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SS-100 :: LUDER – Sonoluminescence

TRACKLIST:

1. Sing To Me 04:19
2. S-Words 07:22
3. Selfish and Dumb 05:44
4. Cold Hands, Warm Pants 07:28
5. Hot, Girl-On-Girl, Vampire Action 08:07
6. In Love With Love 07:26
7. The Pox 06:24
8. Points West 05:04
9. Sewn Together 06:40
10. Soledad y Onanismo 06:17

 

REVIEWS:

“Luder have certainly got grooves aplenty and manage to successfully connect the more alternative end of the Indie scale with guitar-heavy metal. So with such great riffs and grooves surely the deciding factor will be whether you like this particular dreamy vocal style. And for that I hand Luder over to you.” UBERROCK

“Luder’s 2009 debut album, Sonoluminescence, takes you back to the oh-so-long-ago of, what, 1994 or so? Yes, it’s difficult to believe that it’s been that long already. But the alternative metal and shoegaze sounds emanating from Sonoluminescence’s grooves evoke instant Technicolor flashbacks (well, tones of gray Technicolor, anyway) to that mid-‘90s sonic aesthetic — as dated, yet as comfortable, as that grungy old Cardigan sweater you wore against your mother’s protestations, until the very last string unraveled like some vision preordained in that damn Weezer song! But primarily, it’s the confluence of Sue Slot’s dreamy, haunting whispers and her bandmates’ droning, angst-ridden darkness that breeds this familiarity, epitomized by tracks like “Selfish and Dumb,” “The Pox,” and particularly “S-Words,” which sets progesterone-fueled Alice in Chains vocal harmonies against a circular riff backdrop direct from the Jane’s Addiction toolkit. Evident influences aside, though, the members of Luder unfurl just enough unorthodox elements from their separate prior musical paths to give those templates some distinction, including classic, psychedelic, and stoner rock elements, metallic riff worship, and even a discreet power pop undercurrent that alleviates the exquisite torment of it all right about when you’re reaching for the skip button (cue the gloriously depressing “Sewn Together”). For example, one of the more interesting songs, the amusingly named “Hot, Girl-on-Girl, Vampire Action,” drones on forebodingly for much of its lysergic eight minutes, but unexpectedly breaks out into a bouncy pop-punk midsection that feels as though it were painfully grafted on. “In Love with Love” also picks up the pace when you most needed it to, and the closing enigma of “Soledad y Onaismo” (err, “Solitude and Masturbation”?) travels a daunting road from its sparse acoustic beginnings to its Tool-like post-metal apocalypse (by way of a Sabians guitar solo — look that one up!). In sum, as exercises in nostalgia go, Luder’s Sonoluminescence feels pretty darn welcome when all is said and done, and it makes for a rather unrepresentative but memorable choice to serve as the Small Stone label’s celebratory 100th release (owner Scott Hamilton is also one of Luder’s two guitarists), which is no mean feat in today’s troubled music industry.” ALLMUSIC

 

ALBUM INFO:

Sonoluminescence – ‘luminescence excited in a substance by the passage of sound waves through it.’

The formation of Luder harkens back to 2006, when Small Stone Records undertook the task of issuing the lost recordings of a band called Slot after the untimely passing of its founding member and guitarist, Billy Rivkin. After the successful completion of this project, it was decided by the powers that be that some semblance of the band should play at SXSW the following spring. So it was that Sue Lott (Slot’s bassist) and Eddie Alterman (Slot’s drummer) were joined on guitars by Phil Dürr (Big Chief, Giant Brain, Five Horse Johnson) and Small Stone head-honcho Scott Hamilton to pull off such a thing. The thinking was that it would take two guitar players to competently do what Billy did on his own.

After a successful SXSW show in the spring of 2007, Followed by a hometown show at the Magic Stick, Sue, Phil and Scott decided it might be worthwhile and fun to continue playing and writing music, perhaps under a different moniker. Eddie being mostly unavailable due to laboral commitments, they humbly asked ex-Novadriver drummer (and, as with Phil, current Five Horse Johnson member) Eric Miller to join and soon started doing that thing that the kids call “jamming.” At first, the quartet got together mostly to keep their chops up, jamming on quasi-Krautrock riffs a few nights a week. Eventually, as everyone got comfortable with each others’ playing styles, they started writing songs for real, honing the ad-libbed riffs into songs, making music that none of them would be able to write in any other band. Luder set out to make obstinate music, or as Sue likes to say, “music I like.” A new idea was hatched, a new band was born, and a new name was chosen; ergo: Luder.

