The Heavy Desert Podcast

Today on The Heavy Desert Podcast I welcome back to the show Pete Koretzky, Chuck Snyder and Dave Van Auken of The Crooked Skulls who have a new album, Midnight Sun, due out on March 27th via Electric Desert Records. We talk all about that and I also have a sneak peek of the new album that you’ll hear first on the show. The guys also dig into the origins of the name of the band, how the songs form and much more! You won’t want to miss it so make sure to tune in and subscribe!

Today on The Heavy Desert Podcast The Gateway to Gravitoyd series continues as I welcome Jason Cunningham and Sylvester Lowery of the band Wretched Kingdom, who will be playing at this years Gravitoyd Doomfest IV, being held in Houston, Texas on May 2nd, at 1810 Ojeman. We dig into their influences and the backstory of the band. Wretched Kingdom’s self-titled debut album came out in 2023 and they’ve go a boatload new songs they’ve got ready for a new album which we also talk about. I had a great chat with the guys, so tune in to get to know them!

Today on The Heavy Desert Podcast I welcome Benni and Marcel of the German band Yeast Machine to the show. Yeast Machine has an awesome new album, Bad Milk, dropping March 20th via Noisolution. We talk all about that, their influences, how the band came together and what it’s like making music when all five of the band members live together. We dive into their live performances and I even have a sneak peek into the new album! You won’t wanna miss it! Tune in and subscribe!

Today on The Heavy Desert Podcast The Gateway to Gravitoyd series continues as I welcome Justin Liles, Ronny Spera and Tom Meeks of the band Bong Wizard. They will be playing at this years Gravitoyd Doomfest IV in Houston, Texas on May 2nd, at 1810 Ojeman. We dig into their influences, how they got started as a band, what the creative process is like for them, some of their pre-gig rituals and much more. We also talk about their new album, Transylvanian Munchies, coming out June 25. I had a great time chatting with the guys, make sure to tune in and subscribe!

Today on The Heavy Desert Podcast I dig into the heavy underground and recap some of the new albums that came out in February. Lots of great albums that came out during the month, including releases from Fatima out of France, Jack Harlon & The Dead Crows from Australia, Oreyeon out of Italy, Purple Lung out of Pennsylvania and much, much more! It was another deep month in the heavy underground make sure to tune in and subscribe!

Today on The Heavy Desert Podcast The Gateway to Gravitoyd series continues as I welcome Taylor Webb, Bobby Scott, Jason Kleim and Mike Barnes of the band Lord Velvet who will be performing at this years Gravitoyd Doomfest IV in Houston, Texas on May 2nd, at 1810 Ojeman. The guys talked about their influences, how they formed (through Craigslist), where the name Lord Velvet came from, some of their pre-gig rituals, a new album coming up and much more! Not to mention, Taylor shares a CRAZY story from the road! You won’t wanna miss it, tune in and subscribe!

Today on The Heavy Desert Podcast The Gateway to Gravitoyd series continues as I welcome Aaron Wall of the band Red Beard Wall who will be performing at this years Gravitoyd Doomfest IV, being held in Houston, Texas on May 2nd, at 1810 Ojeman. Aaron talks about growing up in a small, conservative town and how he accessed music, especially after the town banned MTV. We talk about the background of the band, how much they love playing live, his love for this community and much more! Aaron is very passionate about music, his band and this scene, so make sure to tune in and subscribe!

Today on The Heavy Desert Podcast I welcome Sean Patrick Brooks, host of The Heavy Underground Farm Report and the creator of this years inaugural HUFR Fest, being held in Denver, Colorado at Bar 404, from April 24th-26th. I had a great chat with Sean, from what inspired him to start his YouTube channel, to the reason why he’s going to be cutting back on the content for that channel, which has a lot to do with his latest endeavor as concert promoter with his latest project - HUFR Fest, Mile High Riffs! Sean is such a huge ambassador for the heavy underground scene, and it was so great to have him on the show! Make sure to tune in and subscribe!

Today on The Heavy Desert Podcast I welcome George, Algar, Corey and Steve, all four members of the band New Dawn Fades. They have an awesome new album dropping on March 25th titled Lores that we talk about. Along with their influences, their background and I even debut a new track off the album that you’ll hear first on the show! So make sure to tune in and subscribe, you won’t want to miss it!

Today on The Heavy Desert Podcast I welcome Braun Dabney, bassist for the band Crop and the man behind the festival Legalize Lex. This year’s fest will be held in Lexington, Kentucky at Al’s Bar from April 17th-18th with a pre-party on April 16th. We dig into his musical influences and how he loves the anticipation of new music.  We talk about his band Crop, Legalize Lex (plus a story about the first fest and a wedding be held across the street) and much more! I had a great time talking with Braun and hope you enjoy it as well! Please tune in and subscribe!

