The fifth full-length from Oslo’s Needlepoint, Walking up That Valley, is set to release this Friday, Jan. 29, through Stickman Records. It is a graceful offering and finds the central four-piece not only indulging their own multi-instrumentalism, with vocalist/guitarist Bjørn Klakegg taking on flute, violin and cello, bassist/producer Nikolai Hængsle adding guitar, and David Wallumrød adding an entire piano-store’s worth of keys and synth to go with Olaf Olsen‘s drums, but branching out with guest percussion and backing choral vocals as well. Classically progressive — or is that progressively classical? — the album comprises eight songs and runs 43 minutes of mostly serene, jazzy and richly melodic fare, consciously drawing elements from British folk and Scandinavia’s own broad history of nature-worshiping creation. Songs like “So Far Away” or the midsection of “I Offered You the Moon” bring a gentle touch, but there’s almost always subtle movement happening underneath, be it in bass, drums, keys or guitar behind the softly-delivered vocals, and Walking up That Valley isn’t without its moments of push, it’s really just a question of how hard the band is willing to shove the listener in those stretches.

Not very, is the answer, and for Needlepoint — whose very moniker evokes images of precise, hand-crafted work — that’s clearly the intention. “Rules of a Mad Man” starts the record at a decent clip, though, and is one of the more active inclusions. Even so, what’s more striking is the level of detail in the song itself. The changes from one keyboard to another, the intricacy of the rhythmic patterning and the melody that seems to rest so naturally on top of it. Maybe this isn’t too much to ask for a band on their fifth LP, but that doesn’t make it any less engaging. “I Offered You the Moon” puts the drums forward at first for a bit of jazz-poetry and adds flourish of keys and bass, dropping to a field of flowing folk before picking up gradually again, keys and drums and percussion gaining volume and intensity over the next couple minutes until the vocals return, the bass beneath doing jabs to dare the guitar to join, which it does. It’s a freakout by the end, and it leads to the relatively subdued “Web of Worry,” with acoustic guitar and flute and keys, handclaps and ghost-note snare popping behind, sweetly melodic and a step en route to “So Far Away,” which is about as close as Walking up That Valley gets to ’60s folk, with violin joining in the second half to bolster the already organic spirit.

I’m not sure if “Where the Ocean Meets the Sky” is the start of side B, but it would make sense either way, and honestly, by then, the fluidity of Needlepoint‘s craft is such that if you’re in, you’re in for the duration. In any case, the song leads with vocals in a kind of purposeful semi-contrast from the end of “So Far Away” before it and works around a solidified drum line that takes off into a short solo with some more rhythmic urgency as it moves toward its midpoint, keys assuring the melody isn’t lost before things calm down again. Walking up That Valley never quite goes full-bebop, but one can see where Needlepoint might have in the jams these songs are built from. Vocals again begin “Carry Me Away,” free of effects but not at all dry, over a deceptively quick drum tempo building to an entry of organ and a wah-laced electric guitar solo in the second half — a bit of Hendrix to run alongside the keys. It works well and is no less classy than anything that surrounds as it leads to the arrival of the choral vocals, which feels like an arrival indeed, the lyrics depicting the scenario from the album’s cover in singalong-ready fashion. That burst of energy gives over to the penultimate “Another Day” which starts out stripped down and works its way up but never quite reaches for the same heights as the song before it, and fair enough for that, since there’s still the 10-minute closing title-track to come.

“Walking up That Valley” begins to take shape around vocal lines and spare guitar, with keys farther back in the mix and drums making their way in patiently behind the story being told, only to take a more forward role after four minutes in. An all-go jam ensues, with flute, and percussion and drums, guitar, bass, keys, and so on building to a fervent head until, a little past the nine-minute mark, the vocals return. The vitality of that jam isn’t totally gone — the drums are still there, the keys, the vocals are layered, etc. — but the final showcase of symmetry underscores the purposefulness writ large throughout Walking up That Valley, as Needlepoint cap with an electric solo on a somewhat surprisingly quick fade as though one is waking up from a dream when it’s over. I don’t doubt that there are “happy accidents” that came up during the recording process as they inevitably do, but every change/movement here feels, if not directed, then at very least considered. In its most lush and minimal stretches, Walking up That Valley shows itself to be the output of a group well aware of who they are and what they want to do, who are nonetheless not at all restrained by that self-consciousness. There is an escapist element, to be sure, but met consciously, the songs are all the more gorgeous.

