Kingston Wall

I haven't been writing in a while, I know. But I wasn't able to not share this band with you people, that still stumble upon this page. It's a Finnish psychedelic prog rock band from the 90's called Kingston Wall. Sadly - they are split and soon after their guitars/vocals guy, Petri Walli, committed suicide, perhaps because of spiritual problems or the inability to live without the band. Not long before jumping out the window in Helsinki hotel, he made a trip to Goa. You can only speculate, was the trip a last-place-to-visit, or the last attempt to find peace with inner self...

But in the end, we are left here with 3 beautiful albums full of brilliant passages, ideas and melodies. It's the kind of music you put on and listen through the whole album to really make it unravel. Honestly - this is of best progressive rock I've ever came across. Enjoy.

Petri Walli (guitars, lead vocals), Jukka Jylli (bass, backing vocals) and Sami Kuoppamäki (drums, percussion)

WFA: Good day, earthlings.

Here to leave this tasty piece of space off of Monke3's upcoming album "The 5th Sun". Album will be out on 25th of October. The album can be pre-ordered here: http://shop.napalmrecords.com/monkey3. That's it for today!

Album: Causa Sui - Euporie Tide (2013)

So I've finally got my hands on the latest Causa Sui album review. And man, I gotta say it's looking to be my favorite album of theirs so far! Seems to be a next step in the bands music development. Really glad that they kind of went away from the uber-psychedelic messes they sometimes did. That was exactly the thing that was putting me off of these guys. I mean sometimes when I was putting these guys on in the background, I'd eventually find my self kind of nervous and edgy, and then realize that it's them going into this weird trip. That's usually when I'd turn 'em off. This album was the first one I could listen to from beginning to the very end without skipping or turning it off completely. It's a lot more hippy and mild, thus a lot more approachable and listenable.

So for all of you psychedelic rock lovers: Attached is a youtube video of the whole album, that's the only way to listen to it, the way I see it - go through the whole thing. I kind of never divided it in separate tracks and perceived it as a whole.

http://cavernsofdust.blogspot.com/2013/05/causa-sui.html
http://www.causasui.com/
http://www.last.fm/music/Causa+Sui
http://www.youtube.com/artist/causa-sui
https://myspace.com/causasui
http://www.discogs.com/artist/Causa+Sui

Wench

And today's greetings come to you from Sydney, Australia with a pretty damn cool stoner metal band with a touch of southern rock - Wench. I've been returning to these guys for a while now. If you're looking for catchy driving riffs and harsh but cool vocals - you've come to the right place. These guys do it all, and they do it good. We had quite a long argue with a friend of mine about whether these guys are interesting or not, and whether the compositions are cool or just plain boring. So apparently these guys aren't for everyone. To me though, the catchyness of it and cool moves they make really makes it. At any rate, sadly, since their last (and first) release one of the band members died and the band has been in kind of a stale situation. But their first release seems really promising, and I hope they'll get back on track. As of the music itself - I found first 3 tracks pretty golden, with rest being more of a filler. Then again it's me.

Check them out your self and let me know what ya think:



http://wench1.bandcamp.com/

Fungal Abyss

Good day. I finally had a good night sleep and am not practically shutting down on my keyboard. There is a big trip planned this weekend. Far into the countryside, with guitars, jembes and a thing to inspire... So in a light of this, I remembered this one band from Seattle. That band is Fungal Abyss. It is a fucking dimension of tripjam psychedelic rock. The music is pretty great as ambient setting or a meditative, crazy trip into the space of your mind. With tracks lengthy, spanning from 10 to almost 30 minutes. Their first album is claimed to be recorded under the influence of the psyclobe fungi and was entirely jammed, with no overdubs or edits made. Can't say that they are musical geniuses, but for all I know - they produce some pretty fucking outstanding jams, somewhat reminding me of Causa Sui, sometimes a more psyched-out Samsara Blues Experiment and similar. They're definitely something I'd see live.

