1.31.2010

Helping Haiti @ the V Club in Huntington

To help raise awareness for a pair of benefit shows this week, we're reposting and partially excerpting Parry Casto's message to a few media outlets. The 40 lb. Snapper member has put together a solid benefit show at the V Club this Thursday. Below is his message about the show...

Ladies and gentlemen,

Hey, this is Parry Casto from 40 LB Snapper, a local band in Huntington. As we all know, on January 12, an earthquake measuring 7.0 on the Richter scale rocked the poor nation of Haiti, leaving hundreds of thousands dead and leaving many more injured and homeless. Relief efforts are making their way, but there's still much more that each of us can do to help.

After talking w/the Guthries @ the V Club, I've secured a date to do a music benefit for the survivors of the Haiti earthquake. On Thursday, February 4th, we're planning to put on a music benefit simply called "Huntington Benefit for Haiti."

We've agreed that 100% of all door proceeds and any money raised in raffles will go to directly to the relief efforts in Haiti. I've got seven local bands who've confirmed to play on the 4th and it's shaping up to be an all-star lineup of the Tri-State area's baddest musicians.

The doors will open at 6:00 and live music will begin at 7:00 and will go on until 2 in the AM. Additionally, I've been in contact with local businesses and establishments who've pledged items that we will put up for a raffle and also plan to have FREE FOOD for the patrons and musicians when the doors open provided by local restaurants.

So far, the response has been phenomenal and I truly believe this event will turn out to be something special that all Huntingtonians can be proud of.

(Doors open @ 6:00 with FREE FOOD catered from local restaurants)

THE LINEUP
7:00 - 7:45 Scrap Iron Pickers
8:00 - 8:45 Ladybird
9:00 - 9:45 Mountain Blues Revue
10:00 - 10:45 40 LB Snapper
11:00 - 11:45 Bud Carroll & the Southern Souls
12:00 - 12:45 Genuine Junk Band
1:00 - 1:45 Deadbeats & Barkers
Raffles will be held during each band's set break and will include an assortment of items including: (This will be updated, check back frequently!)

Guitar – Rt. 60 Music Co. (will provide more details when available)
GNC gift certificate - $50
Car Stuff Unlimited - $25 gift cert,
Bobby Pruett’s Steakhouse – $25 gift certificates

Lastly, anybody or any business that is willing to donate items (gift certificates, services, gifts, etc.) please feel free to post on this event's wall or contact me @ (304) 544-1332. The best time to reach me is after 3:30 PM on weekdays and any time on the weekend.

Thanks again!

Parry Casto

Physical Science Teacher
Freshman Academy
Huntington High School
1309 15th Street
Huntington, WV 25701
(304) 544-1332

1.27.2010

CD Review: "Pull"




















CD: Pull
ARTIST: Lake And Ocean

Remember the 1990's? Back when grunge and/or punk were said to have broken? Well, if you're a fan of bands from that era (as we are) you will love Lake and Ocean's five-song debut EP Pull; we're surprised how much we do.

The Magic Town-based indie/shoegaze sextet pulls together some nice Pixies/Sonic Youth-meets-Vaselines (?) grunge-flaked throwback sounding Brit-rock on their debut; what once was old is new again, or, depending on your perspective, never really got old.

The band -- Bryan Newruck (vocals, guitar), Nick Bradley (guitar), Andrew Matheny (bass), John Morgan (keys, vocals), Jill Hess (vocals, percussion), and Mark Samples (drums) -- has more members than songs on the CD yet displays nice writing, rich, full arrangements and production, all in a limited amount of time.

"Madame You" and "Prometheus" ("Who stole the fire, and gave it to these idiots?") open Pull, and by the time you get through the life-affirming title track (evoking Screaming Trees, singing "Pull the gun from your mouth," over and over) and "Two Minute Warning" -- sung delicately by Hess (Hope Sandoval?), and just over two minutes long -- the short, sweet sounding EP (just over 16 minutes long) is almost over.

"Bem Bem Boneca" closes Pull with soft acoustic intro meeting grungy bridges. Local fans of shoegaze may hear a kind of Sinks of Gandy/Red Velvet sound in parts; just a lazy comparison on our part.

