Genre: Metalcore
Origin: USA
Label: Ferret Music 
Length: 41:51
Tracklist:
---------------
01. The All Night Lights
02. We Gave It Hell
03. The Back Harlow Road
04. Clear The Cost
05. Waiting On A War
06. Only A Year Or So...
07. Absent Are The Saints
08. Vast And Vague
09. When Distance Is The Closest Reminder
10. Northern November
11. The Tide And Its Takers

Genre: Metalcore
Origin: USA
Label: Roadrunner Records
Length: 42:36
Tracklist:
---------------
01. I'll Go Until My Heart Stops
02. Felt Through A Phone Line
03. On Any Given Night
04. Elysium
05. The Great Descent
06. Midnight Swim
07. Aurora
08. Will Pull This In By Hand
09. We Cannot Deny
10. Between The Anchor And The Air
11. The City Ignites
12. Mother Mary

Genre: Metalcore
Origin: USA
Label: Roadrunner Records
Length: 38:18
Tracklist:
---------------
01. At The End Of August
02. The Heart And The Shape
03. Bloodwork
04. Kenai
05. Skin And Atmosphere
06. Song For The Fisherman
07. With Nothing Underneath
08. Destroy The Map
09. Installing The Catheter
10. Cure Eclipse
11. Waterhaul
12. Workhorse (Cast Iron Hike Cover)
13. Sad Lisa (Cat Stevens Cover)
14. Mother Mary
15. Digging The Grave (Faith No More Cover)

Genre: Metalcore
Origin: USA
Label: Roadrunner Records
Length: 46:35
Tracklist:
---------------
01. Turns To Ashes
02. One More Word
03. An Agreement Called Forever
04. Eightminutesupsidedown
05. Slit Wrist Theory
06. Bury Me Where I Fall
07. Dislocate
08. Two Months From A Year
09. Chalk White
10. All I Am
11. Ceramic
12. Circle The Drain
13. Left Hand Charity
14. Crutch

36 Crazyfists are releasing their first ever career spanning dvd, Underneath A Northern Sky, on October 27th. They filmed the dvd on January 9th in their hometown of Anchorage, Alaska. The dvd was directed by their good friend Todd Bell, who joined the band for a weeks worth of revisiting old stomping grounds, listening to stories of the formation of the band and all the antics that come along with a band who is in their 15th year and counting. The dvd will include footage from the bands very first show as well as countless other rare scenes, backstage antics, music videos and interviews. “Anchorage, Alaska has a small music scene,” explains vocalist Brock Lindow. “Pretty much everyone knows each other. Growing up in here, shaped us to be aware of the beauty of isolation and creating your own self. We had MTV just like everyone else, but as people, we adapted to dark winters and summers where the sun never went down. That in itself created so many amazing rituals and memories of the season.” Lindow goes on to say “There are interviews from band members sharing their thoughts on our career and all the wonderful things we have been able to experience because of this band. Our fans have been waiting for something like this to surface for sometime and for that I’m very grateful to Todd Bell, AKSOUL and Ferret for giving us the opportunity to finally put out our very first DVD. This is for the ears and eyes of the interested, for the fans who have been there through thick and thin!” Be sure to pick up your copy of the dvd on October 27th!

36 Crazyfists’ MySpace page: myspace.com/36crazyfists

Musik: Konsert

Snabb recension av konsert med ovan nämda band på Debaser Slussen.

Gwen Stacy

Enformig sång över låtar som alla var stöpta i exakt samma mall. Första halvan av låten snabb och skrikig, andra halvan tung och rytmisk. Skulle kanske funkat om de inte tjatat ut det så förbannat. Dessutom en tämligen lam show med dålig scennärvaro.

Betyg: 2/10

Poison the Well

Väldigt besviken på låtvalet. Jag har lyssnat väldigt mycket på deras senaste fullängdare Versions och även de minisläpp de gjort senaste 6 månaderna. Ändå kände jag inte igen mer är 3-4 låtar. Dom var i och för sig grymt bra, men resten var inte så kul. Bra röj på hela bandet!

