The NORML Stash Blog » Eric Smokesbud

Rockin’ Friday: Old Head – “The Stoner Grind”

Eric Smokesbud — Fri, 08 Oct 2010 23:00:34 +0000

Old Head

This week we’ve got some good old fashioned east coast thrash metal. The band is Old Head, from the great city of Philadelphia, PA. Their line up features “MegaDan” Tumolo on lead vocals. Taking up the bass and producer duties is Dan O’Hare, Ryan Moll is on guitars and the drummer is Richard Hoak.

Their influences include classic metal greats like Black Sabbath, AC/DC and The Who and also from 90′s thrash bands like Death Angel, Megadeth and Testament. The one influence that really stands out is Megadeth which is most prevalent in (but not limited to) the vocals. You can really tell MegaDan drew his vocal style from Dave Mustaine. As far as the sound of the music, that can be summed up in three words: loud and fast. In fact the guitarist claims he plays so intensely that he frequently sweats on his guitars pick ups and it creates a “electronic effect” that can only be felt from the front row at their shows.

You can find more info on Old Head on their MySpace page or on Facebook.

If your looking for more great marijuana music head to Marijuanamusic.net

Download audio file (Old Head – The Stoner Grind.mp3)

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Rockin’ Friday: The Reverend Horton Heat – “Marijuana”

Eric Smokesbud — Tue, 05 Oct 2010 16:56:55 +0000

The Reverend Horton Heat

The Reverand Horton Heat is the stage name of Jim Heath the bandleader of the psychobilly trio from Dallas, TX. The group originally formed in 1985, playing its first gigs in Dallas’s Deep Ellum neighborhood. Its current members are Jim “Reverend Horton” Heath on guitar and lead vocals, Jimbo Wallace on the upright bass, and Paul Simmons on drums. Through relentless touring and a manic stage show, they have established themselves as one of the most popular underground acts in America.

Their sound is self-described as “country-fed punkabilly.” Some of their songs could also be described as psychobilly. Their music is a mixture of country, punk, big band, swing, and rockabilly, all played loud and energetically with lyrics that are often very humorous, and they have achieved success within the genre and even in mainstream America, many of their songs being featured in video games and commercials.

Today’s song is from the 1990 release Smoke ‘em If You Got ‘em, and is available on iTunes or at ThinkIndie.

Download “Marijuana”

You can find more info and tour dates on the official website

Rockin’ Friday: Soul Coughing – “The Woolly Imbibe”

Eric Smokesbud — Fri, 24 Sep 2010 22:20:57 +0000

Known as one of the most unique cult bands of the ’90s, Soul Coughing anchored a new crop of quirky, unclassifiable bands that emerged in the post-grunge era, including Morphine, the Eels, and Cake. Driven by frontman M. Doughty’s stream-of-consciousness poetry, Soul Coughing’s sound was a mix of improvisational jazz grooves, oddball samples, hip-hop, electronics, and noisy experimentalism (described by Doughty as “deep slacker jazz”). Even at the height of the alternative rock era, it was too avant-garde to cross over into the mainstream. Yet their ironic sense of humor and stylized bohemian-hipster image made them accessible enough to earn a widespread, enthusiastic following on college campuses. Moreover, they built a reputation as an excellent live act, thanks to a jazz aesthetic that kept their concert performances fresh and spontaneous (not to mention a liberal policy on fans trading tapes). After recording three albums, the group split up in March of 2000, and Mike Doughty started a solo career.

Today’s selection is from a collection of live performances released by Kufala Recordings in 2004. “The Woolly Imbibe” can be found on the Rennes, France album, which was recorded in December of 1994 at the prestigious Transmusicales Festival, and was Soul Coughing’s first gig outside of the United States.

You can purchase Soul Coughing’s Kufala Recordings releases here or on iTunes.

Did you know that Kufala Recordings wrap their CD’s in wood cellulose paper? The same material that clear rolling papers are made out of. Yes it is true you can roll a foot long joint with one of their CD wrappers.

