Os Noctàmbulos Interview!!

Picking up where The Seeds left off in 1969, Os Noctàmbulos deliver all the grit, punch and charm of the archetypal surf-garage band. Edgy and morose when required, explosive and aggressive when expected, these guys are delivering some seriously lo-fi, garage gold and we have had the delight of catching up with frontman Nick to discuss their latest record, Corsica Garden, in a little more depth. - Interview conducted by Daniel Sharman.

Dan: Finally a band from France! So happy to see some Franco-psychedeliaists! Can you tell us a bit more about where you come from and who is in the band?

Nick: Hi, we have Coline (Bass) and Valentin (Lead Guitar) who both come Le Mans (Fr) but now live in Paris and used to play in an amazing surf band called Elvis... Baldo, (Drums) who is a true Parisian via Corsica. He has played in too many garage bands to mention and is also a great artist, you can see his artwork on the front cover of french band Frustation records. And I (Nick/Vox) come from Sheffield in England but we all live in Paris now.

Dan: Os Noctàmbulos is a great name, how do you pronounce that? And where does it originate from?

Nick: Thanks! Well, I think i've been pronoucing it wrong for the last year and a half so I don't think i'm the best person to ask. The name comes from a James Ellroy book, L.A. Confidential. There is a bar that features heavily in the story called The Night Owl, so I wanted to call the band The Night Owls but found that name had already been used., I looked for a translation and found that Noctambulos means The Night Owls/The Night Walkers in Spanish. Then we decided to put Os (Portugeuse) instead of Los so the name probably makes no sense at all.

Dan: Obviously the surf, garage, proto-psych angle of the band makes me think The Seeds (whom I love). Who are some of your other influences? I think I heard some Dick Dale on 'Polly'.

Nick: Yeah I love The Seeds, The Haunted, Golden Dawn, 13^th Floor Elevators, Ultimate Spinich, Gram Parsons, The Flying Buritto Brothers, Gene Clark, The Byrds, Sly & The Family Stone, Reigning Sound, The Gories, Movie Star Junkies, The Felice Brothers, Nick Cave & The Bad Seeds, Brian Jonestown Massacre, The Charlatans...but the main influences for me are Gene Clark and Greg Cartwight (Reigning Sound, Compulsive Gamblers, Oblivions) there songwriting had a massive effect on me. Valentin is definetly influenced by the surf guitar greats like Dick Dale but also George Harrison, Link Wray and The Sonics as well as current bands like Black Lips, King Khan, Ty Segall & Thee Oh Sees. I always hear a great soul influence in Coline's bass playing and she loves 60's/70's soul and garage compilations like Nuggets & the Back From the Grave series. Baldo's influences span the whole musical spectrum and he just understands what makes a song work from the base up. His drumming is one of the most melodic parts of our band, when I was mixing our record I could just listen to the drum parts and it sounded like a melody all on its own, crazy drumming.

Dan: Also, are there any specific French bands that influence you?

Nick: Not specifically, there were a few of the older artists like Jacques Dutronc & Serge Gainsbourg that I already liked a few songs of but I need to dig a little deeper into their back catalouges. But there is great music coming from here at the moment: The Liminanas, Magnetix, Cheveu, The Feeling Of Love, TITS, White Ass, Pierre & Bastien, Dusty Mush, Pain Dimension, Miles Coombes, Les Massey Ferguson Memorial, Les Punaises, Les Moonshiners, Sudden Death Of Stars, Forever Pavot...it finally feels as though the french scene has stopped trying to copy English & American popular music and there is a real original  sound to the newer groups, the shackles are off here and the music is only going to get weirder and more expensive. It's a great time to live here.

Dan: Most refreshingly, Os Noctàmbulos writes short, punchy psych gems, unlike most contemporary psych bands. Is this done on purpose, and how does the band go about writing?

Nick: I've always loved pop music in whatever style and will continue to try and write the perfect pop song, it's all about the melody for me. I love some drone/psych bands, Hookworms & The Cosmic Dead really nail that sound but never forget the melody, but that jam music style is something that has never come easy to me due to my limited playing abilities.  We don't purposely write short songs though, If a song sounds better with a structure that lasts 2 minutes that's how long it will last, if it sounds better 7 minutes long then we'll work to that structure. We'll strip away any parts that drag the dynamics of a song down.

