This is a site where I post reviews of CDs, DVDs, LPs, and concerts. I have been writing music reviews on and off since 1984. I ran a heavy metal fanzine from 1984-1988 called Metal Madness and have been a staff writer for Aural Innovations for many years. I have also contributed to Chrohinga Well (RIP), Bad Acid (RIP), Lowcut (RIP), Roadburn and a number of other zines as well. I recently moved to Portugal so please request the new address and do not send any music to Denmark anymore. Tak..
1000Mods is a new four piece Greek
band playing jamming stoner rock. The record was produced and engineered by the
famous Billy Anderson (Porn). This double vinyl edition also sounds great and
has super cool artwork by the Italian Malleus art collective. The band had
previously released a 7” on Suisound in Greece. Anyway, this record starts
off with Road to Burn, which starts off slowly then a cool groove. Seven Flies
is a really cool track and El Rollito starts with a fast guitar and then the
groove just kicks in. This one you have to crank up even though it is a short
track. Set you Free Dani sings a bit more like John Garcia in this hard hitting
track. Vidage is a slow and melodic groove and is a bit more bluesy. This is
one of the stand out tracks with some nice guitar solos as well. Navy in Alice is a heading into a
more psychedelic way and is a great number. Track me continues in a more
psychedelic vein with more lead guitar work as well and Dani uses some effects
on his voice. Johny’s is a slower more stoney track. Abell 1835 has a brant
bjork style groove in a slow cool way. The title track ends the record and is
also a more laid back to start and the John Garcia style vocal comes back. Some
cool psyched out guitar parts also. A very cool stoner rock record from Greece.
Sula
Bassana’s Electric Moon is back with their 4rd vinyl release amongst
several live CD-rs released this year. The limited edition double vinyl LP with
a poster of a very far out German artist Ulli Mahn (ala Ulla Papel) is very
cool. The artwork is very special and hard to describe. The music is again
seeing EM move into the heavy guitar psych realm. The LP features 5 tracks over
4 sides. Side A starts with the long title track and this is truly spaced out
stuff with some really crazy looped psych out guitar and almost drone like
vocal by Lulu that makes this really fuck with your head! A totally spaced out
track. Kleiner Knaller is a short track that starts side B before the longer
Spaceman. It starts with a slow build in tempo with mainly drums and guitar as
a kind of hypnotic groove starts and then the fuzzed out guitar kicks in. It
also has some softly spoken space vocals by Lulu as Sula totally spaces on the
guitar. Stardust service (side C) starts off very heavy and features some
highly effected spoken word vocals by Lulu. The track has a quite cool down
sections of really spacey music before it builds up again with a very psyched
out sound that really fucks with your head! This is my favourite track on this
double LP. Side 4 is again one long jammed out track called Feigenmonolog. This
track is a real slow builder as the guitar just gets more and more intense and
louder also (at least it feels that way) as Lulu and Pablo keep the rhythm
steady and moving forward. Massive wall of wah fuzz and effects from Sula! I
really like the slow spacey delay wah guitar section that slowly builds up
again. Sula is becoming the master of the spaced out psych wah fuzz guitar riff
(he rarely plays guitar solos if at all on this record). The band seems to be using up all their ideas
now though but quite a monster experience. Be blow away…… Fans of White Hills
should start worshipping at the Electric Moon!
I should also
mention that Sulatron just released their live concert CD-r called FlamingLake on a double vinyl record as well. I
already did a detailed review of this LP previously (Link) but this sounds
better than the CD-R. I think it is limited to 300 copies on black vinyl.
US based
Secret Saucer are back with their 4th record. Time spent out of Mind
starts off a bit like You shouldn’t do that my Hawkwind but goes into its own
directions soon after except the steady drum beat. Another HW riff comes in
later as well with some cool guitar by Nick Riff but then it becomes much more
electronic. Cool track. Daxdal is a very cool and psychedelic space rock track.
Awaken caught me totally by surprise with the vocals, as all the other SS
albums are completely instrumental. This is a beautiful acoustic guitar track
with some spacey sounds in the background as it floats on. Reminds me of
Darxtar. The Dark Rift is a short synthesizer piece that leads into the
Celestial Spigot and this track features Greg Klucher on Saxophone. There is a
really nice interaction on this track between the way the sax lines are
interlayed with the other instruments on this relaxed and more jazzy track. Four
on the Floor is very Pink Floyd inspired and once again features some vocals. AegeanBridge
is a pretty melodic track with some repetitive parts and very keyboard lead
until the very end where there is a short guitar solo that sounds like it was
aborted almost. Strange. Notch is another short deep space synth piece. The
final track is a pretty cool and totally unique version of A Saucer full of
Secrets by Pink Floyd with a long keyboard intro. Secret Saucer has laid down
another very nice trip to the cosmos, hope you enjoy the flight!
I last saw
Hawkwind at Sweden Rock Festival this summer with my girlfriend and it was a
really excellent concert with an most entirely 70s set. The band has been
working on a new album so I had hoped that we would hear some new material this
evening. No opening act was listed but so it was quite a surprise to find Huw
Lloyd Langton Group opening the show. The reviews from his US tour were
quite good and it seems he doing well again, which is great, since the last
several times I saw him he was in poor shape and not playing well at all. Huw
hit the stage about 19:30 and opened up with Waiting for Tomorrow. The sound
was pretty good but the drums were too loud and the guitar too low is almost
always the case it seems, especially with the Hawkwind sound man. Huw was in
his “own” world when he starts into guitar solo area and it is nice that he and
the band space out. The keyboard player also played some nice solos when he
found the space, sometimes with a nod from Huw, that it was his turn. The band
clearly had a hard time following Huw a few times like when he was completely
off somewhere else during Ricky Paths. It was fun but Huw can not at all play
like he used to. At least he was not totally embarrassing like the last two
times I had seen him. He still gets a good crowd response, probably as he only
played one of his own tracks and all the rest Hawkwind tracks from when he was
in the band,
Set list: Waiting for Tomorrow, Hard Graft, Space Chase, ?,
Moonglum, Rocky Paths
Hawkwind hit
the stage around 20:50 and the place was really packed, SInce Sue, Nils and I
got there early, we had the perfect spot just to the right of the rear bar in a
small area meant for wheelchair people (which we would have given up if there
were any!). Great place to see the entire show, shot some video, etc.. Even met up with some Swedish guys, one who
was really drunk! The band opened with a new take on Sonic Attack and straight
into You better believe it. Richard has some problems with his headphones and
actually stopped playing completely in the middle of the song! The band just
kept going on but were like, “What the fuck was that?”. The sound was very loud
and Dave’s guitar was audible but too low almost the entire show but we could
hear Nial’s guitar loud and clear for once. He was at the level that Dave’s
should have been since he plays nearly all the lead guitar parts and still
plays brilliant guitar. Dibs and Nial’s space sounds were insanely loud at
times, while Tim, except when he played solos on his synthair thing, was pretty
low in the mix. The entire band was having a great time though and had a
powerful sound. Straight out of You better believe It came something called
Dreams of Space and it was very spacey and they went into like 2 mins of You
better believe it at the end. Then a really cool new songs called Seasons was
played and the visuals were really interesting with lots of words about
politics, money, greed, occupy, etc..
