Mermaidens In The Undergrowth

Another New Zealand band to finish off the day is Mermaidens, a Wellington trio whose debut album Undergrowth is a dark psych delight. I have heard a few people refer to them as being like Warpaint (and a track like 'Haz Song' does follow a similar trajectory). Now I can see certain familiarities throughout this album, but this seems to come from the atmosphere generated by the music with breathy female vocals piercing the mist. Undergrowth shows something more - a band who aren't afraid to get dirty. The guitar growl that punctuates 'Seed', or the overt Black Angels psych-blues groove of excellent opener 'Under The Mountain II'. The songs all evoke garish otherworldly images of nature, the percolating, fermenting growth of organisms in their myriad organic forms, yet the muscularity of the bass and the metronome surety of the drums manages to keep things more on the sinister side. The mood is built on and maintained throughout, so that by the time the ambitious 'Splinter' arrives, the band at its most sonorous even as they fade out in disintegration, you are not only fully invested in Undergrowth, you have become a part of it. Mermaidens launch the album this Friday alongside Kane Strang (more on him shortly) in Auckland; you can pick up Undergrowth here.

Mirroring Martyr Privates

 

There's going to be a nasty rumour going round soon that I am in Martyr Privates, such is the blanket love I have given their debut album of late. Having written the review of it for both The Music in Australia and The Quietus in the UK, suffice to say that I am a fan. Not much else needs to be said that I haven't already written. That said, I thought Id fling a couple sentences together to try and explain why I like it. Because Martyr Privates is in some ways derivative; in other ways wholly unimaginative. Because opinion is so subjective, it seems apt yet also trite for me to say that their influences are fine when I often lambast other bands for wearing their influences so blatantly and carefree. The difference here is the playability factor. When I first listened to the album I thought the Brisbane trio of Cam Hawes, Ashleigh Shipton and Sam Dixon had captured their live persona well, but it was still that heady pastiche of downer rock and shoegaze space oddity that made them familiar and yet innately alien, at least on the Australian music scene. But the more I listened to tracks like 'You Can't Stop Progress' and 'Something To Sell' I realised the influences that came to bear - Kitchens Floor, Spiritualized, The Black Angels, Spacemen 3 - were just as refracted from the worldview of the trio. Martyr Privates is dipped liberally in the shoegaze psych mould, but it isn't a part of such wide-ranging genres either. As elegantly wasted as 'Rope & Tarp' is, this is a Hawes original, not a Pierce cast off; as much as 'Somebody's Head' lurks in the shadows of the Passover of The Black Angels, they aren't squatting at the foot of the table scrounging for scraps. There is a otherworldly vibrancy and dour desperation that always stands at loggerheads within the band - the engine forcing the machine forward yet refusing to make allegiances easy. It won't be the best album of the year; it may not even make the list. But it is the best Martyr Privates album of 2014, which actually says a hell of a lot.

Martyr Privates - You Can't Stop Progress from BSR on Vimeo.

Martyr Privates is out through Bedroom Suck and Fire Records - grab it here and here respectively.

Bringing The Wooden Shjips Back To Land (PREMIERE VIDEO)

My pink vinyl copy of San Francisco psych wizards Wooden Shjips’ new record Back To Land (out through Thrill Jockey) sits at home. It came in the day I left Brisbane for my English break. So here I am, in a Crystal Palace café, writing about the digital copy, imagining it spin in fairy floss revelry on my Aldi-sponsored turntable – it’s a great thought, because (unsurprisingly) this is a great album.