Valentin and I usually work on the structure of the songs together before taking them to the band. We only have a very limited time a week to practice so we really need to know what we're doing beforehand as rehearsal rooms here are so expensive. Then Coline and Baldo add their parts and we rework the structure until we're happy with it.

Dan: Surf tones are hard to nail as well as they are on this record, what were some of the guitars used on Corsica Garden?

Nick: Valetin plays a Fender Telecaster, I recorded the rhythm with a Squire Jagmaster and Coline plays a Fender Mustang Bass.

Dan: What about amps, and effects?

Nick: We really should be sponsered by Fender. Valentin plays through Baldo's 60's Fender Twin Reverb, the best reverb sound i've ever heard. He doesn't use any pedals, just the amp reverb. I use a Holy Grail Reverb pedal through a 70's Carlsbrough Hornet amp, a true Sheffield brand. Again, Coline recorded through a Fender Bass amp. We'll definitely be expanding our sound on our 2nd album with more tremolo and fuzz. Fellow psych & garage bands always look at us funny when they see we only use one pedal when we play live, Valentin manages to get a range of different sounds just from the way he plays.

Dan: How about other instruments such as the great Farsifa-sounding organ heard on some tracks?

Nick: I used a Hammond B200 organ I picked up for £70 when I was back in England. I love Farfisa and Vox continentals but I think the Hammond Organ is much more versatile and rich in sound, i'm only just learning how to play but it's so much fun to learn as an instrument, way more fun than guitar for me. The only other instrument on the record is piano which I overdubbed at Coline's family home in Le Mans. Ah, the postman has just delivered our copies of Corsica Garden!

Dan: In the description of Corsica Garden it specifically notes that the record is done in a lo-fi, but also sort of hi-fi way, how was the album recorded and what was your approach to recording?

Nick: We recorded as a live band onto ½ inch reel to reel with a ghost vocal. Once we nailed a performance of a song I overdubbed the vocals. I think it was really important to record the main instruments of the record on analogue equipment so we could really push the levels into the red and still get that smooth sound. Once we had the whole song finished we converted the tracks into numeric files so that I could overdub organ, at my parents house in Over Haddon, England, and piano at Colines parents in Le Mans. We recorded the live parts of the album at Baldo's home studio in Massey Palaiseau, there we had the means to record onto to tape but not to mix so we had no choice but to mix the analogue tracks on a digital program. It's not a perfect way to work but it's a method we'll continue to use in the future as it gives us freedom to experiment and control the exact finished sound of our records. It's cheap too, we only have to pay for the reel to reel tape and mastering, of which Matthew Johnson at Suburban Home Studio did a great job! The sound of Corsica Garden is basically us as a live band after playing together for 7 months, I guess that's why it's seen as a lo-fi record, the hi-fi bit i'm not sure, a lot of my favourite records are from Bob Dylan, Neil Young, Gene Clark & Gram Parsons so I guess I aimed to mix the album with that kind of sound in mind. I wanted to leave space for all the instruments to breathe as modern records are so compressed in sound, I wanted us to play the tracks as well as possible so we didn't have to hide behind feedback or fuzz. We didn't quite hit the mark but we'll look to use the experience to sound better on future recordings.

Dan: What's next for Os Noctàmbulos?

Nick: The 2^nd album is written and we're going to concentrate on practicing those songs on our mini European tour at the end of October so that when we get back we can get straight into the studio and record them. That record will be out on Stolen Body Records next May if all goes to plan. We're going to push the sounds on Corsica Garden a lot further and add a few more colours and genres into the mix to. After that there is talk of another split this time on Evil Hoodoo Records and I think we have the songs for that now too, though only Valentin and I have learned them at the moment. Then we may need to take a little break as Coline's studies come into their final year...

Dan: Is there anything else you would like to say?

Nick: Thanks to Daniel at Do You Even Psychedelic? for the interview and everyone who has supported us so far!

Do You Even Psychedelic? would like to sincerely thank Nick for taking the time.

Make sure to add the band on Facebook to get in touch here!

Also, the most important thing, make sure to check out their awesome, awesome album..Corsica Garden, here! (free download!)

