Deaf Lizard Stream The Last Odyssey in Full; Out Friday
German four-piece Deaf Lizard release their second album, The Last Odyssey, this Friday through Electric Valley Records (Glory or Death has US copies), and whether or not it’s the last one the desert-meets-psych outfit will undertake, the 35-minute sprawl of the outing lives up to its billing as a journey. Beginning instrumental with the tight-and-sandy-hued opener “Nuclear,” where a fuzzy lead guitar patterns out what might’ve otherwise been vocal lines, and moving into the grit-riffed bassy lumber of “The Devil’s Show,” which unveils the deep-mixed blown-out voice of guitarist Patrick Brödje — if it isn’t swapping channels, it feels like it could — amid a non-aggro groove that’s nonetheless darker for the prominence of Lars Wikström, the album counts on the audience’s ability to keep up as it shifts intentions on a per-song basis, letting Brödje and fellow guitarist Steffen Blancke‘s strum come back to the fore as the lyrics drop Doors references in “City of Life” and the tone sounds like Kyuss on an especially sun-baked afternoon, not the least for the momentum the band — which is completed by Marc Mattschenz on drums and synth, holding together the changes — amass as a fuller charge takes hold in “Independent Terror,” the centerpiece.
“Independent Terror” brings a desert boogie and holds back the vocals for the second half, setting an instrumental course and bringing revealing a punkish undertone in the up-to-the-mic not-quite-barks that send home the message of realization. Just on the other side of the last of the five shorter pieces awaits the closing pair of “Ape’s Odyssey” (8:37) and “The Veil” (7:03), but “Lady in Black” is more than a preface, hinting at the psychedelic lean to come in a more open guitar figure and purposefully repetitive vocal pattern. A couple times Mattschenz ups the intensity of the crash, and that’s all the band needs in terms of a fluid transition between the parts of the four-minute song, which gives over directly to “Ape’s Odyssey,” immediately jazzy in Wikström‘s bassline and still holding a bit of residual push in the drums as the guitars seem in succession to show off more shimmering lead work. It’s a change, but when they launch into the verse shortly before the three-minute mark, the crunch that takes hold — “This is the age of the mountain,” the lyrics inform — makes an effective offset for the float on either side of it, and the mellower turn that follows the verse is admirably smooth, done with confidence and poise and refusing to come apart at a moment that for many records would seem disjointed and pointedly doesn’t here.
They jam a bit from there, and manage to gradually bring the song all the way full circle back to the verse, which is a voyage in itself, and that fuzzy push opens to an improv-feeling ending topped with soloing and a display of character that suits the proceedings well. It’s something that, if the band are new to you as they are to me, you might not expect while listening to “The Devil’s Show” or “City of Life,” really any of the shorter five tracks that make up the album’s first 20 minutes or so, but that is a strength of The Last Odyssey for the increase in scope of what the band’s sound can encompass. That “Ape’s Odyssey” isn’t just about expanse, that there’s a structure before that ending departure, is all the more telling about who Deaf Lizard are as songwriters, able to know when it’s time to give up control for a bit and see where it goes. The results on that penultimate cut are worth it, and as they undercut expectation for “The Veil” in capping the record, so much the better. Watery, languid riffing introduces the finale, soon joined by the rhythm section, likewise fluid, and once more the lead guitar sings. That solo might be made up on the spot — it has an exploratory aspect, to say the least — but the bass and drums and rhythm hold it together as an unforced nod and when after four minutes in they shift to a clearly plotted declining line on repeat, the change sets up the next stage of the jam unfolding.
