WOVENHAND

It was the final, highly anticipated date on Wovenhand’s Star Treatment tour, an album departing the band’s dark folk period and looking back to 16 Horsepower’s hard rock edge. Joining Wovednhand on their European tour is gothic-tinged singer-songwriter Emma Ruth Rundle. While I was largely unfamiliar with Wovenhand save for a quick binge listen a few nights before, I could tell this was a devoted audience, expecting great things, and that’s what they got.

Wovenhand will head back to Europe this September to play 29 cities in 12 different countries in support of his forthcoming new album entitled Star Treatment. The album is the follow-up to the critically acclaimed Refractory Obdurate now celebrating its two year anniversary, released on April 25, 2014.

Before heading overseas Wovenhand will be part of this year's Psycho Las Vegas festival taking place August 26-28 alongside Blue Oyster Cult, Alice Cooper, Drive Like Jehu, Baroness, Sleep and many more.

Star Treatment will be released in early September as a partnership between Sargent House worldwide and Glitterhouse Records who will handle the release for Europe.

A list of dates can be found below - click HERE for up to date ticket links and information.

WOVENHAND LIVE 2016

article and photos by Omar Kasrawi

And as if to set the stage for [Chelsea Wolfe]’s crushing sound, was Wovenhand. If Wolfe was casting spells to bring forth the darkness, Wovenhand’s David Eugene Edwards was tapping into the audiences’ spiritual side. His brand of gothic Americana sounds like tales passed down from generation to generation. The spoken tradition of transference is not enough though. This tale needs roaring guitars and driving percussion. And the only setting fit is a dusty copper butte with nothing else in any direction. A couple of Afghans to sit on. A burning blue flame of a sky. And staring down at you with his arms crossed is Edwards. The arms uncross and in his hand is a chrome old-school microphone wrapped in a red-bandana. And then he begins to preach.

photo by Dan Long

BEING THERE: Wovenhand @ Underground Arts

The rainy late summer evening cast a suitably gloomy pall over last night’s proceedings, but the damp masses in Philly’s Underground Arts created a sorta human humidity that sapped the luster of yours truly. I was there to bear witness to another performance by the tragically but not surprisingly unheralded Denver-based gothic Americana outfit Wovenhand. For the uninitiated please allow me to smarten ya up some: David Eugene Edwards, the wunderkind/visonary behind Wovenhand, has been making haunting, beguiling music in one aggregation or another since 2001. Before Wovenhand, Edwards helmed the awesome mule-kicking combo 16 Horsepower. He is unlike any front man I have seen. Ordinarily he is very private about the personal details of his life but he revealed in the documentary Searching For Wrong Eyed Jesus that his grandfather was a Pentecostal preacher who imbued him, from a young age, with a hellfire and brimstone ideology. This apocalyptic world view is palpably apparent in the music of both 16hp and Wovenhand alike. Which is not to say it’s Christian Rock — far fuckin from it yo — rather it is steeped in a parochial oeuvre. The previous Wovenhand shows I attended were way more rustic and toned down than they were last night at Underground Arts. In my previous encounters with Wovenhand — unmolested by the clusterfuck of gawkers staking out lip-of-the-stage real estate last night to see headliner Chelsea Wolfe — I was able to get close enough to the shamanistic Mr. Edwards to catch him as he went into a state of thrall, eyes rolling about his dome and a barely audible speaking in tongues. I’m carny enough to know a grift when I see it, but the fervor Edwards exhibited seemed genuine as, pardon the cliché, Hell. You don’t have to know the tunes to get the feeling; like salvation, it just washes over you if you let it. Halle-fucking-lujah, canyadigit? The latest incarnation of Wovenhand, enhanced by the inclusion of members of Planes Mistaken For Stars, swings from rustic Appalachian tones to full-on sonic tribal sturm und drang and last night they delivered 60 minutes of sonic gospel. It was a new experience for this acolyte and what it lacked in somber intimacy it more than made up for with majesty and throng. Chelsea Wolfe, though hardly my cup of tea, gets dap from me for taking Wovenhand on tour. Despite the humid overcrowded roomful of her fans (most of whom were politely indifferent and unmoved by WH) it was still revelatory. If ya ain’t down yet, ya should be. Thus sayeth the gospel of Bearer. You’re welcome… and AMEN bitches – PAUL BEARER

