Fat Wreck Chords founder and NOFX front man Fat Mike had a pretty sweet announcement last week:
Things I learned going to Ireland: Don’t order Bushmills in Dublin. Don’t order Jameson in Belfast. Don’t drink too much on the ferry, or too little, cuz either way, you will get sick.
Oh, this is the important news: the NOFX record comes out today. What’s more important is that it will be priced under $10 in every store in North America. This is not a sale. This is how much this CD costs, and not only that, but EVERY CD on Fat Wreck Chords will now be under $10 and most will be under $8.
No, we are not crazy. We just think that having a very low CD price is a fair way for scene supporting music fans to support their favorite independent bands and labels. Sound crazy? I think it sounds reasonable. We make less profit, but bands hopefully will sell more CDs to more people, which is why we started doing this in the first place.
Ok, I’m off the ferry now, but still seasick. I think this whole island might be floating.
Cheers,
Mike
If only everyone else out there in the music indrusty world would follow his lead…
I am sure it is safe to say that there was a lot of ringing going on in the ears of many fans who attended the Mastodon show at the Beachland Ballroom in Cleveland, OH. Of the hundreds of shows I have attended in my time, this was by far one of the loudest. The show was sold out, and had been for months, so needless to say there were a lot of excited folk in the house.
When I first heard that Atlanta heavy metal / prog rock artists Mastodon were going to be playing at the Beachland Ballroom with special guests Intronaut and Kylesa, I knew it would sell out quickly because of the smaller capacity venue. Sadly I was not able to get a ticket in time and I really thought that I was going to miss this show. As luck would have it someone reached out to me with an extra ticket. Matt, you are my hero.
Before I even continue I need to make it clear that I am “one of those fans” meaning that I am not a long time Mastodon fan. I have heard of them since they started and checked out their material but it was not until Crack The Skye that I really started to appreciate them. Since the release I have collected the band’s entire catalog and realized what I had been missing. Call me what you want, Crack The Skye is still my personal favorite album by the band so one could imagine my excitement to witness the entire album being played start to finish with no interruptions.
My two friends Shannon and Josh from West Virginia had mentioned they were making the 4+ hour drive to see Mastodon and that they had purchased tickets earlier. We decided to meet up and attend the show together. After many hours of showing them around Cleveland (My Mind’s Eye was a fav stop for them) we finally arrived to the Beachland Ballroom three hours prior to showtime. We arrived early to meet up with Matt and also check out Music Saves as well as other shops on Waterloo.
Brann & Shannon
As luck would have it members of Mastodon, more specifically Brann Dailor the drummer, and guitarist Bill Kelliher were checking out Waterloo Ave, mostly looking for some food. Shannon spotted Brann while we were shopping inside Music Saves, and being the huge fan she is she took off out the store and was able to get the ultimate concert souviner, a photograph of her and Brann. Brann was more than kind to pose with her and even thanked her for having the picture taken with him. Shannon’s day was complete and the show hadn’t even started.
Metal fans young and old filled up the Beachland Ballroom at a quick rate and Intronaut began the show to cheering fans. Having never heard their material before I got a kick out of how they would throw in almost jazzy sounding instrumental breaks in between their brutal heavy metal playing. Sadly they only knocked out a couple of songs and left the stage leaving some of the fans wanting much more.
Kylesa was up next and having never heard them either I was not sure what to expect. While the band set up Josh noted that there were two drum sets on stage and in no time the sludge metal act were hammering out songs impressing me and my out of town concert buddies. I loved how the singing duties revolved around the stage while the duel drummers almost seemed to out drum one another. I’ll be checking this Georgia act out some more soon.
The crowd in the venue seemed to double just before Mastodon took stage. Just prior to them doing so I was able to exit the Beachland Ballroom and hand off a ticket to Adam who had to work late but managed to meet us there just in time. We all found a spot just in front of the soundboard and planted out feet for what was to come.
It seemed that Mastodon came to Cleveland to do their job and then leave. They never said hello, they just picked up their instruments and began playing “Oblivion”, the first song off of Crack The Skye. The stage was clear of distractions with the exception of a giant screen hung behind them. During the performance, strange visuals were propped up on the screen showing black and white images that reminded me of something H. P. Lovecraft might have written a story about with helmeted warriors, wizards, and fair maidens as well as a cosmic atmosphere.
