The Wyld Olde Souls - The Sun God

 #The Wyld Olde Souls #folk rock #psychedelic folk #acid folk #retro-1960s

From New York City, The Wyld Olde Souls are a female-fronted psychedelic folk rock band who mesh medieval and Indian music, creating an other-worldly sound that's all their own. With influences from Fairport Convention to Jefferson Airplane to Loreena McKennitt, The Wyld Olde Souls have been called "mysterious," "bewitching," "classy," "magical," and "transcendent." 10 years in the making, they released their highly anticipated, full-length album 'Ensoulment' in May 2011. Their 6-song debut 'Poems From the Astral Plane' gained cult status among European collectors of the femme folk psych genre. In addition to fervent reviews from abroad, the album is endorsed by Tom Rapp, founder of legendary '60s psychedelic folk band Pearls Before Swine, who said, “It's good to see that someone is still exploring folk and psychedelia and doing it so well.”  From: https://www.facebook.com/The-Wyld-Olde-Souls-275536312708/ 

Church of the Cosmic Skull - Cold Sweat

 #Church of the Cosmic Skull #progressive rock #psychedelic rock #progressive pop #occult rock #retro-1970s #music video

As the real world turns to a desert of ash and rust, a light appears on the horizon. From above the clouds comes a path to the Cosmic Compound. The Gate is open to all who observe the 7 Objects:

Recognise the Hallucinatory Nature of Reality

Investigate All Aspects of the Reality-Hallucination

Receive All Phenomena with Equanimity

Celebrate and Uphold the Freedom of Art, Science and Thought

Meet Mistakes with Forgiveness and Determination

Do What You Want, With Love in Your Heart

Maintain Focus on the Unity of All Living Beings

From: https://cosmicskull.org/

Church of the Cosmic Skull are a British rock band from Nottingham. The group was formed by guitarist, singer and songwriter Bill Fisher in 2016. The group members had previously played in various bands in and around Nottingham, and a number of early songs had been written years before while in other bands. Fisher was interested in progressive pop as much as progressive rock, and wanted the band to be primarily about good songwriting rather than technical expertise. His influences include Queen, The Beatles, Thin Lizzy, Kate Bush, David Bowie and Peter Gabriel. The instrumentation makes prominent use of the Hammond organ, piano and strings, and multiple vocal harmonies.  From: https://www.last.fm/music/Church+of+the+Cosmic+Skull/+wiki

Haight-Ashbury - Sepia Song

 #Haight-Ashbury #psychedelic rock #psychedelic folk #folk rock #acid folk #neo-psychedelia #flower power #retro-San Francisco sound #sunshine pop #Scottish

Without getting hairy and naked and giving out LSD-drenched bandanas and Timothy Leary pamphlets at every gig, Haight-Ashbury couldn’t wear their influences more clearly on their kaftan sleeves. Though Jen Thomson and siblings Kirsty and Scott Reid hail from Glasgow, they pine for San Francisco 1968 and pay faithful homage to the era with their melodic, psychedelic folk rock - complete with more sitars and tambourines than a Hare Krishna recruitment drive - that’s been liberally dunked in more modern psych stews. Think Fairport Convention, Harrison’s solo work or The Incredible String Band having a love-in with The Jesus & Mary Chain, Mazzy Star, Kyuss and MGMT. On acid? Obviously. Duh. Their previous two albums - 2010’s Here In The Golden Rays and 2012’s Haight-Ashbury 2: The Ashburys - have been so authentic as to lose their grip on their pop edge and drift into the odd indulgent cosmic meander at points. But the comforting fuzz-hugs of their third retain a firm melodic focus, recalling more modern waft-pop acts like Haim and School Of Seven Bells, through the Dear Prudence chug of Family, the gang chanting Velvets pastiche Kicks and the Fleetwood Maharishi pop of Blow Your Mind. Their dark psychedelia just got all the more enthralling. Be sure to wear some hogweed in your hair.  From: https://www.loudersound.com/reviews/haight-ashbury-perhaps

Imperial Drag - Boy Or A Girl

 #Imperial Drag #power pop #glam rock #alternative rock #pop rock #retro-1970s #ex-Jellyfish #1990s

Just like 2 Live Crew before them, Imperial Drag has experienced problems in Florida. Radio station WXTB in Tampa says they pulled the band's single "Boy or A Girl" after complaints came in from listeners who were uncomfortable with the song's lyrical content. "I didn't think it was such a button pusher," says Imperial Drag singer/guitarist Eric Dover of the banned song he wrote about talk show exploitation and sexual paranoia. "It's about coming to grips with certain tendencies. I guess some people got upset because it addresses an alternative side of someone's sexuality. But what I think is strange is the way an alternative radio station folded under pressure. How alternative is that? Some might bypass any alternative tag for the band and simply stick Imperial Drag in with the retro-lo-fi-polyester trend that's been around for the past couple years. The band's Beatles-meet-T. Rex glam-pop sound obviously draws plenty from the past. "We get a retro tag because our influences just show up too damn well," says keyboardist Roger Manning, ex-Jellyfish founder and recent Moog Cookbook chef. "I could write an AC/DC or Queen song in five minutes. I guess that's a blessing and a curse. But for the fans of this music the tag is not an issue. Besides, people are always digging up childhood memorabilia. It's always fascinating that anything from the 70s gets a negative tag, but ska and punk were around years ago too and today it's seen as something new. But I guess people are going to like what they like for whatever reasons.  From: https://www.mtv.com/news/5cjntm/dont-call-imperial-drag-retro