That said, not everyone will agree. There seems to be a trend of recent years that the lords of this particular rock domain – The Black Angels, Dead Meadow – have softened their droning edge, imbuing more pop and folk to their hardline regiment to the detriment of the foundations to the genre that they had forged out of relentlessness and marijuana smoke. In some ways I agree – Black Angels’ later albums haven’t had that immediate heft that the likes of Passover and Directions To See A Ghost held. Yet Back To Land has copped some criticism for being repetitive. Umm…hello? Isn’t that largely the point of these types of bands? They build an atmosphere, a ruthless rhythm with which to be taken away, never to return? It seems ridiculous that such an assertion be made about Wooden Shjips. Back To Land is an album of constants. You know that Ripley Johnson is going to drone on with his reverbed vocals; he will wail away on the guitar; Nash Whelan's sonorous organ (most likely wrapped in Alfoil); the metronomic drum/bass combo of Omar Ahsanuddin and Dusty Jermier... But the beauty of Wooden Shjips for me is their innate mastery of the groove - their incessant insistence that the groove stay well and truly in place, without much variation, but enough to evoke a shift in tedium, in motion, in space, so that the mood and atmosphere transforms without knowledge of such a change taking place. The languorous psych rock with pastoral imaginings 'These Shadows', the motorik urgency of 'In The Roses', the distorted whimsy of the excellent 'Everybody Knows' (the video of which is Premiere below!), the sunny warble of the title track - it's an album of tonal increments, of shimmering beauty, of transient glory, all with infinite replay value. Absolutely nothing to disagree with here.

Wooden Shjips played ongside labelmates Kandodo last night at SCALA in London. It was as spaced out, audio-visual and excellent as you can imagine. My musical sojourn into the haunted halls that was my time here 08-11 has begun.

Back To Land is out now - get it here.

Rebirth Of A Dead Meadow

I'm a massive fan of psychedelic rock music of all kinds, but especially the heavier, dirgier kind. I think the genesis of this may have come with discovering Led Zeppelin with my dad (who, whilst not a musical aficionado, did also introduce me to Johnny Cash, Australian Crawl, The Boss and 'Brothers In Arms' era Dire Straits, which I still have a soft spot for). The first album I can recall truly grabbing me in this mould though was The Warlocks' Rise & Fall, which was playing at the old Rockinghorse Records store PA back in 2002 (and a record very close to my heart). I've been a hapless acolyte ever since...

I haven't had the pleasure of bathing in the cavernous dirge of Jason Simon and his Dead Meadow brethren as yet - but again I have a sort of origin story for these guys too. Before wholesale piracy was passe, I remember being stuck out in the middle of nowhere in 2003 (Roma, Queensland to be exact) on my first stationed education position with nothing to do, so I delved into Amazon's then music website, CDNow. I discovered some pretty amazing things that year through that thing (Neutral Milk Hotel, Explosions In The Sky, Mono, ...And You Will Know Us By The Trail Of Dead), one of them also being Dead Meadow's third LP Shivering Kings & Others. From there it was The Black Angels, Black Mountain - further down the spiral I would go.

As the years have gone by I have drifted somewhat from the "lightening" of Dead Meadow's aesthetic - despite the excellence of Feathers (2005), 2008's Old Growth didn't grab me at all, whilst I only gave 2010's Three Kings a cursory once-over. I have to say though that new album Warble Womb is a true return to form (some people will strenuously argue that the form never dissipated - whatever). Certainly more sonorous and less kosmiche than compatriots Wooden Shjips, Dead Meadow does have the same propensity for creating a cyclical, familiar groove that permeates their records - Warble Womb is no exception. But when you have the lackadaisical, off-kilter wooze of a track like 'Mr Chesty' or a roiling magma purge like 'This Song Is Over', you can't deny the trio's inimitable power. And this might be a bit of cribbing (who doesn't in this genre?), but 'I'm Cured' sounds like the sun-blasted paisley malaise of The Warlocks - full circle.

They aren't mellowing out so much as becoming one with their mystical powers, and Warble Womb may be the moment that I fuse with them. They are still masters of the domain, after all...

Warble Womb is out through their Xemu Records label - I have no idea where to get it. Hassle them I guess? But never fear. Stream the entire record here.

