Posted in Whathaveyou on March 26th, 2019 by JJ Koczan
Brume will enter the studio next month to record their second full-length, Rabbits, for release on Magnetic Eye Records. They’ll be working with none other than Billy Frickin’ Anderson — whose CV I’d list even in part but frankly it’s exhausting to think about all the good records he’s helmed, up to and including Brume‘s 2017 debut, Rooster (review here) — on the effort, which also follows their first incursion to Europe, something that one highly doubts will be a one-time-only event. A Fall release would put them right in line for festival season. Just saying.
But of course there’s a lot that needs to happen A-to-B on that one, perhaps most pivotally actually making the album. And “late 2019” can turn into “early 2020” before you know it. I just get excited about these things and about cool bands doing cool stuff, like signing to labels and making new albums and touring. Always a good time.
Cheers to Brume and Magnetic Eye on the partnership and here’s looking forward to the album when it’s ready to roll.
Announcements from band and label follow:
BRUME – Magnetic Eye Records
We are thrilled to announce our signing to Magnetic Eye Records! We head to the studio with Billy ( Everything Hz ) to record ‘Rabbits’ in April and will see a late 2019 release. We have been eyeing up MER and its insane roster for quite some time and honestly couldn’t imagine a more fitting family of stoner metal misfits for Brume to be a part of.
Let’s party 2019!
Says Magnetic Eye: BRUME brings its melodic drone-doom approach to MER after having released several records, toured the US and Europe, and played festivals from Austria to London. Their San Francisco aesthetic brings a welcome West Coast infusion to the label, and this April sees them entering the studio with distortion guru Billy Anderson to embark on recording their forthcoming label outing… which we cannot wait to share with you.
Posted in Whathaveyou on March 26th, 2019 by JJ Koczan
San Diego classic heavy rockers Radio Moscow were in Europe this past week to make stops at the Bordeaux Psych Fest and a few other shows surrounding it. Neat. Well, while they were there, they went ahead and announced a longer European trip, set for this June/July, which is set to include Hellfest, Black Deer Fest in Kent, UK, Resurrection Fest, a secret show in Italy — I’m gonna guess we know what that is — and more. Not too bad either.
Before they go, they’ll appear in May as headliners for Planet Desert Rock Weekend in Vegas and for a slot at Stoned and Dusted out somewhere in the Cali desert, and I wouldn’t at all be surprised if there are other shows in that mix as well, because that’s basically how Radio Moscow do. When they’re going, they go.
The three-piece released their latest album, New Beginnings (review here), late in 2017 as their label debut on Century Media and toured before and after, like you do. I don’t know what their plans are for the rest of 2018, but it’s easy enough to imagine them back out on the road after this as well. Fall in South America maybe? Somebody call Abraxas.
Sound ofLiberation had the Euro dates:
Radio Moscow EUROPEAN TOUR SUMMER 2019!
While Radio Moscow are currently on the road in France, Spain & Portugal, we are thrilled to announce more European shows for them in June!
Check out the dates below:
11.06.19 – Leipzig | UT Connewitz (DE) 12.06.19 – Salzburg | Rockhouse (AT) 13.06.19 – Budapest | A38 (HU) 14.06.19 – Graz | PPC (AT) 15.06.19 – Milano | Cronache Marziane Festival (IT) 16.06.19 – Torino | Blah Blah (IT) 18.06.19 – Secret Show (IT) 19.06.19 – Geneva | L’Usine (CH) *with monkey3 21.06.19 – Clisson | Hellfest (FR) 22.06.19 – Schmitten | Schmittner Open Air (CH) 23.06.19 – Tunbridge Wells | Black Deer Festival (UK) 25.06.19 – Leffinge | De Zwerver (BE) 26.06.19 – Cologne | Helios 37 (DE) 27.06.19 – Groningen | Vera (NL) 28.06.19 – Stuttgart | Keller Club (DE) 29.06.19 – Riegsee | Raut Oak Festival (DE) 30.06.19 – Innsbruck | PMK (AT) 01.07.19 – Vienna | Arena (AT) 03.07.19 – Berlin | Lido (DE) 04.07.19 – Wiesbaden| Schlachthof (DE) 05.07.19 – Viveiro | Resurrection Festival (ES)
Posted in Whathaveyou on March 26th, 2019 by JJ Koczan
Together, Marco Nieddu and Gabriele Fancellu served as the rhythm section of the heavy rock outfit Raikinas, who issued their last album, Arkadia, in late 2016 through H42 Records. Signed to Heavy Psych Sounds under their newfound moniker 1782, the duo will release their self-titled debut full-length in May, and are streaming the song “Oh Mary” to mark the occasion of the album announcement. Unlike some of the tracks you can see listed below that feature a range of guests — including Heavy Psych Sounds label head and Black Rainbows/Killer Boogie guitarist/vocalist Gabriele Fiori and their Raikinas bandmate Alfredo Carboni, who contributes vocals — “Oh Mary” is just the duo on their own, so should give a decent impression of where they’re headed with their sound on the whole.
