MetalSucks

I’m still shocked about the unbelievably terrible tragedy that occurred this past weekend — Georgia-born Brooklyn fixture, masterful metronomic drummer Jerry Fuchs (Maserati, Turing Machine, !!!, The Juan Mclean, and more) fell down an elevator shaft late Saturday night and died shortly thereafter.

My interactions with Jerry were minimal, but every time we spoke I felt an overwhelming sense of kindness that informed me right away how good a person I was talking to. Even the first time we briefly met, I found Jerry to be so affable that we ended up deeply laughing at something or another like we had been friends since the 2nd grade. These are the types of people that we should always hope to surround ourselves with, and obviously the incredible news of his untimely death seems just plain wrong.

Before I ever met the man, I was a HUGE fan from afar — the first time I ever saw the fiery robo-prog band Turing Machine, there was no question from the beginning moments of the first song that the drummer up there was something extra-special. He played with such intensity and restraint, and witnessing Jerry’s talents behind the kit often reminded me how strong a musician can be simply with extreme precision, power, and spirit. For anyone who has ever seen him play live, you know how quickly he could get a crowd dancing and furthermore, how hypnotic the most straightforward basic rock beat always became in his hands.

Not to mention his crispy technique — those one-handed filles were deliciously ridiculous.

I can’t help but feel like the world has been robbed of a magnificent talent that was sure to have grown and grown to neo-Bonham-like status. But I also feel honored to have heard the music and met the man for a few fleeting conversations — whether it was down at SXSW or running into him at the music store up here in Brooklyn, every single conversation and live set I was ever fortunate enough to experience left me feeling a little better.

It seems friends and fans will be gathering this Thursday night at Enid’s in Greenpoint, Brooklyn at 7pm for an impromptu gathering to memorialize this legendary talent.

Links and videos after the jump.

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Upon returning back to the Mansion from a bike ride on an unseasonably warm day here in Brooklyn, I was greeted with the following bit of very sad news: drummer Jerry Fuchs is dead at 34. Fuchs was the drummer for Maserati (as well as Turing Machine, !!! and others), a band I’ve written about several times over the past few months whose shows were positively mesmerizing. Fuchs was the backbone and focal-point of the band, his rock-solid skin-pounding the unquestionable propulsive force behind this rock/psych/groove outfit. Though Maserati aren’t metal, their hard-driving grooves and intricate musicality appealed to a lot of metalheads (including this one). I fully credit Kip W. and burger maestro The Rev with having turned me on to this excellent band at SXSW this past Spring; both raved of Fuchs’ skills behind the kit as a highlight of the band’s performance. I had the pleasure of seeing them again this past September here in Brooklyn; the show was stellar, and the band not only impressed MetalGF but blew headlining act Mono off the stage.

Now about his death… it’s even more bizarre than the band’s music. Apparently Fuchs died early Sunday morning when he fell down an elevator shaft. Talk about scary ways to end it all… wow. Reports Spinner:

Fuchs and a friend were in an elevator in a converted factory used as loft space when the elevator stopped “somewhere above the fifth floor,” the Buildings Department spokesman told the New York Post. The pair opened the elevator door and attempted to jump a few feet down to the fifth floor. The friend made the jump, but a piece of Fuchs’ clothing was caught on the elevator, “sending him swinging back into the crevice separating the elevator from the fifth floor,” the Post writes. Fuchs fell five stories to the bottom of the elevator shaft, where he lay “unconscious and unresponsive,” reports Gothamist. The musician was taken to Bellevue Hospital in critical condition and died early this morning surrounded by “an entire waiting room of friends,” according to Chunklet, to which Fuchs was a contributor.

Crikee! One can only hope Fuchs fired off one last passion-filled drum fill in his head before meeting his ultimate demise. Watch the above video for just a small sample of what the man could do behind the kit. And listen to some Maserati tunes on MySpace today, wouldja?

R.I.P. Jerry (Gerhardt) Fuchs.

