Respekt

My father, Orin Kim Amyx.

(((03))) (photo by Sunni)

The Accüsed

On Sunday July 12, 2009, as they prepare for the Supersonic Festival gig and London's Scala Club UK appearance at the end of the month, THE ACCÜSED will play an impromptu, friends and family-style midnight live set of material at fave watering hole The Bit Saloon, located in Northwest Seattle's historic Ballard neighborhood.

For this sneak-peek live set, THE ACCÜSED will include brand new songs from their upcoming Southern Lord Records CD The CURSE Of Martha Splatterhead (scheduled for release on August 5th) as well as many of their classic Splatter Rock favorites.

Local support acts will join the band on the bill this night so early arrival is suggested. Patrons are asked to give a small donation at the door which will go directly to R.A.I.N.N. (Rape Abuse Incest National Network), an organization the band strongly supports. For more info visit: rainnmakers.rainn.org/theaccused.

The Bit Saloon
(Ballard)
4818 17th Ave. NW
Seattle, WA 98107-4723
(206) 782-1680

The official record release celebration for The CURSE Of Martha Splatterhead is scheduled for August 5, 2009 at Neumo's in Seattle where they will be joined by headliners Sunn O))) + support act Eagle Twin, to begin their West Coast Tour together.

THE ACCÜSED w/ SUNN O))) and EAGLE TWIN
8/05/09 Neumo’s - Seattle, WA
8/08/09 Independent - San Francisco, CA
8/09/09 Historic Brookdale Lodge - Brookdale, CA
8/11/09 Center for Arts, Eagle Rock - Los Angeles, CA
8/13/09 Bluebird Theatre - Denver, CO
8/14/09 Avalon Theatre - Salt Lake City, UT


http://www.myspace.com/kingsofsplatter
http://www.splatterrock.com
http://www.southernlord.com

(((03:Earsplit PR)))

LOCRIAN - Drenched Lands

Lending itself more to the likes of House of Low Culture than to name drop contemporaries Sunn O))), there's a distant, resonant desperation to the music of Locrian that doesn't separate it from the later but is more closely related to the uniqueness of the former.

From their first full-length studio album, Drenched Lands, "Obsolete Elegy in Effluvia and Dross" is a straightforward soundscape that seemingly promises hope and refuge. A sublime turning point from a path one dare not take and a prologue to what lay ahead.
"Ghost Repeater" is drone the way it was meant to be ingested. Layers of sub-static and maddening free form synths echoed in the halls of a mind that could only belong to the introverted. Simple in it's essence, epic in it's delivery.
"Barren Temples Obscured By Contaminated" strums in the kind of terror that exists before the stalker attacks rather than punching us in the face with the kind of obviousness of where the song could go. This carries on, allowing us to savor the exhausting horror of anticipation, never dropping us into the pit over which we dangle.
"Epicedium" summons up beauty and serenity within subtle guitar tones and synths leading up to heaviness that never is overbearing but adds just enough flavour to an already appealing structure.
"Obsolete Elegy in Cast Concrete" is a return visit to the graveyards once strolled by a young Béla Lugosi type and is layered with the crush of guitar and tortured vocal misery the likes of which create pictures in ones mind of said graveyards slowly teaming with life made up of the dead... Brilliance by way of darkness and imagination.
The album is capped with the 30 minute, 9 second soundtrack-esque "Greyfield Shrines". This opus sums up the album (and band) as a whole, encompassing more than the mere sum of it's parts. Guitar and synth blend together inducing images of landscapes deserted and cold and home to the rust and decay of civilizations long gone. Half way through one is jarred from the ambiance and cast out into a furnace of Merzbow worship that will have you begging to have the spikes pulled from your palms and feet and have them inserted into the heart.

Locrian deliver audio that is not for the faint of heart, but rather for the strong of imagination. At no point in my frequent listens to Locrain did it not take me to places one would likely see in early Lynch or mid-career Tsukamoto.

Interesting facts: The Locrian mode is a musical mode or diatonic scale. It may be considered a minor scale with the second and fifth scale degrees lowered a semi-tone. The Locrian mode may also be considered as a scale beginning on the seventh scale degree of any Ionian, or major scale.

