Great weight

A couple of years back Iron Man came to town for All That Is Heavy and made quite an impression, not only winning over fans but making a bunch of fans on the local metal scene. Naturally Jenn Bradshaw invited then back for the latest round of All That Is Heavy. This edition rounded out the bill with a trio of local acts; Muffler Crunch and Loviatar make regular National Capital Rock Appearances, while Longhouse is new on the scene. They went on first. This was also an album-release show for their Mike Bond-recorded debut Earth From Water, a very High On Fiery slab. Here's bassist Joshua.



Marc frets!



And so on!



More Joshua!



Mike hits!



More Marc!



Faceoff action!



Monitor-standing action!



Long action!



On to Loviatar, back on stage after a bit of a break from live performance.



Justin sings!



J.P. hits!



Bendy blue action!



Mike Bond handles the low end.



Shane frets!



Bonus Bond!



Extra Justin!



More Sadek!



Gripping action!



The whole lot!



It feels like a long while since I've seen Muffler Crunch live - February 2014, if the blog is to be trusted. I'm going to try to see them a little more frequently than once a year because they always put on a killer show.



Angie hits!



Luc shouts!



Extra Angie!



More Luc!



Cymbal action!



Iron Man, mighty Maryland titans of doom, were in town for the 2012 edition of All That Is Heavy; this time around they got to headline. In the intervening years they also were signed by Relapes and released South Of The Earth. Here's main man Albert Morris III.



Lawrence handles the low end.



Jason hits!



As before Screaming Mad Dee was in great form.



Extra Albert!



Extra Lawrence!



Manos Cornudo action!



Gesticulating action!



Rhythm section action!



Monitor-standing action!



Iron action!



A great night of music.

Over the moon

Twenty-four hours after I had dropped by Pressed I was their downing lime soda again, this time for a show by former Wolf Parader Spencer Krug (who travels under the Moonface brand) and Isaac Vallentin, whose electronic sounds online (check out his Youtube video for Stewardess to see what I mean) turned more singer-songwriter in person as he accompanied himself on guitar. He'll be back at Pressed Sept. 21 so you check it out for yourself.



Isaac sings - the light was not great up front.



Isaac claims to not be a big fan of harmonicas.



On to Spencer. The light was even dimmer for his set, so this is about as good as it gets.



I really enjoyed his Organ Music Not Vibraphone Like I Hoped; he played some new material (he's apparently revisiting the piano) and also did a cool run through City Wrecker. A fine set for an enthusiastic full house.

Weed and waves

Last week was a busy one for me - it's been a while since I went to four shows in four nights, but dare I say the entertainment season is easing out of the August doldrums as cottage season ends and the students return. Wednesday I went to Pressed to check out Colleen Green, making a return appearance, new album in hand. It also marked the last hurrah of Weed Mom and (I think) the second show from Gaycation/Tropical Dripps/Wooka Tribe vets as Creep Wave. Pressed was packed. Here's a well-lit Britanny.



Derek Muldoon gets in the zone.



Kieran hits!



Bonus Brittany!



The whole lot, likely covering All This And More!



Singalong action!



So the youngsters of Weed Mom dressed all spiffy for their farewell show. There's no doubt the crowd was mostly hyped up this performance. Here's Tyrin and Allie modelling their sharp stuff!



Zoe works the keys!



Tyrin sings!



Suitable action with Sasha!



Guitar action with Kai and Allie!



Tyrin switches to drums.



Extra Allie!



Extra Sasha!



Extra Kai!



Zoe sings!



Things were getting pretty chaotic in the audience, which may explain why Allie is standing on her amp.



Sasha sings!



Head-rubbing action!



Fisheye action!



On to Colleen Green. Green has been talking about getting a live drummer on the interwebs since appearing at Pressed in April 2013. Apparently Casey Weissbuch of Slutever fit the bill. She also has a "new" album (I Want To Grow Up, released in February), containing somewhat more reflective material than her breezy debut.



More Green!



Casey hits!



The shouty bit!



Hair-tossing action!



Extra Casey!



Rocking action!



A fine capper, if a bit of an anti-climax.