Å - Å

Self-released

I must have received this album almost a year ago for a review but somehow forgotten about it, so my apologies... Of course I must say that a band called Å that has a self-titled album without any mention of a label is pretty hard to google down as well... But the name means stream/river in Swedish, so it's actually a pretty cool name. Anyway, now that I remembered this great album again and even found the band on internet, let's get to business. Å is a progressive, psychedelic and experimental rock/folk group from the woods of Uppsala, Sweden, and this is their first album. Like very often in Sweden, there are links to some other cool contempary Swedish psych acts like Me and My Kites, and a very strong 70s vibe.

The album has eleven tracks. The band starts off with the at first peaceful, under-three minute "Hijazz". It's almost instrumental, hypnotic stuff with rather heavy guitar sound and mystical sounding horns. The track turns directly into "Jag Vill" and things get more progressive and we get some great, melodic vocals as well. There's some wild, heavy jamming later on... "Änglarna Dansar" begins in a very mellow way, there's also some keyboards on this one and more saxophone by legendary Swedish musician Roland Kejser who's been playing since the late 60s (Arbete & Fritid etc.) and plays on the whole album. On "Joelbitar" the band gets more psychedelic and rocks out. This is the longest track at 8:13 and reminds me of the early 70s Swedish heavy prog/psych rock, like actually most of the album. "Soluppgung" has a more folky vibe at first but gets deeper and pretty hallucinatory and I really like this one. "Nej Se Det Snöar" is a bit more experimental but heavy piece, "Måndåren" a slow, bluesy number that also has Swedish folk vibes. The B side begins with the soft sounds of "Du Gamla". "Du Fria" is more powerful stuff again, also having some reggae elements. Kejser's great playing adds lots of additional layers as always. One of my favourites is the hypnotic "Tågfärd" that sounds like an improvisational jam. It turns into classic Swedish lullaby "Trollmors Vaggsång" that first gets heavier and then jazzier and somehow fits in really well. What a cool way to end a great album! If I have understood correctly, this vinyl album is a limited edition of just 200 copies but it still seems to be available from the band's Bandcamp site so hurry up! We can also expect some new stuff by Å hopefully next year.

www.facebook.com/swedishstream

AURAL INNOVATIONS ANNOUNCEMENT

(Some sad news from Jerry at Aural Innovations... Please let me know if you have ideas how I could continue my Astral Visions Radio Show that Jerry hosted?)



After EIGHTEEN years of continuous publication I have decided to bring Aural Innovations to a close.

I have not lost interest. I have not gotten bored. In 2007 I began another research and writing project, which I’ll apologize for being vague about, that I made considerable headway with through about 2010, at which point I realized I was over my head in terms of available time to work on it. In recent months it’s been gnawing at me, and increasingly so to the point where I’ve decided it’s time to move on. Actually the decision got easy once I realized that I should consider it a luxury when the worst problems I have in this world are agonizing over which of my passions I want to prioritize.

The good news is that due to the generosity of Brian Feather at Cleveland Hosted the Aural Innovations web site will remain, though in a static, non-updatable form. That means all the reviews, articles and interviews will remain, as will the Robert Calvert, Stone Premonitions and Thru Black Holes Band sites. The radio shows will be removed, though I don’t consider them as significant as the written material from an archival standpoint.

The web site goes static the first week of March. I will spend between now and then clearing out the reviews backlog and doing my best to spread the word to bands and labels that they should remove me from their promo lists. What they should NOT do is remove me from their news/announcement lists. I am STILL interested in keeping up with new releases!

It’s been a hell of a ride. I’ve been exposed to an amazing amount of music, made a lot of great friends, and even got to meet a fair number of you in person. I’m proud that Aural Innovations lasted so much longer than most web sites. Life is good…

I can’t close without sending out HUGE thanks to the staffers who made Aural Innovations possible, especially during the “issues” years: Keith Henderson, Scott Heller, Christian Mumford, Jeff Fitzgerald, the late great Doug “Dr Synth” Walker, Roger Neville-Neil, Adam Strider, Chuck Rosenberg, Charles Van de Kree, Mike Reed, Carlton Crutcher, Albert Pollard, Pat Albertson, Santtu Laakso, and may hell consume me for anyone I’ve left out.

Jerry Kranitz

Electric Moon - Flaming Lake

Sulatron Records (st 1104 / st 1511)

Okay, another reissue from Sulatron Records from Germany and this time by Dave and Lulu's own band Electric Moon. Flaming Lake was originally released on CD-R (250 copies) in early 2011 and soon after that on 2LP (500 copies).  This great live album has been a real favourite among the fans and due to the limited editions has became rather sought after so now it was time to put it on proper CD as well as press another 500 LP's, this time on blue vinyl.


Although Flaming Lake is a live album the sound is excellent. By the time this was recorded the instrumental trio had progressed a lot in their live jams and it seems to me that Dave and Lulu had recently got some new gizmos to their effect collections since the sonic world was more varied and even more psychedelic than before! In addition, Lulu in particular plays more fluently than before which is nice.

Flaming Lake includes four long jams that were recorded in Battenberg on 2nd July 2011. ”The Cosmic Creator” truly leads us to the Great Psychedelic Creator and what a journey this is! As usual, the band starts off slowly creating cosmic moods but later on they rock much harder. Amazing! The psychedelic “Flaming Lake” doesn’t get that heavy than the previous track but rocks out nicely in the middle. The album’s longest jam is the closer to 24-minute-long ”Lost and Found Souls” that has some Eastern, mystical vibes and even gets close to some doom metal bands. But don’t worry freaks: this still is a really hypnotic, cosmic and mind-expanding jam! ”Burning Battenberg” is a bit lighter, spacey going including for example some delay guitar but later on it gets closer to psychedelic stoner rock. On this track Philipp from Daturana replaces Alex on drums and he does a great job as well. The whole album is full of superb stuff and this really is one of the best live releases by the band so far! It's really cool that this stuff is now available again for those who missed it the first time around.

www.electricmoon.de

Sun Dial - Mind Control

Sulatron Records (st 1510)

This is the first CD issue of the latest studio album by U.K. neo-psych rock legends Sun Dial. Mind Control was originally released in 2012 on vinyl only and limited to 500 copies, so I guess this was in order. I reviewed the album back in 2012 so I'm using some of that now being a lazy bastard...

The UK based Sun Dial was formed in the beginning of the 90s and is a great example of prime neo-psychedelia. Their 1990 debut Other Way Out is one of the most legendary releases in this genre. The band led by guitarist/singer Gary Ramon made several other great albums in the first half of the 90’s before fading out after the 1995 album Acid Yantra. You can read more of their history from the interview I did with Gary in 2003, for example. In the 00s this band that is one of my favourites luckily started to rise from the dead and I think that especially Zen for Sale (2003) was a very good album. The untitled official studio album from 2010 on the other hand was a sort of disappointment for some of the fans since the band seemed to be trying to reach the metal audience which meant less psychedelia. But that album still has its moments! It’s also worthwhile to get at least some of the compilations and reissues with bonus tracks that have been coming out during the recent years.