A solo and a short build to the conclusion, including a reprise of that central line, follow, and Deaf Lizard end mellow and big on vibe, bookending the instrumentalism of the leadoff while working unmistakably toward different ends. The band’s sound ends up deceptively rich while never quite beating the listener over the head with riffs or effects washes, etc. They know their genre, to be sure, and harness an individual sensibility within it that will ring familiar to heads while offering depth both in The Last Odyssey‘s more straightforward early fare and its later jams. They never really freakout, and they never really rage, and that’s not what the material wants, so it works, and the outward ease with which they move from one place to another within and between the songs gives an impression of whole-album consideration on the part of the band. That is to say, while the abiding spirit of The Last Odyssey is unpretentious in speaking to genre styles and a genre audience, this material is not unconsidered or haphazard. Well, maybe a little haphazard as “Ape’s Odyssey” comes apart, but that too is what it’s supposed to be. Desert rockers and psych worshipers will find the reaches here welcoming, and whether or not this actually is the band’s ‘last odyssey’ — I always raise an eyebrow when a group puts a notion of an ending in the title; can’t help it — it is a satisfying trip to take all the more because Deaf Lizard so clearly know where they’re coming from and what they’re about.
The album streams in its entirety below, followed by more from the PR wire.
Please enjoy:
German fuzzy psychedelic hard rockers Deaf Lizard’s second full-length, The Last Odyssey, is scheduled for November 01st physically (on four vinyl variants) and digitally via Electric Valley Records.
Electric Valley Records is issuing four variants of vinyl (Black, Green / Orange bicolor, Ultra LTD “Odyssey Edition” and Test Press), PRE-ORDER vinyl/merch from the label’s WEBSTORE: https://www.electricvalleyrecords.com/products?utf8=%E2%9C%93&search=deaf+lizard
Or Bandcamp: https://evrecords.bandcamp.com/album/deaf-lizard-the-last-odyssey
USA/North American customers can pre-order from Glory or Death Records: https://www.gloryordeathrecords.com/shop/electric-valley-records/
The Last Odyssey Track Listing:
1. Nuclear
2. The Devil’s Show
3. City of Life
4. Independent Terror
5. Lady in Black
6. Ape’s Odyssey
7. The Veil
Stoner rock group Deaf Lizard was formed in 2012 when Paddy, Steffen, and Lars joined French singer Jordan to jam for an as-yet-unnamed project. Jordan accompanied their heavy jams with artistic French vocals. After some early shows in 2014, the Oldenburg quartet’s musical endeavors soon developed into songs, which shaped their debut studio effort, The Firefly EP, recorded in 2016 but only released in 2023.
Line-up changes followed, especially after Jordan’s departure in 2018, and Marc joined as the new drummer. This reshuffle saw original drummer Paddy transition to second guitar and vocals. With this formation, the band self-released two singles, “El Tako” and “Tartaros,” in 2019. Riding a creative high, they continued to produce more music, culminating in their debut album, No Man’s Sky, in early 2020. To their surprise, No Man’s Sky garnered acclaim within the global stoner rock scene. However, the pandemic halted their live performances, limiting them to a brief 2021 tour through Northern Germany. Disappointed but undeterred, the band continued to write and record, setting the stage for their next release.
In 2023, they began recording The Last Odyssey in their own garage studio/rehearsal space. Entirely self-produced, this album represents the years of experience and the utmost worship of the forefathers of heavy rock. Across seven tracks, Deaf Lizard delivers a rough orgy of heavy fuzz rock paired with psychedelic and doomy elements. Channeling no less energy than their live performances, the band maintains an intense, gritty edge, blending slow, crushing riffs with more straightforward hard rock moments. With renewed vitality, the album explores a vast range of soundscapes—from slow, brooding doom to expansive, psychedelic improvisations—highlighting Deaf Lizard’s relentless quest for stoner galore.
Lyrically, the album loosely follows humanity’s self-inflicted downfall and its aftermath, providing a doomy context to its title, The Last Odyssey. Despite the weight of the doomy title, the band has no plans to slow down after the challenges brought by the pandemic.
Deaf Lizard will celebrate The Last Odyssey with a special record release show at MTS Record in their hometown of Oldenburg on 09 November.
Album Credits:
—Lineup—
Patrick Brödje – Vocals/Guitar
Steffen Blancke – Guitar
Lars Wikström – Bass
Marc Mattschenz – Drums/Synths
—Others—
Recorded at the Lizard’s Den.
Mixed and Mastered by Matt Sounds Productions.
Artwork by Marc Mattschenz.
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