Beehoover - Heavy Zoo Arzgarth ( SuperAdmin ) 55,337 posts since 7/17/2002 Posted on 9/27/2008 at 11:42:12 AM Beehoover - Heavy Zoo Review by John Pegoraro (StonerRock.com) Exile on Mainstream Records Release date: 2008 Here's a confession for ya: When I say shit like “A very creative and interesting record,” it's doublespeak for “It's good, I guess, but I don't know what the fuck to say about it, so here's some vague mumbling that hopefully will draw the right crowd.” So if I dropped the ball on giving The Sun Behind the Dustbin, the last effort by the two man rhythmic wrecking crew of Beehoover, its due, here's my chance to make amends with Heavy Zoo. It is a fantastic record, and any sort of reservations I had about the band's previous recordings have been thrown in the dustbin. With just bass and drum, Beehoover has crafted a heavy album that swings. And not in the “Yeah, I get it” foot tapping sense – I mean you can see the riffs round up like a wrecking ball and loop around and crash right into your gut. It's the mud-thick dope slapping rock of the Melvins mixed with the insanely natural sense of groove Queens of the Stone Age had on their first album. And nuanced too. “Stanislav Petrov,” the last track, is both operatic and epic in execution – it's a mind fuck romp through prog delirium, moving with the grace of a ballerina and hitting like a prizefighter. This one goes way beyond “very creative and interesting.” Don't wait another minute. Go track this fucker down. Recommended. URL: http://www.myspace.com/beehoover Edited 0 Times I`m never going to work another day in my life   Kevin ( Regular Member ) 2,871 posts since 12/15/1999 Posted on 6/9/2008 at 11:36:11 AM Beehoover – Heavy Zoo By Kevin McHugh Exile on Mainstream Records June 9, 2008 Beehoover is a raw, adrenaline-soaked power duo with a healthy respect for The Riff. They take this respect and shine it through a fractured prism, yielding a noisy, off-kilter wedding of progressive and straight-ahead elements that’ll make you throw the horns while you work out the square root of pi in the beer sweat on your table top. Beehoover is made up of two members of the redoubtable riffing doom group Voodoo Shock, but aside from the heavy riffing, you’d never know it. Apparently the Beehoover dudes have experimented with various lineups, but settled on the two-piece because of its ability to bring out even the smallest details in their mutual musical vision, which unfortunately is obscured by additional band members. The strings are the lead melody maker of course, but they work in close tandem with the wild drumming to create a boulder-solid rhythmic foundation as well, crowned by razor-gargling, rough-hewn vocals. This is musically challenging while providing plenty of riffing, hair-swinging goodness. Think of an underground System of a Down, or maybe Jesus Lizard, Tar, Tool, Stinking Liz, or Clutch. Better yet, take a look at the groovy album artwork, replete with weird animal androids, kind of like ELPs ‘Tarkus’ and the Budgie covers of old – it sums up the music perfectly! www.mainstreamrecords.de Edited 1 Times I`ve weathered the storms, and today is cloudless.   heavythisaxe ( Regular Member ) 1,440 posts since 4/18/2008 Posted on 6/9/2008 at 2:30:23 PM Man, you hit the nail on the head. Went over to the link you included in the review and checked out a track or two. Definitely feeling the Clutch meets Tool meets Stinking Liz vibe. Hard to fathom such a massive sound is produced by just two dudes, too. This band has groove to spare. Now, how the heck is someone in the middle-of-nowhere-Rascal-Flatts-loving-Midwest supposed to snag a copy of this CD? Edited 0 Times   Kevin ( Regular Member ) 2,871 posts since 12/15/1999 Posted on 6/9/2008 at 7:34:06 PM Thanks for the kind words! If you contact Andreas through the exileonmainstream link, you can paypal him some funds and have it delivered in no time. Edited 0 Times I`ve weathered the storms, and today is cloudless.   