DOOM AROUND THE WORLD
This is the second episode in a new series devoted solely to doom metal in all its variations of gray. Lacie Bishop makes a return to curate her second playlist for Doomed & Stoned. Like the wildly popular first, this is a smartly assembled selection of sweet ‘n’ sour songs – this time by Windand, Thou, Cough, Fister, Noothgrush, Graves At Sea, Unearthly Trance, even Kadavar (yes, Kadavar can doom with the best of them!)…and that’s just the tip of this 18-track iceberg for doomers to get their doom on.
PLAYLIST
INTRO (00:00)
1. Windhand - “Diablerie” (00:56)
2. Suma - “Disorder Of Things” (06:17)
3. Ramesses - “The Weakening” (10:36)
4. Noothgrush - “Erode The Person” (14:30)
5. GHOLD - “Saw The Falling” (25:14)
6. Asbestosdeath - “The Suffering” (33:46)
7. Cough - “A Year In Suffering” (38:31)
8. Wallowing - “Earthless” (50:40)
9. Fister - “We All Die Tonight” (58:49)
10. Kadavar - “Rough Times” (1:05:17)
11. Firebreather - “We Bleed” (1:08:55)
12. Big Business - “Doomsday, Today!” (1:15:43)
13. Thou - “The Song of Illuminate Darkness” (1:19:52)
14. Unearthly Trance - “Permanent Ice” (1:31:54)
15. Graves At Sea - “Minimum Slave” (1:36:43)
16. Doomriders - “We Live In The Shadows” (1:51:03)
17. Weedeater - “Long Gone” (1:55:45)
18. Lungs - “Never The Sun” (1:59:41)
OUTRO (2:04:04)
(thumbnail: Witches’ Sabbath by Francisco Goya)
Fister Show Their Roots in ‘Decade of Depression’
Ten years! For ten years, Missouri’s Fister have been polluting our ear canals with their sludgy doom metal. Even for the most dispiriting bands, that’s worth a party. Bands often celebrate such an anniversary with a special record, like a Best Of record, a live record, or a covers album. Fister went for the last option, unleashing ‘Decade of Depression’ (2019 - Listenable Records) on our innocent ears. Still in rehab from their previous effort, I decided to dive right into this celebratory horror show.
It’s immediately clear that Fister didn’t take the easy road for this release (not that they ever do that). The band could have just covered a bunch of cool sludge and doom songs, like tracks from the plethora of bands they’ve released splits with, but that’s not for Fister. Instead the record opens with “City of the Living Dead,” a grimy reworking of the main theme from Lucio Fulchi’s 1980 splatterfest of the same name. One shouldn’t be surprised that this version fits the horror flick well. The song sounds dirtier than ever, but the melodic – especially for Fister standards – guitar work builds a nice tension.
From horror movies we dive into different, but just as unexpected, territory, for the band sinks their teeth into a couple of thrash metal classics. Up first is Metallica’s “For Whom The Bell Tolls.” Just like the original it’s a real headbanger, but slower and, of course, grittier. The sound is full and dark and really adds something to the fold with the chugging guitars and pounding rhythm section. Finally, someone brought out the full potential of this classic!
When your album title is a play on 'Decade of Aggression’ (1991), you can’t afford not to have a Slayer song on it. With “Mandatory Suicide,” Fister chose for a relatively slow jam. The original has some sludge potential and Fister took full benefit of that. This is the proof that Slayer’s chainsaw guitarwork also works as a full blown steamroller. The only comment one can have is that Fister didn’t go all-out with the noisy solo at the end of the original. Then again, you want to cry out “Slayer!” only to correct yourself to “Fister!” just in time.
Before you forget that it’s not all slow and dark, Fister go fast and black with Darkthrone’s “Too Old Too Cold.” It’s certainly closer to home than the previous songs, but the band still manages to give it their own twist. It’s a bit of a drop in excitement here, but the execution would still make the average serial killer jealous.
The excitement goes straight back up with my personal highlight of the record. With the amount of split releases Fister have on their name (counting 6 within 5 years), it’s not surprising they asked some friendly assistance for this record. The band brought in CHRCH’s Eva Rose to perform Danzig’s “How the Gods Kill.” The song starts surprisingly quiet and peaceful with clean guitars and Eva’s haunting clean vocals, but gradually unfolds into pure madness. It shows some of the lesser known aspects of Fister’s grimey pallette and therefore gives them some more depth.