Not sure what was next but they were new songs and then they did
Warriors on the Edge of Time into a long and heavy version of Angels of Death.
I should say that the dancers had totally new costumes and were really cool
this night, as was the visual projections! Prometheus from Blood on the Earth
was played and into Magnu. I love Magnu but it was just missing something
tonight. Tide of the Century was performed but Dibs sang it and not Tim. The
piano parts were all pre-recorded as well. A very long version of Assassins of Allah with the electronic mid-section was pretty cool but some though it as too long.
Next was Sentinel another track from
Blood on the Earth and a huge surprise, Silver Machine. A pretty cool version
and Richard did the main vocal. The encore was Psychedelic Warlords and Spirit
of the Age, both with Huw joining in on slide guitar and lead guitar. They were
both pretty spaced out and long versions. The band was in good form and played
a full 2hr concert. I was expecting some other special guests besides Huw but
there were none. A really fun night and a bit of surprise with so few songs
from the 70s compared to the Sweden Rock concert. Dibs voice was a bit strained as well at times. He has sounded better. Saw the guys from Nukli and
some Swedish people as well. Did not get to meet the band but I gave Kris the
Øresund Space Collective Sleeping with the Sunworm CD. Hope her and Dave will
listen to it.
Set List: Sonic Attack, You better believe it>Dreams of
Space>You better Believe it, Seasons, Footsteps, Hills have ears, Warriors
on the Edge of Time>Angels of Death, Prometheus, Magnu, Tide of the Century, Assassins of Allah, Sentinel, Space 2001>Silver Machine, First landing on Medusa>Psychedelic
Warlords, Spirit of the Age
Hard to
believe that the US doom
rock band, Pentagram, who have really come blasting back on the scene in the
last few years have never played in London!
I was coming over for the Hawkwind gig and was so lucky that Pentagram was
playing the day before. Pentagram just played in Copenhagen last Sunday to rave reviews and
some significant set list changes from when we saw them earlier this year,
which is nice. The show I saw them play at Roadburn was not very good and kind
of let down. The band just did not have a groove or the feeling that day.
Anyway, I have never seen a concert at the Garage and did not know what to
expect.
Sue and I
arrived 18:45 and got in the cue, which was still quite small. There were a few
people selling tickets and it was now sold out. Anyway, we were in quickly and
found the best place in this club, right behind the soundboard, which is
slightly elevated and there was one table and one chair, which Sue got. It was a
great location for recording and filming.
A big
surprise was when the new Rise above band, Pursons started playing at 19:20 for
a 25 min set. The place had less than 100 people it in but it was quite filled
by the time they finished. They are a new melodic dark rock band from the UK, a
bit like Blood Ceremony but with shorter songs and the female singer is not
quite as distinct. They have keyboard player who also plays some rhythm guitar
but the focal point of the band is the female singer who also plays the SG
guitar. The first few songs the keyboard sounded like a flute and a later an
organ. None of their songs had any guitar solos until the very last song, which
was the coolest one they played. See the video below. They were actually pretty
good. My friend Nils from Copenhagen
had arrived 10 mins into their set. I also met Martin from Litmus and Tom from Church of Misery. Nice to see some friends.
It was like
10mins and Horizont from Sweden,
who this was, suppose to be a release party for were up and had the place
really rocking! They also played a very short set like 7 songs in 35-40 mins. I
actually liked both the new songs quite a lot. One was a uptempo one and the
other one was a longer blues track with a really nice guitar solo. I filmed
this one. It was great that the played the Unseen from the debut record as
well. Singer has a very intense voice but damn, they are a good band. A bit
like UFO meets Wishbone Ash! They got a pretty good reception and said this was
their 2nd gig in England.
NO word on when the new LP would be out on Rise Above.
The place was
filled with people from the UK
underground scene. I saw the bass player from Electric Wizard, two of the guys
from Orange Goblin, Martin from Litmus, Cathedral guys, and other people that
looked familiar as well. The guys from Pentagram were also hanging out near the
merch desk during Horizont, including Bobby.
Anyway,
Pentagram hit the stage at 20:50 and rocked the place. The sound was much
louder and really good and a very solid set of music was played as well and
different songs from what we saw last year. The crowd favorites were clearly
songs like Relentless, Wartime, Dying World, Signs of the Wolf and All your
Sins. They also played three songs from the new record, one I don’t like at all
(Into the Ground) and one I really like, I’m the Man. The place had a lot of energy and the
crowd was totally into it. Bobby was also very cool with those crazy eyes and
he sang well. He was very happy with the crowd. The final encore was the only
time where they had some improve and jamming with a great version of When the
Screams Come. They played about 75 mins in total and it was really good. I
don’t think anyone came away disappointed. Great night and I highly recommend
seeing a show at the Garage. Easy to get to and a top venue (500 people).
Papir are a
pretty new Danish band. They have been playing around Copenhagen for the last couple of years and
released their debut record on the Red Tape label last year. Some members of
this group have also played with Øresund Space Collective in the last year as
well. Anyway, the band is a very tight three piece instrumental band and this
was recorded basically live with few overdubs earlier this year in a small
summer house in Denmark
by Jonas from Causa Sui. He also mixed and produced the record. Sunday #1
starts the album off. Saturday starts with a bit of a reggae skank before
heading off into some serious wah guitar in the next section and then a heavier
riff starts to build as this one really takes off over the 14mins. There is
some amazing guitar soloing by Nicklas on this track. They so nicely flow from
the riffs and spacey movements to the great and creative guitar sections. Great
track. Monday is the entire side B of the vinyl and is 19 mins. It starts with
a cool drum and bass groove and then Nicklas slowly comes in and the track
really reaches a massive peak around 5½ mins with powerful bass by Christian and
drums by Christoffer and ripping guitar and then it slows down and floats away
for awhile with the percolator coffee machine in the spacey part. The bass
effects and stuff are also really cool and then it slowly builds and Nicklas
plays this beautiful guitar starting around 13mins that slowly he just blows
your mind when the track really takes off again around 16½ mins. Great track. Sunday
#2 is side 3 and is 18 mins long. It starts off slowly with some melodic guitar
and bass, which is mixed higher than the guitar and is what really pushes the
track forward and at 1:45 it shifts gears. I love the bass and drum section
around 8 mins and the way Nicklas plays around the others. There are super cool
bass lines in this part. The spacey section is really excellent (made by Christian,
I believe). Nicklas does not really dominate much in this track leaving lots of
room for the others. He comes back intensely with the wah guitar solo in the
last section of another great track, Tuesday #1 this features Jonas on
keyboards and some extra hand drums as this track slowly builds up with some
amazing guitar keyboard parts as it stays groovy, melodic and spacey. There is
a lot of great dynamics and more spacey elements in this track and it is quite
different from the rest of the record. One of my favorites. Tuesday #2 ends the
CD and is the shortest track at 4:40. The entire track is a spaced out drone of
bass and guitar and no drums and is a very peaceful way to end the record. A
very impressive release and a must have if you like adventurous instrumental
music. Fans of Causa Sui, My brother the Wind, Gösta Berlings Saga, etc.. will
likely enjoy this.