Sliding Under The Sun In Under Twelve

I wasn't overly enamoured with San Fran psychers Sleepy Sun's last LP Spine Hits - it had some salubrious belters, but overall it sorely missed Rachel Fannan. The album was too much of the same thing, the dude factor overstating things. It seems that the now five-piece have taken time out to readjust, doubling down on the distortion and pulsing forth with '11:32', the first single on an upcoming 7" on Dine Alone Records. It has that heavy groove that The Black Angels do in their sleep - Bret Constantino even channels Alex Maas here - yet whilst there isn't anything inherently new, it makes for a refreshing return to form. Let's hope this strong step forward continues.

You can pre-order the 7" here.

Night Cults Of Reverberation

Saw The Black Angels at The Tivoli a couple months ago. I was only saying at the beginning of the year that the ex-theatre with the stellar sound hadn't been catering to good bands in recent years, then BAM! Dirty Three play there, Godspeed play there, My Bloody Valentine play there, and now the Texan psych giants. It was a typically amazing show, especially the light show, Alex Maas' iconic vocals and Stephanie Bailey's drumming... There is nothing about this band live that doesn't appeal to me.

So why not focus on some of the latest releases to come out of their Reverberation Appreciation Society label. The eponymous debut from Nottingham's The Cult of Dom Keller is one (albeit tiny) reason to heed my fiance's imploring to move to the land of Robin Hood - these languorous psychic jams death-march straight into my soul. From the insistent crawl of 'Swamp Heron', the laced languid spike of 'Eyes', the trance of 'Worlds' which then explodes in fury, the black dirge that is the excellent 'Black Pullet Blues' - it's no wonder they on the Black Angels label - it's like Passover all over again. You can (and really should) buy the album here.

Then there is the incumbent album from Seattle garage dwellers Night Beats, Sonic Bloom. It's been in the making for some time, and whilst I haven't heard it there is 'Outta Mind', a short stomping stab of garage psych that oozes out of the time capsule and demands to have your clothes, your boots and your motorcycle. Impassioned wailing ensues.Night Beats have always been more about the rock side of vintage psych sounds, and Sonic Bloom looks set to build on their template. Can't wait to hear it. They are touring Europe in September/October - don't miss them.

I'm Finally Riding Into The Sun

I'll be honest - I hadn't heard of Adelaide psychers Ride Into The Sun until they had been snapped up for the Austin Psych Fest earlier this year. I feel I have held a good nose for Aussie psych rock, so having missed this one is a bit embarrassing. But c'est la vie - I know them now, and this blurb about their current mini LP is more than enough to make amends before their debut LP proper hits the shelves. It shouldn't be surprising that it sounds incredible - they have had the fortune of working with Black Angels frontman Alex Maas on the tracks, and the affinity between these acts is palpable (especially on 'These Are The Ones That Shoot' and 'Hero').  So good.

You can buy the mini-LP here. Ride Into The Sun will grace Brisbane with its presence in September as part of Big Sound.

A Communal Late Night At Gaza

I thought I would end on this piece of ambient brilliance tonight. I'm physically and mentally drained, and 'Nablus' from NY's Ajnabi (the song is one of two abstract reflections/meditations on the situation in Palestine crafted after spending a time volunteering in the West Bank) has me close to tears. I had a conversation only yesterday with James, the guitarist from Violent Soho, about those moments where music moves you in such a way, and that those moments don't appear as often as you get older, or wiser, or more cynical...I don't know. I still remember when I saw the emotion on display at the 2009 Glastonbury when Blur reformed. I didn't get it, that much invested emotion into one thing... But songs like 'Nablus' pulls me back. Ive been looking over the twinkling lights of Brisbane, this plugged into my cerebral vortex, and I started to remember all the moments when it DID mean something: dancing to Mogwai by the side of the road at 4.30am, the fog starting to lift, the sun starting to rear its weary head; listening to Sigur Ros as the sunset lit up Mt Cook in New Zealand in various pastel hues; Radiohead causing my breath to catch when 'Like Spinning Plates' staggered over an awestruck Melbourne crowd. The list kept spooling forth - listening to My Father My King for the first time, or Raveonettes' Whip It On ad nauseum one heady evening, or when Source Tags & Codes first came out...then there is the first time I heard The Who's 'The Seeker', or Led Zep's 'When The Levee Breaks'; Alex Maas sing 'The Sniper', or Dad playing Born In The USA. All of these things are me, they make me who I am. And at this very moment, at this core second within the miasma of infinite seconds, I am Ajnabi too.