Guys have released 2 albums so far, one of which I actually got on a fucking cassette tape, lol! And another one is on it's way. Shows aren't really frequent and are limited to Seattle, as far as I know. Well, that's what you get with underground bands. So go check 'em out on bandcamp and the tube, and go see them live if you're in Seattle... Do share about the live show though!

http://fungalabyss.bandcamp.com
https://www.facebook.com/pages/Fungal-Abyss/131109423634563
http://www.last.fm/music/Fungal+Abyss
http://www.discogs.com/artist/Fungal+Abyss

Earth

Good day, comrades! In case all of this time you've been hiding in a tank or some underground bunker, I would like to familiarize you with a legendary drone/doom/stoner band Earth. These guys can be called pioneers of the genre, and are named to be a major influence on SunnO))). But, unlike SunnO))), Earth make their music more sci-fi and positive, and it is mostly instrumental. Some times you get lost in those drones and transported to another planet, sometimes into a growing forest... I've found their music to be very suitable for programming work, as it sets this good trail of thought and concentration (which today I don't have for shit).

Earth started out in the 1989 and is led to this day by guitarist Dylan Carlson. The band changed quite a bit of members, but the lead always stayed the same. There was a split that lasted since 1998 to 2003, when the band reformed and continued on writing great stuff, and stayed true to the sound they do. The uniqueness of it is completed by the signature sound of a beautiful telecaster, deep and reverbed tones and the mix of some country, folk and jazz ideas in their music. A fun fact: on "Sunn Amps and Smashed Guitars" there is a demo track where Kurt Cobain does the vocals, who is also featured as a vocalist on the "Divine and Bright" and "Extra-Capsular Extraction", doing backing vocals on the track "A Bureaucratic Desire for Revenge".

So here's some music, comrades. My favorite album would be "And the Bees Made Honey in the Lion's Skull":

http://www.thronesanddominions.com
https://www.facebook.com/thronesanddominions
http://www.last.fm/music/Earth
http://grooveshark.com/playlist/Earth/89860110

Vista Chino

There was a lot of shit going on with the attempt of reforming and reviving the Kyuss. And I do mean shit, with all the law suits and everything. Now that it all finally settled down, and imo settled pretty favorably both for guys and good memory of Kyuss as it was, Vista Chino had emerged. Vista Chino is John Garcia, Brant Bjork, Nick Oliveri and Bruno Fevery. First things first: this is not Kyuss, and you sort of have to forget about Kyuss while listening to it. Yes you can hear the influence but it's sort of a whole different start here. And of course a new guy (Bruno Fevery), who toured with Kyuss Lives!, on the guitars instead of Josh. The music on the debut album of Vista Chino sounded to me like a blend of Kyuss, Unida, Brant and some other stuff. We can argue long about whether the album is inspired or not, but I must say it kind of grows on you. Frankly first time I've listened through it, I was all like 'meh...', but then I sort of went for another one, then another one and started noticing the cool details and digging certain tracks. I must give it - it has it's own charm and I'm kind of happy that guys took on with trying to make something of their own rather than just trying to go under Kyuss name and kind of not doing what Kyuss was all about. I would hope that by the next release they will polish the sound and get more familiar with it them selves.

So it's a pretty cool listen and really advised to you desert rock fans, but takes few repeats until you really get into it. Rocking my head to it right now, and realizing I like it even better with every damn listen! Something really cool and warm undergroundish about the guys them selves that makes me keep following their projects. The whole album can be checked out here: http://grooveshark.com/#!/profile/VISTA+CHINO/24407195. Here are some of favorite tracks right here:

http://grooveshark.com/s/Sweet+Remain/5eaPyr?src=5
http://grooveshark.com/s/Acidize+The+Gambling+Moose/5eaPYL?src=5

http://www.vistachinomusic.com/
https://www.facebook.com/VistaChinoMusic
https://soundcloud.com/vistachino
http://www.last.fm/music/Vista+Chino

Brant Bjork

So hey everyone. This one I recently really got hooked on. A project by an ex-Kyuss drummer Brant Bjork. If you are looking for some proper desert chill-out moods - you found your thing. He does very awesome laid back stuff, with cool rhythms and hooks here and there. I must warn you though this music isn't really meant to be listened to on it's own. It's more of an awesome mood setter for parties or a general laid back background music. Should be pretty fucking good for a long drive in a car... Mmmmhh, yeah... Anyway, some of the stuff he does sounds pretty unique in a sense of the vibe you get. It's really positive and funky in that sense.