-VN

MASERATI: “Untitled” – Live at Drunken Unicorn, Atlanta GA, March 16, 2009 from Cassavetes Band on Vimeo.

Athens, GA/Brooklyn, NY instrumental psych-dance-post-rock-metal-whatever band Maserati are one of those bands that are extremely difficult to pigeonhole beyond simply saying “awesome.” Three separate people told me that I had to see this band at this past year’s SXSW, and on the festival’s final day I had an opportunity in a packed backyard patio at twilight. Shit totally blew my mind! The sound completely surrounded me, the sun was going down, it was 80 degrees with a light breeze, everyone was feelin’ it… it was just one of those great moments. Guitarists’ Coley Dennis and Matt Cherry’s delay-infused leads snake their way into and around each other, creating the perfect psychedelic soundscape for metronomic, finesse drummer Jerry Fuchs’ (also of Turing Machine and !!!) and groove-heavy bassist Steve Scarborough.

Maserati have something like 10 different releases under their belts, many of them limited edition split vinyls that have long since been out of print, so before the band releases their next proper full-length in 2010 they’ve decided to issue Passages, a collection of many of these out-of-print tracks (and two unreleased numbers) that will now be on CD for the first time. I’m listening to Passages right now, and I’m seriously considering sparking up a bowl before I’m done. The record came out on September 8th, so it’s available everywhere now including at the website of the band’s label, Temporary Residence.

Here’s a free download/stream of the track “Monoliths” from Passages; it’s one of my favoritest songs on the record.

Maserati – “Monoliths”

The band goes on a long tour this week supporting Mono. I’ll be at the Brooklyn show rockin’ out. Full list of tour dates after the jump.

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Meet If These Trees Could Talk, an instrumental band from Akron, Ohio. If These Trees Could Talk border on metal the same way bands like Dredg, Muse, Maserati and Russian Circles do — for the most part they stick to delicate but rocking atmospheric grooves, but occasionally they kick it into high gear for cathartic headbang crescendos. If you’re a fan of well-crafted, intricate, moody music like the above-mentioned bands — in addition to other heady, cerebral rock acts like Tool, Mogwai, and Isis — my guess is you’ll dig this band. This is thinking man’s rock for listeners who revel in musical subtlety; no blast beats or cookie monster vocals to be seen here. For those questioning why this is on a metal site, go fuck yourself. Or just wait ’til the heavy part towards the end of the song kicks in.

ITTCT have been kind enough to offer us up a free track called “What’s in the Ground Belongs To You” from their album Above the Sky, Below the Earth. Stream or download it below. They’ll be releasing a new vinyl through Mylene Sheath sometime this Fall. Enjoy.

If These Trees Could Talk – “What’s in the Ground Belongs To You”

-VN

[Visit ITTCT on MySpace]

Where to begin? So many debaucherous moments — too many beers, not enough whiskeys, a shit-ton of BBQ, and a helluva lotta MUSIC….yes yes, it was another sleep-deprived week in Austin, Texas, and at the end of it all, it was the best one yet.

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So. Yesterday was a fucking whirlwind.

Salt Lick BBQ lunch, punctuated by the special rice krispie treat some guy had sold us the night prior. Kip and I were giggling like high school kids stoned for the first time as we were eating THE MOST FUCKING AMAZING BARBECUE FUCKING EVER. From there it was right back into it with a triumvirate of Peelander-Z, Rwake and proggy atmospheric rockers Maserati. Pound down a few Lone Stars, Coffee, Red Bull, keep going. We hit a quality standup comedy showcase next (Eugene Mirman, others) to break things up before indulging in delicious street tacos, then onwards to the Pelican / Dredg show at Emo’s. Once again, Dredg killed it (better sound this time), and once again I’m not much impressed by Pelican. Cut to 6am passing some bottles of cheap red wine around a hotel room with Dredg as I realized I had to leave for the airport… breakfast at Salt Lick offshoot in the airport, plane, pass out, New York.

Thank you to everyone we hung out with all weekend for making this our best SXSW yet. Fucking epic.

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