The Black Angels: RFI, C/D?

My problem with it is that it's a concept album about the vietnam war by a buch of 20 year olds.

S: The "Syd Barrett Blues" track off a Dead Bees comp and "Winter '68" off the S/T EP.

they certainly didn't gain much momentum with this album. I've rarely heard it out, or heard anyone talk about it

This new album ROOOOOOOLZ!!!!1!!! They've expanded their sonic palette but managed to use that to sound ever more crazed and dirtier than before.. and Passover is totally awesome but the new one I'm completely inside it.

"expanding their sonic palette" meaning experimenting a bit more in the production.

I grew tired of Passover real quick so not sure I'll bother checking out the new one.

I agree with Baaderonixx about Passover. It had a really good thing going but after awhile the songs would start sounding the same. Does the new one have more...variation?

It had a really good thing going but after awhile the songs would start sounding the same.

What do you mean by "start sounding the same"? No snark here. Serious question.

Also pre-emptive strike against "Dronerock sounding the same lolz" jokes.

not hating this album at all

Yeah, it's pretty good.

Interview I did with 'em for the OC Weekly

i hear quite a bit of joy division especially in "18 years" I can't be the only one

Does it improve on Passover?

I think so... although it's not "the next level" or anything. I like Passover, but Directions To See A Ghost seems more like an exercise to seem more blurry and define themselves a bit more. They're still pretty much DroneRawk, and anyone who likes DroneRawk will love both Black Angels albums. That said, Passover doesn't have a "Snake in the Grass". More epics pleez. The best part is how the vocals kinda defy the whole Lou Reed/Roky Erikson thing. On "Snake", the vocals sound haunting in a Genesis P-Orridge way, something that's kinda hard to do well when you try for it, but these guys just naturally remind me, vocally, of Genesis.

They're both two peas from the same pod, but there's more interesting stuff going on in Directions once you give it a few listens.

Anyway, I'm hoping to see them tonight at Neumo's if work will allow. Got a ticket for the 2nd show starting at 10:30pm. (the first show sold out and that one now starts at 7pm.)

(sorry, show is tomorrow night. losing track of week)

Amazing show last night! (The 2nd show, which looks like it sold out too.) Only tiny whining: ok, strobe lights, 60s films projected, we GET it!. But that was easily overshadowed by the performance. The band don't move fast on stage, but they still put in 100%+, if that makes sense. (which makes the really rowdy crowd last night really fuckin' odd. Why do crowds where Bands Be Thee Brethen Of Spacemen 3 get rowdiness, yet all these super energetic fast/hardcore rock bands have appreciative, super-polite still audiences? Must be a yin-yang equilibrium thing. Not complaining, just noting how odd it is the more I think about it.)

The Warlocks (L.A.) opened, who were great too. They reminded me a lot of 80s Flying Nun stuff... like if the Bats slowed down, were a lot more paranoid and added more flange and woosh.

I don't want to overuse the "D" work, but if you haven't been to a dronerock show in a while, and you've been wanting to, definitely hop on a Black Angels/Warlocks show this tour. It will easily tide you over until the next Terrastock. (well, aside, from MBV, but that's its own weird thing.)

It will easily tide you over until the next Terrastock.

Can I stand waiting a WHOLE WEEK :-D

Would have been great to catch their show around here a week back but that was the same night as the Mountain Goats and, you know, priorities.

I hate priorities.

fuck me, this album is great.

*fucks you*

I think I'll give the new album a whirl. I know my friend's gonna buy it anyway so it'll give us something to talk about.

BLACK ANGELS DEBUT PHOSPHENE DREAM ON SAT

The Black Angels are playing their new, unreleased record Phosphene Dream in its entirety Saturday night at Austin Psych Fest 3. Their new full length album is set for tentative release this summer.

http://www.austinpsychfest.com

New album...can't wait

So far, I don't think you can go wrong with any Black Angels releases. A little Brian JOnestown Massacre, a little Spacemen 3, morrison-esque vocals. Pretty dreamy.

coming Sept 14th. super excited.

gonna do things my way

This time I'm 'a let it all come out
This time I'm 'a stand up and shout
I'm 'a do things my way
It's my way
My way, or the highway

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Dn8vzTsnPps

http://vimeo.com/13456308

no songs over 5min on phosphene dream o__O

fine by me!

phosphene dream is great but nothing particularly new

Not feeling this album on first blush, 2-3 great tunes aside.