This 7” has
amazing packing and features really long songs for a 7”, with both sides like
9-10mins each. I did not know it was possible to do such long songs on a 7”. Sadly,
I have not idea which side is which as the labels are exactly the same on both
sides and it does make a difference as one of the side is fucking really cool
and the other good but not mind blowing like the other side. Why can’t labels
clearly label the record and also say that is plays on 33rpm. Anyway, the side
I have no know starts slow and spacey and then the Doomy sound starts and they
have a quite cool psychedelic guitar throughout the end of this track. It ends
with a spoken word sample about RoswellNew mexico. This side starts
spacey with some eastern sitar stuff that has some effects on it and then the
riff slowly enters in. This track really builds on a repetitive guitar riff but
then gets totally psyched out big time but still stays heavy. Wow.. powerful
stuff. A very promising new band.
Axis Mundi is
a group lead by Jon Reier Sylte and are from Trondhein, Norway.
Jon wrote all the songs and plays most of the instruments as well but he has
some help from a few friends. There are 12 tracks in 45mins of music inspired
by the Grateful Dead, Dylan, Pearls before Swine, Octopus Syng and other 60s
bands. It is primarily acoustic guitar driven but also includes flute and piano
and many other instruments as well. Kingdome Come even had a bit of country
twinge to it. Devil’s Eye is the closest to psychedelic stuff they perform on
this record. Oh Surrender features some sitar and is a very nice track. There
are many excellent and diverse tracks on this beautifully crafted work for a
relaxing afternoon or Sunday morning to start the day. Happy music…
Elder are
back with their 2nd double record in 3 years. Again they have quite
cool artwork and very long songs with a lot of cool passages. This album had
been getting really good reviews but I needed to make my own opinion up by
spinning it several times, the last time loud! This kind of music needs to be
loud. Side A starts with Gemini which has a heavy down tuned riff to start then
a great lead guitar part and then it changes totally and goes more melodic and
the guitar gets a bit more psyched out with a some cool delays. The title track
is next and is a slow evolving monster of a track with some nice melodic stuff
that reminds me of Colour Haze. Then they go into the slower heavy riff section
and the vocals begin. Fantastic melodic guitar in the next section. Great
track. Side III is next and is again one long track called Knot. It starts as a
very melodic mid paced track It slows down and some cool wah guitar accompanies
this down tempo part, which heads into a more repetitive riffing part that did
not hold my interest that much until the end when he plays some really cool
guitar but damn he waited a long time! Drumming is great and intense as well
and steady heavy bass as well. III is a bit Colour haze inspired instrumental to
start and is primarily acoustic and has a very cool vibe with some hand drums and
wind to add to the ambience and has some great melodic guitar soloing in this
track. The track called the End finishes off the record it has a quite heavy
groove. While people have described this as a psychedelic rock record, I would
not at all say it was. It is a very good solid 2nd record and has
some impressive musical passages that I enjoyed a lot but it is not
psychedelic. Cool record.
This is due
out in December and features 7 tracks in 28 mins spread over two 7”s records. It
is quite a good deal at 8£ and will be pressed in only 400 copies. Langor
starts things off with Destruction from a 1960’s teen explotations sound
track! The Bordellos do a really far our
and psychedelic version of I’m a Man. Beau performs a folk rock like track from
a 60s record called Creation. Jay Tausing’s version of Thick as a Brick
(excerpt) is my favourite track on this. What a cool version of a classic
track. A new Finnish group I have never
heard of called Permanent Clear Light plays a piano driven and laid back track.
The Vibravoid track, All stars are Asleep is amazing psychedelic stuff and
reminds me of the Spacious Mind. Red Elektra perform Volcano. You can hear an
excerpt at the link below. Cool stuff and all exclusive tracks..
This is the
latest GNOD release on right now only on vinyl. IT was recorded in France when the
band had some days off when they were on their failed European tour. Anyway,
this is very spaced out and psychedelic as you would expect. Side A starts off
with Tron and it has a pretty heavy distorted guitar riff and spaced out sounds
swirling around in the background before the vocal with a lot of delay kicks
in. A very cool catchy hypnotic distorted track. Visions of Load is next it
reminds me a lot to start of the opening track by the Spacious Mind on Garden
of a well Fed Hed but the organ is not as tripped out. This one has a really
nice floating feeling to it as you just glide along. Side B is one long mind
fuck called The Vertical Dead. It starts off really cool with some samples and
a Pink Floyd vibe and then slowly descends into madness with some intense slide
guitar and heavy riffs and spoken word vocals often with some cool effects as
it builds in a sort of BONG like way. A cool and totally spaced out track with
a very repetitive line running through it and very low fit rashly drums as the
vocal really spaces you out to the max as the intensity just builds. A very
spaced out and extremely cool record.
Johnfish
Sparkle is a three piece Italian band. This is their 2nd release on
the Swedish Transubstans label. 10 tracks in 53mins and it rocks! The songs all
have a lot of lyrics so they spend a lot of the songs singing and not so much
on the instrumental parts and jamming or guitar solos. Hard Times Goin’ On
starts things off with a solid hard rock riffing song. Al plays the guitar and
has a pretty distinctive vocal and it is mixed nicely into the music and not
too loud. Benzai-Ten is next is a bit more bluesy. Downhill Blues is the
longest track at 8½ mins long and starts with a cool fade in guitar as the
track slowly builds up but turns into one of the best tracks where the band
really stretches out. Spiral Confusion has a pretty cool riff and he uses a
spacey effect on his voice in parts as well. The Circle has a flangy guitar and
is a great song. The Traveller starts off with a wah guitar solo and then into
the vocal section. I like the beginning and the end best on this song. Gaudi’s
Run is next and this is a short 2 min instrumental acoustic guitar track. Not
Alone is a solid hard rock song with a really nice guitar break. A Phoenix
Flight is one of the bands more complex numbers with some great playing. The
album closes with Crazy Lady another more blues one. If you are fans of 70s
hard rock and some of the Swedish band like Magnolia, Lotus, etc.. you will
probably dig this one. Solid.