Ajnabi - Nablus

Hits From The Box #65 - Get Psyched

This weekend marks the 6th Austin Psych Fest, an event that I've wanted to go to since its inception...six years ago (funny, that). The closest I've come though is seeing Brissie band Dreamtime get on the bill this year. There will be a chance in the near future where I will be partaking in a weekend of excellent psych rock from around the globe, but until then, here are six bands that are on the bill, and for whatever reason I haven't posted about them yet (or for a while).

JJUUJJUU is a duo from LA that love their music long, elongated, a little weird, and very astrally inclined. They have just released their debut LP FRST (through Beyond Beyond Is Beyond - you can grab it here) which is a burnt slab of distorted retina burners. Already the band is gleaning shows with the likes of Cosmonauts and some pretty amazing festivals such as Desert Daze and Psych De Mayo, and are worthy of the high praise.

JJUUJJUU - G 4 A G

Another impressive duo dirge is Nashville's Ttotals, who have just released Spectrums Of Light 7" yesterday through Twin Lakes Records. The squalling echo that emanates on the periphery should be familiar - the tracks were mastered by Sonic Boom (Spacemen 3/Spectrum). These blue desert wanderers delve elbow deep into the dark stuff before launching forth with a crashing fury. Remember when QOTSA where kinda exciting? 'Tricks Of The Trade' holds much of that Rated R magic in its veins, whilst 'Sometimes You Just Are' plays back like a record in reverse, and is just as menacing. Get it here.

Ttotals - Tricks Of The Trade

Continuing on with the unintentional trend of psych duos, most of you will be familiar with the swirling psychedelia of Chile's The Holydrug Couple. They brought out Noctuary a couple months ago through Sacred Bones, and it's a cracker. At its core is a golden hue that emanates out of the speakers and cocoons you, a natural high of the highest supply. Everything feels out of sync, at half-pace, ethereal and enraptured in the paisley underground of 60s psych pop (they even have a song called 'Paisley' for Chrissakes!). Its lustrous, its elegant, above all its excellent. Get it here.

The Holydrug Couple - It's Dawning

Cosa Mesa's favourite junkyard bums The Growlers have just released a new album, Hung At Heart, through Everloving Records. You might remember that one of my favourite songs from the last few years is their 'Graveyard's Full'. And although there hasn't been a song on this album that grabbed me like that one did, it's a solid slice of lo-fi doo-wop skewering, shanties for the disenchanted, ballads for the murderous. I really want to see this band - and if you're in Austin this weekend, you lucky devils, you really should. Dusty Box Social twinkles from Hell. Get Hung At Heart here.

Now I mentioned Brisbane's Dreamtime were in Austin for the APF. Well they aren't the only Aussie reps, as The Black Ryder, The Laurels, and these guys will be blowing all and sundry away. Adelaide's Ride Into The Sun have an added in here - their upcoming album was recorded by none other than Black Angels frontman Alex Maas last year whilst the band toured the Harvest festivals. While we wait for that to drop with sweaty palms, here is the 7" they released to tantalise the third eye.

I bought World Music on Record Store Day for a number of reasons. Firstly, the cover art - of many vibrant colours, with W's and M's cut out of the front - was pretty spectacular. Secondly, it was in 180gm clear vinyl and look delectable. Finally (and most importantly) it's the new album from Swedish psych band Goat. This is hands down one of the best psych records I have heard in years - IN YEARS. Writing only this much is not giving it justice, but trust me, it will be in the reckoning for top honours come year's end. You can get it via Stranded Rekords here.

