Xxxtra Asceticism Or Allergic To Meditation (9:13)
Asoka Ananda (19:44)
Review: Trust Masked Replicants showcases Acid Mothers Temple (AMT) in top form, delivering their signature brand of experimental psych-rock built around skeletal frameworks. Led by Kawabata Makoto, the band navigates chaotic, drone-infused improvisations, pushing the boundaries of human consciousness with their cosmic jams. Side-2 features the standout 20-minute track 'Asoko Ananda', a fast-paced, side-long piece that fuses kosmische rhythms, filter sweeps, free-jazz piano, tabla drumming, and vocal experimentation. This track captures the full range of AMT's skills, climbing to the summit of their collective abilities. Rooted in prog, Krautrock, modern composition and noise, AMT has been a driving force in the psyche-rock scene since the early 90s. With a long history of prolific releases and global tours, the band returns to Important Records for this limited vinyl edition featuring original member Cotton Casino. Trust Masked Replicants - with its neat titular nod to Captain Beefheart's best known album - is another top album for fans of the group's improvisational, mind-expanding soundscapes.
Review: Does The Cosmic Shepherd Dream Of Electric Tapirs? is not just a great - and amusing - question but also the title of Acid Mothers Temple's debut release on Space Age Recordings. This Japanese soul collective, known as Acid Mothers Temple and The Melting Paraiso UFO, remains an enigma to both the Western and Eastern worlds. Their music spans acid-rock, experimental, and psychedelic genres, varying with the listener's mood. After being out of stock for some time, the long-anticipated repress of this wild offering is now available on two solid green vinyl records and complete with the original seductive artwork.
Review: Al-Qasar deliver their unique debut album for WeWantSounds, exothermically reacting psych rock, pop and regional Sahel sounds. The five-piece band dropped their debut album Who Are We? for Glitterbeat in 2022, marking a potent Arabic and Middle Eastern psych rock inflection, where elements such as North African trance music were helped along their way in the form of continual reintroductions to Western ears. Characterised as "Arabian fuzz" by the band, their sound now hears a metempsychotic rebirth: this album was again recorded in both Europe and Africa, and, unlike their debut's Western collaborators (Lee Ranaldo of Sonic Youth, Jello Biafra of Dead Kennedys), focuses on bustling rhythms lent by North African musicians such as Alsarah, Check Tidiane Seck and Sami Galbi.
Review: This All Them Witches reissue arrives with all the raw energy and atmospheric weight of the original, now pressed onto a stunning sea glass vinyl. Opening with the expansive 'Call Me Star,' the album sets a captivating tone, blending fuzzed-out rock with hypnotic melodies. 'El Centro' takes a more driving, gritty approach, while 'This Is Where It Falls Apart' brings a slower, introspective groove. The album's standout, 'Blood And Sand / Milk And Endless Waters,' is an intense, sprawling track that captures the band's signature sound. This reissue offers a fresh listen for long-time fans and newcomers alike, wrapped in a visually striking format.
Review: Soft Machine and Gong founder Christopher David "Daevid" Allen came of age under the influence of the Beat Generation writers while working in a Melbourne bookstore around 1960. The Australian psychedelic visionary then travelled to Paris, where he stayed at the infamous Beat Hotel, before heading to England, where his musical career really began. The point being, he was incredibly committed to exploring art forms like jazz and performance poetry. And a then-nascent field of synthesised sounds. Ten years after his death, Now Is The Happiest Time of Your Life gets a timely repress to confirm it remains his Magnus Opus. A brave and incredibly unusual collection of tripped-out folk storytelling, curious garage guitar stuff, strangely naive and innocent weird pop, and progressive rock. One to keep diving into and still find new bits to love.
Review: Alphataurus may not mean that much to a lot of people, but for anyone aware of the Milanese progressive rock titans, the fact they have a new record out will capture the imagination. After all, the outfit have been making a big impact with every album they've put out since - and including - the staggeringly ambitious self-titled 1973 debut. However, it's been a decade since we last had anything from them. Enter 2084: Viaggio Nel Nulla, then, a collection of music that marks a real turning point for Alphataurus, with the lengthy (to put it mildly) recording process ending with the departure of founding guitarist Guido Wassermann. Whether die hard fans will think what's here is worth the pain of that decision to leave is anyone's guess, but this collection is unarguably dystopian, futuristic, exploratory, cosmic and, almost conversely, accessible and catchy.
Review: Alvilda crafts a sharp, nostalgic homage to 60s girl groups and 70s power pop, distilled through a lens of modern punk urgency. The jangly guitars and punchy rhythms are underscored by layered harmonies, creating an infectious energy that refuses to waver. Sung entirely in French, the lyrics carry an emotive charge, even for non-speakers, while the brisk, sub-three-minute tracks demand attention with their unrelenting focus. The production keeps things tight and bright, ensuring every hook lands with clarity, offering a refreshing burst of indie vitality that never overstays its welcome.
Review: Yemenite music in Israel is a uniquely Middle-Eastern style born from the immigration of Yemenite Jews to Israel. Initially religious and ceremonial, the music featured separate male and female songs accompanied by drumming on olive oil tin cans. Aharon Amram, born in Sana'a, Yemen, immigrated to Israel as a child and became a central figure in this genre. From the 1960s onward, he released numerous records on Sounds of Yemen in which he blended traditional religious songs with his own secular compositions, Western electric instruments and modern arrangements. This double LP showcases Amram's diverse catalogue and undying influence on contemporary Mizrahi.
Review: The forthcoming collaboration between anaiis and Grupo Cosmo presents a captivating fusion of contemporary soul and Brazilian musical traditions. The album features tracks like 'Toda Cor' and 'Voyage,' which blend anaiis's soulful vocals with Grupo Cosmo's rich instrumentation, creating a sound that is both innovative and deeply rooted in cultural heritage. This milky vinyl LP offers listeners a unique auditory experience, highlighting the seamless integration of diverse musical styles.
