Tag Archive: Kurt Ballou

From The Archive: Old Man Gloom – Christmas

Filed Under: Albums You Should Hear, Bands That Made Me Heavy, From the Archive

Sep.14, 2011

From The Archive

The discovery of a new band is always exciting. Will it be something you’ve heard countless times? An experience that leaves a bad taste in your mouth? Or is it a treat from which you cannot stop consuming? I wanted to take a trip back in time to reminisce about bands/albums that not only introduced me to heavy music, but kept me coming back for more…

From The Archive: Old Man Gloom – Christmas

Me again. Dan’s finishing up a few other things so I’ve gladly taken the opportunity to waffle on about something close to my heart, Now, I know the weather’s getting colder and the leaves browning, but it’s still way too fucking early to start talking about Christmas, amirite?

Wrong. It’s always a good time to talk about Christmas.

I am of course, however, talking about an album. What kind of metal blogger would I be if I compromised the integrity of Dormition’s fine column to instead ramble about egg-nog and Santy Claus?

I’ve rambled about sludge supergroup Old Man Gloom a few times now, but not really given you any depth on them or their legacy. Well, here’s me rectifying this, because this record is absolutely amazing.

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Tags: Aaron Turner, Caleb Schofield, Christmas, Gift, Kurt Ballou, Nate Newton, Old Man Gloom

Five Reasons Why Metalcore Isn’t Total Shit #1: Converge – Jane Doe

Filed Under: Editorials, Lists!

Aug.26, 2011

Due to the overwhelming success of Jimmy’s ‘Five Reasons Why Deathcore Isn’t Total Shit‘ series last summer, Heavy Blog Is Heavy will be backing further up the ladder of ‘core’ for the next two weeks, and counting down the five reasons why metalcore isn’t full of shit. It gets a bad rap sometimes, and being the underdog(?) champions that we are, we’re making a stand for the fat kid and suplexing the skinny elitist bully right on his stupid face.

Make sure to throw your $0.02 at me and tell me why I’m completely wrong in the comments section, if you wish. I shall use it to buy soap to wash the spittle from my forehead, safe in the knowledge that I’ll be your boss at the plant some day.

So far…

#5) The Chariot – Long Live

#4) Crydebris – The Severing

#3) Norma Jean - Bless The Martyr And Kiss The Child

#2) Every Time I Die – New Junk Aesthetic

The decision about whether or not to include Converge at all was a tough call. Are they metalcore? Are they not? Well, fuck it: I make the rules, and given the ‘technical’ definition; big metal riffs, hardcore M.O. — rather than the culture of crap now associated with the term — they more than count. They’re just 1000x better than anyone else has the nerve to be. With this cleared up, there was only one position they could take.

As a band they’ve put out a ton of great records, but Jane Doe is fucking bad ass. It’s just shy of ten years old at the time of writing, but still sounds as fresh as anything put out today. I think this is down to a bunch of reasons: great production; a combination of four great musicians; some killer riffs — but at the end of the day, truly great heavy music doesn’t age, and this really hasn’t.

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Tags: Ben Koller, Converge, Five Reasons Why Metalcore Isn't Total Shit, Jacob Bannon, Jane Doe, Kurt Ballou, metalcore, Nate Newton

Today Is The Day For New Music It Seems!

Filed Under: Audio, New music

Aug.16, 2011

GROAN. I’m sorry, I couldn’t help that one – it was just too easy!

So yeah, it’s been four years since we’ve heard from Nashville noise-merchants Today Is The Day with their last effort Axis of Eden, but they’re back with a vengeance with their new album Pain Is A Warning - and you can hear the track “Death Curse” over at Metalsucks reet now.

The album, which was produced by the musical super-being that is Kurt Ballou is out today via Black Market Activities/Good Fight Music. Thoughts?

- CG

Tags: Black market Activities, Good Fight Music, Kurt Ballou, MetalSucks, Pain Is A Warning, Today is the Day

From The Archive: Genghis Tron – Board Up the House

Filed Under: Albums You Should Hear, Bands That Made Me Heavy, From the Archive

Jul.27, 2011

From The Archive

From The Archive: Genghis Tron – Board Up the House

Genghis Tron - Board Up the House

When I first heard Genghis Tron, it was when I saw them live on Converge’s 2008 tour. Now I knew of the band, but never actually listened to any of their songs, so as my brother and I waited for them to finish setting up their gear, I couldn’t help but notice a simple but ultimately effective row of lights they were assembling around the stage. So my anticipation of not only seeing them but actually getting to hear them was growing. This was around the same time they were releasing their newest full-length, Board Up the House, an album that combined the ferocity of grindcore and noise with different types of electronic music, and the outcome was a creative and experimental album that made me an instant fan…

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Tags: board up the house, Converge, Genghis Tron, Kurt Ballou

OMG HNNNG

Filed Under: RAGE, WILD SPECULATION!

Jul.21, 2011

This Old Man Gloom fiasco, started a couple of months ago, is starting to pees me orf. I blame that talentless hack* Kurt Ballou entirely; he started, and then quashed the rumour that the band, for whom he produces, would be putting out their highly anticipated fifth studio album soon. These guys, somewhat under the radar for many, are a quality force in sludge metal – when they’re not busy with their primary bands – and so naturally I got excited at the prospect.

Well, The PRP have reported that buried somewhere in the recently released Hydrahead Records advert is a sneaky clue – the phrase “OMG 5 2012″ written on a book in the background – giving rise to the prospect of a new album next year.

I can’t actually see it myself, unless it’s the book between ‘Cave‘ and ‘In‘, but if you can spot it in the large version of the ad (here) then let us know.