Soledad Brothers: Steal Your Soul and Dare Your Spirit to Move Review

Tired of always seeing Gary Moore, and Joe Bonamassa, taking the spotlight for blues rock? Well, come this way then, and step back to 2002 for a garage blues offering from the Detroit trio, The Soledad Brothers - Written By Daniel Sharman.

Released in: 2002

Genre: Electric Blues/Garage Blues

Record Label: Estrus Records

Medium: Blue vinyl, black vinyl, CD, digital download

Recorded at: 3rd Man studios, Ghetto Recorders, and The Covington Lodge

Recorded only a couple of years after the turn of the century, looking back on this particular record, it feels much older than that. This is thanks in part to its authentic, lo-fi recording style, which helps accentuate the genuine, bare emotion of the album. 

Unlike on their début LP, for their second musical outing the Soledad Brothers employ a third member to their originally two-piece line up, Oliver Henry. Henry provides some much needed texture, which at times felt lacking on the Soledad Brothers début, bringing in greasy saxophone, church organ and backing rhythm guitar on many of Steal Your Soul's tracks. This new set of accompaniments helps add flavour to the album, and make for an all the more dynamic, compelling listen. 

However, do not be mistaken, Johnny Walker still remains as the enigmatic preacher of the group, exercising gritty guitar riffage, and reverberated slide action, from his various hollow-body guitars, whilst also delivery Burnside-esque vocals, and raw harmonica action. Similarly, Ben Swank remains to deliver the same, heavy-handed action on the percussion section of the LP, as before. His beefy, heavy beats, helping give structure to the recordings, and firmly anchoring Henry's saxophone lines in place.

All these elements come together to evoke the same sense of magic that so many British, and American, blues rock acts managed to conjure in the past. The Soledad Brothers make no effort to hide these influences, and quite clearly wear them on their sleeve. For example, 'Prodigal Stone Blues' remorselessly borrows both Mick Jagger's vocal style, and Keith Richards' guitar technique and tone, to seemingly pick up from where the Rolling Stones left them in 'Exile on Main Street'. 

Additionally, tracks such as Break 'Em on Down, and Michigan Line, portray the same overdriven prowess of so many hill country blues records, from artists such as R.L Burnside. Even though the two songs aren't direct covers of such artists, they are still credited by the band due to the fact the influence clearly shows. 

Now, reading all of what has just been said, it may seem like I do not favour this LP much, however the answer altogether the opposite of that. In fact, this is a blues record that succeeds in so many ways. Yes, it is derivative, but that is not the point of a good blues record. A good blues record seeks to borrow from the styles of it's contemporaries, and craft a new recording by adding its own signature twist. 

Furthermore, Steal Your Soul, and Dare Your Spirit to Move is obviously a delicately crafted record, even if the songs don't always aim to convey that. The recording is sharp, the sound rehearsed, and the mixture of songs successful due to their varied pace (having slower tracks like 'Nation's Bell', and 'Miracle Birth', implemented throughout, so as to contrast with high-tempo tracks like 'Prince Among Thieves').

Critic's Summary: Altogether, Steal Your Soul is a very wholesome listen, and leaves the listener's appetite for raw, blues rock thoroughly quenched. Not too full on, not too laid back, the LP is a shining moment in the career's of the Soledad Brothers, giving listeners a full range of tastes from their rootsy palette. 

Written By Daniel Sharman.

The Citradels: Interivew

Hailing from Australia, drone-psych rockers, The Citradels, have been prolifically putting out music for the 4 years. Their ability to quickly write and put together songs is uncanny, and with their latest album just released, Droned And Rethroned, it can be seen as yet another improvement upon their sound. We caught up with the Citradels to hear more about how they put together their new experimental album... 

The Citadels at the FBI Social.

So, guys, who is in the band and who plays what?

Thomas De Vries - Guitar and Vocals

Curtis Goodfellow - Guitar and Vocals

Sam Heathcote - Bass

Archer Moore - Organ and Vocals

Connor Tolson - Drums

This is how the band performs live, however when it comes to recording it's whoever can give the best performance, as everyone in the band is capable of playing several instruments. When we were recording Droned and Rethroned, one of us may have had only a basic idea for a song, recording a bare scratch track and leaving space for other people's input. However some songs were almost entirely written and tracked by one person.

Where do you guys hail from?

