Black Cobra

Black Cobra
Black Cobra
	;
Background information
Origin	San Francisco, California, USA
Genres	Sludge Metal, Doom Metal
Years active	2001 - Present
Labels	Southern Lord Records, At a Loss Recordings, DiwPhalanx, Season of Mist
Associated acts	16, Acid King, Secret Order of Tusk, Gammera, Cavity
Website	Black Cobra Official
Current members	Jason Landrian; Rafael Martinez

Black Cobra are a two-piece sludge and doom band from San Francisco, California, USA. They were formed in 2001 by Jason Landrian (guitar and vocals) and Rafael Martinez (drums), a lineup that survives to this day. As of 2015 they have put out four studio albums as well as several other releases, exuding a mix of primal rhythm and frenzied screaming vocals.

History[]

Beginnings and First Two Albums (2001 - 2008)[]

Black Cobra would form sometime in 2001 by the duo of Martinez and Landrian, initially forming while both members were involved with other projects (Martinez was involved with 16 from 2003 - 2004 along with Gammera and Secret Order of Tusk; Landrian was involved with cavity from 1998 - 2003.). With Cavity's dissolution in 2003 and Martinez leaving 16, the duo would become more productive with Black Cobra. The band would record three songs in Los Angeles circa July 2004, eventually self-releasing their eponymous debut EP on 7 August. The band's earliest known tour (October in Canada) would follow as the band would sign to Cyclop Media on 3 October 2004.^[1] Now signed to a label, the band began work on a debut album.

Between the time of signing to Cyclop and the finishing of their debut the band would sign to At a Loss Recordings. Black Cobra's debut offering Bestial would be unleashed on 25 April 2006 to positive reviews along the likes of Blabbermouth,^[2] LambGoat,^[3] and Your Last Rites among others.^[4] The band would begin touring on and off for six months in support of the album (With the likes of Acid King, Unpersons and Eternal Elysium among others), including the band's first ever European tour with Blutch.

2007 would see an equally relentless cycle of touring, starting off in the Spring with a tour of Europe alongside Acid King (Including an appearance at Roadburn Festival) followed by a North American tour with Rwake (Including an appearance at Emissions from the Monolith). The band would have a host of new music ready for a follow-up album by February that year. That summer, DiwPhalanx Records would release a split between Black Cobra and Eternal Elysium, featuring seven new songs from Black Cobra. These songs, along with one more, would be released as Feather and Stone on 30 October 2007 to positive reviews. Surrounding the release of Feather and Stone would be touring all through August (With the likes of Saviours for a string of shows), the band's first ever tour of Japan with Eternal Elysium and a December tour alongside Valiant Thorr and The Sword. 2008 would see a spring tour alongside Unearthly Trance and Pelican followed by an extensive Summer tour spanning from August to November. On 30 November 2008, Black Cobra would sign to Southern Lord Records.^[5]

Signing to Southern Lord (2009 - 2014)[]

With a third album recorded and ready to go, the band would embark on a mini-tour with Eternal Elysium along with a string of select shows. Following the release of Chronomega on 29 September 2009, the band would tour worldwide in support of the record all through the fall, featuring their second tour of Japan and their first of Australia along with a massive fall tour of the United States.

2010 would start off with a special mini-tour exclusively at record stores leading up to a tour into SXSW followed by an extensive April/May tour with High on Fire. Following an appearance at Doom in June, Black Cobra would return to Europe with Weedeater (Including an appearance at Hellfest and Stoned From The Underground). The band would spend roughly two more months touring North America with Howl, leading up to opening for Sleep on 13 September. 2011 would see the band performing on a more sporadic pace to begin work on their next record. Recording in eight days through July of 2011 at Kurt Ballou's God City studio, Black Cobra would compose a fourth record with a concept on a post-apocalyptic trek to a nuclear infested and mutated Antarctica, inspired in part by the treks of English researcher Ernest Shackleton. Invernal saw it's release on 11 October 2011 to positive critical acclaim.