While Pull is indeed short, the songs are catchy, the six members do a nice job introducing themselves, the female vocals help set the sound apart, and the CD is definitely worth listening to -- we'd rather hear five songs we dig than 10 we don't. A really good debut from these guys.

mp3: "Madame You" by Lake and Ocean


Powered by Podbean.com

1.26.2010

Lake and Ocean: Playing (and recording) well w/others

It'll come as no surprise to readers of the site that we dig what is referred to as shoegaze. Come to find out, the Morgantown-based band Lake and Ocean were putting out their debut EP Pull, and, from what we heard on their MySpace page, we wanted to hear it.

After landing a copy, we caught up with guitarist Nick Bradley, Jill Hess (vocals/percussion) and drummer Mark Samples to learn more about the band, the CD, their sound, and their perilous snowbound trip to the Sound Factory on December 18th last year.


WVRS: How long have you guys been together/how did you form?
NB: [Singer/guitarist] Bryan [Newruck] and I started a band called Straka back in early 2007 that is was the jumping-off point for Lake and Ocean now. We ran into each other at Black Bear Burritos in Morgantown around lunch and started talking music. We discovered we were both really into Starflyer 59, and that was enough for us to go out and start a band. [Bassist] Andrew Matheny joined up soon after the inception, and is still with us now. We're like a family.
JH: Year and a half. We all played together in one incarnation or another; Straka, PurePleaser, etc.

WVRS: Shoegaze is a style not seemingly all over the local scene; what bands may have influenced Lake and Ocean or how did you guys kind of coalesce around the particular sound?
NB: I wouldn't say we're shoegaze, but yeah, that sound is definitely in the mix. Like I said earlier, Bryan and I both love Starflyer 59, plus I grew up with Swervedriver, My Bloody Valentine, Ride, Yo La Tengo, etc., etc. My writing/guitar style basically reflects all of the classic rock bands like the Who and the Kinks (and their huge guitar sounds) that are my biggest influences, filtered through all that stuff in the 90's that I grew up with. Everybody in the band has very different influences. Probably the only artists we could all agree on as a major influence would be the Pixies and Pink Floyd.
JH: Influences are vast, and not simply limited to "shoegaze." My biggest influence when I started playing in bands were people like PJ Harvey, or Kim Deal in any of her various bands.

WVRS: The female vocals kind of nicely break the sound up; how does that work, kind of sharing the singing (songwriting?) duties?
NB: We're all really, really good friends so there is never any major issues. Bryan and I kind of split songwriting duties, but everyone contributes their own style to the songs.
JH: Bryan and I started playing together via PurePleaser. Historically, Bryan wrote ALL the music in that band, and I just colored between the lines with harmonies. In Lake and Ocean, Bryan and I play off each other lyrically and melodically. However, we all bring something to the table, and our musical backgrounds and personal styles create the sound.

WVRS: Where did you record Pull at, and how satisfied are you with the end result?
NB: We recorded Pull with [keyboardist/vocalist] John Morgan and Roger Glass in various locations in Morgantown; from a friend's art space in a warehouse, to the living room in Andrew's log cabin, to John's kitchen. The record was mastered by Jason Martin (of Starflyer 59) at his studio in Riverside, California. We're proud of the end result, but are really excited to put out another record and try new things.
JH: John Morgan (wizard of music) recorded Pull in his apartment. John put an intense amount of work into recording this EP, and we are all greatly indebted to him, and totally jealous of his talent. The recording was then sent to be mastered, and well, here we are...satisfied indeed!

WVRS: Just five songs, right? Set out to leave people wanting more?
NB: Honestly, I've always been a fan of the EP, and yes, I hope people like it and want to hear more. We hope to get back in the studio in February.
JH: We actually want to record more ASAP. It's a little difficult for us all to coordinate the recording process in a short amount of time due to jobs, our separate cities, etc. Life gets crazy, but we all collectively prioritize playing together as much as possible.
MS: Absolutely! Always leave them wanting more, right? In all seriousness though we just really wanted to take it slow with this first EP and have fun and LEARN this whole process. Since this was our first recording as a group, we really wanted to focus our efforts on these five songs only to make sure they were done right and to our satisfaction. Now that we have completed this EP, I feel we have much more confidence in the recording process and how each of us go about this process to go back and record something on a quite larger scale.

WVRS: Will the CD be available at the 123 and Sound Factory shows?
NB: Yes. $5 bucks.
JH: YES!
MS: Right on -- we will have CDs for purchase at both shows, five bones and you can have us for your listening pleasure all eternity...or as long as you want.

