San Fran psych rockers The Spiral Electric pull back the veil on their new single “In Too Deep” tomorrow, May 16. The six-minute piece feels like ’60s psych-rock pulled through a filter of ’90s revivalist edge as something slightly sinister drips from the molten tone of the initial guitar quickly topped by Clay Andrews‘ layered vocals. The vibe is mellow, intentionally oversweet to set up a fuller-toned chorus that now we call shoegazey but six decades ago would’ve just been rock and roll.

My touchstone for drifty, lose-yourself-in-it psychedelia of such fluid order is defunct Canadian nodders Quest for Fire, and I know that the place The Spiral Electric reside for “In Too Deep” isn’t where they always dwell, but they pull off the single with especially hypnotic aplomb as Andrews (guitar and synth in addition to vocals), lead guitarist Nicolas Percey, bassist Ryan McKnight and drummer Marias Drago flow through a heady depth of mix resolving in a transposed “Sweet Dreams” riff as they make their way out.

Both the 1960s and the 1990s were a long-ass time ago, and it’s not my intention to oversimplify or generalize what’s going on in The Spiral Electric‘s sound in the face of the more complex aural truths therein. That is to say, don’t just go by the numbers. Their previous single “Shadow in the Dark” (premiered here) and their 2019 self-titled double-LP (review here) likewise had their more soothing moments, but “In Too Deep” goes further such that even when it ‘gets loud’ as the wash takes hold a bit before the three-minute mark going into the hook, the serenity of the vocal melody is maintained, and so the direction of the song abides correspondingly, even as the tambourine literally and figuratively brings shake to the procession.

So is it? ‘In too deep,’ I mean. Have the band meandered too far into the ethereal? Hard no, from where I sit. Instead, The Spiral Electric make striking a difficult balance sound easy as “In Too Deep” ebbs and flows, and the chorus here is delivered gently and memorably both times it cycles through. My honest hope at this point is that eventually “In Too Deep” and “Shadow in the Dark,” which came out in 2023, make their way onto a follow-up to the self-titled, and that seems to be the plan. The album, titled The Overview Effect, was being recorded with Dead Meadow bassist Steve Kille prior to his passing last year. I do not know if it’s done or what the status is, but if you notice this and “Shadow in the Dark” are both tagged as the ‘single version.’ This implies ‘album versions,’ and yes, those apparently exist, if not yet in the public sphere.

Instead, for now, maybe take a breath and let the rest worry about itself later. There’s plenty to keep busy with worrying, for sure, but it’ll still be there in six minutes. See if you can get yourself to this one and meet the melody on its own level. If not, it’ll still be there later. Contrary to what the streaming services and content-driven social media tell you, this stuff doesn’t expire.

Enjoy:

The Spiral Electric, “In Too Deep” track premiere

“This is one of the last tracks fully engineered and mixed by Steve Kille before his illness overtook him,” says Clay Andrews. “I edited a couple of minutes out for the ‘single version’ with the help of Daniel Dietrick (Ozean), the full version will be on the album.”

Produced by Clay Andrews & Steve Kille
Engineered & Mixed by Steve Kille at Wiggle Room Studio
Additional engineering by Daniel Dietrick
Mastering by Tim Green / Louder Studios
Cover artwork by Matias Drago / Logo by Alan Forbes / Layout by Clay Andrews
Music : Clay Andrews & Nicolas Percey
Lyrics : Clay Andrews

The Spiral Electric:
Clay Andrews : Vocals / Guitar / Piano / Percussion
Nicolas Percey : Guitars
Ryan McKnight : Bass
Matias Drago : Drums