The band was originally based in Geelong (Australia) but after about a year and several lineup changes the band relocated to Melbourne, were we've been for the past year and a half.

What guitars were used on the album?

We mainly used three different electrics; A 1966 Vox Phantom 12 string, a late '60s Tokai (a Gibson 335 copy) and a copy of a Vox Teardrop which was made by this guy in Melbourne. Some tracks also had a Yamaha acoustic on them, and the bass we used was a modified P bass with a jazz pickup and neck.

What amps and effects pedals were used on the album?

Vox Phantom 12-String

We used a Vox AC30VR, a Fender London Verb, a Fender Deville and an Alembic F1-X preamp for the bass. Some of the pedals used are EHX Hummingbird, Freeze and Holy Grail, Crossfire Tremolo, Boss RV3 Digital Reverb/Delay and OD3 Overdrive, ZVex Lo-Fi Loop Junkie and some other fuzz pedals, I know I've missed some. Curt has this really old analogue delay unit which is super cool and I have this D.I.Y. fuzzbox that's completely broken and makes all these fucked up squeals when you turn it on, so we used that bad boy as well. We did also do a heap of experimentation and explored different ways of recording guitar on this album, like running it straight into the desk with the gain flat out to try get that White Light/White Heat Sterling Morrison type sound.

What other instruments were used on the album?

We had a clear idea of how we wanted this album to sound. We picked twelve or so tracks that we believed best worked together and then worked on them each in detail. It kind of meant that some of the tracks that would have had a broader instrumental scope got left out this time around. So apart from the usual guitar, bass and drums, we used our Farfisa Bravo running through a heap of different effects and also a really old Gem upright organ for two tracks in particular. Sam laid down a fair bit of violin which was often manipulated in post-production to create drones and feedback. We also used a pungi (snake charmer), glockenspiel, harmonium and an array of percussion instruments.

Where was the album recorded?

Almost the entire of the album was recorded in one room at my house in Melbourne. It's a living room and shared practice space with my housemate's band. We have pretty much just done it this way since the first album. It's kind of the base for most of the things we do, we have all that is needed for us to record then and there, so it makes sense. On a couple of the tracks some additional overdubs for were done at Archie and Sam's place.

What have you learnt after recording the album?

Recording for this album was great. It's probably been our most collaborative album to date, but also the most refined and focused in terms of the overall sound. It's always great recording from home but after three albums in a row it seems like I've been recording and mixing an album for the last two years. We are going to move all our gear down to Curt's parent's beach house in June to record our fourth album. So it will have a pretty different sound and feel, but we're looking forward to the change. It also means that the entire band will be present for the recording sessions, whereas as at the moment it's very rare to have everyone there whilst we're tracking individual parts.

What is next for The Citradels?

We're currently finishing up writing tracks that will feature on the fourth album. At the same time we also have what could be called the fifth album or maybe an EP in the works. It's will be made up of acoustic tracks, so a lot of sitar, some tabla and more alternate instrumentation, maybe even a country song or two. This is something we're slowly putting together. As much as I'm glad to be taking a break from recording I also get edgy if I feel like I'm doing nothing, so it's going to be a slow process. About four songs are almost complete, I might upload one soon depending on how it's sounding. We are just looking forward to doing that and working on our live show. We have some really cool gigs coming up and will hopefully have a more extensive interstate tour later this year. We also have this little collab idea with our brothers (and sister), The Grease Arrestor that I want to see get up and running by midyear. I wont say to much but this idea is pretty new for us and I haven't seen it done before, so it's exciting.

Do you even psychedelic? would like to thank the band for taking the time to do this interview. 

Interview conducted by Dan Sharman on 03/03/2014.

Thee Dang Dangs: Interview

Thee Dang Dangs performing in 2013.

Formed in 2012, Thee Dang Dangs have releases several records, including an EP and an LP. We caught up with the band to find out how they created the first album, and what is in store for later one's...

(See our review of Thee Dang Dangs latest album, For The People, here.)

Where/when did you guys meet up and start playing?