This is a
damn cool psychedelic rock compilation with a lot of cool bands doing classic
and obscure songs. IT is limited to 500 copies on vinyl only with no CD or
downloads, just Coloured vinyl with fantastic artwork and gatefold sleeve.
There are 19 tracks with bands from all across Europe and the USA, some bands
I know like Bevis Frond, Octopus Syng, Earthling Society, Sendelica, and Sky
Picnic but the rest of the acts are new to me. All tracks are exclusive as
well. What are my favorites?? The Seventh Ring of Saturn do a very cool version
of a song I had never heard before. Sendelica’s version of the Amboy Dukes
classic is also great. Jay Tausig really impresses me and here is a great
version of the Nazz song open my Eyes. The past Tense lay down a cool version
of Shattered with some great psych guitar. Dead Sea Apes do a really
psychedelic version of a Skip Spence track. The Daedalus Spirit Orchestra performs
a unique take on White Rabbit by Jefferson Airplane. Most bands just do it
really similar to the original, but not here. Cool… I love the Bevis Frond take on the Sky Saxon
Blues band song, Creepin’ Around. The closer, Earthling Society performing the
Chocolate Watch band, is also really good..
King Penguin- Thoughts And Words (The Byrds
The Seventh Ring Of Saturn- Ten Thousand Words In A
Cardboard Box (The Aquarian Age)
Stay- Back Of Your Mind - live (The Nazz)
Permanent Clear Light- Cymbaline (Pink Floyd)
Sendelica- Journey To The Center Of The Mind (The Amboy
Dukes)
Jay Tausig- Open My Eyes (The Nazz)
Zombies of the Stratosphere-SunshineRiver
(Gemini)
The Past Tense- Shattered (The Good Feelin's)
The Bevis Frond- Creepin' Around (The Sky Saxon Blues Band)
Hills Have Riffs- Down By The River (The Godz)
Dead Sea Apes, featuring GabrielMinnikin-Land Of The Sun (Skip
Spence)
Cranium Pie's Baking Research Station- Welcome To The
Citadel (Marc Brierley)
Sky Picnic- Revolution(Tomorrow)
Octopus Syng- Midsummer Night's Scene (John's Children)
The Daedalus Spirit Orchestra- White Rabbit (Jefferson Airplane)
The Luck of EdenHall- Something In The
Air (Thunderclap Newman)
Langor - Rain (The Beatles)
Earthling Society- Dark Side Of The Mushroom (The Chocolate
Watch Band)
This is a damn cool new UK band and it features John McBain
from Monster Magnet, Wellwater Conspiracy on tracks 2 and 3. The band is highly
inspired by Danish bands Spids Nøgenhat, Baby Woodrose, Dragontears, On Trial,
Pandemonica…. This you will recognize for sure. The band for sure had a cool
vision for how they wanted this record to send as it has a great psychedelic
sound. The LP starts off with a short strange piece with tripped out voices and
backwards guitars that leads into Moving at the pace of Valium. The track is
actually quite fast with some really psyched out guitars and the singer will
remind you a lot of Lorenzo Woodrose. Lots of cool space sounds flying around
in the psychedelic soundscape. Breaker of lives and Souls also takes off a fast
pace with several layers of psych leads to start and then it spaces out and
sounds a lot like Dragontears. All is see Brightly is the Darkness is a pretty
depressing mostly acoustic psych track but it does have some intense wah guitar
at the end. Voices in my Mind closes side A and is a very cool song, also
reminds me a bit of old Bevis Frond. Love the spacey flangy guitar and lead
break section in this one. Flip the record over and you have two songs that are
similar to the style of the A side but then the last two tracks, wow. These are
totally tripped out mind blowers!! The Suite starts with Words can only Echoe
and this goes into the title track. Very psychedelic and tripped out and they
may just have escaped from the Locked Ward, so be careful how you listen to
this record.. A really impressive record for a brand new band and possibly
dangerous if you are close to losing your mind already!
As far as I
can find the band has no myspace or soundcloud or other music site. Below is a
link to them on Facebook at least.
This is the
new Monster Magnet 10” with re-recordings of three tracks from the Dopes to
Infinity record. For now, you can only buy it on the tour (they pressed 1000
copies). It was also the most expensive 10” I ever bought at 150kr (20€, $30).
I think that is just too much but they are on tour and trying to make some
cash. It is in some mail order places for a bit less if you look around (Kozmik
Artifactz). Like the other 10” they sold two years ago that is sold out now, these
tracks were recorded at Phil, the guitar players, home studio and they are more
low fi and psychedelic than the original versions. All Friends and Kingdom Come
starts things off and this is not slowed down compared to the original but the
vocal is more psychedelic. The bass line is really cool and they have some nice
guitar psych out as well. King of Mars is really different with acoustic
guitar, long delays on the voice and cool space sounds. Dave’s singing sounds
awesome. This is a very cool psych version and the best song on this EP. Flip
the record over and a new version of Dopes to Infinity! This is a slower stoned
acoustic blues version to start but then some electric guitars kick in. This
one is pretty close to the original but everything is slowed down and more
spacey sounding, even the Ed Mundell guitar solo is followed pretty closely but
slower and more low fi sound. Cool stuff. If they would only make a full record
of new stuff with this vibe and not so clean and produced. We can hope.
I really
liked Brain Cycles a lot and thought it was even better than the debut record,
which had blown me away so I never expected Radio Moscow to take their blues
rock, another step further into psychedelic rock. This is a totally killer
record but it has a very low fi sound production, maybe a bit too much so, but
the guitar and the vibe shines through loud and clear and those damn catchy
push pull rhythms the band use keep the tracks high with energy and there is no
shortage of cool guitar solos with lots of effects, panned mixing, etc.. I
won’t describe every track but just say if you like psychedelic blues rock, you
must hear this record! Buy it now.. Fucking amazing… If you are in the USA don’t miss
the double bill of Graveyard and Radio Moscow in 2012. Should be great.
I only first
got this now, even though it has been out on CD for half a year or more. This
is the vinyl release and they had to shorten the long Saturn Missile Battery
track down from nearly 34mins to 26 to get it on the B side of the record as
well as leave off the A wolf’s in wolfs clothing track complete. The gatefold
artwork on this limited edition 180gm color vinyl record is really nice. This
finds the band in great form, just free form jamming in the studio direct to
one inch analog tape in Austin Texas! If you don’t know this Texas band, they are a trio and play
instrumental stoner blues rock with lots of guitar solos. The opening number
Slave Cylinder is a high energy track with some excellent wah guitar soloing
going down. Sand, Stone and Pearl is a more cool floating track and features a
guest Ezra Reynolds on Fender Rhodes (which the did not spell correctly in the
album sleeve!). This is my favourite track on the record. Flip it over now. Saturn fades in and about 5mins in they almost go into a
section of Third stone from the Sun but not quite. The band just keeps jamming
along with a quite high energy and he goes into a section where the guitar riff
is quite repetitive and then out into another solo section.
