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User:Zeke, the Mad Horrorist/Test tube

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Live at Roadburn is the second live album by American rock band Earthless. It was released on October 7, 2008 by Tee Pee Records. In addition to already-released material, the album features material not yet recorded in a studio; in particular, "From the Ages" would be released on the album of the same name five years later.

It consists of four instrumental pieces spread across two CDs, with no track separations on either disc. The concert was the result of Earthless abruptly getting promoted to being the headlining act of the 2008 Roadburn Festival, as the original headliner finished ahead of schedule. The performance was over an hour and a half long and was recorded without the band's knowledge, although they enjoyed the recordings and allowed an album of them to be released in the end. The band regard the album as being the most faithful presentation of their sound.

Critical reaction was mostly positive, although the music was occasionally perceived as wandering aimlessly. The album was supported by Earthless undertaking more concert tours, which gradually gave way to increasingly more obligations for the band members that kept them from performing as Earthless. Ultimately, the band entered a de facto hiatus and would not officially regroup until 2013 to record From the Ages.

Background and recording edit

Behind Sonic Prayer Jam, Live at Roadburn is the band's second live album, and their third main album overall.[1] The album was recorded at the thirteenth Roadburn Festival in Tilburg, the Netherlands on April 18, 2008.[2] The band were unexpectedly moved to the main stage of the festival[3] and played to many more people than they had expected.[4] Originally scheduled to play to 250 people in the smallest room of the event as the main act, the band were invited at the last minute to instead perform as the last act on the main stage to 2000 concertgoers,[1] as scheduled band Isis only performed for half of their two-hour slot.[5]

Earthless were not aware the performance had even been recorded,[5] but they had no objection when Tee Pee Records requested they release an album based on the performance,[6] liking the recordings themselves.[4][1] Rubalcaba described the album as "the most honest representation of [Earthless] that you're gonna get on a record",[4] and said that anyone who did not like the album would not like the band's shows.[1]

The song "From the Ages" would not be recorded in a studio until the group began the sessions for the album of the same name,[7] by which time it had changed forms,[8] and was named by Rubalcaba because he felt the song was "archaic and cave man and sort of ancient". He gave it and "Blue" their names only because the songs needed names for the release of Live at Roadburn.[4]

Release & reception edit

Professional ratings
Review scores
SourceRating
Outburn(9/10)[3]
North Coast JournalFavorable[9]
The Austin Chronicle    [10]
San Diego CityBeat7.7/10[11]

Critical reaction was mostly positive. Jeff Treppel of Outburn magazine rated the album 9 out of 10, calling it "close to an hour and a half of intensive jammage" and "a hypnotic listening experience".[3] Michael Mannix for the North Coast Journal said Live at Roadburn demonstrated Earthless' greatest strength and driving force - Rubalcaba's drumming, which he said did not always come across on the band's studio albums. He noted that the performance of "From the Ages" was shortened by 10 minutes, and suggested this was done for the sake of the vinyl release, but said that it did not impact the album harmfully.[9] Reviewing for the Austin Chronicle, Raoul Hernandez stated "Blue" is a song "which arrives at Cream's crossroads in three minutes and continues for another 17", and described the album overall, which he rated the full 4 stars out of 4, as "One small step for the San Diego trio, one Hendrix Hail Mary ("Sonic Prayer") for mankind".[10] Rating it 7.7 out of 10, the San Diego CityBeat noted that the album would appeal to death metal fans and Deadheads alike, but it would fail to satisfy those seeking a resolution to the music.[11] AllMusic reviewer Tom Forget, who did not rate the album but gave a positive review, opined that the music's wandering quality was indeed the point, as he described Earthless as a band whose destination was in fact the journey itself.[12]

Following the album's release, Earthless continued to tour. In February 2009, they toured with Witch in North America.[13] The band toured in Europe and the UK with Russian Circles in April 2010,[14] in the US in support of Baroness from November to early December,[15] and in Australia for the first time from December 2010 to January 2011.[16] As Earthless toured, band members became increasingly involved with side projects that took priority over Earthless and Mitchell moved to Northern California,[17] reducing their available rehearsal time and causing the act to enter a hiatus.[6] Some of the material recorded on Live at Roadburn was planned for their next studio album,[6] but due to the act's hiatus, such an album would not be released until 2013's From the Ages, six years after their previous studio album, Rhythms from a Cosmic Sky.[17][18][19]

Track listing edit

All songs written and composed by Earthless.