Vibravoid - Om Gang Ganpataye Namah (Mushroom Mantras)

 #Vibravoid #psychedelic rock #space rock #progressive rock #acid rock #krautrock #heavy psych #1960s retro #German #music video

Vibravoid play psychedelic rock influenced by the early Pink Floyd. Their repertoire also includes some cover versions of Pink Floyd songs. The band describes itself as "Europe's number one psychedelic and acid rock band". In an interview with the magazine Eclipsed, singer and guitarist Christian Koch explained that there is no longer a psychedelic scene: "Everything that now calls itself psychedelic is mostly cheap, uninspired hard rock, stoner or heavy metal." Vibravoid's self-assessment as the leading psychedelic rock band is widely shared by the media. In addition to Pink Floyd, The Who and other bands from the late 1960s and early 1970s are also mentioned as comparisons.  From: https://de.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vibravoid

Here is my latest discovery in the world of psychedelic and German inspired rock music (I really dislike using the term Krautrock, not wanting to offend anyone). The band Vibravoid hails from Dusseldorf, Germany and released their debut album in 2000 and have released fifteen studio albums thus far. As far as I can tell the band is heavily influenced by late ‘60s to early ‘70s psychedelia in the vein of early Pink Floyd. Being as Pink Floyd is my favourite band, who am I to complain?
“Mushroom Mantras” is all about retro psych, which they do very well, starting with the first track “Om Gang Ganpataye Namah”. Chistian Koch (vocals, guitars) has a mellow and calm vocal delivery when he sings, “all you need to blow your mind you will find if you just look around”. Yes, the lyrics match the music perfectly invoking the spirit of the ‘60s. It’s catchy, melodic and trippy, with a nice groove and whirling guitar and keyboards. A bit heavier is “The Legend Of Doctor Robert”; another fine example of retro psych with its biting guitar tones and weird echo effects on the vocals. “Echoes Of Time” is a cool space rock groove with cosmic sounding synths and deadpan vocals. I could imagine teenagers in the ‘60s listening to music like this while in a drug-induced haze. Although the songs do not change a great deal from one to the next there are enough subtle differences to make this album highly enjoyable and what this threesome do they do very well. “The Orange Coat” at almost twenty minutes has the band developing a great groove after a trippy intro of sitar and effects. It’s a laid back affair but the guitar still has plenty of razor-like bite. At the end of the disc you also get three bonus tracks that were recovered from a tape that was presumed lost. The band’s spacey synths and other-worldly sounds are at the core of these quite experimental tracks. More Pink Floyd influence can be heard, especially in the weird effects and synths. Very cool indeed.
From: https://www.seaoftranquility.org/reviews.php?op=showcontent&id=21784

Lemon Sky - Ash and Bone

 #Lemon Sky #psychedelic rock #progressive rock #heavy psych #hard rock #1970s retro

Lemon Sky is a Cincinnati based psych-rock/prog-pop quintet that creates a heavy yet highly-melodic brand of psychedelic garage rock that combines the classic rock pomp and stomp of Led Zeppelin with the paisley pop melodies and modern musicality of Queens of the Stone Age for a forward-thinking sound rooted in the past.  From: https://www.bandsintown.com/a/2381083-lemon-sky 

“We’re all living in a world I dreamed,” croons Lemon Sky lead singer Aaron Madrigal in the chorus of “Dos”, which shares the same name as the latest release from the Cincinnati, Ohio quintet. The world that Lemon Sky has dreamed is one of rich harmonies, heavy guitars and hard-hitting beats that mold together to form their own brand of “citrus rock”. Pulling in influences from rock greats Led Zeppelin and Pink Floyd, Lemon Sky’s aptly named sophomore release, Dos, offers up phantasmagorical arrangements that take you on a psychedelic jaunt beginning with the soft chill of “Err” to the cumulative chords of the 8 minute finale, “Ash & Bone”. While it’s been five years since their debut release, Dos is worth the wait as Lemon Sky reaches for new heights in their pursuit of rock n roll.  From: https://midwestaxn.com/music/review/dos-by-lemon-sky/

Orb - General Electric

 #Orb #psychedelic rock #hard rock #heavy metal #fuzz rock #neo-psychedelia #Australian #1970s retro