Rebecca: Ray, the guitarist, Shawn our first drummer and I met at a local restaurant/pub in Denver. It was a chance meeting and somehow I heard him talking about their band, or my friend told them I was in one. It was something along those lines. At that point the bands we were in were sort of drifting apart, for various reasons. After one show in particular Shawn and Ray came up to me at the end and said if I ever wanted to jam with them sometime to let them know. I said okay, Invited someone I knew that played bass and we started "jamming". After a few times there was a show lined up with Spindrift, so we had to come up with a name and more material. Those were the beginnings. We just sort of happened. Ray and I are the only original members at this point. We've really grown together in the short year and half we have been together as a band. Matt, the bassist is a friend I had met at a show two of our previous bands had played together. When the need arose for a new bassist he was the only one we really auditioned. Scotty, the drummer, I met through a mutual friend who introduced us over text. Or rather, she gave me Scotty's number and I met with him. He's great. So is Matt. Very talented musicians and good people. 

Where do you guys draw influences from as musicians, which influence the music which you then create and whom inspired you to pick up your respective instruments?

Ray: I draw from everything I hear. I appreciate most genres. I picked up piano and trombone young, started with guitars and synth's and drum machines in my teens. I've always spent as much time making electronic music as rock music and love both. I don't believe that one genre is superior to another. Its all personal preference and what you are in the mood for. 

Rebecca: I was a preacher's kid who was always  fascinated with musical instruments from the age of four. I got my first little mini instrument kit at that age, and a keyboard at nine. By ten or eleven I was playing music in church and picked up the guitar when I was about 11 I guess. Drums when I was probably about that age as well. I learned everything I know by ear. It's a feeling thing for me. I played Latin music growing up in an all Spanish church, and for a time only wrote poetry and songs in Spanish. When I was 12 and started getting better at the guitar I started playing things that were more rock 'n' roll driven. I adore weird rhythms, and simple rhythms that really stand out. I'm inspired by moments and human emotion most of all, I think. Things that make you feel intensely. Mediocrity inspires me. Striving to never be in the realm of the mediocre. As far as what inspires me in the moment, it a whirlwind of my thoughts. What I'm feeling right then manifests itself into what I start playing. It's no one, or few things in particular. 

Scotty: I'm influenced by Jon Bonham, Gene Krupa, Danny Carey, and Dave Grohl. 

For the new material off your latest album, for the people, the tones have been varied and interesting both live and in the studio. Tell us about some of the guitars(including basses)being used on-stage and in the recording room(with addendum regarding other instruments, e.g: Drum kits)? 

Ray: For drums on the recording we used a kit our producer had in his studio. It consisted of floor tom, bass, snare, hi hat, and two cymbals. This is how we play live as well. -

Ddrum Dominion Maple Kit.

Ray: What amps and pedals are being used? For guitars I use a Fender Jazzmaster with a holy  grail reverb, big muff , a custom tremolo, MXR Carbon Copy delay set to short slapback , and wah. My amp is a Fender Hot Rod Deluxe. I use the dirty channel on the amp mostly, very little use of the Big Muff Pi. I tend to push the Grail hard as well on some songs to give a nice effect. 

Rebecca: I use an Epiphone Les Paul and a Fender DeVille 4x10. I love it. My pedal board just has my tuner pedal and a Holy Grail Reverb pedal for guitar. I also crank up the reverb on my amp. For live vocals I had an additional Holy Grail on my board that I used a DI and adapter to run it through the mic. I've since got a TC Helicon voice tone create XT. I really like it. I have a lot more control over the mix, delays, wet and dry signal for overall mix through PA, and other subtle sounds such as a sort of telephone megaphone sound. For bass a Mustang was used with an in-studio amp.

What were the recording sessions for for the people like? Where/how is was recorded, what in-studio effects you had, where it was mixed, ect, ect.

Rebecca: We recorded the albums that are out with Alex Anderson. He's a great guy and really knows what we like. We recorded everything live and on For the People did very minimal overdubs. Stone Coast was recorded in about five hours including vocals which I did separately due to the inability to isolate them during recording of the instrumentals. We did the same on For the People. The only difference was we used two mics, a condenser which was clean and another with reverb and a little dirt on it. For the People was recorded in about four or five sessions. Around 2-4 hours each session. I hate recording vocals separately, it feels a little unnatural to me, but we got the best result that way. I was in a little corner with my back to Alex so I could let loose a bit. Everyone else left the room. I think Ray may have come in once or twice.