Click HERE to listen

The above interview features songs spanning David Eugene Edwards’ career, from 16 Horsepower to Wovenhand, with David discussing inspirations, lyrics, and more over the course of the hourlong program.

After a string of separate shows and festival dates across Europe, Russian Circles and Wovenhand united in London for a special show together at the London venue Scala. Photographer Nick Sayers was there and captured both incredible sets. 

Wovenhand is returning to Europe this summer, where they will play the SOLD OUT Hellfest, Azkena Rock Festival, a co-headlining show with Russian Circles in London at The Scala, Oslo Fjord Fest, and more. 

In August, Wovenhand will embark on their fall tour alongside Chelsea Wolfe. 

A full of list of shows can be found below, see all show and ticket details HERE.

WOVENHAND EU/UK SHOWS June 19 - Clisson, FR @ Hellfest Open Air Festival June 20 - Vitoria, ES @ Azkena Rock Festival June 22 - Middelburg, NL @ De Spot June 23 - London, UK @ Scala w/ Russian Circles July 15 - Oslo, NO @ Oslo Fjord Fest

FALL TOUR WITH CHELSEA WOLFE 08/29 - Denver, CO @ Bluebird Theater 08/31 - Minneapolis, MN @ Triple Rock Social Club 09/01 - Chicago, IL @ Thalia Hall 09/02 - Cleveland Heights, OH @ Grog Shop 09/04 - Providence, RI @ Columbus Theater ** 09/05 - Cambridge, MA @ The Sinclair 09/06 - Portsmouth, NH @ 3S Artspace ** 09/09 - Brooklyn,NY @ Music Hall of Williamsburg 09/10 - Philadelphia, PA @ Underground Arts 09/11 - Washington DC @ U Street Music Hall 09/12 - Raleigh, NC @ Hopscotch Music Festival 09/14 - Atlanta, GA @ Aisle 5 09/15 - Nashville, TN @ Mercy Lounge 09/17 - New Orleans, LA @ One Eyed Jacks 09/18 - Houston, TX @ Rudyard’s British Pub 09/19 - Austin, TX @ Mohawk 09/20 - Dallas, TX @ The Kessler 09/22 - El Paso, TX @ Tricky Falls 09/23 - Albuquerque, NM @ Launchpad 09/24 - Phoenix, AZ @ Valley Bar 09/25 - Los Angeles, CA @ Regent Theater 09/26 - San Francisco, CA @ Grand Ballroom at Regency Center 09/28 - Portland, OR @ Hawthorne Theater 09/29 - Seattle, WA @ Neumo’s

Wovenhand will be joining Chelsea Wolfe in support of his latest album, Refractory Obdurate, out on Deathwish Records. Read more about the tour on this Farm Family feature. See all dates and get tickets HERE.