The band members some bearded and messy haired, minus drummer Brann Dailor who is more of a clean cut chap, were not there to entertain, they were there to perform. The band collectively kept concentrated while executing their latest masterpiece to the fans and did so very well. The band continued playing until the album was covered start to finish and then left the stage for a break. Hearing the entire album played live was just incredible.
While on their short break a great Mastodon album cover morph animation displayed on the screen that kept repeating itself almost hypnotizing the fans making them scream louder and louder for the metal band of the night to continue their performance.
The band returned to stage and offered a selection of tracks from their past albums Blood Mountain, Leviathan, and Remission. The songs were much faster and, to some, were songs fans came to see. Even if I am “one of those fans”, I enjoyed what I heard and a couple of the tracks were familiar to my ears. I was enjoying every eardrum destroying moment and felt cheated when the band finished their final song and exited stage. I was selfish and I wanted more.
Considering the band will be touring with Metallica this summer I think it is safe to say this is the last time Mastodon will play smaller venues. I am glad to have been a part of a more intimate show that evening as were everyone else surrounding me. It was a top notch performance by an up and coming metal band I have the feeling will be going places in the music world.
Here’s a video a fellow concert goer took of Mastodon opening the show with “Oblivion”. Not the greatest quality but it should give you a taste of what I experienced that amazing evening:
This is a huge annoucement!!! Coheed & Cambria were hinting about something good today on their Twitter account…
Coheed & Cambria were selected by Heaven & Hell (Ronnie James Dio, Tony Ioomi, Geezer Butler, and Vinny Appice) to join them for a summer tour.
The following comes from a Sony Music announcement:
(May 4, 2009 – New York, NY) Coheed and Cambria, the progressive rock outfit who are recording their fifth album, are also spreading their wings by playing to new audiences in 2009 creating more visibility in the metal world, as well as the jam and indie circles more than ever. Earlier this year, the band supported the heavy metal juggernaut, Slipknot, and now mix that with varied festivals such as Mountain Jam, Bonnaroo, Lollapalooza, and Austin City Limits it’s hard to find a current band that can stretch those kinds of boundaries.
There is another reason for Coheed supporting H&H. Black Sabbath (Dio version) was Claudio and Travis’ favorite group growing up, and Claudio’s very first concert – at NY’s Beacon Theater in October of 1992. “The night would prove to be one of the most influential of my life. I got the overwhelming feeling that the whole stage was alive–the lights seemed to be as controlled by the sounds as everyone there, and I would exit the venue that night with a fire lit under me.”
Seventeen years later, the band shares the stage with their mentors.
HEAVEN & HELL TOUR DATES
8/07 – Vancouver, BC – Thunderbird Arena
8/10 – San Jose, CA – Event Center Arena
8/11 – Los Angeles, CA – Greek Theater
8/12 – Phoenix, AZ – Dodge Theater
8/14 – Albuquerque, NM – Journal Pavilion
8/15 – Denver, CO – Red Rocks
8/18 – Cincinnati, OH – PNC Pavilion
8/19 – Chicago, IL – Charter One Pavilion
8/21 – Detroit, MI – Meadow Brook Pavilion
8/22 – Cleveland, OH – Nautica Pavilion
8/23 – Baltimore, MD – Merriweather Post Pavilion
8/25 – New York, NY – WaMu Theater @ MSG
8/27 – Wallingford, CT – Chevrolet Theatre
8/28 – Boston, MA – Bank of America Pavilion
This is going to be a unique show for sure and I am planning on checking out the Cleveland stop. I’m shocked to see the Cleveland stop is being played at Nautica, a smaller venue than the last venue that Heaven & Hell played at. This show will be selling out so make sure you get your tickets as soon as they go on sale.
I have a feeling many of the Heaven & Hell fans are going to be asking why Coheed & Cambria was chosen and not another metal band… After all the last time I saw Heaven & Hell tour a few years back, Machine Head and Megadeth opened for them.