Betyg: 5/10

36 Crazyfists

Inte riktigt min kopp te musikaliskt. Lite för mycket emo/screamo. Men uppträdandet var det verkligen inget fel på. Fullt ös från start med riktigt bra mellansnack och bra på att få igång publiken. Några roliga happenings som en maskerad gästsångare, ett fan som fick komma upp och sjunga en låt och en organiserad mosh-pit. Bandets säsongsavslutning, kändes verkligen som dom gav allt!

Betyg: 6/10

Rise Against, Anti-Flag and 36 Crazyfists have self-confirmed to be playing at the festivals.

Rise Against rose to fame with its first two major label releases, Siren Song of the Counter Culture (2004) and The Sufferer & the Witness (2006), with hits such as “Give It All”, “Swing Life Away”, “Prayer of the Refugee”, and “The Good Left Undone”. Their most recent studio album, Appeal to Reason, was released in North America on October 7, 2008, producing the singles “Re-Education (Through Labor)” and “Audience of One”.

Anti-Flag is an American punk band from Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania.
In 1996, the band released their first album, Die For the Government, on New Red Archives. Andy Flag left the band in the Summer of 1996 because of personal disputes between himself and Justin. In 1999, Anti-Flag released the album A New Kind of Army on Go-Kart Records/A-F Records.

36 Crazyfists are a four-piece metal band originating from Kenai, Alaska. They are now based in Portland, Oregon. The band’s name comes from a Jackie Chan movie, The 36 Crazy Fists. They have released five albums, In the Skin, Bitterness the Star, A Snow Capped Romance, Rest Inside the Flames, and their fifth The Tide And Its Takers was released on May 27, 2008.

Festival Line up buzz band also includes Rage Against the Machine, The Killers, Metallica, Queens of the Stone Age, Bloc Party, Tenacious D, Slipknot, Feeder, Babyshambles, Dizzee Rascal and  many more all exclusive performances.

Live Review: 36 Crazyfists + Poison the Well + Gwen Stacy
Venue: Electric Ballroom, London
Date: 13th March 2009

With tonight’s show starting at a fairly ludicrously early time, Gwen Stacy take to the stage at 7 to a sparse and disinterested crowd. But this doesn’t stop the Indianapolis band from putting their heart and soul into their brief set, with a markedly comic performance from bassist Brent Schindler. The dual vocal attack is rather less amusing, with some stretched notes and wobbly barks undermining the erratic brutality of the guitar riffs. The strangest moment however is reserved for Schindler’s closing missionary statement, informing the now slightly larger crowd that Jesus loves them, and they’ve got to have faith in something, which is understandably met with a rather deadpan silence.

More people seem to have turned up by the time Poison the Well grace the stage, and their hardcore set takes very few prisoners. The band struggle with a few notable sound problems, the biggest of which is singer Jeffrey Moreira’s dodgy microphone, cutting out and being generally too quiet when he chooses to sing, making the band sound fairly lost and unprofessional and creating a general lull in energy. But when he lets his growl out it’s something to admire, dominating and in some respects terrifying.

There’s no denying the pull of tonight’s headlining act, and as Alaskan metallers 36 Crazyfists take to the stage the Electric Ballroom looks thoroughly packed to the rafters with sweaty, hungry tweens baying for blood. It looks like fifteen years practice has done the bearded ones good – they put on an arresting show, throwing everything (at one point even Brock Lindow himself) at the audience. There’s a wall of death that hits with a fairly resounding crash, bassist Buzzard performs an impromptu tribute to Kyuss, and the material covers old and new alike, all to the same rapturous applause. One lucky kid’s life is made after he’s invited to join in with ‘Destroy the Map’ and he surprises all by doing a fairly commendable job in Lindow’s intimidating shadow.