WVRS: How treacherous was the snowbound December 18 show at the Sound Factory; did you get snowed in?
NB: It got pretty crazy that night on the roads! Despite the snow we had a decent crowd. Bryan and I went back to the house through the blizzard, had pasta at 4 a.m., and watched some old episodes of Upright Citizens Brigade with the Librarians guys, and woke up early with some acoustic KISS covers. Exciting stuff...
JH: Snowed in, indeed. The highlight of that storm (for me) was actually being held up with Mark, Andrew, and John. Activities ensued such as sled riding with carpet skates, and drunken nature photography.
MS: That was a pretty wild night to say the least. We were all staying in touch with the whole winter weather advisory wondering if we were going to get a call from the Sound Factory saying that it was not going to open its doors for the night because of the weather. Sure enough it did and there actually ended up being a great crowd of our friends that came down to enjoy the music.

I remember saying to people, "I really appreciate you coming down but seriously do you have a screw loose? There is ice and snow coming down from the sky in mass amounts -- we might run into a Donner party situation here!!!" But it was a fun show, it was getting to jam with all of our friends there and getting to see our friends and fellow bands (Librarians and Thick As Thieves) step on stage in Charleston and really play great shows that made it all worthwhile. And yes, we did make it home -- eventually.

WVRS: You’re coming back to the Sound Factory 2.12 w/J Marinelli; looking forward to that show?
NB: Absolutely! J is a good friend of ours, a great guy, and personally a big influence on me. It's always good to play with J. But don't forget we're also playing with Elephant Child from Harrisonburg, Virginia who are a great three-piece playing straight up rock, and True Colour of Blood who is this guy Eric Kesner from Washington, D.C. who does guitar based dark-ambient music. It's definitely something different for Charleston! All of the lineup, though, are dear friends of ours, we like to play with those we love.
JH: Oh yeah. J Marinelli is always mind-blowing. We're all very excited to play in C-town again, and to hang out with Jay.

WVRS: Any other big plans, goals or shows for 2010?
NB: Record, play out-of-state, and put out another record. That's our focus right now.
JH: We want to venture out more. We're looking forward to setting up shows in Virginia, Ohio, and Pennsylvania soon.
MS: I think our plans are to really make an effort to not only play more shows in general this year but also play more shows out of town and out of state at some other venues with bands that we are friends with, and have fun playing music with. Any time in between we have free we would like to get back to doing more recording.

--- photo: Andy Pickens

1.22.2010

Wizards of Ghetto Mountain: special magic going on in Huntington

Together for just a few months, having played about a dozen shows, the Huntington-based doom band Wizards of Ghetto Mountain prepare to record their debut and play the V Club 1.29 with fellow Huntington rockers Satchell and Beast in the Field from Michigan.

We caught up with the band -- singer Chuk Fowlord (aka Tip Kissinger), guitarist Garrett Babb (aka Lindsey Slohan), bassist Luke Belville (aka Dr. William Weird) and drummer Bob Caution (aka Chong) -- to see where they are as a band and what is up in general...


WVRS: How long have you guys been together as a band?
Chuk Fowlord: Oh man not long. I don’t remember exactly, lol. When the Wizards of Ghetto Mountain started we were originally gonna call ourselves wizzzardhedd. Bobby asked myself to start a doom stoner band. I told him I was down. I suggested Luke Belville because of my work with him in Killbot, another doom band we were in called Thick Mistress, and my graveyard gypsy folk project Sister Scripture. We set out to find a guitarist. We had one practice with Travis Lemon. It was great. He’s an awesome guitarist but, his job prevented him from joining on a full-time basis.

We then auditioned Garrett Babb from local punk rock band Beer for Blood. He fit like a glove and we asked him to join. We then auditioned a second guitarist, Bob Burrito. I was in a thrash crust band called Warhel with him. Our styles clashed so we told him we were going to find somebody else. I suggested Matthew Walters, former guitarist of the Black Knots. Garrett and Walters clicked and he was asked to join the band. Walters played a few shows with us but, it didn’t work out…now we’re gonna stick with just Garrett on guitar and record our debut album for Ulja Factory records outta Pittsburgh

Garrett Babb: I’d have to say we’ve been together for a solid 4-5 months now. I was playing guitar in a small project with Bobby; a quirky, cartoonish punk sounding outfit and it was fun, but wasn’t really heading in any solid direction. So, I run into Bob downtown one day and he asks if I would like to jam with Chuk and Luke and himself that following weekend to see what we could create. I agreed, showed up drunk, and started writing. Our first practice was a blast and we agreed to meet again the following week. Been doing it ever since.