Examples of which are:
"Symptom of the Universe" by Black Sabbath is said to be in Locrian mode
The beginning of "YYZ" by Rush is in C Locrian
The main riff of "Painkiller" by Judas Priest
"Set The Controls For The Heart Of The Sun" by Pink Floyd

LOCRIAN on Myspace

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Å seing Frem

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0:13

Pretty much all I will be listening to for a very long time...

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American Live Aktio)))ns Phase 2

Following their previously announced Midwestern US tour beginning next week, the band will devastate the West Coast this August. The tour kicks off in Seattle where SUNN O))) will headline two Southern Lord label showcase events. The first night will be as a duo performing the the Shoshin/GrimmRobe Demos in its entirety! They will be joined by labelmates The Accüsed (this show serving as a record release show for the Accüsed album The Curse of Martha Splatterhead!), An encore Seattle performance follows the next night, this time alongside Southern Lord brethren Earth, Pelican and Eagle Twin. SUNN O))) then surges south along the coast through California and into Utah and Colorado alongside labelmates Eagle Twin and The Accüsed.

SUNN O))): MONOLITHS & DIMENSIONS WEST COAST 2009
8/05/2009 Neumo's - Seattle, WA w/ The Accüsed (record release show!), Trap Them, Black Breath
8/06/2009 Neumo's - Seattle, WA w/ Earth, Pelican, Eagle Twin
8/08/2009 Independent - San Francisco, CA w/ the Accüsed, Eagle Twin
8/09/2009 Historic Brookdale Lodge - Brookdale, CA w/ the Accüsed, Eagle Twin
8/11/2009 Center for Arts, Eagle Rock - Los Angeles, CA w/ the Accüsed, Eagle Twin
8/13/2009 Bluebird Theatre - Denver, CO w/ the Accüsed, Eagle Twin
8/14/2009 Avalon Theatre - Salt Lake City, UT w/ the Accüsed, Eagle Twin

MAXIMUM VOLUME YIELDS MAXIMUM RESULTS.

http://www.ideologic.org
http://www.southernlord.com
http://blog.southernlord.com
http://www.myspace.com/southernlordrecordings

(((03:Earsplit PR)))

EYE Rehearsal [06.17.09]

(((03)))

20k

TorqueZine reached 20,000 hits... not bad, eh? Thank you to EVERYONE who has linked me, checked in everyday, left feedback and been supportive! Russ "Proscriptor" Givens, Patchie and my brothers Thee Claw, Justin Bartlett, Mark Dawursk, Arik Roper, and to all who correspond and make it kick ass to have TorqueZine. See you at 30,000!

(((03)))

Respekt

"My ego only needs a good rhythm section."

~ Miles Dewey Davis III

(((03)))

Playlist 06.12.09

PIG DESTROYER - Painter of Dead Girls
DARKEST HOUR - Deliver Us
1000 HOMO DJS - Supernaut
RWAKE - Voices of Omens

Watching: There Will Be Blood, Speed Racer, Eyes Wide Shut, Breaking Bad: Season 2, Burn Notice: Season 3, In Plain Site: Season 2, Medium: Season 4

Reading: The Vampire in Europe by Montague Summers

Happy Birthday: Proscriptor (Late) and Ruppel (Early)

(((03)))

Der Korruptioncode

Point.Click.Corrupt

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American Live Aktio)))ns

Sunn 0))) will be heading to the Midwest for the first time in quite a while, playing shows in many cities and states they have not been to before.

The lineup for these Midwestern sonic rituals will be:

Attila Csihar - Invocations | Steve Moore - trombone, keys | Stephen O’Malley - Guitar | Greg Anderson - Bass

Joining Sunn 0))) on these live aktions will be one of Southern Lord's latest signings, Eagle Twin.

West coast dates for Sunn 0))) in August and east coast dates for September are in the planning stages and will be announced soon.

Sunn 0)))'s recently released 7th studio full-length Monoliths & Dimensions is currently being devoured by the media; the band's constant/inherent tonal devastation and atmospheric tension have soared to traumatic new heights on the album. On stage, the band has just recently conquered shows in Japan, Mexico, and have just wrapped up a European tour.