Rockin’ Friday: Can A Bus Dream? – “Stoner Nation”

Eric Smokesbud — Fri, 17 Sep 2010 19:48:51 +0000

This week I found some stoner-metal from Arlington, Texas. Can A Bus Dream?, is known for their high energy and pure metal drive. They formed in 1999 as a Wednesday night escape for guitarist, “Ganja” Glenn and vocalist, “Cannabis” Chris. The two friends shared similar influences ranging from ZZ Top and KISS to Metallica and Iron Maiden. After learning a few covers the pair was joined by “Danimal” Dan on drums. Later, Billy Brown added his complementary guitar sound, and the lineup was finally complete with the addition of Joe “the Anomaly” on bass. The band immediately formed a tight-knit friendship that has held them together through the years.

You can find the latest news from Can A Bus Dream?, on Facebook, MySpace, and thestonernation.com.

Rockin’ Friday: Mark Eddie – “Marijuanaville”

Eric Smokesbud — Thu, 16 Sep 2010 17:43:10 +0000

(Russ says: This one didn’t get posted a couple of weeks ago because it incorrectly listed Jack Black, not Mark Eddie, as the artist. Here’s the updated post with MP3 download.)

Click here to view the embedded video.

In today’s song Mark Eddie takes Jimmy Buffet’s classic drinking tune “Margaritaville” and makes a much more stoner friendly version of the song. For instance, instead of searching for a lost shaker of salt, in “Marijuanaville” your looking for a roach clip on a rope. Or, instead of frozen concoctions, in “Marijuanaville” there’s little fudge brownies. I think you get where this is going.

Download audio file (Mark Eddie – Marijuanaville.mp3)

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Rockin’ Friday: Bongzilla – “Prohibition (4th Amendment)”

Eric Smokesbud — Fri, 27 Aug 2010 22:22:05 +0000

For today’s feature I’ve found an act from right here in Madison WI, a psychedelic sludge rock band known as Bongzilla. They first arrived on the Madison music scene in the mid-ninties, with a cannabis born brand of metal, that shakes you right down to the endocannabinoid system.

The high point of Bongzilla’s career was in the late-ninties when they were touring with bands like Unsane, Logical Nonsense, and El Dopa. They also played hemp festivals like Weedstock and Madison’s annual Harvestfest. Bongzilla’s bio states “The band’s live show is not to be missed as crushing heaviness blends perfectly with tortured, intense vocals and tripped-out passages of mellowed, experimental jamming.” However you’d be out of luck if you want to experience this for yourself. They’ve been on hiatus the last few years, but their MySpace page states they will be back, so not all hope is lost.

More music and info @ iTunes and the official site.

Bongzilla “Prohibition (4th Amendment)” (mp3) from “Stash/Methods Of Attainment” (Relapse Records)

Buy at Amazon MP3

Rockin’ Friday: Skyhouse – “Marry Wanna”

Eric Smokesbud — Sun, 15 Aug 2010 22:17:18 +0000

Rockin’ Friday this week spotlights yet another Portland, Oregon based group, this time it’s Skyhouse. They are lead by Harris Levon McRae and Bets Pott. Both Bets and Harris are songwriters and multi-instrumentalists. But here’s the kicker, they are so widely influenced they had to invent a new genre. It’s called “Freggae.” and the recipe, as their bio states, is as follows:

“In medium bowl, with a spoon, mix well singer/songwriter, acoustic guitars, piano, blues harmonica, bass, keyboards, drums, banjo, and electric guitars. Add R&B, reggae, pop, electronica, and hip-hop beats. Sprinkle with vocals. Shape mixture into ten to twelve songs about five minutes long. Cook in a rock oven with high-high heat.”

Skyhouse took this eclectic mix of influences and served up the album “Dead Man Walking”, which contains our feature this week, and 2010 Marijuana Music Award winning song, “Marry Wanna.”