Now Sun Dial has very consciously returned to the moods of their first album since the producer is Hugo Chavez-Smith who also produced Other Way Out, their early record label Tangerine has been resurrected to release Mind Control and the music is maybe even more mind-expanding than ever! Recorded in 2011-2012, (the original) Mind Control includes six tracks and I really like them all. The over nine-minute “Mountain of Fire & Miracles” is very hypnotic, druggy and mystical stuff that somehow brings to mind the brilliant Inside the Acid Temple album by Liquid Sound Company. Gary’s voice sounds really good. What an excellent and psychedelic track! The instrumental “Radiation” starts off peacefully and there’s also some flute sounds like on the debut album. Soon the groovy drum beat joins in and then also some electronic soundscapes appear and finally some heavier electric guitar. Great! “Burned In” is a short, experimental sound collage and then Sun Dial goes for a Neu! styled kraut rock jam on the long, instrumental title track “Mind Control”! This is another one of my favourites on the album and is guaranteed to make you feel dizzy in the head. ”Last Rays of the Sun” is a beautiful, tranquil and atmospheric track that doesn’t have any vocals either. ”In Every Dream Home a Heartache” begins acoustically in the same style than many of the songs on their recent semiofficial CD-R EP’s. The chord progression reminds me of Hawkwind’s “Assault & Battery” and there is also some violin in there. Gary’s singing is not that on-your-face but still very efficient. Right in the middle the track starts to move in a heavier manner and works very well. We still get to hear Gary’s wah guitar soloing too which is always nice...

What's special for this CD reissue are the two previously unreleased bonus tracks at the end! "Seven Pointed Star (Short Version)" and "World Within You" were both spawn from the same recording sessions than the six tracks on the original LP. The first one is a hypnotic, apocalyctic instrumental that would suit perfectly a Satanic horror movie. The other one is a slow, hazy psych rock song with some signature fuzz guitar work by Mr. Ramon as well as floating flute. A cool, otherwordly atmosphere to end this very nice reissue that's worth getting even if you have the LP already. It's also great to know that the band have been working hard on a brand-new album so beware...

www.facebook.com/Sun-Dial-44127734642

The best albums in 2015!

Top Ten Finnish albums (in alphabetical order):

Black Lizard - Solarize
Circle - Pharaoh Overlord
Dark Buddha Rising - Inversum
Death Hawks -  Sun Future Moon
Domovoyd - S/T
Galacticka - S/T
Sammal - Myrskyvaroitus
Seremonia -  Kristalliarkki
Tuliterä - Tulikaste
Tähtiportti - S/T



Top Twenty Foreign albums (in alphabetical order):

The Bevis Frond - Example 22
Carlton Melton - Out to Sea
Cranium Pie - Mechanisms Part Two
Dungen - Allas Sak
Electric Moon - Theory of Mind
Giöbia - Magnifier
Golden Void - Berkana
Hills - Frid
Jacco Gardner - Hypnophobia
Kosmischer Läufer - The Secret Cosmic Music Of The East German Olympic Program 1972-83 - Volume Three
Lamp of the Universe - The Inner Light of Revelation
Monster Magnet - Cobras and Fire (The Mastermind Redux)
Ozric Tentacles - Technicians of the Sacred
Polska Radio One - Early Broadcasts
Sendelica - Anima Mundi
Space Invaders - Dreadnaught
Uncle Acid and the Deadbeats - The Night Creeper
White Manna - Pan
Zone Six - Love Monster
Øresund Space Collective - Different Creatures

I made a rule of not including any live albums or compilations. It sure was a grear year what comes to music!

Happy holidaze everyone...

The Honey Pot - Lisa Dreams / Into the Deep 7" / Inside the Whale

Mega Dodo Records (MEGA2 / DODOLP/CD14)

The Honey Pot is an English psych rock/pop band formed in 2012 in Devon. They have a deep love for psych rock from the late 60s and you can hear that in their wonderful music. Their sound has both U.S. West Coast vibes as well as strong British elements, and bands like The Yardbirds, The Doors, The Small Faces, Jefferson Airplane, Donovan, The Kinks, The Flaming Groovies, Spirit, The Hollies, The Jeff Beck Group, Love, Kevin Ayers and The Rolling Stones have been mentioned as their influences. I first heard about them when their wonderful female singer Crystal Jacqueline released a solo 7" on Fruits de Mer and soon after that her debut solo album on Mega Dodo. She has now also released another solo album and they both are excellent. While Crystal's solo stuff is mostly more acid folky psych, The Honey Pot is more rock and pop oriented, but still usually rather gentle and very pleasant stuff. They released their first album To the Edge of the World in 2012 on Psychecandy Records, and there is also a split double 7" with Crystal Jacqueline with some great cover tracks on Fruits de Mer that I like very much. This stuff has also been re-released on Mega Dodo with bonus tracks on CD as Electronic Memory (sold out...).

Lisa Dreams / Into the Deep 7" is the first edition in Mega Dodo's singles club that will also feature Finland's Octopus Syng among other superb artists. If I have understood correctly, it's also possible to purchase individual singles but the numbers are very limited. The A-side is a simple, cheery, melodic and catchy pop psych treat that only ends too fast. Great lead vocals by Crystal. "Into the Deep" is a slower, longer and sort of bluesy number that has male lead vocals and a stronger, more energetic chorus. I'm reminded of Spirit a bit, I think, not bad at all! This marvelous 7" should be out in January and I recommend you to preorder it right away.

The full-length album Inside the Whale includes nine previously unreleased original compositions in 40 minutes and will be released on LP and very special 3CD set. Both formats will be ultra limited, how ever, so hurry up if you don't want to settle for the digital download. All the songs are just amazing, but I'll try to find a few highlights. The opener "The Outskirts of Your Mind" is definitely one of them. If you like the sunny, trippy vibe of the 80s UK Festival Scene faves The Magic Mushroom Band you will love this as well. I'm also reminded of The Byrds etc., just great melodic psych rock/pop stuff. The longest track is the title track that also has flute and more prog/Canterbury mood. Excellent! "Psychedelic Circles" is a very cool, a bit whimsical track with some weird backwards guitar & other psych effects. Some of the tracks are rather laid-back and dreamy, like the beautiful "Walking on Eggshells". There are also some more folk vibes towards the end. All in all, Inside the Whale is a wonderful, atmospheric and deeply emotional album that works and sounds really well as a whole. A future psych classic for sure!

www.facebook.com/thehoneypotband

Jack Ellister - Tune Up Your Ministers and Start Transmission from Pool Holes to Class O Hypergiants

Fruits de Mer (Friends of the Fish 5)

I was first introduced to the very nice and talented psych rock/folk musician and singer Jack Ellister when he sent me a CD by his psych rock band Yordan Orchestra for a review about five years ago. Jack (real name Jacek Janiszewski) is originally from Poland, but was living in Holland for a long time. He's been going solo for some time now releasing a few 7" singles and contributing on many compilations on Fruits de Mer Records and also playing quite a lot of solo gigs including one at Crabstock on Ice festival in Helsinki. Jack has now relocated in London and seems to be doing great. Tune Up Your Ministers and Start Transmission from Pool Holes to Class O Hypergiants is his first full-length solo album and features nine songs in 32 minutes. Jack plays guitars, synthesizers, percussion, violin, mouth harp and sings lead vocals being helped by some friends on drums, bass, backing vocals, horns, piano etc.