Playing dark, sonically massive guitar-based rock that's heavy without sounding excessively metallic, ORB (not to be confused with the influential electronic group the Orb) hail from Geelong, Victoria, Australia. The group was founded by three members of the Australian band the Frowning Clouds after that band broke up: guitarist and lead singer Zak Olsen, guitarist and bassist Daff Gravolin, and drummer Jamie Harmer. The three musicians lived not far from one another, and with some extra time on their hands, they began jamming regularly. Inspired by their youthful enthusiasm for hard rock and early metal bands such as Black Sabbath and Blue Öyster Cult, they started writing tunes that drew tongue-in-cheek inspiration from doom rock and psychedelia as well as hard rock. The longer they crafted heavy jams, the more they came to appreciate the style, and the less they approached the music with a smirk. In January 2015, ORB released their debut recording, a five-song cassette titled Womb. Within a few months, the group had earned a solid reputation among Australian heavy rock fans, and they struck a record deal with Flightless Records, the label founded by King Gizzard & the Lizard Wizard.  From: https://www.allmusic.com/artist/orb-mn0003515658/biography

Conspiracy of Owls - Raving Mad

 #Conspiracy of Owls #psychedelic rock #pop rock #baroque pop #space rock #alternative rock #indie rock #retro-1960s

Conspiracy of Owls is actually the side project of the legendary underground Detroit garage heroes The Go. After letting some psychedelia seep into a few of their previous albums, the band decided to indulge in the sound completely, and formed Conspiracy of Owls as a way to deliver it. And by psychedelia, I don't mean a reinterpretation of the '60s style a la garage filter like Ty Segall or The Fresh and Onlys. No, this album is a complete recreation of the stuff that was pouring out of a car's stereo set on AM radio in the '70s. In fact, if this music came on randomly somewhere, you would be asking who turned on the classic rock station.  From: http://thecreativeintersection.blogspot.com/2010/12/album-review-conspiracy-of-owls-st.html

Hedwig & The Angry Inch - Midnight Radio

 #Hedwig & The Angry Inch #John Cameron Mitchell #Stephen Trask #rock musical #movie soundtrack #hard rock #punk rock #glam rock #1970s retro

This song, to me, is about the fleeting thrills and glory of "ecstatic events" in one's life, be it becoming a rock star, playing a new record for the first time, winning a contest, or findng a perfect lover. "Midnight Radio” is a classic Rock & Roll Anthem for those of us that are, as Hedwig so eloquently states, "the misfits and the losers.” The pace and tempo of this song are as important to the meaning as the lyrics. "Midnight Radio" starts out slow and brooding, like that uneasy moment of anticipation before stepping out onto a stage, or that hesitant second before piercing the cellophane on a new LP (does anyone other than me even buy vinyl anymore?). Then the pace picks up a bit at the first chorus, and a hint of the "anthem" nature of this song starts to become apparent in the climbing scales and soaring sustains. Then the "Here's to" verse, really belts it out in true anthem spirit, ending with Hedwig practically growling out the word "tonight". And the "Yea, you know" harmony line is one of those rare musical moments that sends shivers down my back every time I hear it. This build to the climax of this song is, of course, representative of that glorious moment when those ecstatic events in one's life are peaking - the house lights come up to a roaring crowd, that first passionate kiss, the moment when the needle first drops in the groove of a new record and those first notes come from the speakers. And of course the finale "Lift up your hands,” repeating over and over again, is the trailing end of those ecstatic events, when the adrenaline rush is starting to taper off. The song gets louder, and then, although it still tingles with energy and power, it slowly fades out. Just like "real life.”  From: https://songmeanings.com/songs/view/68464/

Earth Tongue - Microscopic God

 #Earth Tongue #psychedelic rock #electronica #neo-psychedelia #heavy psych #fuzz rock #1970s retro #New Zealand 

Sometimes music is supposed to feel weird and indescribable. It’s the moments of clarity within the dense, sonic mess that often feels the most satisfying. That’s the space that Earth Tongue occupy. At times, their songs are shrill and disorientating, other times their reverb-washed textures and instantly familiar hooks can wrap you in a warm, loving embrace. The one consistent thread through their music, however, is the thick and all encompassing fuzz. Guitarist Gussie Larkin has become a master of the fuzz-smothered riff, and along with Ezra Simons’ off-kilter drumming, they’ve been sending punters into transcendental states since they began gigging in their home town of Wellington, New Zealand in 2016.  From: https://www.flyingnun.co.nz/collections/earth-tongue-new-zealand-band

Heavy psychedelic/fuzz band who formed in 2016 in Wellington, New Zealand.  A male/female two-piece who play loud, energetic, disorientating songs, often with space and/or occult themes.  What do you get if you cross Black Sabbath with Stereolab?  Fuck knows, says Ged Babey, but listen to this Primitive Prog - it’s crazy cosmic jack! Sometimes music is supposed to feel weird and indescribable. It’s the moments of clarity within the dense, sonic mess that often feels the most satisfying. That’s the space that Earth Tongue occupy. At times, their songs are shrill and disorientating, other times their reverb-washed textures and instantly-familiar hooks can wrap you in a warm, loving embrace. Now that is a good description, from the bands press release.  Another two piece band - drums and guitar, re-writing the rules and making Prog-influenced music sound simultaneously pop and primitive.
Named after a glutinous fungus (Glutinoglossum glutinosum) Earth Tongue consists of two earthlings: Gussie Larkin (guitar) and Ezra Simons (drums). Both sing.  Their debut Portable Shrine EP was self-released in New Zealand but Floating Being is released this via Bristol (UK) based independent label Stolen Body Records – home of a load of cool international bands. Earth Tongue embrace the imperfections in their playing and recording – drawing influence from early 70s psych and prog rock. The last thing they wanted was to create a shiny, over-produced record – with that in mind, they recorded the drums to an old 8-track Tascam reel-to-reel in a friend’s garage in Melbourne. The result is a punchy, raw and fuzzy journey into psych-rock with songs that weave between melodic and jarring. Unexpected twists and turns leave the listener in a disorientated yet satisfying haze.  From: https://louderthanwar.com/earth-tongue-floating-being-album-review/

