Rock – Page 7 – 7th Level Music

RY-GUY releases “Dunja” ahead of his next EP due March 27, 2026.

RY-GUY is a South London-based artist whose music sits at the intersection of soul, psychedelia and art-pop, shaped by a deep sense of heritage and a commitment to telling stories often left unheard. Born in London to a West Indian/Caribbean family with roots in Guyana and Barbados, RY-GUY is highly influenced by the soundsystem culture of his Guyanese / Caribbean heritage as well as art movements like Impressionism and Surrealism and treats songwriting as both personal expression and cultural document.

Today RY-GUY announces new EP ‘like a river’, set for release March 27th and shares the first single from the record, “Dunja” (pronounced “DOON-yah”).

“Dunja” features a driving, guitar-led sound and an unforgettable chorus replete with 60s style backing vocals – then takes a complete left turn, building up to a crashing crescendo, before then veering off into a space rock coda for its final 60 seconds. The result is an epic single that feels like three songs in one and further confirms RY-GUY as one of the most unique indie artists currently around.

Recorded at the legendary RAK Studios in London by Adele Phillips (Speedy Wunderground) and mixed by George Murphy (The Specials, Hotel Lux, Major Lazer), RY-GUY speaks about the idea behind “Dunja”.

“A powerful anthem for ethnic women navigating the challenges of a Western world, this song speaks to their resilience in overcoming male oppression, violence, and the patriarchy. It’s a celebration of strength, defiance, and the pursuit of freedom in the face of adversity.”

Listen to “Dunja” here: https://youtu.be/Nm1EImHLfXE

Classically trained on piano from a young age in South London, RY-GUY’s early immersion in artists such as Otis Redding and Al Green laid a soulful foundation, while a formative encounter with Jimi Hendrix opened up a more expansive, boundary-less approach to composition. After years of writing and recording demos on a 4-track recorder, RY-GUY emerged as a project driven by the desire to release the kinds of musical narratives he felt were missing from the contemporary landscape.

RY-GUY’s work often centres marginalised perspectives through abstract lyricism and textured soundscapes. His upcoming EP ‘Like A River’ was conceived as an honest, self-contained artwork – one that balances a direct pop sensibility with enough sonic grit and ambiguity for listeners to lose themselves within it. Themes of strength, defiance and self-affirmed freedom run throughout the record, portraying life candidly and in the present tense. The project’s DIY ethos extends beyond the music itself, encompassing self-shot artwork, deliberately chosen track titles, and a visual world that reinforces the EP’s emotional core.

Written primarily on piano (with “Dunja”, originating on guitar), the EP was recorded across Salvation Studios, Speedy Wunderground and RAK, with Speedy Wunderground becoming a creative home during the process. RY-GUY co-produced the record with Adele Phillips, with additional guidance from long-time mentor Sir Robin Millar CBE. Mixing and mastering were handled by George Murphy and Dyre Gormsen of Eastcote Studios, while contributions from live band members and collaborators added further depth.

Closing track “Oil In My Hair” stands as the emotional and thematic heart of the EP, a moment of resolution that encapsulates its pursuit of freedom and self-belief, blending psychedelia, soul and art-pop into a final statement of quiet triumph.

Live, RY-GUY has graced headline shows at The Shacklewell Arms and The Windmill in London, as well as playing outside his home city at venues such as Yes in Manchester and Supersonic in Paris and is set to play a run of UK tour dates later this year.

See RY-GUY live:
21 March 2026 // Coventry, Just Dropped In
28 March 2026 // Liverpool, Jacaranda
31 March 2026 // London, Shacklewell Arms
23 May 2026 // Southampton, Wanderlust Festival

Keep your mind open.

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[Thanks to Frankie at Stereo Sanctity.]

Lauren Auder shares “Praxis” from her upcoming album due this spring.

Today, the London-based composer, producer, and singer Lauren Auder is announcing her sophomore album Whole World As Vigil. The album will be out March 27th via untitled (recs) and to mark the announce she is sharing the incandescent new single “praxis”.