Vidunder is a
new Swedish hard rock trio and this is their debut release. The title track
starts things off and this has a quite catchy guitar riff and you will
recognize quite quickly that you can’t understand what he is singing (unless
you are Scandinavian, perhaps) as he sings in Swedish. I like the added
percussion and drums on this track at the beginning and in a few other parts.
Overall, this is not a very strong song, just some strumming guitar, no guitar
solo or interesting musical break really. Flip the record over and you have
Witches’ Shuffle. This has a heavier bass line and is a real Status Quo like
shuffle, as the title suggests but the guitar is more tuned down. This track he
sings in English but he is not that easy to understand and does not sing that
well. Both the songs are written by the singer and guitarist, Martin Prim.
Sadly, I was not that impressed with this band as it is a bit too simple and
not that interesting. Hope they have a nice evolution with their next releases.
This is the debut record by
Wo-Fat from Texas.
It was originally only released on a CD back in 2006. The songs were much
shorter back then but the band still had this amazing heavy bluesy psychedelic
groove and analog production sound. The artwork is really nice on this double
vinyl gatefold and there is also a vinyl only bonus track called The Call of Zuvembie.
Anyway, the record starts off wit The Wolf, which is a fast paced track with a
very fuzzed out down tuned heavy rock groove. Kent Stump plays some killer
psychedelic guitar solos on every track, no matter how long or short, he knows
the importance of this and damn, he is good… The Manchurian Syndrome is next
and has quite political lyrics to go with the heavy stoner blues riff. Company
Man speeds things up but has a very cool short spaced out section and great
solo. The title track ends Side A and slows things down a lot with some nice
slide guitar. Side B only has 3 tracks including the vinyl only track. Day of
Judgement starts things off and features some really cool guitar breaks with a
nice use of effects. From Beyond starts slow, heavy, spacey, almost scary, as
the title suggests and then the monster riff slowly develops. Stoner Doom! It
speeds up at the end. The Zubembie track is a very spaced out instrumental jam.
Damn cool stuff. Holy War starts slide C in a slow bluesy way as it slowly
grooves along as just vocals and raw guitar. I like this. Something totally
different and it fades out and El Brujo takes over with it’s heavy fuzzed out
guitar. The solo part in this track is really cool with a long delay and side
to side tracking. Great stuff. Rising River is also a brilliant track with some
awesome guitar as the bass and drums just keep the groove going. Flip to the
last side D and it starts off with Dreams of Milk and Honey. This is another
stoner blues rock track with a really cool spacey flangy guitar solo that fades
out. They’re coming for your Barbara is one of the faster tracks on the record
and starts off with some ripping guitar right out of the gate! The record ends
with Runnin’ the Voodoo Down and this has some really cool extra percussion and
psyched out guitar and is instrumental. This is a record that you really need
to crank loud to get the full effect of the huge fuzzed out guitar sound. Great
stuff…
This was the last night of Siena Root’s European tour in
support of their new double live record, Root Jam. Sadly, there was problems with
the artwork so the vinyl version was not ready for the tour. They did have the
very nice double CD digipack version though. The band arrived over an hour late
due to fierce winds we were having that delayed the ferry between Germany and Denmark. I arrived at the BETA at
17:15 after a hellish bike ride due to the strong winds. I was the DJ tonight
and they were setting up the DJ booth when I arrived and Siena Root was
soundchecking the drums. I went around and said hello and met the new singer
(Chrissi) and organ player (Eric). I had hoped more people would show up tonight
but with this weather and Saxon and Anvil playing next door, it was not likely.
Sygeregn, who
I guested with back in August, started at 19:30 and there were about 30 people.
They played really cool set and this is a band that is getting more confident
and playing fantastic. They played a couple of new songs tonight one of which I
made a video of (See below). Psychedelic Baby was also played and the great song
Time the Time and Mirror Mirror. They closed the set with a long version of Tag
solen Ned. (take the sun down). The band is planning on recording a new record
in 2012.
Siena Root
hit the stage at 21:15 and played more or less the same set they did on the
entire tour but dropping a few songs like Rasayana. They had a new instrumental
intro track that leads into the Rat from the 1st record. The set is
very balanced in general with material from all the band’s records. Waiting for
the Sun is an excellent track and the new singer, Chrissi sounded it really
good even though she had a cold. She is from a German band called White Rabbit Dynamite. They also had a new female sound person who was excellent. Sound is very good
in BETA and a good size place holding 150 people. The long sitar piece Bhimpalasi was really
cool but the highlight for me was the performance of most of WE from their Different
Realities LP. I also made a video of this so see below. The band cut the set a
bit short on this night and only did two more songs including Good and Bad and
the encore Ridin’ Slow. I had hoped to hear Jungle Funk but no luck… Great show
and excellent band. The new members on this tour were very good, with Eric
getting plenty of space for playing the organ in many of the tracks. Great
night.
Set List: Intro number, The Rat, Waiting for the Sun, Just
another Day, Bhimpalasi, the Summer is Old, WE, Good and Bad, Ridin’ Slow
Monster Magnet were back in
town. Last time they were here 2 years ago on the Mastermind tour, they played
at Loppen. I sadly missed that show as it was a Sunday but I saw the show in
Malmö and hung out with the band and Dave for an hour alone. Anyway, I showed
up at Lille Vega and ran into one of the guys from the opening act, (Tiger, the
drummer) and he let me in so I went up stairs and talked with Tim Cronin for a
while and he was looking great, having lost 100 pounds! He took me to the
backstage room and I met up with Bob, Garrett and Jim, who were hanging out.
Phil came a bit later. Had a coke and we talked about all their different band
projects. Riotgod have a new CD out now and are coming to Europe
in Feb for a 2-3 week tour. So far no Scandinavian dates had been booked.
Atomic Bitchwax will be back in Europe in
April. Phil said he and Todd had like 15 songs that they were planning to
record in Jan and Feb to pull together the first Capricorn record. Phil said he
and Dave had also made demos for tracks for a new Monster Magnet record that
they hope to start recording in April- May next year. Monster Magnet will play
Wacken in Germany
in 2012 and do some other dates around that next August. That’s the insider news I can talk about.
The
soundcheck was fun as they played almost a complete version of Jailbreak by
Thin Lizzy. Garrett plays in a band in New
Jersey that plays rock covers so he can kick into any
number of fun tracks. They did some Monster Magnet tracks as well and Tim did
the vocals since Dave does not do soundchecks. That was fun. Afterwards, Bob,
Garrett and I headed out to get some food and went down Istegade (this is a
mainstreet running down into the red light district behind the main train
station). We had some really nice food at the Istegade’s Apotek. They went back
to get a nap and I went over to visit a friend who lives on Istegade.