You can witness one of Sunn 0)))'s recent shows in a massive church in Leuven, Belgium at this location: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7a0Z2yndlOs

Sunn 0))) w/ special guests: Eagle Twin

7/02/2009 Empty Bottle - Chicago, IL

7/05/2009 Varsity Theater - Minneapolis, MN

7/06/2009 Sokol Auditorium / Underground - Omaha, NE

7/07/2009 The Riot Room - Kansas City, MO

7/08/2009 The Firebird - St. Louis, MO

7/10/2009 House Cafe - Dekalb, IL

7/11/2009 Eagle Theater - Pontiac, MI

7/12/2009 Southgate House - Newport, KY

"Sunn’s music has shown an astonishing capacity for expansion and transformation." - Signal To Noise

"...inverts all expectations; negative space infuses their pulverizing tendencies, revealing that light is the new heavy." - Spin Magazine

"Needless to say, this is not your dad’s heavy metal.... John Cage–inspired sonic experimentation, elements of modern classical music, folk, post-rock, and free jazz are embedded under the crush of ambient feedback. Ozzy it’s not." - New York Magazine

"Per Sunn O)))'s long-standing dogma, "Maximum volume [still] yields maximum results." But this time, there's enough musical range and temperance to usher even the most resolute naysayer into this intricate wonderland." - Pitchfork.com

"This is an album for people who love their music, not something that can be dropped into a playlist for easier digestion. Monoliths & Dimensions is tremendous in every way." - Brainwashed.com

MAXIMUM VOLUME YIELDS MAXIMUM RESULTS.

http://www.ideologic.org/
http://www.southernlord.com/
http://blog.southernlord.com/
http://www.myspace.com/southernlordrecordings

(((03:Earsplit PR)))

Grim and Frostbitten Respekt

(((03)))

Putting My Mouth Where My Money Is

It's true, I'm a complainer. I complain especially loud about things that really REALLY fucking bother me. Merch that doesn't fit. Deadbeats who don't ship at all... and shipping costs. Especially when said shipping costs guarantee little more than a lengthy wait by the mail box for your shit to come in and even then it's a gamble as to whether or not it's going to be correct. Case in point:

When Southern Lord put out the Burning Witch 2xCD, no one was more excited than I (just ask Proscriptor) and I pre (yes, that's PRE) 0rdered my copy along with one of the two new shirts that came with it. I waited a couple of weeks and began checking my mail box every day for the album I'd been trying for for AGES to get a hold of. 2 weeks went by, then 3. A 4th week passed and I thought to myself, "It will be any day now." Most mail orders say to allow 4 weeks and 4 weeks is what I allowed. After all, I've gotten shipments to Texas from New York that took 2 days, never mind 2 weeks, but I digressed. I let a 5th week pass to lend the benefit of the doubt to them and then I contacted Southern Lord. 4 (count them) 4 days later I received a mail back that stated simply, "Please wait 4 weeks for your order to arrive."

WHAT THE FUCK?!?! Someone doesn't read their e-mails. I'd waited 5 weeks and had been patient as hell. I worded my inquiry very delicately as I know how fucked up people can get toward someone working a help desk and I didn't want to be one of those hick fuckers that thinks the universe revolves around them. BUT, this mother fucker kinda forced my hand.

I wrote back that I'd waited not 4 weeks but 5 and nothing had come in and asked again that he check to see if my order shipped. Another 2 days and I got a 7 word semi-response, "Order didn't ship. Will get out asap." No sorry... no explanation as to the "why" of this fuck up, just a surgically cold fucking brush off. But still, at least it was on the way this time right..?

Another 2 weeks passed. That's right, 2 WEEKS and nothing. I wrote Southern Lord again and to my surprise was actually answered the next day, "Order went out today." Jesus fucking tap-dancin' Christ. 2 months into this mother fucker and I still didn't have my merch... and this from a fucking mail order that charges 7 fucking dollars for the first item. This was the bottom of the fucking barrel of customer service. Even places that ship for free, for whom you allow a lot of leeway in a situation like this in exchange for "free shipping" don't treat their customers this badly. I was a little fucking pissed to say the fucking least. At no time did I get so much as an apology either.