Auder’s baroquely orchestrated pop songs fuse classical, post-rock and experimental elements with contemporary reflections of generational discontent and personal turmoil, resulting in vivid musical portraits which have established her as one of pop’s most singular voices. Auder released her long-awaited debut album ‘the infinite spine’ in 2023 to critical acclaim, which documented how the weight of the world can transform you, following a remarkable run of 3 EPs, 2021’s 5 Songs For The Dysphoric, 2020’s two caves in, and 2018’s Who Carry’s You as well as a myriad of nuanced, poignant singles and collaborations with Vegyn, Celeste, Clams Casino, Caroline Polachek, Boris, Danny L Harle and Wendy & Lisa.

Lauren has also composed music for Virgil Abloh’s Louis Vuitton campaigns, and modelled for Marni, Gucci, Celine, Alexander McQueen, Ann Demeulemeester and Ganni, cementing herself as an auteur across the worlds of music and fashion. Lauren has toured with Deafheaven, Amen Dunes, Christine & The Queens, Celeste and WU LYF.

Rooted in the idea of movement as survival, “praxis” channels momentum into sound, spiralling upwards into an exhilarating, revelatory chorus. Lyrically and musically, the song turns on itself: “every step I take keeps the world on its axis” is mirrored by cyclical strings and an oscillating instrumental palette that feels in constant motion.

Speaking about the single, Lauren says: “‘praxis’ is built around a sample of a power drill cutting through metal, its seemingly perpetual motion and unstoppable movement felt apt to parallel with an important part of my own philosophy, that keeping yourself moving forward, is enough to live for. Musically I was inspired by Steve Reich, Kate Bush and Bruce Springsteen, trying to bring all these worlds together in a way that felt uniquely me.”

Where 2023’s debut the infinite spine traced Auder’s journey toward self-understanding, Whole World as Vigil turns outward. Inspired by a romantic relationship, the album captures not only the electrifying sheen of being in love, but the introspection it demands. Stripping back her process, Auder largely wrote and produced the record on laptops with long-time collaborators dviance and Alex Parish between Paris and London. Most tracks began as acapella voice notes recorded on walks through the city before any instrumentation took shape.

There’s a physicality that has always been deeply embedded in Auder’s music, and this visceral emotion is in every corner of the new record: the tracks feel bigger, the production more bombastic and the overarching sentiment filled with greater urgency than ever. Booming 808s nod to Auder’s roots in rap and beat-making, while her instinct for sonic collage pushes each song into new terrain. Ultimately, the collusion of all these sonic experimentations have resulted in the record that sounds the most unmistakably like Auder herself, a culmination of years of experimentation, now distilled into something boldly assured. Rather than a reinvention, Whole World As Vigil extends her ongoing archive of self: a body of work that grows richer in conversation with its own history.

“Vigil” in French, Auder’s second language, refers to a guard or a watcher, and this bilingual connotation places even greater emphasis on the album’s title. What will we do when we know the world is watching? Auder wrote many of Whole World As Vigil’s lyrics as theses to live by. “praxis,” as both concept and track, embodies the act of turning belief into action. More than just succumbing to desire, it’s a manifestation that what we deserve is possible. “yes,” one of the purest love songs on the album, most directly gives way to this ecstasy in steadfast declarations, but Whole World As Vigil ultimately imagines what we can do once that’s embraced.

Lauren will celebrate the release of the album by playing a headline London show at Chat’s Palace on 26th March, tickets here.

Keep your mind open.

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[Thanks to Tom at Terrorbird Media.]

Rewind Review: Acid King – III (2005)

Acid King‘s third album, III, starts out with a a low growl from Lori S.‘s guitar and then then roars like a motorcycle tearing out of a haunted gas station at 3am just before the burning Molotov cocktails you left behind blow up the place to bury the curse on the place for another hundred years.

And that’s just the first track (“2 Wheel Nation”).

Guy Pinhas‘ bass on “Heavy Load” is pretty much the backhoe dropping a couple tons of broken concrete into the hole where the haunted gas station had been. The first song is a salute to bikers, and the second is a salute to truckers – both of whom see things most of us never see on dark roads during long nights. “Bad Vision” is a tale of malevolent spirits just on the other side of the void and has thunderous drumming from Joey Osbourne.