Goat - Diarabi
Goat - Goatman

And I thought I'd end off with The Black Angels, who themselves have just brought out their latest album Indigo Meadow. Here's the title song from it. I interviewed Alex Maas earlier in the week - more about that to come.

The Black Angels - Indigo Meadow

Happy Saturday!

Evil (Black) Angels

The countdown is T-minus one month until Austin psych lords The Black Angels release new LP Indigo Meadow, and here is another taste. 'Evil Things' is an absolute belter, a true classic Black Angels track - exploring the human conditions in the form of two people facing the plight of human existence over a decimated war-torn battlefield. Dark, heavy, a little feral - just how evil things are. There is no comparing that organ, that bass, that monster riffing, that vocal, an ominous force of nature driven by the pummeling of the drums. Bring it on.
   

Record Store Day Delivers

Its been a couple weeks since the Record Store Day of 2012 left a crater like dent in everyone's wallet, yet it is still the stuff of legends. Here in Brisbane alone we had two record stores with great live performances - Rockinghorse had the amazing Blank Realm killing, whilst Tyms pulled out the big guns with two interstate bands being trumped by the might of No Anchor and Turnpike. I myself came away with some great vinyl, including the below (although I bought two of them over the internet - it still counts though, right?)


Thrill Jockey had a few releases up their sleeve for Record Store Day, but I couldn't go past this split between Hush Arbors and Arbouretum called Aureola. It's a match made in pastoral psych folk heaven, seeing as the two men behind these projects, Keith Wood and Dave Heumann, have been honing their craft in weird and wonderful fashion for some time now. Nothing too extreme happens on this release, which may be a disappointment to some, but the quality of these tracks has us here at Sonic Masala wishing that this is just a toe in the water towards more fervent collaborations.

Hush Arbors - Up Yr Coast
Arbouretum - New Scarab

The fine folks over at Bristol label Howling Owl Records released this doozy of a 4-way split, featuring three bands that we "discovered" over the course of Sonic Masala's existence. Spectres' Sonic Youth embalmed EP was a near-classic as far as first raw efforts go; United Fruit unleashed their hard-hitting self-titled album (yeah, they are Scottish, but whatever); TOWNS has been doing its best to bewitch everyone in the mother country with an ounce of taste; and then there is Fairhorns, a band previously unheard by yours truly (although the inclusion of matt Loveridge from Beak> drew my attention). These are four quality tracks (some are brand new, others it's their first appearance in the waxen form), and perfectly showcases the bands, the label, and the burgeoning talent bubbling under Bristol's surface. (There is more than just a quiet interest in Bristol bands for me these days - but more on that later...) Buy this beautiful 12" here.

Spectres - Bug In Amber



These last two took me by surprise, as I had no idea that Toronto's Pow Wows and Austin psych giants Black Angels were even putting out 7"s for the day! The respective Killing Me and Watch Out Boy I'd Rather Be Lonely discs were sitting on their lonesome - I couldn't believe that they had been overlooked! And they are awesome as expected. See below.

Pow Wows - Killing Me

The Black Angels - Watch Out Boy

There was also a great compilation of unreleased tracks from bands off the Sacred Bones label (the Pop. 1280 song is worth the purchase price alone), but really it's all about the love of vinyl. The love of music full stop. So much good stuff, this barely scratches the surface, but gives you the best indication yet that Record Store Day is one killer event that I'm already counting down to.

Video Vacuum - Pink Mountaintops, Depth & Current, Christian Bland & the Revelators, Pontiak, White Hills

Two Video Vacuums in one week? Weird, right? But I'm not feeling terribly work-oriented, so what better way to waste time than to toke up and get psychedelic on everyone's asses? (NB: In case anyone from work reads this (IE slim to nil, but still...) I haven't really toked up. I have just rubbed my eyes really hard because I'm so tired from working outside work hours all night long, and don't want to fall asleep because I love my job sooooooo much...) Plus it's Austin Psych Fest weekend, so in lieu of not being there, here are some images that might denote what it'd be like if we were...