My package from "Southern Lord" arrived in a whopping 2 days. 2 DAYS! I thought back to when I placed the order, allowed for the time til it shipped as it was a pre-order and I should have received it 2 months ago. This was only insult to injury so to speak. I opened my package and pulled out the shirt and CD. The shirt was a long sleeve. I ordered a short sleeve. I looked at my order and there it was, short sleeve and a CD. Maybe this was someone's way of apologizing, and while most of you would say, "Long sleeve, that's great" I would agree. In Texas however, we have the occasion to wear a long sleeve a grand total of about 3 weeks per year due to the heat so... so much for sporting my new Burning Witch shirt very often... oh well, at least I only waited 2 months to get it.

This was a worst case I know, and I'd have forgotten it all at the small cost of a "we're sorry" from at least one mother fucker involved... but here's my point: there is much better out there and you won't get raped for nearly another $10 for shipping and "handling" by some douche that doesn't give a shit.

You can get free, fast shipping from Omega Mail Order and their selection is awesome. An independent sellers of note is Scott Slimm and Archive Recordings. Free shipping and ULTRA-FAST. Robotic Empire USED to be free shipping and used to have a site that you could easily navigate, but they are fast and still have a lot of goodies (I got Guilted by the Sun on CD from them and that fucker is GONE). Hell's Headbangers, Battle Kommand and Moribund Cult are cheap and fast and their customer service is impeccable.

Hydra Head are great guys and super nice but just so happen to be the most expensive shippers at almost $9 for the first item, and that's the most economical shipping method available too. However, those guys are fast as hell and almost always throw in extra goodies for ordering with them and that to me is worth the cost of shipping. It's great to feel like they appreciate their customers.

Of late, I have been ordering from Relapse. You heard me right. They have a base of $3 for the first item and $1 for each additional item and have pretty much everything I'm ever looking for. Just recently I ordered the new Khanate CD/DVD and the new Sunn o))) CD and it was $31, with shipping for both. Had I ordered either by themselves from their respective labels I would have paid close to that for each. So do yourself a favor, shop around. I'm not hurting these labels at all since... well I am buying "their" shit. I just don't feel a need for the ass-fucking they shell out as I shell out my cash.

(((03)))

Collapsing (Un)Sanity

I am and ever shall be a rabid Unsane fan. If they came out with a new album every year I would still hunger for more. So when Celan's first album, Halo arrived and I saw that Chris Spencer was involved I made that same "yelping" noise I made when Cutthroats 9 arrived, (though not quite as loudly as when Unsane got back together).

Celan is named after the Jewish/German poet Paul Celan and features the aforementioned Unsane alum, Chris Spencer, Ari Benjamin Meyers of Einstürzende Neubauten/Redux Orchestra, Niko Wenner of Oxbow and Philipp Korner and Xavi Thiem of the now defunt German Noise-Spazz band flu.ID Elements are present from each member although Spencers influence dominates. This is great news for those of us who wouldn't have it any other way.

If you're an Unsane fan, you'll love it. If you're an Oxbow or flu.ID fan, you'll dig the hell out of it. If you're a die-hard Einstürzende Neubauten fan that's followed them since 1980, own all their records, bootlegs and side-projects, etc, you'll cream... or not. Never mind... when I think of those fans, I picture the guy from The Simpsons that retrieves the Fighting Hellfish paintings from Bart and Grandpa Simpson and tells the guys moving it to "...Ja ja ja, mach schnell mit der art things, huh? I must get back to Dancecentrum in Struttgart in time to see Kraftwerk."

This is no avantgarde, experimental, dark ambient, industrial, this is refined noise rock with "hints" of the all those things. But with that in mind, it's no off-shoot of Unsane or Oxbow either. Do yourself a favor and find this release. You may thank me later.

Celan on Myspace

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Mɛrələndian Magic(k)

(((03 via 726 via ratchet696)))

...Heaven

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Respekttkk

(((03)))

In case you feel like blowing money on merch you'll never wear...