Brant formed the band and remains active with it since 1999 when he released the first album - "Jalamanta". This started him with his own sound, that you can hear the most in Kyuss amongst other bands he participated. And since then there were 7 solo albums and 2 albums of Brant Bjork and the Bros. All of the albums have some cool tracks to offer, with my personal favorites now being "Born to rock" and "Somewhere some woman". Yes in most of his work you can feel the lack of some spark, which was provided by Josh Homme  in Kyuss for instance, with whom they've wrote most of the music for the band, but yeah, those times are gone and those guys just really worked like magic together, really balancing each other out. Josh Homme isn't doing too good on his own with his band either in my opinion. Music wise...

So anyway, stay tuned and check some of this out:

http://www.brantbjork.com/index.php/ (autoplays music)

http://www.last.fm/music/Brant+Bjork

https://myspace.com/brantbjork

http://www.youtube.com/artist/brant-bjork

http://www.allmusic.com/artist/brant-bjork-mn0000933927

WFA: Light at the end of the tunnel

Hey everyone! Here to notify that blog ain't dead. It's been a long month so far with vacation and tons of shit to do. Hopefully this weekend I'll post some stuff - got something stashed out for those of you who are into Kyuss and Arcazas... Well and actually a whole bunch of other bands. So it's just about getting my self to sit down and actually do this =)

Anyway, keep tuned in. Here's something to give a listen to while you wait:

WFA: Proper mood...

Third month of existence of this blog is coming to it's end. And here's some proper mood for today:

Crown Larks

Hey there guys! As I've promised, here comes a post to brighten up the Monday morning with mellow and sometimes crazy tunes. Today's topic is an interesting and rather original experimental psychedelic rock band from Chicago. Crown Larks were formed in 2012 and since have released an album. Their sound ranges from spacey jams to funky jazzy parts to quiet acoustic mellow moments. And as I am fool for sax in psych music, I can't not mention the nice feel it adds to it. So together it all creates some nice moods, that sometimes even have this homely-cozy tinge to them. Take for example 'Aquarium' or 'Blue Lobsters', that kind of make me crave to go out to the summerhouse, jump into the hammock and put this on while chilling with some nice book. It gives off that authentic old school psychedelic rock feel.

The band's sound is said to be inspired by such artists as Soft Machine, Rahsaan Roland Kirk, Galaxie 500, Boredoms, Syd Barrett, Moonrises, and CAVE. The bands album Catalytic Conversion is available through bandcamp on CD, tape cassette or as a name-your-price digital download. So dig in, psych lovers, this one is a really nice roll down your lane.


http://crownlarks.tumblr.com/
http://crownlarks.bandcamp.com/
https://www.facebook.com/CrownLarks
https://soundcloud.com/crownlarks

WFA: Almost there!

Hey everyone! Sorry for the hold up with posts, had some stressful shit happening here last week. But there are some posts coming soon. Most probably tomorrow! For now I'll try and make it worth you while with these two:

Album: All Them Witches - Extra Pleasant EP

Well, it's raining like hell out here, and out in Nashville it's hot as hell appearantly. And that there was the part of inspiration for this fresh EP by one of my currently favorite bands - All Them Witches. This album started raw and bluesy from the first notes! They've actually took it even more of an blues direction, and that was precisely what was necessary at the moment.

The bandcamp page states that the album was recorded on a 4-track cassette tape using two mics, hense the nice raw, somewhat garage sound. Must warn you though - this here is to be enjoyed on your headphones! It opens up with a nice and very true-blue "Salesman" with nice vocal effects, airy guitars and bright drums, ending in nice Floydesque riffs. Your best rainy-day companion! The second track now goes on into this brilliant jammy vibe that gives off the heat it was recorded in. At points reminds me of the more desrtish/bluesy jams of Causa Sui, without the overly intense parts that weren't exactly my cup of tea. "Sludger" was a weird but on-spot sounding piece, yet I don't really get why it was there as a separate track... I guess to cut the last song in a way that you don't necessary need to go through the extra-long intro, which the track has anyway. But frankly I wasn't too big of a fan of that last one, "Swallowed by the sea". Yes, it does have great drumming on it, some nice riffs, but it just doesn't work with the kind of production guys went for.