Luder seamlessly incorporates all the influences of the individual band members and their musical histories into a coherent whole. When Eric and Phil bring elements of Stoner Rock, Sue might counter them with an almost jazzy bass line. Scott might pitch a decidedly shoegazery melody line, Phil may react by channeling his inner metal-head. When Sue comes to the table with a decidedly ambient bass line, the other three might add any and all types of raucous, multi-genre-ic sounds. If Phil’s hispanophilia threatens to get out of hand, Eric may throw in an absolutely tribal drumbeat. Now, add a pinch of humor to the mix, and it all combines to give Luder’s music that certain out-of-left-field-je-ne-sais-quoi that adds up to a band that in the end sounds like no other. Then you bring Sue’s ethereal vocal stylings into the picture, and you makes for quite a spicy stew. Luder’s songs have been described as “disturbingly peaceful,” “peacefully disturbing,” and “in need of editing” (to which they gleefully and politely say “no, thank you” and “up yours” in unison).

As the a result of staying true to their musical passions and influences, not to mention running up a rather hefty electrical bill in Sue’s basement, the debut album from Luder, ‘Sonoluminescence’ was etched out in the dwelling that was once known to insiders as The Slot House. Recorded at Rustbelt Studios with Eric Hoegemeyer (Giant Brain, Deep See Sound System) on the dials over the course of six months whenever all parties could meet, Sonoluminescence is a very organic and dynamic, an orgasmic whirlwind of Rock Recording. Luder’s debut is sure to turn a few heads, cause a spit-take or two, and clean out a few eardrums in the process. Hell… you might even catch them live if the guarantee is right and there happen to be any baby- and dogsitters available to work that particular night…

For fans of: Slot, Giant Brain, The Birthday Party, Soundgarden, Queens Of The Stone Age, Tool, Clutch, Curve, Portishead, The Verve, Polar Bear, and an ass load of other like-minded bands from the 70s, 80s, and early 90s.
credits

 
Released 10 November 2009

Luder is:
Eric Miller: Drums & Percussion
Sue Lott: Bass & Vox
Phil Dürr: Guitars & Things
Scott Hamilton: Guitars & Too Many Effect Pedals

Additional Players:
Eric Hoegemeyer: Piano, Backing Vox, Percussion, Sounds
Vince Williams: Backing Vox, Screaming
Richard Watson: Backing Vox
Marshall Oliver: Backing Vox
Matthew Richards: Backing Vox

Recorded at Rustbelt Studios – Royal Oak, MI.
Recorded, Engineered, Mixed and Manipulated by Eric Hoegemeyer.
Produced by Eric Hoegemeyer and Luder.
Mastered by Chris Goosman at Baseline Audio – Ann Arbor, MI.
Artwork by Sue Lott & Matthew Richards at MOCHIMAD.
Textiles by The T-Shirt Guy – Roseville, MI.
All the tracks written by: Sue Lott, Eric Miller, Phil Dürr, Scott Hamilton, Eric Hoegemeyer.

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31 December 2014 Read more

SS-070 :: VARIOUS ARTISTS – Sucking The 70’s, Back In The Saddle Again

It’s time to dust off the vinyl and take your air guitar out of storage because Small Stone is proud to present “Sucking the 70’s, Back In The Saddle Again.” No expense was spared for this one kiddies. We scoured several continents to find the best and most ass kicking bands to pay homage to the greatest decade that rock and roll has ever known.

Let’s get this straight right up front, these aren’t covers. We sifted through a lot of bands simply covering their favorite jams and you won’t find any of them here. In the end we cut this baby off with 31 tracks and a waiting list a mile long to get in. What you will find on “Sucking the 70’s” are some of the best and most true to life rawk bands of the 21st century lovingly re-working, re-interpreting, and in some cases re-defining the music that first inspired them to make music in the first place.