...Hydra Head has finally put out a shirt design worth a shit and that's not just utterly gay... BUT they've gone ahead and printed them on un-wearable fucking American Apparel again. I no longer buy shirts from ANYONE unless I know for a fact they are not American Apparel. Sizing is ALWAYS wrong, and quality is ALWAYS bad (seems coming undone, lengths inconsistent). OK, so they employ 20 "Americans" in order to apply a "Made in America" stamp and then go around touting that they are "sweat-shop free" clothing. Has anyone read about this guy from American Apparel? But that's not really the point. The point is I haven't bought a shirt from Hydra Head or Southern Lord in forever because they insist on using this company and we all end up with XL's that fit like mediums and XXL's that fit like tents. (This does not apply to Justin who is honest about his shirt's sizing and aims for the end result of a satisfied customer).

So if you want to throw your $20 bucks into something that will remain in your closet until you decide to rape someone on eBay with it, here's how to get your new Xasthur shirt.
Xasthur's All Reflections Drained CD + Bonus CD comes out next week, making this one of our most abbreviated pre-orders ever. Still, it's a title more than deserving of the pre-order treatment. All Relfections Drained is the first Xasthur release to feature guest vocalist M.H. The included bonus CD features close to an hour's worth of alternate versions, unreleased songs, and covers. All this packaged in a DVD-style digi-pack with art by Tim Lehi and photography from Faith Coloccia. Available separately is a new shirt, which will ship the following week. To check out both click here to visit the Xasthur page at the HydraHeadShop.

(((03)))

Feste Magic(k)

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No Quarter Century

"The Melvins celebrate their Silver Anniversary this year! Lots of fun and surprises are coming! To kick off the festivities, the boys are doing some select shows performing the Houdini record in it’s entirety. One Mr. Trevor Dunn will be handling the bass duties while the Big Business boys are touring their new album “Mind The Drift”. Also along for the ride is original drummer Mike Dillard. The boys will play songs from the Mangled Demos record with Dale Crover playing the role of Matt Lukin! The Melvins will also play two special shows with old pals Green River in Seattle, WA."

May 15, 2009 - New York, NY - Webster Hall
May 16, 2009 - Boston, MA - Paradise
May 18, 2009 - Chicago, IL - Double Door
May 20, 2009 - Austin, TX - Emo's
May 22, 2009 - Seattle, WA - Showbox
May 23, 2009 - Seattle, WA - Showbox
May 24, 2009 - Portland, OR - Roseland

(M:Ms)

Esthetique De L'ephemere

Southern Lord Recording artists PELICAN will be hitting the road in support of their new EP Ephemeral during the months of May and June. The Ephemeral EP features brand new PELICAN recordings and will be released exclusively on vinyl by Southern Lord during the first week of June. The band will have "tour only" cd copies of Ephemeral for sale at the shows.

PELICAN will be direct support to ISIS for these dates, with opening support from TOMBS. The band will be playing songs from the new EP as well as debuting new material that will be recorded for a forthcoming full-length on Southern Lord. Don't miss this most excellent package when it steamrolls through your town!

5/16/2009 Ebisu Liquidroom - Tokyo, Japan - Raid World Festival w/ Mono
5/19/2009 Emo's - Austin, TX
5/20/2009 Granada Theatre - Dallas, TX
5/21/2009 Meridian - Houston, TX
5/22/2009 Spanish Moon - Baton Rouge, LA
5/23/2009 Bottletree Cafe - Birmingham, AL
5/25/2009 The Social - Orlando, FL
5/26/2009 Common Grounds - Gainesville, FL
5/27/2009 Jack Rabbits - Jacksonville, FL
5/28/2009 The Earl - Atlanta, GA
5/29/2009 Cats Cradle - Carrboro, NC
5/30/2009 Black Cat - Washington, Washington DC
5/31/2009 Sonar - Baltimore, MD
6/02/2009 The Fillmore At Irving Plaza - New York, NY
6/03/2009 Theater of Living Arts - Philadelphia, PA
6/04/2009 Pearl Street - Northampton, MA
6/05/2009 Paradise Rock Club - Boston, MA
6/06/2009 The National - Montreal, QC
6/07/2009 Phoenix Concert Theatre - Toronto, ON
6/09/2009 Grog Shop - Cleveland Heights, OH
6/10/2009 20th Century Theatre - Cincinnati, OH
6/11/2009 Small’s - Detroit, MI
6/12/2009 Bottom Lounge - Chicago, IL

http://www.myspace.com/pelican
http://www.southernlord.com
http://www.myspace.com/southernlordrecordings
http://blog.southernlord.com