Overall, I'd say the EP is successful. I really digg the groovy parts of it, which are the guys' strongest parts as usual. The production is pretty cool, and first 2 tracks I found right on! And you can get it for only $4 (or more), which is totally cool considering my bum-ass budget (and lately I've been stumbling on a lot of $10-15 albums, that weren't really worth it. Again, considering my bum-ass budget). So yeah, dig in, drop out and enjoy some bluesy jams from All Them Witches!



http://allthemwitches.bandcamp.com/
http://www.facebook.com/allthemwitches

Tangerine Stoned

Italy has its own weird relationship with music. Or is it me that has weird relationship with Italy? To be honest - the Italian bands that I find interesting can be counted on the fingers of one hand (feel free to correct me in the comments). Thankfully there's another band that made the list. Tangerine Stoned was formed in mid 2011 to bring us some tastes of 60's psychedelia. And you can hear The Doors, Frank Zappa, some Pink Floyd in there as soon as you turn their first and currently the only album on. So one thing you have to get over is - yes, it does sound a lot like the Doors. But the overall execution is quite nice, plus guys throw in some variety to it. I've found the "L'Urlo della Strega" track to be really laid back and quite original, and maybe the band should explore that direction. Oh and that ending keys solo on Dirty Ceiling is just something.

Overall I can say that they have a pretty cool psychedelic sound, musically it all sounds on spot. So guys are definitely good musicians. Definitely a something to check out on a sunny day. One thing they should do though, is try and find something more of their own, because frankly I can't stop thinking to myself: "Call me a damn ass-goblin if they don't sound too much like The Doors". That kind of keeps you from really enjoying the music and diving into it. Will have to return to them by their next release and see where they've taken it!

The band is getting ready to tour the Europe, so check 'em out, see if you'd go see them live:

http://moonlightrecords.bandcamp.com/album/tangerine-stoned-tangerine-stoned
https://www.facebook.com/TangerineStoned
http://www.last.fm/music/Tangerine+Stoned

Sasquatch

Time to return to some proper stoner / desert rock. And again we are in Los Angeles, CA, among palms and frying in the midday sun. So came into existence Sasquatch! The trio of Keith Gibbs (guitar/vox), Rick Ferrante (drums) and Jason Casanova (bass) (and 2001-2007 bass player Clayton Charles) bring you the bashing sounds of fuzzed out stoner rock in it's pure form, and those guitar tones that Mojave amps give out make you just trip out into the desert. The bands music had been featured in many movies, tv shows and games, such as Jersey Girl, Bam's Unholy Union, Supernatural, Viva la Bam, NHL 2005 and American Chopper. With every album the quality of their sound progresses and takes on new levels of fuzz and mass. So far it's been 3 albums and although not all of their songs bare the power, they all bare the atmosphere of that classic dirty bar rock n' roll.

A great listen, so check it out now:

http://store.sasquatchrock.us/album/iii
https://www.facebook.com/sasquatchrocks
http://www.last.fm/music/Sasquatch
https://myspace.com/sasquatchrocks
http://grooveshark.com/playlist/Sasquatch/83389484

Charts and Maps

Another gem I wanted to share with you today is Charts and Maps. Formed in Los Angeles and sadly broken up band has a distinctive and pretty unique psychedelic jazz-rock sound. Combined with elements of math and post rock influences it creates a very interesting listening experience, taking you to the streets of a big city, somewhat taking you back to the jazz times. The bright tones and sax layers make it all very stylish. This band was claimed to be one of the most interesting live experiences of the LA underground scene. And it is best represented in their only full-length album - "Dead Horse" (2011). Makes me think I'd give things to witness them on stage.

Little is known of their actual history, mostly just other projects they've played. Such Heard of Elephants, The Nocturnes, Random Patterns and Woolen. Sadly non of these bands didn't get me to experience that feeling Charts and Maps do. Random Patterns sometimes get close and is overall a nice listen non the less.