What lessons have you learned from the albums you've made, including for the people, and what future projects does the band   have planned?

Rebecca: As far as learning experience we had some things happen in the studio I think we will avoid next time, just making sure things really sound exactly how we want them to. They did for the most part for sure, but as the artist you hear things you want to change a bit. As far a future plans go, we are releasing a cassette with a label out of LA called Lollipop. They've put out rad stuff by Dagha Bloom, Dead Coast, Froth, and other great bands. It will be rad to have something out with their name on it. We played a show with some of the label's founders and they are all awesome guys.  We also plan on releasing an EP in February or March, and are planning a Spring tour with Ancient River (in the works), a summer tour to the West Coast and maybe late summer back East. We're also wanting to do a fall tour. An LP should be ready by the Summer as well.

Ray: Record a new album, with a bigger focus on quality sound, fleshing out soundscapes a bit more on the next record. Also another Denver Psych Fest. This year I am booking a lot more shows on my own and bringing band's in that I like. 

Lastly, where can people find out more about thee dang dangs and show their support?

Rebecca: Our main page is www.theedangdangsband.com. You can also look for us on Facebook, Twitter, Bandcamp, etc.

You can hear Thee Dang Dangs latest single here:

You can find a review of the band's latest full-length, For The People, here.

Interview conducted by Dan Sharman on 13/01/2014.

Night Beats Interview: Tarek Wegner talks the gear of Sonic Bloom!

Catch up with the Psych-Garage rock trio, Night Beats, as Tarek, the band's bassist, gives Do You Even Psychedelic a quick run-down on the production of their latest album, Sonic Bloom.

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"Let's start with some background on the band. Where/when did you guys meet up and start playing"

"All 3 of us in met up in Seattle around January 2010."

"Where do you guys draw influences from as musicians, what influences the music which you then create and whom inspired you to pick up your respective instruments?"

"Probably just Magic/fate."

Danny with his Danelectro-made Silvertone 6-string.

"For the new material off your latest album, Sonic Bloom, the tones have been varied and interesting both live and in the studio. Tell us about some of the guitars(including basses)being used on-stage and in the recording room (with addendum regarding other instruments, e.g: Drum kits)?"

"Pretty standard stuff mostly. The Basses I used were an Eastwood High-flyer, a Fender P-bass and a Fender Mustang bass. I remember the guitars played were a Danelectro twelve-string with built in effects, a Fender Stratocaster, a Valco-built Airline Town & Country, a Guild Jet-Star, and a Squier mustang. The drums were pieced together differently for each song really."

'64 Guild Jetstar

"What amps and pedals are being used?"

"A '70's Fender Twin-Reverb (same one used for guitar on the Black Lips album 'Let It Bloom'), A '70's Fender Bassman combo, A '65 Black-face Fender Bassman, An old Peavey, A Fender Deluxe-Reverb reissue, and a Vox AC30. The pedals used were: A Digitech whammy octave, A Boss tremolo, several delays, several distortions, a Danelectro Spring King, a tremolo, a chorus.

A Dunlop Jimi Hendrix Fuzz Face, A '60's home-modified Dunlop Germanium Fuzz Face, A 1970's Mosrite Fuzzrite, A modified 60's Mosrite Fuzzrite, and an unnamed home made fuzz."

'65 Fender Bassman

Mosrite Fuzzrite

Dunlop Geranium Fuzz Face

"What were the recording sessions for Sonic Bloom like? Where/how is was recorded, what in-studio effects did you have, where was it mixed, ect, ect."

"It was different for every session. We did it pretty clean to the tape with the exception of a couple of tracks with use a tape echo. It was recorded by Kyle Brunette in Tacoma, WA."

"What lessons have you learned from the albums you've made, including Sonic Bloom, and what future projects does the band  have planned?"

"We can't exactly say."

"Lastly, where can people find out more about Night Beats and show there support? Maybe you could tell us about  your upcoming trip to south Africa."

"You can come to our shows, we play and travel enough. Wish Nelson Mandela could of made it to one of our South African date's."

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Do You Even Psychedelic? would like to take the chance to thank Night Beats for conducting this interview. 

Interview Conducted By Dan Sharman at 07/12/2013.