The album starts off with the rather hard rocking, 60s styled psych rock number "The Man with the Biochopper" that brings to mind early Pink Floyd among others. We have already hear this song on his first solo single, but this sounds like a new, fresh version, and I love it. "The Sun Sends Me Hails, Victory, Power, Peace and Shelter" has a more folky vibe but grows on its way. "Saddle Up the Horse" sounds a bit like early David Bowie or Tyrannosaurus Rex and also has lots of acoustic guitar as well as sax and piano. A rather nice song! "Calm Adapter" is minimal, atmospheric, experimental and very peaceful piece to end the A side. "Great Esmeralda" is one of Jack's best and most effective songs with a superb chorus and a definitive highlight on the album. "Curator" is a short, weird, trippy and experimental piece a bit in The Beatles style, and then comes the beautiful, melancholic acoustic psych folk masterpiece "Wishmachine" that I really like a lot. "Old South" is one of the most experimental pieces on the album, and sounds like an old steam train going very slow on a hazy, mysterious landscape. The album is finished with the pretty and psychedelic, organ driven "A Hunter Needs a Gun" that again remains me of early Pink Floyd and has an epic ending. What a great song and a perfect way to end the album, I'm in awe. I'm afraid it might be impossible to get a copy of the first LP pressing that is due out soon since there will be only 111 copies made, but I get the album will be available in other formats as well.

www.jackellister.com

Sula Bassana - Shipwrecked

Sulatron Records (st1602 / st1602-2)

This time David Schmidt aka Sula Bassana has gone to the more electronic side of space/kraut/psych music again. Shipwrecked is his latest solo album and it differs quite a lot from his latest, more rock oriented studio solo album masterpiece Dark Days released in 2012. Of course having an electronic beat on the new LP/CD doesn't make the music any less hypnotic, psychedelic or spacey. In addition to electronics, lots of vintage instrumentation (mainly synthesizers) is also used. This, actually, is very trance-inducing, hallucinatory, kosmische and spacey electronic krautrock.

Shipwrecked includes six instrumental (apart from some sampled spoken word) tracks that vary in length from just under three to almost eleven minutes. The opener, the pulsating, hypnotic and trippy "Moonbase Alpha Alpha" is a very suitable soundtrack for astronauts and you can feel the space ship taking off and flying though space. Wow, I love this vibe! The longest piece "Shushi Express" is another great hypnotic, motorik and spacey number that puts you in trance. The slower "No Time : No Eternity" chills things down in a cool way. I'm reminded of Helios Creed's Dark Matter ambient project a bit. "Planeta Bur" is a nine-minute psychedelic, electronic space journey and also rather peaceful stuff. Great! The most relaxing pieces are the last two: the beautiful, floating and laid-back title track "Shipwrecked" that also has some soothing strings sounds (Mellotron?) and the shortest track "No Way" that has nice organ and very ambient atmosphere. Personally I usually prefer the more "rocking" output of Sula Bassana, but he really knows how to make this kind of electronic stuff interesting and trippy too and I must say I enjoy this album enormously. This will be out in February, make sure you'll get a copy!

www.sulabassana.de

The Grand Astoria - The Mighty Few

FireStorm Production / Setalight / Robust Fellow / Voron Nest (FSP 0915 / 697)

The Grand Astoria from St. Petersburg, Russia have for sure produced their most ambitious album so far. The Mighty Few includes just two massively long tracks that feature everything from heavy, doomy stoner rock through prog rock/metal, psych rock, space rock, hard rock, heavy metal all the way to folk, funk, reggae, experimental and free jazz! The instrumentation includes guitars, flute, synths, bass, electric and acoustic pianos, clarinet, trumpet, saxophone, percussion, drums and then some... Even a choir! The CD and vinyl versions differ a bit, since the CD has two separate tracks "Curse of the Ninth" (28:19) and "The Siege" (21:19) and the vinyl three: A1 "Curse of the Ninth (pt 1)" (22:39), B1 "Curse of the Ninth (pt 2)" (5:28) and B2 "The Siege (Vinyl Edit)" (15:48), so the CD buyers get a little bit over five minutes' worth of more music.

Two long tracks that have some much different stuff in them might not sound that easy for the listener to absorb, and this really isn't an easy-listening experience. Having said that, you get sucked into the music rather easily, and time just flies by. I especially adore the way "Curse of the Ninth" develops and takes you on an amazing journey through space and weird landscapes.  I think fans of Porcupine Tree, Steven Wilson, Devin Townsend, King Crimson, Dream Theater, Liquid Tension Experiment etc. will love this album. The vocals are now better than ever, and the playing and sound quality is top-notch. It would be interesting to see how they perform these two mega tracks live since the studio versions feature 10 persons... Check this out!

www.facebook.com/TheGrandAstoria

Bread and Circus - Born Again Again

SlowBurn Records (SBR 061)

  








Bread and Circus is an American indie rock band with some punk and just enough psych vibes for me to include this review on my psych blog. Another reason of course is that this CD was released on SlowBurn Records, who have given us great albums by Black Sun Ensemble and Sun Zoom Spark etc. and it also features several psych rock musicians from the Tucson scene. The promo sheet compares this album to Jayhawks (never heard them...), Peter Green from Fleetwood Mac and Blue Cheer, and maybe they know they are talking about. Personally I like the fact that some songs (and great guitar solos!) remind me of British indie psych heroes The Bevis Frond and maybe also Neil Young, especially the last, rather heavy and great track "Tired". Some of the songs and melodies also bring to mind some Irish folk/indie rock acts and well as country music. Highlights for me are the energetic opener "Black Wing Bird" that has plenty of psychy, fuzzy guitar work and the slow, bluesy and melancholic ballad "You Were in Love". "Clumberland Farms" is pretty straight forward punk, and I also like the mid-tempo and bit darker "Scarecrow". This is not the kind of music that I usually listen to, but I still like it.

www.breadandcircusmusic.com

Window Blinds - Lobotomil

Ski Star Productions

This latest release by Window Blinds was released already a year ago, so sorry for the delay. The duo is formed by Petri Parkkali (Finland) and Thomas Schärer (Germany), and they make very dark, strange, depressive and mostly electronic music that makes you feel heavily sedated or, indeed, lobotomized. Whether you like the feeling or not, is up to you... You can check my review of their first release over here.