Here are some of the favorite songs and some links:

http://chartsandmaps.bandcamp.com/
http://www.last.fm/music/Charts+and+Maps
https://myspace.com/chartsandmaps

Sweet Smoke

Hey guys! Yeah, it's been a while, I know... Had to take care of some things (like my head for instance). The times of this band were also quite a while ago. So let us go on a trip to the end of the 60's and the beginning of the 70's, times of changes and rise of psychedelic rock scene, when it really started shaping into something powerful. The band I'm talking about today is Sweet Smoke. Some of you might know the band, me - I just stumbled upon this gem few months ago. If you are looking for some nice and chilled out tunes, with flutes, acoustic guitars, violins, sax, cellos and piano interludes - well this is the thing you are looking for. This is some classic psych nicely mixed with jazz. Perfect relaxation music!

Sweet Smoke was born in mid 60's in Brooklyn, NY. After playing an audition gig in a bar, they were offered to play in the Caribbean. Guys took the offer, quit the schools and went on. What followed was months of extensive playing every night for hours and hours, and so the band solidified in a sense. Their sound acquired shape... Soon after, they've decided that going back to Brooklyn wasn't an option, and after some debates they've moved to Germany to live as a commune. There they record and release their first effort called "Just a Poke" (1970). Filled with soothing melodies and the feels of summer, sun, lying around on the grass, by a river and embracing life as it is... Truly a hippie sound.
During later years the band had taken a pause from making music, and most of the members took off on a road trip to India, where they've stayed for a year, in Ashram, learning meditation and chanting. It had greatly impacted their next album, released in 1973. "Darkness to Light" was the last actual album (except for the live record, released later on). More instruments have been incorporated and the band grew by 2 more members.

Band members are alive to this day, and sometimes gather for some laughs and jams. Taste the sound of freedom for your selves:

http://sweetsmokeband.com
https://www.facebook.com/sweetsmoke
http://www.last.fm/music/Sweet+Smoke
http://www.youtube.com/artist/sweet-smoke?feature=watch_video_title

Prisma Circus

I wanted to review this band for a while now, and when you'll hear them, you'll know why. Warm welcomes to you from Barcelona heavy psych trio Prisma Circus! The band first formed as a duet of Alex Carmona Blanco on drums and Joaquin Escudero Arce on bass/vox in the late 2010 and started their work on songs, was later joined by a brilliant guitarist Oscar Garcia Albizu. The line-up stayed the same to this day. And isn't it a great one? Fluent and funky psychedelic rhythms, tones full of fuzz and wah, cool beats and damn nice vox. It all mashes up into an outstanding mix of spacey psychedelia, that sounds to be influenced by many great 60's and 70's rock artists. With all the interesting and pretty original moves they manage to make you swirl in the sound. Really sunny and summery!

Prisma Circus released an 4-track EP in 2012 and is now almost finished on their first full-length album! Even more of a reason to mention them. I will be reviewing the new album as soon as I get my hands on it. For now, all of you Hendrix, Floyd, Astra and blues-rock admirers - you'll love what follows:

http://prismacircus.bandcamp.com/
https://www.facebook.com/prismacircus
https://myspace.com/prismacircus
http://www.last.fm/music/Prisma+Circus
http://www.discogs.com/Prisma-Circus-Prisma-Circus/release/3815323

Second Grave

It's been a while without some decent doom! And in the moment of need it found me on it's own. Ladies and gentlemen, here's a fresh doom from Boston, Massachusetts - Second Grave. The band formed in 2012 as Gein on bass, Chuck Ferreira on drums, Chris Drzal on guitar and Krista Van Guilder on vocals and guitar (!). They've managed to record their debut album that same year. No surprise since all of the band members are experienced musicians who have participated/participate in such acts as Black Pyramid, Obsidian Halo, Dahlia's Dead, Warhorse and others.

I would like to mention separately, that the band's forntman, or should I say frontwoman, has a gorgeous voice. Those rock bands with female vocals ain't too much of an widespread phenomenon, and rock bands with great female vocals are so much more rare. I take my hat off and say that this is the case. She really doesn't go over the line of what she can perfectly pull off, and what she can pull off sounds great as is.  The band plays the sort of classic style of doom with the dark aura and literature topics. The production on the record is pretty good. Can't say that the musical part is exceptional but it manages to keep attention some 70% of the time. There are some really good tracks, like 'Covet', the instrumental track 'Salvation' and 'Soul Extinction', and there are the less inspired tracks that frankly seemed kind of repetitive and monotonous on both vocals and music. But I must say, that the band does have that something that makes them work. They probably need to spend some more time together writing songs and, hopefully, next album will bring us more of the doom awesomeness!