You’ll find Walking up That Valley streaming in full below, followed by more from the PR wire.

Please enjoy:

Needlepoint is a Norwegian group based in Oslo that straddles the border between jazz and prog in a unique and timeless way. Based around the renowned guitarist Bjørn Klakegg, the band is rounded out by a veritable who’s-who of the Nordic jazz and rock scene, including members of Elephant9, Møster!, Bigbang and others.

Their first album The Woods Are Not What They Seem was released in 2010, followed by Outside the Screen (2012), Aimless Mary (2015) and The Diary of Robert Reverie (2018). Their upcoming album entitled Walking Up That Valley is slated for release in fall 2020.

The band says the following about their new record:
Nikolai and Bjørn have cooperated in the making of all the albums, from Bjørn’s ideas being captured on his phone up until their journey’s conclusion up on the record’s grooves. Bjørn considered himself a jazz musician when he first met Nikolai, but his old British heroes from the 70s such as ELP stepped out of the fog in the musical company of the now Needlepoint bassist. Olaf Olsen and David Wallumrød were Nikolai’s unconditional choices to fulfill the lineup.

Needlepoint started as an instrumental band, but when the second album was almost finished, Bjørn and Nikolai had a talk that lead to Bjørn’s first steps towards an identity as a singer. That talk also changed the identity of the band.

It was never really a conscious choice of style by the band, but Needlepoint is now considered a prog band by many listeners, and it’s a pleasure having such an addicted audience by their side. Many people mention the Canterbury Scene to describe the bands profile, and Robert Wyatt, Sid Barret, Caravan, Camel and even King Crimson and Yes are also mentioned to place our musical identity.

The last album is absolutely connected to the previous ones, but there are also new sounds to be heard. Bjørn has picked up his flute and violin, so there is a strange little orchestra appearing here and there in the album. Olaf is accompanied by Erik, who plays percussion on the album, and their fun together is audible on the album, while David treats his collection of beautiful vintage keyboard instruments like no one else. Everything is supervised by producer and bass player Nikolai Hængsle; his bass playing as powerful and brilliant as always, and Bjørn’s vocal are more present than ever in this production. In some of the tracks the band is touching new areas, but absolutely without losing its identity.

Needlepoint is:
Bjørn Klakegg : lead vocals, guitars, violin, flute, cello
David Wallumrød : hammond organ, clavinet, rhodes, harpsichord, upright piano, prophet-5, arp odyssey, arp solus, minimoog
Nikolai Hængsle : electric bass, backing vocals, guitars on «Rules of a mad man» and «So far away»
Olaf Olsen : drums

Special guests: Erik Nylander : percussion

The «Carry me away»choir: Indra Lorentzen, Camilla Brun, Maria Vatne, David, Nikolai, and Bjørn
Words and music by Bjørn Klakegg
Arranged by Bjørn Klakegg and Nikolai Hængsle
Produced by Nikolai Hængsle

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Needlepoint on Bandcamp

Needlepoint website

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Stickman Records website

I’m just going to assume there’s a new Arthur Brown album coming? Maybe a live record or bunch of archival reissues? I don’t know, but I don’t think, if you’re Arthur Brown — the god of hellfire, and so on — you bother signing a label deal at all if you’re not going to do something with it. And to say “good get” for Prophecy and Magnetic Eye doesn’t really begin to cover it. The guy is a legit legend in psychedelia and heavy rock, and he’s only worked to add to his legacy for a new generation over the last half-decade, embracing performances at Psycho Las Vegas and touring to a waiting audience of freaks. New record? Old records? Live record? Whatever’s coming, there will be listeners waiting for it, myself included.

The PR wire has it thusly:

ARTHUR BROWN inks deal with PROPHECY PRODUCTIONS and MAGNETIC EYE RECORDS

We are honored to bring you the one and only flaming helmeted “God of Hellfire”, ARTHUR BROWN. The enigmatic and iconic artist has signed a deal with Prophecy Productions and Magnetic Eye Records.

