Review: Altin Gun has a famously recognisable sound and it is once again laid bare heart for all to enjoy. This new album is a triumphant return for the much-loved sextet from Amsterdam and one that is high on energy levels throughout. Though familiar in that way, this Ask album finds the band ditching some of their synth-drenched former sounds and 80s and 90s pop leanings to return to their 70s Anatolian funk of their roots. It almost sounds like a live album such is the hustle and bustle of the music with the results sounding all the more warm and welcoming.
Review: Blue Oyster Cult's Spectres, reissued on vinyl, shows the band at a pivotal point in their career. Known for blending hard rock with dark, atmospheric elements, this 1977 album contains some of their most memorable tracks. The iconic opener 'Godzilla' sets the tone, with its powerful riffs and cinematic imagery. Donald "Buck Dharma" Roeser's guitar work shines throughout, particularly on tracks like 'Golden Age of Leather' and 'R.U. Ready to Rock'? What sets Spectres apart is its haunting mood, especially evident in songs like 'I Love the Night' and the eerie closer, 'Nosferatu'. These tracks sees the band's talent for creating chilling atmospheres with both vocals and instrumentation. The balladry of 'I Love the Night' is particularly striking, a standout even in a discography filled with dark gems. Spectres remains an excellent record that perfectly blends Blue Oyster Cult's signature sound with a more accessible, yet still shadowy, rock approach.
Review: During the 11 years in which they were active, krautrock pioneers CAN delivered a string of acclaimed and influential albums. They Cologne quartet was in a constant state of evolution, creating art-rock epics which frequently defied easy categorization. 1973's Future Days, which Mute has decided to remaster and reissue on gold vinyl, is a fantastic example of this. While rich in krautrock grooves that sit somewhere between jazz-rock and progressive rock, each of its four tracks has a decidedly different feel, with the sun-kissed, semi-ambient and bossa-tinged title track being followed by the wonky and percussive 'Spray' and the low-slung, funk-fuelled madness of 'Moonshake'. The headline attraction though remains the near 20-minute closer, 'Bel Air', an ever-changing, shape-shifting krautrock soundscape whose psychedelic intentions come wrapped in a hazy ambient veneer.
Review: Dantalian's Chariot was Zoot Money's brief foray into the psychedelic world, fronted by a young Andy Somers, later known as Andy Summers of The Police. This 1967 project emerged from the remnants of Zoot Money's r&b group, Zoot Money's Big Roll Band and ventured into the experimental sounds of the psychedelic era. The band's only single, 'Madman Running Through The Fields', became an underground classic, blending West Coast influences and trippy Eastern sounds with inventive use of backward tapes and a swirling organ. The album "Chariot Rising" encapsulates the spirit of British psychedelia, with tracks like 'Sun Came Bursting Through My Cloud' and 'Soma' that showcase sitar-driven melodies and hypnotic rhythms. The band's sound is an eclectic mix of fuzzed-out guitar, jazz-inflected organ, and light Eastern touches, clearly influenced by both the British underground scene and the West Coast of the US. Tracks like 'World War Three' and 'High Flying Bird' explore darker, socially-conscious themes while maintaining the colorful sonic palette that defines this album. Although Dantalian's Chariot disbanded after just one single and an unreleased album, this record offers a fascinating glimpse into the psychedelic era and demonstrates the raw creativity of its members. Chariot Rising stands as an essential artifact of late 1960s British psych-rock.
Take Me For A Little While(limited coloured vinyl 7" (indie exclusive) (comes in different coloured vinyl, we cannot guarantee which colour you will receive))
Review: After leaving his native California for Chicago, Rudy De Anda dimmed down his beachy, psych-rock roots and dipped into some unknown waters, yielding enchanting results. His latest album, which was recorded in Austin, Texas, is romantically familiar and novelly soulful Latin pop that's a pure joy to behold. The b-side here - '83' - is a key number from that album. It has a subtle, cool groove perfect for sparking up a fat cigar and putting your feet up for the day. Given that De Anda is on such top form in this chapter of his life, it's no surprise he's done justice and then some to with his cover of Royal Jester's version of 'Take Me For A Little While'. The two tracks fit seamlessly together and beg repeat listens.
Review: Dream Division present their latest album Rose In The Garden Of Winter, a contemporary gothic disco undertaking of polished and still genre-various proportions. Echoing the stylistic ambitions of Bauhaus, but perhaps describably updating their sound for the modern ear, Dream Division offer a metamorphic record, able to shapeshift into a range of chiropteran forms: cinematic punk, dub, goth-disco, lounge, even interluding raga. Impressively, the personnel list on this record make up an intricate human nonagram, through the central vector on this ritual star is Tom McDowell, who handles synths, vocoder, production and songwriting and commands a puppeteer's control over various synthesists, sitar caressers and theremin cooers. Delightfully devilish throughout, A Rose... reminds of something between a lycanthropic, late 70s Mancunian punk blowout and a fanged Italo-disco bashment in which the sprinklers sprinkle blood on sight of a daywalker.