The band is non the less good, and that 'Covet' track I just fell in love with.
Go on and listen, support and make sacrifices:

http://www.secondgrave.com/
http://secondgrave.bandcamp.com
http://www.facebook.com/secondgraveband

Track of the Day: Various Artists - Reformation Blues

A very chilled out day today! Finally feeling rested and well slept. Still dying to get the fuck out of work and get home to my new VOX VT20+ and wait for the soon-to-be-mine Epiphone LP Standard PlusTop! Other good news include me finally getting the internet connected at my new place and which most probably will translate into more posts for you guys, so stay tuned. 

And the main reason of this post is this here gem of a track. The album can be checked out at Discogs, all tracks should be available on youtube. I am already considering getting it!

The Sizlacks

It's a perfect day for something laid back today. I figured it's time to write about The Sizlacks, a psychedelic surfer rock from Australia. The one and only Australia, packed with poisonous wombats and deadly pigeons, sea crocodiles and most venomous jellyfish. Yet there's still room to be chilled and laid back surfer dude, long hair, beards and brilliant psychedelic rock! So this trio arose in a beautiful city of Perth on the western coast of Australia, and started delivering swirling and stoner waves right at us! And along with these waves - the brilliant artworks that accompany each song. Seriously guys, whoever is doing these artworks - you, sir, are a genius!

The band it self is pretty fresh and started out just recently, so there ain't a lot of material really, but the stuff that is available is damn gorgeous! Everything from guitar tones, drums and all the way to vocals seems right spot-on. The surfer vibe is perfectly there and makes you want to grab that desk from under the PC and go catch a wave. A very advisable listen to any one who likes chilled out psychedelia and such bands as Brujas del Sol.

So join us for some brilliant summer vibes:

http://thesizlacks.bandcamp.com/album/the-sizlacks-demos
https://www.facebook.com/TheSizlacks
http://www.last.fm/music/The+Sizlacks
http://www.youtube.com/user/TheSizlacks

Los Natas

Los Natas is an Argentinian desert rock band that started out imitating the Kyuss sound. Though not being as good, they've did the closest interpretation I've heard so far. Then on they mashed things up a bit and added more of them selves into their music, going for a more sometimes bluesy, sometimes - experimental sound, throwing in occasional folk instruments. They've coined the term free rock to describe their sound. Still sounds pretty desert rock to me. And the Spanish singing makes it this much more authentic. They've shared stage with bands like Unida, Queens of the Stone Age, Colour Haze and many more of the big names in the genre. They've also established a music festival down in Buenos Aires, that has now been on for 10 years.

Anyway, this is definitely something to check out for all of you stoner/desert/free (lol) rock lovers! I've discovered them only recently, thanks to Maha Sohona who have credited them as one of the inspiration sources. So I still have a way to go in familiarizing myself with their music. But from what I've listened so far - it is a quite interesting band, and a good desert rock band, which to this day are a rare find.

Some videos and links:

http://www.natasrock.com/
https://www.facebook.com/LOSNATAS
http://www.last.fm/music/Los+Natas
http://www.youtube.com/user/Nataspress
https://myspace.com/losnatasrock

Album: Felipe Arcazas & Vintage Cucumber Split

It's finally out! The split I've been waiting for. A split by Felipe Arcazas & Vintage Cucumber. And the first thing that caught the attention was the awesome cover of the album. And this is the case where it sounds exactly the way it looks - this is a very old school sounding album with a lot of spacey ambiance and sometimes surferish vibes.

The opening track "Carl Sagan" starts us on the journey, surfing through space and giving you the taste of things to come. I'd call it a sort of a lift off that takes you into outer space (Would also highly recommend read about Carl Sagan and watch his and other great people's collaborative documentary effort "Carl Sagan's Cosmos").
And here we are... Out in the space with a brilliant and liquid-flowing track "Lincos" (an abbreviation of the Latin phrase lingua cosmica). I find this to be the best track of Felipe on this album! Very mesmerizing and gentle. I like how vintage keyboards blend in here, adding this noir/jazzy feel to it. And the last solely Felipe's track on this album, "Arecibo", is like a soft and slow merge of his style and Vintage Cucumber's. It gently gets you ready for the next half of the album.

