Planets of Awesome

Cave In is back. You should know this. A new single hit the 'net shelves at iTunes today, called "Retina Sees Rewind", which is taken from the forthcoming 12" 4-song EP Planets of Old, coming July 28th on the ever-awesome Hydra Head Records. It will rule. You should also know this.

A lot of people have their fandom split between the metalcore originators era (1995-1998) and the Failure-loving days (1999-2004), but I seem to really dig where they've been going off and on since 2005's Perfect Pitch Black...They go wherever the fuck they want. It's like Led Zeppelin meets Old Man Gloom at Ken Andrew's house. The new track is killer and keeps with this freedom, leaving the listener with under 3 minutes of aural bliss.

The band reunites on July 19th in Mass for "reunion"/record release show of sorts. Tickets sold out in 2 minutes or some crazy shit like that.

In case you can't tell, I cannot wait for this.

A tasty nugget to get you excited: "The World Is In Your Way" Live, 2005

Fancy Caravan

If Metallica is Led Zeppelin, then Pantera definitely is Black Sabbath. In fact, this weeks' fanciness comes courtesy of Pantera covering Black Sabbath. I really had my pick this week. I counld've gone with their ball-smashing rendition of "Hole In The Sky" or their Whiskey-soaked version of "Electric Funeral". I chose to stay as fancy as possible and honor "Planet Caravan", one of my favorite Sabbath songs, covered by one of my favorite metal bands.

The thing about Black Sabbath and Pantera that always pulled me in, was that beyond all the obvious heaviness and METAL, their softer side was eons darker and more tortured. Sure, "Iron Man" is heavy, but "Changes" pulls out your goddamn heart and crushes it with a baseball bat. God, I love that song. Pantera ran the same course. "Mouth For War" is pissed off and can make you pick up cars and throw them at old ladies, but "Floods" will literally make you feel like the walls are closing in around you.

Every time I saw Pantera (other than one Ozzfest slot in 2000), they played "Planet Caravan". The four dudes would set up shop in the middle of the stage with bongos and pot, fly swirly pot leaves out over the lights and turn the entire arena green (in color and smell). Even if you don't smoke the weed, you somehow got high as a motherfucker. Good music will do that...

"Planet Caravan":