Tonight - ST. VITUS and PALLBEARER in Minneapolis

If you missed them last year at the Triple Rock Social Club in Minneapolis (like I did), you can redeem yourself by catching cult doom legends St. Vitus at the 7th Street Entry in Minneapolis with support from fellow doomsters Pallbearer and Louisville punk band Hookers. This is an 18+ show that starts at 8:00, and tickets are available at the door for $25.

St. Vitus's Wino performing acoustically with Conny Ochs on August 16, 2012 at the Turf Club in St. Paul.

For fun, here's an old St. Vitus flyer from their infamous 1987 tour with the Mentors that friend picked up for me that I've previously posted.

WINO & CONNY OCHS - August 16, 2012

You can read my review of this show here, but this was quite different from what you'd expect from one of the godfathers of doom metal, guitarist Scott "Wino" Weinrich. He's not letting up on his recent delve into acoustic music, and he and singer/songwriter Conny Ochs teamed up for this tour in support of their Heavy Kingdom album. This is quality stuff, so if your mind's in the right place this is pure, mellow enjoyment.

The download link is here. As always, please share, but share the link to this post rather than the direct Mediafire link. Enjoy!

Wino & Conny Ochs

Guitars & Voices

August 16, 2012

St. Paul, MN, Turf Club

mp3@192 kbps, 93 MB zip file (artwork included)

1. Somewhere Nowhere (5:00)

2. Labour Of Love (4:56)

3. Dust (4:06)

4. Dark Ravine (3:44)

5. Adrift (4:53)

6. Heavy Kingdom (2:32)

7. Hellbound Train (5:19)

8. Angels And Demons (5:20)

9. Old And Alone (7:00)

10. Crystal Madonna (5:29)

11. Here Comes The Siren (3:48)

12. Manifesto (2:44)

13. Vultures By The Vines (4:27)

14. Hotel Vast Horizon (3:37)

15. Isolation (4:36)

16. Find The Cost Of Freedom (1:36)

Total time: 69:07

Concert Review - WINO & CONNY OCHS

I'm close to having all older, backlogged posts out, so here's another concert review from a little while ago...

Wino & Conny Ochs and Paul Metzger

Thursday, August 16, 2012

Turf Club, St. Paul, MN

Click on any of the pictures to see more photos of Wino & Conny Ochs (7).

Doom metal legend Scott “Wino” Weinrich (St Vitus, The Obsessed, others) surprised many when he began unveiling acoustic records, a career turn that brought out about an interesting collaboration with singer/songwriter Conny Ochs. This acoustic tour for the duo was in support of their second album together, Heavy Kingdom. Local guitarist Paul Metzger opened with a solo acoustic show that appropriately set the stage for what was to come.

Click on the photo to see more pictures of Paul Metzger (4).

This was an acoustic show in the truest sense of the word, not simply a band playing acoustic-type songs – just Wino and Conny with their acoustic guitars. Wino was hanging around the bar talking with fans before the show, but things were all business once on stage with Conny. The pair opened with “Somewhere Nowhere”, a slow somber tune that seemed an odd choice to start the show. “Labour Of Love” kicked up the energy level a bit, and “Dust” had Conny adding some bass drum kicks over the CCR-like melody. A couple of songs from Wino’s Adrift album were brought out, including the folk-inspired “Adrift” and “Old And Alone”, as well as the jangly “Manifesto”. Vocal duties were shared throughout, with Wino and Conny each taking turns singing lead and singing in harmony. Wino’s deep, gravely bass voice was complimented well by Conny’s higher, more melodic style. The high point of the show came with “Angels And Demons”, which had Wino using some electronic effects on his guitar and Conny thumping furiously on the bass drum to bring the song to a climactic conclusion. There were a few surprises thrown in, one being a new, unreleased song “Crystal Madonna”, a depressing love song. A number of covers were played such as “Hellbound Train” by Savoy Brown. By the time “Vultures By The Vine” wrapped up the set, the respectful crowd had been fully converted to Wino’s new style and loudly demanded more. The encore consisted entirely of covers, leading with “Hotel Vast Horizon” by Chris Whitley, then Joy Division’s “Isolation”. This bled into “Find The Cost Of Freedom” by CSN&Y for the finale.

While acoustic material isn’t the favorite of most metal fans, you have to respect Wino for not pulling any punches and delivering a solid, convincing show. The collaboration with Conny makes this style more interesting, and it should be fun to see where their work together leads.

In Concert This Week - August 16, 2012

There’s something going on every night this week of all rock/metal styles, so surely there is a show you should get out to see!

