Batillus - East Coast tour diary, pt. 2

Our heroes in Batillus continue doomhauling down the US East Coast, alongside Kowloon Walled City. Drummer Geoff Summers provides an update from the road. – C.L.

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BATILLUS – US EAST COAST DIARY
PART 2

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Day Five
Pittsburgh, PA

Two days ago, we knocked the power out at AS220 in Providence. Last night, KWC blew the PA out in Baltimore. This is quickly becoming a destructive tour. At least all of our gear is working like a dream (knocks on wood), I just hope my drums survive Jeff’s relentless assault every night.

Thanks to Akris, Oak, and Salome for playing last night. Akris gets better every time I see them, and Salome were the tightest they’ve ever been.

As I type, we are jamming out to Queens of the Stone Age’s self-titled record en route to Pittsburgh. Peterson is behind the wheel, Willi is in the co-captain seat, Fade is fast asleep, Joey (our merch girl) is reading, and I’m typing on a BlackBerry. That’s the life of a touring band, pretty mundane, really. Get in van, drive to show, unload gear, set up gear, play a few songs, break down gear, load gear, sleep, repeat. Thankfully, we have great friends along the way (like Nick from The Empire Shall Fall and Willi’s buddy Chris, and Paco [pictured]) who let us sleep on their couches and drink their beer and cook breakfast for us. And the crowds are a bit thicker for this tour than the last one we did, which is promising. And it’s good to be on tour with a band as great as KWC – they push us to play our best every night.

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Day Seven
Atlanta, GA

Yesterday, we played a doubleheader in Knoxville, TN. It was my first time in Knoxville, and I rather enjoyed the town. Good energy all around and a strong community vibe.

We played with a band called New Brutalism, local stalwarts who play a variety of aggressive noise rock and build their own gear. Seriously, their guitars, amps, cabs, and drums were all homemade. Definitely a new level of DIY.

After that show, which didn’t end until around 1:30am, we packed up our gear and drove across town to play a short set at the Poison Lawn, a local house show spot. Earlier in the evening, Black September had played, whom we’ll be playing with tonight in Atlanta. Looking forward to seeing those guys, I dug the split they did with Thou.

KWC hit it first, playing a short set that included a cover of “Anthem” by Godflesh with Fade joining them on vocals. Then we played, winning over a couple new fans in the process (I think), including a snaggle-toothed, middle-aged local gent by the name of “Killer”. Thanks to Andy from the Poison Lawn for inviting us out to play and feeding us beer.

Tonight we hit Atlanta and then tomorrow on to New Orleans. Come out to a show and bring us some moonshine.

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WAX AKTIONS

Batillus have a new 12″ split with Hallowed Butchery out on Vendetta. For details and ordering info, see here. You can stream Batillus’ tracks and order the split at their Bandcamp. Batillus recently recorded a full-length with Sanford Parker – label and release date TBD.

Kowloon Walled City have a new 12″ split with Fight Amp and Ladder Devils out on Brutal Panda. Their latest full-length, Gambling on the Richter Scale, recently got the vinyl treatment. For ordering information – and free downloads of these records – see here.

Both bands will have these recordings for sale during this tour.

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BATILLUS/KOWLOON WALLED CITY – US EAST COAST TOUR 2010
Remaining dates

09/29 Chapel Hill, NC – The Reservoir w/Machete! (free!)
09/30 Richmond, VA – Strange Matter w/Lord By Fire
10/01 Philadelphia, PA – Kung Fu Necktie w/Fight Amp, Ladder Devils (7:30 pm)
10/02 Brooklyn, NY – The Acheron w/Liturgy

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