AIDS WOLF
AIDS WOLF
AIDS Wolf was birthed into the heady days of Montreal's millennial music scene. Yannick Desranleau (aka Hiroshima Thunder) and Chloe Lum began the band as a 4 piece in 2003. Unlike most of the local units finding fame out in the world beyond Quebec, AIDS Wolf pushed an abrasive, unforgiving and rather unwieldy sound around North America in a battered van. Alexander Moskos (aka the Kozz) joined in 2008. Desranleau, Lum, and Moskos ditched the more typical rock quartet format to work in a novel trio format (drums, guitar through two amps and voice) augmented with (erstwhile forsaken) guitar effects and voice synthesis.
OFFICIAL SITE :: MYSPACE :: FACEBOOK :: TWITTER :: BLOG
AIDS Wolf has formalized its sound over its years into a tight construction relying on intentional dissonance, polyrhythms and disjunctive compositional forms. The band takes its cues from "classic" New York No Wave, 90's Midwestern No Wave, vegan cooking, 70's proto-punk, Beefheartian modes, Ville-Marie school of white elephant architecture, Literature, www.crwflags.com, post-war continental modern composition and their unrivaled network of friends and acquaintances the world over.
The band signed early on to the legendary American noise rock label Skin Graft Records who co-released their debut with Brooklyn's Lovepump United. In addition to their two full-lengths, The Lovvers LP and Cities of Glass, they have released countless collaborative and split lps, seven inches and cassettes. 2009 saw the band written about in Billboard Magazine, who, surprisingly, got it, opening for their heroes Teenage Jesus and the Jerks, touring all zones, working on other artistic endeavors (Lum and Desranleau's art practice Seripop and duo Hamborghinni, Moskos' Drainolith one man show ect) and generally just getting it done.
AIDS Wolf's newest LP titled March to the Sea was recorded in Montreal with legendary Deaccelerationist David Bryant (ex Bliss) in his Griffntown studio. The album was recorded by the last quartet version of the band with Myles "Mountain Guitar" Broscoe on the wing. March to the Sea was released in the fall of 2010. AIDS Wolf will also release a collection of remixes of their Throbbing Gristle cover "Very Friendly" this summer, featuring remixes by John Olson, Nautical Alamanac, Weasel Walter, Jason Forrest and Emeralds.
SKOAL KODIAK
Skoal Kodiak’s Markus Lunkenheimer plays a modified bleach bottle, with circuit-bends, distortions, and manipulations causing his voice to squelch, gargle and gasp as if he's being devoured by a gigantic meat grinder. The rock-solid rhythm section of bassist Brady Lenzen and drummer Freddy Votel lay down a solid groove informed by dub reggae and early 80s post-punk outfits like Public Image Limited and Gang of Four. Put it all together and you have the most innovative cult rock band in the Twin Cities opening up the evening’s festivities.
GAY BEAST
Gay Beast formed mid-2005 during a fit of anxiety towards Midwestern passive aggression and as an attempt to make music that was queer in composition and aesthetic. Wielding a battery of drums, scraped and hammered guitars, chanted vocals, retro-future synths, saxophone, and other electronics, the trio (Angela Gerend, Daniel Luedtke, Isaac Rotto) build songs on grounds that adjoin complexity and catchiness, a space where both abrasion and tunefulness inhabit.