“War of the Mind” is the colossal centerpiece of III, clocking in at nearly twelve minutes as Lori S. calls for people to cast off their mental and physical shackles. It rumbles inside your body and the heavy, deep chords (along with Osbourne’s growling drum fills) give you the strength to get up when you’re feeling the weight of the world on you.

“Into the Ground” seems to be another tribute to late night desert driving (“Four wheels keep on turning into the ground.”), but in some sort of Mad Max-style world where its survival of the fittest or the smartest. Lori S.’s solo on this one is a standout. “On to Everafter” takes on one of the favorite subjects of doom / stoner metal – death (“Here comes the knife. Comes to me closer, faster than life…Leaves close the sight, covers me over, closer to light.”). The song, somehow, takes on a heavier, sludgier feel than previous tracks. I don’t know how Acid King do it.

The album ends with “Sunshine and Sorrow,” in which Lori S. sings about going into a haze to escape the dread of facing another day that masks sadness in beauty (“What’s in a day? Sunshine and sorrow. Haze leads the way.”). It’s difficult to determine which of the three are hitting it harder on the final track. Lori S.’s guitar sounds like a burning jet engine at points, while Osbourne is crushing everything around him and Pinhas is trying to split the Earth with his bass riffs.

This album came out a little over twenty years ago and it still lands harder than most metal albums out today.

Keep your mind open.

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Review: Death Harvest – Pale Rider EP

Virginia Beach’s Death Harvest‘s Pale Rider EP contains three songs to preview their upcoming full-length album due in the spring of 2026. The songs are shortened versions of the full-length tracks coming later, and the EP is almost an omen of the massive riffs that will crush us in the near future.

Starting with the cheerily titled “Death Beside Me,” Death Harvest’s guitarists, Chris Bruffy and David MacArthur, pretty much set the place on fire right away. Vocalist Brett Lloyd sings / yells / growls / preaches that the Grim Reaper is always right around the corner and how he feels he already has one foot in the world beyond the veil (“I know I’ll be there when you awaken at dawn, and I know that I’m leavin’, and I’m already gone.”). The song, already heavy enough, really kicks in around the three-minute mark with Brian VanVraken‘s bass somehow hitting harder and guitar solos.

“Thousand Times” has a great underlying groove throughout it that reminds me of Soundgarden (one of their admitted influences). “I’ll pray for you to leave, I’ll beg for you to kill me,” Lloyd pleads, just wanting to either be left alone to his agony or have it end. Lloyd rage (and Jason Jacquin‘s drums) come back with another level of alternately simmering and boiling rage on “False Spring” – a term for a brief warm-up in the late months of winter or early months of spring before a return to dark, gloomy, cold days that steal your hope. It seems to a metaphor for falling back into an addiction, be it a toxic relationship or toxic pills (“I’ve become something I’m not through the years.”).

This EP is heavy, almost crushing. Like I wrote earlier, it’s an omen. Dark things are coming like the figure on the cover. Something like this can’t be stopped, so don’t bother trying. Get all Jungian and embrace your shadow with it.

Keep your mind open.

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[Thanks to Peggy at Adrenaline PR.]

Review: Model / Actriz – Pirouette

I didn’t know much about Model / Actriz before seeing them at the 2025 Levitation Music Festival, but I was instantly hooked by their frenetic, passionate live performance and their wild post-punk / electro-disco sound. I immediately bopped over to their merch booth after their set to buy their newest full-length album Pirouette.

“Vespers” opens the album. Vespers, in case you’re unaware, are prayers usually conducted at the end of a day for reflection of that day’s events (and your role and God’s role in them) and typically said before an evening mass. It is coincidence that Pirouette‘s cover appears to be an ornate gate – perhaps opening to a sacred place? Vocalist Cole Haden sings, here and elsewhere on the album, about his reconciliation with his faith growing up (“It’s all the days I carved in crimson streaks.”) and his embracing of his sexuality (“God gave me poise enough for the sharing. Claim that look, match that speed, claim that room.”)/.