From the ferocious opening blast of Sasquatch’s incredible revamping of Grand Funk Railroad’s classic “Are You Ready” through the final breaths of Valis’ psychedelic re-invention of Gary Wright’s �Dream Weaver�, �Sucking the 70�s� is a rollercoaster ride through the classics that defined a decade. It�s an aural trip down memory lane back to the good old days when Rock & Roll actually stood for something. These two discs feature Small Stone alumni both past and present as well as some of our favorite acts ever. And whatever you do don�t miss out on the incredible first ever recordings of Five Horse Johnson with Clutch. It is unbelieveable.

So, break out your lava lamps and lay some carpet down in the back of your SUV because the 70�s are back with a vengeance. This is an incredibly limited pressing and when it�s gone it�s gone, so you�d better get it while you can. Operators are standing by. Eight track version not available. Stairway not included. Void in Kansas, Chicago & where ever the hell the Bay City Roller’s are from.

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31 December 2014 Read more

SS-032 :: VARIOUS ARTISTS – Sucking The 70’s

Small Stone is proud to present “Sucking the 70’s.” An aural trip down memory lane… back to the good old days when Rock & Roll actually stood for something and you could get a groupie to give you head from Cleveland all the way to the New Jersey state line. No expense was spared for this one kids. We’ve gathered 35 bands, from 6 countries, across 4 continents to revisit the songs that were probably playing on your car radio when you first got laid (or some of you were conceived). From the first blast of guitar on Five Horse Johnson’s rendition of Mountain’s “Never in my life” to the last smoldering note of Gideon Smith’s take on Steppenwolf’s “The Pusher”, “Sucking the 70’s” is a rollercoaster ride through the classics that defined a decade. Of special note are Scott Reeder’s (Kyuss, Unida) solo debut, Broadsword featuring J. Yuenger’s first released material since leaving White Zombie, and Clutch’s smoking re-invention of Jethro Tull’s “Cross Eyed Mary” as well as Spirit Caravan’s final recorded effort.” From ballads to bong hit’s this collection has everything…except Stairway. So, strap on your roller skates and dig out your lava lamps: The 70’s are back with a vengeance. Sorry, no eight track version, this baby clocks in at 156+ minutes of ass kicking rock.

Side 1
Five Horse Johnson “Never In My Life”
Throttlerod “Black Betty”
Dixie Witch “On The Hunt”
Clutch “Cross Eyed Mary”
The Glasspack “T.V. Eye”
The Last Vegas “Free For All”
Halfway To Gone Can’t You See”
Suplecs “Working Man”
Puny Human “Travellin Band”
Raging Slab “We’re An American Band”
Los Natas “Brainstorm”
The Heads “For Madmen Only”
Lamont “Nasty Dogs & Funky Kings”
Backdraft “Child Of Babylon”
Black Nasa “I Dont Have To Hide”
Warped “Dog Eat Dog”
Hangnail “Bron-yr-stomp”

Side 2
Roadsaw “Vehicle”
Novadriver “20th Century Boy”
Alabama Thunderpussy “Hymn 43”
Disengage “Communication Breakdown”
Porn (The Men Of) “Out On The Weekend”
Milligram “Rumblin’ Man”
Tummler “Working For MCA”
Fireball Ministry “Doctor Doctor”
Spirit Caravan “Wicked World”
Lowrider “Freelance Fiend”
The Mushroom River Band “Walk Away”
Broadsword “Woman Tamer”
Doubleneck “Don’t Blow Your Mind”
Lord Sterling “Black To Comm”
The Brought Low “Till The Next Goodbye”
Scott Reeder “Don’t Call Us, We’ll Call You”
Tectonic Break “How Can You Win”
Gideon Smith & The Dixie Damned “The Pusher”

Radio Track – Morsel “It’s Too Late” (Carole King)

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24 December 2014 Read more

TUMMLER

“Massive guitar- wielding “… “Flowing percussion” … ” Great big bad-ass rock and roll “… Tu m m l e r brings sounds from the far reaches of the musical spectrum together to create pure and heavy rock and roll. Sound so unique it’s been described as heavy acid fuzz rock meets stoner rock meets metal meets good ol’ rock and roll. Tummler has been compared to a wide range of bands such as Black Sabbath, Iron B u t t e r f l y, and other late 60’s and early 70’s greats. Four rock enthusiasts came together to meet one common goal: to create rock so heavy it will knock you on your ass… And this is how it all started

Tummler was born in June of 1996 in Champaign, Illinois. In September of 1999 Tum ml r recorded a three song demo which led to their first full length album “Queen To Bishop VI” in June 2000 under the legendary Frank Kozik and Man’s Ruin Records. The Tummler crew remained all original until the close of 2001. Having witnessed the fall of Man’s Ruin, the memories were just too painful to continue… Or, the guitar player thought living in California would be worth leaving his life’s blood. Down to two members, Brad Buldak and Jay Vance began to rebuild.