I think that once Coheed & Cambria takes the stage in front of those questioning fans and dish out a few songs they will not wonder anymore. Live Coheed is amazing and I am hoping will be appreciated by Heaven & Hell fans.
Heaven & Hell released their first album in 17 years titled The Devil You Know.
Coheed & Cambria recently released Neverender a box set of a live show they played in NYC last October where they played four nights, each night playing an entire album start to finish.
Not too many bands out there would make fun of the struggling music industry by naming their latest release after what CDs are almost becoming, but NOFX had no problem doing so. After just celebrating their 25th anniversary as a self-regulating punk-rock foursome, the band has just released a new album entitled Coaster on CD (as well as the limited edition Frisbee on vinyl).
This is the band’s eleventh studio release under front man Fat Mike’s self created label Fat Wreck Chords. The CD is almost like a career journey with taking some sounds of their younger years with a harder rough feel but also incorporating their current more mature style making for a well rounded listen.
In the beginning NOFX was more of a hardcore, skate-punk, disorder band of the eighties. Throughout the years they added elements of punk rock, pop punk, and even ska into their musical style, almost creating a unique genre of their own. With methods of trying everything once and asking questions later, the band has changed their style on more than one occasion including adding their personal views on America and the government but never leaving out their incredible sense of humor.
Getting wasted and popping pills were things the band never thought twice about nor was what ever spilled out of their mouths. Speaking their mind about religion and government were just a couple topics the band was not afraid of singing about and something the fans looked up to. It appears that this time though, perhaps now that GWB isn’t office anymore, the band has decided to focus on the less obvious on at least a couple of the tracks. It might also be that most of the band are now family men who may be still young at heart but getting up there in age.
With just a brief interaction with MTV in the past, the band has always been quick to show their middle finger to corporate marketing and do things themselves. They built their own success without the help of others. Their hard work and dedication paid off over the years as they still remain one of the most important punk rock acts out there.
Recently the band toyed with going commercial as their FUSE hit rockumentary series was released on DVD entitled NOFX: Backstage Passport. The series was a huge hit with many fans old and young as it featured NOFX on one of the craziest world tours in areas most bands would never set foot at. Not even a month later now Coaster has been released. NOFX fans all over the world are shaking with excitement.
The CD started off just like any other NOFX CD enticing the listener immediately with the pop punk powerful “We Called It America”. Next up was “Quitter” which basically nailed all the folk out there who have given up on codependency. At only two songs in NOFX seemed to have not lost their touch at all.
The very personal, and almost tear jerking, “My Orphan Year” talked about the loss of Fat Mike’s parents in 2006 with the death of a non-existent father and the passing of an angel of a mother. The line alone “I bet if you had been there, there wouldn’t be this song” really shows a more emotional side to the band that usually is all about slapstick.
Hands down the funniest song on the CD was “Creeping Out Sara” speaking of Canadian sisters Tegan and Sara. The lesbian punk rock song almost sounds like an actual conversation but the truth remains to be told. Continuing the fun was “Eddie, Bruce and Paul” a fast fun punk rock song with a sick guitar solo and hammering bass. The song has nothing to do in the aspect of “Liza and Louise” as some might suspect due to the three dude title, but is more of an ode to Iron Maiden with a NOFX twist.
“Best God In Show” pokes fun at over exaggerated religious shout outs with a more ska punk feel backing it up. The song seemed to be aimed at the punk rockers who are growing up and still laughing at the way things are. “I AM An Alcoholic” pretty much sums up the type of song you would expect to hear with a title about addiction. “One Million Coasters” ended the CD strongly with an array of music playing including an bass clarinet. The song slowly faded out ending this first-rate crack of a release.
For anyone worried that Coaster might not be all that, there is nothing to worry about. This CD is really a great listen and NOFX proves that it does not matter how old you are, just how you do it. Even if the band has been around for 25 years they still have it and show no signs of slowing down. They will be doing all that they can to entertain their fans and themselves with every release issued for hopefully years to come. Look for the band this summer as they return to stage at the Van’s Warped Tour once again.
In April NOFX announced a contest of sorts asking fans to create a DIY video for “Creeping out Sara” after the band found this fan made video on YouTube:
The contest has already ended and NOFX is to pick a winner shortly.