“Hi – this is Arthur Brown”, the mystical maverick sends his greeting. “I am delighted to be signing with Prophecy and Magnetic Eye. I have chosen to work with these labels, because they believe in artist development and are therefore interested in the artist’s vision of the direction of the music and overall aesthetic. They are adventurous companies. We have already started developing ideas of how we can work together. This feels like the beginning of a truly creative time in my lengthy career with companies who value both individuality and independent artistry. They are at the cutting edge of technology in the music industry and I am truly excited about getting my music out to a wide and varied music community.”

Martin Koller comments: “It is with enormous pleasure that we are able to announce the signing of Arthur Brown in our 25th anniversary year, says the Prophecy Productions founder. “It is a once in a lifetime chance to sign the veritable God of Hellfire. It is a great honour and privilege to be able to work with such a legendary and visionary artist, who has in turn inspired so many giants of rock and metal over decades and has managed the rare feat of staying fresh, forward thinking, and relevant throughout his exceptional career. We take humble pleasure in contributing to Arthur Brown’s next endeavour.”

Jadd Shickler adds: “Arthur Brown is a legend”, states the Magnetic Eye label director. “His music is all over the spectrum of psych and proto-prog across the past 50 years, but there’s a reason he has performed to throngs of metalheads and stoner doom aficionados at fests like Psycho Las Vegas over the last decade: Arthur Brown is a riveting performer and an originator, who has exactly the kind of authenticity heavy rock fans dig. We’re beyond honored to be taking part in presenting a brand new studio album from an icon like Arthur, and in helping him cement his legacy of more than a half-century making music in his inimitable style. Stoked!”

www.facebook.com/arthurbrownmusic
http://store.merhq.com
http://magneticeyerecords.com/
https://www.facebook.com/MagneticEyeRecords
https://www.facebook.com/prophecyproductions/
https://prophecy-de.bandcamp.com/
http://en.prophecy.de/

The Crazy World of Arthur Brown, Live at Psycho Las Vegas 2019

Godspeed, Earthless. You carry the hopes and thanks of a grateful nation of weirdos.

The on-paper proposition doesn’t really do justice to actually seeing nighttime desert rocks painted with light while Earthless tear a hole in the galaxy as only they seem able to do. Earthless, Live in the Mojave Desert, while accurate in terms of the basic who and what and where, hardly begins to cover it.

I have watched a number of show-replacement streams at this point. “Well, no concerts because pandemic, so here’s this.” That’s not what this was. This was a once-in-a-lifetime experience shared with anyone who had the foresight to acquire a pass. I don’t mind telling you I got emotional. On the sheer level of sensory input, it was hard not to be overwhelmed.

So there’s Earthless — guitarist Isaiah Mitchell, bassist Mike Eginton, drummer Mario Rubalcaba — out by Skull Rock in the desert. There were shots of them riding out in the back of a pickup truck, answering interview questions and so on; extraordinarily idyllic to a very specific audience to see Mitchell rattle off a current-listening list upwards of 30 including Ry Cooter, Hendrix and Buddhist chanting. They started playing in daytime and seemed to cut until night, at which point Lance Gordon and the crew of the famed Mad Alchemy Liquid Light Show came aboard and, together with the stage lighting, proceeded to color the night. Drone shots have perspective of the impressive scope of the event, and live audio by Dan Joeright of Gatos Trail Studio in Joshua Tree, not to mention mastering by John McBain, assured clarity at no loss of vitality.

It was, at the end, a work of love on the part of producer/director Ryan Jones, best known as one of the parties responsible for the Stoned and Dusted fest. This series of five streams that Earthless kicked off is more than just a show to watch for would-be real-life attendees. Sitting in my living room on a cold January afternoon, it was pure sonic escapism, made all the more resonant by the raw immersion of Earthless live. Something I’d probably never get to see otherwise, pandemic or not. It wasn’t trying to be a show happening in a dark venue somewhere. It was more like a hybrid concert and concert film, presented live in the new medium that the horror show of last year brought to prominence.

The production was flawless. And no, they weren’t actually live. I think it was filmed in November, but even as a streaming premiere, the work editing and splicing in visual effects and different shots only enhanced the viewing experience. Watching dudes perform to a single camera in their rehearsal room has a certain appeal to it, and I won’t say otherwise, but this was something special. Whether it was “Violence of the Red Sea” in daylight or “Sonic Prayer” and “Lost in the Cold Sun” closing out at night, it felt like a gift, a celebration honoring live music that, yeah, made you miss it, but managed to offer something of its own beyond that sad nostalgia for what’s been lost in the COVID era. Jones and his crew filming, the audio, lighting, tech people, the logistics work — it was all astounding to comprehend.