On “Cinderella,” Jack Wetmore‘s guitar almost sets off a panic while Ruben Radlauer‘s acoustic and electric drums hit with wild disco abandon and Haden tells a tale of finding his true self. “Poppies” contains a central theme to the album in its lyrics: “As flesh is made in marble, as marble captures softness, as softness holds a violence within a pure expression.” The first two parts of that quote appear in large script in the middle of the liner notes.

Aaron Shapiro‘s bass on “Diva” will rumble your seat, while Haden’s whispered vocals on “Headlights” will make you sit still and pay attention. “Acid Rain” has Haden admiring the speed, grace, and weightlessness of hummingbirds and wondering if he could emulate them and leave behind cares and dwell in beauty all day. The heavy beats of “Departures” and “Audience” rush back and forth between dark house, krautrock, and industrial.

Speaking of industrial tracks, you can’t get much more machine-heavy than “Ring Road,” which is about being willing to spin a car into a whirlwind so you can forget everything and just be in one place for a little while. “Doves” seems to be another spiritual metaphor (The Holy Spirit coming down like a dove onto Christ? Haden embracing how the Creator made him?) and yet another track you’ll blast late nights on empty roads.

“Baton” closes the album. A baton can be something you pass on to the person ahead of you in the race, and Haden musing over the man he’s become and how “it can feel strange knowing I’ve been a person.” Leaving behind one life and embracing another can be intimidating to say the least, but Model / Actriz’s combined talents build the song into brightness in the second half, fading us out on a hopeful note.

It’s a sharp record from a band currently taking the world by storm. Like its title, it can make you spin with wild speed or subtle grace.

Keep your mind open.

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Review: Joanna – Hello Flower

Picture this: You’re a young band (your drummer alone is just fifteen years old) from the Manchester area of England and you’ve built so much buzz that people are comparing you to the next Stone Roses. You have a strong number of ardent fans and soon labels start calling. You cut an album, but the record deal never materializes and your album ends up going unreleased…

…for thirty-five years. That’s the short story behind Joanna‘s long-lost and now-unearthed Hello Flower album that has finally seen release after being found on a shelf in a Manchester apartment. It’s a crime no one picked this up earlier, because Joanna would’ve been as big as the Stone Roses and Oasis if they had.

The simple yet groovy drum beat by Carl Alty on “If You Don’t Want Me To” gets the album off to a great start, and Terry Lloyd‘s thick, syrupy, and funky bass on “Bandit Country” grabs your attention and won’t let go for the next four minutes. “Hey Presto” has vocalist Neil Holliday singing about either a lover or, more likely, his favorite party drug (“You’re my magic pill, and you’re all I need. I just take you at will to keep me on my feet.”). The sound is, appropriately, a bit trippy.

“Weather Vane” has disco touches (check out Tyrone Holt‘s guitar licks!), which I love. Holt’s psychedelic guitar sounds are bright and buzzy on “Mr. Sunshine.” The title track is pure 1990s Manchester rock with its hooky guitars, sizzling drum beats, and slightly snarled vocals. “It’s Worth a Try” is in the heavier end of that sound, almost striding into shoegaze territory as the guitar distortion gets louder and Holliday’s vocals get a bit more distant. The closer, “Gardeners’ World,” is a hard smackdown of people sneering at and tearing each other down from both sides of the political aisle while ignoring the beams of wood in their eyes. Holliday sings, “…don’t throw your stones…There’s weeds in your garden.” to both the left and right (and himself). This song is more relevant than ever as we see people tearing each other apart, verbally and physically, while ignoring that they’re all truly worried about the same things and forgetting about rich elitists playing both sides against each other. Joanna saw all this coming in the 1990s.

Again, it’s stunning that no one offered a record deal for an album this good. Joanna did a sold out show for its overdue release. We can only hope for a tour or maybe another record. They deserve it.

Keep your mind open.

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[Thanks to Kate at Stereo Sanctity.]

Rewind Review: Earthless – From the West (2018)

Recorded in San Francisco on March 01, 2018 just before releasing their Black Heaven album, Earthless celebrated that occasion with this stunning show that, thankfully, was recorded for all of us.

