Burning Sea of Green, the sophomore outing from intercontinental troupe Obskuria released through World in Sound, is a two-fold mood piece, and by that I mean that not only does the record evoke a particular atmosphere throughout, but it also requires a certain mindset on the part of the listener to be at its highest potency. The band features members of Peru’s La Ira de Dios and a seemingly shifting cast of German and American contributors, making for a widely varied listen throughout Burning Sea of Green, the vocals of Murielle Stadelmann giving multiple album highlight performances on “Memories of Mysteria,” “Somewhere,” the extended closing title track and a surprise cover of Slayer’s “Black Magic,” presented here as a soulful chuck of garage psychedelia.

Stadelmann is not the only vocalist appearing on Burning Sea of Green, however. Matthias Schäuble appears on “Why?!” “Under the Gallows” (another highlight, if somewhat darker lyrically), “Slow Stone” and “Screaming Like a Whirlwind.” Guitarists Tom Brehm and Chino Burga, bassist Carlos Vidal, organist Sandra Disterhöft and drummer Enrique de Vinatea make up the instrumental core of the band, and together, they bring to the fold a heavily krautrock-inspired sound that isn’t shy about its cosmic elements. The spacey “Why?!” is one of several cuts on Burning Sea of Green that seems to be traveling in a rocket powered by sustained organ notes, and even “Black Magic,” which first appeared on 1983’s Hell Awaits, is reborn as a trippy, Jefferson Airplane-style freakout.

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