Tag: Psychedelic Folk

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巴亚宛 Bayawan – 麦盖提刀郎木卡姆乐队 Mekit Dolan Muqam Group

巴亚宛 Bayawan are heavy psychedelic muqam music from Xinjiang.  From Old Heaven Books’ Bandcamp site:

“”Bayawan” is the common name for Muqam music used by the Dolan people. Bayawan, or Dolan Muqam, is a unique form of folk music and one of the most important cultural heritages of the Uyghurs in Xinjiang, China.

Generally speaking, Muqam is a form of large-scale suites which include songs, dances, and instrumental sections, in which the development of music often features a significant degree of improvisation. The Muqam of the Uyghurs is characterized by its diversity of musical styles. Apart from the classical Twelve Muqam, there are also multiple folk Muqam traditions with distinct regional characteristics, including Kumul Maqam, Turpan Muqam, Dolan Muqam, and Ili Muqam. Among them, Dolan Muqam is often considered as the wildest, if not the uncanniest tradition that still exists. “

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Ulaan Passerine – Dawn

Ulaan Passerine is one of many aliases used by Los Angeles-based guitarist Steven R. Smith.  This latest album is a shimmery walk into guitar instrumental territory.  Smith produces an elegant kind of instrumental music that would sit well with both post-rock fans and those into a more mellow psychedelic vibe.  Think along the terms of the band Oregon as a reference.  Not ‘easy’ listening, but ‘gentle’ listening.  Well done.

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black (w)hole – something new, something old

This has to be one of the cooler psychedelic folk albums I’ve heard in a while.  There’s something Balkan in black (w)hole’s music structure, where I can imagine the Incredible String Band jamming with old Greek or North Macedonian shepherds in the hills.  Brilliant.

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Various Artists – Old Heaven Books: 地​方​，​音​乐​与​实​践 Vol​.​1 Region, Music, and Practice Vol​.​1

A compilation of new music out of avant-garde China.  From the Old Heaven Books Bandcamp site:

“A creative collaboration of producer Tu Fei and artist Liu Qingyuan. Event organization by Tu Fei, artwork for promotion and production by Liu Qingyuan. Event programs include talks, screenings, forums, workshops, musicians’ commission creation and live performance, recording, publishing, and many more.

Admiring tradition and exploring the future, the duo’s goal is to bring music to various places, from village to city, from square to factory, from bookstore to family altar, from theater to village hall, and from gallery to drying field…”

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Steve Von Till – A Life Unto Itself

Many, many years ago I was a fan of the sludge-metal band Neurosis, who first came to my attention with a booming cover of Joy Division’s classic, Day Of The Lords.  What I didn’t know until a week ago is that their guitarist, Steve Von Till released a gothic-Americana album in 2015 which has the power of old country with the brooding feeling of an acoustic Swans fronted by Johnny Cash.

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Atman – Personal Forest

Our dear friends at the Lollipoppe Shoppe have released a freakily good album out of 1990s Poland.  From the label’s Bandcamp site:

“Atman was an eco-activist collective, that released tape-only pastoral dwelling jams in the fine Polish-Jazz tradition… Hamered dulcimer and exotically tuned 12-string guitars among basket-loads of unknown sounds, since the 70’s! Personal Forest is the culmination of artistic and personal quest.”
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Richard Dawson – The Ruby Cord

Richard Dawson’s latest album is a fascinating listen.  It mixes vocals that could fit in well with English folk, psychedelic rock, prog and AOR music, while being musically underpinned by something that could almost pass for freak folk at times, while falling back now and again on progressive rock structures.  The album shapes and shifts on each track, and I was constantly surprised by what Dawson would come up with next.  I don’t do Top Tens, but if I did, this would easily make such a list.

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Sound and Voice – That Which is Unknown

This has to be one of my favorite psychedelic folk releases since the heyday of bands like Charalambides.  Merit Medrano is an Austin-based guitarist and leader of Sound and Voice, which is, apparently, his latest musical project, implying that he’s been a busy soul for some time now.  The music has a raga-esque feel to it, the guitar work is cosmic in scope, and if you like the works of such legends as Sandy Bull, this release will definitely appeal to you.  Australian record label Ramble Records is responsible for releasing this hazy slab of vinyl, and now I’ll need to delve down the rabbit hole to see what else they’re working with.

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Kikagaku Moyo/幾何学模様 – Kumoyo Island

Some very happy news today, as Japanese acid-folk-psych band Kikagaku Moyo have given us a fresh album.

From their Bandcamp website:

“In many ways ‘Kumoyo Island’ represents the culmination of a journey for Kikagaku Moyo. While their decade-long career can be summarized as a series of kaleidoscopic explorations through lands and dimensions far and near, there’s a strong intention in each of their works to take the listener to a particular place, however real or abstract they may be. In that sense, the title and cover art for the band’s fifth and final album draws you into a magical mass of land surrounded by water—but the couch suggests that ‘Kumoyo Island’may not be a fleeting stop, but rather a place of respite, where one could pause and take it all in.”

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Jeff Gburek – Omnia Sacra et Miracula

Our friend and one of our perennial favorites at this blog, Jeff Gburek, comes to us with a mini-LP’s worth of meditative guitar music supplemented with an electro-acoustic bass berimbau, pine cones, and field recordings.  There is an element of twangy, echoey, lo-fi music in these recordings which reminded me of the primordial, primitive guitar stylings of Robbie Basho or John Fahey blended with touches of American psychedelic folk as heard by bands such as Texas’ acid-folk legends Charalambides.