An unexpected direction, but I'm pretty pleased with it the slightly poppier turn.

surprised how much so much of this sounds like clinic. "yellow elevator #2" could be on bubblegum

confess I bought this entirely on the basis of the cover and have not been disappointed. vinyl package is A-mazing

second round of lineup additions to Austin Psych Fest 2011 announced!

full roster to date:

Roky Erickson (Austin TX)
Spectrum (Rugby, UK)
The Black Angels (Austin, TX)
Black Moth Super Rainbow (Chicago, IL)
Atlas Sound (Atlanta, GA)
Dead Meadow (Los Angeles, CA)
Prefuse 73 (Atlanta, GA)
Crystal Stilts (Brooklyn, NY)
Sleepy Sun (San Francisco, CA)
Indian Jewelry (Houston TX)
Black Ryder (Sydney, Australia
Crocodiles (San Diego, CA)
Fresh and Onlys (San Francisco, CA)
The Growlers (Costa Mesa, CA)
Tobacco (Chicago, IL)
White Hills (New York, NY)
Pontiak (Holtzclaw, Virginia)
Black Hollies (New Jersey, NJ)
Beaches (Melbourne, AU)
Young Prisms (San Francisco, CA)
The Night Beats (Seattle, WA)
Lumerians (San Francisco, CA)
The Soft Moon (San Francisco, CA)
Woodsman (Denver, CO)
Lower Heaven (Silverlake, CA)
Cloudland Canyon (Memphis, TN)
The Meek (Los Angeles, CA)
The Cult of Dom Keller (Nottingham, UK)
The Quarter After (San Francisco, CA)
Vacant Lots (Burlington, VT)
The Diamond Center (Richmond, VA)
The Sky Drops (Wilmington, DE)
Tjutjuna (Denver, CO)
Holy Wave (Austin, TX)

shit. I may go to that.

HFS that sounds great.

lol the Lumerians are terrible.

The Meek are good dudes tho

got Passover the other day. these guys have their schtick down, that's for sure. I don't hear Phosphene Dream as a major departure or anything, all of the stuff on Passover is of a similar length/construction

I wouldn't call it a major departure, but definitely more poppy, slightly more accessible, and a little more tightly structured, imho. I'm not to a point where I can call one approach better than the other though, I love all three of their albums about equally.

okay this "he's fighting in Iraq, the Iraq war, war war..." tag at the end of the last song seems like a misstep. not for its lyrical sentiment, just cuz the actual execution seems uncharacteristically half-assed

Had iTunes on random, "Young Men Dead" came on and I thought "I don't remember this Thee Hypnotics song."

Caught these guys last night with Sleepy Sun opening. I thought Sleepy Sun killed it, then these guys came out waaaay flat. I was ready to head out after 2 songs since I was really there to see Sleepy Sun anyway, and then the third song kicked in. Not even sure which song it was but they caught a nice groove from there on out, enjoyed it despite the bass being too prominent in the mix.

Also... about 3/4 through the show my buddy says:

"hey man, holy shit the drummer is a girl, check it out!"

How he didn't notice until then is beyond me. Good drummer btw. The bass player is stiff as a board, zero presence at all.

I think the song was Young Men Dead.

Don't Play With Guns!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RoNB1NW2u0A

Hmm. Doesn't do too much for me. Ah well, this means a tour, which I'll be there for! They put on an awesome show, if nothing else.

Saw the Black Angels last night at the Fillmore. I was particularly impressed by the lighting as well as the drumming. And they played more from both Passover and Death Song than I was expecting. Good show.

New one is pretty damned good and, imo, the best they've done since Phosphene Dream.