Category: Stoner rock

Blackwater Holylight release new single and announce west coast tour dates.

BlackWater HolyLight share first video from RidingEasy debut album, announce West Coast tour dates
 Rewiring “heavy music” w/ hints of Sonic Youth, Chelsea Wolfe, Raincoats, Stooges, Beefheart, et al.
  Watch “Wave of Conscience” video (YouTube)
Hear & share Blackwater Holylight album (Bandcamp) (Brooklyn Vegan)
“Flat out it’s one of the best heavy psych debut albums you’ll hear in 2018.” — The Obelisk
“This quartet has been burning up stages all around their hometown, fueled by their abrasive blend of doom metal, psych rock, goth and a tangy soupçon of pop music… They landed a spot on the 2018 Best New Band poll in alt-weekly Willamette Week, but could quickly take over the world.” — Paste Magazine
“They mesh elements of doom, Krautrock and atmospheric indie into one bewitching rock whole.” –Classic Rock Magazine
Portland, OR quartet BlackWater HolyLight share the first video from their breakout debut album today. Watch and share “Wave of Conscience” via YouTube.
BlackWater HolyLight also announce West Coast tour dates starting August 3rd. Please see current dates below.
 
Their self-titled RidingEasy Records debut has received unanimous press praise and continues to grow. Brooklyn Vegan recently streamed the entire album HERE. (Direct YouTube.)
The notion of “heavy music” is continuing to expand of late, with many intrepid artists finding new ways to incorporate the power of traditional metal into new music, but without all of its trappings. Enter Portland, OR quartet BlackWater HolyLight to further swirl musical elements into a captivating hybrid of emotional intensity. Heavy psych riffs, gothic drama, folk-rock vibes, garage-sludge and soaring melodies all collide into a satisfying whole with as much contrast as the band’s name itself.
“I wanted to experiment with my own version of what felt ‘heavy’ both sonically and emotionally,” says founder and vocalist/bassist Allison (Sunny) Faris. “I also wanted a band in which vulnerability of any form could be celebrated.” BlackWater HolyLight — Faris, guitarist/vocalist Laura Hopkins, drummer Cat Hoch and synth player Sarah Mckenna — formed upon the breakup of Faris’ longtime band and she sought a fresh start. “In my last band I was the only female in a group of 6, so I wanted to see how my song writing and vulnerability could glow taking the drivers seat and working with women.”
The band’s self-titled debut begins with a simple, almost grunge-like riff as a chorus of voices introduce a melodic line in call-and-response until the band kicks in, slowly building into crescendo like a lost outtake from Led Zeppelin‘s Houses of the Holy. Elsewhere, “Sunrise” begins with a chorus-drenched post-punk groove until a sonic boom of heavily distorted guitar skree erupts out of nowhere. Nearly as suddenly, the song returns to its lulling core, subtly building the tension until it ruptures completely in a blast of noise. Likewise, “Carry Her” establishes a dark, sparse melody and distinctly thin sounding drums not far removed from early work of The Cure. However, BlackWater HolyLight’s penchant for surprise attack finds a sudden shift into a doom-like dirge, colored with eerie synth notes and pounding shards of fuzz. Throughout the album, their songs shirk traditional verse-chorus-verse structure in favor of fluid, serpentine compositions that move with commanding grace. The band expertly, yet subconsciously, incorporates hints of Chelsea Wolfe, Celebration, Captain Beefheart, The Raincoats, The Stooges, Pink Floyd, Jane’s Addiction and more to form their unique brand of dark’n’heavy transcendence..
BlackWater HolyLight was recorded by Cameron Spies at Gold Brick Studios and The Greenhouse, and with Eric Crespo at Touch Tourcher Recording in Portland. The album is available on LP, CD and download, released April 6th, 2018 via RidingEasy Records on LP & CD at www.ridingeasyrecs.com and digital at blackwaterholylight.bandcamp.com.
BLACKWATER HOLYLIGHT LIVE:
08/03 Nevada City, CA @ Cooper’s
08/04 Oakland, CA @ Elbo Jack London
08/07 Las Vegas, NV @ Bunkhouse
08/08 Los Angeles, CA @ Zebulon w/ Zig Zags
08/09 Oceanside, CA @ Pourhouse w/ Red Wizard
08/10 Fresno, CA @ Full Circle

