New '85 Flood CD "Junkbone" out Oct. 16

Sometimes we're glad we signed up on MySpace. Really.

And this is a good example of why; just got advance word on the new CD from Magic Town's '85 Flood called Junkbone. It's not anything you wouldn't know about if you were friends with the Flood on MySpace, the platform that makes us mad more than is good for us.

But sometimes we're able to find out about cool stuff on there; look for the CD soon, and why not check out our chat with Flood frontman Aaron Hawley from back around his birthday in May?

That's a question, so we put a question mark at the end, but it's not a rhetorical question. Check out the post, find out where the Flood recorded at (where most Morgantown bands do) and look for us to hopefully snag a copy of this here CD.

Bud Carroll: Legendary (Guitar) Hero

You’ll have to forgive fans of Bud Carroll for being excited about any new music he’s putting out. And you’ll have to forgive those that cover local bands if they get a bit confused about any new lineup the 27-year old Huntington resident has unveiled in recent weeks.

For a recent show at Shamrock’s in Huntington advertised as The Legendary Heroes, Carroll, who is set to release a new Southern Souls CD in the coming weeks, threw a name out there, just to shake things up a little.

“Legendary Heroes was going to be a different project,” Carroll explained over email. “And I originally put it out there because people were bugging me about a name, and there was a mix-up as to what band was supposed to be booked. Man it’s hard enough to get people out to shows with my history and all of the things I’ve done, let alone go and slug it out under a different name. It keeps me from having to start from scratch every time I want to do something new.”

“I decided it was stupid, and by then everyone had run with it. What can you do, you scamps in the press?”

Any news organization is only as good as the info they get. But with Carroll, whether it’s on a new Southern Souls record, or a new Bud Carroll band (with a different drummer, whatever the name) you can forgive area rock fans for being excited. We recently read Herald-Dispatch writer Dave Lavender rave about the new Carroll release, and that just made us more excited to hear the new stuff.

Carroll and the Souls again made the short drive to Athens, Ohio to record with Eddie Ashworth, who they’ve worked with a few times at this point, as the Souls and with Jeff Ellis. Carroll said recording with Ashworth -- who’s worked with Pennywise and Sublime -- brings out the best in him.

“It was fucking great, he is an awesome dude with a lifetime’s worth of experience making records…we’re lucky to have him in this area, that’s the only situation as in personnel and place, in my opinion, within a few hundred miles where an up and coming artist can make a record that will put them on even footing with someone who is funded by a major record label. He is an avid listener and true fan of music. He definitely pushed me.”

“I feel like the CD is quite a departure, insofar as the sounds and directions the songs took. When I’m at the helm production-wise I have a definite sound and feel that I generally end up with, and Eddie helped me find my way to new places.”

Carroll said we can expect the Southern Souls CD/DVD released locally on Caustic Eye “…by the time school is back in…with some special packaging,” so again, Carroll fans, it’s okay; go ahead and get excited.

Speaking of excitement, back in April Carroll added his talents to a few tracks on the upcoming Black Knots release None More Fresh, helping out longtime friend and Knots frontman Jerry Lee Queen.

“Oh man, it was hilarious. With all respect due to the Knots and Jerry in particular, it was pretty much the complete opposite of working with Eddie. We did it in Jerry’s kitchen, on the oldest Pro Tools set up I’ve ever seen. The recording monitors were like some old JVC home stereo speakers that your dad would have had in like 1984. I think they were stolen from a sorority house.”

“It was like a bunch of people hanging out drinking and partying, and me laying down my tracks was just part of the whole thing. I think Jerry would occasionally kind of rock out super hard when I did something he liked, or offer some direction about being more full on, just going for it, or something really cryptic, but other than that it was like pretty much wide open. Brian Myers was mixing it that night, and they had to have it done that night. He passed out blackout drunk like right after I was done recording my parts. There’s a video of it on YouTube.”

So, it’s obvious to anyone who’s seen Carroll jam live or heard a Souls CD that he’s hugely talented. It’s not up to the press to get someone on a national label, or turn them into some kind of superstar. Carroll’s music will do that on its own.

Even though, Carroll said that he’d love to get his music out on a national stage.

“I’m devoting most of my time to this new band right now, and building a studio, so there will be a release locally, and hopefully a national one. Labels? No one really in particular that I can talk about; I fucking hate getting asked about that shit, cause you always have to explain why this or that didn’t work out.”

“But I still have all of the connections from the Minor days, and so far the responses have been very positive. So, we shall see.”

Jeff Ellis posts songs from "The Forgetting Place"

Huntington's Jeff Ellis recently uploaded a few songs off his upcoming release The Forgetting Place on his MySpace profile.

Even though he's going back overseas as part of his duties in the Army Reserves, and he just played his last show at the V Club last night before heading out, we'll look forward to hearing the new release when he gets back safely.

If for some reason you've been living in a cave with your fingers in your ears and you haven't heard of him, take the time to check his music out; he's one of our favorite area artists.

A Search For Hope (and a new name) -- the Attack Flamingo story

God. Life. Hope. Despair. Atonement. Space.

These are some of the many transcendent influences Huntington electro-rock band Attack Flamingo lists on their MySpace page. But like so many great bands, you don’t need to read too much into what they’re trying to get across; it’s all in their music.