This digital-only (well, I got a promo CD-R here), almost totally instrumental release includes 11 tracks in 35 minutes, so most of the pieces are relatively short. The second longest track "Finistère (Check-in)" starts off the album in very dark and Gothic mode. This one also has depressive vocals. There is more melody towards the end that keeps things interesting. I'm actually reminded of some of the most electronic and gloomiest Post Romantic stuff from the 80s, which is actually quite nice. The instrumental "Suicide Tourism" is a bit more experimental and weird, but melancholic stuff. The title track is not just as dark, somehow an image of lo-fi Atari Kraftwerk gone weird comes to mind, and the same goes for some other pieces as well. There are a couple of very short experimental tracks, and some tracks have also piano in addition to the odd soundscapes and electronic experimentation. The longest piece is the 8-minute "Sister Ruth" that's rather odd and out-there. I really can't get a grip of it or most of the other tracks, but maybe that's just how they wanted. I can't say that this is exactly the kind of music that I enjoy to hear, but I'm sure there are people who enjoy this stuff very much.

 windowblinds.bandcamp.com

 

Moonwagon - The Rule of Three

Presence Records (precd 050)

Finnish progressive/space rock band Moonwagon seems to get into a bit more jazz/rock fusion and less space/psych direction on their new, third album. Synth wizard Ami Hassinen (Nemesis) is out of the band leaving just the trio of Janne Ylikorpi (bass, keyboards, bass pedals), Joni Tiala (acoustic & electric guitars, keyboards, dulcimer, mandolin, voice, backing vocals on "Run to the Sun") and Jani Korpi (drums & percussion, acoustic guitar, voice, lead vocals on "Run to the Sun"). In addition to the late 70s/early 80s styled prog/jazz fusion there are also more acoustic elements on several songs giving some folk vibes.

The album starts off with the rather progressive "The Infinite Pattern" that sounds to me like Rush or latter day King Crimson, although totally instrumental, like rest of the album apart from "Run to the Sun". On "Forgotten by Time" the bass is playing an important role, and this brings to mind some 70s/80s rock/jazz fusion albums that I have gotten rid of years ago. When the track starts to roll it gets better, and I'm reminded of Wigwam. The bass solo sounds like Pekka Pohjola or something, not bad at all! "Fresh Avocados" is a short, cheery, acoustic-driven piece that only lasts for a little over two minutes. "Run to the Sun" has vocals too, which if I remember right is the first time for Moonwagon. This is a rather up-tempo, sunny and happy song and has some cool synth sounds and a nice guitar solo. Actually this brings to mind the 80s U.K. free festival scene heroes The Magic Mushroom Band, but I doubt that the Moonwagon guys have actually ever listened to them. "Skylines at Night" is a very nice melodic progressive hard rock piece with some great atmospheres and playing. The album is finished with the almost 17-minute "The Journey Back Home" that has a very peaceful beginning. Then there's some soulful, bluesy going, and then things get more progressive and interesting. Around the nine-minute marker the track gets heavier and starts to rock out, very nice! Then there's some jammy, jazzy stuff, and things cool down until the very end where there is a more powerful part again. Maybe the highlight for me! Warmly recommended to fans of progressive rock with some fusion and space elements.

www.facebook.com/Moonwagonband

Chef Menteur: III

Sunrise Ocean Bender Records (SOB004)

Chef Menteur is a psychedelic space/art/prog/post/shoegazer/drone/ambient rock band from New Orleans, and they have been putting out albums for ten years now. This triple CD-R release is the first one that I've heard, and it's a pretty interesting package. This limited edition, professionally printed 3CD-R in cool cardboard cover includes a re-release of their 2012 2LP East of the Sun & West of the Moon, the unreleased companion album North Tomorrow & South of Yesterday from the same sessions, and their very limited 2014 tape Force Majeure.

So the first disc includes all the 12 tracks from the 2LP East of the Sun & West of the Moon. The music differs from hard-rocking sonic assaults through ambient, atmospheric soundscapes to minimal, experimental and sometimes electronic experiments, and it can all happen even within one track. There's stuff to like for post rock fans, prog maniacs, space heads as well as those who dig modern indie rock. No matter if your favourite band is Radiohead, Lumerians or GSY!BE, you will enjoy this. The 69-minute North Tomorrow & South of Yesterday disc apparently has stuff that was recorded at the same time as East of the Sun & West of the Moon but not included on that one for what ever reason. Personally I think that most of the 15 tracks don't sound like left-overs but have distinct ideas, but there are also many very short experimental pieces that maybe don't really go anywhere special. But the best pieces, like the chilled-out tracks "Farfisa Duo Raga" and "Terpsichore (Long Version)" or the epic "The Long Stand (Parts I & II)" are really cool. Force Majeure is much shorter at 32 minutes, and only includes five tracks. "Færoe" is a very laid-back ambient piece, "Pyramid Scheme" a funky psych rock track you can dance to, and "Death Wraith 2000" a pretty heavy space rock blast. "Surface Tension" is at first more peaceful stuff but it starts to rock later on. "Immense Dimension" is a rhythmical and exciting track that also has some great melodies and more tranquil, experimental elements. Wow! This band can do some much different stuff that I can only be amazed. Somehow it all still stays together. This is a very thorough and interesting introduction to this unique and varies group, and a must have for their fans of course.

www.chefmenteur.org

Ole Lukkøye: Dyatly

Trail Records ‎(TR-016)

Russian's own  shamanistic, ethnic world/psych/electro masters Ole Lukkøye have been around for over twenty years now, but this is their first new studio album in nine years. It's been five years since their latest compilation Petroglyphs as well, so I'm happy that they have something new to offer now. On this new album they wanted to keep the sound pretty simple and close to the live experience. So most of the music was recorded live in studio, just some percussion and lead vocals were dubbed. They have also used cool studio wizardy to create a really spacey, psychedelic, tribal and hypnotic result. I fell in love with the band in 2000 when they released Crystal Crow-Bar on Klangbad and was really happy to find a copy of their debut album on vinyl shortly after that.