The Oil Barons - Hot Cake Big Bad Sound

 #The Oil Barons #stoner rock #doom metal #garage rock #psychedelic rock #desert rock #punk metal #hard rock #power trio #1970s retro #music video

Formed in Los Angeles, CA in early 2016, The Oil Barons are a riff-crazed Heavy Rock power trio that draws from a deep well of influences ranging from Garage Rock to Doom Metal. They like slowing down - they like speedin' up!  They like to shred, Fred. They're the heaviest thing in standard tuning.  From: https://www.theoilbarons.com/

The Oil Barons debut album ‘The West Is Won’ is inspired by Paul Thomas Anderson’s classic movie ‘There Will Be Blood’. So you have a concept album based within the world of oil production and all the joys and pitfalls that industry brings you. Unless it’s influenced by Dallas and the guys are trying to be all intellectual. I’m kidding. Anyway, this is one album that sounds like it suffers from an identity crisis when you first listen to it. As the band play a heavy mixture of Blues Rock, Classic Rock, Stoner Metal, Doom Metal and even Desert Rock. If you’re a fan of bands such as Black Sabbath and Cutch then these guys should definitely be on your radar. ’The West Is Won’ is a brilliantly entertaining album packed full of thrills and (oil) spills with the band writing some progressive sounding riffs and OTT lyrics to match. The opening songs ‘The Oil Baron’, ‘Drill’ and ‘Snake Oil’ show that The Oil Barons have a deep and rich creative sound and when matched against the superb lyrics then a Stoner Metal/Doom Metal album based on ‘There Will Be Blood’ isn’t so crazy after all. The album has a deceptively old-school feel to it and that allows The Oil Barons to experiment with their sound on the later stages of the album. The vocals from Andrew are influenced by the Americana scene at times but still remaining in the Doom/Stoner Metal world. Jake provides solid back-up vocals along with his highly accurate and precise drumming. The Oil Barons continue playing their heavy Blues Rock inspired Stoner/Desert/Doom hybrid sound for the remainder of the album and they will keep you entertained with other cool songs such as ‘California City’, ‘Fuck The Sun’, ‘Vitch’ and the final epic song ‘Suicide Machine’ which ventures into some pretty dark places which I didn’t expect. The production is handled superbly well and the album sounds fresh and lively from the start. The music is very direct and you become part of the whole environment. Though it may take you a few listens to fully understand and actually enjoy the overall album. After that happens you’ll be amazed at how much of a good time you will have this with album.  From: https://outlawsofthesun.blogspot.com/2018/12/the-oil-barons-west-is-won-album-review.html

Glim Spanky - 4-Dimensional Desert

#Glim Spanky #psychedelic rock #garage rock #blues rock #neo-psychedelia #1960s retro #1970s retro #Japanese

Glim Spanky is vocalist/guitarist Remi Matsuo and guitarist Hiroki Kamemoto. Their music has a contemporary vibe that seeps through their otherwise 60s and 70s rock and blues tone.  Originally, they formed in 2007 as a quartet. The group became a duo in February 2010 and have been making waves since. Their name comes from Matsuo’s interest in Celtic culture and fantasy literature; she read a book describing a goblin’s “glim” and added “spank” to describe their aggressive drive towards the music industry. Nevertheless, their music is heavily influenced by the Woodstock generation, as well as American and British acts from the mid-1960s to early 1970s, from The Beatles to Joni Mitchell and the psychedelic allusions of George Harrison.  Central to their sound are the vocals of Remi, whose voice has a rough quality that oozes rock’n’roll. While Hiroki’s guitar melodies flavor the rock sound with psychedelic Eastern flourishes. Not content to simply draw influences from Western rock music culture, they have set about globalizing themselves in a deeper way. In the fall of 2018, they decamped to Los Angeles to record their fourth studio album, Looking For The Magic with producer Kennie Takahashi. Glim Spanky approached Takahashi because of their love for his work with the Ohio band, The Black Keys. Rather than bringing support musicians with them from Japan, they hired two local musicians in Los Angeles: drummer Carla Azar from Jack White’s backing band, and Raconteurs bassist Jack Lawrence. For Glim Spanky, it’s not only about the love of rock but also the culture that surrounds it as well.  From: https://keepingthebluesalive.org/glim-spanky-blues-from-japan/