After hearing their debut CD No Star Could Be As Large, we picked up on what these five guys were trying to get across. Not just rocking out in the vein of bands like Radiohead or Muse, but, lyrically, trying to get at something deeper, in a spiritual sense, isn’t surprising considering the band pretty much came together through a Christian ministry at Marshall University.

The band has been staying busy recently; working on their sophomore effort, recording in frontman Sean Knisely’s home studio and floating a few test balloons in the form of potential new band names.

A few of the band members clued us into how the new CD is coming along, how the band came together, and exactly what’s in a band name.

“I get obsessive about music sometimes,” Knisely admitted, “so having control over our own stuff suits us well. If we recorded somewhere else, I’d end up with a huge list of things I would want to change but it would be too late or really expensive…We can experiment all we want. That in itself is a lot of fun, in fact, in its own way the recording process might be just as much fun as playing live.”

“We are extremely excited about the new album,” synth guy Joseph Spurgeon said. “We have been recording and writing pretty heavy. For us the recording process and writing process go hand in hand.”

The band, with a half dozen or so new originals down, plans to release something approaching a full-length before the end of the year.

Sam Hodge, a producer, programmer, and former center snare in MU’s drumline who goes by the moniker Sir-Boy, said recording at Knisely’s home studio isn’t just convenient, but cost effective.

“Financially, recording at Sean’s is a huge plus,” Hodge said, adding that if the band ever got around to actually needing to record live drums they may have to look around but “…because we do have a heavy electronic influence in our music, electronic drums are often used in much of the album work.”

Spurgeon seconded that, noting the creativity that ensues.

“We’re able to experiment and try things that you just don’t have the time or budget for in a studio you have to book.”

“Sean is definitely great at putting tracks together,” Hodge added, pointing out the band’s songwriting chemistry. “Each of us in the band has a different ear and it really helps when we’re trying to tweak the overall sound.”

Tweaking is something you may have heard the band do with some of their songs online, as Hodge remixed a few songs off the debut CD. For a rock band with heavy electronic tendencies, Hodge is a true asset to the team.

“He just gets it, it’s in his bones,” Knisely said of Hodge. “And he really holds us together, running the electronic backing tracks live from his computer and playing drums just explosively…He has an ideal understanding of both the rock and electronic elements of what we’re trying to do, and he has a great feel for balancing the two.”

Spurgeon said Attack Flamingo formed organically out of the member’s ministry work at Marshall.

“Phil (Smith), Marty (Brown), Sean and myself actually met through a ministry at Marshall University called Revolution. We all were leaders in that group and actually played in the worship band there.” Knisely, who had jammed with fellow guitarist Brown for a long time, knew Hodge from their high school days at Cabell Midland.

Regardless of what name they may take, Attack Flamingo wouldn’t have been if not for that elevator to space.

“Attack Flamingo first started as goofy electronic Nintendo-sounding stuff Sean worked on on his computer,” Spurgeon said. “But then we came across a news article about a scientist trying to build an elevator to space.” That article, about a very real (theoretical) project, led to AF’s rockin’ song “The Earth Grows Small Below” on No Star Could Be As Large.

Okay, so why change the band’s name? Spurgeon gave us something approaching a scoop on that.

“So the name was chosen for a goofy video game-like sound. The reason we want to change the name is purely so we can have something that represents our sound. We take our music serious and want a name that is just a little better. The problem in changing a name in a band with five people is that it is hard to agree on anything. We’ve been close several times but just haven’t nailed down the name.”

Spurgeon told us what the new name will not be. Awesome.

“Some close runner-ups have been Cloud City Control and The Ancient Future, but neither are it. What usually happens is we starting kicking around names and before long it breaks down into some of the goofiest and funniest names. I’m partial to Nickel Blimp -- just kidding! But yeah, finding a name is so hard.”

“We don’t have any top contenders,” Knisely added, “because the moment two of us agree that we like a name, invariably the next person will say they hate it. One time we had three people (Marty, Joey and I) briefly agree on Cloud City Control, which I still like, but then Sam and Phil hated it, and Joey quickly changed his mind and decided he hated it too.”

“We’ll find one, it just takes time. We need something that is more representative of what we sound like. Attack Flamingo is a fun name, but it can’t be taken seriously at all, and as a first impression I think it’s pretty deceptive as far as implying what we’ll actually sound like. I’m not saying we need a name that’s 100% serious, just something in the middle that fits our sound better.”

One thing that isn’t hard for these guys is making awesome music, whatever they call themselves.

“Actually the new CD will be a lot different then the first album,” Spurgeon said. “I mean it will still be us but I would say this is going to be much better…this CD will be more accessible. It’s at times more electronic and at times acoustic. In fact, so far there is not a song without the acoustic guitar on it. The album should keep our epic sound but also add even some psychedelic elements.”

“I would like to think that the new stuff will be a bit more rockin’,” Knisely said. ““No Parachute” is another new one that’s almost completely electronic, so that’s a bit of a change, but there will be other songs that are more earthy than usual as well; a couple of acoustic guitar-based songs, for example.”

“This album is not a concept album per se,” Spurgeon added. “It’s not a space theme or story. It does, however have the concept of despair and hope, but each song can stand on its own.”

“One of the songs is called “Nothing” and it’s a feeling we all have experienced in life. The feeling of just being worthless and nothing. If the first album was a search for purpose, this album is a search for hope. We just hope that our music might spark someone to begin their own search.”

Hodge summed up the subtle religious metaphors that permeate AF’s lyrics.

