Tag: Space-Rock

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Music

The Land Of Yrx – Termination Point

The Land of Yrx are (were?) a charmingly weird band staffed by members of Audion, perhaps the most important magazine of my youth.  The Freeman brothers would wax on about albums I wouldn’t have the chance to hear in full until I was in my 20s working at a record shop, but their description of said albums always piqued my interest.

The most curious releases were ones released by friends.  The Land of Yrx was mentioned a few times, and this was the first time I had the pleasure of actually hearing one of their albums in full.  This one is a live recording that bubbles along with a blend of space rock and psychedelia that might sound a bit cheesy at first, but given a couple of listens, becomes enjoyable.  Very, very proggy.

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Henri Giraffe – The Giraffe Transmissions

Henri Giraffe works under a score of pseudonyms (this is one of them, obviously), but what is impressive about the release is that it is some of the freakiest lo-fi space rock I’ve heard in a while.

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Music

Golden Age Of Music

Arjen Lucassen’s Supersonic Revolution – Golden Age of Music

Arjen Lucassen is peerless in the Dutch progressive rock scene. His latest album is yet another conceptual opus with not only the sound that made his ban Ayreon legendary, but you can hear influences of peak-era Deep Purple as well.

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Music

Sula Bassana – Nostalgia

Though he have nearly 20 years under his belt with this band, I have to admit that I never heard David Schmidt’s music until this evening.  Sula Bassana’s latest release, Nostalgia, is a gloriously slow wade into space rock.  It’s heavy, sludgy, and exactly the sort of thing that I want to relax my mind to at the moment.  Dense, but rewarding, listening.

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Music

Backspace – Human Nature Architecture

It’s bands like this that the blog was initially made for.  Finding a Krautrock band who mix in surf and psychedelic rock coming out of China is a magnificent thing.  Backspace are one of the more brilliant bands to come out of the Middle Kingdom in some time, and I say this as one who is a fan of so many incredible bands popping up everywhere there.  The way they mix these sounds, along with good, punchy, clear production make this instrumental gem an instant favorite.  If it’s released on Maybe Mars Records, it’s a sure sign of quality.

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Music

Galloping Coroners (VHK) – Naptánc / Dancing With The Sun

Long before space-rock was such a big thing (and I love the genre), the Galloping Coroners (Vágtázó Halottkémek) were making something I would imagine would be called proto-space rock, shaman-rock, or something akin to an even weirder version of Hawkwind.  They are Hungary’s national treasure as far as I’m concerned.

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Music

Various Artists – Weedian: Trip To Germany

Though I’m not much of a metal guy, I have grown fond of things like desert rock, stoner rock, drone metal and other variants.  The online label Weedian has been releasing free (or pay-what-you-like) compilations of bands in local scenes, and this one covers Germany in 62 tracks.  Most of these bands are surprisingly good, and those of you into things like Saint Vitus or Black Sabbath will find plenty to enjoy in this album.

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Cergy-Pontoise – CP01

This is a curious release.  Cergy-Pontoise are an Italian duo, and their albim starts out with drone-y ambient sounds but then falls into atmospheric progressive-folk at times, sounding like a better recorded lo-fi artist out of New Zealand, perhaps.  There are also elements of space rock, prog and psychedelic music in this.  It’s a mixed bag in the positive sense of the word.

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Music Spoken Word

Oceanic Vibrations – Vol. 1

This is one I’ve been waiting to hear for some time, and it did not disappoint.

American poet Shane Beck (who happens to be a very old friend) paired up with British electronic musician Dave Onley as Oceanic Vibrations to join their worlds together elegantly.  Beck’s voice lends itself to the soundscapes Onley produces, melding a clear, heartfelt and pensive poetry draped on top of music that reminded me of early-period Tangerine Dream or even Cosmic Jokers in the more pulsating parts.

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Music

Aidan Baker – Lost in the Rat Maze [PWYC]

Imagine if you were listening to Neu! with a far more relaxed beat rather than the insistent and incessant pulse the legendary Krautrock band was famous for.  Hear me out on this.  It’s actually quite a magnificent sound to behold, really.  There is a lo-fi, drony vibe to Fanciful Flights after starting quietly, with lots of rumbling on the first two tracks.

Aidan Baker has always covered a lot of musical ground on his releases, but this one, muffled as it might sound, managed to hold my interest for the duration of the album.