There are only five tracks on this 67-minute CD. Four of them are pretty extended, and in the 14-18-minute range. The overall vibe on the album is deep, trance-inducing and mind-altering as always, but this time there is more room for psychy effects which is great. The sound is created with excellent female female vocal improvisation, male vocals, keyboards, guitar, programming, gluckophone, bassoon and different kinds of percussion etc. as well as those spacey soundboard effects. The experience is really other-worldly, and the listener feels like being transported into some mysterious, magical and ancient place. I really like the fist track "Kommuna Ra" that starts off with something that sounds like wolf's howling. It's a hypnotic, very percussive and dreamy piece with lots of spacey swooshes, bleeps and other trippy effects. The title track "Dyatly (Woodpeckers)" is a rather relaxed and mellow affair, but grows a bit along the journey. And what a journey it is... "Bela Dama" has a bit more energetic beat you can dance to which reminds me of Ozric Tentacles a bit. "Just Wind" is a little more electronic in nature also including some pulsating sequencers. The last track "Veni, Vidi, Vici" is the shortest at 3:53 and it's a very chilled-out, ambient and peaceful piece. In summary, this is an excellent piece of shamanistic world/folk/psych/trance music that deserves to be heard all around the globe.

www.olelukkoye.ru/eng/indexeng.htm

Paradox One: This Fragile Peace

Stone Premonitions (SPCD 080)

Paradox One was formed by vocalist/multi-instrumentalist Phil Jackson from U.K., and he released four albums on his own before inviting other people to join in his project. On This Fragile Peace he is helped by Stone Premonitions crew members John Simms (Clear Blue Sky etc.) on vocals, guitars, bass & programming, Maxine Marten (Clear Blue Sky etc.) on vocals, Paddi (Cencus of Hallucinations etc.) on drums and percussion and Tim Jones (Cencus of Hallucinations etc.) on bass guitar. This is a very laid-back, sometimes jazzy, sometimes experimental and ambient prog rock album including nine tracks in 39 minutes. The sound is crystal clear and very digital like, so this is not for those who want their prog rock analogue and raw. I find this album very suitable for starting your morning with, it has this chilled-out, relaxing and beautiful vibe and the sounds and vocals just sooth your spirit and soul in a very nice way. Only the last track "The Unknown Unknows" rocks out a bit more and gets your energy levels up. All in all, a very nice, spacey and a bit psychedelic album with cool synth sounds and talented playing by everybody. Check it out!

aural-innovations.com/stonepremonitions/bands/paradoxone

Theodor Bastard: Oikoumene / Vetvi

Dance Macabre Records / Theo Records (005)

Theodor Bastard is a Russian Ethnic folk/psych/ambient/Gothic/Electronic/World music group from St. Petersburg. They have been releasing CD's from the beginning of the millennia, and just recently sent me a couple of their latest releases. I had never heard of them before, but got to confess that I like their hypnotic, mystical sounding music that combines ancient acoustic instruments and folk music vibes with modern sounds. There's everything from traditional folk music, trip hop and rock fusion in their music. I'm often reminded of Dead Can Dance or Theodor Bastard's fellow countrymen Ole Lukkøye, also from St. Petersburg.

Oikoumene was originally released in 2012 in Russia, but I got a German reissue from 2013. The CD includes 12 tracks in 64 minutes. There's also a highly limited (200 copies) LP version with two less tracks out there. One of my favourite tracks is the quite Ethnic sounding opener "Takaya Mija". I love the female singer's voice and the percussion and other instrumentation that makes this sounds very tribal. "Gerda" has more modern instrumentation like keyboards and electric guitar making it sound more like Mountain of One or even Pink Floyd with its great melodies, another highlight. Some of the songs are much more minimal and acoustic/folky in nature and also feature male vocals, some bring to mind Massive Attack with trippy beats. I also really like the rather dark, Dead Can Dance like title track and the mystical "Anubis". The last track "Benga (Fun-Da-Mental Version)" is a remix by Aki Nawaz and more experimental, rhytmic and electronic sounding but pretty interesting too. A very cool album!

The new album Vetvi is a collector's edition in very nice digipak (with text in Russian) inside a slip case (with texts in English). It also includes a booklet (in Russia and English). The CD lasts 49 minutes and includes ten tracks. The album starts off with the very peaceful and melancholic "Umbraya Erze" that only has acoustic instruments (like bone flute, Siberian violin, hurdy-gurdy, percussion), lead vocals and a choir. "Vetvi" also has electronic beats, synths & keyboards in addition to strings etc. "Salameika" is another slow, soulful song at first, but it grows when the modern Ethnic rock beat is added in the middle. The beautiful "Kukusha" starts off in ambient mode, but soon a cool, trip hop styled beat is added. I really like the vibe on this one. On "Aion" the band plays a bit harder rocking psych rock and I like that side of them as well! A great track. "Niti" is rather minimal stuff, and the same goes for the beginning of "Veter" that grows into A Mountain of One like hypnotic groove. "Yaard"has for example dulcimer, cello and didgeridoo on top of modern electronics and and female vocal melodies are amazing as always. The slow and mesmerizing "Beliy Gorod" has an ancient, mysterious vibe to it, and so does the last track "Colodec", although there is also some programming. Another great album, and this band is definitely worth checking out if you like deep, dark, percussive, Ethnic, acoustic/electronic fusion music with some psychedelic vibes, great musicianship and amazing vocals.

theodorbastard.com

 

 

The Band Who's Name Is a Symbol: Masters of the Mole Hill

Birdman Sound Records (BS016)

I must admit, that although The Band Who's Name Is a Symbol from Ottawa, Ontario, Canada, have been around since 2008 and released even nine vinyl only albums (the way to go!), this latest release is the first that I've heard. Their instrumental, hard-rocking and pretty raw and punky music is a cool mix of space rock, krautrock and improvisation.The album (or at least the digital download promo) sounds pretty much is was recorded at a rehearsal space or something, so don't expect super high quality which is for pussies anyway. I'm not saying the album sounds bad, just pretty rough and raw which matches perfectly with the vibe. I think the band is now a six-piece, and I can hear mostly guitars (also solos!), bass, drums but there are also some keyboars/synthesizers in there. The more floating pieces are the experimental opener "Underworld" and especially the last, long and at first almost ambient, then sort or tribal track "Ice Rings". A bit slower "Darkness" sounds like a heavier version of Amon Düül II and has more keyboards. Most of the tracks are rather energetic and up-beat and rock hard. For fans of raw, hard-hitting psychedelic rock!

www.facebook.com/TBWNIS

Hotlist

Hills - Live at Daemonens Port 2LP

The Oscillation - Beyond the Mirror (Rare and Unreleased Tracks) LP
3rd Ear Experience - Peacock Black 2LP
Manilla Road - The Blessed Curse 2LP
Nik Turner​ - Space Fusion Odyssey LP
Steve Hillage - Madison Square Garden 1977 LP
Hawkwind - Live at Astoria 2LP
Hawkwind - Distant Horizons 2LP
E-Musik Gruppe Lux Ohr / Hisko Detria - Janseits Der Mauer Des Schlafes / Violence split LP
Yuri Gagarin - Sea of Dust 7"

 

Kungens Män: Förnekaren

Adansonia Records (AR 007)

Kungens Män is a jam-based psychedelic rock band from Stockholm, Sweden. This double album is their first output on vinyl following a few digital, tape and CD releases. The band was started in 2012 so not bad in such a short time! The line up is composed of two guitar players (one of which also does a little bit of vocals), a drummer and a bass player. Their music is mostly rather peaceful and dreamy, but they also now how to rock at times. All jams on this album are pretty much based on one simple riff, but they grow and mutate on their way to keep things mind-blowing and interesting enough.