“I would say God is probably responsible for the band being what it is. I can’t speak for the lyrics because that is Sean’s unbelievable talent; he writes songs that have profound meaning but don’t necessarily have to be about God, but can be applied to any person with the mind to interpret them.”

“I think when you’re writing songs, whatever your hope is in is going to show through,” Knisely said. “I want to be genuine and honest in songwriting, and I want to say something significant. However, I don’t want to turn people off by saying ‘Watch out, this is Christian music here; are you sure you still want to listen to it?’”

“That doesn’t mean hiding what I believe, but it does mean thinking hard about how to present it in a fresh, attractive and creative way. I want it to be enjoyable for anyone to listen to, but I also want to make an impact on anyone who really analyzes the lyrics. I want it to be extremely real.”

Regardless of what they call themselves, Knisely said they have their priorities in order and know what they want to do.

“The next steps are to get this CD finished, play way more shows, and see what happens.”

Keel and Co. return to West Virginia this weekend

Since we're such fans of Larry Keel (and Natural Bridge) we thought we'd rip off (re-post) their MySpace bulletin from Tuesday evening, in which they plug their in-state shows over the weekend and give shout-outs to their more North-easterly friends and fans...

Hey Folks,

This weekend we are headed back to the Beautiful Mountains of WV. Friday night we are playing Tomahwaks in St. Albans WV. Show starts at 9pm. Tickets only $8.00.

Sunday we head over to High Rocks Campground in Hillsboro WV for Nettle Fest. Uncle Earl, Black Mountain Bluegrass Boys, Sweety and more. Our showtime is 5:15. Come out early. Plenty of food, fun, crafts and treats.

Big shout out to all the folks from last weekend. We had a blast !!!!! Can't wait to get back to that DAM SHOW!!

Everyone have a great weekand be safe.

LKNB

photo: Positivity Photography

--- and don't think that just because we're cutting and pasting MySpace bulletins we're falling off, as it were. We're truly fans of Keel's rockin' version of bluegrass; if you get to catch 'em live check out their latest CD Backwoods, if they have copies available.

Hard & Heavy: Nagato @ 123 8.25

From Karma To Burn and Treasure Cat to Hovel, and most recently for us, hearing Hyatari’s They Will Surface, some of the best music we’ve heard recently is from bands that create punishing hard rock landscapes without vocals.

For Nagato, while there are vocals on some songs, this new four-piece from the Eastern Panhandle doesn’t let words get in the way. And, surprise -- there is a Hovel tie-in.

Formed from members of Martinsburg-based Vox Populi and Hovel guitarist Greg Ball, Nagato has a demo and some D.C.-area shows in their pocket, a full-length release and tour planned, and, they bring their act to 123 Pleasant Street Saturday night for their first Magic Town show as Nagato.

Former VP guitarist Paul Cogle explained the genesis of Nagato to us over email.

“We knew Greg from his most excellent band Hovel, which Vox Populi shared the stage with so many times,” Cogle said. “Although Hovel is a Morgantown band, Greg lives near us in the Eastern Panhandle. We asked him to jam with us and Nagato began.”

Cogle said that the chemistry with Ball is there, and discussed the extent to which the band has vocals.

“Jamming with Greg is a blast -- we love it! It has been a new adventure working in a band with two guitars, and we’re still finding our way around, but it’s awesome!”

“When we started Nagato, the intention was (and is) for the music to take the listener on a journey of self-exploration and this should not always have to include singing. Really it’s a fine line and kinda hard to explain.”

Nagato, which “formed out of the ashes” of Vox Populi as Cogle put it, has played a few shows in Maryland and D.C. with rocking results, he said.

“…our shows in D.C. (The Velvet Lounge) and Frederick, Maryland (Krug’s) have been well received -- we couldn’t be happier. We have free demos that are available at the shows; they’re limited edition and contain a song that will never released on anything else we put out. July 25th is our first trip to Morgantown -- gonna be a blast!”

Aside from getting the demo down and doing some shows, Nagato has been busy rehearsing every Sunday, writing songs for a full-length they’ll record later this year and have out early in 2010.

“…but first things first: killer songs first!” Cogle exclaimed.

Nagato recorded their demo on a 16-track analog Otari 1” reel-to-reel at Cogle’s studio, where they practice.

“Hopefully if things work out the full-length will be recorded there as well,” Cogle said. “But it’s really important for us to achieve the best sounds possible. So we’ll start there and if we are happy with the results, we’ll continue. If not, we do have a few options that we’ve been talking about, but nothing set in stone.”

The songs you can hear on their MySpace are killer indeed. “South of Sedona,” “Brick by Brick” and “Tora! Tora! Tora!” had us nearly spell-bound. Cogle said that even though Hovel is still around and may be recording soon (which we are all glad to hear) Nagato is no ordinary side project.

“Dude, it’s totally cool to be in this band -- we love it to death! We are all very good friends and hang out as much as possible already. We love playing music together and hope that never changes.

And Cogle did say the possibility is there for a nice tour sometime in the near future.

“We have a few friends that go out on tour all the time (Admiral Browning, Ol’ Scratch, etc.) and we’ve talked about joining them for a week or so. Just gotta be something we all can do and not cause too much stress on our families.”

And in a sense, Nagato is a kind of family for these guys, Cogle said.

“For all the members of Nagato, it’s not a phase or a fad for us. We love music and will never stop.”