Let's start with Pink Mountaintops, the side project for Black Mountain's Stephen McBean (they toured recently with Dead Meadow - I missed that hot ticket, and am still paying the price...). 'While We Were Dreaming' is not a new track but thanks to the excellent Ongakubaka blog I have reacquainted myself with this great song.



Continuing the vein of epic psych bands with the colour black in their name's side projects, Black Angels axe-grinder Christian Bland has been pumping out tracks off his own bat, backed by The Revelators. Nothing new here - what it is is bloody good though.



It's certainly no secret that I love the shit out of Pontiak, the Carney brothers' ode to all things psych rock. Their latest opus Echo Ono is one of my fave albums of the year thus far, and 'Royal Colours' helps to keep the good times roll. I honestly thing that if I spent a weekend with these guys, I would end up covered in metallic paint with a devilish grin also. Just sayin.



Another SM fave, and also with a rad album under their belt in 2012, White Hills have a couple of vids floating about on the back of tracks from Frying On This Rock. Both 'You Dream You See' and 'Pads of Light' encapsulate the space spazz oddities that Dave W and Ego Sensation are, and are rocking to boot. I am a massive fan of this band, and you need to be too.





Finally I mentioned Depth & Current last year as their debut LP (through Nice People) was pretty solid. Here is this also solid video for the track 'Pick Yourself Up' - this band is a slowburner, but when it does latch hold of you they sizzle. Check it out for yourself. If you are in Norman, Oklahoma this weekend they are playing the Norman Music Festival, alongside some other ace acts like Bloody Knives, Amen Dunes, True Widow and Woods. Nice...



NOW GET BACK TO WORK!

Buffalo Killers Come In 3's

It's weird sometimes how people come together over music. I met a young lady some time back whose musical interests did not mirror mine in the slightest - Lykke Li and Joanna Newsom was the closest we came to a compromise. Lucky there were other things that worked for us... Anyway, I had just seen Buffalo Killers play a solid show at the Breeders curated ATP, and literally the following week she was playing it on her stereo. I knew I hadnt mentioned them to her, so I felt almost betrayed that she had some good taste and hadnt bothered to share with me. Turns out she loved the Black Angels too. That fact alone prolonged the relationship for a couple more months...

Anyway, before more personal asides get me into trouble, we have a new Buffalo Killers album on the loose. 3 harbours more quiet moments than psych wigouts - therefore more reminiscent of Neil Young and his spiritual brethren Crazy Horse fucking things up (think a less drunken, more thought-provoking Tonight's The Night...). Its pretty tasty stuff.

Buffalo Killers - Love Is Gold

Mesozoic Laurels

Photo courtesy of Sangye Christianson

A few months ago, Texan psych legends The Black Angels toured Australia. I went to the Brisbane show at the Hi Fi Bar. It was the third time I had seen them, and the show was notable for three reasons - The Angels' killer set (as per usual), Brian Jonestown Massacre's Joel Gion's abysmal DJ "set", and the incredibly loud shoegaze proffered by Sydney act The Laurels.

The quartet have a six-track EP out called Mesozoic that isn't overly new in terms of its shoegaze aesthetics, but what it does it does bloody well. Jesus & Mary Chain, Spacemen 3, My Bloody Valentine, even newer exponents such as Beaches and A Place To Bury Strangers (both of which they have toured with) - it's all there in spades. Shit, Swervedriver's architect Adam Franklin is a devotee! But not only is it good, it such an awesome punch, a miasma of visceral noise that permeates the tracks that excites. This is how shoegaze ought to be played.

The Laurels were just in Brisbane, supporting Seekae, but you won't have to wait long for a return tour de force. They will be here as part of next week's live music and conference extravaganza Big Sound (Sept 7-9).

The Laurels - Black Cathedral

Black Angels @ Heaven

Hey London, its about time you got out from under the rocks you're under and head down to Heaven tonight! Austin psych gods The Black Angels are playing as part of an ATP showcase, afnd will be ripping through their back catalogue, especially the delicious offerings from last year's Phosphene Dream - tix available here. Not to be missed at any cost!!!

