty" sort of outlook on this. False culture (or whatever) just sort of feeds more of the same. For instance, saying that this current "hipster" movement thing that's going on is good for underground music because it's better than nothing and/or maybe a few of them will get a clue doesn't really appeal to me because overall it's bad for underground music culture. Sure a few kids might end up getting it "right" but there's gonna be a lot more that don't. All of the idiots running around crucifying independent culture and all of it's ideals so that they can have a fun Saturday night (as innocent as that might seem to some) are really dragging it through the mud right now and over-saturating it with bullshit.

Friend: I pretty much agree. Although I'm generally more 'half full' and don't subscribe to the 'exclusivity' mentality, watered down opinions on stuff people halfway care about doesn't really do anything for anyone.

Me: I literally talk about this stuff with Ryan and a few others for hours on end haha. I feel like "exclusivity" (or any variety of other words) is what keeps independent culture potent. I feel like a large portion of punk is really watered down right now and truthfully it's because a "hey everyone, come on in" attitude has allowed a lot of people that don't really have their heads in the game and are sort of half assing everything to trample all over it and take whatever tidbits they're comfortable with. They just want an easy "cool" factor without all of the hard work. And really, with this sort of culture you're either in or you're out. Weekend warrior status=might as well not be involved at all, in my book. I'm a grouchy bastard though.

Friend: That's one thing that I actually totally agree with, when it comes to punk and hardcore. The hardcore tourism blows.

Me: Well and that's why a lot of people half jokingly say that the internet is ruining underground culture. It's made every detail of information available to everyone to manipulate however they see fit and it's also created this culture of people that don't do anything but somehow feel that they have something valid to contribute because they're on a messageboard. People no longer feel like they have to go to shows, books shows, play in bands, put records out, etc to be an active member of the underground. They can just hop on the internet.

The second conversation started as the result of a friend posting a link to a blog entry he had written about why punk and hardcore seem so watered down right now:

Me: Underground culture has become too open and allowed too many people that don't have their heads in the game (so to speak) in. In my opinion, this sort of thing waters the culture down as a whole. Underground culture isn't meant to be a casual interest in my opinion and that's how a lot people are treating it. "One foot out of the tub."="Why are you even involved?" as far as I'm concerned. If you wanna do this then great but make it your life, not a hobby for when the game isn't on. Exclusivity (from the mainstream in particular) is what keeps underground culture potent and meaningful.

The internet is also a huge factor in the laziness of current underground culture. It's bred this entire sect of people that no longer feel like they have to put records out, play in bands, go to shows, book shows, or be involved in any tangible way to feel that they're a part. They can just download a few records, read Wikipedia, and post about it on a messageboard.

Friend: Nice. I'm glad you chimed in on this. I think I understand your point but I want to make sure. Could you be a little more specific with the "make it your life" part? For example...do you mean that they need to play in bands and try and make it their job? Or do you mean they need to invest in it and care about it as more than a trite hobby? Or do you mean something completely different?

Me: I mean you need to invest in it and make it a huge part of your life. There are a lot of people that want the "coolness" of underground culture without all of the hard work. I don't think it's ok to come in and just take the little tidbits that you're comfortable with. It's all or nothing, you're either in or you're out. There's no inbetween. All of the weekend warriors are slowly watering down and destroying all of the hard work that so many have put into this over the years. It'll be left meaningless just like the mainstream if this is allowed to continue without anyone calling "bullshit".

A quote about my set from one of last night's show attendees:

2010-05-02T12:05:00.003-04:00

"All that dude did was make a bunch of noise and yell. What a pretentious, self-indulgent asshole."

Tonight:

2010-05-01T09:37:00.000-04:00

Debris Amour-Trapdoor To The Heart

2010-04-18T12:06:00.007-04:00

Up for pre-order now. Ships May 28th. 8 tracks. c40. Edition of 50 copies. Large fold out collage copy art insert.

Over on the right hand side of this page there are links to the Swim Harder Cassettes site and the Debris Amour myspace where you can pre-order and hear tracks.

My friend Nathan...

2010-04-14T17:32:00.009-04:00

...used some Debris Amour material in a short movie he made which you can see here. He is also the person that did the photography for Ornament. His photography page is linked over to the right if you care to see more.

New Moutheater EP

2010-04-13T16:09:00.000-04:00

Moutheater will be releasing a new EP this coming fall/winter. Last Anthem Records will be releasing the as of yet untitled EP. It will be on vinyl for sure, record size will be determined once the tracks are recorded and we see what we're working with. Most likely either 10inch or 7inch. Recording will most likely take place in June/July. More info to come as the months progress.

Debris Amour News

2010-04-09T13:16:00.002-04:00

There are some new tracks on the DA myspace. They're from an upcoming cassette called "Trapdoor To The Heart" that's coming out on SHC. It's a c40, 8 tracks, edition of 50 copies, and it'll be up for pre-order at the SHC site within the next week or two.

Something from one of my notebooks and that I've posted elsewhere but that I think needs to be posted here as well:

2010-04-08T10:18:00.005-04:00

Underground culture is important because it's a haven away from certain things. When those certain things are allowed to creep into underground culture, they hurt and cheapen it.

Tonight:

2010-04-02T06:18:00.003-04:00