High 5's and Hell Yeahs in Charleston

Naming a band is one of the more interesting discussions musicians will have, and deciding to change your band’s name isn’t something to be entered into lightly.

Recently, the Magic Town rockers now formerly known as The Revisionists changed their name to the more awesome sounding High 5’s and Hell Yeahs, for a few good reasons, drummer Brian Persinger told us recently over email.

“…there’s already a major labeled group with the same name. Also, Revisionists refer to those who “deny” the holocaust. Damage control on that is paramount, lol.”

Yeah, well we’ll say it’s time for a name change, then. Good thing they didn’t name themselves Al Kayda, or try to go to Europe as The Revisionists.

The High 5’s came to Charleston this past weekend to record with one of Bud Carroll’s Southern Souls, Jon Cavendish, recording a few songs in his Bassmint studios.

“Recording was a total fucking blast,” frontman Nate Shahan said. “…and despite some technical difficulties that always seem to pop up, we managed to bust out four songs, which we plan to release as our debut EP, sometime in late August or early September -- if all goes as planned!”

Shahan said the High 5's were pleased as punch about the sessions and what Cavendish did for them in the studio as engineer and producer.

“He did an amazing job, and was truly helpful in making our recordings sound as raw as we wanted it to sound. We re-recorded one of our tunes that we have a super-shitty recording of (“Denim Disaster“) and three newer tunes that we decided had to be unleashed onto the West Virginia music scene -- “Life Obscene,” “4’s and 8’s,” and “C.E. Overlords.”

There’s a personal connection between Cavendish and the High 5’s, too, Persinger explained.

“I grew up with Jon and learned a few instruments while hanging out at his house way back in the day.”

Shahan said that the EP at this point is still untitled, but they'll release it at 123 Pleasant Street in Morgantown and sell it for cheap off their site.

And, there exists the possibility of a split release with some unnamed rocker friends of the Hell Yeahs.

“Not giving out the name of the band as of now, but they fucking rule!” Shahan said. Who'd have thought that a guy in a band named the High 5's would leave us hanging there, but we'll look forward to hearing more on the split.

So even though the name has changed, these four dudes are still putting out the punk rock. Hell yeah.

--- check out pics of the High 5's Bassmint sessions on their MySpace

WV’s Got Talent (has been CANCELLED)!

Recently a friend of ours asked us to write up a little blurb plug for him as part of a bio he’s putting together for his company. It’s actually the second time someone’s asked us to string some praiseworthy sentences together for what they do -- you know, like you see on the back of books:

“From start to finish, Legoland Has WMDs is a white-knuckle ride into the third world nuclear bazaar that this once proud country has become since Gen. Blockhead seized power. The author gives a never before seen peek into who’s making the decisions that affect us all, and offers solutions to bring democracy back to those proud, little people. You’d be MAD not to pick up Legoland Has WMDs, and the author’s first book, Who Stole My Yellowcake?”

It’s fun to do, especially when it’s deserved, and we’re flattered that people’d care what we say.

But it made us think deeper about writing our own praise graphs. You see the one about us covering local bands better than everyone; we can’t prove that, but we set out to cover the coolest local bands and we’ve tried our best. So when we see the talent level bemoaned or unfairly dumped on, we at least want people to be right about it.

Our good friends in The Demon Beat were recently named West Virginia’s best new band by something called the Boston Phoenix. When we hear Boston and Phoenix together our first thoughts are about seeing the 1976 NBA Finals on NBA Classic; it’s a confusing name, for sure, but it’s actually based in Boston.

So they named The Demon Beat West Virginia’s best new band, and we don’t dispute that, although the band has been around for more than two years. The band has been to New York, appeared on radio shows, and have been winning a lot of fans all over, so it’s not a surprise that they’re getting noticed.

The Boston Phoenix, in praising Adam, Tucker and Jordan, said that there were only three good bands in the state, total, and now, The Demon Beat is one of ‘em. Congratulations, Demon Beat, we guess. It’s a kind of backhanded compliment, but hey, any publicity is good publicity.

Who are the other two good bands? If you say Brad Paisley and Kathy Mattea, you don’t understand the question. Although technically, Brad Paisley kicks ass.

And you’ve heard of X-Fest, obviously, the annual fest that X106.3 has each year. We recently came across an article Dave Lavender put together in the Herald-Dispatch talking to Erik Raines and quoting “Loud and Local” host Brandon Woolum on the 2009 edition.

So we swing by the X106.3 page and check out Woolum’s page, and after reading his take on Hydrogyn (awesome), Stitch Rivet, VOA, Split Nixon, and LTGH, we were surprised to read Woolum say “I honestly just wish the local stage would go away,” this from the host of the Loud and Local show.

We’ve talked to Woolum a few times and he is ultra nice. In his post he talks about the drama surrounding local bands being picked and “haters” badmouthing him, we’re not doing that at all. While we would love to book something like a loud and local second stage, he is in almost a lose-lose situation, so we don’t envy him there.

Now, just like all jobs, after so long you’ll probably start to hate it, even a radio gig. And, Woolum says that there’s really not much demand for having the local bands play, and there are monetary factors at play; the money that X106.3 pays the local bands could be better used on landing a national act, he says.

But for all the good things Woolum says about the local bands (with the exception of Hydrogyn, and the inclusion of Split Nixon and Jason Mays, whom we’ve also met and is quite the Kentucky gentleman) it sounds like “the X” may get rid of the loud and local second stage. He talks about there being “roadblocks” involved with putting it on.