08/11 Arcata, CA @ Alibi

Artist: BlackWater HolyLight
Album: BlackWater HolyLight
Label: RidingEasy Records
Release Date: April 6th, 2018
01. Willow
02. Wave of Conscience
03. Babies
04. Paranoia
05. Sunrise
06. Slow Hole
07. Carry Her
08. Jizz Witch

On The Web:

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Here Lies Man – You Will Know Nothing

Here Lies Man was introduced to me via their label (RidingEasy Records) with the following question – “What if Black Sabbath played Afrobeat?”

I’m not sure I can sum up HLM’s sound better than that.  They’re from Los Angeles (and consist of members of Antibalas), so it’s tempting to say there’s a touch of southern California rock and surf in there.  However, the majority of their sound is a blend of heavy riffs and Afrobeat rhythms.  It works.  Good heavens, does it work.

The heavy organ and crunchy guitar of “Animal Noises” get things off to a great start.  It sounds like a couple wild boars grunting alongside jungle birds.  It also cuts out and then fades back in with delicate psychedelic brush strokes.  “Summon Fire” could probably do exactly that under the right circumstances.  The guitar licks are hot enough, and the drums are perfect for a dance around the fire while spinning a spear overhead.  The lyrics are belted out like something from Parliament Funkadelic.  “Blindness” is a mostly instrumental with great organ / keyboard work throughout it, especially on the gothic fade-out that would make Bauhaus proud.

“That Much Closer to Nothing” is a good, yet bleak, way to describe living.  The title and the sludge-like riffs are nihilistic at first, but then blossom with an infectious energy that let you know that letting go of all your trappings is a good thing.  Those Sabbath influences are front and center on “Hell (Wooly Tail).”  The bass slithers, the guitars chug, the drums bubble, and the keys melt.  The songs ends with a child’s voice telling us to “Look in the mirror.”  It lends a bit of creepiness to the title of the next track – “Voices at the Window.”   The song is like a fog through which you see what may or may not be a deer along the road as you’re driving at 65mph.  In other words, it’s misty and a bit frightening.

The choppy, fuzzy sounds of “Taking the Blame” are heavy and will get your neck moving like a bobble head figure.  “Fighting” was the first single off the record, and choosing it was a no-brainer.  The groove on it is excellent and belongs at the top of your next workout playlist.  “Floating on Water” follows, and its one of the best psychedelic dream-rock songs of the year.  It like concentric ripples in a mountain lake.  “Memory Games” brings Cream to mind with its floor-stomping blues-based groove.  The closer is the lovely “You Ought to Know” – an instrumental that puts together shoegaze, stoner rock, psychedelia, and space rock / lounge.

You Will Know Nothing is the type of album that you can put on a loop and listen to three times in a row without getting bored.  It’s funky, heavy, and a great cure for anything ailing you right now.

Keep your mind open.

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Here Lies Man unleash new single, “That Much Closer to Nothing,” from upcoming album.