After that we return to the more extreme side of the band with a chugging yet punk induced cover of Hellhammer’s “Reaper,” followed by a particularly nasty rendition of “And Only Hunger Remains,” originally by Pungent Stench. The album closes with a re-recorded version of “The Failure,” originally from Fister’s split with fellow dirty doomers Dopethrone. All three these songs are nice additions to Fister’s catalog, but miss the special vibe of the first half of Decade of Depression. To be fair, I think I would feel different about the songs if they were elsewhere on the record, mixed with the less obvious tributes. I call them tributes, because the word “covers” doesn’t do these songs justice. It’s clear there’s a certain love for these songs and it truly shows. It’s just that Fister played their trump cards too soon and in the end, that hurts the the second half of the record.
Recently, I’ve been rewatching Wes Craven’s Scream franchise, and Decade of Depression feels kind of similar. You know what’s going to happen, because it has all been done before, but still it grabs you. It has that familiar feel and it knows it’s not innovative or anything, but it still manages to surprise and grab you. It’s clearly a labour of love. It’s not just copying a concept, but enhancing it. Or in this case, covering it in a thick layer of dirt.
Fister’s Fifth Marshalls Monumental Darkness
There are those people who you always run into at your friends parties, even though you don’t really know them yourself. You know who I’m talking about. You’ve been introduced to them, even talked to them a bit, and even though you don’t know much about them, they seem like a cool person. You’re acquainted, but you’ve never tried to become friends. To me, FISTER is one of those people.
Since 2014, Fister have released six split records, most of which are in my collection, because I dig their collaborators. I mean, I had to have their splits with Primitive Man, Dopethrone and Chrch and I got their split with Teeth for review when it first came out. And yet, I had never listened to a full-length by Fister before. That changed with their latest record, ‘No Spirit Within’ (2018 - Listenable Records).
Frozen Scythe
Opener “Frozen Scythe” might fool listeners who aren’t familiar with these boys from St. Louis, Missouri. It sounds like the soundtrack for some spaghetti western, but with some light horror undertones thrown into the mix. It slowly builds up to the bulldozer entrance of “Disgraced Possession,” a filthy display of the blackened doom I’ve learned to expect from the band.
Disgraced Possession
Slow, chugging riffs pound your eardrums with a focused kind of aggression. The kind that slowly, but forcefully bashes its message in your skull. The message in this case being misery, desperation and death. If you are looking for even the slightest hint of light, this song isn’t for you. Just listen to that guitar solo, supported by the pounding snare drum. It’s like a dentist’s drill is lodged into your ear canal while a nail is being driven into your head.
Cazador
“Cazador” screws down the tempo to the point where it can barely be perceived as music. Then, completely unexpected, the band speeds up to a punk tempo – relatively speaking, that is. Before you know it, the tempo is dropped again, each note accompanied a grunted syllable. The song ends with a sweet guitar solo backed by some more pounding. If you’re not into this kind of sonic torture, this song will probably end up giving you brain damage. Don’t say I didn’t warn you.
I Am Kuru
Finally there’s some room to breathe again. “I Am Kuru” starts off with some more traditional doom, but it wouldn’t be a Fister song if there wasn’t something to make it uncomfortable. In this case, it is a backing tape of voices, looped to an indistinguishable mash. This is probably the most accessible song on this record.
No Spirit Within
The title track continues the more traditional streak. This 12-minute mammoth of a song stands out in how varied it is. One moment you’re dwelling in a funeral doom mist, the next you’re being trampled by a stampede of pure heaviness. The sludgy feel of it all makes me wonder if this is what being sucked into the swamps of Missouri feels like. “No Spirit Within” is an accurate title, since this song sucks the life right out of you.
Heat Death & Star Swallower
Clocking at less than 4 minutes, “Heat Death” is a short intermezzo of chords and feedback, only to prepare you for the highlight of the album: “Star Swallower.” This song has some sweet, feedback-drenched riffs and fiendish howls, supported by a growling bass and pounding drum patterns. There’s nothing new in this song, but everything just comes together perfectly. Halfway through, Kirk Gatterer starts giving away some pounding drum rolls, supported by some very effective guitar riffs. I wouldn’t have minded if they had kept that going for a little longer. This is mostly because this is the last song of No Spirit Within and I’m not ready leave the state of bliss this record has put me in.
No Spirit Within certainly isn’t meant for everyone. It’s dark and extremely dense, but it grabs you and manages to keep you in its grip from start to finish. To get back to my original analogy, this turns out to be a great guy. Not someone to introduce to your family, but helluva lot of fun to hang out with. It’s the kind of guy who, five minutes after you’ve met him, proudly shows you the blisters on his scrotum and asks if you want to touch it. Brilliant! Disgusting and horrifying, but brilliant!