Bob Caution: Chuk and I had talked about doing this since February of last year, and finally found some players that were interested in jamming.

WVRS: How have your shows gone so far; how have you been received?
CF: The shows have been amazing and the reception to the band has been great since our first show. Each show has gotten bigger and more people have been coming to check us out. We haven’t even played 20 shows yet but, we have a three record deal, have shared the stage with national acts Black Tusk on Relapse Records, Black Cobra on Southern Lord, Treasure Cat, who has the guitarist from Karma to Burn, and we’re playing Jan 29th with an awesome doom band, Beast in the Field. We were on the bill to play with Weedeater February 4th, but Dixie Collins blew his toe off cleaning his shotgun, so that’s cancelled. I dunno man but, we seem to be doing great for an up and coming band.

GB: Our shows have gone over pretty well. We haven’t played 10 shows yet, but we’re getting there. Some nights have been sloppy, but we are getting tighter and more into our niche as musicians performing as a sonic force. Our first show was excellent. We weren’t really ready to play but we agreed to play for a friend’s birthday bash. It was at Shamrock’s here in Huntington with Beyond All Hope, The Transmissions, and my old punk band from college, Beer for Blood. Our set was recorded and it still gives me goosebumps when I hear it. I think to myself, ‘Wow. This is exactly what I’m inspired to do with music right now in my life.’

I hope audiences like us. After our last show, an older fellow came up to me, I could tell he was a huge ZZ Top fan. You know how some people have that look? Anyway, he says to me after a firm handshake: “Man! Great set, brother! A lot of your guitar shit reminds me of Randy Rhoads!” That made my night. I bought the guy a shot.

BC: Shows have all been stellar. We’ve already gotten to open up for a couple of national stoner rock acts, which has really been great. People seem to really dig us, we get a fair crowd at shows. Let’s hope that continues!

WVRS: How often do you guys get to rehearse?
CF: Bob lives in St. Albans but he commutes to Huntington to jam with the Wizards. We practice at Castle Brownskull studios and I would like to thank Paul “the sex viper” Weaver for making sure we have a place to jam. He’s been an asset to the scene here and in Charleston for years and is a great dude. We practice and get together to write every sabbath bloody sabbath. Hahaha. We just think it’s the right day of the week to jam.

BC: At the moment, we’re rehearsing at Paul’s house, (y’know from the Dig-Its), and so I drive up each weekend. Not so bad, I got a fuel efficient car!

WVRS: From the footage on your MySpace page, you guys sound hard and heavy; what bands have most influenced ghetto mountain?
CF: Oh man Black Sabbath, Witchfinder General, Sleep, Melvins, Saint Vitus to name a few.

GB: Kyuss. Weedeater. The Stooges. Tweak Bird. Black Sabbath.

Luke Belville: For me, personally, the influence comes from the progenitors of hard rock. You wouldn’t have to try very hard to hear a lot of Geezer Butler, John Entwistle, or John Paul Jones in my style.

BC: Well, definitely the harder-hitting classic stuff; Zep, The Who, MC5, The Stooges, and Black Sabbath of course. Also, stoner rock and sludge bands like Sleep, Boris, Weedeater, Nebula. Shit, Luke and myself like to throw some of our prog style in the breakdown parts of some tunes, and we dig Yes, King Crimson, Mahavishnu Orchestra. We’ve all got influential bands we draw from.

WVRS: When/where are you guys going to record?
CF: We plan on recording a our first full length and having a 7-inch, CD package and a free downloadable EP. We are about to get into pre-production with Bud Carroll, who is producing our record this month at his studio.

BC: Bud Carroll is supposed to produce. Our label rep Darrell set us up with him and we’re stoked he’s gonna be involved. We plan on having nine songs on the initial CD, three or so available for free download. Also, the release of a vinyl 7-inch is in the future as well.

WVRS: Have any of you guys seen or heard Satchell?
CF: Yeah. Satchell rules. We’ve played with ‘em. Mr. Jude is cool as cool can be. Great drummer and you just can’t go wrong with a fat Orange stack. Satchell’s tone kills.

GB: We played with them once before and have a few shows coming up with them in the future. Super nice guys with amazing equipment and talent. VERY loud, just how we like it.

LB: We played with them when Black Tusk and Black Cobra came into town. I felt like a swing band or something because the other bands only had one or two members and we had five at the time.