And even though X-Fest on the whole may not be our thing (we keep forgetting it’s supposed to be mainly a metal fest), and three quarters of the local bands not up our alley, we’d hate to see it not be there for the local bands. Woolum isn’t badmouthing the tri-state’s talent pool, just kind of tired of dealing with it, it seems.

So is the X buying or selling the L&L second stage? We don’t know. We don’t listen to the radio at all, really, and they know better than us the demand for local bands at X-Fest. Our first instinct is to want to support efforts to cover bands in the form of local radio shows (the one we know about), and get ‘em on a big stage if they deserve it.

We try to give the credit where it’s due, and need to go ahead and write that blurb.

Focus on the Flyers: Jimbo Valentine @ Amalgam Unlimited

30-year old Barboursville resident Jimbo Valentine stands in front of his Unknown Hinson mural at the V Club in Huntington

James Alden Valentine III got an early start on his artistic career.

“When I got tested before kindergarten, they told me to draw a picture of myself, so I draw my little blob looking life-form resembling me, and gave it gigantic ears, because everyone always told me I had big ears. That’s the first picture I ever remember drawing.”

Since then, Valentine has definitely progressed as an artist; he has run Amalgam Unlimited, his own screenprinting and design company, for a few years now, and has worked with several rockin’ local bands, making flyers, CD layouts, shirts and merch.

When you’ve asked yourself in recent months who’s made those awesome flyers for Clutch and Karma To Burn, or who it was that painted the big Hank III and Hinson murals at the V, it was him.

You may know him as Jimbo.

He’s been doing a lot of great work, recently designing artwork for West By God's For Glory or for Flames and Treasure Cat, and he said it’s been gaining steam.

“It’s steadily growing and I’ve been doing stuff that I’m really proud of. I still haven’t gotten to the point where I can totally live off of art, but I keep getting some pretty sweet gigs that have gotten me other gigs, so the word of mouth is growing, and that’s a good feeling.”

Aside from a “couple of minor speed bumps involving wheels flying off of cars and stuff like that,” 2009 has been pretty good for him, he admitted over email.

Looking over his stash of gig posters, band art, propaganda and older paintings and art, it’s hard to pick what to include, aside from the flyers. Whether it’s his surrealist, sick apocalyptic collages to the childlike freehand art like Hellijah the Hilljack Rabbit or Overbite Oakley, it’s obvious that he’s been making art for a while, is good at it, and loves doing it.

“I just like making both, in the end I probably make more darker stuff, but I definitely still have that inner child that’s always giving me ideas as well. I’m trying to work up ideas for a kid’s book about a girl named Overbite Oakley. I have three nephews and a niece and lots of friends with kids so that really helps to keep me in tune as well. They are all so fun and random, I love it.”

And just like musicians create music as catharsis, Valentine sees his art. “There’s been times when it has really helped me through some rough stuff,” Jimbo said of his art.

“It’s a good feeling to have someone want to have your art to represent their art. Doing posters for all three of the Karma To Burn West Virginia reunion dates and their London show is a big highlight so far this year.”

Valentine doesn't just make the flyers but also dabbles in making music. Just like making art, he makes his music by himself, in the form of his electronic projects This Drum Machine Kills Fascists (a nod to Woody Guthrie) and Soul of the Phoenix, which will release Astronautical later this year.

“I plan to finish up Astronautical before the end of the year. Never played any of my stuff live, but I think it would be fun to work up a few songs to play at open mic night or something for shits and giggles.”

So you may see Jimbo opening up for a band he makes a flyer for; he said that Huntington is pretty rockin’ as far as shows go.

“The V Club has really put on some awesome shows; the Hank III show that was just there was hands down one of the best shows I’ve ever seen even if it was hotter than hell in there. It made like almost like some kind of religious experience. I’ve also seen some good shows at Club Echo lately. The Karma To Burn show there was epic to say the least.”

So Jimbo and AU are gonna keep moving forward; Valentine will continue to attend Marshall (“I’m thinking about trying to drag it out another 100 years,” he said of his continuing education), he's involved with a Treasure Cat/Sons of Alpha Centauri split called The Last Day of Summer (due out later this year) and be seen at Huntington area shows, like his big murals.

“So everyone should come down, check them out, and enjoy a few tasty alcoholic beverages.”

Big Right Hand's "Flanjam" 2009

Mark Flanery of Magic Town's Big Right Hand laments the lack of rocking area festivals, and says he's gonna try to book his own up in Morgantown -- in his own back yard.

Sounds promising; people taking the initiative to have their own outdoor summer fests.

We actually got hooked up with their Greatest Hits CD, rocked it, lost it, sticking it in some random CD case, but that doesn't mean you can't support Flanjam.

Read more on their MySpace blog, and check out Big Right Hand.

CD Review: "Guitarmageddon"

CD: Guitarmageddon
Artist: Black Knots

On their self-produced sophomore effort Guitarmageddon Huntington's Black Knots seek to redefine what kickass can be over 10 songs in less than an hour. If, in recent months or years, you've asked yourself 'What the fuck happened to rock and roll?' the Knots have the answer, and it's as big as the record's name implies.

From the opening riffage of "The Rapture" to the anthemic, angelic closing of "A Change Is Gonna Come," the Knots -- fronted by out-of-control bassist Jerry Lee Queen and powered by the insane solos of lead guitarist Greg Gatlin -- capture an unparalleled frenetic sound on the CD.