Just two years in and already Psycho Las Vegas has become one of the biggest and most exciting gathering for fans and bands in the heavy underground. Doomed & Stoned’s second visit to the festival was no less ambitious than our first. Three photographers contributed to our coverage again this year: Sally Townsend, Alyssa Herrman, and Elizabeth Gore. Between them, it’s safe to say we captured damned near every act on the bill. For those who got to attend Psycho ‘17, I hope this series brings back pleasant memories (or maybe fills in the gaps if you were, how shall I say, a bit “fuzzy” over the weekend?). For those who didn’t make the big meet-up in the desert, perhaps this will entice you to the 2018 event, which rumor has it, is shaking up to be something very special.
The first photographer we’ll be showcasing in our Psycho Las Vegas review is Sally Townsend of Sally Townsend Photography, based in Melbourne, Australia. For several years now, she has been flying across the ocean for Thief Presents and Psycho Entertainment events, beginning with the earliest iterations of the festival: Day of the Shred, Night of the Shred, and Psycho California. Sally has a real knack for capturing iconic moments, as you can see for yourself. Since she covered quite a few bands (and has the blisters and callouses to prove it!) and since I’m having such a hard time narrowing down the photos to only one or two per band, we’ll be publishing her work over a series of articles. Enjoy! (Billy Goate)
Pool Party
Thursday, August 17th
Day One
Friday, August 18th
There’s a whole lot more in our Psycho Las Vegas 2017 retrospective, with Day Two and Day Three coming later this week! In the meanwhile, you can check out more of Sally Townsend’s work here. Make plans to attend Psycho Las Vegas in 2018 here.
THE DOOMED & STONED SHOW!
The annual Doomed & Stoned Festival is upon us! This is now our second annual meet-up in Indianapolis, the crossroads of so many incredible doom-stoner bands. Today, festival organizer Melissa Collins and Doomed & Stoned editor in chief Billy Goate walk us through the line-up and share the story about how “the little fest that could” got its start! The October 6th & 7th event is only a few weeks away, so get your tickets pronto.
Playlist:
1. Wo Fat - Pale Rider (00:14)
2. How It All Began (07:27)
3. Acid Witch - Evil (10:22)
4. Behind The Scenes! (13:50)
5. EARTHRIDE - Hacksaw Eyeball (16:11)
6. Day I - Preview (part one) (21:38)
7. R'lyeh - Monolithic (24:49)
8. Book of Wyrms - Nightbong (31:04)
9. Devil To Pay - Your Inner Lemmy (38:25)
10. Day I - Preview (part two)(41:29)
11. Swamp Ritual - The Bearded Dragon (46:28)
12. Season of Arrows - The Bridge (59:20)
13. Disenchanter - Green Queen (1:05:57)
14. Day I - Preview (part three) (1:12:36)
15. Ape Machine - Crushed From Within (1:17:14)
16. Wo Fat - Of Smoke and Fog (1:21:48)
17. Day II - Preview (part one)(1:32:29)
18. Potslammer - Nug Nascentum(radio edit) (1:36:31)
19. Un - The Tomb of All Things (1:47:25)
20. Day II - Preview (part two)(2:00:50)
21. Black Tar Prophet - Ring of Buzzards (2:04:44)
22. Fister - The Failure (2:07:51)
23. Day II - Preview (part three)(2:15:49)
24. Apostle of Solitude - Blackest of Times (2:19:43)
25. Year of the Cobra - White Wizard (2:26:20)
26. Freedom Hawk - Blood Red Sky (2:31:42)
27. Day II - Preview (part four)(2:36:42)
28. Geezer - Psychoriffadelia (2:40:19)
29. Earthride - Fighting The Devils Inside You (2:50:32)
30. Day II - Preview (part five) (2:55:45)
31. Acid Witch - Stoned To The Grave (2:58:34)
32. Acid Witch - Witch House (3:04:16)
33. Blooper Reel (3:08:35)
www.DoomedandStonedFestival.com
Special thanks to festival sponsors Indiana City Beer, Indy Metal Vault, Ripple Music, and Twin Earth Records!. Poster by Sabine Stangenberg.
Fister Share Stories From The Road
Interview and Live Footage by Melissa Marie
When I listen to a song like “The Failure” from their recent split with Dopethrone, I can’t imagine a fiercer band. St. Louis doom-sludge trio FISTER continues their domination of the heavy scene, currently on tour heading West. I caught up with them when they were in my neck of the woods, playing 5th Quarter Lounge in Indianapolis. Following is my interview with Fister’s lead vocalist and bassist Kenny Snarzyk.