Oh maybe it doesn’t, I don’t know. Haven’t heard the record. Fuck it. Riffs are cool. Have some.
PR wire says:
1782 SIGN TO HEAVY PSYCH SOUNDS + PREMIERE WITCH HAUNTING SINGLE FROM UPCOMING DEBUT ALBUM
Due out May 24th 2019!
It was a cold December day in 2018, when Marco Nieddu and Gabriele Fancellu formed a Doom band called 1782, in honor of all the “witches” murdered by the bigoted minds of many generations. Just a month later, the band entered the studio to record the single “She Was A Witch”, released by Electric Valley Records in within the same month. Only a few days after its release, the single turned out to be a great success, especially on social media and by listeners of the genre. On February 8th, 1782 started recording their homonymous debut album with Alfredo Carboni at the RKS studios in Ossi, Sardini, and inked a worldwide record deal with the leading cult & fuzz rock label Heavy Psych Sounds Records!
May 24th 2019 will see 1782 release their self-titled debut of a doom metal masterpiece, dedicated to a lady called Anna Göldi, who was condemned, tortured and killed, in one of the last witchcraft trials happened in Europe. 1782 deal with macabre themes: from spells to ruthless torture, from the pleasure of sex to the most perfidious revenge. This record got seven tracks of pure Doom Metal sounds with mega-riff Stoner Doom intervals, accompanied by a rhythm section of powerful drums, intense bass and super-fuzzy guitars. The band’s first full-length album also features high class guest musicians such as BLACK RAINBOWS ‘Gabriele Fiori shredding a blistering guitar solo in ‘She Was A Witch’, guest vocals by Alfredo Carbon of RAIKINAS or Nico Sechi on Hammond.
Today 1782 are proudly sharing with us a first single to the track ‘Oh Mary’! Says the band: „The lyrics of this song tell the story of a woman, who really existed and joined the circle of Sardinian legends. Maria, forced to marry an old man and pointed out by the women of her village because she was pregnant, decides to kill herself by throwing into a well. According to the myth, Maria kidnapped the children of all the women who had humiliated her, while taking them to her grave to feed on their bodies.“
Tracklist: 1. Intro (…To the Church) 2. Night Of Draculia 3. The Spell (Maleficium Vitae) [feat. Alfredo Carboni] 4. She Was A Witch [feat. Gabriele Fiori] 5. Black Sunday 6. Oh Mary 7. 1782 [feat. Nico Sechi] 8. Celestial Voices [Pink Floyd cover, feat. Alfredo Carboni & Nico Sechi]
Coming May 24th with Heavy Psych Sounds, the album will be available in the following album formats:
– TEST PRESS – ULTRA LTD GOLD – RED BACKGROUND SPALTTER Black-Blue-White-Gold – BLACK VINYL – CASSETTE via Electric Valley Records – DIGIPAK – DIGITAL DOWNLOAD
Posted in Whathaveyou on March 26th, 2019 by JJ Koczan
Swedish heavy rockers Skånska Mord released their self-titled EP in 2014 on Transubstans Records, but it’s been seven years since their last full-length. Their second LP, Paths to Charon (review here), came out in 2012 on Small Stone full of ’70s-via-’90s vibes, and this Spring they’ll issue Blues from the Tombs as a long-in-the-making third album.
Time has not dulled their affinity for classic heavy, as the posted track “Blinded by the Light” demonstrates. You can hear that, of course, at the bottom of this post, beneath the album info for Blues from the Tombs, which was posted by the label on thee social medias.