Doom metal guitar god Wino brings his acoustic/folk show with Conny Ochs to the Turf Club in St. Paul tonight, Thursday, August 16.

Friday, August 17 has rock band Saving Abel playing in St. Paul at Station 4 with Matchpoint and Aeous.

Of course, Saturday, August 18 is the big day for Knotfest at Somerset Amphitheater. You can read my final update (with set times and live streaming information) about the event here, but the confirmed bill at this time is Slipknot, Deftones, Serj Tankian, The Dillinger Escape Plan, Lamb Of God, Machine Head, Cannibal Corpse, Prong, and Gojira. Also on Saturday, the show for rockers The Classic Crime and Embers In Ashes has been moved from the North Star Room in Mounds View to Station 4 in St. Paul. Saturday as well has classic rock band The Guess Who headlining a benefit show for the Laker Educational Foundation with Patty Peterson and moZiak at Epic in Minneapolis.

It’s a brutal night of metal on Sunday, August 19 at Station 4 in St. Paul with Eyes Set To Kill, My Ticket Home, Awaken The Empire, Brothers Loyalty, and See The Rise. That same night Texas Hippie Coalition will be rocking at The Cabooze in Minneapolis with support from The Lost Wheels.

Things set even more intense at Station 4 in St. Paul on Monday, August 20 with Abolishment Of Flesh, Skinned, Sadistic Passage, What Lies Within, and Fetus Heist.

Station 4 in St. Paul then has an all-local bill on Tuesday, August 21 with Face Of Oblivion, Micawber, Ominous Conception, Australis, and Vessels For Our Ghost.

To wrap up the week’s event, Canadian thrashers Unleash The Archers bring their show to Station 4 in St. Paul on Wednesday, August 22 with local support from the mighty Dawn Of Valor and Eternalize, featuring Pyramaze and Echoterra keyboardist Jonah Weingarten in their first ever full performance.

SHINE (Pre-SPIRIT CARAVAN) - May 18, 1998

Shine – May 18, 1998

Lawrence, Kansas, The Bottleneck

Obsessed By Doom

It’s been a while since I’ve posted any live shows, so here’s a true gem—a full performance of Shine, the band formed by doom guitar legend Scott “Wino” Weinrich (of St. Vitus fame) after the demise of The Obsessed. After only one release in 1997, the Lost Sun Dance (b/w “Courage”) 7” single, trademark issues forced Shine to change their name to Spirit Caravan. Spirit Caravan went on to issue two albums before calling it a day in 2002.

This show was at the end of a short run of dates opening for Clutch. I got to The Bottleneck early to sit down for an interview with Wino, who was extremely gracious and in great spirits. When Shine hit the stage, I was the only person in front of the stage to soak in the power of Wino. How strange was this? Here was Wino performing to a Clutch crowd that was later filled to capacity, and not one person apparently knew that one of the godfathers of doom and stoner metal was in their midst!

During their 47 minutes, Shine proceeded to level The Bottleneck with an 11-song set that featured “Courage” alongside four other songs (“Healing Tongue”, “Cosmic Artifact”, “Melancholy Grey”, and “Powertime”) that later appeared on Spirit Caravan’s 1999 debut album Jug Fulla Sun. A healthy dose of songs from The Obsessed’s last album in 1994, The Church Within, were crushing: “Streetside”, “To Protect And To Serve”, “Streamlined”, and “Skybone”. To close the show, a crushing version of “The Way She Fly” from The Obsessed’s self-titled 1990 debut album was followed by a spirited rendition of The Animals’ classic from 1966, “Inside Looking Out”.

You have here this rare, complete set from Shine. This recording has remained uncirculated until now, and there is only one other complete live recording of Shine that I know to exist. Transferred directly from the original master VHS-C tape, the sound quality is excellent despite some tape hiss. There’s a rip in the audio and change in sound quality near the end of “Streetside”, likely due to a change in the tape speed while recording. The start of “Courage” also has a sonic glitch where a few seconds are sped up, probably an artifact from the digital transfer. These are just minor flaws, and any fan of doom and stoner metal should consider this download mandatory. Yes, I have the video of this performance, but, alas, this will have to wait due to the continued suspension of my YouTube account. The artwork was created using these screenshots from the video. I do have some pictures from the show but have been unable to locate them at this time.

The set list details are below the download link here. Again, please do me a favor and share the link to this post rather than just the download link.

