Ranges Ascensionist Tour Update 1: Minot, Minneapolis, Chicago

Tour day 1 – Saturday 30 September 2017

Playing at 62 Doors, Minot, North Dakota

w/ Home Invasion, Icarus the Owl, Breakup Haircuts

6am

Damn it’s early.

Is it even legal to be awake at this hour? I mean, I’ve been awake earlier than this in the past – you know, before I was unemployed and homeless – but … time zones? I don’t know, I’m just tired.

Joey’s bought coffees for all the guys. All six of us are loaded into the van and CJ is driving. Driving east seems like a poor decision currently, seeing as we are driving directly into the blinding sunlight. Even with sunglasses and squinty eyes it’s hard to tolerate.

The guys are all having a laugh, sharing stories about previous tours they’d all been on with other bands. It sounds like I’m in for an interesting next few weeks.

8am

The van has a built-in DVD player. Joey has a massive collection of dubious looking horror films that he want’s us to get through by the end of tour. I can’t tell if he wants to get scared or appreciates how funny poor quality horrors films are.

We christen the DVD player with the obvious choice – This Is Spinal Tap. I’d forgotten how funny it is. Hopefully it doesn’t foreshadow anything that will happen to us on tour. Although… as much as I like Mark, how cool would it be to see a drummer spontaneously combust!?

7pm

That was one of the longest drives of my life. It took roughly 12 hours to drive from Bozeman to Minot. One of the guys mentioned that we’ve moved into a different time zone. This whole time travel business confuses me.

We load the gear downstairs into the venue. 62 Rooms is a shared studio / art gallery deal. I enjoy looking at the range of artwork hung up throughout the building.

8PM

I don’t know what to make of Home Invasion. They’re a two piece. I guess it’s hardcore? They both have cheap, nondescript face masks and felt wide-brimmed hats on. The drummer takes turns between drumming and screaming into the mic out front, while the guitarist builds layers with a looping pedal and sometimes sings as well. It’s loud and violent and the drummer keeps turning the sole light on and off with his left foot, which is disorienting.

Ranges play next. It’s actually the first time I’ve seen them play. Their whole rig is all connected so that the lighting rig syncs with the music. It works well – ambient music coupled with stark lighting.

Icarus The Owl play mathy pop-punk. It’s busy music. The drummer has great chops and I like the three-way vocal harmonies, although the lead singer is very high-pitched and I tire of his voice quickly.

Breakup Haircuts round off the night with some great hardcore styled music. I enjoy what they do, but miss some of the set because I’m helping the band load gear into the van.

11pm

We eat at an Irish pub called Ebeneezer’s just down the road. My meal came on one of the largest plates I’ve seen in my life and the band couldn’t get enough of my excited reaction. After the meal we drive on for roughly an hour, stopping to sleep overnight in a town called Rugby.

Tour day 2 – Sunday 1 October

Triple Rock Social Club, Minneapolis, Minnesota

w/ Drumbeat Red, Lions & Creators

10am

Joey’s pretty excited about the venue we’re headed to. Triple Rock is co-owned by Erik Funk from the punk band Dillinger Four. Now that he mentions it, I recognise the name from a NOFX song. The drive isn’t nearly so long today, and everyone is in a good mood. The guys speak fondly of Minneapolis – they have friends in town and all have a story or two from last time they were there.

11am

A storm hits and one of the windscreen wipers gets caught by the wind and flicks off the windshield. Thankfully CJ is able to find a space to pull over and was able to sort it out. I don’t know what we would do otherwise because most mechanics would be closed on Sundays, and it wouldn’t be safe to continue in the heavy rain.

5pm

We arrive in Minneapolis early in the evening, with plenty of time to kill before the show. One point of interest is a vending machine stocking guitar strings, capos, picks and drumsticks. It strikes me as a good idea. The venue has a cool aesthetic, with gig posters and band stickers on most walls.