Enter Ryan Jerzak and Ginchy… Together with Brad and Jay, the foursome has smoothed the rough edges, discovered their strengths, and coalesced into a force to be reckoned with. With the guts firmly packed into a new body, Tummler assembled at the Great Western Studio to record their second full-length album “Early Man”, with Matt Talbot (of HUM fame) whom has produced the bands finest recorded effort to date. “Early Man” is comprised of first rate production, strong material, a raw arsenal of sound coming out you.

Tummler looks forward to living up to the Small Stone tradition of heavy ass rock label mates such as Halfway to Gone, Puny Human, Five Horse Johnson, Fireball Ministry, Milligram, and Porn (The Men of) to name a few. With the production of their second album complete, Tummler can get back to what they do best… The live show… With hundreds of shows under theirbelt, Tummler has shared the stage with bands such as L7, Nebula, Honky, Orange Goblin, HTG, Gaza Strippers, Clutch, Nashville Pussy, Anti seen, Goatsnake, Fatso Jetson, Acid King, Cutthroats 9 , HUM, the Hookers, Cuda, Speedealer, High on Fire and many, many more.

Tummler has endured carbon monoxide poisoning, the death of an SG, brake failures in rush hour traffic and radiator blow ups to make it across the US several times for infamous festivals such as SXSW, CMJ, Emissions from the Monolith and SHOD. See you on the road…

 

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22 December 2014 Read more

SKANKSA MORD

Klippa och rulla. If one were to translate “Rock and Roll” into Swedish that’s what you’d get. Translate it back and things get a little dicey. Mow and wheel; not quite a literal translation if ever there was one. Strangely, not the worst way to describe Sweden’s Skånska Mord. Fuzzed out psychedelica, the likes of which hasn’t been heard since the heyday of real rock in the 70’s, oozes from the amps and tears across the landscape like some kind of lawnmower on acid. The world starts to spin; everything goes black and then several shades of purple. All that, and then the songs kick in…

Formed in 2006 from a melding of the then-defunct and highly regarded Swedish bands Half Man and Mothercake, Skånska Mord was the next logical step in the natural evolution of both bands. A crossroads where Jönsson, Berglin & Englund’s more metal inclined Mothercake fell into the swampy blues rock of Bengtsson & Carlsson’s Half Man (just imagine a perfect world where Seattle’s Green River happened in reverse and you’ll get the idea). Blended rhythm section rarely sound this in sync, but one can easily chalk that up to the common ground shared by all the members. First, the fact that they all come from the same place, Örkelljunga, a small village in the south of Sweden. In fact, the three older members (Jan Bengtsson, Patric Carlsson and Patrik Berglin) have been friends since their early teenage years. Bengtsson and Carlsson in particular have been playing together for 16 years in Half Man and before that for even more years in various constellations, they’ve been pretty much inseparable through both their musical careers. Secondly, is their common love for old 70’s hard and heavy rock. A lot of inspiration has been collected through the years much like Bengtsson’s and Carlsson’s sizeable collections of vintage vinyl, amongst them a kings ransom of hard rock, progressive, blues and psychedelia. In some way this shared musical background has help give birth to a special sound, which is uniquely Örkelljungan.

All of this adds up to “The Last Supper,” the debut release for Skånska Mord. A record that neither band could have achieved on its own but seems quite natural as the sum of all its parts. Thick layers of pulsating rhythms stretch out beneath Jan Bengtsson’s powerful vibrato while Berglin and Englund trade licks back and forth ebbing and flowing like the tide in hypnotic syncopation. Simply put this record Mow’s and Wheel’s with the best of ‘em.

For fans of: Graveyard, Witchcraft, Greenleaf, Dozer, Soundgarden, Roadsaw, Sasquatch, Five Horse Johnson, 7Zuma7, Lowrider, Monster Magnet, Deep Purple, Kiss, Grand Funk, Cactus, and Clutch.

Copyright© Small Stone Recordings

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22 December 2014 Read more

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