Frogwings is a legendary jam supergroup and this sole document of their existence might surprise you. It’ll appeal to fans of Frank Zappa or John McLaughlin more readily than it would a Deadhead. Sure there’s a lightness and levity that characterizes hippy music, with the vocal […]
This is a very free album with a big band that’s unusually concise in its composition. It’s sonically and emotionally powerful and deeply focused. Even the longest songs get straight to the point and the solos are intense and wordy but never overplayed. Zoh Amba shines […]
The second album from this bay area psych trio is no sophomore slump. Rather it’s- per the title- a huge improvement over their already excellent debut. Like many psych albums it’s a studio effort mixed out of many lengthy jams between the three experienced players, who […]
Blog favorites Dope Purple continue to push themselves into increasingly intense sonic territory with new collaborations. This album/performance features some classic skronk delivered from saxophonists Yong Yandsen and additional percussion from Darren Moore. They recorded this at midnight, in their hometown room, presumably packed full with […]
In the last five years or so, I’ve been way into instrumental beat collections. This is nothing particularly unique or new – the ubiquity of “lo-fi hip hop beats” is well-known to anyone even casually into the newer distillations of music in the internet age. That […]
What is this music? Is it jazz? There’s a saxophone player. prog rock? What is prog rock? I read the Wikipedia article. It cited Yes and Genesis. This band does not sound like Yes or Genesis, except that there are clearly guitar parts and clearly drums, […]
These are the first three albums of the deeply underrated psych/jam band The Third Mind. The group is built around legendary lead guitarist Dave Alvin, better known for The Blasters, who was 65 years old at the time of the self titled debut. The Third Mind […]
Welcome to the first official entry in an ongoing series focused on the vast and uncompromising catalog of the Downtown mastermind himself, John Zorn. For our premier examination, we take a look at the very first Zorn record to ever grace my earballs – 2009’s O’o. […]
This record consists of improvisational jams recorded live at the legendary Zebulon in LA, given the ol dub-out and mix-down into a proper psychedelic rock record. It could be called the culmination of GROOPs three year long residency at the prestigious venue, but I prefer to […]
This dispatch from the U.F.O. finds Makoto and company in top form. The mixing and production is some of his finest and makes the most of the excellent and diverse instrumentation on this album- particularly the different rhythm sections and the intense washes of noise and synth. […]