Don't get MADHAMMER, get EVEN........hammer.

Okay, so, in order to atone for the heinous post I put up earlier I figured I'd let you in on some sweet jams that I happened across recently. Funnily enough, it was via a link that a friend of Cobras' posted up on Faceschmuck that i actually found these guys.

Ladeez and germs, from Eureka, CA, i give you....MADHAMMER.














When I heard these fellas, I heard DEFINITE Fancy Metal. Now Fancy Metal Ubersturmbahngruppenfuhrer Seanford may disagree, but, hell, I say there is DEFINITELY something fancy and VERY metallic in their three-guitar instru-metal attack. I dig 'em, and I think you folks will too.

In order to formally introduce Madhammer to you good people, I did a li'l Q & FUCKIN' A with one third of the axe-attack team, Mr Kyle Fontaine....


Hello to YOU, Kyle from Madhammer.

Now, I don't know a DAMN thing about your band, aside from the fact that you rock me with a fist of cold, hard IRON, so give me a potted history of the band. As if you were talking to an idiot.

Short version: There was Madhammer, then there wasn't, then there was again.
Long version: In 2005, there was the original incarnation of Madhammer; it was originally a slower more doomish/riff driven type endeavor fronted by Alex and Julian with the original bassist Nate and drummer Clint. Nate eventually split for Oregon and then Europe. Julian, who originally was the rhythm guitarist took over on bass and they added Eric on guitar. Around 2006ish Julian broke his hand, so I picked up bass and started playing with them all briefly. Julian recovered, I stepped out to get more guitar skills and they soldiered on.
After some interpersonal disputes, Eric and Clint left, and Madhammer went on hiatus. Around 2009ish, Alex and Julian reformed Madhammer with 2 members of another local band that had collapsed, Jessie on guitar and Tony on drums. In February this year I started playing with Alex and Jessie and around March-ish officially joined the band, and now we have the Madhammer of 2010.


What made you decide to go for the three guitar attack formation?

Iron Maiden helped, but it was mostly happenstance; originally Madhammer had always been a 2 guitar band, but in February this year I started showing up and throwing in third harmony parts and such and it just clicked. There's just some things that can't be done live without either 3 guitars or music wizardry, and none of us had wizards.


Why the lack of vocals?

Lack of vocalists, primarily. We'd love to have solid vocals to help complete our sound, but we haven't found anyone that fits our band; we don't want to have cookie monster inhale vocals just for the sake of having a vocalist. Not to say there isn't a time and a place for those vocals, but we don't really feel that Madhammer is that time and place. We'll try anything at least once, but it's gotta add more to the sound than it obscures or takes away.


Who rocks your world, floats your boat and blows your skirt up? Any other bands you feel a kinship with?

Personally I'm into a vast array of stuff; currently been on a Ron Jarzombek streak, lots of Blotted Science. Animals as Leader is pretty swank, plus the classics like NWOBHM, The Big 4, Testament, Pantera, etc. I've also always been a huge fan of Robert Fripp.
Insofar as smaller indie label bands, I'm a huge proponent of Super Happy Story Time Land, they're a nutso avant garde death metal band from Washington. Another pretty awesome one is We Be the Echo, crazy instrumental tech metal. (Who are, it must be said, AWESOME)

What are the common ground influences between the band members? Where do you all touch base?

Lot of common ground between us in Pantera, Ozzy, Black Label Society, Iron Maiden, Death, Painkiller era Priest, some Mastodon; if it's metal, and it's awesome, we can usually get behind it together.

What are your future plans for world domination?

Release the 'Double AIDS', spur a war between Mexico and Canada, forcing the US into an isolationist state, then firebombing Antarctica and flooding the worlds coastlines.

Musically, we'll see. We're working on new material to flesh out an album, and we'll see what our cards hold this winter/next spring.

OK, obligatory stupid 'WTF?'type question, just to make me look like less of a lazy journalist - Who would win in a fight, HP Lovecraft or L Ron Hubbard?

Depends on what type of fight. In a fair fight, I'd side on Lovecraft. In a dirty fight, Hubbard. In a literary fight, Lovecraft hands down, as he would decimate Hubbard with vagueness and racial references to savages, but the fight would drag on for eons, going nowhere. Like Battlefield Earth. In a fistfight, Hubbard could probably take more blows, but might be exhausted from all the tax dodging and pederasty.

Anything else you want to say?

It's always worth it to go see a band that you know nothing about live on the off chance that they kick ass. Go out and give bands in your area a chance; if they're not playing in a stadium, that money you're paying is gas and survival money.


Smashing!!

Indeed.


Wasn't he a nice guy? So, now you know a little more about the band, their hopes, their dreams, their aspirations, I guess you'll be wanting to hear 'em, right?

Well, being as how this is the 21st century and all that jazz, Madhammer have a plethora, do you hear me? A PLETHORA of ways to check out their choonz.
You can kick it old school and go to MySpace, or, if you're so inclined, you can find 'em on Facebook, OR EVEN, HERE on Reverbnation, where you can listen to their music and do....other.....stuff. How's THAT for a plethora?

Madhammer recently did a live set on KHSU, which is apparently a radio station, and because we at Illogical Contraption are SO damn good to you, you can download their radio session tracks here. Ahh, what the hell, have this too.

Now get the hell outta here and check 'em out. G'wan, SCRAM!!!


Phew. Got through that WHOLE thing without ONE feeble M.C Hammer joke.....














.....dammit!