heavythisaxe ( Regular Member ) 1,440 posts since 4/18/2008 Posted on 6/9/2008 at 11:04:18 PM Will do ASAP. Is the band's other CD (something with "Dustbin" in the title) up to snuff? I noticed it on the label site, but I wasn't able to listen to any of the tunes on it. Might have to kill two birds with one stone if it is up to par with Heavy Zoo. Edited 0 Times   Kevin ( Regular Member ) 2,871 posts since 12/15/1999 Posted on 6/10/2008 at 6:19:19 AM Here's Arz' take: Beehoover - The Sun Behind the Dustbin Review by John Pegoraro (FuzzRock.com) Exile on Mainstream Records Release date: February 14, 2007 The two bigger two-man bands from 2006 – Big Business and Black Cobra – took bass and drums down a frantic, aggressive path. It was as if both were making a point of saying, “We don't need a guitar to make things heavy.” Germany's Beehoover may have the same core instruments, but they follow a different route altogether. If there's a void left by the lack of guitar, it's one they acknowledge and embrace. Most of the songs on The Sun Behind the Dustbin focus on the fact that the band is one solid rhythm section. They don't bludgeon you with sound; instead they compose songs that exist in the groove. That doesn't prevent them from stretching out, though – the title track in particular is an impressive jam that is as psychedelic as it is intricate and heavy. That drummer Claus-Peter Hamisch and bassist Ingmar Petersen also play in the traditional doom band Voodooshock is impressive – this is a far cry from that genre. In fact, I'd say these guys relate more to a band like Stinking Lizaveta, in the sense that they're hard to pigeonhole. A very creative and interesting record. URL: http://www.beehoover.com/ Edited 0 Times I`ve weathered the storms, and today is cloudless.   stormzsystem ( Community Supporter ) 6,725 posts since 1/11/2005 Posted on 6/11/2008 at 3:56:01 AM This sounds awesome! Kind of Melvinsy too. Edited 0 Times http://queenelephantine.clfrecords.com   nell ( Regular Member ) 27 posts since 4/13/2005 Posted on 6/11/2008 at 11:48:17 AM You can check out all the Exile on Mainstream releases [full albums, full tracks] on Last.fm! URL: http://www.last.fm/label/Exile+On+Mainstream+Records Edited 0 Times   Shepherd777 ( Regular Member ) 111 posts since 5/28/2003 Posted on 6/12/2008 at 1:48:01 PM we also have just added players on www.mainstreamrecords.com. You can listen to all the albums and buy them in digital formats at monkeyclaus.org. The newer releases aren't up yet but will soon. If you want to buy a hardcopy of any album don't hesitate to use the contact form on our homepage. We are working on a proper shop solution too. We also soon will be offering artworks (digipaks, booklets, traycards) for purchase for those who download the album and want to wrap them properly. URL: http://www.mainstreamrecords.de Edited 0 Times   errantfury ( Regular Member ) 11 posts since 6/28/2008 Posted on 7/8/2008 at 9:35:37 AM Thanks for the last.fm link. Edited 0 Times   renfield ( Regular Member ) 4,960 posts since 9/27/2001 Posted on 11/1/2008 at 1:15:30 PM The advance word on this made it sound like my cup of heavy. It is. Retardedly heavy album. Thick, thick, thick tone. Rhythmic deviousness abounds, but while maintaining that fundamental Bill Ward/Dale Crover STOMP. That said it veers off into Don Caballero type shit with the cymbals at times, which works quite well. Recalls Capricorns and Rotor as well. There's a few more citations needed for a well-rounded "sounds-like" checklist. The record does have a certain amount of attitude. Very impressive stuff. Edited 0 Times   Noisynoise ( Regular Member ) 141 posts since 6/4/2008 Posted on 2/13/2009 at 10:09:13 AM Heavy Zooo was sitting in a review stack for quite some time before I got to listening to it (note: I'm not a huge fan of slip packaging, even though I know it's more environmentally friendly--it causes stacks of albums to topple). Anyways, holy shit this a good record. I don't have to much to add to the discourse other than that I really dug this one. Edited 0 Times Because there is a B in both and an N in neither   urabaladoom ( Regular Member ) 602 posts since 4/5/2004 Posted on 2/15/2009 at 9:48:28 PM same, someone chucked in a promo cd of this into a recent trade package I got inthe mail,.and quite surprisingly its been getting a few spins and is actually bloody good!! Edited 0 Times   Pathfinder ( Regular Member ) 317 posts since 4/13/2005 Posted on 2/18/2009 at 4:02:22 PM makes me think of Totimoshi too, everytime i listen. Totimoshi, but more dense... Great album. Don't forget their earlier releases though. This is harder/heavier, but those were just as awesome... Edited 0 Times   db3jed ( Community Supporter ) 783 posts since 4/27/2006 Posted on 2/18/2009 at 5:00:16 PM Love the stuff they've got on their MySpace. "Heavy Zooo" is up on iTunes now too. I've gotta' get this! edit: Amazon U.S. has "Heavy Zooo" and "The Sun Behind the Dustbin" (CD but not MP3). Edited 1 Times   hellmistress ( SuperAdmin ) 2,257 posts since 11/15/2000 Posted on 3/14/2009 at 9:27:34 PM This album is available for purchase from All That is Heavy. URL: http://www.AllThatIsHeavy.com Edited 0 Times Reading comprehension is a lost art.     ( Post a Reply to This Thread ) ( Back to Album Reviews )