From the West is a blistering set that starts with the Black Heaven title track that unloads so much power that you wonder if they’ll have anything left for the rest of the set (Hint: They somehow always do.). “Electric Flame” is a rare Earthless track with vocals by guitarist Isaiah Mitchell and it reminds me of something by Blue Cheer with its driving force and thick grooves from Mike Eginton‘s bass.

“Gifted By the Wind” always makes me think of Robin Trower and his influence on Mitchell’s playing. Its transition into the always transcendent “Uluru Rock” is great. Mario Rubalcaba‘s snare hits on “Volt Rush” sound like he’s going through drumsticks like faster than his drum tech can bring them. Their cover of Led Zeppelin‘s “Communication Breakdown” has become a fan-favorite and they somehow make it even fuzzier.

The album / set concludes with the hypnotic “Acid Crusher,” which highlights the band’s often-forgotten (or flat-out ignored) love of krautrock. Eginton and Rubalcaba combine to create a mesmerizing groove while Mitchell makes you think you might’ve accidentally inhaled crushed LSD with his phenomenal playing.

A live Earthless performance is always something special and difficult to describe. From the West is a close proximity to the experience, leaving you stunned that three people can produce that much power.

Keep your mind open.

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1971’s rarely seen “Soul to Soul” concert film to see release on multiple formats March 06, 2026.

Soul to Soul, a vibrant and historically significant 1971 concert film — featuring performances by Ike & Tina Turner, Santana, Wilson Pickett, the Staple Singers, Les McCann & Eddie Harris, and the Voices of East Harlem — will be available again on the concert’s 55^th anniversary of March 6. Released by Liberation Hall in partnership with Reelin’ In The Years Productions, Soul to Soul will appear for the first time on Blu-ray. Additionally, Soul to Soul: Music from the Original Soundtrack will arrive at retail on vinyl LP, CD & digital on the same date. The film will also be released on DVD.

Pre-order all formats at Bandcamp. Pre-order Blu-ray & DVD at Amazon. Pre-order LP, CD & digital at Amazon.

In February 1971, several dozen African American soul, jazz, and gospel artists embarked on a journey that would change the lives of everyone involved. They traveled from New York City to Ghana, West Africa to take part in a 13-hour concert entitled Soul to Soul. The concert was a celebration of 14 years of Ghana’s independence from British rule. For most of these artists, it would be their first trip to Africa. For the African American musicians, this was a journey about personal roots, the ancestral homeland, history, discovery, loss, pain and joy.

Directed by Academy AwardⓇ winner Denis Sanders and produced by Tom Mosk and Richard Bock, the resulting concert film/documentary had a limited theatrical run in late 1971. In 2004, Reelin’ In The Years Productions President David Peck secured permission for a DVD release from the producer and copyright holder of Soul to Soul. With the help of a clearance specialist, he was able re-clear all the artists seen in the 1971 film.

Now, 20 years later, Soul to Soul will have another chance to connect with audiences via a partnership between Reelin’ In The Years Productions and Liberation Hall. Steve Scoville of Blue H2O Productions restored the original edit by reconstructing each scene using the high quality 2K transfers from the original film elements, which were shot in the 4:3 aspect ratio. The film’s soundtrack has been digitally remastered by Randy Perry.

Above all, Soul to Soul is an electrifying concert film that features its players at the peak of their powers. Over 100,000 Ghanaians attended the celebration of the meeting of the cultures of the two continents. The Ike & Tina Turner Revue, featuring frontwoman Tina furiously shimmying alongside the Ikettes, delivers fiery renditions of “River Deep-Mountain High,” the project’s first digital single; “Soul to Soul,” a cut specifically written for this concert; and a cover of Otis Redding’s “I’ve Been Loving You Too Long” [The latter track appears as a special Blu-ray outtake]. Wilson Pickett, the most popular American artist known to West Africans at the time, took the stage at 4:30 AM to deliver a rousing finale of “In the Midnight Hour,” “Funky Broadway,” and “Land of a 1000 Dances.” Gospel, soul, and R&B family group the Staple Singers were on hand to perform “When Will Be We Paid” and “Are You Sure” just five months before they recorded their legendary hits “I’ll Take You There” and “Respect Yourself.” Pianist Les McCann and tenor saxophonist Eddie Harris introduced many members of the audience to jazz via spirited performances of “The Price You Gotta Pay to Be Free” and “Hey Jorler,” the latter featuring local Ghanaian artist Amoah Azangeo. The Voices of East Harlem, an ensemble featuring young gospel singers, contributed “Run, Shaker Life.”