It's too bad that Undisputed Attitude is already taken; would've made a nice alternate title. The phrase pops in your head listening to Guitarmageddon.

Listening to their songs, you're instantly struck with the idea Angus Young started a punk band with James Hetfield or something, influenced by Turbonegro and Supersuckers. As you roll through "Redefining What Kick Ass Can Be," "Steel Rails" and "Bout Fuckin' Time" the Knots take you on their version of a hardcore rock and roll fantasy.

"Gypsy Cobra" and "Tokyo Ho's" are nice surprises, but the band wisely saved the best for last, placing "A Change Is Gonna Come" at the end of the CD. This song stands out with its more melodic power-chord flavor, anthemic whoahs and angelic backing vocals provided by Queen's ex-girlfriend.

Queen sings "And I've been told that a change is gonna come" over a ringing intro before defining what the Knots mean to him -- "kicking ass" and "running wild," living and loving, the good and the bad, all through rock and roll -- all over drinks, naturally.

"These good times tonight we take 'em back," Queen sings before one of Gatlin's huge, soaring solos over the female space auhs. The song is at once an ode to the band itself, and still deftly attempts to be something bigger without seeming political at all. It's just the power of rock and roll.

Where most Knots songs have a gnarly, balls-to-the-wall, plug-in-and-go mentality -- the thought that these guys could have rented all their instruments and would have to take them back at the end of the day, ending everything, emerges -- a hopeful, approachable hit song is the result. A real anthem.

You get the sense that Queen and the Knots don't take themselves too seriously, but when it comes to rock, they're dead serious. You can picture them pulling up at a show in their old school "Gnarly Cobra" van, bringing nothing if not a kickass rock and roll party.

The Knots approach the pinnacle of their craft on Guitarmageddon. They've definitely made progress since Hell Bent To Kick It Out; they've brought guitarist Bobby Balboa in successfully, toured regionally, recorded and produced one hell of a great rock and roll record by themselves, found the favor of a few independent labels, and, with Guitarmageddon it doesn't seem like the end is anywhere near for the Knots.

Focus on the Flyers: Rob Summers @ Willey Works

We’ve been a fan of Rob Summers' art for a while now, having been exposed to his work on his flyers for Morgantown’s West By God, and his drawings at Willey Works, his graphic design company. In the first installment of our “Focus on the Flyers” series, we talk to the 32-year old Ripley native and Fairmont resident about his art, life, work, influences and musical preferences.

WVRS: To open with a personal question: how long now until you’re a proud parent?
RS: Little bear will be here soon, real soon. We made it through this weekend’s full moon, which had me on my toes. This is our first and we are very stoked. We never found out what the gender is, so it’s going to be one of those TV cliché moments where I get to run out and scream “IT’S A _____!” To anyone who reads this, who are planning on having a new baby, heed these words: Do not start remodeling any part of your living quarters.

WVRS: You still working at Cashland Pawn?
RS: Yeah, locally I’m everyone’s best friend and the guy everyone hates all wrapped up in one. It’s a pretty sweet job and there is never a dull moment. Working the family business is always a good thing. It is not the original plan I had for myself by any means, but I have always been one to follow the path that divine intervention lays before me. It’s working out pretty good for me. I try to run that store differently from your stereotypical, shady asshole pawnshop, and I think it really gives us an edge.

WVRS: How old were you when you thought you had the artist’s bug as it were?
RS: From the beginning. I was drawing before I could tie my own shoes. I had one of those dysfunctional, secluded childhoods that seems to produce so many artist and musicians. All through school I rocked every art class I could. I thought my journey to Motown would get me closer to the Art Institute of Pittsburg, but I got sidetracked. After two years of art school here at WVU a certain professor pulled me aside and told me that the “cartoony shit wasn’t going to cut it,” so I bounced and finished with a degree in advertising in 2004.

WVRS: Any particular artists or comics motivate you growing up?
RS: All of ‘em. The comic artists back then all did the house styles of DC and Marvel like they were all just drawing to mimic their predecessors, which was cool but the early 90’s brought fresh new looks that really wowed me. Todd McFarlane, Jim Lee, and all those guys who, at the time, had the new fresh style and broke away to become successful by doing their own thing. Still today I get motivated by everything cartoon I see, from cereal boxes to Venture Brothers.

WVRS: So you’re involved with Notion Comics as an illustrator? Was that through that contest, you just promoting that? How/when did you hook up with Notion?
RS: Notion Comics is the brain child of Swiff Tiny Tales creator Drew Augustin. He threw out some contest just for bragging rights in the myspace community a year back or so. They were cool tournament style competitions that I participated in just for fun. He recently did a shout out for artists and writers on this new project of web comics. I jumped on board just to be doing something different. When all you do is draw for commissions and logos to get paid, it gets pretty mundane and really reflects in your work. I thought this would be a good chance to draw just to be drawing. Notion comics is new and still developing. Drew is a young pup who’s going to go far. He’s rock steady and has more ambition then anyone I know. Hopefully Notion Comics will be a good starting point for us and all the other great artists and writers involved.