The Dukes Of Stratosphear - Vanishing Girl

 #The Dukes Of Stratosphear #XTC spinoff #1960s retro #psychedelic rock #neo-psychedelia #psychedelic pop #60s psych rock homage

XTC alter-egos, the Dukes of Stratosphear, may have begun as a joke, but this joke band's records rank with their creators' best work. It all started after XTC's Andy Partridge and producer John Leckie (Stone Roses) got tossed off a producer gig for Mary Margaret O'Hara's Miss America record for reasons that may involve strangeness on O'Hara's part, or religious differences, or the fact that Partridge told the band they needed a click track. As Chris Twomey's XTC biography Chalkhills and Children recounts, Leckie wanted to get something back for the time he'd lost waiting for the O'Hara gig. Partridge mentioned that he and bandmate Colin Moulding had written a bunch of psychedelic songs that were too out-there for XTC; Leckie pitched it to Virgin, asking them for £5,000 to cut a record. When they were done, they returned £1,000 of it.
The first EP, 25 O'Clock, shipped on April Fools' Day 1985, and it was rumored at the time (and official not long after) that the Dukes of Stratosphear were really XTC - with Partridge and Moulding as Sir John Johns and the Red Curtain, third member David Gregory taking the nom de hoax Lord Cornelius Plum, and David's brother Ian, E.I.E.I. Owen - on drums. But some people believed the band was real, and that the records really had been dredged out of a warehouse after decades of neglect. Why not? Not only did the Dukes stick to period instruments and effects, not only did they wear paisley shirts and floppy felt hats to the studio, and not only were all the silly lyrics and psychedelic excesses forgivable, but the band is fantastically, blindly in love with its material. And the songwriting kills. The Dukes began as a joke, but this joke band's two albums rank with XTC's best.
Quoting Partridge from definitive source Chalkhills.org: "The Dukes were the band we all wanted to be in when we were at school: Purple, giggling, fuzztone, liquid, and arriving. If you want to know where those cheap charlatans 'The Beatles', 'Pink Floyd', 'The Byrds', 'The Hollies', and 'The Beach Boys' stole their ideas from, well just listen to this and weep." But even though the homages are front and center, picking out influences is one of the dullest ways to dig these records; hearing these guys bathe in their boyhood record collections is the chief hook, followed by way they let their eyes bug out a little farther than on their "proper" albums of the time. XTC's Big Express and Skylarking came from a working band with adult problems and a grown-up's nostalgia; the Dukes have been like way out of it since high school.
Still, picking out the influences on the two Dukes of Stratosphear records is a good music nut's game. Some are obvious: compared to Pink Floyd's subtler "Arnold Layne", Partridge's "Have You Seen Jackie?" throws a victory parade with acid-laced confetti for its crossdressing hero(ine); "Pale and Precious" apes Beach Boys harmonies years before everyone in Brooklyn was doing it. Other references are subtler or better mashed-up, but rarely is the source of the song the point. You don't have to know the Hollies to adore how perfectly Moulding crafted the melody of "Vanishing Girl", or the way he bites off the high notes on the chorus.
And don't let the bits of gibberish and fluff - like young Lily Fraser "narrating" Psionic Sunspot - distract from the inspired arrangements on each song, like the backwards autoharp on "Have You Seen Jackie?" Or the "banana fingers piano" on "Braniac's Daughter", or the didg's and fuzz pedals and sick guitars and harpsichords and drawkcab loops and sped-up singing, and at the end of "Mole from the Ministry" a backward voice actually says, "you can fuck your atom bomb." Hey, it was the times.
Although I've been mixing up both of the albums in this review, there are marked differences between the debut EP and the career-ending LP. 25 O'Clock is more fun and more loyal to its sources; Psonic Psunspot has stronger songs, especially on the front half, but they're also not far removed from proper XTC material. 25 O'Clock is quick and sneaky; Psonic is wilder, but "The Affiliated" wanders, with the Latin section arguably the weirdest thing on the whole set.
The Dukes never gave a big, dramatic reason for breaking up. (Neither did XTC). They just hung up their axes after Psonic Psunspot, shelving a concept for a rock opera called The Great Royal Jelly Scandal. But they did get in one reunion: the reissue of 25 O'Clock includes their 2003 charity recording "Open a Can (of Human Beans)", which pays tribute to nothing more obviously than 90s-era XTC. And it sounds oh so unfortunately grown-up.  From: https://pitchfork.com/reviews/albums/12893-25-oclock-psonic-psunspot/

Octopus - Beyond the Center

 #Octopus #stoner rock #blues rock #hard rock #heavy metal #psychedelic rock #1970s retro #music video

Led by powerhouse vocalist Masha Marjieh and guitarist J Frezzatto (ex-Electric Six) and including ex-Big Chief bassist Matt O’Brien, the band soaks hard riffs and otherworldly atmospheres in wah-wah guitars, out-of-phase tones, grimy organ and a general sense of the children having pillaged the psychedelic pantry a few times before hitting the studio. Heavier than your average 70s-worshipping gang of stoners, but more colorful than unrefined metallic sludge, Octopus' Supernatural Alliance will rattle your lobes and juice your ‘nads.  From: https://octopus888official.bandcamp.com/album/supernatural-alliance-2