Have at it:
SKÅNSKA MORD – new album BLUES FROM THE TOMBS out May 17 on VINYL & CD from TRANSUBSTANS RECORDS
Five years after their self-titled release on Transubstans Records, SKÅNSKA MORD return with yet another hard-hitting release, promptly named “Blues From The Tombs”.
The unique sound that makes SKÅNSKA MORD stand out in today’s scene is present on every track on the new album. While other acts may focus entirely on creating either heavy blues soundscapes, or paying their tribute to the progressive rock bands of the 70’s, SKÅNSKA MORD is not afraid of mixing the two in their own manner. “Blues From The Tombs” is delivering heavy grooves as per the band’s high standard, while enthusing the listener with tempo changes, incredible solos, tight rhythm sections together with the strong voice of Janne Bengtsson. From the doomy elements of “The Coming Of The Second Wave” to the dynamic psychedelia of “Sun”, there is only one thing to conclude; if you enjoy listening to music with the same passion as these guys are playing it, then this album is for you.
Skånska Mord is: Jan Bengtsson Petter Englund Patric Carlsson Patrik Berglin Thomas Jönsson
Posted in Whathaveyou on March 25th, 2019 by JJ Koczan
I keep a running list of what I think are the best songs of the year. The standouts of the standouts. The first entry I put on that list this year was the track you can hear at the bottom of this post. Titled “Coming Through” — Sligo all day — the song begins Worshipper‘s upcoming second album, Light in the Wire, and is both forward-thinking in its progressivism and growth from their first record and still rooted in a memorable structure such that as the band’s craft expands, it doesn’t lost its heart. Couple that with the performance the four-piece bring to it, and yeah, I’ll put it down as one of the best songs I’m gonna hear this year, absolutely. Only one way to find out if you agree.
Light in the Wire is out May 17 through Tee Pee Records, and in addition to playing Desertfest New York in April, Worshipper will hit the road for 10 days in Europe with labelmates The Skull and make stops at Desertfest in London and Berlin as well.
The PR wire has all the info:
Worshipper to Release New LP, ‘Light in the Wire’, May 17
Through its unique mix of contemporary and classic influences, Boston’s Worshipper proves that the fiery soul of melodic heavy music still burns brightly. The award-winning band takes all the fragments we love about legendary metal groups and molds them into shining shards of standout R’N’R. Worshipper will release its new LP, ‘Light in the Wire’, on May 17 via Tee Pee Records. The record is the full-length follow up to Worshipper’s 2016 debut, ‘Shadow Hymns.’
A sneak-peek as to what ‘Light in the Wire’ holds in store can be heard now, as Worshipper has made the album’s lead track, “Coming Through” available for streaming.
On its glowing new LP, ‘Light in the Wire’, Worshipper rocks like a hurricane as its high energy songs surge behind standout songwriting, shredding solos and memorable melodies. Classic rock-inspired arrangements meet modern rock creativity when Worshipper cranks it to 11. Worshipper recorded ‘Light in the Wire’ with Chris Johnson (also of Deafheaven, Summoner, etc.) at GodCity Studios and The Electric Bunker with the intention to capture a sonic narrative resulting in a fluidity tying the two sides of the album together even as individual pieces stand out with a sheen of classic heavy metal, rock, psychedelia and prog.
Worshipper will kick off live dates in support of ‘Light in the Wire’ with a performance at the inaugural Desertfest New York, set to take place April 26-28 in Brooklyn. For more details, visit this location.
Track listing: 1.) Coming Through 2.) Who Holds the Light 3.) Nobody Else 4.) Light in the Wires 5.) Visions From Beyond 6.) It All Comes Back 7.) Wither on the Vine 8.) Arise
Posted in Reviews on March 25th, 2019 by JJ Koczan
Day Six. Not that there wasn’t a bit of a crunch along the way, but I definitely think this Quarterly Review was aided by the fact that I dug so much of what I was writing about on a personal-taste level. You get through it one way or the other, but it just makes it more fun. Today is the last day and then it’s back to something approaching normal tomorrow, but of course before this thing is rounded out I want to thank you as always for taking the time and for reading if you did. It means a tremendous amount to me to put words out and have people see them, so thank you for your part in that.
This could’ve easily gone seven or eight or 10 days if scheduling had permitted, but here’s as good a place to leave it. The next one will probably be the first week of July or thereabouts, so keep an eye out.