Supporting Invernal would see some of the band's most unique tours in support, preceding in 2011 with an appearance at Power of the Riff and spending the fall as one of the supporting acts of the Kyuss Lives! North American tour, followed by an extensive world tour of Australia, New Zealand, the United States and Europe with the likes of Corrosion of Conformity, Fu Manchu, Lord Dying and Gaza among others. 2013 and 2014 would slow a bit on touring, the former year just featuring a tour of Europe culminating in a return to Hellfest and the latter featuring mini-tours in the Spring and touring cycles with Lo-Pan and Wolvhammer in the fall and Winter. One of the bigger intended tours was a summer tour of Canada with Anciients and Black Wizard but ultimately the band was denied entry into the country for largely unknown reasons.

Imperium Simulacra (2015 - Present)[]

On 16 March 2015, Black Cobra would sign with Season of Mist, with intents to release their fifth studio album later that year.^[6] In regards to touring in 2015, the band began with Europe alongside Acid King (Including an appearance at DesertFest London and later a tour of Australia with Jucifer. Even with their van flipping over and crashing during this last tour of the year, the band was still undeterred in a massive fall tour alongside Yob spanning a month throughout the United States and Canada.

Imperium Simulacra would see it's release on 26 February 2016 to positive critical acclaim. A music video for "Eye Among The Blind" would be revealed that April.^[7] Black Cobra would tour North America with Bongzilla in support of the new album, followed by an extensive tour of Europe with Yob (Including appearances at Incubate Festival, Asymmetry Festival, Up In Smoke and Desertfest Belgium.

Black Cobra would take a year off touring in 2017, largely due to Martinez's return to Acid King and touring extensively with them. However in 2018, the band would begin playing shows again, notably a 16 March performance that saw them playing "Bestial" in it's entirety (With Flat Black, Apprentice Destroyer).^[8] A couple more shows would follow, seeing the band perform with the likes of Moses, Hornns and Necrot among others.^[9]^[10]

Discography[]

Studio Albums[]

Bestial (2006, At a Loss Recordings)
Feather and Stone (2007, At a Loss Recordings)
Chronomega (2009, Southern Lord Records)
Invernal (2011, Southern Lord Records)
Imperium Simulacra (2016, Season of Mist)

Other Releases[]

Black Cobra (EP) (2004, Self-Released)
Live from Roadburn 2007 (DVD) (2007, Self-released)
Eternal Elysium/Black Cobra (Split with Eternal Elysium) (2007, DiwPhalanx)

Members[]

Jason Landrian Guitars, Vocals (2001 - Present)
Rafael Martinez Drums (2001 - Present)

List of Known Tours[]