CHELSEA WOLFE & WOVENHAND Tour 2015 08/29 - Denver, CO @ Bluebird Theater 08/31 - Minneapolis, MN @ Triple Rock Social Club 09/01 - Chicago, IL @ Thalia Hall 09/02 - Cleveland Heights, OH @ Grog Shop 09/04 - Providence, RI @ Columbus Theater ** 09/05 - Cambridge, MA @ The Sinclair 09/06 - Portsmouth, NH @ 3S Artspace ** 09/09 - Brooklyn,NY @ Music Hall of Williamsburg 09/10 - Philadelphia, PA @ Underground Arts 09/11 - Washington DC @ U Street Music Hall 09/12 - Raleigh, NC @ Hopscotch Music Festival 09/14 - Atlanta, GA @ Aisle 5 09/15 - Nashville, TN @ Mercy Lounge 09/17 - New Orleans, LA @ One Eyed Jacks 09/18 - Houston, TX @ Rudyard’s British Pub 09/19 - Austin, TX @ Mohawk 09/20 - Dallas, TX @ The Kessler 09/22 - El Paso, TX @ Tricky Falls 09/23 - Albuquerque, NM @ Launchpad 09/24 - Phoenix, AZ @ Valley Bar 09/25 - Los Angeles, CA @ Regent Theater 09/26 - San Francisco, CA @ Grand Ballroom at Regency Center 09/28 - Portland, OR @ Hawthorne Theater 09/29 - Seattle, WA @ Neumo’s

** Wovenhand solo headlining shows

photo by Susanne A. Maathuis

Another spectacular and genre-bending band to wow the audience in the main stage was Wovenhand, who were as close to a headliner as you can get with a line-up like this Monday. This magnificent dark folk band fronted by David Eugene Edwards sounds as if someone managed to convert the American Gothic painting to music. After their stunning performance in 2011, we didn’t think they could do any better – we have never been quite so happy to be proven wrong. Playing mostly from their latest and heavier albums, the band performed with more energy than ever before, but with the same humility that brings them even closer to our hearts. Edwards may say that they “are out of [their] league,” but we know that there are few bands that can rival the show that Wovenhand gave us.

READ THE FULL ROADBURN REVIEW HERE

...After a short intermission, the time had come for the Colorado Cowboys from Wovenhand to come forth to the stage. The lights dimmed down and out came the magnificent 4, with frontman David Eugene Edwards looking as serious as ever, sporting his signature brimmed hat. The set kicked off with the rockin' riffage of "Good Shepherd" off of the bands' latest album, Refractory Obdurate, prominently played during the course of the evening. With their latest album, the bands' sound shifted towards a louder, heavier sound with a more prominent use of distorted guitars, a sound that the quartet decided to adopt for every song on the setlist, old as in new, offering a freshly revised rendition of some older tracks. This came as quite a surprise to me at first, and I was absolutely blown away by how heavy they were compared to their more acoustic-driven studio recordings. The vocals also received a fairly different treatment compared to the studio records, David Eugene Edwards' deep, soulful voice going through a band-pass filter centered on the medium frequencies to give a strong low-fi radio distortion quality to the sound. Strangely enough, I would say that some of the amped up renditions of the older tracks added an interesting post-punk vibe to the songs, as if Joy Division had gotten into a time machine and landed up in the dusty old' wild, wild west, at the time of cowboys and Indians.In terms of overall sound, the mix was absolutely stellar, near-flawless, with yet another thick, punchy kick drum sound combined with an intense bass guitar tone that was both loud and heavy while retaining crystal clarity on each and every note. The guitars and vocals fitted the overall sound impeccably and every instrument stayed intelligible during the entirety of the set.

...Somewhere in there, it would’ve made sense to have dinner. I did not. No time. Wovenhand would be on the Main Stage shortly, and I knew that was where I wanted to be. It was a return appearance for them and the second time I’d have seen them at Roadburn – never seen them anywhere else, come to think of it — but as I consider the set they played in 2011 a personal landmark, as in, “before I saw it” and “after I saw it,” I’d been very much anticipating their arrival. They were headliners this time along with Eyehategod, who’d play the Main Stage afterwards, but Wovenhand had the longer set, and put their 80 minutes to use in the most dynamic manner I saw all day, frontman David Eugene Edwards far to the left side of the stage while drummer Ordy Garrison had the middle, and guitarist/backing vocalist Chuck French and bassist Neil Keener anchored the right. Edwards is among the more charismatic stage presences I’ve ever seen, and though he said before they ended that they knew they were “out of their league” in coming back to Roadburn, I felt more like I was out of mine watching them.