There will be four more, with Nebula, Spirit Mother, Mountain Tamer and Stoner between now and the beginning of March. Then come the live albums, blu-rays, and so on. Without falling into some kind of “in this moment” cliché about the times humanity is living through — I guess the lucky ones are living, with upwards of 4,000 deaths per day — the fact of the matter is that even if gigs were happening, the Live in the Mojave Desert series would be something incredible to witness. If you saw this one on its first airing or you chase it down later, it is stuff of which legends are made. Recommended.

Earthless, “Sonic Prayer” snippet from Live in the Mojave Desert

Earthless on Thee Facebooks

Earthless on Twitter

Earthless on Instagram

Earthless on Bandcamp

Live in the Mojave Desert tickets at Tixr

California Desert Wizards Association website

California Desert Wizards Association Instagram

Stoned and Dusted on Thee Facebooks

Heavy Psych Sounds on Thee Facebooks

Heavy Psych Sounds website

Heavy Psych Sounds on Bandcamp

Recorded in June 2020 and released in July 2020, the self-titled debut LP from Sweden’s 10,000 Years (review here) has been picked up for release by Olde Magick Records. That was months ago, but still good news, if not entirely surprising — that’s kind of what happens to cool records that get a decent response these days. To go along with that, however comes word that the Västerås trio will also head back into the studio next month to record a follow-up to the self-titled for Interstellar Smoke Records, continuing the sci-fi plotline detailed below.

Will the Albatross make it back from that other dimension? Well, if they’re going to try, I might suggest creating a coherent subspace bubble by routing plasma energy back through the bussard collectors and taking power from auxiliary systems. There’s no guarantee, but it might work just long enough to get them where they need to go in crossing one dimensional plane for another. Just a suggestion though, of course.

The PR wire brought word:

10,000 YEARS sign with Interstellar Smoke Records!

10,000 Years are very happy to announce that we have signed with the mighty Interstellar Smoke Records for the vinyl release of our upcoming first full-length album.

We will enter Studio Sunlight in February to record eight songs which will tell the continued tale of the ill-fated class III exploration vessel “Albatross” and its crew.

More news and announcements regarding the album, artwork, release date, various formats etc will follow in due time.

“10,000 Years” Story:

The crew of the terran class III exploration vessel “Albatross” have been assigned the mission of exploring the Milky Way and nearby galaxies in search of a new planet for the human race to possibly inhabit.

During its journey the “Albatross” accidentally, and without the crews knowledge, travels through a wormhole and the ship and its crew ends up on a strange, new planet undocumented through the annals of earthly science. Unbeknownst to the crew, the planet in fact exists in another dimension, one inhabited by ancient gods of unknown origin and purpose. The most powerful among them known only as the Green King.

While on the planet the crew encounter strange creatures and deities as they try to find a way to return home. After much labouring they finally make it off the planet and start their journey from suns beyond back to earth.

10,000 Years:
Erik Palm – Guitars
Alex Risberg – Bass/vocals
Espen Karlsen – Drums

http://www.facebook.com/TenThousandyrs
https://instagram.com/10.000yrs
http://10000years.bandcamp.com/
https://www.facebook.com/Interstellar-Smoke-Records-101687381255396/
https://interstellarsmokerecords.bigcartel.com/

10,000 Years, 10,000 Years

Very Paranoia will release their self-titled debut full-length through Who Can You Trust? Records on Feb. 15, and in the spirit of the no-bullshit brand of classic punk rock they play, I’ll keep the story straightforward. There was a band. They made an album. There’s a video. Preorders start Feb. 5 for standard and screened-sleeve versions.

That about sums up the situation when it comes to Very Paranoia‘s Very Paranoia, though perhaps it doesn’t do justice to the 26-minute long-player’s 12 component tracks and the restlessness they convey, at once raw and familiar in their mindset. Even listening to the mp3 of opener “Bricks,” I can close my eyes and see the vinyl spinning on the turntable. It’s that kind of record, classic in spirit, punk rock unafraid to have guitar solos, straight-ahead catchy hooks and sans-frills tonality that’s deceptively specific in its intent. Verses, choruses, electricity and not one single track over three minutes long. If you can’t vibe to that, well, screw it. Go listen to something else. What am I, your concierge?