Whilst you do so, listen to the opening track form the band’s last album. It’s fucking awesome and may possibly crush your balls/ovaries.

Tags: Cave In, Hydrahead, Kurt Ballou, Old Man Gloom

NEW OLD MAN GLOOM ALBUM TO BE CALLED EASTE—Wait A Cotton Pickin’ Minute!

Filed Under: General News

May.16, 2011

Alternatively, ‘Kurt Ballou: epic cocktease’

Alright, so it seems I got way too excited about the prospect of a new Old Man Gloom album, and blew the tidbit of information from producer Kurt Ballou’s Facebook out of all proportion. Dang it!

As our big brother Metalsucks reports, Kurt recently retracted his previous statement, saying:

whoops. nevermind about Old Man Gloom. they forgot to write songs, so they’ve cancelled

And in response to the understandable disappointment:

hey, i want an new OMG too. i think i’m just going to write it and record it myself and see if i can pass it off as them. i have played drums, guitar, and sang on their records before, so it’s ok, right? it will be called “easter.”

So it could happen, but not any time soon. In the words of Ziltoid, BALLS!

- CG

Tags: Converge, Kurt Ballou, Old Man Gloom, Ziltoid

Shock Old Man Gloom News To Cheer Up Your Grumpy Mugs

Filed Under: Audio, Upcoming releases

May.10, 2011

Despite having been kicking around this place for the best part of eighteen months, I’ve not yet had the opportunity to blow my load over anything related to Old Man Gloom – the seminal sludge/doom band formed many a year ago by members of ISIS, Converge, Cave In and Agoraphobic Nosebleed – because they having put out a record in seven fucking years.

Fair enough – it’s a ‘sometimes’ side-project for them, and the guys have been busy. Nate Newton (guitar, vocals) and Kurt Ballou (producer) have been busy making some of the best hardcore records of the noughties, as well as the latter handling desk duties for some other brilliant releases during the same period (Kvelertak‘s recent self-titled, Doomriders, Trap Them, Genghis Tron and Beecher, to name but a few). Caleb Schofield (bass) has had his hands full reforming Cave In, and Aaron Turner (vocals, guitar) was up to his neck in ISIS.

But the planets seem to have aligned, and with everyone free (or at least semi-free), Kurt announced last night that after a massive hiatus, we can expect new material from OMG in the near future. OMG indeed.

For those unfamiliar (which may be a number of you – young whelps!), give the following tracks a listen and try not to love them. Absolutely crushing.

More after the jump, including the sublime acoustic track “Clenched Tight In The Fist Of God” and the charmingly-entitled “Rape Athena“. Maybe that’s got something to do with why she’s got white arms?

- CG

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Tags: Aaron Turner, Agoraphobic Nosebleed, Caleb Schofield, Cave In, Converge, Isis, Kurt Ballou, Nate Newton, Old Man Gloom

Trap Them – Darker Handcraft

Filed Under: Reviews

Mar.15, 2011

Trap Them

Darker Handcraft

01. Damage Prose
02. Slumcult & Gather
03. Every Walk a Quarantine
04. Evictionaries
05. All by the Constant Vulse
06. Sordid Earnings
07. The Facts
08. Saintpeelers
09. Manic in the Grips
10. Sovereign Through the Pines
11. Drag the Wounds Eternal
12. Scars Align

[03/15/11]
[Prosthetic Records]

It’s hard to believe three years have passed since New Hampshire’s Trap Them released a full-length album, and since then other hardcore/crust punk bands have been taking the genre by storm. Granted they released their EP Filth Rations in 2010 to hold people over, but to me it was more of a tease, only leaving me wanting more. Also durning this span of time, they left their original home label, Deathwish, and signed to Prosthetic Records, with Darker Handcraft being their first release through the label. So the question is, was Darker Handcraft worth the wait, did it meet expectations or crash and burn under the weight of all the other bands dominating the genre right now…

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Tags: Darker Handcraft, Kurt Ballou, Trap Them

From The Archive: Cave In – Until Your Heart Stops

Filed Under: Albums You Should Hear, Bands That Made Me Heavy, From the Archive

Nov.04, 2010

From The Archive: Cave In – Until Your Heart Stops

Cave Ins - Until Your Heart Stops

Cave In, along with Converge, Integrity, Neurosis and a few other choice bands, set the bar high amongst other hardcore/metal bands I was listening to at that time in my life and in the scene itself. Cave In combined elements of hardcore, space/progessive rock (which became more prominent later on in their career) and alternative metal. Some even lump them in the metalcore genre. They formed in 1995, in Methuen, Massachusetts, and while going through several member changes, they finally solidified their lineup in 1998 with the release of their debut studio-album Until Your Heart Stops.

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Tags: Cave In, Converge, From The Archive, Hydra Head Records, Integrity, Isis, Jacob Bannon, Kurt Ballou, Neurosis, Until Your Heart Stops

For Whom The Bell Tolls: Eden Maine

Filed Under: For Whom The Bell Tolls

Aug.13, 2010

Ernest Hemingway: way more metal than Metallica.

So. Bands break up. It sucks, but that’s the way of things. For most of them, the reason is pure and simple; on some level, they suck. Whether it’s only a little, or harder than a $20 hooker, it doesn’t matter; the world doesn’t lose a whole bunch. The members go on with their lives, and probably go on to make a greater impact in other areas of society. Like mowing my lawn.

Then there are bands that are forced into submission for other reasons: money, conflict – both personal and artistic – or sometimes the fanbase only comes after they’re long gone.

This is a chronicle of those bands. Most you will not have heard of, for the very reason that they’re not even around to promote themselves any more. But trust me, they are bands that you really really should have heard of.

So, without any further ado: ding-fucking-dong, it’s Eden Maine.