The album starts off with the laid-back "Järnvägsdröm" that also has vocals. The track gets more intense towards the end but stays in one chord for the whole duration of almost ten minutes. The title track "Förnekaren" gets more spacey and has some heavier guitar and groovier beat. This reminds me of ST 37 or Bardo Pond or something like that, experimental, hypnotic, heavy space/kraut rock with some post punk vibes thrown in. One of the highlights for me, although the instrumental track stays pretty much the same without that much variation. The longest track is the 22-minute "Sista Ordets Krigsdans Genom Snickeriet" that is more ethereal again, and very hypnotic and trance-inducing. It does get more intense and heavier later on, great! Sounds a bit like the spaced-out improvisations of Tribe of Cro or Øresund Space Collective. "Krautespark" is the shortest track at 6:36 and has a more energetic drum beat, while the guitar players try out different things on top of it. "Kringströdda Silverbestick" has at first a sort of melancholic, old Swedish folk music sounding melody that Hills of Goat might use, but it soon dies out and the groovy, sort of funky rhythm is in focus, until things cool down later. Coming up next is "Förensligandet i det Egentliga Aspudden" that starts off very peacefully and in a dreamy way, but a repetitive kraut styled percussive beat takes hold little by little. The guitars play some very cool stuff on this one. The album is finished with the slow, subtle and experimental "Hur Ska Vi Stå?" that has some weird little psychy noises and effects going on. Tribe of Cro comes to mind again. This album can be recommended for the lovers of repetitive, hypnotic and spacey improvised space/kraut rock in the vein of Zone Six, Electric Moon, Tribe of Cro or Øresund Space Collective, but without the synthesizers.

www.facebook.com/bandetkungensman

Various Artists: Fashion - Songs Written by David Bowie

Fruits de Mer (crustacean 68)

 Fashion - Songs Written by David Bowie is the next annual Fruits de Mer club-only freebie CD that you can only get by having bought pretty much what the label has put out this year. So this won't be on sale anywhere and is really a CD and not on vinyl like normal FdM releases. For some reason Bowie hasn't been covered before on FdM, so I guess it was about time for something like this to happen. The 15 songs on the disc performed by 15 acts cover most of Bowie's career from the the early days through big hits all the way to his 1977 Low album. Most of the featured bands and artists are FdM regulars like Sendelica, The Past Tense, Sidewalk Society, Jack Ellister, The Seventh Ring of Saturn etc., but there are also a few newbies (The NoMen, Consterdine). I must say that I'm not the biggest Bowie fan but you just have to give credit to the man and his music, so this actually is a pretty exciting album.

I won't go through all the tracks here, but some of my favourites include the pretty psychedelic "Can't Help Thinking About Me" by Sidewalk Society, the energetic "The Gospel According to Tony Day" (The Nomen), the tranquil "Tired of My Life" (Ilona V), the groovy "Black Country Rock (Cary Grace), the spacey and folky "Andy Warhol" with great female vocals (Mooch), the rather authentic sounding "Life on Mars" (Sheepshanks), the quite out-there "Drive-In Saturday" (Jack Ellister), the very cosmic "African Night Flight" (The Seventh Ring of Saturn) and the warped, fuzzed-out version of "Fashion" (Blue Giant Zeta Puppies). Okay, that's most of the tracks in my highlights list then, but I can't help it! The rest of the cover versions are not bad either. Sendelica ends the disc with their peaceful, acoustic live version of the classic "Ziggy Stardust", which is great too. To make things more confusing this free album is released in six different covers that will be sent to regular customers randomly. This sounds so fishy that only Fruits de Mer can come up with something like this!

www.fruitsdemerrecords.com

Michael Padilla: Atmospheres (Ambient Works Volume 1)

Strange Fish (strangefish seven)

This will be the first picture disc vinyl with Fruits de Mer Records. Since the music is very ambient, peaceful and atmospheric in nature, it will be released on their sister label Strange Fish (remember the five instrumental albums released in 2013 and Craig Padilla's 2LP Sonar the following year?). Michael Padilla (no relation to Craig...) is best known as a member of psych rock/dream pop band The Soft Bombs, but here he uses just sampler and a looper pedal to create very soothing, minimal and meditative soundscapes. There are one longer and one shorter instrumental track on both sides, and the free CD will also have a fifth extra track that is not available on this promo CD-R I'm just listening to.

Now, I must say that I don't listen to this kind of ambient music that often, but every now and then it's worthwhile to lay down, put your head phones on, relax and float away from all the troubles and stress of this world with some cosmic ambient sounds, and Atmospheres is great for just that. You can also use it as peaceful background music while reading for example, and it's not total drone or anything and also has some melody to keep you focused, so you can enjoy it in other ways too I guess. It could also be used as a soundtrack music for some film. If you are one of the more rock/pop/song oriented Fruits de Mer fans you might get a bit bored with this one, but if you enjoy ambient instrumental music like Eno this is definitely for you.

 www.facebook.com/michael.padilla.3745

The Chemistry Set: The Endless More and More

Regal Crabomophone (winkle 21)

The Chemistry set from London, UK, were one of the pioneers of the neo-psychedelic scene in the late 80s/early 90s. They have been more active again during the recent years releasing three singles on Fruits de Mer / Regal Crabomophone and also playing live. Strange enough, The Endless More and More is in fact their first actual new studio album for decades. Most of their other releases have been singles, EP's, Mini Albums and compilations. This superb new album was carefully recorded and mixed during the recent years and includes some songs from their vinyl singles on Regal Crabomophone, but not all of them. There are 12 tracks on the album that lasts for 55 minutes which might have made it hard to fit it all on one vinyl.

The album starts of with the marvellous unreleased new track "The Splendour of the Universe". This band really has great and catchy melodies! A perfect pop psych song with vibes from the 60s, 80s and 00s, if you ask me. "The Fountains of Neptune" is a bit more psychedelic and hypnotic and rocks a little harder which is great. Another winner! "Internal Rescue" has some The Beatles / The Byrds vibes and again excellent melodies. "Time to Breathe" was released as a single in 2012 and it's a more peaceful, dreamy and atmospheric track with cool psych effects and a hazy mood. The sort of garage rock / pop styled "Come Kiss Me Vibrate and Smile" (the B side of the aforementioned single) should have been a huge hit in some alternative universe, and probably was. Very catchy indeed. I must also say that I love the band's harmony vocals... On "Winter Sun" the band cools down for a beautiful, folky ballad mode with acoustic guitars. "Albert Hoffman" is one of the trippiest songs on the album and a great homage to one of the most important figures in the psychedelic circles... I think I can hear some early Pink Floyd in there. Mind-blowing! "A Cure for the Inflicted Afflicted" (from Elapsed Memories 7") is more energetic and brings to mind The Stones. "The Cranyon of the Crescent Moon" is a typical, melodic neo-psych pop candy, and "Crawling Back to You" a piano-driven thing in the vein of Lennon/McCarthy. "Elapsed Memories" is a melancholic, touching, gorgeous but also rocking song that makes the cold shivers go though your spine, it's just so good and one of the highlights for me. The last track "The Open Window" is more mysterious and mind-expanding stuff with some Eastern influences, and a great, mesmerizing way to end this stunning album. Please do yourself a favor and pre-order this beauty right away so you won't miss out. Essential stuff for all lovers of great melodic psych pop / rock!

www.facebook.com/TheChemistrySetUK

Seli Seli: Puoliautiomaa

Pihlaja (Pihlaja 001)

Seli Seli is a fresh new psych rock band who released this debut album of theirs a few months ago. They have a very pleasant, hypnotic and dreamy style that sometimes gets a bit heavier but mostly they are mellow and mesmerizing. Just the kind of music that should be listened to eyes closed and mind open. They do label themselves as inner-space rock band and I think that's a perfect description. The quartet (singer/guitarist, guitarist, bassist/backing vocalist and drummer/backing vocalist) is enhanced for the album with a female backing vocalist (on "Langat", "Rotat" and "Unessa") and organ player (on "Unessa").