Food seems like a very attractive option after the long van ride, so once you’ve unloaded the gear from the van we head next door to the restaurant area of Triple Rock. The jukebox is playing loud punk music, which prompts Mark to tell me about his musical background. He grew up in New York in and around the hardcore scene. I mention that I saw Gorilla Biscuits play in Auckland a few years ago, which sends Mark down a rabbit hole, mentioning all his friends who played in associated bands. He also knows Vernon Reid from Living Colour, and can’t believe that I interviewed Will Calhoun from the same band earlier in the year. I can only imagine how awesome it was playing shows at legendary places like CBGB’s when he lived in New York. I’m looking forward to the Brooklyn and New Jersey legs of the tour because we will get to meet Mark’s old friends.

8.30pm

Lions & Creators are amazing! Just three guys on stage throwing themselves around wildly. They find a balance between control and chaos and I love it. They also talk about murder sneezes, which is something that more people need to know about.

Ranges play better tonight. Being on a stage and have a black background helps to add gravitas to the set, and the band sounded more confident because they could hear themselves better in the mix (compared to last night). My friend Will watches the set with me and he mentions how impressed he is with the overall setup. He has a point. The band play well and the music from the new album sounds good. But that they’ve managed to build a stage set with a synchronised light show in the icing on the cake.

I miss the last act because I was catching up with Will. The guys in Ranges tell me that I really missed out.

12am

Jared’s best friend Mike lives in Minneapolis so we’re all staying at his place. Most of us stay up well into the night, talking nonsense and watching music videos. At one point Mike’s wife brings out a box of nerf guns. I’m not sure what I expected from tour, but this isn’t how I imagined it. It sure is fun though.

Tour Day 3 – Monday 2 October

Subterranean, Chicago, Illinois

Outrun The Sunlight, Atonement Theory

Chicago is one of the few cities on tour that I’ve already been to. I stayed with Matt from Aviation and the War in August. I rate Chicago as having had the best food in my American travels to date. All the guys say that they’re looking forward to some deep dish pizza.

Joey gets into weird spaces that he calls “second wind”, usually as we enter cities. He puts on a hick accent and starts talking about diesel engines. I’m starting to get used to it, but I doubt that I’ll ever become immune to his silly sense of humour.

Arriving in Chicago is different from the other cities. We hit traffic and have to pay to drive on toll roads – something that isn’t found too often near Montana. The city feels vibrant as we enter, full of all walks of life. There are hundreds of cyclists, and apparently they all have a death wish because they keep cutting CJ off as he drives. Finding a park for a van and trailer is quite the ordeal, but after circling the block a few times we find a space near the venue.

Subterranean is a cool venue. Space is tight so we play a game of tetris with drums, guitars, amps and lights to try to squeeze the gear out-of-the-way.

After packing the gear in, I walked to a nearby taco restaurant just around the corner. Turns out my grasp of the Spanish language isn’t as good as I’d thought it was, because the simple act of ordering two tacos proves extremely difficult. At the taco place I meet David, one of Mark’s old friends who lives in Michigan, and drove a few hours to make the gig. He’s a friendly guy and we chat over our meal.

Turns out the meal took so long to order, cook and eat that I ended up missing the first act! I’m told that Atonement Theory were great so I was sorry to miss them.

Setting up proved tricky with such limited space, so we opted not to use a few of the lights. Jared’s pedal board was also bugging out, so he chose to bypass a few pedals.

Tonight’s set was great. The mix sounded good and I caught the guys flashing grins at each other throughout.

Outrun the Sunlight closed the night with their technical post-metal. It was a wonder to see them pull off intricate melodies that switched time signatures. I stood side of stage watching the drummer make magic happen.

Outrun the Sunlight at Subterranean Chicago

After packing up the venue we went round the corner to Dino’s Pizza. It was a shame to leave Chicago immediately after, but the city had a reputation, meaning the band were anxious about parking the van somewhere with a likelihood of being broken into with their instruments inside.

All words and photos by Joseph James

Ranges Tour Blog: One Day To Go!

I can hardly believe it.

I am about to embark on a tour with a band that will take me across America and back.

The band in question is Montana’s Ranges. Just last week they released their new album, The Ascensionist. In just over a week we will be at the inaugural dunk!USA festival in Burlington, Vermont.

I’ve heard the lads practicing together, but this is the first night I will see them actually perform a set. The Ascensionist is a culmination of everything the band has become, a homage to previous albums, yet fresh in its own right. I see the band at the height of their career to date, both artistically and musically. It’s a privilege to be able to see them at this exciting time.