The band offered up their debut 7″ (review here) in 2018, and cuts like “High Ledge” — with the video premiering below — and “Brain Stain” and the boogie-punk “You’ll Be Sorry” follow suit in their willful primitivism, roots-punk building on a Blue Cheer-noisy foundation as “Cracked Picture Frame” betray a classic-heavy backdrop on which punker disaffection has been overlaid. You can dig it. Fuzzy and catchy, the Velvet Underground cover “Foggy Notion” precedes the shuffler “Sleep Alone” and before you know it, you’re through “Blasted” and “Choked and Freezin'” and into closer “Something Will Go Wrong,” which, to put it simply, doesn’t.

You know what Very Paranoia sounds like? It sounds like the abandonment of pretense. Yeah, there’s pedigree here, but whatever. It sounds like these guys got together and decided screw it all, it was time to get as close to back to basics as possible. They’re not the first to make that decision — fucking nobody’s the first to do anything — but the results are inarguably effective throughout these songs, and though they’ve apparently sat on the shelf for the better part of a year, they’re no dustier than is intended. I’ll say again: you can dig it. Believe in yourself. Believe in rock and roll.

At the end of the day, all I can do is put this here and go on and on about the righteousness of the cause. Whether or not you actually take the two minutes — literally — to check it out is up to you. For whatever it might be worth, I don’t think you’ll regret it.

PR wire info follows below. Please enjoy:

Very Paranoia, “High Ledge” official video premiere

Very Paranoia formed in 2018 with the express intent of delivering short, sharp shocks of electrified rock and roll that simultaneously heralded both a “war on music” and offered a way forward using the scattered shards left behind on the sticky, rickety fields of battle and trapped in the structurally unsound masonry memory of those walls still standing around us.

Composed of veterans of the sonic conflicts from the Annihilation Time/Lecherous Gaze/Hot Lunch/Assemble Head in Sunburst Sound divisions, the four of them huddled together in their San Francisco rehearsal room where they quickly hammered out an arsenal of crude missives designed to fire as roaring missiles into the heart of 2019.

After whetting their attack, Very Paranoia removed from their squalid hovel and harangued an unsuspecting, but susceptible public with 25-minute blasts set off around their local strongholds. The band then traveled nearly 1000 miles to the Sonoran Desert where they set up camp at Midtown Island Studio in Tucson, Arizona. The Island’s sole occupant and aural wizard Matt Rendon of the Resonars captured 15 tracks over three 10-hour stretches. Twelve of these tracks were then transmitted to Tim Green at Louder Studios in the Valley of Grass, California, for mastering in early 2020 before being shipped abroad and stamped into this rasping document bearing the inscription of “WHO-42.”

Having weathered the remainder of that seemingly inexorable year, with the dawn of 2021 comes the debut album by Very Paranoia on Who Can You Trust? Records.

TRACK LISTING:
A1 – Bricks
A2 – High Ledge
A3 – Brain Stain
A4 – Pack It In
A5 – You’ll Be Sorry
A6 – Nobody Home

B1 – Cracked Picture Frame
B2 – Foggy Notion
B3 – Sleep Alone
B4 – Blasted
B5 – Choked And Freezin’
B6 – Something Will Go Wrong

PERSONNEL:
Cory Linstrum – vocals
Rob Alper – guitar, backing vocals
Chris Grande – bass
Jefferson Marshall – drums

All songs by VP except FOGGY NOTION by VU.

The LP is released in an edition of 300 copies on black vinyl.
An alternate cover version with screen printed sleeve is available in an edition of 30 copies.
Both include a copy of “A VERY MANIFESTO”, a booklet containing lyrics, photos, flyers, and stories, as a companion piece to the album.