Review: Goat's latest eponymous album continues their enigmatic journey through the realms of mysticism and musical exploration. The Ouroboros, symbolising eternal cycles of death and rebirth, perfectly encapsulates the band's ever-evolving sound. Building on their previous worksilike the introspective Medicine and the haunting soundtrack to The Gallows Poleithis release dives deep into rhythmically charged, ritualistic grooves with a blend of infectious funk and transcendent psychedelia. Tracks like 'One More Death' and 'Goatbrain' set the tone with their hedonistic funk and aggressive guitar fuzz, resonating with long-time fans. Meanwhile, 'Fools Journey' offers a meditative experience with its free jazz influences and shamanic textures, reminiscent of their side project Djinn. 'Frisco Beaver' revisits the party vibes of 2012's World Music, while 'Zombie' and 'Ouroboros' merge hip hop elements with celebratory chants and energetic breakbeats. As Brad Dourif's character from Wiseblood wisely notes, the journey is about finding escape and renewal. With this album, Goat delivers an exhilarating experience, reinforcing their status as pioneers in the psychedelic and ritualistic music landscape. This pressing on vinyl offers a fitting tribute to their dynamic legacy.
Review: Goat returns with their latest self-titled album, the third in as many years, to ecstatic fans of the band. This ever-enigmatic collective continues to push boundaries, delivering a record that blends rhythmically intense rituals with an unmistakable energy that both invigorates dancefloors and stimulates the mind. The album kicks off with 'One More Death' and 'Goatbrain,' two tracks that capture Goat's hedonistic spirit through sharp funk grooves and guitars drenched in fuzz and wah. These tracks set the tone for an album that never shies away from exploration. The closing track, 'Ouroborus,' inspired by the ancient symbol of cyclical rebirth, showcases the band's love for hip hop, combining infectious chants with relentless breakbeats reminiscent of Lalo Schifrin's work. This finale brings the journey full circle, echoing the idea of endless renewal. Goat's new album continues to affirm their dedication to transcendence and transformation, offering listeners a potent escape into a world where the only constant is change.
Review: Hawkwind's Doremi Fasol Latido stands as one of the band's most defining albums, pushing the boundaries of space rock with its heavy, relentless energy. Released in 1972, it was their first album to feature Lemmy Kilmister on bass and vocals and Simon King on drums. This lineup injected a raw, aggressive edge into Hawkwind's already cosmic sound, propelling tracks like 'Brainstorm' and 'Lord of Light' into new sonic dimensions. 'Brainstorm', an 11-minute psychedelic journey, opens the album with mind-bending intensity, while 'Space Is Deep' brings a haunting calm before launching listeners back into the stratosphere. The album blends the harsh and the serene, balancing driving riffs, Lemmy's pulsating bass and atmospheric electronics. The newly remastered edition from the original tapes adds extra clarity to this space-metal classic, including a bonus single of the rare 1972 German release of 'Lord of Light' and 'Born to Go' (live). This is a progressive space rock landmark.
San Fancisco (Be Sure To Wear Flowers In Your Hair) (3:26)
Waterloo Sunset (3:32)
See Emily Play (2:43)
My White Bicycle (3:37)
No Face, No Name,no Number (4:16)
Way Back In The 1960s (3:11)
Vacations In The Past (3:48)
A Day In The Life (5:02)
Review: Cult singer-songwriter Robyn Hitchcock is one of the most enduring and influential in psychedelic pop. He's released hundreds of songs in a career that started with his Cambridge-based proto-psych-punk band The Soft Boys in the 70s. The Soft Boys triggered the psychedelic revival of the 1980s and had a massive influence on R.E.M. Part of Hitchcock's appeal is his sublime use of melody, harmony and his bright, vivid imagination, which stems from his love of 60s psychedelia as a teen. 1967 appears to have been the most pivotal of the groovy decade for him, as he has produced this album of covers of songs from that year to go with his memoir (1967: How I Got There And Why I Never Left). To his credit, Hitchcock captures the blissful spirit of music from that year and there some big hits here - such as The Kinks 'Waterloo Sunset' and Pink Floyd's 'See Emily Play'- delivered with intimate lo-fi charm. With limited tools (most often it's just his voice and reverb-tinged guitar on here with no drums) Hitchcock captivates and encourages deeper appreciation of one of the greatest eras of songwriting ever.
Review: It feels like every couple of years a new reissue of Kikagaku Moyo's magical 2013 album Forest of Lost Children comes around, but we are not moaning. This group is "a musical union between five free spirits" or in less poetic terms, band founders Go Kurosawa (on drums and vocals) and Tomo Katsurada (on guitar and vocals) plus bass by and Akira also on guitar. Their sound is as unique as any, with psychedelic, folk, prog-rock, psychedelic-folk-mixed-with-prog-rock and more all collided into one another on an album that keeps you on your toes and guessing at what might come next even within each track, let alone across the whole album. If you're a new interested party this is a great primer for what the band is all about.
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