(((03:Earsplit PR)))

Magic(k) Peregrīnātiō

US black metal legends ABSU will tour the US for the first time in nearly 8 years on Candlelight Records' third North American label package tour. Set to kick off on June 6, CIII will feature ABSU, with support from French black metal troupe GLORIOR BELLI, Los Angeles-based SOTHIS and the recent addition of Pennsylvania thrashers RUMPELSTILTSKIN GRINDER. The tour will visit 22 cities throughout the US and Canada beginning in San Marcos, California and wrapping up in Dallas, Texas on June 29. Festival dates have also been added.

Absu, Glorior Belli, Rumpelstiltskin Grinder and Sothis:
6/06/2009 Jumping Turtle - San Marcos, CA
6/07/2009 House of Blues - W. Hollywood, CA
6/08/2009 Thee Parkside - San Francisco, CA
6/09/2009 Hawthorne Theatre - Portland, OR
6/10/2009 El Corazon - Seattle, WA
6/12/2009 The Underground - Calgary, AB
6/13/2009 The Exchange - Regina SK
6/14/2009 Royal Albert Arms - Winnipeg, MT
6/15/2009 Station 4 - St. Paul, MN
6/16/2009 The Pearl Room - Mokena, IL
6/17/2009 Peabody’s - Cleveland, OH
6/18/2009 Wreck Room - Toronto, ON
6/19/2009 Petit Campus - Montreal, QC
6/20/2009 Penny Arcade - Rochester, NY
6/21/2009 BB Kings Blues Club - New York, NY
6/22/2009 Jaxx - W. Springfield, VA
6/23/2009 Volume 11 - Raleigh, NC
6/24/2009 The Muse - Nashville, TN
6/25/2009 The Masquerade - Atlanta, GA
6/26/2009 The Garage - St. Petersburg, FL
6/27/2009 Culture Room - Ft. Lauderdale, FL
6/29/2009 Trees - Dallas, TX (Amended by TZ)

7/05/2009 Hostile City Death Fest - Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
7/17/2009 Hell’s Pleasure Metal Festival - Pößneck
7/18/2009 Kaltenbach Open Air - Spital am Semmering
7/25/2009 Stonehenge Festival - Steenwijk
8/28/2009 Hole In The Sky - Bergen Metal Fest X - Bergen

http://www.absu.us
http://www.myspace.com/absu

(((03:Earsplit PR)))

Soon...

...but for now, migraines and writer's block.

(((03)))

The Business...

...of rockin' the fuck out!!!

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Magic(k)a República Portuguesa

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Playlist 04.27.09 [Abriviated Edition]

BOLT THROWER - In Battle there is No Law
KARABOUDJAN - Sbrodi

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Pelican/Tombs/Eagle Twin

More visual brilliance by Mr. Roper

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If I lived in or around Minehead, England...

...I'd have creamed my pants!
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RespektCo

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Don't Open 'til Doomsday

In an update issued by the band: "We're proud to announce that we've licensed our own new EP, Doomsday Derelicts from our North American label, Century Media, to be released on our own in-house label Battle Kommand Records for release in North America! The CD will be at press shortly and we anticipate a release date of May 5th, 2009. This will be a limited edition release, and there will be a mail-order only version with additional items included. More news TBA."

Release info below:
Doomsday Derelicts EP
Recorded at Electrical Audio - Chicago, IL
Engineered by Sanford Parker, May, 2008

Lineup:
Blake Judd - Lead and rhythm guitars, vocals
Jeff Wilson - Rhythm guitars
Jon Necromancer - Bass, backing vocals
Sanford Parker - Moog, synth, effects
Zack Simmons - Drums, percussion

Track listing:
1. "Bones"
2. "Life of Fire"
3. "Hellish Overdose"
4. "Pitch Black Cadence"

(((03:Earsplit PR)))