Here Lies Man share new single from forthcoming album You Will Know Nothing
Antibalas members “if Black Sabbath played Afrobeat”
Hear & share “That Much Closer To Nothing” (YouTube) (Bandcamp)
Los Angeles quintet Here Lies Man share a new single from their forthcoming anticipated sophomore album today via Bandcamp and YouTube. The album, You Will Know Nothing will be released June 15th via RidingEasy Records.
Back in March, the band dropped the first song, “Fighting” via YouTube.
Here Lies Man play the prestigious Primavera Sound festival in Barcelona, Spain later this month before hitting the road with Earthless in June. Later in Fall, the band hits the massive Desert Daze festival in Southern California. Please see current dates below.
Here Lies Man took the music world by storm in 2017 with their self-titled debut positing the intriguing hypothesis: What if Black Sabbath played Afrobeat?
Rough Trade named Here Lies Man in their prestigious Top 10 Albums of 2017. BBC 6 & Classic Rock Magazine deemed it among the year’s best, as well as countless other press outlets singing its praises.
This June, the L.A. band comprised of Antibalas members quickly follow their auspicious debut with the even more thoroughly realized album You Will Know Nothing. Its 11 tracks expand upon the band’s exploration of heavy riff-based rock and psych within the ancient rhythmic formula of the clave.
“We’re very conscious of how the rhythms service the riffs,” explains founder and vocalist/guitarist/multi-instrumentalist Marcos Garcia (who also plays guitar in Antibalas) of the band’s sound. “Tony Iommi‘s (Black Sabbath) innovation was to make the riff the organizing principle of a song. We are taking that same approach but employing a different organizing principle: For Iommi it was the blues, for us it comes directly from Africa.”
Sonically, on You Will Know Nothing the dynamic range is thicker, crisper and more powerful. It glistens as much as it blasts. The songs are even catchier, more anthemic, and the production reflects that of a band truly come into its own. Lyrically, it’s an equally more conceptualized effort that reflects upon states of being and consciousness – a driving force that carries throughout the words and moods of all of the band’s releases, interconnected to their trancelike music. Here Lies Man have honed their sound and their focus, and soon, you will truly know Nothing.
“We wanted to go deeper with the sonic experience,” says Garcia. “Even though it sounds more hi-fi than the first record, it was important that it didn’t sound too polished.”
While You Will Know Nothing certainly maintains its gritty grooves, there’s an interesting conceptual mathematics to the entire proceedings. “There are interludes between each song that are 2/3 to 3/4 of the tempo of the previous song,” Garcia says. “The reason it breaks down to 2 over 3 or 3 over 4 is that everything in the music rhythmically corresponds to a set of mathematical algorithms known as the clave. The clave is an ancient organizing rhythmic principle developed in Africa.”
“We dove deep into the texture of the music, beyond the groove and the riff,” says HLM cofounder and drummer Geoff Mann (former Antibalas drummer and son of jazz musician Herbie Mann.) “Although something might sound like one instrument, there are subtle layers shifting through. It’s definitely a headphone album.”
Garcia and Mann recorded the album much like they did the debut, at their own L.A. studio on a Tascam 388 8-track tape machine. Congas were later recorded by percussionists Richard Panta and Reinaldo DeJesus. Then, Garcia went to NY to record interludes with former Antibalas keyboardist Victor Axelrod. Mixing took the most time in order to find the proper sonic space for each layer of musical detail, with first album engineer Jeremy Page mixing the drums and the band tackling the remainder while also juggling a hectic touring schedule.
Here Lies Man has already spent much of early 2018 on tour, with dates supporting Antibalas and Fu Manchu as well as a headlining trek through the EU & UK. Many summer festival dates and headline tours await later in the year as Here Lies Man continues its infectious charge onward.
You Will Know Nothing will be available on LP, CD and download on June 15th, 2018 via RidingEasy Records.
HERE LIES MAN LIVE 2018:
05/22 San Diego, CA @ Soda Bar
05/23 Visalia, CA @ Cellar Door
05/27 Palm Springs, CA @ Ace Hotel
05/31 Barcelona, ES @ Primavera Sound Festival 
06/05 Asheville, NC @ Mothlight *
06/06 Atlanta, GA @ Masquerade *
06/07 Spartansburg, SC @ Ground Zero *
06/08 Orlando, FL @ Wills Pub *
06/09 Tallahassee, FL @ The Wilbury *
06/10 Baton Rouge, LA @ Spanish Moon *
06/12 Houston, TX @ White Oak Upstairs *
06/13 Austin, TX @ Barracuda *
06/14 Ft Worth, TX @ Ridgela Room *
06/15 Memphis, TN @ Growlers *
06/26 Seattle, WA @ Nectar Lounge
06/27 Bellingham, WA @ The Shakedown
06/28 Vancouver, BC @ Fox Cabaret
06/29 Portland, OR @ Star Theater
06/30 Grant’s Pass, OR @ The Haul
07/01 Chico, CA @ Naked Lounge
07/02 San Francisco, CA @ The Chapel
07/05 Los Angeles, CA @ Resident DTLA
08/24 Hudson Valley, NY @ Huichica Festival
08/31 Los Angeles, CA @ Levitt Pavillion (MacArthur Park)
10/12-14 Lake Perris, CA @ Desert Daze 2018
* w/ Earthless