The album starts off with the excellent, hypnotic and dreamy "Langat" that has airy and psychedelic delay guitar work and a nice, mid-tempo beat. Some of it brings to mind Kingston Wall a bit. The vocals are in Finnish, which is not that typical for a band like this, but after a while I got used to that and they are actually very good. The organ (sounds more like a keyboard to me) is a great addition to the floating atmosphere, and there's also some fuzzy lead guitar, but it's not too aggressive. Very cool! The title track "Puoliautiomaa" is definitely one of the most rocking and heaviest piece on the album and I can hear echoes of Loop, Mana Mana and other heavy, hypnotic guitar psych bands, even Hawkwind! The track cools down a couple of times, which works fine. One of the highlights for me! On "Värivaloissa" the band mellows out again what comes to the guitar sound, but the track has a steady, krautrock style motoric beat. I love it when the track grows later on for the guitar solo, some heads are going to explode! "Rotat" is a Circle styled, a bit heavier, hypnotic krautrocker and the most intense song on the album. "Unessa" is more atmospheric stuff again, but another great song, and has a cool, melodic ending that brings to mind The Soundtrack of Our Lives or something like that. The album ends with "Laulu menneestä elämästä" and this one has a strange, jazzy beat and differs quite a lot from the rest of the tracks. Maybe something that Kauko Röyhkä or Tuomari Nurmio might have done after some mushrooms? Some cool lead guitar towards the end. All in all, this is a great debut album from a young band and my only complain is that it's not out on vinyl (yet...). Can't wait to hear some more, Finland and the whole universe needs bands like this! One of this year's best Finnish releases.

www.facebook.com/seliseliband

Dj Astro to spin vinyl at the Torche/Seremonia/Throat show this Sunday!

Who says that Sundays have to be boring? US stoner rock band Torche will play at Kuudes Linja in Helsinki on 15.11. supported by Seremonia and Throat. Dj Astro will spin some cool psych/stoner/metal before, in-between and after. Come to the party and have some fun!

Here's the Facebook event.

Unimother 27: Frozen Information

Pineal Gland (PG 004)

Unimother 27 is a one-man band of multi-instrumentalist Piero Ranalli from Italy. I have reviewed Grin, one of his first CD's for the original Psychotropic Zone years ago. On this brand-new album he is aided by Mr. Fist on drums and percussion. Whether or not Mr. Fist is a real person or not I don't know, since all the drums and percussion sound programmed like before. I sometimes have issues with programmed drums, but they sound okay here. The mostly instrumental music of Unimother 27 is a cool mix of experimental, psychedelic, kraut and space rock, and it's done in an exciting and talented manner so of course I like it. Even the sound quality has progressed a lot during the years, although I have a strong feeling that this was all made in a home studio.

The opener "Moksha (to Huxley)" starts off with some mystical sounding keyboards, and pretty soon it gets moving in a slow, jammy mode. The great, twin fuzz guitar soloing reminds me of The Bevis Frond or Outskirts of Infinity. Later on the beat gets more intense (think Pressurehed etc.) and the soloing just goes on until the peaceful mood of the beginning returns. Nice! "Dancing Thought" is more experimental, progressive and also faster stuff. I'm getting some later King Crimson vibes here for some reason. The almost eight-minute "The Obvilion's Cage" begins slowly and in a weird manner and stays pretty experimental and odd for the whole duration. "Clear Light Healing" has an ambient intro but starts rocking later on. This one also has some very psychedelic, manipulated vocals... Weird stuff for sure! My favourite on the album is the hard rocking kraut/space rock piece "For Mad Stray Dogs Only" that really gets the adrenaline pumping in your veins. Sounds a bit like Hawkwind, Helios Creed or Chrome! "Hymn to the Hidden God" is at first a more mellow, experimental and strange number that also reminds me of some of the Chrome stuff, although it gets going and the solo guitar work sounds more like Nick Saloman or Bari Watts again. The last two minutes are weird, more minimal and mellow going. The album is finished with "Brief Moments of Eternity", a partly celestial, partly chaotic and fully mind-altering track with narration from Jack Kerouac's book The Scripture of the Golden Eternity. Whoa! Check this guy out if you are into experimental psychedelic music.

www.facebook.com/Unimother27 

Ex Norwegian / Permanent Clear Light: It's a Game / Corneville Skyline 7" split lathe-cut

Friends of the Fish 7

This is a very limited lathe-cut 7" vinyl single that will be out next month on Fruits de Mer's sub-label Friends of the Fish. Only 50 copies will be on sale for those on the Fruits de Mer mailing list (and I guess the bands will have some too). Okay, I got to say that The Bay City Rollers was definitely not a band I would expect to be covered on a Fruits de Mer related release but that will happen anyway, and this really isn't the first time I'm surprised. Well, to be exact "It's a Game" was originally written by String Driven Thing, but The Bay City Rollers made a hit out of it. Ex Norwegian is a new band to me (as well as for Fruits de Mer), and are from Miami Beach. Maybe the sunny atmosphere explains this very happy sounding cover version that's almost disco. Somehow the band still make it sound like it belongs to the Fruits de Mer catalog, well done guys. The song sure has some great, catchy melodies, and the execution is spotless. On the flip side we have Finland's own Permanent Clear Light who have amazed the audiences with their Fruits de Mer single/compilation appearances and debut album Beyond These Things. Their original "Cornerville Skyline" is a perfect psych pop track and has a very nice, cheerful mood. The 60s influence is very obvious, and I love the vibe of this melodic, emotional masterpiece. Can't wait to hear their second album sometime nest year!

Having sadly missed the two first lathe-cut singles in this series (CD-R promos reviewed here), I really hope I can get this one somehow, but I know the demand will be huge all over the world for such a collector's item... Good luck!

www.exnorwegian.com

permanentclearlight.bandpage.com

Death Hawks: Sun Future Moon

Svart Records

 




Death Hawks is a Finnish four-piece psychedelic rock band who have broadened their horizons even wider with their third album Sun Future Moon that will be released next week on LP and CD by Svart Records. Spiritual/astrological/occult themes seem to be more important nowadays, maybe due to singer/guitarist Teemu Markkula also playing in even more esoteric hard psych rock band Seremonia...