Song Review: Warpainting By The Myrrors

The Myrrors - Warpainting 

Album - Burning Circle's In The Sky (2008)

A small background of the Song:

If there ever was a song that captured the feeling of strolling through dusty, sun-scorched alleys on a baking summer day it has to be this, Warpainting, one of the best depictions of 'Desert Rock' to date. The band, formed by two friends when they were still in high school, self-released a 5 track EP and posted songs to YouTube. Whilst the band was on a hiatus, this 7 minute stunner gathered over half a million hits. Now the band has reformed and currently sought a new bassist, apparently working on several new projects. If this single is anything to go by, the future is immensely bright for the Arizona four-piece.

Analysis of the song: 

This sand-sodden symphony really highlights what psychedelic rock can be at times, a force which can expand the consciousness without the need for mind-altering drugs. Everything about this track oozes dusty desert-psych, including the album's cover artwork. The light shaking of a maraca, the searing tone of lead guitar, the gritty, reverberated lead vocals, the primitive, metallic sound of a droning drumbeat, this song has a whole host of psychedelic rock's common calling cards, including an explosive breakdown at 6:09, starkly reminiscent of a dust storm one may gaze at from afar on a desert plane.

Where to buy and other trivia:

- Following Burning Circle's In The Sky's success, the band have decided to put up a high-quality downloadable version of the album on their BandCamp, for more information click here.

- If you head over to the Band's Facebook page, there has also been talk about reissuing the album on vinyl and CD in a limited pressing. 

- The Album originally was originally put out by the band on 50 hand-burned copies, here is the original artwork that appeared on the digipak:

Song Review: Crystal Anis by The Limiñanas

The Limiñanas - Crystal Anis

Album - Crystal Anis

Analysis of song:

When I was first introduced to this fantastic French psych-pop duo in March this year by Mojo Music Magazine, they likened the band to a Velvet Underground which had in it's ranks the massively influential Serge Gainsborough and 60's sex-icon Brigitte Bardot. This is by far the best description of the aptly-named Limiñanas I've heard to date, taking their name from the brother and sister which the band is comprised of, Lionel Limiñanas and Marie Limiñanas. The powerful, spoken-word vocals(tying in with the Serge comparison) accompany the thumping, driving, bass-line brilliantly, while shimmering, Farsifa chords propel the song forward into unexplored areas. As far as the spoken-word vocals are concerned(an obvious hint to the aforementioned Serge.G), I feel their foreignness gives them an inherit psychedelic value, but if one is a stickler for such things, research further and you may find psychotomimetic depths to fish-related tales of the European outfit.

It is worth noting that the band have produced songs with English vocals, so the decision to keep to their native tongue was a deliberate choice, one which I feel gives this single a very unique, continental vibe.

Where to buy a copy:

Crystal Anis is the title track of the Limiñanas 2012 LP, Crystal Anis. The LP was pressed on a limited run of 'gold edition' vinyl, only 199 copies where pressed, they are now sold out. However, a second pressing of the LP on black vinyl and CD is available from Hozac Records(the first pressings are now sold out from the official store, but may still be found on sites such as Discogs). The album is also available for digital download here.

Various vinyl pressings are available of songs from the album, most of which were pressed in different colours and quantities, some of which are now sold out according to Hozac Record's. 

Note: Some of Hozac Record's site pages are slightly outdated in their information.

The Flying Eyes Interview

The Flying Eyes are a psychedelic blues rock band from Baltimore, Maryland, USA, who brilliantly merge Jimi Hendrix style riffing, gravelly blues vocals and thumping drum beats with the atmospheric, acid-driven melodies of the sixties. After the recent release of their latest album, Lowlands, I caught up with Elias from the band to ask a little bit more about their thrilling sound...

The band's debut album.

D: What are some of your main influences, it is often cited that the band shares similar vocals with that of Jim Morrison?

E: Undoubtedly we are influenced by the psych-rock legends from the late 60s-early 70s such Pink Floyd, The Doors and especially Black Sabbath. This was the first music that inspired us to play rock n' roll. But throughout our career we've picked up plenty of modern influences like Sleep, The Black Angels, Spiritualized and The Black Keys which are now equally as important to our sound.

D: The new record, Lowlands showed more focus than the first two albums, was there a conscious effort to find that Flying Eyes sound?