Disc 1: "Blue"/"From the Ages" – 56:05
Disc 2: "Godspeed"/"Sonic Prayer" – 35:27

Personnel edit

Credits taken from the album's liner notes[2]

Earthless edit

  • Isaiah Mitchell – guitar
  • Mike Eginton – bass guitar
  • Mario Rubalcaba – drum kit

Additional personnel edit

  • Marcel van de Vondervoort – recording, mixing
  • Robert de Lorijin – recording
  • Jeroen van Donzel – recording
  • Paul Gold – mastering at Salt Mastering in Brooklyn
  • Jakob Skott – visual effects during the performance
  • "Moose" – cover photo
  • Mike Eginton – interior artwork
  • Andy Kman – album layout

References edit

  1. ^ a b c d Leitko, Aaron (February 25, 2009). "Q&A: Earthless". Washington City Paper. Retrieved January 9, 2014.
  2. ^ a b Live at Roadburn (inside sleeve). Earthless. New York City: Tee Pee Records. 2008. TPE-089.{{cite AV media notes}}: CS1 maint: others in cite AV media (notes) (link)
  3. ^ a b c Treppel, Jeff (March 2009). "Live at Roadburn - Review". Outburn #47. p. 78.
  4. ^ a b c d Guyre, Jen (February 23, 2009). "Interview with Earthless: Cosmic Nodding". The Aquarian Weekly. Retrieved December 26, 2013.
  5. ^ a b Sanford, Jay Allen (October 22, 2008). "Road Luck". San Diego Reader. Retrieved January 14, 2014.
  6. ^ a b c Tucceri, Daniel (December 22, 2013). "AMH Network Interview with Earthless". AMH Network. Retrieved December 26, 2013.
  7. ^ Marchese, David (October 9, 2013). "Journey to the Center of Earthless: A Heavy Chat With the Psych-Rock Gurus". Spin. Retrieved December 16, 2013.
  8. ^ Gluck, Robert. "An Interview with Earthless: Ready to Rumble". The Aquarian Weekly. Retrieved August 20, 2014.
  9. ^ a b Mannix, Michael (December 4, 2008). "Live at Roadburn". North Coast Journal. Retrieved January 9, 2014.
  10. ^ a b Hernandez, Raoul (March 20, 2009). "SXSW Music - Review: Betrayer, Static Tensions, Winter Hours, Absu, Please, Please, Sorry, Thank You, Black Cascade, Live at Roadburn". The Austin Chronicle. Retrieved January 9, 2014.
  11. ^ a b Combs, Seth (November 18, 2008). "CD reviews". San Diego CityBeat. Retrieved January 15, 2014.
  12. ^ Forget, Tom. Live at Roadburn at AllMusic. Retrieved February 16, 2015.
  13. ^ Hughes, Josiah (January 8, 2009). "Witch Announce North American Tour". Exclaim!. Retrieved January 11, 2014.
  14. ^ Sciarretto, Amy (April 5, 2010). "Earthless European Tour Dates With Russian Circles". Noisecreep. Retrieved January 17, 2014.
  15. ^ "Baroness announces headlining tour". Lambgoat. September 4, 2009. Retrieved January 21, 2014.
  16. ^ Lee, Samantha (December 12, 2010). "Earthless Australian Tour". Faster Louder. Retrieved January 21, 2014.
  17. ^ a b Weiderhorn, Jon (September 26, 2013). "Earthless's "Equus October" Is Just Another Example of Why They're the Best Sober Stoner Band on Earth". Noisey. Retrieved December 27, 2013.
  18. ^ Hersey, Tom (December 19, 2013). "Rock Solid". theMusic.com.au. Retrieved January 3, 2014.
  19. ^ Martins, Chris (October 1, 2013). "Stream Earthless' Sky-Scraping Return Album 'From the Ages'". Spin. Retrieved January 3, 2014.
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