The critic in me wants to hark on about their sloppiness at points, especially in Lindow’s hit and miss vocals, but there’s little denying the fervent reaction that the band had garnered by the compulsory encore. There’s no surprises here, closing with a sped up, raw version of perhaps their biggest hit to date, ‘Slit Wrist Theory’. Half naked bodies covered in veils of sweat come flying over the barrier at an alarming rate, but their smiles say it all as they charge straight back into the heated crowd. The energy and happiness Crazyfists seem to displace into their audience is enough to see them through a rocky performance, and their honest hard working nature is repaid in full by the screams coming back at them all night.

Originally published at Sonic Dice.

Wir sitzen im Auto. Unterhalten uns. Wie wird das Publikum heute Abend aussehen. Im Hintergrund läuft zum warm werden das neue Album der 36 Crazyfists.

In der Straßenbahn lernen wir 2 Leute kennen. Chris und Natta. Mit ihnen geht’s los. Zur Show!

20h Einlass.

Nach einer Stunde des Wartens endlich!! GWEN STACY!! So nah! So gut! Doch die Menge teilweise sehr steif. Mir ist das egal! Ich tanze, schreie die Texte mit! Denn einen Meter vor mir stehen die, auf deren Auftritt ich so gewartet habe GWEN STACY!!!

Der Sänger signalisiert mir, dass er merkt , dass ich alle Texte auswendig kann. Er kommt näher und hält mir das Mic an den Mund. Darauf hab ich gewartet. Diese Ehre hab ich als einiger.   Doch die Show ist kurz. 30 Minuten vergehen im Flug.

Die 2. Band hat nicht meinen Stil. Die Show ist schlecht.

Doch um 22:40 kommen die alten Herren von 36 Crazyfists. Prügeln ihre Show erbarmungslos. Mein Shirt ist ein Wasserspeicher. Die Spielzeit: 1 Stunde.

Zum Abschluss noch mal Abschied sagen mit Gwen Stacy!

Doch sie kommen wieder verrät mir der Bassist beim Bilder machen!

Im Herbst – mit Haste the day!!

Ich werde da sein, bei meinem Gwen Stacy!!

Hace no mucho tiempo la vida me brindó la oportunidad de conocer y profundizar en un auténtico grupazo. Una banda llegada desde las frías tierras de Alaska, y que traía bajo el brazo un album llamado The tide and its Takers. Pronto me dí cuenta de que no me había olvidado de mover la cabeza hacia arriba y abajo al ritmo de riffs que combinaban elegancia y peso a partes iguales. Acababa de recordar que todavía existían grupos que teorizaban sus lineas sobre las bases de la brutalidad musical. Acababa de conocer 36 crazyfists.

Es un hecho que el lugar de donde vienes incide directamente en la forma que tomarán tus composiciones musicales; estamos ante un claro caso de este fenómeno. Así como Rammstein se caracterizan por la corpulencia y la pesadez de los alemanes, 36 crazyfists (toman su nombre de una película de Bruce Lee) se definen por la gelidez y la introversión típica del caracter norteño. Poco a poco también me dí cuenta de que por mucho metalcore, hardcore y post-hardcore que haya en el mundo, este grupo retoma las cenizas del nu-metal, simplemente lo moderniza y le meten algunos acordes disonantes y variaciones tonales que dan a las canciones un tono mucho más personal (dentro del estilo pocos grupos se les parecen), y solo con ese hecho los críticos y especialistas se bastan para gastar esa palabra que se han encargado en poner de moda: Metalcore; pero bueno el nombre que le pongas no va a cambiar la música así que llamalo como quieras.

Si bien es cierto que toman muchas licencias del metal moderno, véase: rellenos de doble bombo llevados al extremo, la supremacía del arpegio, contraste total entre voces melódicas y berridos, por no hablar del uso de fraseos nada típicos… La música que nos proponen este cuarteto de Anchorage es muy personal e intimista, con discursos a veces muy melancólicos pero siempre con una energética pegada.

