While Ohio volume dealers, LO-PAN, traverse the US alongside amplification duo, Black Cobra, today The Obelisk streams "Vox" from the band's forthcoming Colossus full-length.
Named for the Colossus of Rhodes - a ninety-six-foot statue of the Greek titan-god of the sun, Helios, constructed in 280 BC to mark a failed siege and the indomitable nature of the Greek city of Rhodes itself - LO-PAN's fourth full-length was produced and engineered by Andrew Schneider (Unsane, Rosetta, East Of The Wall et al) at his own Translator Audio Studio in Brooklyn and boasts ten crushingly soulful psalms that reveal just how much they've moved beyond their influences to arrive at their own sound - a style built on aggression without caricature, fuzz without cliché, melody without redundancy and their meanest groove to date.
Elaborates The Obelisk, "...where their last full-length, 2011's Salvador, was a pinnacle for their song writing's blend of fluid groove, soulful vocals and memorable tracks, Colossus reaps the reward of all their touring in pushing LO-PAN's methods even further. So it's a meaner, more precise LO-PAN this time around - the band is still comprised of vocalist Jeff Martin, guitarist Brian Fristoe, bassist Scott Thompson and drummer Jesse Bartz - but they're also branching out in terms of what their songs do. That will probably make no sense until you listen to 'Vox.' LO-PAN have done big songs before, but 'Vox' gives a spacious feeling in Martin's echoing voice that's genuinely new for them - not to mention a guest spot near the end from Black Black Black's Jason Alexander Byers (also ex-Disengage) - and they blend it well with Fristoe's smooth-running riffs, Thompson's viscous but always moving basslines and the ever-raucous stomp from Bartz. In its hook, and in its subtle - and not so subtle - rhythmic shifts, 'Vox' emphasizes a lot of the progression in LO-PAN's approach, and less surprisingly, kicks a good deal of ass along the way."
Adds the band. "'Vox' is about pessimism. No matter how well things are going it's easy fall into the vortex of negative thoughts."
Stay smiling and check out "Vox," now playing at The Obellisk at THIS LOCATION.
And if you missed it, sample "Regulus" still streaming at Noisey at THIS LOCATION.
As a precursor to the release of Colossus, LO-PAN is currently shaking stages across America with Black Cobra. Already a week in, the journey will zigzag its way through nearly three dozen cities, with additional LO-PAN headlining shows added to the jaunt. See confirmed dates below.
LO-PAN w/ Black Cobra [remaining dates]
9/04/2014 Siberia - New Orleans, LA
9/05/2014 Handlebar - Pensacola, FL
9/06/2014 Orpheum - Tampa, FL
9/07/2014 Gramps - Miami, FL
9/08/2014 Back Booth - Orlando, FL
9/09/2014 529 - Atlanta, GA
9/10/2014 The Mothlight - Asheville, NC
9/11/2014 Chop Shop - Charlotte, NC
9/12/2014 Strange Matter - Richmond, VA
9/13/2014 The Pinch - Washington, DC
9/14/2014 Dusk - Providence, RI
9/15/2014 Nectars - Burlington, VT
9/16/2014 TT The Bears - Boston, MA
9/17/2014 Kung Fu Necktie - Philadelphia, PA
9/18/2014 Saint Vitus - New York, NY
9/19/2014 Lost Horizon - Syracuse, NY
9/20/2014 Bug Jar - Rochester, NY
9/21/2014 The Outpost - Kent, OH *
9/22/2014 Howlers - Pittsburgh, PA
9/23/2014 Reggie's - Chicago, IL
9/24/2014 7th St Entry - Minneapolis, MN
9/26/2014 Replay - Lawrence, KS
9/27/2014 Lost Lake Lounge - Denver, CO
9/28/2014 Burt's Tiki Bar - Salt Lake City, UT
9/29/2014 Dive Bar - Las Vegas, NV
9/30/2014 The Alley - Sparks, NV
10/01/2014 The Garage - Ventura, CA
10/02/2014 New Parish - Oakland, CA
10/04/2014 Downtown Lounge - Tulsa, OK *
10/17/2014 Ace Of Cups - Columbus, OH * Record Release Show
*LO-PAN headlining date/No Black Cobra
Colossus will be released via Small Stone October 7th, 2014. Preorder your copy today atTHIS LOCATION.
"Colossus is a great name for a doom record. In one breath it handily evokes images of majesty, grandeur, and past glories... It hints at hard-won battles and blood seeping into foreign sands, of rough-hewn idols and monoliths crumbling into the foaming sea. It paints a pretty goddamn inspiring picture. That being said, on a less romantic level, Colossusalso slots neatly into doom's obsession with really big... things. Ours is a world populated by behemoths and mastodons, dying giants, sea lords, and elder gods, whose exploits and flights of fancy are riffed sweatily into existence by big burly dudes encircled by halos of amplifier tubes. It's larger than life, and if it's done right, it's way too much for your shitty foam earplugs to handle. It's awesome." - Noisey
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