Artist: Here Lies Man
Album: You Will Know Nothing
Label: RidingEasy Records
Release Date: June 15th, 2018
01. Animal Noises
02. Summon Fire
03. Blindness
04. That Much Closer
05. Hell (Wooly Tail)
06. Voices At The Window
07. Taking the Blame
08. Fighting
09. Floating On Water
10. Memory Games
11. You Ought To Know

On The Web:

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Blackwater Holylight – self-titled

Portland, Oregon is home to many things – big, foggy forests, dark coffee, gray skies, cliffs pounded by the relentless ocean, and now sludge-psych rockers Blackwater Holylight (Allison Faris – bass and vocals, Cat Hoch – drums, Laura Hopkins – guitar and vocals, Sarah McKenna – synths).

Their self-titled debut starts with the bass heavy “Willow,” which somehow mixes goth, psychedelia, and groove rock.  The burst of drums and synths about thirty seconds in is exhilarating.  You’re grooving with them like a 1960’s super-spy / vampire two-and-a-half minutes later.  Hopkins’ guitar work on “Wave of Conscience” reminds me of early Cream, and McKenna’s synths remind me of some of Frank Zappa‘s work.

Faris’ bass takes front stage on “Babies,” and it sounds like she learned the craft from David J. of Love and Rockets.  Her vocals and McKenna’s circus sideshow synths give the track a demented touch that you can’t shake out of your head.  “Paranoia” starts out with appropriately intimidating reverb on Hopkins’ guitars, and they only get louder and creepier as the tune builds.  Everything bursts forth when Faris’ sings, “Here comes the sunrise.” on “Sunrise.”  It’s a lovely little gem in the middle of the darker previous track and the sludge metal of “Slow Hole” (which almost does sound like a sinkhole forming in the middle of a forgotten road).

Hoch’s beats are downright danceable on “Carry Her,” while Hopkins’ guitar work at first sounds like something off a mellow Cure record and then turns into a crunchy, distorted wallop.  The album ends with the kinky / creepy “Jizz Witch” – a slow burning doom track that seems to be summoning up…something, but ends before whatever “it” is can emerge.  Whew.

Blackwater Holylight’s debut is full of these shadowy moments.  It works into the back of your mind and lingers there.  It intrigues and unsettles in just the right balance, as good art often should.

Keep your mind open.

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Levitation Austin artist spotlight: Windhand

One of my favorite parts of Levitation Austin is discovering new bands, especially ones in genres I wasn’t exposed to much before I started attending the festival.  One of those genres is stoner metal, and Virginia’s Windhand is my new favorite bands of that ilk playing at this year’s festival.  They’re playing a sold-out show on April 26th at Barracuda with Ruby the Hatchet and Dead Meadow.  The place will be shaking.

Keep your mind open.

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Comacozer / Blown Out – In Search of Highs Volume 1

Australian cosmic psych-rockers Comacozer have teamed up with UK cosmic psych-rockers Blown Out to release a massive split LP of, you guessed it, cosmic psych-rock called In Search of Highs Volume 1.

“Massive” might be too light of an adjective to describe this record.  Comacozer‘s portion is on side A.  It’s one track that last’s just short of eighteen minutes.  “Binbeal” begins with a didgeridoo to put us in the mood of someone sitting atop a red rock in the Australian outback during a sunrise meditation.  It evolves into a heady groove perfect for opening your third eye chakra.  It’s a rapid plunge down a psychedelic rabbit hole by the eleventh minute.

Blown Out gets side B off to an epic start with the nine-minute-plus “Terraform.”  The title of the track refers to the process of restructuring entire planets.  Trust me, it’s heavy enough to do that.  The guitars alone would power terraforming machines from orbit.  “Void Sucker” is half the length of the previous track, but about double the speed.  “Hook Up the Telepath” ends side B with psychedelic chaos that reminds me of the aerobraking scene in 2010: The Year We Make Contact.

It’s a solid LP of instrumental stoner-psych metal that will get you through the cold of space or the heat of re-entry.  Volume 2 can’t come soon enough for my liking.

Keep your mind open.

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MOTSUS – Oumuamua

Belgian stoner metal?  Yes, thank you.

