Sometimes you make the deadline...
and sometimes the deadline makes you.
What up party people! My bad for missing last week’s newsletter. Did y’all miss me? This week, I’m taking the bulk of our time together to share some extended show notes from the latest episode of C-6, which aired on Wednesday on CAMP. If you missed it, you can check out the archive here. Maybe go hit “play” on that bad boy and then kick back and read along. It’s the adult version of those books that came with tapes when we were kids.
SHOW NOTES, Part One
I’m going to divide this up over the course of two newsletters, as there’s a few things that I’d like to say about each of the bands featured on this episode. Rather than overwhelm you all at once, let’s lean into a slower pace. Go support these artists, share their Bandcamp pages, talk ‘em up with your friends. You know the deal.
TV-MA: This is the first track I’ve heard from TV-MA, when they reached out to me via our BearTooth Collective connections. It was a great way to kick off the episode and I’m looking forward to diving into their full discography soon.
Workin’ Man Noise Unit: I’ve said this before for anyone how will sit still with me long enough to pontificate, but some of my favorite current rock/noise rock/punk music is coming out the UK. Don’t get me wrong, there are some killer noisy bands in the States right now too (one of them will be coming up in just a bit), but for my money, the most creative and fun stuff is bubbling up across the pond. These guys are the perfect example of what I’m talking about. I would love to see them live. Maybe one day..
Brandy: Is party noise rock a thing? Maybe a subgenre? If it’s not, Brandy is well on their way to making it a reality. They write incredibly catchy tunes that always sound like they’re this close to going off the rails completely.
powertakeOff: This is one of my favorite noise rock bands ever, and I’m biased about it for a very good reason. It’s the project of my good buddy, Gus Engstrom, a friend here in NC who’s been instrumental in my musical explorations, as well as the formation of my own band. powertakeOff lives on the relentless side of the genre, wielding sound as a instrument of blunt destruction, a force of nature rather than “just” music.
Lump Hammer: If powertakeOff had a British counterpart, it might be Lump Hammer. I got familiar with LH as an offshoot of Lovely Wife (another brilliant noise rock band from England). Repetitive heaviness that continually pummels you throughout the entire runtime of the album. Outstanding and weirdly comforting, if you’re wired like me.
FirstForgiveness: My dude Chris Voss is a talented and prolific musician, with his main band being the DIY black metal entity Necrolytic Goat Converter. FirstForgiveness shows him flexing his riff muscles in other directions, with elements of thrash, punk, and hardcore creeping in. I don’t know if he’ll be revisiting this project any time soon, but I’ll be stoked if he does.
Modalcoda: I don’t know much about this band, but I was introduced to them through my friend, Stan Gibson. He runs Warm Noise, a small label out of Rock Hill, SC, and his taste in music is impeccable. I’ve started buying whatever he puts out, sight unseen (sound unheard?). It’s a gamble that always pays off, and Modalcoda is a perfect example of that. We’ll hear more from Stan himself in the next newsletter…
Jouquin Fox: Lastly, this track off The Love Garden Zendo mixtape brings us back into the orbit of the BearTooth Collective. Fox continually releases thought-provoking/genre-pushing rap and this mixtape is the perfect distillation of his experimental attitude, track after track. This is one of my favorite hip-hop albums of the year so far. Go check it out ASAP.
SIGNING OFF
Thanks for all the kind words about this here newsletter. It’s been encouraging getting feedback and I’m always looking for more. Reach out with ideas, bands you think I should know about, etc. And please share with your friends and invite them to subscribe.
If you want to support this directly, head on over to the QOHELETH Bandcamp and grab a tape, CD, sticker pack, and more. Most of the music itself is free for the taking, so grab a download if funds are tight. We’re almost always cooking up something new for future release, so anything that comes in goes to help make more art and music happen.
Until next time…