Black Spiders (UK)
I came back
about 15 mins to 21 so I could catch Black Spiders. I had been chatting a bit
with these UK
guys and they were super cool people. The place was pretty packed, even with
Clutch also playing tonight in town and that was sold out. 10 years ogo or
more, I would have known a lot of people at a Monster Magnet concert but those
people hard ever go to shows anymore, home with the kids, etc… Anyway, Black
Spiders really rocked the place. They have the attitude of a punk rock band but
really rock out like a mix of a bit of AC/DC and say Dozer (Swedish stoner
rock). They played 30 mins and gave it 100%. Crowd really liked them. Top guys
as well.
Monster
Magnet started just after 10 and I thought they would play Dopes from start to
finish but they actually totally changed the order and started with a totally
spaced out version of Vertigo, the last track on the record. Dave said back in
1994 they used to open with this but only did it for about 10 shows. I was at
one of them at Pearl Street
in Northampton, MA. Anyway, it was really psyched out, heavy
and very cool. Sound mix was excellent as well, Loud, lots of delay on his
voice and Dave’ making all the space sounds with his rack of delay and effects
pedals was cool. I Fly was really heavy also as the next song. Then Look for
your Orb for the answer, as a bit disappointing for me as in the old days this
was much longer and jamming with long guitar solos and they basically got rid
of that now and it is like 5 mins. The crowd went wild when they kicked into
Dopes for Infinity. Powerful stuff. Dave’s voice was fantastic. The highlight
of the Dopes set for me was hearing I talk to Planets and Third Alternative
(one of my all time favourite MM songs, also Dave’s!). IT was very massive. The
band is playing really fantastic these days. King of Mars ended the main set
and was totally spaced out at the end and really quite long. Wow. So the main
set finished and they had played the entire record except Negasonic Teenage
Warhead and sure enough it was the first encore track. The set list said Five
years ahead of my Time but sadly, they skipped it this night. Hallucination
Bomb was pretty cool and the only recent song they played. We got the expected
tracks Powertrip and Space Lord to end the show. A really excellent concert for
me. I had a great time.
Set List: Vertigo, I
control, I Fly, Look to your Orb, Dopes to Infinity, All Friends and Kingdom
Come, Ego-The Living Planet, Blow em Off, Dead Christmas, Third Alternative,
Masterbuner, King of Mars. Negasonic Teenage Warhead, Hallucination Bomb,
Powertrip, Space Lord
Afterwards, I
had a backstage pass (thanks Jim!) and could hang out with some nice ladies and
the guys. Dave was pretty busy reuniting with a wonderful Swedish girl from Lund, whom I had met a
few times before. I did speak to him and he actually told me that he did sit
down and listen to the entire Oresund Space Collective Sleeping with the
Sunworm CD I gave him last time and he loved it! Thanks Dave.. It was a great
night. Wonderful, cool and very down to earth people! See ya next time guys..
The Stockholm 70s rock band,
Siena Root has finally released their promised double live record and it is
great. Over the past several years the band has been making analog recordings
of many of their concerts to try to capture the perfect performance for each of
the tracks that make up their evolving live set with a different cast of
singers appearing all the time. In the end, they were not satisfied and set up
3 nights in Stockholm
at the Walla Scen and this is where all but two of the tracks is recorded at a
different acoustic show. The LP features the singer from their first record
(Oscar), Sanya is the primary singer and sounds great. The LP opens with an
introduction and the band kick right into The Rat from their first record with
Sanya singing. Next up is Waiting for the Sun and features Stian Grimstad on
sitar. They have not always played this one with live sitar and this is a
really jammed out version! Bhimpalsi is an instrumental song with Stian on sitar
and KG on organ. It has a really cool bass groove and melodic elements and a
great jam. Into the Woods another from the 1st record and features
Oskar on passionate vocals as well as a wood flute solo (Anna Sandberg) and
Tangman on hurdy Gurdy to make it very cool. Words is the next track and also
from the first record and features Oskar and Maxi dread on guitar. The next two
songs are acoustic (Trippin’ and Bharavi Thumri) and change the vibe and energy
of the record but are really fantastic and feature Jonas Ahlen on vocals. I
have never heard this singer before with Siena Root. Bharavi features KG on
sitar and Love on duf and Sam on derbuka. Dreams of Tomorrow features Jonas Ahlen
on vocals, with a more husky but also nice bluesy voice and goes back to the
heavy and dynamic rock as the band really rips this one up! This features KG
and Maxi Dread on guitars. Long way from Home starts off with an organ
introduction by KG and is very Uriah Heep inspired for those who know the song.
The band add violin as well and Johan also sings this song. The record ends in a
totally jamming style with long work outs of Rasayana (Stian back on sitar) and
Reverberations. I love the guitar riff that kicks in on Rasayana at 3mins. The
band really takes off in the end part with a great guitar solo. Reverberations
is the longest track at 16mins and a great way to end. Listen to the crowd…
The release
is a double CD (about 90mins) and double vinyl. This is for sure one of the
best releases this year and it has a fantastic sound production. I think is
fair for me to say that this is not what the band is always sounding like when
you hear them on tour as they rarely have flute, violin or more than one
vocalist and they don’t usually stretch out and jam as much on some of the
songs as they do here. Probably Sweden’s
best band! Catch them on tour in Europe in November. Copenhagen on Nov 27th (I will be the DJ!).
This is the
latest record from the all instrumental psychedelic rock, jazz space out group,
Causa Sui. I believe this is the last in this Pewt’r sessions that will be
released that was recorded a few years back and features Ron Schniederman from
Sunburned hand of the Man.
The back of the record features a quote from Brian Eno and a long passage by
Henry Miller! Anyway, side A starts with a slow building and spacey track
called Garden of Forking Paths. A really moody and spacey
track and Ron plays some really psychedelic guitar to contrast the more
krautrock and melodic elements of Jonas. Amazing stuff. This material is more
natural and spacey and free form than the Summer Sessions material which was
more composed but also some jamming parts. The side B is two 11 min tracks
starting with Gelassenheit. It slowly fades up as the drums and bass start
things and then the guitars and spacey synths ease their way into the jam. It
really picks up and the mix of the clean guitar and the spacey fuzzed out one
is pretty cool and jess plays some awesome bass. Brassica Blues closes the
records and is hardly what you would call traditional blues. It is very spaced
out loose noodley blues jam. Fantastic record. This record as all the Causa Sui records is already
getting hard to find and is only pressed in 500 copies. A single sleeve repress
will come out next year with both records from this session.