E: Whenever we start recording a record we want to make it better than the last one and the process of making Lowlands was definitely more focused and disciplined than ever before. But we didn't consciously think about "finding a sound". We always try to let the song writing naturally evolve without trying to push it in a specific direction. That's why are albums have a diverse feel to them.

D: What genre would you say your current records fall under?

E: Again, we don't really consider our own genre when we write music. We don't really want to to be defined in terms that might limit us. We definitely draw influences from shoegaze, doom metal and stoner rock but I think the best way to describe us, although it's broad, is "psychedelic rock". We always use psychedelic effects combined with driving rock beats.

D: You get a good variety of tones on your recordings, what are some of the pieces of gear you use when in the studio?

E: We used a variety of interesting vintage and modern amps on Lowlands: Fender Bassman, Fender Twin Reverb, Fender Concert Amp, Fender Super Sonic…as you can we are big Fender fans. Producer Rob Girardi also turned us on to some awesome effects he had in the studio: an Echoplex tape delay pedal, an old Fender spring reverb box which was perfect for warm guitar reverb. I also was given an 80s analogue synthesizer, the Prophet 600, which I restored and used on the record for some textural sounds.

D: After Lowlands, what can we expect from the Flying Eyes?

E: Over the past 3 or so years we've been slowly working on a different sort of album that we plan to release next. It’s mostly an acoustic album driven by acoustic guitars, banjos, minimal percussion and vocal harmonies. I play a lot of harmonica. If you listen to “Leave It All Behind” on our album Done So Wrong you’ll get an idea of what it sounds like. Country, folk, blues with some subtle hints of psychedelia. It’s very different but we are proud of it. We also have about 5 new songs written for the next electric album, but no concrete plans yet to start recording that one.

D: If you weren't musicians, what jobs would you be doing?

E: Well, we all have other jobs. Me and Mac work in the same divey Mexican restaurant/bar, Adam works at the Wegman’s sub shop and Will is a professional plumber. If I wasn't doing music I would probably be involved in some other performing art, most likely theatre. I studied theatre from a very young age through college and I’m still involved whenever I can be. But with The Flying Eyes being so busy over the last few years I hardly have any extra time. But whatever happens I'm sure I’ll always be performing on-stage in come capacity.

The Band's latest album, Lowlands.

You can buy The Flying Eyes latest album, Lowlands, here.

Interview conducted by Dan Sharman on 20:45, 06/08/2013.

Band To Watch Out For: The Shine Brothers

I was turned onto this band by none other than thee Craig Fox of The Greenhornes, telling me that 'It's good shit, really good live too', this recommendation from one of my personal musical inspirations was not to be taken lightly and I had soon looked up The Shine Brothers and what they were about. 

The band consists of Nate Ryan, the ex-Black Angels guitarist/bassist(and band which I highly recommend), Nate's brother Colin Ryan, who apparently write much of the material according to Mr.Fox. This picture shows Nate with the now quite popular, Black Angels(far right).

The band also has two other members according to their Bandcamp page, a member called Oakley Munson who is from a band called The Mooney Suzuki and Ryan Rapsys, apparently in 'a load of bands' according to Craig. A picture on the band's Last.fm page shows three men, two of whom are presumably the Ryan brothers,but also another Black Angel's member, Kyle Hunt the angel's keyboardist and occasional backing guitarist, although his allegiance is not confirmed by any of the bands web sources(second from left in picture above, far left on the picture below).

The band is also apparently signed to Burger Records so be expectant of a digital or physical release in the future. It is rumoured that you can obtain a psychical copy through contacting  one of the members through the group's Facebook page, but this may no longer be available.

As the band releases more material, hopefully more information about them will emerge, shining some light upon the brothers. Until then the music will have to speak for itself.

The band's Bandcamp page describes their sound as 'an alchemic balance of sunshine pop song structures and howling devilish rhythms, crowned by dirty parallel vocal harmonies.' But, that is for you to judge for yourself. My personal favourite is currently 'Silver Knife', which makes me think of a Garage spin on the psychedelic sound of the Black Angels. 

Stay tuned for future updates about the band.

Useful links until more information is available:

• The band's Bandcamp page
• The band's Facebook page
• The band's tour dates
• The band's twitter page
• The band's Last.fm page

By Dan Sharman, 22:57, 27/07/2013.