And we are on Vintage Cucumber side with "Hinter der grünen Tür". Vintage Cucumber, as always gets us with a more down-to-earth kind of sound, celebrating the landscapes and the flora. So I'd say, here we landed on another exo-planet and this is our familiarization with it. So now take out your surf boards and catch the wave with "Welig", only to find your self lying on the beach and staring at the stars... Damn, where the fuck did my surf board go?! Not again... Damn, it's getting kind of cold too. What's going on? Oh, I guess it's just some alien Sabbath. It's "Dreh hoch & Tauch ab" - the creepiest song off the album. Do like the vibes on this one, yet it gets quite a bit brighter pretty soon. I'd love to see it staying as creepy.

But it's on to the collaborative track by the guys. On to "Asa Vajda", which if I understand correctly is an interplay with Black Sunday movie from 1960. I guess this is the creepy track I've been waiting for. I like how it works with the previous track in that way. The riff and the tone on this one is also really worth mentioning as tasty!

So to sum it all up, it's a very interesting and inspiring album! Best album of this year's so far, I'd say. Great job, and I hope the guys will continue their collaboration! The album is available as a name-your-price download on bandcamp.

Maha Sohona

I think 'Great!' is the word to describe this band. Formed in Umeå, Sweden in 2012 as a trio, Maha Sohona does a very inspiring psychedelic rock with a stoner aftertaste. And those mid-easternish parts make it so much more interesting! The name Maha Sohona has its origin in Sinhalese folklore, where it means a great graveyard demon. The band offers great vibes, tasty riffs and solos and good vocals, with the drumming fitting just right into the concoction. Going from beautiful mellow psychedelia parts to pleasantly sounding heavier parts, that really don't sound out of place or anything, as it tends to happen with some of the bands. To be honest, I really didn't have anything bad I could say about this record: guys have a good sense of where they're going, they have a good taste and the execution is spot-on. The album production is at great levels, specially considering this is a promo CD. Such solidness of collectives makes me a bit envious sometimes!

Inspired by such bands as Kyuss and Los Natas, Maha Sohona have released a promo EP with 4 tracks + a cover of The Heavy Eyes' "Voytek". The cover track is currently only available on SoundCloud and didn't make it on the album, because of the Scandinavian copyright policy that didn't allow 'em to, without paying a pretty penny royalties. Even though The Heavy Eyes were cool with them including it on their promo. So go check that out too! The following record was the result of their first attempt together at the studio, and what a result that is! They've told me that soon they're getting back to the studio to record some new stuff and are highly anticipating that moment. Well, what can I say - I am too!

Guys are fresh and had troubles with internet connection, so there's not much links, but their music is available on both bandcamp and soundcloud (also includes the mentioned cover track).
Keep in mind that the cover has little to do with the actual sound :)

http://mahasohona.bandcamp.com/
https://soundcloud.com/maha-sohona

Album: Egypt - Cyclopean Riffs

And here come the Egypt tracks from the upcoming Egypt/Wo Fat split! Crushing riffs and psychedelic dusty landscapes, just like you guys love! The overall sound is more interesting than on the previous album. I am guessing it's the question of the amounts of the material, and maybe releasing less lengthy albums is Egypt's thing. The "Become the Sun" release was getting a bit old past the middle, but here they were able to concentrate on quality rather than length.

To sum it up - I love the drive on these tracks and how it mixes with the more mellow parts. Classic Egypt with more power! Lets wait and see what Wo Fat will bring into the concoction. The Egypt tracks are currently available at $4 but are definitely worth the penny.

WFA: 2013 Views!

Wow! It's been some good 2 months with this blog, and we've hit the 2013 views mark! Thank you everyone for your support and I will continue trying to deliver the best music to you guys! There are going to be some changes in the way I am presenting the music very soon so stay tuned. As long as you guys keep coming, the goodies will also keep coming. Thanks again and have a good one with this Kenny Wayne Shepherd tune!