We’re driving a mini van with trailer in tow. There are six of us: CJ (guitar) is like the dad – he is the voice of reason and will be driving for most of the tour. Joey plays guitar as well. He’s crazy and has a short attention span, but is incredibly likable. Mark is the drummer. He’s the oldest of the group, a veteran of music. His accent is different to the others, being from New York, and he has some great stories. Jared plays bass. He has a master’s degree in ceramics. He’s the one I’ve spent least time with, but no doubt I’ll know him well after spending 2 weeks in a van with him.

Wilson is tagging along too. He’s CJ’s business partner, helping to run their printing company A Thousand Arms. He’s in charge of photography and visual wizardry. He was actually an original member of the band, so it’s nice to have him along.

And then there’s me. I’ll be keeping a tour blog, taking photos, selling t-shirts, driving the van, helping to set up for the shows… in short, I’m the roadie. I’m the youngest, and I’m foreign, so most of jokes are made at my expense (mostly Hobbit references for the time being)

I helped the guys with prep last night. CJ and I combined forces to create a loft in the back of the van – a bunk that we can sleep on with room for storage underneath. We’ve been printing merch like mad as well – for both the tour and dunk!fest.

Tomorrow, the first leg of the tour, will bring us to Minot, North Dakota. I’ve been travelling around America for months now, having left my home in New Zealand in June. But America is a biiiig place, so despite visiting many different cities, I haven’t even scratched the surface. I’m hyped to see more of this amazing country, and meet locals along the way.

EP Review: His Master’s Voice The Devils Blues- Woman

I first heard of His Master’s Voice when Mathias Hallberg reviewed Into Orbit’s latest album release show. I had been in the South Island at a sporting event, and came back to Mathias raving about this bluesy band from Auckland.

Needing to make up for missing the show, I made a point of seeing the band next time they visited Wellington, and Mathias was 100% right. They’re damn good.

The band sent me Woman yesterday. I’ve been playing it on repeat non-stop since.

His Master's Voice - The Devils Blues. Family of Strangers Tour. Valhalla, Wellington

Image: Will Not Fade

Take the blues and revive them with dosage of danger. Add filthy southern rock riffs. Swirl in a generous serving of Sabbath, Led Zeppelin and Deep Purple. Drop in a few drugs. And then, amidst the swirling haze, you will find you have produced His Master’s Voice.

They play with such a swagger. Whether laying down a doomy groove, or ripping into a fast-paced swing section, the music is saturated with infectious feel.

My personal favourite is first track, “Burning” – a slow burner with a smooth, rolling riff. That is, until frontman Jesse Sorenson cries out “Come the groove!” And that’s exactly what happens. It all kicks in. If the bass line doesn’t get you moving then wait til the tambourines start ashakin’ and the primal drums kick in. And then, just to send you over the edge, we have a guitar solo.

There is no denying how much Black Sabbath have influenced His Master’s Voice’s sound. The title track on this EP reminds me of “Electric Wizard”. Sorenson channels his inner-Ozzy as he wails over a sweetly picked guitar melody. The rest of the band joins in, and the soaring guitars and organs elevate the music to the next level.

The only problem with Woman is the duration. 20 minutes is not enough! But I’ve been playing it on repeat and I can’t see myself tiring of these songs anytime soon. But honestly, what more do you need? Groovy blues with a heavy edge. Music that will possess you to dance. It’s just fantastic.

His Master’s Blues have pulled it off again, and Woman comes with my highest of recommendations.

Image: Will Not Fade

Woman is due out digitally on Bandcamp on 1 October 2017, and will also be available through the usual streaming platforms. The CD will be available at the EP release show at The King’s Arms on October 28th.