Review: This collaboration between Nelson Angelo and Joyce on Nelson Angelo e Joyce brings a radiant blend of Brazilian folk and jazz-inflected arrangements, where lush acoustic guitars meet cool, swirling percussion. The pair's harmonies are effortlessly seamless, carrying a sense of intimacy and warmth throughout. While the sound may occasionally veer into serene, almost pastoral territory, there's an undercurrent of depth, especially in the more syncopated rhythms and spontaneous melodic shifts.
Review: This October marks the 60th Anniversary of The Animals' self-titled debut album. Never heard before in official vinyl reissue form, this remarkable return hears the mod rock menagerie of Eric Burdon, Alan Price, Hilton Valentine, Chas Chandler and John Steel come together for a worthy groove-laid garage shutdown. With such hits enduring hits in tow as 'I've Been Around', 'I'm In Love Again' and 'Bury My Body' - though not packing their standalone, transatlantic treat 'House Of The Rising Sun' - this early record, first released on Columbia Records, tells the sonic tale of a now under-appreciated Newcastle band, whose efforts were nonetheless instrumental in helping to usher in the so-called British Invasion (musically) of the US music market in the 1960s.
Review: If the name Vangelis conjures images of new age music or the overplayed 'Chariots of Fire', you might be surprised by his earlier work. Before his solo fame, Vangelis was a member of Aphrodite's Child, a rock band from the late 60s to early 70s. While the band was based in France due to political unrest in Greece, they produced music far removed from Vangelis's later style. Another well-known member was Demis Roussos, who also had a later solo career. Initially, Aphrodite's Child released two psychedelic pop albums, Rain and Tears and It's Five O'Clock, reminiscent of Genesis' early work on From Genesis to Revelation. 666 marked a significant shift toward progressive rock, blending Greek ethnic influences with experimental sounds. Highlights include 'Loud, Loud, Loud,' featuring a spoken word piece by a young Greek diplomat's son, and 'All the Seats Were Occupied,' a lengthy jam that samples the album's other tracks. The notorious, untitled track featuring actress Irene Papas caused discomfort at their label, but it solidified the album's status as a groundbreaking work in progressive rock. Despite the musicians' later mainstream personas, 666 remains a bold and innovative album.
Review: With See The World On Fire,"The Ar-Kaics return after six years with a thrilling new album steeped in dark, moody garage psych. Recorded entirely in singer-guitarist Johnny's bedroom/garage, the album unfolds as a concept piece exploring the very act of making an album, imbuing each track with a raw, visceral energy. Drawing inspiration from the mod-rocking and blues-blustering sounds of the 1960s, the album exudes a vintage charm while firmly rooted in the digital age. From the slow, Link Wray-esque groove of 'Chains' to the Neil Young-inflected blues boogie of 'Cornerstone' and the Seeds-inspired jangle of 'Dawning,' each song pulses with a sense of hopeless drama and ragged romance. Even the longest track, 'Never Ending,' excites with its grooving basslines, hypnotic rhythms, and fiery guitar solos, building to a brilliant psychedelic climax. See The World On Fire is a powerful example of garage rock that engages and impresses.
Review: Stockholm-based multi-instrumentalist and composer Art Longo impresses here with Echowah Island, a new album sure to wind its way into your affections. It was crafted over years in his home studio and is "psychotropical pop" drawing deep inspiration from late 80s music and dub. The album's lush soundscape evokes orange sunsets and ocean breezes and is layered with spring reverb, space echo and wah-wah effects that smooth out the edges as the steady pulse of vintage drum machines moves things on down low. A standout feature is Claudio Jonas, whose ethereal vocals recall classic French femme fatale singers of the 60s. Her poetic, kaleidoscopic lyrics add to a nostalgic dream world that gently bends reality and makes his both escapist and thought-provoking.
Review: Ash Ra Tempel's fifth and - in most ways of judging it - final album was really also a swan song for the late, great Manuel Gottsching. Recoded at Studio Dierks, in the small, picturesque and windmill-happy German village of Stommeln by none other than Scorpions studio chief Dieter Dierks, there's a lot happening on Starring Rosi. And all of it really pretty damn good. It's funk, it's epic. It's moody, it's upbeat. It's steeped in an air of Krautrock and space rock, yet also wouldn't sound out of place providing the slap bass and guitar licks for a 1970s movie trailer. Simply put, it's Ash Ra Tempel, from the cosmic warmup and gradual build go 'Laughter Loving', through the folk-ish serenity of 'The Fairy Dance' and warbling, warped cacophonies on 'Schizo'.
Review: Ash Ra Tempel's 1973 album Starring Rosi, led by innovative guitarist Manuel Gottsching, showcases a more accessible sound compared to their earlier cosmic explorations. Rosi Muller, Gottsching's then-girlfriend, contributes spoken word passages, adding a unique texture to several tracks. The album opens with 'Laughter Loving', a cheerful, wah-wah guitar-driven track with hints of country-rock and droning synths. 'Day-Dream' features a stoned, two-chord acoustic sequence, paired with gentle lead guitar and dreamy vocals. Instrumental track 'Schizo' offers a detached, spacey atmosphere, while 'Cosmic Tango' delivers a funky groove, reminiscent of Gong's space-whisper style. The nearly nine-minute 'Interplay of Forces' starts in a psychedelic, space-rock vein before evolving into a guitar and drum-heavy jam. The album closes with 'Bring Me Up', a bluesy, funky track that spotlights Gottsching's masterful guitar work. The album's reissue on 180-gram coloured vinyl further highlights its timeless, genre-blending appeal.
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