Maria isn't a Virgin Anymore

And I'm back after a bit of a pause with another gem from Belgium - Maria isn't a Virgin Anymore (or MIAVA for short). These guys play some interesting and driving instrumental tunes along the lines of post-metal, stoner rock and psychedelic genres. And do they succeed in doing it! Heavy tones with a metallic taste, great rhythms and epic sound. They really go for the right notes in those right places and every song turns out to be very solid and inspiring! MIAVA had shared stage with such acts like Cowboys & Aliens, Red Fang, Black Tusk and others which was a result of the successful release of their second EP.

The band is relatively young and was formed in 2009 by four dudes without any actual plans. The musicians them selves are very young too by the way, never the less skillful. They started jamming and in 2010 released their first self-titled EP which sounds a lot more stoner than the new EP, The Fall of a Public Man, released in 2011. The albums sound really different come to think of it, but it's hard to say which I like better. The second one is certainly more polished and well produced. The first one on the other hand reminds me a bit of a more heavy and driving Monkey3. Do check out both! A full-length is coming your way soon, and, judging by the first available song, yet again sounds a bit different from what the previous 2 releases were all about, which is always a good thing. Keep looking and progressing guys! Best of luck!

Some favorite songs would be "Change the world drinking coffee", "Silencer" and "Gasoline junks".

http://miava.bandcamp.com/
https://www.facebook.com/pages/Maria-Isnt-A-Virgin-Anymore/156608897685309
http://www.last.fm/music/Maria+Isn't+a+Virgin+Anymore
http://www.discogs.com/artist/Maria+Isn't+A+Virgin+Anymore

All Them Witches

All Them Witches is the kind of band that gets under your skin real quickly. It gets you with the warm bluesy tones. It's interesting how you can distinguish the music that had soul put into it. And I'm not talking about our dark skinned fellows singing church music. I'm talking about the difference that the approach makes. I had a friend who once said to me that it doesn't really matter what you play, it's how you play it. Well, these guys got both parts of the equation down. They play a really laid back, sometimes rockish music they classify as psychedelta blues as an extension of delta blues. And it never lets go off you until you're gone through the whole album! That is something really hard to achieve and I take my hat off for all those bands that could nail it.

The band has released 1 album in 2012 so far (and a remastered version of it) and another album is soon to hit the shelves. Current line-up of the Nashville based quintet is Ben McLeod, Robby Staebler, Michael Parks, Allan Van Cleave and Jason Staebler. This is a must-have for all you admirers of bands like Graveyard and Blues Pills! So take a deep dive in! 

And here are the instant transportation banners and motion pictures with soundclips:

http://allthemwitches.bandcamp.com/
https://www.facebook.com/allthemwitches
http://www.last.fm/music/All+Them+Witches
http://www.discogs.com/artist/All+Them+Witches

Wheel of Smoke

Ah, it's been a while! Just moved to a new place and currently staying without the interwebs. Yet still it is time for some new music. And this time we're heading prog space rock & post rock direction with a Belgium quartet Wheel of Smoke, a very nicely sounding piece with a bit of an melancholia and 70's occult aftertaste. And surely - I like how they're mentioning Carlos Castaneda as one of the influences. You can even hear that in the psychedelia and drug influence the music gives off. Other influences include bands like Black Sabbath, King Crimson, Hypnos 69 and some Pink Floyd in there too (I guess there's hardly a band in psychedelic rock scene that hasn't been influenced by Floyd).

The band was formed in 2005 and been playing a lot of gigs, so by now these guys do know what they are doing and do know how to deliver proper music on a level. Currently the line-up consists of Filip Remans and Erik Heyns on vocals and guitars, Jouk Opdebeeck (dude, I can't pronounce that!) on drums and Tristan Michiels on bass and vox. In 2011 it happened and they've released their first 5-track album "In Sense". The album turned out to be a sort of a journey musically. It really takes you places with the sounds ranging from beautiful post-rockish vibes to straight forward stoner rock slams with grungy vocals. For all I know - this is worth every minute spent and definitely worth re-listening.

Stay tuned because they are planning to release another effort in fall 2013, which I will be mentioning here when it's out! Keep yer' eyes n' ears open, lads!

You're still here? Well here's a whole bunch of links and videos to follow below:

http://wheelofsmoke.bandcamp.com/
http://www.wheelofsmoke.com/
https://www.facebook.com/wheelofsmokeofficial
http://www.myspace.com/wheelofsmoke
http://www.youtube.com/user/WheelOfSmokeOfficial/videos