His Master’s Voice links:

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/thedevilsblues
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/thedevilsbluesnz/
Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/user/thedevilsbluesnz
Bandcamp: www.hismastersvoice.bandcamp.com
Soundcloud: https://soundcloud.com/brando28
Reverbnation: https://www.reverbnation.com/hismastersvoice
Merch: www.thedevilsmerch.com

His Master’s Voice are:

Jesse Sorensen – Vocals and Guitar
Brandon Bott – Bass
Az Burns – Guitar
Renè Harvey – Drums
(Plus Paul Lawrence – Keys on ‘Evil’ and ‘Woman’)

Words and photos by Joseph James

Album Review: Bandina ié – Synekdoke

Copenhagen quintet Bandina ié have spent a long time working on their début album, Synekdoke. Six whole years for six tracks. Spending an average of a whole year on each track is either a sign of stupidity or great attention to detail.

Named after the Charlie Kaufman movie “Synecdoche, New York”, the album feels light and summery.

The introductory title track feels ambient and ephemeral, with light guitar picking, electronic swells, and tapping on the drum cymbals that sound like cicadas chirping in the trees. It doesn’t feel so much like a song, but serves to set a relaxing tone for the album.

“Arjuna” is fantastic. Everything about it makes me think of carefree dancing – the great groove, the way I picture fingers jumping off the strings on the fretboard, the way the drumsticks bounce off the rims of the drums, the way the shaker rattles in time to the beat. It’s a wonderful song, reminiscent of Dorena.

Likewise, “Solipsisten” warms my heart. Sweet guitar picking, a strong beat with a shaker and ambient swells combine to create a thing of beauty.

The reason I love this album so much is because it sounds so fun and lighthearted. I picture a fantasy scene with elves and fairies partying it up in a forest clearing, fireflies spiraling around them, and everyone having the time of their lives.

Not every track is a fun fairy tale soundtrack. A few are more ambient, and “Kazuaya” features a dangerous rhythm that comes close to a rave track. “Ophavet” opens and closes with clinking wooden wind chimes and rustling in the bushes, but features a down-tempo bassline between. But overall the album still sounds like an adventure in the wilderness.

Too much instrumental music is sad and gloomy. And as much as I love heavy music, the music that Bandina ié writes makes me want to celebrate life in a way that few other post-rock songs inspire me to do.

Synekdoke is available now (digitally and on vinyl) through Stella Polaris Music.

Bandina ié links:

https://www.facebook.com/bandinaie/

https://www.youtube.com/user/bandinaie

https://soundcloud.com/bandina-ie

https://bandinaie.bandcamp.com

Bandina ié is:

Johan Carøe (guitars):

Rasmus Boesgaard (guitars)

Simon Ulstrup (bass)

Mads Michelsen (drums, percussion)

Emil Duvier (piano, synthesizers)

Joseph James

Live Review: Frank Turner at Commodore Ballroom, Vancouver

Frank Turner & The Sleeping Souls (show #2101)

w/ Band of Rascals and Trapper Schoepp

Commodore Ballroom, Vancouver

Wednesday 13 September 2017

Frank Turner is in the middle of touring around America at the moment as a support act for Jason Isbell. But never one to disappoint fans, he stopped off in Vancouver for a standalone headline show to cater to his Canadian fanbase.

“We’re here in Vancouver for 15 hours, just to play for you lot!” he shouted, “This morning I was tired and hungover and was not in the mood to chat to Canadian border guards… but we’re here now!”

Band of Rascals

The local act Band of Rascals played a great opening set of blistering rock music with an edge of country. They threw themselves about of stage with abandon, yet retained enough control to stay tight and sang great harmonies. A few songs entered into ballad territory, reminding me of Stu Larsen during on softer part.

Trapper Schoepp

Second up was Trapper Schoepp, also signed to Xtra Mile, the same label as Turner. Just one kid with a guitar, a large mop of hair, and one hell of a voice. He played a bunch of songs from his latest EP, Bay Beach Amusement Park, which sent me into giggles. It’s not often that I hear serious songs about bumper cars or Elvis siting on theme park rides. Great as he was, his set started to drag when he played some slower numbers, although his vivacious energy and funny banter kept us awake between songs.

Frank Turner

Things have changed since I last saw Turner play in Wellington. The Commodore Ballroom was easily twice the size of Bodega and Meow, where I’ve seen him play previously.