Motorpsycho
played a concert at the Effenaar venue in Holland to celebrate 40 years of live
music at this venue and the band has played their many times. They decided to
release a vinyl only record available only at this gig of live recordings they
have made from this venue over the years. I think it was only pressed in 500
copies and you could only get it at the show. I was not there but got very
lucky to get a copy of this record! Anyway, side A starts off with a super cool
version of Psychonaut (still played often today) from May 7th, 1999.
The version has a lot of energy and Bent is really passionate in his vocals.
The mix is not super clean but pretty raw which adds to the power of this one.
Going to California
which features a long piano solo by Snah is also realy good. I always liked
thjs song. Flip the record over and the
tracks come from a gig on May 23rd, 2010. It starts off with Whole
Lotta Diana but the band is in a fucking jamming and intense mood on this
record side and really flying. A mellow track called Come on In is next but
then not listed on the record, the band kick into a killer version of Sheer
Heart Attack by Queen (I read recorded in May 2006)! They say it is the first
time they ever played it! Great record.. I am so happy I got a copy.
It has been
about 3 years since the last Ozric Tentacles record and I used to anticipate
these records with sure dedication of the hardcore fan but the last few records
show the Ed Wynee project heading into a more and more electronic area and away
from rock music, so I have lost interest in a lot in this band that used to be
one of my favorites. Don’t get me wrong, many of their records are all time
classics for me but the music they make today does not really hit the spot for
me. The band has moved into being a new age psychedelic electronic band with a
bit of rock. Anyway, the CD starts off with a intense track called Attack of
the Vapours with wild programmed beats and drums and sound effects. Ed plays
some cool guitar but it is mixed way to the back and panned all around. As his
guitar fades away it becomes almost all electronic and then the new age synth
section takes over with uptempo percussion and programmed drums. Lemon Kush is also highly electronic but has a pretty cool bass
line that sounds like a mix of electro bass and real bass. The drums also sound
like a mix of real (very thin) and programmed. The synth line that drives the
track is pretty cool. Ed’s guitar kicks in about 2½ mins in and has a really
cool effect on it but that lasts 20secs and disappears again and back to nearly
totally electronic music. This has cool and interesting sections and a high energy
on this track but not a lot of guitar. Another guitar solo kicks in at 4½ mins
for 45 seconds and cool to hear Ed experimenting with more effects on his
guitar. Flying Machines starts with synthesizers and is a sort of new age
spiritual synth trip with a bit of psyched out guitar thrown in here and there.
Sounds like Ed could have made this one entirely on his own. A sort of trance
like part and even a brief electronic flute precedes Ed next guitar solo
section. This brief section reminds you of Erpland days but all too briefly.
The song ends in a very techno electro fashion: Instruments sound very
synthesized and not very organic. Knurl starts with some percussion and Brandi
kicks in with a bass line and some drums and then at 50 seconds the synthesizers
start another like pan flute like new age arpeggiation and Ed enters with some
guitar very briefly. There is a nice short sitar section (probably not real as
it was not listed as an instrument). This is one they might be able to play
live. Right now on the tour Paper Monkeys is the only song they play live from
this record. At 4½ mins Ed comes in with another sweeping solo for 45 seconds
and then the pan flute like synths return. Lost in the Sky is the longest track
so far at just over 7 mins and starts with very new age synths again but Ed
kicks in with the guitar quite early as Brandi lays the deep bass line and Oli
follows with the drums. It is totally unclear what Silas (Ed’s son) contributes
since they play very similar synths and Ed is most likely playing most of them
on the records. This track has the most guitar by far so far of any song and
another they could attempt live to freshen up their set. The guitar drops out
at 3 mins and it is all synths, bass and drums for 1½mins and then Ed comes back
with a solo for 30 seconds and back to the melodic electronic techno like
stuff. A real synth solo is played at around 6 mins that is pretty cool. Paper
Monkeys is next and my favourite track on the record as it reminds me a bit
more of the older days OT. It has a bit harder edge and the drums are mixed
more like a rock band and not so thin and electronic. At 3mins the guitar falls
out and Ed takes the solo synths and plays a normal OT like section and then a
really spaced out solo sound that is really cool before the guitar returns and
Ed kicks into solo mode again. Plowm is
another track with a lot of guitar that they could probably play live. A very
high energy track with spacey psychedelic guitar, a driving synth rhythm and
smooth stoned floating bass line. The Will of the Wisps is the longest track at
over 10mins and starts very slowly with lots of beautiful new age floating synths
and some basic drums and a nice bass line. There is an almost flute like synth
(this is where Jon would have been playing in the past) section. It slowly
builds up and you keep expecting Ed to kick in with his usual predictable short
solo and disappear but he does not until the 9½ min and then only for like 15
seconds! It has a very funky ending. The CD closes with the beautiful spacey
new age track that sounds a lot like Nodens Ictus called AirCity.
Ed is still the master of sound that stimulates your brain like few others can but
the music is just too electronic and lacking in a human nature some how but
great for psychedelic head trips … Shpongle fans
will also dig this a lot as OT have a lot in common with Shpongle these days.
I was very
lucky to get one of the 350 of these pressed on purple vinyl (thanks Nils!) without a proper
record sleeve and just a very simple thick two sided printed paper stuffed into
a plastic bag with the record. Very simple, very rare and expensive now!
Anyway, I have to say this is a pretty cool and low fi, garage, heavy rock
record. The voice is a bit strange but you grow into it and the songs are pretty
catchy and interesting. The opening track is called I’ll cut you down and it is
pretty catchy with a simple repetitive guitar riff but it really grooves. Death’s
Door is a long song and slows things down but has the same feel as the first
track and it is pretty hypnotic like old Sabbath and also good melodic parts.
The mid section has some lead guitar that pans back and forth (it is a stereo
recording!). Over and Over Again reminds me of Sabbath Bloody Sabbath era Black
Sabbath. This song sadly fades out way too early. Curse in the Trees is a
slower more Doomy track but it also has a cool groove as well. Flip the record
over and it starts off with I’m here to Kill You! It is a more uptempo track
with a nice melodic guitar riff and a bit more distant vocal but still very low
fi drums and not a lot of bass (on any of the tracks). The guitar break is great
with synth and guitar solos over and under each other. 13 Candles has almost
the same groove as the opening track to start but is a longer more developed track.
Ritual Knife has a very cool tribal style drumming as the song slowly builds up
some tension and mystery before the guitar break. Withered hand of Evil closes
this debut record by this mysterious group (Uncle Acid- Guitar, vocals, synth,
mellotron; Red- Drums and voodoo maracas; Kat-Bass). It is another slower track
but just as cool as the rest and the only one to feature Mellotron. This is a
record that really grows on you.
I think it is
a pity that this is such a low fi and thin sound as the band would be so much
more powerful with a better sound production as they have some many great songs.
Maybe the next one. Great record. Here is a link
for a cool interview as well.