Quarterly Review #51-60:
Bellrope, You Must Relax
How much noise can your brain take? I don’t mean noise like start-stop riffs and dudes shouting. I mean actual, abrasive, amelodic noise. Bellrope, with ex-members of the underrated Black Shape of Nexus start their Exile on Mainstream-delivered debut album, You Must Relax, with three minutes of chaff-separation they’re calling “Hollywood 2001/Rollrost.” It’s downright caustic. Fortunately, what follows on the four subsequent extended tracks devotes itself to lumbering post-sludge that’s at least accessible by comparison. “Old Overholt” is the only other inclusion under 10 minutes as the tracks are arranged shortest to longest with the 17:57 “CBD/Hereinunder” concluding. The thickened tones brought to bear throughout “Old Overholt” and the blend of screams and growls that accompany are more indicative of what follows on the centerpiece title-track and the penultimate “TD2000,” but the German four-piece still manage to sound plenty fucked throughout. Just not painfully so. There’s something threatening about the use of the word “must” in the album’s title. The songs realize that threat.
Here be dragons. Though its core tonality is still within the bounds of heavy rock, Wiltshire, UK, four-piece bring a far more atmospheric and progressive style to fruition on their second album, The Call of the Void, than it might at first appear. With post-rock float to the guitar of Bill Denton, keyboard textures from Clive Noyes, and fluid rhythms carried through changes in volume and ambience from bassist Christ Sutton and drummer Blazej Gradziel, the PsyKA Records outfit present a cerebral seven tracks/47 minutes of immersive and seemingly conceptual work, with opener “Jormungandr” establishing the context in which each song that follows is named for a different culture’s dragon, whether it’s the Hittite “Illuyanka,” Japan’s “Yamata No Orochi” or the Persian “Azi Dahakar.” Cracked Machine use this theme to tie pieces together, and they push farther out as the record unfolds late with “Typhon” and “Vritra” a closing pair of marked scope. The shortest cut, the earlier 5:14 “Kirimu,” has probably the most straightforward push, but Cracked Machine demonstrate an ability to adapt to the needs of whatever idea they’re working to convey.
Taking cues from psychedelia almost as much as jangly West Coast noise and punk, Tacoma, Washington’s The Sky Giants offer the 10-track sophomore outing The Shifting of Phaseworld, which finds a balance in songs like “Dream Receiver” between progressive heavy rock and its rawer foundations. The trio of guitarist/vocalist Jake Frye, bassist Jessie Avery and drummer/vocalist/engineer/graphic artist Peter Tietjen are comfortable tipping from one side to the other between and within songs, starting off with the shove of “Technicolor Kaleidoscope” and getting mathy on the later “Half Machine” ahead of the chunkier-riffed “Rhyme and the Flame,” which somehow touches on classic punk even as it hones a wash of distortion that that has to cut through. Closing each side with a longer track in the rolling, airy “Solid State” (6:53) and the frenetic ending of “Simian” (7:38), The Sky Giants stake out a sonic terrain very much their own throughout The Shifting of Phaseworld and only seem to expand their territory as they go.
Topped off by the ace screams of vocalist Adam Szczygiel, who taps his inner Devin Townsend circa Strapping Young Lad on “High Confessor” and “Re-Animator,” Sacred Monster‘s debut album, Worship the Weird would seem to cull together elements of Orange Goblin and Bongzilla for a kind of classic-metal-aware sludge rock, the riffs of Robert Nubel not at all shy about digging into aggressive vibes to go with the layers of growls and throatrippers and the occasional King Diamond-esque falsetto, as on “Waverly Hills,” as bassist Guillermo Moreno and drummer Ted Nubel bolster that feel with tight turns and duly driven bottom end. I’ll take “Face of My Father” as a highlight, if only for the excruciating sound of Szczygiel‘s screech, but the swing in closer “Maze of Dreams” has an appeal of its own, and as a Twilight Zone and a Shatner fan, “Nightmare at 20,000 Feet” offers its own charm.