How’s the tour been so far?
It’s been great. We’ve had a couple hang-ups, some vehicle troubles. Overall, nothing too crazy. We’re here! But so far, so good. Unless this place burns down while we’re playing, successful tour!
You guys were here a few months ago, have you been working on new things or just touring since then?
We haven’t really worked on anything yet. We’ve mainly been prepping for this tour and getting the west coast tour booked, but we do have a lot of things that we need to getting working on. We have three or four more splits to write, and then we start work on a double LP. I know by the end of the year we planned on having seven splits out, and I think now it’s gonna be four or five. The rest of that we’ll have to release next year. I think Marcus [Newstead, vocals/guitar] has a riff or two and I have a little something in the works, nothing too crazy.
I looked at the tour dates and a lot of them were with Sea of Bones. What can you say about those shows? They are just so heavy.
They’re the heaviest band ever. We did five dates with them; we split off with them two days ago. They’re so awesome. We did four dates with CHRCH on the East Coast, who’re awesome, as well. We’ve had just killer bands with us the whole time. Tonight, we get to play with Thorr-Axe, Lawbringer, and Path of Might. Their guitar player is actually our fill-in drummer for this tour. I’m really stoked they’re here tonight. But to answer your question about Sea of Bones, they are easily the heaviest band I’ve ever witnessed. I’ve seen a lot of heavy-ass bands and played with a lot of heavy-ass bands, but no band will ever be able to be as heavy as Sea of Bones.
I like to refer to Fister as the only doom band that can give Primitive Man a run for their money. But you guys have so many more elements than doom at play. What musicians really influenced you in your development?
It’s hard to say. When we first started as a band we couldn’t tell if we wanted to sound like Black Sabbath or Burning Witch. There was a bit of both. There was stoned-out stuff and there was some mean sounding stuff. I think somewhere along the line, we just started to sound like ourselves. Now we have a lot of death and black metal moments, obviously a lot of doom, although I know we don’t sound anything like a traditional doom metal band. We’re labeled sludge a lot and I don’t know if that really fits, either. I don’t even know what to call us. (laughs) As far as influences go, Cliff Burton, Lemmy, all of the wonderful dudes that wore a vest without a t-shirt underneath.
‘Bronsonic’ (2011) was a pretty wild debut. You think you guys would ever do a record like that again?
We still play stuff from ‘Bronsonic’ here and there – rarely, though. We played it front to back about a year ago, it was an anniversary show. Every once a while, we’ll break out the song “Bronsonic.” We actually have a split with Failed coming out and it includes the first song we ever wrote, called “First,” which is the fourth track on “Bronsonic.” We re-recorded it and it’ll be on that 7". I think some of our writing reflects the heavier stuff from “Bronsonic” sometimes. I think that was a very primitive record for us to write. It was our early stuff; we didn’t really know exactly what we were doing. It’s kinda weird, because for some people, mostly in Europe, that’s their favorite Fister album. It’s just strange. We recorded that album and 'And Their Master Bled For Days’ (2011 split with The Lion’s Daughter) in one day. I think it’s a pretty sloppy record, as a whole, but I guess that gives it a little bit of charm, as well.
Speaking of the splits you’ve done, I love them. The Lion’s Daughter, Norska, Primitive Man, and more recently Dopethrone - that one was great, by the way.
Thank you.
What bands would you be interested in doing a split in the future?
We just released one with Dopethrone. The vinyl part we’re still working on. It’s not out yet, but should be later this year. We just released one with Everything Went Black, where we covered each other’s songs. We released one with Teeth from California. They’re just a killer death metal band. We got one coming out with Failed. We’re in talks with Artillery Breath from Columbus about doing a split. We’re in talks with Cross Examination from St. Louis about doing one. Really, we need to finish our double LP. We keep doing split after split after split. It’s really pissing off our drummer. (laughs) We just like doing splits. I actually reached out to Fistula about doing one awhile back. Believe it or not, people try to buy their stuff from us online and vice versa. We might as well do one together! But I know they’re super busy people, too.
That would be a killer split too.
Fuck, we could just swap logos. It’s really funny. I think people mix up a lot of bands because the names are so similar. Whereas, aside from the doom influence, I don’t think we sound that much alike.
What’s the scene like in St Louis?
