Posts Tagged ‘psychedelica’

Album of the day: High Wolf – Atlas Nation

Posted on Friday, November 11th, 2011

Praise for High Wolf‘s Atlas Nation from San Francisco’s aQuarius Records: French one man psychedelic loopscaper High Wolf finds his way onto our pal JW’s Holy Mountain label, and offers up another mesmerizing collection of collaged soundscapes and rhythmic mesmer, but unlike on past records where the High Wolf sound was dense, and noisy, a little chaotic. A  Birchville Cat Motel like slow build to a dense layered soft cacophony, the sounds here are much more blissed out and dubby, very rhythmic with a bit of an Eastern vibe.

The opening track especially sounds like a more lysergic Muslimgauze, with some sitar like buzz and tribal hand drums woven into the song’s blurred soft swells and spidery melodies. It’s easily the dreamiest thing we’ve heard from HW, and we definitely wish it had gone one way longer.

The second track offers up more of the same, with a bit more effects, muted percussion, some warm fuzzed out shimmer, all in a haze of washed out effects, until the low end swoops in, thick and dense, synthy and warbly. A strange fuzzy pulse laid over that initial rhythm, a dark raga like kosmische sound that drifts and shimmers hypnotically until the song finally winds down.

Track three, ‘Raagini’ begins all raga buzz, layered high end tones, but quickly blossoms into a sound more like the High Wolf of old, a gauzy expanse of mesmerizing buzz, but here the drones are laid over a strange sonar like pulse, which gives the otherwise nearly static buzz an otherworldly propulsion.

‘Kenya Sunset’ is another one that starts off all Muslimgauze-y, looped and darkly rhythmic, ominous and cinematic, the surrounding sounds in constant motion, totally tranced out, the sort of thing we could listen to forever, but instead of going on forever, the song erupts into a wild psychedelic squall, that wraps itself around that pulsing rhythm, and rides it for the length of the track.

And then finally, the nearly 14 minute ‘Haiti’ smooths the looped rhythms into something much more abstract and droney, some spaced out psychedelic drift, that builds slowly into a warm washed out celestial swirl, all bleary and blurry and dreamy, but still shot through with some smoldering psychedelic guitar, the perfect closer to one of our favorite High Wolf records yet.

Includes a download coupon as well!

At 40 years old, Aquarius is the oldest independent record store in San Francisco. We try to only carry music we love, and we’re always searching for more new, cool, weird and wonderful music. All of which we then share with you, our loyal customers.

Tags: Album of the day, Aquarius Records, Atlas Nation, High Wolf, Holy Mountain, psychedelica
Posted in 2011, Album of the Day, Roadburn Recommended | No Comments »

Album of the day: Acid Mothers Temple & The Melting Paraiso U.F.O. – The Ripper At The Heavens Gates Of Dark

Posted on Wednesday, November 9th, 2011

Lovingly pinched from The Sleeping Shaman: There are many uncertainties in life but you can always be sure that Acid Mothers Temple will continue to crank out album after album of claustrophobic, psycho-psychedelia from atop their Japanese mountain retreat, like crazed astronomers sending out distorted signals into the vast expanse ...read more

Gothic Psychedelia Newcomers Purson Confirmed For Roadburn Festival 2012

Posted on Friday, November 4th, 2011

We are ecstatic to announce that London-based gothic psychedelia newcomers Purson have been added to the line-up for Roadburn Festival 2012. Named after a demon and fronted by the bewitching Rosalie Cunningham, Purson is the latest psychedelic proto-doom band with a mesmerizing female vocalist to cast a spell over everyone ...read more

Album of the day: Oresund Space Collective – Entering into the Space Country

Posted on Saturday, October 29th, 2011

Lovingly pinched from Sea of Tranquility: The Oresund Space Collective are a very busy band and have come out with yet another release Entering into the Space Country, this one limited to vinyl. They have had no less than four releases thus far in 2011. The band has seen many ...read more

Album of the day: Annapurna Illusion – Life Is An Illusion

Posted on Thursday, October 20th, 2011

Praise for Annapurna Illusion‘s Life Is An Illusion from San Francisco’s aQuarius Records: We first heard Annapurna Illusion on a split with looped psychedelic drifter High Wolf. The weird thing was that we discovered the guy in High Wolf as also the guy in AI, but his (?) side of the ...read more

Album of the day: Spirits of the Dead – The Great God Pan

Posted on Thursday, September 22nd, 2011

Lovingly pinched from The Obelisk: The well-received Norwegian four-piece Spirits of the Dead released their self-titled debut in 2010 to what was – if the extensive collection of press quotes is anything to go by – considerable fanfare. The follow-up to said debut arrives in the form of The Great ...read more

Hexvessel: Quality Live-footage from Dark Bombastic Evening 3 Available on Youtube

Posted on Thursday, September 22nd, 2011

Quality-filmed video footage of Hexvessel‘s August 20th, 2011 performance at Dark Bombastic Evening 3 in Romania can be seen below. Hexvessel — A psychedelic, haunting, folk rock band, founded by Englishman Mat “Kvohst” McNerney, known previously as a vocalist for avant blackmetal bands Dødheimsgard and Code, now living in Helsinki, ...read more

Album of the day: Mars Red Sky – Mars Red Sky

Posted on Wednesday, September 14th, 2011

Lovingly pinched from The Obelisk: Making their home in the rich dirt of France’s Bordeaux region, the trio Mars Red Sky specialize in gorgeously-toned and natural-sounding fuzz that comes on huge and overwhelming, but is rife also with engaging melody and psychedelic flourish. Guitarist Julien Pras (also Calc) is like ...read more

Album of the day: Elks – Destined For The Sun

Posted on Friday, September 9th, 2011

Lovingly pinched from About.com: Heavy Metal: Brooklyn, NY-based Elks recently signed to TeePee Records and released their debut album, Destined For The Sun. A lean, tight work, clocking in at 22 minutes, it combines shoegaze and sludge metal with psychedelic punk rock. The sound is gritty and unpretentious, while the ...read more

Album of the day: Sun Araw – Ancient Romans

Posted on Sunday, September 4th, 2011

Praise for Sun Araw‘s Ancient Romans from San Francisco’s aQuarius Records: For all the deserved attention and press the whole Los Angeles musical underground has been receiving in the last couple years, we still think that Sun Araw, aka Cameron Stallones, is perhaps the most unique musical visionary to come ...read more