New releases last two weeks: Psych/Garage Rock

Review: Black Market Karma return with the second chapter in their two-part Fuzz Club album series. Written, recorded, and produced by Stanley Belton, it's the imperfections and unplanned happenings that are the real joy of this ode to 1960s and 1970s psychedelic rock & roll will modern beats. A striking follow up to Wobble, it's fuzzy, crackly, angular and strikingly human considering it's fundamentally electronic. "Mellowmaker was made immediately after Wobble, I kinda see them as two sides of each other", Belton has been quoted as saying. "With these two albums I've attempted to crystallise how it feels to be stuck between a feeling of amnesia of the soul and the earthly experience of piloting a meat suit... I'm still chasing that longing intangible 'Hiraeth' feeling. The sense of wanting to find our way home to a place that maybe doesn't exist."

Review: The Middle East has always invoked a sense of wonder and escapism, even if a singular tag for a vast and varied global region is an instant disservice. So it's not much of a surprise to find many countries currently in the throes of an explosive rediscovery of psychedelic sounds. Ouzo Bazooka is just one example of the kind of bands we're talking about. Originally solo project from Uri Brauner Kinrot - a musician, scientist and producer - the vehicle quickly grew into the fully fledged group we have loved over the last five albums and ten years, give or take. Widely considered pioneers of the burgeoning scene, Kapaim (Hebrew for 'palms') cements their status as a cut above most psyche rock bands anywhere on the planet. Informed by jazz, soul, blues, and indigenous musical traditions of the South Eastern Mediterranean, it's a smooth and intoxicating ride.

Review: This is the sound of Malian guitar mastery at its peak as Zani Diabate's Super Djata Band channelled raw magic on their 1981 album. Blending Wasulu hunter traditions, griot storytelling, Senufo dances and Fula and Mandingo sounds with psychedelic rock, blues and Afrobeat, the Bamako-based orchestra delivers a genre-bending sonic trip that more than stands up. This is where tradition meets wah-wah pedal wizardry across six electrifying tracks that blaze with intensity and infectious groove. It outlines a revolutionary sound forged for the people, by the people and in the 1980s, few bands matched their fire- could should still the same today, to be fair.

Review: Zambian psych rock trailblazers Witch - formed in 1971 and led by Emmanuel Chanda - endured decades of dormancy but enjoyed a new lease of life over the past few years. This follow up to their 2023 reunion album, Zango, sees them continue their blossoming relationship with the Desert Daze festival's label arm and Partisan Records, which is the label that broke Fontaines D.C. A notable producer of the album is Finland's Jacco Gardner, who has dabbled in myriad projects including an impressive solo career and what he's been able to oversee here is remarkable. The rabble-rousing garage rock opener, 'Kamusale' sees fuzz-laden guitars intertwine with Chanda's raw, energetic command as a frontman and we are quickly cast into their spell. Another highlight is the eye opening 'Queenless King' where a kraut-funk bass groove sets off a free-spirited psychedelic tapestry, bursting with bright ideas and soulful charm.