Al igual que otras bandas grandes de la escena como por ejemplo Machine head, 36 crazyfists han sufrido episodios de amor/odio con sus respectivas discográficas. Sus dos primeros discos, Bitterness the star y A snow capped romance, fueron publicados bajo la tutela de la todopoderosa Roadrunner Records. Pero su relación con la delegación estadounidense de la compañía no pasaba por su mejor momento, aunque no era así con su homóloga europea (muy parecido a lo que pasó con Machine head). En palabras de Brock Lindow, vocalista de la banda, “Roadrunner quiso comercializarnos [...] uno tiene que plegarse a lo que Roadrunner Records quiere y lo que necesita. Quieren los cortes de pelo correctos y los pantalones tejanos ajustados. A 36 Crazyfists no le va esa mierda y nunca ha mostrado interés en ella”. De este modo el grupo firmó por Ferret Records, que pese a no estar enfocada desde un ámbito tan financiero, constituye un grupo de buenos amigos y se encarga de bandas de tirada underground, lo que parece que a 36 Crazyfists les sienta como unos tejanos recién comprados.

¿Sorprende que se autodenominen underground? A mí no mucho, la verdad, aunque no los considere dentro de ese marco. Si pegamos un vistazo a las listas de ventas y al Billboard, si, no cabe más remedio que considerarlos underground. Si los comparamos con bandas de tirón internacional y tan conocidas como Slipknot, sí, serán underground. Pero hay una regla en este negocio que dice que el éxito, siempre acompañado de la fama, convierte aquello que toca en máquinas de hacer dinero, y de eso no puede escaparse este grupo, porque ahora no son solo ellos los que dirigen el timón de su carrera sinó unas cuantas decenas de personas más. El simple hecho de que yo me haya enterado de su existencia, de que alguien en España se haya podido enterar de que hay un grupo de Alaska que es la hostia, dice mucho sobre si son underground o no. Ten presente, amigo mío, que hasta hace dos o tres años AFI eran el secreto mejor guardado del underground. Otra cosa es que tu reclamo para vender sea decir que eres underground. Pero vuelvo a remitirme a ejemplos que pasaron con otras bandas, como a Slipknot, que su anti-imagen se convirtió en su imagen.

No quiero saturarte más por hoy, piensa que si todavía no has escuchado este grupo estás perdiendo el tiempo en la vida, temas como “The all night lights”, “at the end of aufust”, “installing the catheter”, “bloodwork” o “we gave it hell” están esperando ansiosamente a ser escuchados. Y cuando los estés escuchando, serás sabedor de una experiencia músical única e irrepetible.

Live music is still where it’s at, right?

Thanks to my student status (skint) I will be missing out on witnessing Emarosa own the Barrowlands on Monday, another example of a fine band to add to my list of “bands I want to see but can’t afford”. If you’ve not heard Emarosa they are post-hardcore geniuses, mixing brutal breakdowns with classy vocals from probably the best singer in the scene, Jonny Craig (previously of Dance Gavin Dance and a founding member of super group Isles & Glaciers). Not only am I missing out on some Emarosa action, but also 36 Crazyfists  and Poison the Well at The Garage in Glasgow on the 11th. Thankfully, I saw them being awesome at Liquid Rooms 2 years ago and can’t recommend their live show enough. Even through my drunken haze they owned the stage and the audience loved every second of it.

So instead of enjoying the sweet sound of live music I’ll have to make do with watching youtube videos and sitting with my face very close to the screen. Here’s a couple of youtube vids if you wish to join me…

The Past Should Stay Dead (Live) - Emarosa 

Set it Off Like Napalm (Live) – Emarosa

Skin and Atmosphere (Live) – 36 Crazyfists

-A

Desde Alaska nos llega un disco cargado de fuerza y rabia, como para derretir el hielo de todo el estado, clamando contra una guerra que nunca debió llevarse a cabo. Un disco potente con pequeños incisos de paz que hacen aún más intensa la música del cuarteto, que en este último disco hasta la fecha se ha hecho más cruda y directa.

A pesar de utilizar los elementos básicos del estilo que interpretan y sin ser una banda con un sonido excesivamente personal, si consiguen enganchar más que otros grupos contemporáneos. Todos los instrumentos y componentes crean un muro sin fisuras y también sin protagonismos que, a pesar de lo extremo de la propuesta, se hace fácil de escuchar. Posiblemente la facilidad para encadenar melodías con gritos desgarradores que tiene el cantante o algunos momentos de calma entre tormentas sean lo más llamativo. Son capaces de hacer canciones realmente buenas y acompañarlas de otros temas, quizás no tan memorables, pero que hacen de sus discos un conjunto muy bueno. 

