New from London
label Fuzz Club comes the latest instalment of their peerless Reverb Conspiracy
compilations featuring some great bands from all over Europe that have been
making waves over the last couple of years or who are tipped to make a big
splash in the coming months. Collecting together twelve relatively recent
tracks that cover the full neo-psychedelic spectrum, Fuzz Club have put
together another gem of an album full of absolute killer tracks of the best
mind melting, twisted, swirling Psychedelia currently on offer.
Those of you
that are fans of the label should already be aware of Psych juggernauts TAU,
10000 Russos, The Orange Revival and Throw Down Bones who have all had
exceptional records released on Fuzz Club. Taken from the band’s Wirikuta EP, the
shadowy, motorik drive of TAU’s ‘Trickster’ kicks off Reverb Conspiracy Vol. 4
and along with 10000 Russos squalling, distorted, feedback drenched ‘UsVsUs’ it
epitomises where generally neo-psychedelia is at in 2016………………..the 60s are
finally over People and we are living in a post-Altamont world which is darker
and more psychically challenging and this compilation more than demonstrates
this with plenty of other cuts from the dark heart of Psych scene. The Orange
Revival and Throw Down Bones bring a 80s Post Punk Psychedelia vibe to the
party with heavy fuzz and propulsive bass lines………The Orange Revival’s track, ‘Carolyn’,
with it’s fuzzed out, somnolent, stoned immaculate groove evokes the early
Sisters Of Mercy EPs while the pulsing, Neu! inspired throb of ‘Our Home, The Holy Mountain’ by Throw Down
Bones would not be out of place on the early, more experimental Simple Minds records
or the last couple Horrors LPs. New Fuzz Club signing, Italian Shoegaze
noiseniks My Invisible Friend are an exceptional band……we first came across MIF
when their debut 3 track Bandcamp EP landed in our inbox at the start of 2015,
with ethereal voices emerging from the mix in a tidal wave of gorgeous noise driven by the relentless beat of a Roland TR-505 drum machine and mainly
influenced by Slowdive, The Telescopes and MBV, we thought something special
was happening then. They have since evolved, added a real live drummer and grown into a beautiful,
sonically complex creature pushing at the boundaries of the Shoegaze genre,
where other bands are content just to copy the sounds of 25 years ago, MIF are
taking the genre somewhere completely different….taken from their debut EP for
Fuzz Club, ‘Endless’ is a near perfect 10 minutes of glacial soundscaping.
For their
Reverb Conspiracy compilations, Fuzz Club seek out the finest new Psych sounds
from past the UK boarders and tap into the exciting, vibrant Psych scenes in
mainland Europe. From Sweden and catching the ear late last year with their
debut LP for Rocket Recordings, Josefin Ohrn + The Liberation have been tipped
for “Big Things” in the future. Reverb Conspiracy Vol 4 features ‘Dunes’, a
choice cut of otherworldly Psych Pop from the Horse Dance album where Synth Pop
meets raging guitars……you can hear why people got excited by this. Back in the autumn
of 2015 a copy of Magnifier was delivered to our psychedelic basement…………and it
blew our minds. Released on Sulatron Records, the album by Italian Psych/Space
Rockers Giöbia (a band inspired/influenced by “the lysergic side of the ‘60s, by exotic mantras and the evocative
power of Space Rock”) was heavier and darker than their past records,
seeing the band move away from a 60s Garage Rock swirl towards a more Psych/
Space Rock sound, drawing you ever deeper into a lysergic vortex of exotic
mantras and Sabbathian rituals. Included here is the mammoth 15 minute
spaced-out jam ‘Sun Spectre’ which is one of the best tracks on the album
which we described as “a total
trip……………….an intergalactic ghost ship drifting through darkest regions of
space, buffeted by solar winds as it is slowly pulled into the void”. The
track is some of the most thrilling Space Rock we have heard in the last 12
months……..read our full album review here https://theepsychedelicatessen.blogspot.co.uk/2015/10/giobia-magnifier-sulatron-records-lp-cd.html.
Hailing from the dark, foreboding swamps of……er……..Saarbrücken, Germany and
raised on moonshine and L.S.D., if Deliverance is ever remade by director David
Lynch then there is no doubt the Spook Blues duo Pretty Lightning will be providing
the soundtrack. Pretty Lightning are Christian Berghoff and Sebastian Haas,
both members of the sprawling ritualistic ‘Neo-Hippie-Spook-Folk’ collective
Datashock, who’s album A Magic Lane Of Light And Rain landed early last summer courtesy
of Cardinal Fuzz/Sound Effects Records. ‘Graveyard Howls’ is an epic
hallucinatory Psych/Blues guitar and drums wig-out, it’s an heady mix of primal
Blues stomp and warped psychedelia as Pretty Lightning’s take on the Blues is
to tear it apart and put it back together……upside down while twisting it into
strange new shapes. As a complete contrast and a throwback to what some people
may consider as more “traditional” psychedelia, French Garage/Surf Rock band The Madcaps are included here. Taken from their debut album on Howlin’ Banana
Records, Moon Night is a groovy summer Psych Pop jangle fest, full of sweet
harmonies, fuzzed up guitars, fizzing bass lines and tight ‘n’ groovy drumming guaranteed
to get yer hip shaking freak on at the best beach party you could ever imagine
and if that is your (beach)bag then you will certainly dig this track.
Closer to
home,The Oscillation have been creating some of the best tripped out UK
Psychedelic sounds for nearly 10 years now, with a host of critically acclaimed
albums and singles under their belts and still making unbelievable mind warping
music, they are veterans of the scene. Taken from Beyond the Mirror (Rare and
Unreleased Tracks) released on All Time Low, ‘Kissing The Sun’ is an
instrumental driven by a massive bass line not dissimilar to one that underpins
The Mighty Lemon Drops ‘Happy Head’……..gasp as it dips and soars, twists and
turns itself inside out in a 7 minute joy ride to the centre of the mind, ‘Kissing
The Sun’ is one of the standout tracks on an album already chock full of
brilliant tunes. At the other end of the scale, the ominous and mind-altering
London based band Ulrika Spacek are brand new to the scene and are making waves
with their recent debut The Album Paranoia with the dark brooding, Krautrock
influenced ‘Beta Male’ included here.
Although
Fuzz Club Records have a penchant for apocalyptic psych-outs and all things noise,
Reverb Conspiracy Vol 4 is a balanced, extremely well curated compilation.
Although there are plenty of tracks that will mess with your head and make your
ears bleed it’s not all heavy Krautrock inspired freak outs. Proving that
Psychedelia is in fact a very broad church, Soft Walls Post Punk D.I.Y.
minimalist track ‘Never Come Back Again’ is an interesting addition to Reverb
Conspiracy Vol 4. Coming from a place where “Pop meets Drone” and taken from
Soft Walls No Time album this track is no doubt what the bastard offspring of an
unholy communion between the Jesus and Mary Chain and Suicide would sound like. This really
is an excellent album with not one duff track to be seen anywhere, if you only
buy one Psych Rock compilation this year…….make sure that it’s this one.
Due for
release on November 17th, Reverb Conspiracy Vol 4 will be available
from your groovy local vinyl emporium and the usual on line traders. Available
as 2 x LP on white vinyl or CD, you can pre-order a copy direct from Fuzz Club Records here……. www.fuzzclub.com.
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