Words by Jonathan Stout
When not doing freelance writing, Jonathan Stout is heavily involved in the NKY and Cincinnati music scenes as the Marketing Manager for Kentucky based venue The Southgate House Revival and founder of DIY Recording label Lo Fi City Recordings. He’s also an active musician, performing and recording with Sleepy Drums, Mutt Fuzz, Burnt Cabins and gewgaw.
Fans of the modern experimental psych freaks Black Moth Super Rainbow have had to wait a long 7 years for new material, but June brought about their return with Soft New Magic Dream (Rad Cult). They don’t disappoint with this release, but their nastier, upbeat numbers are dialed back in favor of languishing in more chill territory. Granted, even at their most melodic and soothing, there’s always something eerily sinister seemingly waiting behind the curtain – giving each composition a unique sense of unease.
Psychedelic Porn Crumpets are about to release another new album, but before that happens, I wanted to squeeze in a mention of their May release, Carpe Diem, Moonman (What Reality? Records) which furthers their reputation as a highly versatile unit. Moonman seems to have an “anything goes” approach, with the band restlessly melding together rock subgenres into fresh territories. Album opener “Another Reincarnation” rips with riffs and energy that would make Josh Homme blush. “March on for Pax Ramona” slams the listener against the wall with heavy seething post hardcore. “Qwik Maff” turns the direction completely on its head with melodious math rock, while “Weird World Awoke” hits back hard with a raging slab of noise rock – AND THAT’S JUST THE FIRST FOUR SONGS! In effect, this inspired unit takes the listener on quite the sonic journey within its 40 min run time. You’re left in shock – what even was all of that? One thing’s for sure, you’ll be back for repeated listens.
A-One From Day One (Riding Easy Records) the newest outing by Dusty Rose Gang, is a really fun romp for all the good-timers out there. Steeped in 70s rock influences, the band makes it pretty clear from the album opener “Love Bug” that they are here exclusively on the mission to both rock and party hard. The members share a really loose and comfortable chemistry, which really helps these songs sound natural and not just like another faux-vintage tribute act. And it’s not all purely an outdated throwback- tracks like “Sticker” and “Feel Me” will easily appeal equally to both fans of Black Sabbath and Ty Segall.
Immersion is the current project made up of post punk legends Colin Newman (Wire), Malka Spigel (Minimal Compact) and Matt Schulz (Holy F*ck, Savak & Lake Ruth). Their newest outing, WTF?? (Swim), is a measured release with equal parts upbeat energy and ominous atmosphere. Moving from the charging kraut-rock rhythm of album opener “Defiance,” to the Jesus and Mary Chain styled trippy blues of “Use It Don’t Lose It” to the electro-punk “Change Of Use” and the brooding “Push The Rock,” the band’s shared energy and vision feels infectious. Lyrically, most songs relate to the general sentiment of the album’s title (WTF??) – expressing the anxiety that most of us feel when reading the news or looking out the window nowadays. But they manage to combine this feeling of unease with hope, often invoking the feeling of a call to action. As if acknowledging, “Yes, everything’s fucked up, but what are you going to do about it?” This attitude – coupled with hypnotic songwriting – taut melodies and grooving inventiveness, gives WTF?? enough mystery for listeners to venture on throughout the record, wondering what may creep out from the next corner. Overall, it’s very inspiring to hear veteran musicians keeping up with technology and creating sounds that are consistent with their best work while also sounding vital and energized.
Before ending this edition, I wanted to mention one of the wildest records I’ve heard this year – West Virginia Snake Handler Revival They Shall Take Up Serpents (Sublime Frequencies) – a landmark record, documenting the last snake handling church in Appalachia. Featuring hillbilly rock guitars, trance-like rhythms and howling vocals, this album was recorded 100% live and without overdubs by Grammy-award winning producer and author, Ian Brennan (Tinariwen, Ramblin’ Jack Elliott, Zomba Prison Project). The 13 compositions fly by like a fever dream, and the format (or lack thereof) bouncing between hill country blues jams, shattered outsider folk country hymns and the howling gospel of Pastor Chris can be quite dizzying. By the way, I can’t stress how completely unhinged Pastor Chris sounds throughout this record. You can just feel his sweat and hear the blood of his snakebites dripping off in buckets as he seemingly exhumes his demons over the microphone. His delivery, juxtaposed over the fried blues jams, somewhat evokes early Captain Beefheart, if Mike Bloomfield or Bruce Langhorne had been backing him on lead guitar. With all due respect to the Pastor, even though he’s preaching a religious sermon, it quickly erodes into incoherent rambling basically akin to Beefheart at his most absurd. It can be intense to say the least – and won’t be for everyone – but it’s a really raw window into the fringes of Appalachian life where the weirdos start to overlap with the religious fanatics. The sound is wild enough, but to imagine that in reality there’s also a snake involved in the hand of this lunatic when he’s delivering these monologues amps up the meter that much higher. It sounds like someone put acid in the sacrament. Maybe I’ll give church another try?