The Black Angels - Haunting At 1300 McKinley

No Absence Of Colours Here

OK, so I posted a slightly sour review of Crash Avenue exports The Sunshine Factory - they are a good band, ok? Just weren't as strong on their release Sugar as I was hoping. Nevertheless, going back to an earlier band that Crash Avenue have been pushing, Chicago's Secret Colours put out a two song EP In The Absence a couple of weeks ago - and here you can see the Black Angels similarities - the occasional Eastern influences billowing out from behind a black curtain of languid psychedelia. 'In The Absence' is a 'in a nutshell' snapshot of what Secret Colours are all about - Beatles adulation of the Revolver era Eastern inflections and woozy pop, with touches of southern USA dirty psych squall thrown in the mix. B-side 'Carry My Soul' embraces the former more wholeheartedly, an acoustic number that warms the cockles.

Secret Colours - In The Absence

Digging For Fire = Paradise Found

I'm not gonna beat around the bush. We focus on a lot of psych bands here of all ilks and persuasions. We've had some good psych bands bring out some good straight up psych albums - Secret Colours, and Black Angels immediately comes to mind. And then there is Toronto's Quest For Fire. I'm not sure yet - I have to listen some more, its been in and out of the playlist this past week - but the more I take it in, the more I think Lights From Paradise could be the best straight up psychedelic rock album of 2010.

Massive call, right? Well, it has all the hallmarks of a classic psychedelic rock album - the ritualistic stillness of opener 'The Greatest Hits By God', to the 70s rawk-ness of 'Set Out Alone' and the trapped in amber stoned warble of 'In The Place Of A Storm'. Each song sets out with a purpose and sticks it out to its fiery end, not displaying the schizophrenic sonic shifts in tracks that some of their modern equivalents are prone to. And that isn't meant as a particular negative - many bands thrive in the altered time signature changes and shifts in tempo and velocity, but it is also somewhat refreshing to have a band show their different shadings spread out over an entire album rather than on a single song.

Quest For Fire didn't get enough praise for the brazen sun-kissed blasts of distorted waves they cut on last year's self-titled debut, but fingers crossed that Lights From Paradise does them justice, as it is awesome. And if you doubted the Toronto band's pedigree, two of them tour as the backing band for Black Mountain side-project Pink Mountaintops, whilst they are now supporting Black Mountain in a series of dates. Oh, and A Silver Mt Zion's Sophie Trudeau makes a guest appearance on the record. So yeah...buy it!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! (NB Hold yr horses - its not out until November 8 through Tee Pee Records - I'm just lucky enough to promo it! Still, get the debut, pre-order the newie, and drop out in glory).

Quest For Fire - Set Out Alone
Quest For Fire - Strange Vacation

Fading Into Black (Fading Into Black)

We have posted about Sonic Masala's itchy feet when it comes to two of the most highly anticipated albums of 2010 - Black Mountain's Wilderness Heart and The Black Angels' Phosphene Dream. Well, both are almost upon us. And I have gotten my sweatier than normal mitts on advances of both! So why not highlight this hump day with an early evaluation of both, so you can get salivating and starting saving, ok?


BLACK MOUNTAIN have grown exponentially since I heard their single 'Druganaut' way back when. Two stellar albums, incessant touring and myriad side projects later, 3rd LP Wilderness Heart falls at our feet. And it certainly starts with all of these elements meeting at the same end point - 'The Hair Song' drips of 70s Americana, whilst 'Old Fangs' roars through with that classic 70s sound that these guys have been cultivating for years. This time around there are no 17 minute wigouts (which is a massive shame in my books) and a decided shift in temperament is imminent AND evident. There is more cohesion with dual singers Stephen McBean and Amber Webber (in fact Webber takes the gamut of the good songs here), and keyboardist Jeremy Schmidt (who also is responsible for the mega awesome albumr artwork) is much more prevalent this time around. However, despite their efforts to create a more rounded album, I found myself wishing they remained a darker reimagining of their 70s childhood heroes. As it stands, they teeter on the edge of caricature here, therefore making Wilderness Heart a decent album that doesnt resonate as much as it should. (That said, Im still a massive fan and want to see how these tracks relate live, and where they go to next...)