The Spiral Electric on Facebook

The Spiral Electric on Instagram

The Spiral Electric on Bandcamp

The Spiral Electric linktr.ee

San Francisco heavy psych rockers The Spiral Electric release their new single “Shadow in the Dark” this Friday. You can stream it now below. For the four-piece, it is the first outing to follow their 2019 self-titled debut 2LP (review here), as well as two preceding EPs, and it marks the first appearance of new bassist Ryan McKnight, who can be heard rumbling beneath the mellow fuzz of guitarists Clay Andrews (also vocals/synth) and Nicolas Percey (leads); the smooth undulations of low end and spacious psychedelic drift set to the steady flow of Matias Drago‘s drumming. Like the self-titled debut that it follows, the new song was engineered and mixed by Dead Meadow‘s Steve Kille (Andrews is also credited with production), and it is the first herald of the band’s second record, which will hopefully be out before the end of the year.

“Shadow in the Dark” is not coy in its appeal. The melody is warm and comes through in Andrews‘ vocals as well as the guitars, which during the verse bring more open-feeling notes, like a West Coast King Buffalo almost, but working toward the end of building into the chorus, which fills the space created by the verse with post-grunge nod, unpretentious, engaging, and serene but still heavy in both tone and presence. Also theme. The song, as Andrews discusses below, is based lyrically based around a discussion of cultural thanatos, the urge toward and fascination with — maybe fixation on — death, as embodied through interest in serial killers and murder documentaries, cults and so on, both drawing and repelling those who delve into that world. The death this week of the Ted Kaczynski, the Unabomber, is certainly a relevant example, but from Law & Order through Star Wars through the ‘Serial’ podcast, you don’t have to look far to find instances of violence and violent death piquing public interest.

But grim (and in a loose sense, not performatively so) as it might be, “Shadow in the Dark” wants nothing aurally for color. Particularly in Percey‘s guitar, but also in the synth and wash of effects, a brightness comes through that rests well in the dynamic structure of the verses and the hook. And that hook holds the mellow spirit that the song establishes at the outset while expanding both the palette and energy of the piece itself. Considering it as a precursor to a full-length release, one can only look forward to what else might be in store. If you like your psych rock to offer plenty of both — that is, psych and rock — and to offer structure without sounding hindered by it, you might think about giving it a shot. The absolute most that doing so can cost you is five and a half minutes of your day, and as I’ve listened to the track, I don’t know, seven or 15 times this morning while putting this post together, I’ll speak from experience and say it’s easily worth that.

I’ll hope to have more on The Spiral Electric‘s next record, including what it’s called, closer to the release.

Until then, please, enjoy:

The Spiral Electric, “Shadow in the Dark” track premiere

Clay Andrews on “Shadow in the Dark”:

We’ve been describing this track as “heavy psych noir” because of the quiet, creepy sections and roaring choruses. It’s a collaboration between longtime members Clay Andrews (that’s me, haha — vocals, rhythm guitar, synths) and Nicolas Percey (lead guitar), with new bassist Ryan McKnight, making his songwriting debut with us as well as his recording debut as rhythm section with Matias Drago (drums). The lyrics were inspired by the glut of new documentaries about serial killers & cult murders during the Covid lockdown, and the sense of conflict I felt about the enduring public fixation with murder– being both interested in the investigations but also repelled by the endless stream of books & documentaries on these crimes and also put-off by the certainty that most people seem to have, that these horrors could never happen to themselves — despite the deciding factor in some killings being a window left open or a gate left unlocked. The production purposely reflects that conflict with an edge of paranoia, with the howling feedback at the end recreating the sound of sirens and police helicopters swarming a distant location in the suburban sprawl. As with our 2019 self-titled double-LP, Steve Kille (of Dead Meadow) engineered and mixed this and the LP it’s taken from, and he also mastered this single version.

“Shadow in the Dark” digital pre-save: https://snd.click/l1bj

The Spiral Electric:
Clay Andrews – guitar, vocals, synth
Nicolas Percey – lead guitar
Ryan McKnight – bass
Matias Drago – drums

The Spiral Electric on Facebook

The Spiral Electric on Instagram

The Spiral Electric on Bandcamp

The Spiral Electric linktr.ee