Spring is in the air. Depending on where you reside, this may or may not be a big deal. For those not residing in a paradise climate, this signifies the coming of tolerable temps and more regular doses of some much-needed vitamin D. It’s also a signifier that we can soon roll the car windows down, crank the jams, and make our best Maxell “Blown Away Guy” impression. With that in mind, red-eyed headbangers everywhere should be champing at the bit to blast the debut record from Detroit’s Octopus out in the open (and springtime-y, flowery, sunshiney) air. Supernatural Alliance beams with an invigorating, revitalizing energy that the rock ‘n’ roll (and our seasonal affective disorder) has been missing lately. One look at that album cover should give you an idea of exactly what you’re in for: fantasy, sci-fi, ardor, majesty, and triumph.
Still, like their aqueous namesake, Octopus are a slippery group to tack down in spite of their mostly retro tendencies. Sometimes you get a Master of Reality-era Iommi stomp complete with undulating tom work (“Beyond The Center”), others a nearly Blue Öyster Cult haunt (“Sword and the Stone”). Then there’s moments like the overdriven title track where they mesh a full-commit stoner rock lead with a glossy, celestial synth foundation, leavening things to a smooth and almost floaty glide. By shifting the weight of the song to the full-throated powerhouse chorus, there’s a nifty dynamic balancing act taking place that never leaves the track feeling thin or uneven. This consistent shapeshifting becomes a varied and eclectic package,  the band to touch upon many throwback microcosms. Masha Marjieh’s commanding vocals bind everything together nicely. Her power and delivery suit the high intensity regimen the group doles out, and she handles herself well during the albums few dialed back moments. Album standout “All the Love” (which brings to mind “Planet Caravan” in all the best ways), slows things down at the perfect moment – disarming listeners before they surface again with a potent closing duo.
While a synthy foundation beds most of the record, they avoid entering corny waters that seemed to have doomed everyone in the 80s. Octopus masterfully modernize the keyboard-driven, shag-carpeted sound. A perfect world would have “Strike (While the Iron is Hot)” playing in the background of a dim and smoky pool hall where too-cool-for-school lyrics like “I see that the squeeze ain’t worth the juice” can be said un-ironically and the clapped-along gang vocal chorus can be belted out with reckless abandon – it’s basically modernized Joan Jett in terms of ‘tude and songwriting acumen – what more can you want? Little touches like the way Adam Cox’s piano key slides cozy up with ferocious organ roars put this track over the top, it’s an approachable, yet dense pop track.
Psych rock has largely been a west coast staple, but if the waves made here by Octopus are any indication, we might not be looking coastward for the next great offering of stellar metallic psychedelia. Supernatural Alliance is an eye-opening debut, delivering the goods like seasoned vets instead of stumbling on their first rodeo. It’s a pleasure to hear a band craft something this well-rounded with such confidence, much less as a first impression. There will be obvious parallels to be drawn to Vancouver’s Black Mountain (keyboard/synth heavy compositions, superbly tight songwriting, stylistic variety), which is about as great as a compliment as there can be for this particular style of stoner rock.
From: https://www.heavyblogisheavy.com/2018/03/22/octopus-supernatural-alliance/ 

The Dolly Rocker Movement - Gypsy Dancer

 #The Dolly Rocker Movement #neo-psychedelia #psychedelic revival #garage rock #psychedelic folk rock #West coast sound #retro-1960s #Australian

The Dolly Rocker Movement formed in late 2002 in the inner surrounds of Sydney, Australia. They are influenced by late 60´s garage, psychedelia and West coast folk. The charismatic band leader Daniel Poulter writes beautiful and well-crafted songs and beneath the psychedelic and colourful surface The Dolly Rocker Movement is simply a great pop band with a destinctive sound of their own. In 2006 they released not one, but two critically acclaimed contemporary psychedelic masterpieces. The first, Electric Sunshine, illustrated the chemically enhanced blend of folk, garage and country that characterised the band’s early set. The follow-up album, Purple Journey Into the Mod Machine, adopted as its thematic premise a journey through space and time with even more impressive songs as the result. Our Days Mind the Tyme owes it’s genesis to the psychedelic 60s, and the influence of Sky Saxon, Arthur Lee and Syd Barrett, yet sparkles as bright, and fresh as the morning sun. From the baroque pop of “A Sound for Two”, to the tight garage licks of “My Heavenly Way” and “Sold for Sinners”, to the billowing pop elegance of “The Only One” and “The Ecstacy Once Told”, this is an album touched by the hand of spiritual enlightenment.  From: https://badafrorecords.bandcamp.com/album/our-days-mind-the-tyme

Blood Ceremony - Goodbye Gemini

 #Blood Ceremony #hard rock #progressive rock #doom metal #psychedelic rock #occult rock #stoner rock #heavy psych #1970s retro #music video

