DEAD ... no seriously .... DEAD!!!!!!!

We're beyond excited, stoked, pants-pissing happy to announce that DEAD,those lovable, thunderous, dudes from down-under, will once again grace our landlocked festival this August. It's been an arduous process for Jem and Jace to secure the funds, plan out a tour, and to negotiate all of the other logistical nightmares it takes to get over here from Australia. It almost didn't happen. Hopes were tied to a grant that never materialized, but about a month ago Jem emailed to say that they bit the bullet and are coming with or without the grant. 

Let that sink in.

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Ok

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My head was close to exploding. This year's line-up is already super stacked, but the addition of DEAD to this year's schedule may be way too much for one human being to handle.

Who is DEAD? They're long time bros. Not enough? Check out WeEmptyRooms. Wantage released their debut album, Thundaaaaah. Jem plays drums in Fire Witch. Both Jem and Jace play in Fangs Of ... . Still not enough?

Did you listen to the records? 

I'll wait.

Seriously awesome stuff.

Where's your head?

Jem and Jace lay down the heavy. Straight and simple. Melvins vibe? check. KARP / Big Business / Melvins type of lyrical craziness? check. Crazy ass riffs and vocals that somehow devolve into something that reminds me of how I would love Rush to sound? check. (I could be wrong on that one. I'm not the world's biggest Rush proponent, but around the 5 minute mark of "Prick Rodeo" I tell myself that's what people find good in  Rush). Dudes who never look like it's a chore to play? check. Awesome? check. Just hit you in the gut, head, and stomped on your ankles? check. Apologized and bought you a beer? .... well, probably not.Still smile? check. Possibility of Jace playing bass with his bare ass? check!

I think that's it. DEAD is the perfect combination of bare bone heavy, labyrinthine lyrics, straight-up balls-to-wall performance, technical changes and genre-bending force, and playful but in your face DIY aesthetic that puts them in an entirely different category than other bands.

Recently, they've released Idiots, which is one of the best records that I've heard since the last DEAD record. These dudes are legit (and some of the sweetest dudes on the planet). They've sketched together an awesome tour  with Towers and a few other bands in order to play Total Fest and launch their U.S. release of Idiots on Eolian Empire on August 13 (not to mention that they'll be recording some new tracks with  Toshi Kasai while they're in LA). If you're anywhere near where they are playing, catch them as often as you can. They design and print their own merch so you're a lucky devil if you score one of their hoodies (serious cred). Jace is designing the Total Fest shirts this year so you can hang your hat on that, but don't sleep on this stuff, total people. I seriously can't tell you how lucky we are to see these dudes again.

Here's a tease.