Great! There’s just a crazy amount of killer metal bands in St Louis. The Lions Daughter is from there, Black Fast is from there. I could rattle off a ton of great bands from St Louis. When we first started, the scene was okay in terms of turnout at shows. We’ve been together for about seven years now and it’s incredible now. People come out; people actually want to see us play. It’s been really good.
You guys are pretty well established by now, in terms of how long you’ve been a band. What are some of your favorite Fister moments?
Oh any tour (laughs). We got to play Roadburn last year. That was incredible. Just being in Europe was great. We got to tour with Pallbearer. We got to tour with Primitive Man. A lot of friendships were made. Andrew from Rigs of Doom booked our show in Allentown, Pennsylvania. That was our sixth show of the tour and he wanted to ride with us up to Brooklyn the next day and then catch us a bus home. So I’m like, “Sure, but if you want you can ride with us for the next four days then catch a bus home from Philly and it’ll be even cheaper.” So he joined us. Four days turned into nine. Finally, at the end of the run with Sea of Bones, he rode home with those guys. It was incredible. He was a treat to have in the van. We had less room in the van, which in a sense sucks. He was a treat, though. I think he spilled about seven beers in the van (laughs) but he was great. He knew all the sights to see in different towns, so we got a lot drunker than we normally do. The Christworm guys were fun, the guys in Sea of Bones are obviously great dudes. They hate everything in the universe and I’d have it no other way!
I see you guys played at Full Terror Assault and you’ll be at the Midnite Communion Festival. What are these festivals like, especially compared to regular shows like tonight?
They’re nightmares. (laughs) Festivals are a nightmare. They’re fun, they’re great, but there’s just so much stuff you have to be on top of. You get there and immediately there’s a list of times. You usually don’t use your own gear; you got these weirds slots like 11 a.m. or something. Don’t get me wrong, I’m happy to do them. I don’t necessarily mind playing fests. There are just a lot of rules and you really have to hone in on those times. If you go over, then obviously you’re fucking everything up. If you go under, you’re still fucking everything up. I think at Full Terror Assault, it was a half-hour set, so we had to make sure the set was at least twenty-eight minutes and no more than a half-hour. Overall, it’s still a great time. The guys who are running Midnight Communion are really great. Fistula, Cough, Un - there are a lot of killer bands on that bill. Festivals are great, just a little more stressful, I think.
You guys have a cool DIY attitude. Meanwhile, a lot of people are complaining that record sales are falling and illegal downloading are killing music. I see you utilizing the “Name Your Price” option on Bandcamp quite a bit. Have you had a lot of success in people going on to purchase your albums?
I don’t know if “success” is the correct word, but it’s been good. If you want it, take it. Of course, we love getting a notification that someone has spent money on the Bandcamp, because that keeps it going. But if we wanted to be a truly successful band, we’d be playing a different type of music. We’re always going to be in the red, financially. This band has cost us seventeen grand. On this tour, we would have made a lot more money if we would have just stayed home and worked, but that’s not why we do it. We’re big boys, we got jobs at home. We just like doing this. When we stop liking it, I imagine we’ll stop doing it. I think by the end of this tour, we’ll each get $150 bucks maybe after being out for seventeen days. That’s a really good shift at the bar.
What’s Fister up to next?
We have a lot of writing to do and a lot of splits to finish up and get that double LP going. I don’t think we’re gonna do much in September or October. “Gemini” (2013) is finally getting released on vinyl on October 31st so we’re gonna do a release show on Halloween and then immediately tour the West Coast for twenty days or so. Then after that, probably lay down and save up some money.
Live ‘n’ Loud: Fister
St. Louis doom-sludge legends FISTER pummeled the 5th Quarter Lounge in Indianapolis recently, and Doomed & Stoned’s Midwest Editor Melissa Marie was there to capture the full set! Think you’ll really like this one.
Next weekend, Fister plays Full Terror Assault Fest in Starved Rock, Ilinois AND Pu Fest (what a name!) in St. Louis, so they’re going to be very busy boys (check here for all the deets).
Oh, and BTW, 5th Quarter Lounge will play home to the first inaugural Doomed & Stoned Fest, coming November 18th-19th with Cough and Bell Witch headlining. Get Tix.
This is huge, guys! HUGE, I tell you. A split between two bands—one legendary and the other well on its way to becoming so. I’m speaking of St. Louis doomers FISTER, who last released a split with my hommies in Portland, Norska, and now have another split, this time a 12-incher with the monstrous doom-death-drone demons PRIMITIVE MAN! What more can I say? All lovers of heavy filth NEED this in their lives, like today, as in now. First things first, you’ve got to check out this new vid by Fister, which just came out days ago.