Shades of grunge and skate-fuzz fuckall pervade the Sabbathian grooves of High n’ Heavy‘s second album, Warrior Queen, as guitarist John Steele works some doomly keys into second cut “Shield Maiden” and vocalist Kris Fortin moves in and out of throaty shouts on side B’s “Lydia.” They thrash out in the noisy “Catapult” and Nick Perrone‘s drums seem to bounce even in the longer-winded “Lands Afar” and closer “Smell of Decay / Wings and Claw,” on which Mike Dudley‘s rumble backs classically metallic shred in the lead guitar after offering likewise support to the piano in the early going of “Join the Day.” Released through Electric Valley Records, the eight-song/36-minute LP comes across as raw but not without purpose in that, and its blend of tonal thickness and the blend of thrust and nod does well to ensure High n’ Heavy remain unpredictable while also living up to the standard of their moniker. There’s potential here that’s worth further exploration on the part of the band.
Houston, Texas, four-piece make a quick case for the attention of Ripple Music on their sophomore outing, Immortal Portal, which is slickly-but-not-too-slickly produced and sharply-but-not-too-sharply executed, a professional sensibility in “Black Horse Pike” and the subsequent “The Palm Reader” — which manages to be influenced melodically by Uncle Acid without sounding just like them — ahead of the ’80s metallurgy of “Heart of a Sinner” and the reference-packed “1970.” “We All Die in the End” gives an uptempo swing to the opening salvo ahead of the more brooding “Between the Dark and the Light,” but Warlung hold firm to clearly-presented melodies and riff-led rhythms no matter where they seem to go in mood or otherwise. That ties the drift of the later “Heavy Echoes” to the earlier material and makes the harmony-laced “No Son of Mine” and the organ-ic proggy sprawling finale “Coal Minors” all the more effective in reaching beyond where the album started, so that the listener winds up in a different landscape than they started, still grounded, but changed nonetheless.
Rogue Conjurer, Of the Goddess / Crystal Mountain Lives
Originally released digitally by the Baltimore-based unit in 2017, the two-songer Of the Goddess / Crystal Mountain Lives sees pressing as an ultra-limited tape via Damien Records and finds the three-piece of guitarist/bassist/vocalist Tonie Joy, drummer Colin Seven and organist Donny Van Zandt — since replaced by Trevor Shipley — honing a psychedelic take on doomly riffs and groove. “Crystal Mountain Lives” has a more distinct nod to its central progression, with a wah-drenched break and greater overall largesse of fuzz, but “Of the Goddess” brings an effective almost shoegazing sense to its downer spirit. The first track is also longer, so it has more time to move from that initial impression to its own payoff, but either way you go, Rogue Conjurer bring out their dead ably on the tape, showing influences from heavy psych and beyond as “Of the Goddess” winds its way to its close and “Crystal Mountain Lives” begins its fade-in all over again. No pretense, but a broad range that would allow for some if they wanted.
Athens heavy rockers Monovine wear their grunge influence proudly on their third full-length, D.Y.E, issued late in 2018 digitally with an early 2019 vinyl release. It’s writ large in the Nirvana-ism of the slurring “Mellow” at the outset and remains a factor through the melodies of “Void” and the later punkery of “Messed Up” or “Ring a Bell,” as well as the toying-with-pop “Me (Raphe Nuclei)” and “Your Figure Smells,” but where Monovine succeed in making that influence their own is by filtering it through a fuzzier presentation. The guitar and bass tones keep a modern heavy feel, and as the drums roll and crash through songs like “For a Sun” and “Why Don’t You Shoot Me in the Head,” that makes a difference in the overall impression the album leaves. Still, there’s little question as to their central point of inspiration, and they bring it out in homage and as a fairly honed mode of expression on closer “Haunt,” which teases an explosion in its melancholy strum and then… well, don’t let me spoil it.
A festering 42 minutes of lurching agonies, Un and Coltsblood‘s split taps the best of modern death-doom’s emotionalism and bent toward extremity. Billed as a “tribute to grief: the final act of love,” it brings just two tracks, one per band, as Coltsblood open with “Snows of the Winter Realm” and Un follow with “Every Fear Illuminated.” Both bands proffer a terrifyingly weighted plod and offset it with a spacious ambience, whether it’s Un departing their grueling nod after about six and a half minutes only to build back up over the next six and grow more ferocious until devolving into noise and slamming crashes ahead of an outro of echoing, needs-a-tune-sounding piano, or Coltsblood fostering their own tonal brutalism and casting their lot with death and black metal while a current of airy guitar seems to mourn the song even as it plays out. Each cut is a monument built to loss, and their purpose in conveying that theme is both what unites them and what makes their work so ultimately consuming, as grief is.