Very Paranoia on Thee Facebooks

Very Paranoia on Instagram

Very Paranoia on Bandcamp

Who Can You Trust? Records on Thee Facebooks

Who Can You Trust? Records website

Who Can You Trust? Records on Bandcamp

Who Can You Trust? Records BigCartel store

I won’t attempt to even feign impartiality here: I love this album. By now, the Devin Townsend discography is — for the uninitiated — an impenetrable hodgepodge of various releases from different incarnations of the man himself and bands built around him, from Strapping Young Lad to The Devin Townsend Band to The Devin Townsend Project to… wait for it… Devin Townsend, and that’s before you get into whether Ocean Machine: Biomech was supposed to be a record by a band called Ocean Machine, or an offshoot project like Casualties of Cool or that thing he did with Jason Newsted that time, or that thing he did with Scott Reeder that time, or his book, or Ziltoid the Omniscient, and so on and so forth.

Synchestra was released in 2006 and is a crossroads album. It ties together with Strapping Young Lad‘s penultimate, likewise brilliant 2005 LP, Alien, in theme and musical callbacks, a cut like “Babysong” coming in answer to “Love?” from the SYL release, and pre-hidden-track Synchestra closer “Notes From Africa” actually reworking a part of that  song into its own multifaceted progression. This was Townsend, an artist of rare expressive and compositional capability whose career began at 19 with Steve Vai, working through the idea of procreation and coming up with a lush and genius prog metal modus in the process. “Triumph” talks about “Hooray for Dr. Young” and “Hooray the time has come to vanish once again,” and Synchestra was the final album from The Devin Townsend Band before Townsend went to ground and did the Hummer drone record and broke out the puppet for Ziltoid, then came back with The Devin Townsend Project for Ki and a succession of albums the last of which was 2016’s Transcendence — so you see where the idea of ‘crossroads’ comes from. It’s also fair to consider Synchestra a signal of intent in bringing Strapping Young Lad to a close, as that band’s last album, The New Black, was also released in 2006 but cobbled together from various odds and ends in, if I remember right, contractual obligation to produce one more record.

And if you’re still reading and your eyes haven’t glazed over, well, thanks. You also see where ‘impenetrable’ comes from. It’s a sometimes manic level of creativity.

Whatever came before or would follow after, Synchestra was a special moment put to tape. At 65 minutes, it was the realization of the vision of prog Townsend had been developing all along on records like Infinity (1998), Physicist (2000), the also-essential Terria (2001) and the first Devin Townsend Band LP, Accelerated Evolution, in 2003. Its songs run a gamut from the folkish and beautiful intro “Let it Roll” to the goofy metal parody “Vampira” — to say nothing of its lead-in “Vampolka” — kind of making fun of goth and Strapping Young Lad at the same time, while also being ridiculously catchy and over the top, to masterpieces like the building “Triumph” early on, and “Gaia,” the largely instrumental “A Simple Lullaby” and the uberwerk that is “Pixillate,” arriving as it does as part of a movement in the second half of the album that begins with the suitably bright ambient piece “Mental Tan” and unfolds across the remaining tracks plus the bonus let’s-just-have-a-good-time classic-style rocker “Sunshine and Happiness” with the real culmination in the prior “Notes From Africa.”

That second movement, of course, follows on from the first, which ties together more as individual songs than one whole piece but flows nonetheless, with “Let it Roll” moving into the chaotic “Hypergeek” and “Triumph” and “Babysong” feeding into “Vampolka” and “Vampira,” making for an initial 22 minutes that might leave one spinning but ultimately proves just crazy enough to work, in no small part because of Townsend‘s mastery as a songwriter, performer and producer. He’s not alone here — Steve Vai guests on guitar in “Triumph,” Ryan Van Poederooyen plays drums, Mike Young adds bass and tuba, Dave Young plays keys of various sorts, and there are guest vocals throughout — but there is a personal feel nonetheless in part because of the conversational, fourth-wall-breaking framing of the lyrics, and in part because the style and substance, lush as they are and cleanly, clearly produced in a way that has become a Townsend hallmark, are so much his own. As the tracklisting shifts into “Mental Tan,” “Gaia,” “Pixillate” and its stomping, soulful follow-up “Judgement,” there’s a grandeur that justifies the orchestral reference in the record’s title, the crowd sounds of the mostly-instrumental “A Simply Lullaby” feeding into the denouement of “Sunset” and the sense of arrival in “Notes From Africa,” as structure becomes no less of a plaything than melody when it comes to the broader vision of Synchestra as a whole.

