SENDELICA – ANIMA MUNDI (LP, CD, D/L)

Anima Mundi is the first studio albun from Welsh Prog/psych band SENDELICA for a while and tis sure a heady brew of classic early 70s underground rock influences. It is certainly a Prog Rock album but it is more in the tradition of the early 70s European jazz influenced underground scene and particularly the sonic experimentation of German kosmische musik as opposed to the post psychedelic whimsy of many British Prog bands. Throughout all of the eight instrumental tracks here there are elements of Ash Ra, Clear Light Symphony, Nik Turner’s Sphynx and post pot head pixie Gong amongst others……..if SENDELICA had been about in 1973 they would have no doubt been signed to Virgin Records.

The album opens with ‘The Craeft Worker’ and this track kinda sets the tone for the rest of the album. Glenda Pescado’s bass pulses underneath Colin Consterdine’s bubbling synths and fluttering electronics while Pete Bingham guitar soars, sounding very much like Manuel Göttsching from Ash Ra. Lee Relfe’s spaced out sax is added to the sonic soup for extra texture…..nice. There is also a heavier side to SENDELICA which is ably demonstrated on the 12 minute psychedelic rock wig-out ‘Master Benjamin Warned Young Albert’ which is all crunching guitar riffs and wailing sax solos driven by propulsive drums, a track that would not be out of place on any early Hawkwind album. Proto-metal rock guitar also dominates both ‘Baalbek Stones’ and the dense, heavy stoner rock of ‘The Breyr, The Taeogon and The Caethion’. The standout tracks here are the dreamlike ‘The Pillar Of Delhi’ and the totally kosmische ‘Searohwit’. ‘The Pillar Of Delhi’ is a hazy psychedelic swirl where analogue synths twist round floating, infinite guitars……..this features  Gregory Curvey from the brilliant Chicago psych rock band THE LUCK OF EDEN HALL who adds extra guitar to the track. ‘Searohwit’ is cosmic music in the grand tradition of early krautrock…..more Tangerine Dream than Neu! and possibly the best track on the album.

On this beautifully crafted album SENDELICA have expertly fused together psychedelic rock with more ambient improvisations that although sometimes stray a little close for comfort to New Age music, never go the full Windham Hill. Although Anima Mundi is not a startlingly original album and may not be to everyone’s taste, this is a mighty fine record you will dig if you like the more underground/psychedelic hues of early 70s Prog Rock. Available now as LP, CD and Download……..check it out here http://sendelica.bandcamp.com/album/anima-mundi

THEE PSYCHEDELICATESSEN