Shine – Obsessed By Doom

May 18, 1998

Lawrence, KS, The Bottleneck

mp3@192 kbps, 65.4 MB, zip file includes artwork

1. Streetside – 3:16

2. Healing Tongue – 2:50

3. To Protect And To Serve – 3:06

4. Streamlined – 2:18

5. Courage – 4:00

6. Cosmic Artifact – 6:27

7. Melancholy Grey – 6:09

8. Powertime – 3:35

9. Skybone – 4:35

10. The Way She Fly – 2:33

11. Inside Looking Out – 8:24

Total time – 47:13

Bonus “Vault” content: A friend was visiting the Washington, DC area in the summer of 1987 and brought back for me this flyer from the infamous Mentors/St. Vitus tour. Adding to the coolness is the Destruction show that would have been on the tour to support Eternal Devastation and the Mad Butcher EP!!

Wino will perform with Conny Ochs tonight, Thursday, August 16 at the Turf Club in St. Paul. Wino then returns with St. Vitus to Minneapolis on Monday, October 1 at the Triple Rock Social Club with support from Weedeater and Sourvein.

Concert Announcements - July 27, 2012

The Triple Rock Social Club in Minneapolis just announced a local show with Emergent, Vaudeville, Thira, Whither The Tide, and R.A.G.E. on Friday, August 10.

Hard rock band Saving Abel plays an 18+ show at Station 4 in St. Paul on Friday, August 17. Advance tickets are only $5.

Yesterday it was announced that the Dethklok, Lamb Of God, and Gojira tour was cancelled due to Lamb Of God’s singer Randy Blythe ongoing legal trouble in the Czech Republic, where he continues to be held in jail. All three bands were scheduled to be a part of Knotfest with Slipknot on Saturday, August 18 in Somerset, Wisconsin, and I’ve removed them from the calendar listing. Hopefully replacement bands for Knotfest will be announced.

On Sunday, August 19, Texas Hippie Coalition will play at The Cabooze in Minneapolis.

Blue Felix plays a free show at Neisen’s in Savage on Thursday, August 23.

The Turf Club in St. Paul has instrumental warriors Zebulon Pike along with Jel, Pizza Boys, and Good Morning Gentlemen on Friday, September 14. This show will also feature a drum-off with Dave King, JT Bates, Martin Dosh, and Tim Glenn.

As if having Wino playing on Thursday, August 16 at the Turf Club in St. Paul wasn’t awesome enough – now godly doom metal pioneers Saint Vitus will play at the Triple Rock Social Club in Minneapolis with Weedeater on Monday, October 1.

GWAR returns to First Avenue on Sunday, November 18 with Devildriver, Cancer Bats, and Legacy Of Disorder. This is an all ages show, and tickets go on sale today, Friday, July 27 at 12:00 noon.

Lastly, rock legends The Who will be performing Quadrophenia (and more) in its entirety at the Target Center in Minneapolis on Tuesday, November 27. Tickets go on sale at 10:00 am today, Friday, July 27.

Concert Announcements - June 14, 2012

Industrial rock powerhouse The Dreaming returns to Station 4 in St. Paul on Monday, July 23 for 16+ show. Support will come from Whither The Tide and two bands to be announced. The Dreaming was last here in December and you can ready my review of their latest album, Puppet, here.


Local industrial upstarts As|Of play the Fine Line Music Cafe in Minneapolis on Wednesday, July 25 with Christopher J. Wray, Phenetik, and KPT. Best of all, this show is free!


Rising stars Halestorm play The Cabooze in Minneapolis with support from New Medicine on Friday, July 27. No further information is available at this time.


Rock outfit Our Lady Peace hits the Varsity Theater in Minneapolis on Tuesday, August 7. Tickets for this 18+ show go on sale this Friday, June 15 at 12:00 noon.


This is the best concert announcement I've heard in a long time—doom guitar master Wino (St. Vitus, The Obsessed, Spirit Caravan, others) will flatten the Turf Club in St. Paul on Thursday, August 16 with support from Conny Ochs.


Stone Temple Pilots have plotted a tour that brings them to Myth in St. Paul on Friday, September 7. This is an all ages show, and tickets go on sale this Saturday, June 16 at 10:00 am.


Long-running industrial troupe My Life With The Thrill Kill Kult return to town with a gig at Station 4 in St. Paul on Thursday, October 11. No further information is available at this time.


Hard rockers Seether arrive at The Brick in Minneapolis on Tuesday, October 16 with support from Sick Puppies, Kyng, and Eye Empire. This is an 18+ show, and tickets go on sale this Friday, June 15 at 10:00 am.


Hardcore/punk/pop godfathers Dinosaur Jr. will bring a room full of smiles to The Cabooze in Minneapolis on Thursday, October 18. Tickets for this 18+ show go on sale Friday, June 22 at 12:00 noon.