The new album sounds fresh, airy and has lots of space. I don't know exactly why, but I think it sounds and feels very 80s in a positive way. There are no early 70s styled folk rock pieces here, mainly up-beat, spacey and hypnotic psych/kraut pop rock. The album starts off with the atmospheric, light and dreamy "Hey Ya Sun Ra 2". The spacey synth sounds add to the "out-there" vibe. I'm already addicted and in deep trance... "Ripe Fruits" could be a lighter Circle or Rättö ja Lehtisalo track and has that driving, motorik kraut rock thing going on that keeps you mesmerized and almost forces you to dance. There's also alittle bit of saxophone by the keyboard player Tenho Mattila. Great! "Dream Machine" reminds me of a bit of 80s Hawkwind or Blue Öyster Cult which is only a good thing in this Astral Zone. There are also some female backing vocals. Another hypnotic master piece. The digital single and video track "Behind Thyme" is an excellent slice of melodic, dreamy psych pop with a very cool repetitive guitar melody and could indeed win bigger audiences for the band still pleasing the psych heads as well. On the melancholic "Seaweed" the band slows things down. This emotional instrumental sounds like a soundtrack to some forgotten early 80s sci-fi movie. "Dream Life, Waking Life" includes even more 80s vibes with the jazzy,  soulful beat, effected guitar, lush keyboard layers etc. although the spoken word part sounds like a very stoned Jim Morrison. Very interesting and groovy! The next number "Heed the Calling" even has some 80s World Music elements. Have they gone too far now? You decide. The mostly instrumental "Wing Wah" continues the 80s frenzy with lots of keyboards and melodies that sound like they were loaned from a Jan Hammer album... "Future Moon 3" is a peaceful and moody number with just some guitar and vocals. The album is finished with the pretty mellow "Friend of Joy" that is the closest the band goes to early 70s and folk rock this time. I got to say that Death Hawks is one of the most interesting and best bands in Finland at the moment and nobody else is doing music exactly like this around here, so buy their albums and go to their gigs if you can! Can't wait to see them on their tour with Circle...

www.deathhawks.com

Adrian Shaw: Colours

Preamp Records (precd 01)

Colours is the seventh solo album by  Adrian Shaw, the legendary bass player (ex-Magic Muscle, ex-Hawkwind, The Bevis Frond, Hawklords etc.). It's been over ten years since his latest solo effort String Theory, but Oxygen Thieves, the album with old band mate Rod Goodway was released in 2009 and Ade has been busy playing and recording with The Bevis Frond and Hawlords among other things. I have always admired his ability to write interesting, psychedelic, enjoyable and yes, even catchy songs and he of course is a killer bass player who can also sing and play many other instruments like guitars, keyboards, drums, lap steel and mandolin. On this brand-new CD he is accompanied by Frond drummer Dave Pearce (on "The Question of Life), his son Aron Shaw (guitar solo on "The Divine"), the great Bari Watts (lead guitar on "When I'm Gone" as well as another old friend Pete Pavli (viola on "The Dream").

The quite heavy, great mid-tempo opener "Colours" is definitely a reminiscence of the original hippie times in the late 60's. You know, the free love, dope, experimentation in music, art etc, revolution, all that.  Ade remembers the highs and lows for sure... "A Clean Slate" is a beautiful track that also features acoustic guitar, killer solo guitar, heavenly keyboard melodies and other cool things. "When I'm Gone" is a shorter, heavy psych rocker in The Bevis Frond style and Bari of course shines as always. "At Last" starts of with some orchestrated stuff but is then quite normal but (very good!) mid-tempo rock. "The Divine" is shorter, rather hypnotic hard rocker in 7/8 with very cool harmony vocals. Aron's guitar solo is perfect for the song! The blissful folk song "Going Home" is just wonderful stuff... "The Dream" is a very melancholic, atmospheric, slow and a bit dark piece and Pavli's viola adds some High Tide vibe I think. Excellent. "Be Not Weak" is one of the most psychedelic tracks on the album and reminds me of "Tomorrow Never Knows" by The Beatles. It has a similar beat, backwards sounds etc. and you really can trip to it. Next, "So It Goes" is a nice, melodic mid-tempo piece that I really like as well. The album is finished with the slow and melancholic "The Question of Life" that has an experimental beginning and Vocoder vocals and some other trippy effects. Cool! A great way to end this superb album. Be sure to check this out if you are into good, deep rock music with a psychedelic edge.

You can now find Ade at Facebook.

Magic Bus: Transmission from Socmore's Garden

Self-released

Magic Bus is an English prog rock group who combine the sunny, relaxed vibes of late 60's US West Coast to the more progressive, jazzy and adventurous sounds of Canterbury bands like Caravan and Soft Machine as well and Yes and Camel, just to name a few. The band includes two guitar players (one is also a vocalist), a keyboards player, bassist, flute/recorder player and a drummer. Most of them also sing backing vocals which is essential in this kind of music. Transmission from Socmore's Garden was released last year following their 2010 self-titled debut. Both albums are sadly only out on CD, and I do think they deserve a proper vinyl release... They do also have two marvellous 7" singles out: Magic Bus (Static Caravan 2011) and Seven Wonders (Regal Crabomophone 2015) that I recently reviewed over here.

The albums starts off with the cheery "Sunflower" that sounds very much like '67 San Francisco. Some nice organ and guitar solos at the end! The excellent "Ballad of Lord Sogmore" gets more progressive and reminds me of Caravan and Camel, I love it! The vocals are superb and melodies just magical. "Cosmic Rays of Dawn" is a pretty laid-back, mellow song that also has some folk influences. The bit longer "Three Days" has a nice, sunny vibe and also some jazzy prog sections. The longest track is "Jupiter 2 AM" at 8:37 and it has some wilder/heavier Yes/King Crimson elements in addition to the strong, atmospheric Canterbury vibe. Wonderful! Another highlight for me is the beautiful single track "Seven Wonders" that has a magical mood. "Morning Mantra" is a perfect mix of The Beach Boys and Canterbury scene, and the final track "Earthpod" somehow brings to mind The Moody Blues (it's probably the Mellotron sounds...) which definitely isn't a bad thing. All in all, this is a very pleasant album full of great melodies, talented musicianship and adventurous song structures and keeps you interested for the full 46-minute journey. Have a try!

magicbusband.co.uk

Dj Astro's Top Ten album list at the moment...

This is what I've been mostly listening to:

Dungen - Allas Sak LP + CD
Monster Magnet  - Cobras and Fire (The Mastermind Redux) 2LP
Jussi Lehtisalo - Maisteri LP
Golden Void - Berkana LP
Uncle Acid and the Deadbeats - The Night Creeper 2LP
Giobia - Magnifier LP
Various Artists - Stay Holy! LP
Saturnia - Muzak LP + 7"
The Heads - Time in Space 2LP
Steven Wilson - Transience 2LP