And I won’t take away from that, because the album is visionary. It’s of a scope that turns most metal into dust and shows progressive rock/metal for the posturing crank it is. But I need to talk about “Pixillate” for a second because it’s just too gorgeous to go unremarked. The way the first minute builds up with that chug and the far back vocals, the voice of Gaia up front with Townsend answering back, like dialogue, the verse and chorus together, all the while this underlying motion plays out carrying the listener across an eight-minute span that’s an album’s worth of journey — it’s just incredible. It deserves every bit of volume you can give it, and if you’re at all in a position to close your eyes, tilt your head back and let it wash over you, do. Your life will be richer for it. This record is 15 years old this year and “Pixillate” still raises the laughably tiny amount hair on my arms every time. Every time.

And 15 years later, I still find something new to hear on the record. That’s cliché as fuck, but it’s true too. Even if it wasn’t though, like I said at the outset, it comes down to the basic fact that I love this album. I have associations with it positive and negative, but that’s life isn’t it? And Synchestra is an album to live with. If anyone — one person — who reads this who hasn’t heard it hears it, it’s worth it. A word to the wise though, the YouTube playlist above has volume changes that are a pain in the ass. It was the best stream I could find, but you may want to search it out otherwise.

As always, I hope you enjoy. Maybe a little more than usual, I hope you enjoy this one. Thanks for reading.

—

So I guess the big news this week was Bongzilla signing to Heavy Psych Sounds. Oh, and America’s new president. There was that too. Whatever. Looking forward to that Bongzilla LP, curious if HPS will pick up Church of Misery as well after releasing Sonic Flower stuff. That’d be something.

The real news was The Pecan was back in school this week. In-person. Made a big quality-of-life difference around here, I think most of all for him. He needs that out-of-the-house experience that has been so lagging for last year. Hey, a year. It’s been a year. Covid-era, indeed.

But things are things. I’m glad politics are bland again. I hope they continue to be so and I hope Democrats realize unity is a joke, blow away the filibuster and actually do something in the next two years before they lose their majority in congress and the slide toward right wing fascism picks up where it left off. That’s my hot take. Feel the burn.

I need to have a tooth removed. Number 30, if you’re interested. Apparently I have a massive infection in my jawline. Oops. I consult with a surgeon on Monday. Stay tuned.

Speaking of tuned — masterful segue! — there’s a new The Obelisk Show on Gimme Metal today at 5pm. I don’t talk, so there’s nothing to interrupt the flow except Gimme promos, which give it that real-radio feel. At least I don’t have to listen to myself speak.

You should really listen to the Devin Townsend record.

Great and safe weekend. Hydrate, mask up, thanks for reading.

FRM.

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Mexico City heavy progressive instrumentalists Rostro del Sol make their self-titled debut Jan. 29 through LSDR Records. You’re going to hear some King Crimson, and that’s on purpose, as the four-piece-plus make a fascinating addition to the roster of the reliable LSDR imprint. Their sound is high-energy classic prog — like if the whole LP had been the chase scene in “21st Century Schizoid Man,” but of course that’s an exaggeration, right? A band couldn’t possibly keep all that up for a entire album, right? You can check out the suitably jazzy “Bop C Sketches” below and guess for yourself.

Record’s out Jan. 29 — which I’m told is next week — so you don’t have to wait long for the rest.

The PR wire has it like this:

This is the first release of the year of LSDR Records (Mx). We want to introduce to you the debut album of the Mexicans ROSTRO DEL SOL (Psych Rock, Krautrock, Progressive)

The debut Album from Mexico City’s Rostro del Sol, is a musical collage of Blues, Jazz, Funk, Progressive and Psych rock from the golden eras of the 60’s and 70’s, which offers unexpected moments, developed trough diverse sonorities & intensities as the music goes on, each song is intended to tell a history on its own, just listen and set your imagination free to find the essence inside.

“The album was recorded between 2019 – 2020, in Rec On Studios on Mexico city, the recording & mixing engineer was Jorge Trejo, and mastering goes by Juan Puget, the insane artwork comes from the Spanish Illustrator Elena Ibañez, and it’s an ideological collaboration, where we told the artist a few references and we gave her the freedom to express whatever she felt inspired by listening to our music.”