2004 Canada Mini-Tour (Select Dates with Buried Inside) (2004)^[11]
Bestial April Mini-Tour (2006)^[12]
Bestial June North American Tour (2006)^[13]
Bestial July/August Tour (With Unpersons) (2006)^[14]
Bestial September Tour (With Acid King, select dates with Eternal Elysium) (2006)^[15]
Bestial European Tour (With Blutch) (2006)^[16]
April 2007 European Tour (With Blutch, Acid King) (2007)^[17]
May 2007 North American Tour (With Rwake) (2007)^[18]
Feather and Stone North American Tour (With Saviours) (2007)^[19]
Feather and Stone Japan Tour (With Eternal Elysium) (2007)^[20]
Feather and Stone Fall North American Tour (With The Sword, Valiant Thorr) (2007)^[21]
2008 Spring North American Tour (With Pelican, Unearthly Trance; Unearthly Trance would drop off on some of the dates.) (2008)^[22]
2008 August North American Tour (With Weedeater) (2008)^[23]
2008 September North American Tour (With Genghis Tron) (2008)
2008 October / November North American Tour (With Dark Castle on select dates) (2008)^[24]
2008 November North American Tour (With Black Tusk) (2008)^[25]
2009 March North American Tour (With Eternal Elysium on select dates) (2009)^[26]
Chronomega Japan Tour (2009)^[27]
Chronomega Australia Tour (2009)
Chronomega North American Tour (With Pelican on all dates; Sweet Cobra, Struck By Lightning or Disappearer on select dates) (2009)^[28]
Chronomega In-Store Performances (2010)^[29]
SXSW Tour (With The Gates of Slumber, Black Tusk, U.S. Christmas depending on dates) (2010)^[30]
Snakes For The Divine North American Tour (April Leg) (With High on Fire, Bison B.C., Priestess) (2010)^[31]
June/July 2010 European Tour (With Weedeater, Saviours) (2010)^[32]^[33]
2010 Summer Tour (With Howl, Struck By Lightning, Monarch!) (2010)^[34]
2011 North American Mini-Tour (With Primate) (2011)^[35]
2011 Japan Tour (Canceled) (2011)
Kyuss Lives! North American Tour (With Kyuss Lives!, The Sword (2011)^[36]
Invernal North American Tour (With Zoroaster, The Body) (2011)^[37]
Corrosion of Conformity European Tour (With Corrosion of Conformity, Zoroaster) (2012)^[38]
Invernal New Zealand/Australian Tour (With Fu Manchu) (2012)^[39],
Invernal 2012 North American Tour (With Gaza, Lord Dying) (2012)^[40]
Corrosion of Conformity North American Tour (With Corrosion of Conformity, Gaza, Torche) (2012)^[41]
Invernal 2012 Summer Tour (With Gaza) (2012)^[42]
2013 European Tour (With Bison B.C., Årabrot) (2013)^[43]
2014 West Coast Mini-Tour (With Weedeater) (2014)^[44]
2014 May Mini-Tour (With Årabrot, The Cutthroats 9) (2014)^[45]
2014 Canadian Tour (With Anciients, Black Wizard; Black Cobra denied entry into Canada)^[46]^[47]
2014 North American Tour (With Lo-Pan) (2014)^[48]
2014 Winter North American Tour (With Wolvhammer) (2014)^[49]
2015 European Tour (With Acid King) (2015)^[50]
The Twins of Evil Australian Tour (With Jucifer, Dead) (2015)^[51]^[52]
2015 North American Tour (With Yob)^[53]^[54]
Imperium Simulacra North American Tour (With Bongzilla, Lo-Pan, Against The Grain) (2016)^[55]
Imperium Simulacra European Tour (With Yob) (2016)^[56]
2019 European Shows (2019)^[57]

External Links[]

Official Links[]

Selected Articles For Reference/Later Use[]

MySpace Page (Has a lot of early posters)

References[]

V·T·E Black Cobra
Members	Jason Landrian • Rafael Martinez
Studio Albums	Bestial • Feather and Stone • Chronomega • Invernal • Imperium Simulacra
Other Releases	Black Cobra
Associated Bands, Artists, Etc.	Acid King • Gammera • Secret Order of Tusk • 16 • Cavity

[1] Lambgoat

[2] Blabbermouth

[3] Lambgoat

[4] Your Last Rites

[5] Lambgoat

[6] Lambgoat

[7] Lambgoat

[8] Black Cobra Facebook

[9] Black Cobra Facebook

[10] Black Cobra Facebook

[11] Lambgoat

[12] Lambgoat

[13] Lambgoat

[14] Lambgoat

[15] Lambgoat

[16] Lambgoat

[17] Lambgoat

[18] Lambgoat

[19] Lambgoat

[20] Lambgoat

[21] Lambgoat

[22] Lambgoat

[23] Lambgoat

[24] Lambgoat

[25] Last.fm

[26] Last.fm

[27] Black Cobra Facebook

[28] Lambgoat

[29] Lambgoat

[30] Last.fm

[31] Lambgoat

[32] Last.fm

[33] Last.fm

[34] Lambgoat

[35] Last.fm

[36] Last.fm

[37] Lambgoat

[38] Last.fm

[39] Last.fm

[40] Lambgoat

[41] Lambgoat

[42] Last.fm

[43] Lambgoat

[44] Lambgoat

[45] Lambgoat

[46] Lambgoat

[47] Lambgoat

[48] Lambgoat

[49] Lambgoat

[50] Last.fm

[51] Last.fm

[52] Facebook

[53] Lambgoat

[54] Lambgoat

[55] Last.fm

[56] Lambgoat

[57] Last.fm

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