Destaca justo en el medio del disco, una canción como pocas se hacen “Only A Year Or So…”, en la que una pareja se intercambia cartas de soledad de un continente a otro, ella en casa esperando y él luchando una guerra que no entienden. No se quedan atrás en calidad temas como “Waiting On A War”, la rápidisima “Absent Are The Saints” o “When Distance Is The Closest Reminder”. 

Un disco totalmente recomendable para aquellos que les gusten las guitarras subidas de tono, las voces contundentes y las canciones llenas de fuerza.

Enlaces: 

- 36 Crazyfists

the chariot

the human abstract

36crazyfists

gwen stacy

underoath

emery

architects

36 Crazyfists has been a mainstay in the metalcore genre for over a decade with good reason, as this Alaskan outfit manages to perpetually release quality music that illuminates both their heavy and harmonic side. The  latest 11-track endeavor THE TIDE AND ITS TAKERS is no exception, continuing this venerable squad’s soaring melodic metal style with solid results. Armed with a versatile vocalist in Brock Lindow who can go from clean singing to jugular-grabbing screaming at the drop of a dime and led by the grossly underrated guitar assault of Steve Holt, songs like the ferocious opener “The All Night Lights” and the jagged “Clear The Coast” (with guest vocals by Twelve Tribes’ Adam Jackson) set moshpits ablaze with bludgeoning force while the airtight low end bassline locking in with the flurry of fearless drums and perfectly aligned guitar fills and rhythms on “Northern November” display the group’s superb chops and the haunting “The Back Harlow Road” and “When Distance is the Closest Reminder” render the wicked infectious hooks and crushing groove melding this unit specializes in. Transcending  metalcore limitations with clever compositions and expert musicianship (especially guitar-wise), 36 Crazyfists come through yet again with a powerful combination of grace and savagery fully intact and polished to a shine. www.ferretstyle.com -Mike SOS

Two concerts in one night.  Sounds overwhelming doesn’t it?  Not for this guy.  A few months ago I bought tickets to see All that Remains, a metalcore band from the Springfield area.  They WERE on tour with In Flames, Gojira and 36 Crazyfirst.  None of whom I’m particularly interested in. (Although I’ve been told Gojira is excellent).  I showed up in time to see 36 Crazyfists, who do absolutely nothing for me.  They are boring, predictable metalcore and the singer overuses his mediocre scream during the live set.  The lead singer of Killswitch Engage got on stage to sing a song with them, I think his mic broke.  I couldn’t hear anything.  I drank a few over priced PBR’s and headed out, as I did not care to see In Flames whatsoever.  On a side note, I don’t think I’ll ever be going back to the Palladium in Worcester.  I saw a kid wearing a Death Magnetic t shirt, I don’t want any part in that.

Lucky for me, Saturday night was the annual Dimebag Darrell (rest in peace) tribute show at Ralph’s, my favorite bar in Massachusetts.  Eight bucks and I got to see three great bands, I’d say that was worth it.

I got upstairs in time to see Hostile Takeover, who I’ve seen before, but never paid much attention too.  Traditionally at this show, every band plays one Pantera cover to honor Dime, Hostile Takeover played a whole set.  Seven or eight songs of SPOT ON Pantera tribute.  They were great.  They didn’t play my favorite selection of Pantera songs, but they closed out with “Fucking Hostile”, one of my favorites.  I’ll will most certainly be seeing them again.

Kultur and 18 Wheels of Justice put on their standard excellent shows, sadly it was the drummer from Kultur’s last show.  I hope the replacement stands up to the standard that guy set.  18 Wheels seemed to think they were sloppy, maybe they were, but they made up for it with energy.  The new singer (formerly of the Worst) is pretty damn good.

Every time I see Kultur, I become a bigger fan.  They are the best death/thrash metal on the local scene today.