Want more Skyhouse? Here’s some links: Official Site, ReverbNation.com, CD Baby

Download audio file (Skyhouse – Marry Wanna.mp3)

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Rockin’ Friday: Hannah’s Field – Smoke a Little Pot (Funk Remix)

Eric Smokesbud — Mon, 09 Aug 2010 22:45:17 +0000

For Rockin’ Friday this week, I’ve got I remix of a toker tune favorite. “Smoke a Little Pot” by Hannah’s Field. It was originally featured on the Stash Blog back in 2008, and has been getting regular play in our Toker Tunes rotation ever since. What you may not have known is that they had also done an awesome funk remix of the song. It even won a 2008 Marijuana Music Award. Yet somehow though it slipped the cracks and was never on the Stash, until now that is.

This “Gypsy Reggae” duo started their music career in Portland, Oregon, but recently they moved clear across the country to Collinsville, Connecticut to, as they like to call it, “spread the seed” and help get cannabis legal on the east coast of America. They are currently on tour, in support of the latest album “Warriors of Love”, that is described on their website as “a 13 song tapestry that takes you on a trip. It breaks through pop and surface to what lies deep within us all.”

If you want to find tour dates and more about Hannah’s Field go to hannahsgroove.com.

To find more Hannah’s Field and thousands more toker tunes checkout the recently upgraded MarijuanaMusic.net.

Download audio file (Hannah’s Field – Smoke A Little Pot (Funk Remix).mp3)

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Rockin’ Friday: Johnny Reeferseed & The High Rollers – “I’ll Be There”

Eric Smokesbud — Fri, 16 Jul 2010 18:34:11 +0000

This week I’m featuring a three time Marijuana Music Award winner, as well as a High Times Unsigned Band of the Week, and happens to be our very own Irie Wednesday editor Johnny Reeferseed and his band the High Rollers.

The song is a reeferized version of the Four Tops 1966 hit “Reach Out I’ll Be There“. The first thing you’ll notice is that Johnny has taken some liberties with the lyrics, and put his own stoner twist on them. They also threw in a couple guitar solos, and topped it off with a hole heap of patented Red Eyed Soul. The end result is a fantastic song to toke to, and with a little luck may bring Johnny and the High Rollers another Marijuana Music Award for 2010! Good luck guys!

You can find Johnny Reeferseed and the High Rollers at CD Baby and iTunes. If you would like to keep up on the latest happenings go to their MySpace or Facebook page. For videos check out Johnny Reeferseed’s YouTube channel.

Rockin’ Friday: Ian Lloyd – “Hi2Fly”

Eric Smokesbud — Sat, 05 Jun 2010 00:21:56 +0000

Today we have Ian Lloyd with his song “Hi2Fly.” You may have heard his song “O-de-PO” (which won best rock song at the 2009 Marijuana Music Awards) in our toker tune rotation, but today we have something new. “Hi2Fly” is Ian’s latest entry to the Marijuana Music Awards, and promises to be another winner.

Ian Lloyd was born in Seattle to a musical family. Proud of the fact that his family is comprised of three generations who all performed at Carnegie Hall, he can truly say music is in their ‘blood.’

Ian sang lead for the band Stories, formed with Michael Brown in the early 70’s. Their first hit was “I’m Coming Home” followed by their number one hit “Brother Louie” and then “Mammy Blue.” With Stories he performed on a number of TV shows including “American Bandstand” and the “Midnight Special.”

When Stories disbanded, Ian pursued a solo career. His well-received albums include his first self-entitled, Goosebumps, (which produced a Top 40 hit “Slip Away” written by Ric Ocasek (The Cars), Third Wave Generation, and Planet X. With a litany of credits to his name, Ian’s career and his indomitable vocal style have firmly established his place in rock history. His distinctive voice has won him international acclaim and fans that continue to adore him.

Download audio file (Ian Lloyd – Hi2Fly.mp3)

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