The blend of drifting guitar and psychedelic wash on opener “El Canto de las Ballenas” earns La Grande Armée‘s self-titled debut three-song EP immediate favor, and the patient execution they bring to the subsequent “Tripa Intergaláctica” and “Normandía,” particularly the latter, only furthers that appeal. The Chilean trio keep a decidedly natural feel to the exploratory-seeming work, and if this is them finding their sound, they seem happy to do it by losing themselves in their jams. All the better someone thought to press record, since although there’s clearly some trajectory behind the progression of songs — i.e., they know at least to a degree where they want to end up — the process of getting there comes across as spontaneous. Guitar pans channels as bass and drums hold down languid flow, and even in the more active midsection of “Tripa Intergaláctica,” La Grande Armée there’s a sense that it’s more about the space being created than the construction under way. In any case, wherever they want to head next, they would seem to have the means of travel at their disposal.
Posted in Whathaveyou on March 25th, 2019 by JJ Koczan
The word ‘solastalgia’ is generally used in reference to the mental anguish caused by climate change. I’d be lying if I said it didn’t bring a little bit of hopelessness to many of my own days to think about unprecedented floods, storms and wildfires and the seemingly downward spiral onto which our species has placed itself. I guess I’m not alone if there’s a word specifically to describe it. Somehow that makes it better and worse at the same time.
Solastalgia is the new album from London post-metallers Surya — also stylized with a long-vowel-sound marker over the ‘u’ — and it isn’t their first time dealing with a present state of affairs as their 2015 record, Apocalypse A.D. would seem to have worked on similar lines. Fair enough, right? I mean, it’s not like the problem went away or got any better. Don’t fret though, I’m sure by the time their next record comes around, it’ll all be worked out. Maybe free-market capitalism can fix it. Not like that’s what got us into this mess or anything.
Ugh.
Album announcement came through the PR wire:
SURYA to release new album this summer!
Live at Desertfest London 2019!
London’s post-doom metal outfit SURYA returns with their second album this summer on Argonauta Records. With their refreshing mix of heaviness and subtle sonic landscapes, SURYA explore the depths of music and evoke a broad spectrum of emotions. Whilst the band’s debut, Apocalypse A.D., was an instrumental record interspersed with samples, SURYA’s upcoming album Solastalgia sees them expanding on their sound, adding spoken word and sparse vocals.
“We are very excited to announce that our new album – Solastalgia – will be released this summer on both CD and LP formats.“ the band comments “We worked hard over the last few months to make it happen, overcoming all the struggles that life laid in our path. We are pleased that the album will be released in co-operation with Argonauta Records after working together also on Apocalypse A.D. The album is about the Earth, it is about humanity, and it is about the anthropocene – this new age we live in. It is about these desperate times of Kali Yuga and finally it is about care, hope and action. We cannot wait to play the new songs from Solastalgia live, and we hope that the music and message that the record contains will resonate with listeners.”
SURYA will debut their forthcoming album live at DESERTFEST LONDON as well as at the following dates, with many more to come soon:
05.05.19 UK DesertFest – London 26.05.19 UK Creeping Death Fest – Brighton 19.07.19 UK Cosmic Carnage – Cardiff, w/ Torpor 20.07.19 UK Bristol, w/ The Obsessed, Alunah, Gonga, Torpor & More 21.07.19 UK Doomlines – Sheffield, w/ The Body, Cattle, Bast, Torpor, Leechfeast & More
[Click play above to stream ‘Digital Madness’ from Pyramidal’s self-titled LP. It’s out April 15 on Lay Bare Recordings and Surnia Records.]
There are a few seconds of silence before the opening track of Pyramidal‘s self-titled third album, “Visions of an Astral Journey,” begins and the choice to leave them there tells you much of what you need to know about the level of detail and meticulousness the Alicante, Spain, progressive heavy psychedelic rockers have put into the record as a whole. Pyramidal‘s Pyramidal, released by Lay Bare Recordings and Surnia Records as the follow-up to 2013’s Frozen Galaxies and their 2011 debut, Dawn in Space (review here), would seem to have been a while in the making were it not for the steady stream of short releases between. Still, as they arrive at the decade-mark since they first got together, the five songs/46 minutes they present with Pyramidal feels all the more like an event for the fact that it’s been six years since the last LP.