Today on The Heavy Desert Podcast I welcome Jon Voogdt, drummer for the German Band Capacopter. Capacopter released their debut, self-titled album in January to rave reviews and a number 2 spot on the Doomcharts. We talk about the new album, the background of the band, some of the shows they’ve got coming up and much more! It was great chatting with Jon, so please check it out and subscribe!

Today on The Heavy Desert Podcast I welcome Mike Earles and Matt Henderson of the band Dust Giant, who just released their debut album, Static in the Blood in January, which landed at #13 on the January Doomcharts. We dig into their new album, their influences, their creative process (especially since they live across the country from each other) and much more, including another album coming out in May! I had a great chat with the guys, so please tune in and subscribe!

Today on The Heavy Desert Podcast The Gateway to Gravitoyd series continues as I welcome Noah Bruner, lead singer and guitarist of the band Temple of the Fuzz Witch, who will be performing at this years Gravitoyd Doomfest IV on May 2nd, in Houston, Texas at Eighteen Ten Ojeman. Noah talks about his influences, what it was like starting out as a young band, the evolution of Temple of the Fuzz Witch, what the band has planned in the near future as far as new music goes, and much more! I had a great conversation with Noah, so make sure to tune in and subscribe!

Today on The Heavy Desert Podcast I welcome Jon Cosky and Jude Sisk of the band Stone Nomads and the masterminds behind Gravitoyd Doomfest IV, being held in Houston, Texas on May 2nd, at Eighteen Ten Ojeman. Jon recently reached out to The Heavy Desert Podcast and I was honored that he asked for it to be the official podcast for this year’s festival. So for this episode, the Gateway to Gravitoyd is officially opened as I talk to the guys all about the festival, from its inception, to its present, to what these guys have planned for the future. Oh, and we also talk some Stone Nomads as well, as they’ll be one of the bands playing at this year’s fest. I had a fantastic conversation with these guys, so make sure to tune in and subscribe!

Today on The Heavy Desert Podcast I welcome the man behind Vegas Rock Revolution’s Planet Desert Rock Weekend, John Gist. John gives his thoughts on how this year’s festival went and also gives the dates for next year’s event. PLUS he drops the first eight bands slated to appear at next year’s festival! So make sure to tune in and subscribe, you’re not gonna want to miss this episode!

Today on The Heavy Desert Podcast we have a special edition of Concerts With Chris, as I welcome back concert correspondent Chris McGowan, along with special guest, Mark Richard of the Jam Yeti Music Blog, as we recap our experience of the four day event that was Planet Desert Rock Weekend VI, in Las Vegas, Nevada. We dive into all the bands that played, the community and some of our experiences from the festival. We had a great time reliving our experience in Las Vegas, and hope you enjoy our chat about it! Make sure to tune in and subscribe!

Today on The Heavy Desert Podcast I welcome Nordin, Stefan and Karsten of the German band Stargo to the show. They have a new album, Violet Skies, dropping February 13th and it is a straight up, heavy-stoner rock banger! We dig into that, their influences, what they’ve got coming up, and I’ve got an exclusive track from the new album that you’ll hear first on the show! So make sure to tune in and subscribe!

Today on The Heavy Desert Podcast I welcome Tom Jordan, vocalist and guitarist of the band 20 Watt Tombstone. If you’re not familiar with 20 Watt Tombstone, they are a heavy rock two piece out of Wisconsin, that are absolutely awesome! Tom talks about his influences growing up, the backstory of the band from their extensive touring to the big differences in recording their two albums, and he also has a book coming out later this year about many of his stories from the road. In fact, he shares one of those stories that involves the remains of a human finger! I had a great conversation with Tom and you won’t wanna miss it! Tune in and subscribe!

Today on The Heavy Desert Podcast I welcome Craig Harker, Stephen Rael, Jason Kleim and Marc Christoforidis of the Denver, Colorado band Vandhali to the show. They released a trio of EPs in 2025 that they call The Evil Trilogy, which included Born in Evil, After Evil and The Fall of Evil that were each well received on the Doomcharts when they came out. We dig into that, their influences, how they got started as a band, the Denver underground scene and much more! Tune in and subscribe!

Today on The Heavy Desert Podcast The Path to Planet Desert Rock Weekend concludes as I welcome Matt Whitehead and Bo Leslie of the band Throttlerod who will be performing at this years festival. Matt and Bo dig deep into their influences, the backstory of the band, the intense touring they did in the early days, from sleeping in the van to staying at Jean-Paul Gaster’s house of Clutch. I had a great chat with Matt & Bo and they shared so many fun stories, and I hope you enjoy them as much as I did! Tune in and subscribe!