WVRS: Looks like the 2.4 Weedeater show was cancelled, what happened?
CF: Dixie Collins was cleaning his favorite shotgun and blew his big toe off so the show got cancelled. I am soooooooooooooo bummed about not playing this show. So bummed.

WVRS: So you guys got on Ulja Factory records?
CF: Yes we are. They are an up and coming indie label outta Pittsburgh. Label rep Darrell Workman is an old friend of mine. He got ahold of me on Facebook and told me he heard I was doing some music. I sent him the link to the “Sabbothiom’s Ascent” video on YouTube and we went into negotiations with the label and eventually signed.

WVRS: If the Wizards had any hidden agenda in their lyrics, what might it be?
CF: If there was an hidden agenda in the wizards lyrics it would be bringing Chuk Fowlord weed and hot chicken nuggets to every show. I really enjoy chicken nuggets and would appreciate them being brought to me at shows. Hahahahahaha.

BC: Hahaha, what’s the old adage about sex, drugs and rock-n-roll? Oh yeah, that’s it. I dunno, I guess it’s all about the fun. That’s what music’s always been about for me. I ain’t in this business to make money. If I was, I’d have quit a long time ago.

GB: We are the smoke chalice conquerors.

LB: I’d like to think that the underlying philosophy of the Wizards is the elimination of worry and the elevation of the self through extremely loud sonic vibrations, but the lyrical content is more Chuk’s call.

WVRS: How does being in the Wizards compare so far to previous bands you guys have been in?
CF: Speaking for myself I have been in bands for the better part of 10 years. This band, these guys, are the coolest I have played with. There is a special magic going on and I have a feeling about this band that I have never felt in any other band I have been in. I really look forward to recording albums and touring the world with these guys. There’s no central authority figure in the band; it’s total freedom. We all write and contribute songs and song ideas. None of us is afraid to speak our minds. We have a great working relationship and these songs are amazing and seem to manifest themselves effortlessly.

LB: Not much of a difference for me, except this band’s instantly more productive.

BC: I love each and every project I’ve been in. This is the first one that’s been signed to a label, so that’s a great goal to have achieved! The ride ain’t over yet, ask me 10 years down the road!

--- The Wizards of Ghetto Mountain play The V Club in Huntington 1.29 with Beast in the Field and Satchell
--- Related: Weedeater press release on Dixie Collins shotgun accident

--- photo: Vanessa Bragdon

1.21.2010

The Fox Hunt Won’t Slow Down

To help plug the February release of their new CD Long Way To Go The Fox Hunt will pre-release “Trouble Making Woman” along with a new B-side for download Tuesday the 26th.

The Martinsburg/Harpers Ferry-based bluegrass/roots rock act will tour the Southeast heavily in the coming weeks and months as part of their Colonel Records release tour, so look forward to hearing new music -- live or downloadable -- from these dudes.

--- photo: Ashley Hoffman

1.18.2010

Be Skip Cromer's Roadie For a Day

To celebrate their reunion shows in March, Byzantine has announced a special contest for the "hardcorest" Byz fans. You, yes you can enter to win backstage, all-access passes to one of their Charleston, Huntington or Magic Town shows, plus, some autographed Byz schwag, for being the biggest Skip Cromer fan.

What do you have to do? All it takes is to send your hilarious and/or outrageous 2-minute or so video clip stating why you should get:

a. to haul Skip's stuff around,

b. likely be berated publicly,

c. and maybe, if you ask the wrong question, slapped in the mouth

d. all of the above

All submissions should go to byzantinebooking@yahoo.com by 2.21, and the winner will be announced 2.22 on Byzantine's MySpace page.

Enter now; who knows, you could be Skip's roadie, maybe even get to see Burt Reynolds Death Metal at the V Club!

1.13.2010

Straight Outta Dayton, Legbone

We’ve made a few jokes about Ohio on this blog -- the drivers, the worthless nuts and such. But sometimes we love a Buckeye State band so much we just have to put a post together.

Such is the case for Dayton punk band Legbone getting the follow-up to Different Path (which we loved) out. They’ve just uploaded new songs -- “California Screamin’” and “Pains” off It Leads To Poverty on their MySpace, and while we were rocking them out, we stole a pic, wrote some words, and no, not yet, haven’t heard the new one, but for people who may have at one point in their lives loved Bad Religion or Pennywise, this band is for you.

The band has a few shows coming up in Ohio (naturally) and Indiana, so catch ‘em if you’re in that area. And if you just happen to like their version of punk, buy the CD -- it’s just $5, which will not lead to poverty.

