Dreadnought / Green Death / The Maw

Dreadnought (Colorado Springs, CO. - Sailor Records) - A mythical connection exists between nature and music.

Within vast forests, pagans traditionally participated in midnight drum circles around cackling flames. Led Zeppelin recorded the seminal Led Zeppelin III at the infamous secluded 18th century Bron-Yr-Aur cottage deep in the wilderness. Pink Floyd cut 1987’s A Momentary Lapse of Reason and 1994’s The Division Bell on the Astoria houseboat.

Nestled among the Rocky Mountains, it’s hard to escape the influence of nature in Colorado. Maybe they didn’t record in the woods or on the high seas, but Denver outfit Dreadnought breathes fresh air through extreme music like a torrential force of nature nonetheless. On their third full-length album A Wake In Sacred Waves [Sailor Records], the quartet—Kelly Schilling [guitar, flute, clean & harsh vocals], Jordan Clancy [drums, saxophone], Kevin Handlon [bass, mandolin, lyrics], and Lauren Vieira [keys, clean vocals]—redefine the boundaries of heavy, swinging from gusts of black metal double bass, guttural guitar, and haunting harmonic hymnals to reprieves of fairy tale flute, anesthetic mandolin, and jazz saxophone. (For the uninitiated, think Joni Mitchell guesting with Wolves in the Throne Room).

Green Death (Des Moines, IA. EMP Label Group) - n 1998, guitarist Erich Tran was in a band called W.A.D., while also working at Best Buy in Des Moines, IA. There he met 16 year old Sol Bales who was in another band at the time. In August, 2001, Sol joined W.A.D., but by early 2002 that band had disbanded.

A few months later, following an audition for downthesun, Erich realized he wanted to keep working with Sol on a new project. ONLY was formed with Sol and the original W.A.D. bass player. Mark Reinking (Sparky) joined ONLY as a rhythm guitarist in 2003.
After a 10 year run of countless shows, several CD releases and many lineup changes, the trio of Erich, Sol, and Sparky found themselves as the only remaining full-time members. Tired, burned out, and frustrated with the band’s inability to solidify the lineup, they even debated hanging it up permanently.

They felt the last batch of unrecorded songs were really strong, however, and touched more on their musical roots - more in the thrash, death, and traditional heavy metal vein – than ONLY had. At this point in their lives they wanted to have those songs professionally recorded, just to have something to show for the last few years of work. In Sept 2012, they ultimately decided to record 3 tunes, with Sparky playing bass and Erich playing drums as wells as their guitar duties. Thus Green Death was born. Sol came up with the name from a list of many. Everyone loved it, and after local artist Jason Handy created the logo, it solidified the new name and direction of the band. The resulting EP was entitled “Dawn of the Death”.

With that recording, the trio realized that lacking a full band wasn’t going to stop them from progressing and releasing music. And after a decade of honing their craft they were finally hitting their musical stride.

Following the release of a second EP (2013’s “Death Monks”), Green Death began performing live, with bassist Parker Willis joining in 2013, and drummer Ryan Berrier in 2014.

Since its inception, Green Death has released a full length debut album (“The Deathening”, on CD /DVD and vinyl), opened for countless national bands, been featured in Decibel magazine, released numerous music videos, and won the 2014 Lazer 103.3 - Lazerfest Battle of the bands.

In 2015 with a solid lineup, Green Death has released a #1 Amazon album, "Manufacturing Evil" and will be performing that KNOTFEST 2015 alongside Slipknot, Judas Priest, Mastodon, and Cannibal Corpse. And embarking on their 1st 10-day tour. 2015 is shaping up to be a big year for the band as they continue to make waves without a record labels support.

The Maw (Des Moines, IA. - INDIE) - "The Maw are an incredible live band, and I have to admit, I am proud to know that they are from the Des Moines area. I hate the label of "Jam Band"... I think it sends out visions of sandal-wearing hippies singing funky melodies in between structured guitar and drum solos... Not that there is anything wrong with that... It's just that I have been there, and that scene has worn thin with me. The Maw certainly do not apply to that form of music... But I think a Band that Jams might be a good fit. Half way through "Chora" the first song in their set, I am thinking to myself, Dem boys be smoking some funky stuff.

They actually caught me off guard... I wasn't expecting to be that entertained.

Who do they sound like? Well if you ask the band, they will tell you Miles Davis, Cannibal Corpse, Pink Floyd, and The Mahavishnu Orchestra, to name a few. That's quite a mix, and if you throw in what I heard, you'd have to add pockets of Supertramp, Jethro Tull, King Krimson, and Sundial. I couldn't help but wonder how a band could be influenced by so many, and yet defy categorization. To put it simply, the only band that sounds like The Maw... Is The Maw."

--Article courtesy of Troy Church of The Big Foot Diaries