WVRS: Looks like you’ve had your art featured by a few folks, who all has used your art?
RS: Ah man, I’m all over the place on the world wide web nets. My portfolio has gotten fairly big over the last few years. One of my biggest one to date would be a logo I did for cheaternews.com. That site got featured on CNN, unfortunately a few months before I did the logo. I do a lot of toons for start up websites, a lot of which go the distance and some that just die within a year. I get a lot of commission work from guys with great t-shirt ideas. They think they can get me to do a piece for them cheap and they will sell tons of shirts. I wish that was the case, I would be loaded. That’s one of the best things about America though, you can promote and sell anything if you just bust your balls and do it right.

WVRS: You do commission work, what are the pros and cons of the bouncing off ideas between you and the client? Headaches or smooth sailing?
RS: Most of the customers I deal with are super cool. I do this stuff dirt cheap compared to going other professional routes. The way I see it I can go work at an advertising agency and make 10-20 dollars an hour while they charge the clients 300-500 dollars a pop for goofy cartoons, or I can do it myself from home and still make my $10-$20 an hour. I have to do it cheap cause there is so much competition out there. Most of my clients understand that and that they will get what they pay for. Every once in a while I will get a real jerk off who wants to run me though the ringer on some $30 cartoon logo. I use to put up with it cause I could always use some spare cash but lately I have learned to just refund their cash and tell ‘em to piss off.

WVRS: You’ve got the “cartoony” animation geared more towards kids and then you have the deviant art section that may include some gratuitous T&A; you get in trouble w/the Mrs. for any of that or is she cool with it?
RS: I got a little burned out on the custom cartoons and logos so I found this eBay niche for people wanting original pin-up comic character art. The way I see it, the day I don’t enjoy drawing large breasted, scantily clad women is the day I hang up the pencils.

I get some really creepy requests sometimes. I once did a cartoon pin up of a transvestite in a two piece bathing suit for a “women with wangs” website. Yeah I’ll do anything for money. My wife is the coolest chick on earth. She knows that the only time I’m really at peace with myself is when I am drawing. I really need it. Drawing soothes the beast within and keeps me from killing everyone in a ten block radius.

WVRS: Then you’ve got the more gory type art, is that just an outlet for your daily urges on using people’s entrails and flesh for practical everyday purposes? Haha
RS: I was one of those creepy kids who drew the shit in algebra class that would make you not want to sit by me at lunch. I still have a very dark side, as we all do, but my art has kind of outgrown it. I still like to do some gore stuff here and there.

And yes sometimes I do want to make flesh capes and skull caps to wear while I dance around with my junk tucked under.

WVRS: You’ve made a few flyers for West By God, got a particular favorite flyer you‘ve made for those guys?
RS: I would have to say the evil coal miner flyer is my favorite to date. It was heavily inspired by Derek Hess, the greatest flyer artist of all times. I would trade a limb for his talent. The West By God guys are great. I enjoy doing these flyers for them, they tell me the fans really dig ‘em too.

They are one of my favorite local bands. For Glory or for Flames rocks. I’m not on the local scene like I was back in the heydays of heavy drinking and womanizing. I would have to say the Weedhawks are my other favorite local band. Bobby and Ruby are awesome and real crowd pleasers. I hope to get back in the mix and catch more shows from them and the WBG boys.

WVRS: If you could make a flyer for any other particular local bands, who would you pick?
RS: I would have to resurrect Who Killed Teacher from the ashes of despair. They were bad ass and talented way before their time.

WVRS: What might Rob Summers do in his spare time beside drawing or preparing for parenthood? Play PS3? Read?
RS: SHIT man, I don’t even have enough time to shower regularly like a normal human. It has been like this for years. I did break down a few months ago and I have started to force myself to relax and do things I used to enjoy doing. Currently I’m am squeezing in time for some PS3; playing Viking Battle of Asgard now. I started watching the Shield seasons and I’m now on season three. I’m also half way through the complete run of the Conan trade paperback collection by Dark Horse.

WVRS: Any particular art projects or work you’re looking forward to this year?
RS: I just want to become a better artist and find my own style. I’m kind of all over the place. I hope to get discovered by someone who wants to pay me for doing my own thing at my own pace. A lot of my customers tell me they are going to have tons of work for me and it never happens or they just want to stick it in me with out even taking me on a date first. My first goal is to finish the web site. I started rebuilding it before all this baby stuff and its kind of in internet limbo.

CD Review: "Stick To Your Guns"

CD: Stick To Your Guns
ARTIST: The Gentlemen

We can remember a few years back a friend of ours was like "Man, you need to listen to Dropkick Murphys" and at first, hearing about the Boston-based Irish-themed punk band, we thought it was all part of some global conspiracy to sell more Guinness and Irish Spring. Or, he'd eaten too much haggis, maybe.

Well, suffice it to say, after hearing so many DKM CDs (we bought the DVD!) we understood the power of mixing punk rock and traditional Irish music. We ended up playing "Forever" at our wedding, and have taken up saying that we're "way more Irish" than others.

All this matters because hearing the hugely anticipated (by us) sophomore effort and full-length debut Stick To Your Guns from Magic Town's resident eight-piece Celt-punks The Gentlemen not only reminds us favorably of DKM, but this band has the richly textured, softer side (with the bagpipes, whistles, fiddle, mandolin and piano) DKM has, mixed with more of a thrash punk sound.

Like DKM, they open with a bagpipe intro. Once you've heard bagpipes cut through loud, boisterous punk rock songs, you'll understand the power of the pipes. After calling out everyone from Nickelback and Nancy Grace to Brittany Spears, Bill O' Reilly and politicians in general on their shitlist of a punk rock opener "Embarrassment," the band launches into 10 songs worth of stellar material.