Santana, with guest percussionist Willie Bobo, was the wild card. The San Francisco group only had one African American member but, paradoxically, given its reliance on Afro-Cuban and other Latin American rhythm constructs, played the most African-sounding music (“Black Magic Woman”/”Gypsy Queen,” “Jungle Strut”) of any of the American guests. In Rob Bowman’s expanded liner notes for the Blu-ray, he quotes musicologist John Collins as stating, “They had a big impact on the local guitarists. The students were really fascinated by what Santana was doing with Latin music and rock… The obvious equation was, if you can unite Latin music with rock, you can do the same with African music. That’s actually what happened.”

Interspersed between these stunning performances, the camera crew followed the American musicians as they visited local villages, met kings, and shared food and dance with the Ghanaian community.

In his August 19, 1971, film review for The New York Times, critic Howard Thompson wrote: “Soul to Soul will hook you. We defy anybody to watch the final half hour of this color documentary of a soul and gospel music concert, performed in Ghana, without tapping a foot. But it is the sea of rapturous black faces, those of the visiting American artists and their Ghana audiences, that makes this movie a haunting experience… Mainly and compactly, the film sticks to the concert, brilliantly evoking the performances and crowd reactions in a flow of closeups and panoramic shots, to the stabbing, pounding pulse of the music.”

CD & DIGITAL TRACKLIST (LIB-2192)

Ike & Tina Turner – 1) “Soul to Soul,” 2) “River Deep-Mountain High,” 3) “I Smell Trouble” | The Voices of East Harlem – 4) “Run, Shaker Life,” 5) “Choose Your Seat and Set Down”/”Walk All Over God’s Heaven” | Les McCann & Eddie Harris – 6) ”The Price You Gotta Pay to Be Free” | The Staple Singers – 7) “When Will We Be Paid,” 8) “Are You Sure” | 9. “He’s Alright” | Santana – 10) “Jungle Strut,” 11) “Black Magic Woman”/“Gypsy Queen” | Wilson Pickett – 12) “In the Midnight Hour,” 13) “Funky Broadway,” 14) “Land of 1000 Dances”

LP TRACKLIST (LIB-2191):

Due to space limitations, the LP features 10 tracks.

SIDE A:
Ike & Tina Turner – 1) “Soul to Soul,” 2) “River Deep-Mountain High” | The Voices of East Harlem – 3) “Run Shaker Life” | The Staple Singers – 4) “When Will We Be Paid,” 5) “Are You Sure,” 6) “He’s Alright”

SIDE B:
Santana – 1) “Black Magic Woman”/”Gypsy Woman” | Wilson Pickett – 2) “In the Midnight Hour,” 3) “Funky Broadway,” 4) “Land of 1000 Dances.”

Keep your mind open.

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[Thanks to Randy at Prime Mover Media.]

Review: Odonis Odonis – self-titled

“We just started writing without any kind of preconceived notion of what we were trying to make. A lot of the songs just came from jamming…We wanted to make an emotive record and relay how we were feeling about all these massive changes that have been happening, not just in our lives, but in general. Like, where the fuck is the world heading? How is that affecting us? And how can we express it in a way that people can relate it to what’s happening in their lives? If we can make an honest record and put as much of ourselves as we can into this thing, you can’t replace that with a machine.”

Those are quotes from Constantin Tzenos, one half of Odonis Odonis (the other half being Denholm Whale), about their new self-titled album. The duo decided to create something that would push back against not only the stresses of the world at-large, but also their demanding other jobs (concert promotion for Whale – a field that’s always feast or famine – and film and TV composition for Tzenos – a field being taken over by AI programs).