Taking its name from an Italian horror film, Blood Ceremony is a Toronto-based band that was formed in 2006 by Sean Kennedy (guitar), Chris Landon (bass), Andrew Haust (drums) and Alia O'Brien (vocals, flute, occasional organ). In 2008, they released their eponymous debut. While the band never indulged in epic songwriting, cuts like 'Master of Confusion' and 'Hymn to Pan' comfortably pass the five minute mark. Musically, Blood Ceremony does sound like a mix between Paranoid-era Sabbath’s sluggy riffage, with a touch of Stand Up period Jethro Tull, mostly due to O'Brien’s flute. The result is something that borders on doom metal, but has enough backwards cast psychedelic atmosphere - not to mention O'Brien’s quasi-operatic vocals - to make it stand out from the rest of the pack. Highly recommended to anyone who likes that late 60s/early 70s gloom metal sound.  From: https://www.progarchives.com/artist.asp?id=4640

Canadian quartet Blood Ceremony’s style emulates 1970s prog rock and 1960s psychedelia while skillfully flirting with occult imagery and Hammer Horror-influenced lyrical themes; and it all started with the inclusion of a flute. “I guess the band really started when Alia [O’Brien, singer and flautist] came to practice with her flute,” muses guitarist and lyricist Sean Kennedy. “We started messing around with different riffs and we realized that it sounded really cool when she played along. We went from there and started writing songs that went in that kind of direction. That was really what developed our sound I guess – psychedelic riffs and flute.” Indeed, with her enchanting looks, powerful voice and Jethro Tull-style flute solos, Alia is a captivating and unique frontwoman. She and Kennedy started the band 10 years ago, which is completed by Lucas Gadke on bass and Michael Carrillo on drums. They’re just about to release album number four, entitled Lord Of Misrule, the follow-up to 2013’s The Eldritch Dark. It’s a bewitching blend of doom and psychedelia, that’s rooted not in the culture of their Canadian homeland, but in English soil. Not only are they signed to a British label, Rise Above Records, and recorded Lord Of Misrule with producer Liam Watson at Toe Rag Studios in London, but their close relationship with England is also reflected in the lyrical and musical themes of the album. “A lot of our influences for this album come from British folklore, and we recorded the album in London. It put that British stamp on it for us,” says Kennedy. “This is the first time we were able to record entirely to analogue tape. So if you buy the vinyl version of the album, it has never been digitalized from the tape, to the mastering, to the vinyl. It was such an exciting way to record the album.”  From: https://www.loudersound.com/features/horror-folk-and-witchcraft-introducing-blood-ceremony

Jellyfish - Joining A Fan Club

 #Jellyfish #power pop #pop rock #psychedelic pop #indie rock #progressive rock #retro 1960s #retro 1970s #Jason Falkner #Roger Manning #1990s

San Francisco-based power pop outfit Jellyfish only released two full-length albums during their early-'90s heydays, but the group's immaculately crafted pop-rock songs and unapologetic penchant for all things retro helped throw some much needed light on what was becoming at the time a very crowded pop underground. Like their closest contemporaries the Posies, the Wondermints, and Redd Kross, Jellyfish drew from the same well as bands like Badfinger, XTC, Cheap Trick, the Move, Big Star, and the Zombies, crafting occasionally complex, impossibly catchy tunes that cast an alternative pop-rock shadow on the radio hits of the previous three decades. Formed around the talents of former Beatnik Beatch members singer/songwriter/drummer Andy Sturmer and keyboard player/multi-instrumentalist Roger Manning, as well as former Three O'Clock singer/songwriter/guitarist Jason Falkner, and with Manning's brother Chris joining the group on bass for live shows, Jellyfish came to fruition in 1990 with the release of Bellybutton. The debut album earned the group a devoted yet decidedly cult following. Both Falkner and Chris Manning left the fold after the Bellybutton tour, the latter blaming a distaste for life on the road and the former unhappy with his role as just a guitar player. Sturmer and Manning spent the next two years holed up in the studio with a rotating cast of musicians who included bassist Tim Smith and multi-instrumentalist/producer Jon Brion to record Jellyfish's sophomore effort, Spilt Milk. Released in 1993, Milk was a far more elaborate affair than its predecessor, echoing the studio mastery of the Beach Boys ("Hush," "Ghost at Number One"), the guitar-heavy onslaught of Kiss and Queen ("Joining a Fan Club," "All is Forgiven"), and the psychedelic pop of the Beatles ("Bye, Bye, Bye," "Brighter Day") with impressive acumen. The band endured a year of touring (with the help of Smith and guitarist/singer Eric Dover) before calling it quits at the end of 1994.  From: https://www.allmusic.com/artist/jellyfish-mn0000319021/biography

Luciferian Light Orchestra - Taste the Blood of the Altar Wine

 #Luciferian Light Orchestra #doom metal #psychedelic rock #heavy metal #occult rock #psychedelic metal #gothic rock #heavy psych #retro 1970s #Swedish #music video