They do not fail to live up to the occasion, and 10 years on finds Pyramidal utterly in command of their sound and the listener’s experience, able to carry their audience through the sax-infused King Crimson-style chase and angular nuance of the aforementioned opener and into the mellower climes of “Creatures of the Ancient World,” which starts out likewise dramatic, but after about a minute, drops to a soothing and vaguely Eastern-inflected atmosphere, still intricate, that smooths the way forward into the next build, allowing for the proggy-but-heavy riff that takes hold at 4:45 to immediately mark the change to something else (actually, there’s a bass note before the guitar starts, but still). What follows is an active payoff to the first half of the song and a fluid but no less considered run than that which appeared in “Visions of an Astral Journey.” They resolve in a heavy space-rocking jam that also doesn’t last before dropping to a bass and drum-led section of psychedelic dance, which becomes consumed by guitar noise as it makes its way back to the central progression of the just-departed push.
It is a head-spinner, to be sure. Vocals are relatively spare but not entirely absent, and even the three-minute “Unconscious Oscillations,” which sounds like a sliver of a jam that could’ve been recorded when either of the first two tracks was being put to tape, has some whispers throughout its shorter than everything else run. “Unconscious Oscillations,” with the return of the sax, a ready push of drums and a still-directed drift in the guitar, feels almost like the closing credits for side A of Pyramidal, and serves as a quick summary of the rather considerable depth the band has thus far employed. Not necessarily depth in terms of the actual mix, though it wants nothing for spaciousness throughout “Visions of an Astral Journey,” “Creatures of the Ancient World” and “Unconscious Oscillations,” but in terms of the positioning within the mix of the elements being put to use and the care with which the material is executed. While still sounding natural in the end, Pyramidal‘s work is exacting and full of purpose.
Though they’ve obviously allowed room for “happy accidents” in the studio, this is not a band who went into making their third record without an idea of what they wanted. Their style, while indebted to classic prog and space rock, has its eyes forward and never loses track of where it wants to go. This remains true as the quiet ambience of “Digital Madness” mirrors the quiet at the start of “Visions of an Astral Journey,” keyboard setting a foundation for airy guitar to come to the fore and build in tension until after a minute in the full brunt of the song is unveiled. Again, it’s a showing of the patience and intent that Pyramidal signaled at the outset. A verse sees vocals matching rhythmic pattern to the guitar with a tinge of Spanish folk offset by the outward-push of the bridge sets up the next verse, the tonal thickness there a standout soon offset by a sprawling solo. They are not yet four minutes into the total 9:42. That’s the kind of record this is.
They continue to build the solo before cutting back to the acoustic/electric blend and a wash of crash cymbal at the midpoint before the lead guitar steps up with a winding run to introduce the next movement. Toms sound like footsteps trying to keep up. A harmony line kicks in, and then they’re riffing again like nothing happened. Did I mention “head-spinner?” A quick few lines of spoken word precede the next solo, then interrupt it, and Pyramidal are at full force with a vision of progressive heavy that would make peak-era Steven Wilson blush. The last build begins with dreamy guitar and a turn to creeping notes, the entry of drums and a surge of volume, and they mute chords before a last measure brings “Digital Madness” to a close to the madness of closer “Alussa Infinity” can arrive, which it does with scale-work to match that of the opener that unfurls into a fuzzier stretch of psych-jazz that in turn gives way to malevolent spoken word and a darker overall vibe.
Pyramidal are not out of surprises yet, and as they toy with tropes from heavy metal, they are no less in control of the proceedings than they’ve been all along. “Alussa Infinity” continues to grow aggressive through a shouty midsection before changing after seven minutes into its total 14:21 to a stretch of ethereal guitar spaciousness that moves into a grander, string-infused progression that’s every bit the grand finale Pyramidal deserves. Then they do it again, and afterward cap the album with a soothing last few minutes of astro-rock and leave it there, having quietly matched side A’s structure in the two tracks on side B but still gone further in the overarching aesthetic mission. That mission may be ongoing, but Pyramidal‘s declaration of who they are in this self-titled collection is not to be overlooked. Their material is expansive and handled with a graceful collective hand, such that they’re neither out of control nor overly in it. That balance is part of what makes these tracks flow so well, and what makes each change presented herein a pleasure to follow.