“The Same” has them wondering why so much of everything feels familiar, and not in a good way, while they spin a bold sound that blends shoegaze with dark wave. “Hijack” continues this, with a thick Cure-like bass line and lyrics about reclaiming one’s narrative (“Don’t let them talk to power.”). That bass cranks up the power on “Come Alive” and yet the track is one of the trippiest on the album. “Work It Out” is a call for the band and their peers to get out of their doldrums and fix the stuff their parents and grandparents let go fallow (“My generation’s so dumb,” Tzenos complains.).

“When you’re breaking me down, well, I hope you had fun,” they sing on “Consumed” – a dark one that layers the synths and echoes the drums to nice effect. Then comes “Hunter,” which roars during the chorus and growls during the verses – much like some kind of predator…which might be a corporation, a billionaire, a politician, or in some cases all three in one.

The drum work on the nearly instrumental (the few lyrics are so layered with reverb that they become incomprehensible) “Distraction” is sharp, blending rat-a-tat snare work with crispy cymbal snaps. You can hear the duo’s “Let’s just jam and see what happens.” idea for the album in full here, and it makes me want a whole album of stuff like this from them.

“We Are Gods” is a punch at toxic, rich elitists who think they’re above everything and can’t admit how secretly miserable they are. Finally, on “Bliss,” Tzenos realizes that he, Whale, and the rest of us can find the very thing in the title (and “the sunshine,” as he keeps repeating) if we wish, are willing to do the work (or, in some cases, give up the work that’s been stifling us), and accept it.

It’s a good message to end an album and start a new year. We don’t have to keep doing the same things, voting for the same people, or putting the same job before our bliss. It’s there for the taking – as is this record.

Keep your mind open.

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[Thanks to Alex at Terrorbird Media.]

Mojave Experience 2026 announces its full lineup.

The Mojave Experience festival today announces the full lineup for the first annual event, which takes place from March 20th-21st, 2026 in Joshua Tree, California. The festival is the brainchild of organizer and High Desert native Patrick Brink, frontman of VOLUME and former lead singer of desert rock legends Fu Manchu. Tickets are on sale now for individual days. Tickets are available HERE.

Co-headliners Earthless and Dead Meadow top the bill, totaling 16 bands confirmed to perform over two nights. The lineup includes legends in explorative and countercultural music, as well as future ones now making waves.

The full lineup is: Earthless, Dead Meadow, John Garcia (ex-Kyuss), Acid King, Nick Oliveri’s Death Acoustic, Yawning Man, Hippie Death Cult, Rubber Snake Charmers feat. Sean Wheeler, Ecstatic Vision, Howling Giant, Early Moods, The Freeks, Arthur Seay and the Riff Killers, Borracho, Insomniac, Soft Sun

The Mojave Experience takes place in Joshua Tree, California at the Joshua Tree Lake & Campground. Attendees are encouraged to make use of the camping, hiking and rock climbing in the area while taking in the vast beauty and mystery of the region that birthed the Desert Rock movement.

The Mojave isn’t just a backdrop — it’s the raw, unfiltered stage where music, art, and chaos collide. Out here, under endless stars and brutal sun, the desert strips away the fake and leaves only what’s real.

The Mojave Experience was born from that spirit. It’s not another sanitized festival in a city park, it’s a gathering for the wild ones, the wanderers, the true believers who know the desert doesn’t hand out comfort, only freedom.

This is where local desert legends share the stage with national heavyweights, weaving new stories into the myth of the Mojave. No velvet ropes. No corporate gloss. Just artists, misfits, and seekers coming together for a weekend that won’t be forgotten.

We bring the sound. You bring the fire. Together we’ll carve something into the desert that echoes long after the amps shut down. This is more than a festival — it’s a ritual. A pilgrimage into the heat, dust, and sound that will rattle your bones and rewire your soul.

Come ready. Come raw. The Mojave Experience isn’t here to entertain you — it’s here to change you.

Keep your mind open.

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[Thanks to Dave at US / THEM Group.]