Cavity
Cavity are a sludge / doom metal band from Miami, Florida that was forged in 1992 by bass player Daniel Gorostiaga and vocalist Rene Barge. Initial recruits included drummer Joey and guitarist Ralf Luna. During 1993 CAVITY sported a line-up of vocalist Rene Barge, guitarists Raf and John Bonanno, bassist Daniel Gorostiaga and drummer Jason Lederman. An inaugural three track 7" single, sold for a dollar at gigs and being the first of many, arrived in 1993 after which Luna departed to join The Crumbs. A replacement was swiftly found in Anthony Vialon, a veteran of Load and Floor.
A string of single releases, including split singles shared with Daisycutter and Bongzilla, and extensive tour work led up to the introduction of new drummer Jorge Alvarez in 1995 as CAVITY issued the debut album, ‘Human Abjection’, the same year. By this stage Steve Brooks would flank Bonanno as the band’s second guitarist. Released on Gorostiaga’s own City Of Crime label ‘Human Abjection’ would be limited to a mere 500 copies. Cavity would come to the attention of punk artist Pushead who duly signed the band up to his own Bacteria Sour label. The ‘Human Abjection’ sessions plus new material and cuts taken from earlier 7" releases would be collected together for the 1996 ‘Drowning’ release.
Cavity’s next release, ‘Somewhere Between The Train Station And The Dumping Grounds’, was issued via Rhetoric and included 1993 material, 1996 songs and a hidden track comprising of an entire live gig recording. An EP, ‘Insignificant Laid’ featuring Betty Monteavaro on drums, came out in 1997 on Bacteria Sour before Cavity signed up with stoner specialists Man’s Ruin for the high profile 1999 album ‘Supercollider’. The band also put out the four track ‘Wounded’ EP on No! Records which included a cover version of the Germs ‘Shutdown (Annihilation Man)’. By this time the band had lost the services of Barge but pulled in Ryan Weinstein on second guitar. Vialon would take on the mantle of lead vocalist fronting a quartet of Gorostiaga, Weinstein and drummer Henry Wilson. Touring across America with Swedes, The Refused, though would culminate in the departure of both Weinstein and Vialon, the latter relocating to Switzerland.
Jason Landrian would be drafted on guitar and Barge re-instated as frontman for West Coast dates. Cavity signed to the Hydra Head label for 2001’s ‘On The Lam’ album. Cavity fans who attended the ‘Krazy Fest’ would be in for a rare treat as a limited edition of ‘On The Lam’, restricted to a paltry 100 copies, would be made for sale only at this gig.
In 2003, Cavity relinquished their efforts and called it quits. The erstwhile membership was quick to reveal a myriad of spin off projects. Bassist Dan Gorostiaga was collaborating with Cavity and The Crumbs man John Bonnano whilst guitarist Jason Landrian formed up a fresh band project with Gammera member Rafael Martinez. Meantime, Ryan Weinstein put together a venture with ex-Machete members and was rumoured to be in alliance with Aaron Turner of ISIS and Old Man Gloom working up a further project. Steve Brooks fronted up Torche.
Rene Barge, Juan Montoya, Raf Luna, Beatriz Monteavaro, Jorge Alvarez, Jason Landrian, Ryan Weinstein, Anthony Vialon, and Dan Norris were a few members in the ranks. For the new 12-inch EP, After Death, Gorostiaga has reunited with longtime vocalist Barge and former member/contributor Ed Matus to create their most experimental and minimalistic work to date. “The new record is different from other Cavity recordings,” Matus says. “Cavity always had more to offer aesthetically speaking, and this record shows off that side of Cavity. It's stripped down and minimal in a way.”
Work on the latest release began a little while back. Some observers might say it was this scribe’s incessant nagging and continued ramblings about Cavity on these digital pages that planted the seed in Gorostiaga’s mind. Others might point to the Lo-Pan/Black Cobra show at Gramps in 2014, when Gorostiaga joined former mate Landrian and Rafael Martinez onstage to perform a pair of Cavity tracks after Black Cobra’s set.
“After our last show in Miami in December of 2015, we decided to start recording some new songs,” Gorostiaga says. “I had a few new riffs I had wanted to try, and we started developing them slowly. Looking at the example of bands like Suicide, Crash Worship, Lightning Bolt, and others, we decided to do what we could with what we had at the time. That meant that I, Ed Matus, and Rene Barge would only be involved with the making and developing of these songs. Other people we wanted to have involved were busy with projects of their own, so we opted to have the three of us as the core.”
Some heavy-hitting labels of yore highlight Cavity’s recorded history. Locally, the band released work on 4 ½ Fingers and Starcrunch Records before going on to Hydra Head, Bacteria Sour, Frank Kozik’z Man’s Ruin, and Rhetoric, to name a few. After Death keeps it Floridian, so to speak, as former Miamian Justin McNeal is releasing it through his Valley King Records in a basic, ask-and-you-shall-receive kind of deal. “I kept in touch with some of the current (and past) members of the band and noticed they had played a few shows in the last few years,” McNeal explains. “Early on in 2016, I mentioned to Dan that if they end up recording at some point to let me know; Valley King Records would be interested in putting something out.”
This four-track 12-inch is a departure from previous works but it is undeniably Cavity. There is no rushed sense of studio time slipping away, and it's evident in the calm manner of execution. “The one thing that is different from our previous recordings is that we did this all by ourselves, on our own time, and at our own places,” Gorostiaga says with the calm air of someone who isn’t indebted to a label sheriff. “The first thing we laid down was bass tracks, without click tracks or metronomes involved — just me, playing my bass.”
Matus gives greater insight into the process: “Recording with Cavity again was quite different from recording during the Drowning sessions. Back then, we had a very modest budget. We had to record something like eight songs within the span of a day. There was lots of pressure to get it right as quickly as possible. Recording with Cavity today is quite different because we did it ourselves and on our own schedule... We explored and played around with choosing sounds, but we made rules, set limits and goals to arrive at a finished product.”
Cavity’s work has always maintained a high level of aesthetic appeal, which is almost mandatory for a crew so involved in the visual arts, and this project is no different. It was mastered by ex-Monster Magnet/Wellwater Conspiracy guitarist John McBain, the cover art is by Alan Forbes, and there are two package options for purchase. With Valley King limiting press to about 500 copies, the release breaks down into 300 on black vinyl, 50 on translucent Coke-bottle green, and 50 on silver splatter, which is part of the deluxe edition and includes a turntable slip mat and an embroidered Cavity patch. Both editions include a download card and a sticker.
Cavity is also a riot grrl band from the 90's! Read more on Last.fm. User-contributed text is available under the Creative Commons By-SA License; additional terms may apply.
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