Turner keeps track of ever show he’s played. Meow was #1666. Tonight was #2101. That’s close to 500 odd shows that he’s played in two years. No wonder the man has such a die hard following, considering how hard he works. He also has numerous new tattoos. Last time I saw him the violin f-holes on his forearms were relatively fresh. Now he has many others crowding his skin as well.

But despite the time past since I saw him last, the rules remained the same: #1 don’t be a dick – look after each other. #2 sing along.

Turner and his merry men of Sleeping Souls stop upon that stage and tore through everything we hoped for. At first it seemed that most of the set was drawn from the two most recent albums, Positive Songs for Negative People, and Tape Deck Heart. But throughout the night he drew a few songs from each album, hedging his bets with wanting to please fans both new and old.

PSFNP wasn’t released last time I saw Turner live, so it was interesting seeing how some of the tracks sounded live. In my album review, I’d written that “Out Of Breath” is “played at such a pace that it seems that the musicians are almost tripping over themselves”. Funnily enough, Turner demanded that the audience start a circle pit for that song, so I feel my description was surprisingly accurate, that the song was designed for people running around out of control.

“Mittens” was another surprise. Turner was solo onstage at this point, playing a few solo ballads. “Mittens” is a mostly soft song, building up towards the end. Live, its a different animal. Turner bellowed with all his might, red in the face. I never expected such a sweet song to be played so violently.

He also treated us to three new songs from the forthcoming album. This was the first headlining gig in a long time so I guess this was his chance to offer something new that he couldn’t do during supporting legs of someone else’s tour.

I thought it ironic that he sang a song entitled “Be More Kind” to a group of Canadians. For what I could gather, the next album has two major themes. Half of it is reactionary to the state of affairs in the world at the moment. One song is called “1933”, which I read as comparing some current world events to the rise of Hitler. But then there are some happy love songs – not a typical Turner song topic. He played one such track called “There She Is”.

One of the best parts of the night was when Turner called his longtime friend Alice onstage. “I haven’t seen you in a very long time” he explained to her, “and when I catch up with old friends I like to have a drink with them”. From stage he ordered two shots of whiskey from the bar, and asked that they be handed to the sound guy. “Alice, during this next song I need you to crowd surf back to the sound desk, get the whiskey, and crowd surf back to the stage without spilling a drop”.

It was so fun to see this mad challenge pulled off, with Alice precariously riding the sea of up-stretched arms with a shot glass in each of her hands. The two reunited onstage and sunk their respective drinks. “That was a bloody stupid idea”, Turner remarked “it’s like drinking during the middle of a cardio session!”

Towards the end of the set Turner made an announcement. “I’m ashamed to say that despite practicing every day of my life since I was a child, I’m still not good enough to play death metal. But we can still bring death metal to the show!” He asked the crowd to split in two, like Moses parting the red seas.

I turned to my friend wild eyed. “We’ve got to go! We’re going to die!” I told him, anticipating a wall of death.

Turns out I was wrong. Turner made a speech about how the world is divided at present, and how we need to come together and support each other. Instead of the infamous wall of death, he wanted to start a wall of hugs. As gimmicky as it was, it was a nice way to bring a crowd of strangers together.

I’ve recently been reading Turner’s autobiography, The Road Beneath My Feet. It has given me insight into his life, and the meanings behind many of his lyrics. Songs like Tell Tale Signs and Long Live The Queen are suddenly a lot sadder when you understand what they are about. But I think that’s a big aspect of Turner’s appeal – he’s relatable. He sings about the hurt in his life, the struggles and vulnerabilities. That’s why you have hardened punks in patched jackets showing up to a show that features men in white collared shirts playing mandolin. Because at the heart of the music, when you strip away the genres and the scene expectations, Frank Turner writes songs that give hope.

There’s nothing quite like seeing your favourite song played live [mine is “I Am Disappeared”]. I remember when I first saw Turner play, many years ago. It was wild seeing the man I’d listened to thousands of times stand ten metres in front of me and sing those same songs from a stage. And after seeing him for a third time, I can tell you that the rowdy, inclusive, heartfelt show he puts on only gets better each time.

Frank Turner links:

Website: http://frank-turner.com/
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/frankturnermusic
Twitter: https://twitter.com/FrankTurner
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/frankturner
YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/user/frankturner