THE BLACK ANGELS have also impressed over the years, also with their hard work and 2 LPs carving a roughly hewn path through the psychedelic wilderness. And whilst Phosphene Dream certainly rears a more nostalgic head, the Austin five piece maintain their bombast and groove to ensure that old fans will not feel led astray, whilst opening up a new avenue on which they can obliterate in a sun-drenched haze. Leading with 'Bad Vibrations', The Black Angels show intent from the opening seconds, all sinister and seductive without showing its hand...before whipping out five hundred guitars and sending your soul to the seventh level of Hell. (Its a good song). And the album itself continues in such a fashion, but with an uncharacteristic twist or two - namely the conciseness of the tracks and the extenuation of ideas via expansive time signatures and instrument shake ups. It all combines to create an amazing album rich with ideas, mood, tone, and awesome, awesome otherness of ROCK, all ties together by Alex Maas' vocal delivery. Nevertheless, The Black Angels take a step back further than Black Mountain when looking back, as penultimate track 'Telephone' evokes more 60s pop a la The Kinks or the Yardbirds in their tale of being ditched - and yet this nibble of a retro track (their shortest ever at less than 2 minutes) shouldnt be on here - its a great song, but is a B-side all over, especially with the evocative 'True Believers' and gloomy bluesy 'The Sniper' bookending it. That said, it, unlike some of Wilderness Heart, lived up to my much heightened expectations, and has been a constant on the playlist for the past few days and isnt likely to be budged soon.

So all in all, we have been delivered unto evil by two black and denim clad psych warriors this month, and you could do a multitude of worse things than bust your carefully plotted budget by purchasing these albums, then toss your painstakingly plotted to-do post-its in the bin, clap your headphones firmly on, and disappear for a week or more. Don't say we didn't warn you...or give you an almighty heads up.

Wilderness Heart is out on Tuesday through Jagjaguwar, whilst Phosphene Dreams (out through Blue Horizon) will burn a hole in your pockets and skull on Monday. (NB - Both are produced by Dave Sardy, so they actually sound complementary when partnered in tandem). And dont forget their mammoth gig together at Shepherds Bush on October 7...

Black Mountain - Radiant Hearts

The Black Angels - River Of Blood

Check out our previous posts on these albums here, here, here and here.

Angelic Telephonics

The Black Angels' 3rd LP Phosphene Dream gets closer to hitting, and after the delectable first taster 'Bad Vibrations' we get another little morsel. 'Telephone' is toned down, a short spike of woozy frontierist psych that only heightens the anticipation. These guys are promising something goddamned special this September, that's for sure...

The Black Angels - Telephone

And to add some more heat for the dream dual gig with Black Mountain at Shepherds Bush Empire in October, here's their take on Black Mountain's 'No Satisfaction' - fuck yeah!

The Black Angels - No Satisfaction (Black Mountain cover)

Black Mountain Let Down Their Hair

Another cut off Black Mountain's forthcoming LP Wilderness Heart, entitled 'The Hair Song'. I have a feeling there will be a great number of people who wont enjoy this one - this has much more of the fuzzy country rock vibe than the psychedelia that the Canadians are more reknowned for. Maybe Lightning Dust and Pink Mountaintops, the band's other projects, are enforcing themselves more wholeheartedly on this trip? Anyway, some one mentioned The Black Crowes when I played this for em, and whilst that is somewhat accurate, I dont think it is a derogatory thing. Anyway, I think its rollicking, and here it is for you to make your own call. Wilderness Heart comes out in September via Jagjaguwar. And don't forget the gig featuring Black Mountain and the Black Angels in October!!!

Black Mountain - The Hair Song