Related: 12/4 Dayton Daily article on Legbone

1.11.2010

Honky Tonk Tuesdays @ the V Club

Do you go around telling peope you're "Waay more Country" than they are? Do you have a fetish for vinyl?

If you answered yes to either of the previous questions you should love Tuesdays at the V Club in Huntington, as Paul Weaver and Bob Caution bring their record collection back, right in time for it to thaw out.

1.10.2010

More than one Larry: Todd Burge's blast from the past

We're not on Facebook, but if we were, we would've heard about Todd Burge setting up a page for his old band The Larries a few minutes sooner.

"Old" as in 1985, before the internet. We know we're not the only one with the Burge urge, and think fans might want to check out the mp3s, old pictures and show flyers he's posted.

This is a very cool idea for bands who may have pre-dated the whole www/Twitter revolution thing; RFC Rudy is frequently plugging bands from back in the day, and we'd love to see more flashback pages set up whenever possible.

Kudos to Burge and check out The Larries page he's put together.

1.05.2010

Ten In 2010

10. David F. Bello tribute compilation

Just heard about this, and it sounds cool. Check out the link.

9. Lake and Ocean CD release

Ever heard of shoegaze? Dig it? Maybe you should check out the release from these Magic Town dudes, then. We’d look forward to rocking it.

8. The Gentlemen St. Patrick’s Day show @ 123 Pleasant St.

No way in Hades we’re making it to Morgantown, but, if you’re anywhere near, and you’re into the whole Celt punk thing, by all means go to this show! Whether you like Killian’s or Guinness, or, a black and tan, maybe, you’ll love The Gentlemen!

7. Byzantine back doing shows (w/BRDME)

The widely and critically acclaimed Charleston metal band returns (without a label) for a few area shows in March, one, with Skip Cromer’s Burt Reynolds Death Metal Experiment, which, last we heard, has a CD (and action figures?) in the works.

6. The RenfieldsStalk and Slash Splatterama Pt. 2

From what Vincent told us, this EP was near release in late 2009, and, judging from everything they’ve ever done, we’ll no doubt love this release. Maybe look for Team Transylvania to take a turn for the hardcore punk on this release, maybe.

5. Black KnotsNone More Fresh

What would’ve been a near 20-song Guitarmageddon CD was broken in half, and may mark a bit of a departure from the Knots’ gnarly sound and attitude. Maybe not; we’ll just have to wait and see what comes from these Huntington dudes.

4. Bud Carroll & The Southern Souls play Mountain Stage

It looks like Carroll and crew impressed the right people (no, not us), as they’ve been invited to play the long running, prestigious NPR show in February. They’ll no doubt impress a lot more fans with their bluesy, soulful Southern rock stylings. Maybe this will be their last show, who knows? Better make some more copies of Wasted Words & Best Intentions, though.

3. Billy Matheny CD release

In response to our baseless allegation/hope, we now have independent confirmation of a follow-up to Born of Frustration, due out sometime later this year. While Matheny has been busy helping out in Athens, Ohio’s Southeast Engine, he told us recently that, indeed, he’s still rockin’, and looking forward to getting this out. We’re looking forward to hearing it.

2. Jeff EllisThe Forgetting Place

The Logan native, Huntington resident, MU student, Army Reservist and Mountain Stage NewSong winner comes home to release the follow-up to Covering The Distance, our favorite CD from way back in 2008. We’ve already got hooked up with a burned copy, and look forward to March, when it’s s’posed to drop for real. Like Matheny and Carroll, Ellis has cemented himself in the local rock god pantheon in the last few years, and on the new CD, will no doubt continue to impress, regardless of who’s marketing his music.

1. J Marinelli’s Pre-Emptive Skankery

Looks like 14 tracks on the new one (a few you may have heard), recorded by Mark Poole, due out this spring. If this is as good as Keep It Fake, look for this to be at or near the top of our best of 2010, contingent, of course, on us getting the CD, the internet still being around, and us having electricity. Even though Marinelli isn’t technically a West Virginia resident anymore, Kentucky isn’t as bad as Ohio; once a Mountaineer always a Mountaineer, and we still love his angry one-man band.

WBG w/Nagato @ Yesterdays 1.8 CANCELLED!

Looks like Nagato is back doing shows, as they'll make the short drive to our state's original das capital to rock Yesterday's with WestbyGod, as the flyer above clearly shows. Hard rock show.

1/8 UPDATE: Show cancelled due to inclement weather