Luciferian Light Orchestra is a band formed in 2014 by Therion’s Christofer Johnsson. The band performs songs that Johnsson has written over the years but thought that they were too retro sounding for Therion. Christofer always had a big passion for ’70’s music. Luciferian Light Orchestra sounds like a ’70’s version of Therion, mainly inspired by the ’70’s occult vibes and themes. The self-titled album was recorded and mixed by Christofer at Adulruna Studio and and mixed by Lennart Östlund (Led Zeppelin, ABBA) at Polar Studios, Stockholm. In the process of making the record, there was a large group of people involved: 2 drummers, 1 bass player, 5 guitarists, 2 keyboard players, 3 hammond organists, 4 lead singers, 5 backing singers It's not official who contributed on the album and who the members are, but Christofer has revealed that it’s ”a mix of old symphonic rock and progressive musicians, some current Therion members, one ex-Therion member and some artists from other bands. Plus some known and unknown people from Dragon Rouge giving a hand with backing vocals.”  From: https://svartrecords.com/en/product/luciferian-light-orchestra-black-ep/4110

Arabs in Aspic - Syndenes Magi

 #Arabs in Aspic #progressive rock #psychedelic rock #stoner rock #heavy prog #hard rock #retro prog #Norway

Arabs in Aspic is a heavy progressive rock band from Trondheim, Norway, with their musical roots planted firmly in the golden era of rock. Their sound is a sweet mixture of loud, heavy guitars and drums, 12 string acoustics, funky bass and percussion, screaming hammond organs, soft Rhodes, mellotrons and 70's synths, topped with a bucket of vocal harmonies.
Arabs in Aspic emerged in 1997 from Norway led by guitarist and vocalist Jostein Smeby and rythm guitarist & Theremin player, Tommy Ingebrigtsen. Since they met through their common love for 1970s heavy rock music, especially Black Sabbath, they've been playing together with different personnel, each playing different kinds of heavy music until Arabs in Aspic surged. They said goodbye to playing covers and the band was ready with Hammond organ player Magnar Krutvik, drummer Eskil Nyhus and his brother, bass player Terje Nyhus. The quartet was later joined by Stig Arve Jorgenson on backing vocals and Hammond organ, as Magnar changed to playing acoustic guitar and synth. After a few years and two releases (Progeria EP and Far Out in Aradabia CD) the band was put on hold due to various reasons. In 2006 Jostein, Eskil and Stig hooked up with bass player Erik Paulsen and formed what was known as Arabs in Aspic II. The new spirit and musicianship led to some serious songwriting, and numerous demos were recorded during the following years. In 2009 the band entered legendary TNT guitarist Ronni LeTekro's studio and recorded the critically aclaimed "Strange Frame of Mind", which was mastered by Tommy Hansen in Jailhouse Studios, Denmark. Before the vinyl release of "Strange Frame" in 2012 they decided to cut the "II" in the band name and go back to just Arabs in Aspic.  From: https://www.arabsinaspic.org/bio--info.html

Haight-Ashbury - Blow Your Mind

 #Haight-Ashbury #psychedelic rock #psychedelic folk #folk rock #acid folk #neo-psychedelia #retro-1960s  #Scottish

The Glasgow trio Haight-Ashbury has quite possibly never sniffed a single whiff of proper incense-scented San Francisco air. But my, have they imbibed the spirit! Theirs is a huge wall of sound, consisting of twanging tablas and rattling tambourines, the ethereal twin vocals of Jennifer Ashbury and Kirsty Heather Ashbury (possibly not their real names) and a serious addiction to Jesus & Mary Chain-type guitar textures. Huge fun.  From: https://julietippex.com/roster/haight-ashbury

 Haight-Ashbury are a trio, like Peter Paul and Mary, Crosby Stills and Nash and Motorhead (when they were good). Haight-Ashbury don't necessarily sound like any of them, though. They play beautiful West Coast sunshine pop, full of the sort of close harmonies and sweeping melodies that, when it all comes together, make the hairs on the back of your neck stand on end. Listening to their borderline-kosmische neo-hippie pop, you may imagine that they formed when the moon was in the seventh house and Jupiter aligned with Mars, with the intention to herald the Age of Aquarius. That isn't necessarily untrue. What definitely did happen was that best friends Kirsty and Jen were in bands together from their late teens. One night they had a gig at Glasgow University and the rest of the musicians couldn't make it, so Kirsty’s brother, Scott sat in on guitar while the girls sang. It was a great show. They formed a band.
“We did a Bangles cover. My favourite guitarist was Stephen Stills and that's what I wanted to sound like, nice open tunings, close harmonies,” says Scott. Scott had travelled that summer with a friend in America. “We spent a while specifically in San Francisco. I knew that a few of the bands I liked had roots there. I bought the first Jefferson Airplane album, and The Grateful Dead's records. When we came back wearing Haight Ashbury t-shirts, it was just one of the names in our heads. We didn't choose it because that was our sound, though our sound eventually came to be that. As we developed, we fell into that mold easier than we thought we would.”  From: https://www.a38.hu/en/artist/haight-ashbury