Tracklisting:
1. Effect Of Creation
2. Solar Flare
3. Backyard’s Blues
4. Bop C Sketches
5. Tales… I-III

Mitch Balaant – Guitar
Demian Burgos – Drums
Israel Mejía – Bass
Baruch Hernandez – Keys

Dan Samhain – Sax

Anton – Djembe on backyard’s Blues
Jorge Trejo – Bass on Cynical Mind

https://www.facebook.com/RostroDelSol
https://www.instagram.com/rostrodelsol/
https://rostrodelsol.bandcamp.com/
https://www.facebook.com/lsdrrecords/
https://lsdr.bandcamp.com/
https://www.storenvy.com/stores/823500-lsdr-records-distro

Rostro del Sol, Rostro del Sol (2021)

The deep-state rumor mill has it that German heavy rockers Plainride are getting ready to release a third long-player at some point this year. March? April? May? June? The Cologne-based outfit — currently without a bassist — issued their second album, Life on Ares (review here), as their debut through Ripple Music, following on from 2015’s Return of the Jackalope (review here), with a more complex feel and richer songcraft. If “Shepherd” is a sign of things to come from their on-time-for-every-three-years-pace full-length, then their growth would seem to have continued unabated despite having to cancel plans in 2020 that included their first stops in North America for Maryland Doom Fest and Ripplefest in San Francisco.

Digging into “Shepherd” — something only made easier thanks to the cinematic feel accomplished by the video despite its apparently DIY/renegade making — one finds Plainride to be not at all rushed, but not lacking energy or purpose either. The lyrics and video both reference a relevant social-commentary stance, and that Plainride would attempt such a thing after their more straight-ahead beginnings — let alone that they’d make the song their first single — should tell you something about how they’re feeling going into album number three. Bolder. More confident. More themselves.

And well they should be. Life on Ares was an important step in Plainride‘s process of defining their course, and “Shepherd” heralds the next stage of that definition. The question, obviously, is how they build a record around it and where their dynamic has taken them in the last three years. Again, it’s just a rumor, but we may yet find out the answer to that sometime in the coming months.

While we’re envisioning an optimistic future, Plainride also have a few live dates booked for later this year. Wouldn’t that be nice? In a hopeful spirit, I’ve included them under the band quote that follows the video. Fingers crossed, y’all.

Enjoy:

Plainride, “Shepherd” official video premiere

Plainride on “Shepherd”:

“When we set out to shoot the video, we knew it was going to be a DIY endeavor. 2020 hasn’t been an easy year, so we were operating on an even tighter budget than usual. But seeing as we had already managed to produce the song independently, we were confident we’d be able to do the same for the music video – even though none of us had produced an actual music video before. We knew we had to shoot the entire video in one day, seeing as we had a rental camera, and we knew we needed a location where nobody would bother us and ask for a permit.

“Luckily, our rehearsal space, as many are in Germany, is located in an industrial area, so we had that going for us. We drew up a storyboard, trying to pick up on some of the themes of the song, like the encounter with the beggar and the idea of the capitalist being consumed by the fires he himself had set before. Especially the image of the beggarman’s can being lit on fire stuck with us, which is why we settled on it as the artwork for the song. Shooting the video itself was a ton of fun although we just about froze our asses off (it must’ve been around 6 degrees Celsius). It was so cold, the camera’s batteries kept giving out, so we had to constantly keep them warm using what little body heat we had. Judging by what we ended up with though, I’d definitely say it was worth it.”

PLAINRIDE ON TOUR
10/04/2021 – Ripplefest Cologne
07/08/2021 – Black Sunset Festival
19/08/2021 – Reload Festival
08/10/2021 – Fuzz Jam Festival
09/10/2021 – Setalight Festival
15/12/2021 – Hannover, Bei Chez Heinz
16/12/2021 – Göttingen, Dots / Vinylreservat
17/12/2021 – Hamburg, Drafthouse
18/12/2021 – Bochum, Trompete

Line-up:
Max Rebel (Vocals, Guitar)
Florian Schlenker (Drums)
Bob Vogston (Guitar)

Plainride on Instagram

Plainride on Thee Facebooks

Plainride on Spotify

Plainride on Bandcamp

Plainride website

Ripple Music on Thee Facebooks

Ripple Music on Twitter

Ripple Music on Bandcamp

Ripple Music website