On the way home, I got fried chicken at US Fried Chicken somewhere in Worcester.  I was lost, it was great.

In Flames, All That Remains, Gojira, 36 Crazyfists
Wednesday, November 12, 2008
Maplewood, MN at the Myth

The temperatures may have finally taken a dip here in Minnesota, but none of that mattered last Wednesday at the Myth in Maplewood, as In Flames and their touring partners set the venue ablaze to some roaring metal classics. While I have nothing good to say about my experiences with the overly cautious asshole security guards that blanket the Myth, I was highly anticipating seeing some of the bands playing that night, especially Gojira, so my spirits couldn’t be killed.

In Flames sets off the mosh

It had been nearly 6 years since I had last witnessed a live set from 36 Crazyfists. In April of 2002, I was lucky enough to attend their album release show for their debut Bitterness the Star when they opened for Chimaira, and I saw them again later that year at the Warehouse in La Crosse with Candiria. At that time, I had been really impressed by the dynamic nature of their music, and they really struck me as a band that had limitless potential. Fastforward 6 years, and this is still the same band that I saw in high school. Although they might not have progressed in the ways that I hoped and thought they might, they still play an extremely catchy brand of melody laced metal and punk that has more to do with bands like the Deftones rather than Atreyu (despite what some of their fans might lead you to believe). I only wished that they had played more songs from their older albums because these were the only ones I knew, but sadly I was only familiar with about 1 of their songs that they played.

Gojira's Duplantier brothers reverse the rotation of the planet with their groove

Gojira came on stage next. These guys have been favorites of mine for quite a while  and they are just coming off the release of their colossal new album The Way of All Flesh so I was really anticipating the show. On Wednesday they brought the massiveness of their new songs to an entirely new level. At the beginning of their set, Gojira sent the crowd into a frenzy that didn’t stop until they left the stage. Their heaviness is something that is almost hard to define until you hear it; while Mario Duplantier’s drumming is mind-boggingly technical and the riffs are devastatingly heavy, a psychedelic, unnerving melody takes underlies the heavy barrage and entrances you. These French masters of progressive death metal easily put on the best performance of the night.  I strongly suggest to any fan of music – especially metal heads – check out these guys on youtube or at their myspace.

All That Remains came out next and gave the worst performance of the night. In all honesty, I don’t see anything redeeming about this band; their singer is a self-indulgent doucebag who didn’t even know what town he was in, and the scrappy band sounds like a trend-hopping bastard version of every popular style of metal from the last 4 years. To me it seemed very amusing that a second rate Gothenburg metal ripoff band was playing direct support to the Swedish death metal innovators of In Flames. Thank God they weren’t headlining or some bullshit.

It was my first time seeing In Flames live, and they certainly made it worth my wait. Their set was surprisingly short, but it was packed tightly with some of their best songs from their catalog – both old and new. While it was most fun to headbang to the likes of “Pinball” and “Behind Space”, newer anthems like “Cloud Connected” and “Take This Life” drew the biggest response from the crowd. Anders and the band were full of energy and were feeding off the crowd and they made it a very interesting and varied performance. All in all, it was great to see In Flames show All That Remains fans how Swedish death metal riffs were supposed to by played.

For a photo album from the night, click on one of the pictures or visit MetalInjection.net.

In Flames

Gojira

All That Remains

36 Crazyfists

In Flames @ MacEwan Hall Nov 14/08. This show was great. All three opening bands played very well. This was my second time seeing In Flames. Earlier this year I met In Flames on Megadeths Gigantour and I would say they are some really cool guys. I met Niel aka Headjester who did not make the trek to Canada on Gigantour, really nice guy. The boys put on a good 2 hour set playing approximately 18 songs. Much nicer to them as the Headliner than as the Opener for Megadeth.

Picks,

36 Crazyfists: Custom InTune

Gorjira: Customs

All That Remains: Custom Dunlop

In Flames: Custom Dunlop

Note: A ton of picks a thrown during the show for In Flames.

Rock Hard, Rock Loud, Rock On!

JR