And, our advice to the band: do not mess with those Nancy Grace fans. DO NOT MESS WITH THEM!

From standout songs like the anthemic polemics of "War Time In North London" and "Belfast Boy," to the sprightly whistle and acoustic-based "Under The Rowan Tree" and the piano ballad-meets-punk rock tribute "Molly Malone" to one of our favorites, "Fat Tim's Life," lyrically the band covers traditional Irish fare -- hard times, drinking, loving and fighting (both the drunken personal and the bloody Catholic-Protestant variety) -- over delicate intros and verses and the hard-rockin' sing-along punk rock choruses. And no doubt they hate wankers just as much as we do.

Can't sing? You can do the whoahs!

Singer Matthew Linehan shares the singing duties in parts with (among others) Corey Forindi, who plays the pipes and whistle. Like DKM's vocal combo of Ken Casey and Al Barr, the split singers just add to the band's range and sound, and make the songs seem like more of a party in general.

The CD, in true punk rock fashion, was recorded DIY by bassist Tommy Bailey at his Bebop Studios in Morgantown. Kudos for that; some locally produced CDs come through low after mastering and all that. The songs on Stick To Your Guns are loud, perfect for you to sing along with just like you're in a pub with the band.

A half-dozen or so guest musicians, who play on most of the songs, add even more depth to the band's already big, well-arranged sound. And, like most great punk rock, the songs average just over two minutes in length, so if you have a short attention span you can still rock out with The Gentlemen.

The band (Linehan, Forindi, Bailey, Geoff Wells and Drew Smith: guitar, Isaiah Richie: fiddle; Nathan Jones: mandolin; Zach Hogbin: drums) together for just over three years at this point, are at once ahead of schedule as a band, and at peace with what they want to sound like. They've already played with NYC punks The Toasters, New Jersey's Bouncing Souls and Mustard Plug; big-time punk bands each, and you know The Gentlemen will never switch up and become Brit pop.

The Gentlemen are or were trying to play Warped Tour 2009, compared to some of the acts we've heard playing that tour, getting The Gentlemen on it, or seeing the band end up on a major punk label, like Fat Wreck Chords, would certainly not be a surprise.

Whatever ends up happening with these guys, this CD is a hit with us. You know a CD is good when it's over and you're all like "What the hell? What happened to the music? That's it??" but that's the feeling we take from hearing Stick To Your Guns; as The Gentlemen follow their own rocky road to Dublin, we wanna hear more.

Scott Niles, 3FT back "into the fray"

After noticing that Huntington’s Threefold Theory was back, playing Sharkey’s Saturday night, we caught up with frontman Scott Niles (above) to see how things had been the past year or so, and what’s up in general.

It’s been a rough year basically. Last July I herniated a disc in my neck and had to take a hiatus from playing music. It was pretty awful; I couldn’t even lift a jug of milk, let alone a guitar for a long time. At the same time, Pete found out he had major lower back problems.

Luckily for me, I have been and continue to get better. Unfortunately for Pete, his injuries are just too severe -- he’s still injured, and is out of commission for the time being. I hate it for him.

Add to that the fact that Nik moved to Akron in January for a new job, and it was just one thing after another!

But, rather than declare 3 Fold dead, we just kind of hibernated it for a while. Nik still comes in town frequently, and we had this June 2009 gig booked in advance that pays well, so as soon as I knew I’d be good enough to play it, we got together and I called Steve Hall, a friend of ours who’s a Marshall University music professor to fill in for that gig. The Sharkey’s gig on June 6 just kind of fell in our lap.

So in a nutshell, we’re still not 100% sure about the future of 3 Fold Theory, but I’m pretty sure that if it started up again fully, it’d just be me with two new people, and at that point I’d rather just start over with a new band name and whatnot.

As for June 20, Ten Carp Lie is playing the V Club for a benefit show, and asked me to open up with a solo acoustic set. I do some originals, including 3 Fold material, as well as covers. It’s pretty cool.

Bottom line is that I was down, but I’m coming back like McRib! LOL...I’m ready to play music again, and after October (when I get married!), I’ll probably be looking to start/join a new band.

I can’t wait to get back out playing music on the regular.

We're all friends here! (No out-of-state bands or bot promoters, though)

It recently came to our attention that we had our MySpace settings to not allow bands to request us as friends. We're pretty sure that was done when we were under cyber-attack from bots, getting phished and having to change our password all the time.

We've cast off the reigns of oppression over there and if you're a band, reading this sentence, you can now freely send us a friend request without fear of having it bitchslapped straight to Hades. Or worse, sitting in the new friend request "purgatory" of the inbox; never to be accepted, in online limbo forever.

We're always glad to hear new bands not only from West Virginia (that we like) but all over the country; from Cambridge, Massachusetts' (Arms and Sleepers), to Sarasota, and even plumb to Ohio! (Whiskey Daredevils, Legbone) -- You know our feelings about Buckeyes -- we've found a few rockin' out-of-state bands.

We've also got a lot of good offers for our "band" over at the MySpace; from gig opportunities to professional promotions for MySpace bulletin posting. Surely there's someone on the other end, right? Making money off posting MySpace bulletins?!

And for the purpose of this post, yes, Sarasota is a town in Florida, there are way more cool out-of-state bands that have come through, and we post unique content, right? We can at least take up some space and make a post until we get our next killer features up in the next few days.

Mission accomplished.