I have to say
when it rains it pours down cool new music, sometimes. This is the 2nd
new Bevis Frond release in the last month and this is pressed on vinyl and in
only 500 copies. It features 4 tracks from Nick’s archives and these have that
nice raw garage sound that we really like. I think it’s Time is a real 60s like
pop gem with Nick singing his own backing and harmony vocal. It is primarily
organ driven like most of the tracks on this EP. She got me Good has a great
fuzz guitar and is also very raw. Life Support is a slower organ driven 60s low
fi track that really takes off at the end (maybe a bit cliché but very cool).
Tell me when I’m Gone has a clearer bit more snotty vocal and harder edged
guitar and I loved this one. This is a very cool 7” and totally different from
the new record so enjoy this other side of Mr. Saloman!
The Japanese band,
Loudness is back with another studio album. I have lost count but the band is
celebrating 30 years now and has made over 20 records now. This is only the 2nd
with the new drummer and again, the band is damn heavy. The CD has 11 tracks in
54 mins and has fantastic artwork, booklet with all the lyrics and a cool
Loudness guitar pick in its own special little plastic bag! The opening intro track
is really great and features a bit of a spacey vibe as it opens up with
acoustic guitar and some sort of eastern string instrument and organ and then
the killer riff kicks in to start track 2, The Power of Truth. This is a very
intense track with double bass drum, powerful vocals by Minoru. Come alive
again starts with a cool bass line and some panning guitar before the main riff
kicks in and the band take off at a fast pace. This is a more melodic catchy
track but still pretty hard. Survivor is nearly 6 mins long also pretty damn
fast with some cool melodic soloing by Akira. Keep you Burning starts with some
synthesizer and then the guitar riff kicks in and the guitar section is pretty
intense and the synthesizer comes back a few times. It is a quite different
twist on the same style. Gonna do it my Way starts with a sort of spoken word
vocal over the simple riff. It is like Minoru is trying so sound a bit mean.
Not my favourite track but different from all the rest on the record. Hang
Tough is another longer track and slows things down a bit and Akira does a lot
of soloing before the Slayer like riff kicks in and the band takes off. Track 8
(title is in Japanese) has some super cool parts and great guitar in this long
instrumental track. Amazing stuff. Comes
the Dawn is over 7 mins and starts slowly with some interesting guitar and a
very heavy deep bass. This is a more simple melodic track at times. Pandora also
has a deep heavy bass and slows things down and Akira really rips it up. Crazy
crazy crazy ends the CD and is a short 3½ more straight up rocker. Loudness are
still playing at the top of their game and demonstrating great musicianship and
still rocking harder than ever!
Fjodor are
fromCroatia and been around since 2005 in various line ups and with quite a few
different instruments going in and out but the core of bass, drums and guitar
are pretty stable. Sometimes they have a synth player or sax or violin. I have
had the pleasure to see them live twice here in Denmark and hang out with these
nice guys. The band plays instrumental psychedelic groove rock and while they
don’t have any physical releases out there are some digital albums available
from the band and you can buy a memory stick from the band with both records
and some live recording, including one that I made at Loppen in Christiania, Denmark in 2010.
Riding
through the Black Hole is the new record and quite different from their record
from 2009 simply called 1. The album starts off with a long 13min and very cool
track called Astral Erection and this one reminds me a bit of old Ozric
Tentacles (at least the guitar style) and then the synths pad sounds build up
and float in and out of the mix as the bass really starts to build. They have
an excellent drummer live but this track has some very thin programmed drums to
start and then the real drummer comes in (at least I think so?). This long
groove repeats over for a long period of time and at 10 mins the guitar player
really starts to intensify his playing with wah and delay and gets a really
cool spaced out sound as it really flys! Drugs and Dragons starts off very
intense and very much like the Croatian band, Seven that Spells. This track the
drums sound real and not programmed but still very thin. It is a pretty complex
track this one with lots of different parts. Cool stuff. The synths don’t come
flying by until half way through. Dzinovi is next and is a more melodic track
to start and then the riff changes and the energy really increases and builds
in intensity and then the guitar player really takes off with a cool solo at 2
mins. The bass player is really pushing it as well. Pity the drum sound is so
thin and distant. The synths also float in later. The Black Hole starts with a
complex like jazz rock beginning and then it comes down and a guitar solo takes
us to the next section and the synth sounds (he does not play lead stuff, just
sounds, pads, floating textures) enter in as the bass and drums keep the
intensity high. They revisit the earlier riff as well. Tsunami is the 18 min
closer of the record and starts slowly with the band finding their space as a
freakout guitar fades up from the left and water sounds flow over the
soundscape before the drums and bass really kick in at 3½ mins and the ozrics
like delay guitar starts off. The band really flies at times on this track.
Very cool band, I just wish the sound of the recording was better as this does
not really represent the band based on the live shows I have seen. We made a
multitrack recording of their show from Kildemose Festival this summer and they
played all of these songs live. Lets see how that comes out when it is mixed. Check
the band out on the web. They plan to tour all over Europe
in 2012.
Titan is a New York based
psychedelic band who have made some pretty damn cool releases. This is a
cassette only release of 4 tracks recorded live in a radio studio in 2008. Three
of the four tracks are from their record, A Raining Sun Of Light & Love,
For You & You & You, and the last track, Highlands of Orick, is perhaps
a new song since it is not listed on any of their records at Discogs.com. Hashishins
Ohel starts this off and this is a real progressive rock work out with complex
guitar and organ interactions before the track really spins itself out into
more psychedelic territory and the organ is really freaked out and spacey first
and then the guitar follows. Wow… Obelisk Orbit Overdrive seems to come out of
Hashishin and starts slowly and spacey as well with lots of electronics as
something starts to brew underneath and then the drums kick in hard and fast
and the spacey guitar jam takes off!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! The organ comes back in the
last 3rd when the intensity drops and the band head into a different
realm of space. A really great space rock track and quite psychedelic. Good mix
by whoever mixed it. Flip the tape over and you get Afruf der Pilz. This also a
very organ driven, dynamic and complex song. Reminds me a bit of a more
psychedelic Siena Root at times but they jam and space out in a totally more
far out way than Siena Root. The organ solo and guitar section is really
psychedelic stuff. They come back to the main theme and then really slow it
down and float out into space. The next section is quite dynamic as well and
more flanged out and space rock like before it comes way down to a drone as it
fades nearly out before coming up with a familiar bass line and organ as it
builds and ends. The last track starts quite upbeat and complex with a lot of
interaction between the bass and organ then it takes off in an organ driven
fashion once again. A really ripping guitar solo is played in this one as the
bass player just lays down the killer lines when the organ playing draws back.
Wow.. This is a totally killer tape and probably one of my favourite releases I
have heard this year. Really jamming stuff. Fans of Astra will like this
although there are no lyrics.