I hadn’t heard of MOTSUS until they offered me a download of their new EP Oumuamua.  I’m glad they reached out to me, because this thing is heavier than that Chinese space station due to crash on Earth any day now.

The royally epic “Kings and Queens” opens the EP.  The whole track rumbles with an angry energy that is hard to describe, but “score for a rocket launch film scene” is fairly close.

The guitars soar on “Warm,” while the bass and drums hammer like dwarves in a deep mine searching for rare gems.  “Freddy” is equally heavy, and “Exploder (Part I)” is doom conjured up from the bottom of that dwarven mine.  The bass in particular stands out on this track, sounding like a growling lion and a jet engine roar at different times.

“Hoochy Woochy” might have a funny title, but the song is isn’t jovial.  It’s as thick as battlefield mud.  The build up to the rolling, crashing drums, furious guitars, and war hammer bass is excellent.  The EP ends with “Tin Men,” a churning, guttural tune perfect for the march of robotic soldiers across a desolate landscape.  It also has the only lyrics of the album – a monologue about a UFO coming to either destroy us, or worse, ignore us all together.

Oumuamua is a Hawaiian word for “scout,” and the album’s title refers to the first interstellar object to pass through the solar system.  It was discovered in October 2017 and is tumbling through space.  It took about 600,000 years to pass by us.  It’s not a comet or an asteroid.  It’s some sort of new object, according to NASA.  It passed us by.  It didn’t stop.

Regarding alien life in the universe, Arthur C. Clarke said, “Two possibilities exist: either we are alone in the universe or we are not.  Both are equally terrifying.”

MOTSUS has created a mixtape for this unknown traveler.  Let’s hope it comes back to hear more.

Keep your mind open.

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BlackWater HolyLight releases “Willow” from upcoming self-titled debut.

BlackWater HolyLight premiere new track via Paste Magazine from forthcoming RidingEasy debut
 Rewiring “heavy music” w/ hints of Sonic Youth, Chelsea Wolfe, Raincoats, Stooges, Beefheart, et al.
Hear & share “Willow” (YouTube) (Paste Magazine)
“Flat out it’s one of the best heavy psych debut albums you’ll hear in 2018.” — The Obelisk
“This quartet has been burning up stages all around their hometown, fueled by their abrasive blend of doom metal, psych rock, goth and a tangy soupçon of pop music… They landed a spot on the 2018 Best New Bandpoll in alt-weekly Willamette Week, but could quickly take over the world.” — Paste Magazine
“They mesh elements of doom, Krautrock and atmospheric indie into one bewitching rock whole.” –Classic Rock Magazine
Portland, OR quartet BlackWater HolyLight share a new track from their forthcoming self-titled debut album today via Paste Magazine. Hear and share “Willow” HERE. (Direct YouTube.)
 
The Obelisk recently launched “Wave of Conscience” HERE. (Direct YouTube.) The album’s first single, “Sunrise” launched this winter, is available to hear and share via YouTube HERE.
The notion of “heavy music” is continuing to expand of late, with many intrepid artists finding new ways to incorporate the power of traditional metal into new music, but without all of its trappings. Enter Portland, OR quartet BlackWater HolyLight to further swirl musical elements into a captivating hybrid of emotional intensity. Heavy psych riffs, gothic drama, folk-rock vibes, garage-sludge and soaring melodies all collide into a satisfying whole with as much contrast as the band’s name itself.
“I wanted to experiment with my own version of what felt ‘heavy’ both sonically and emotionally,” says founder and vocalist/bassist Allison (Sunny) Faris. “I also wanted a band in which vulnerability of any form could be celebrated.” BlackWater HolyLight — Faris, guitarist/vocalist Laura Hopkins, drummer Cat Hoch and synth player Sarah Mckenna — formed upon the breakup of Faris’ longtime band and she sought a fresh start. “In my last band I was the only female in a group of 6, so I wanted to see how my song writing and vulnerability could glow taking the drivers seat and working with women.”
The band’s self-titled debut begins with a simple, almost grunge-like riff as a chorus of voices introduce a melodic line in call-and-response until the band kicks in, slowly building into crescendo like a lost outtake from Led Zeppelin‘s Houses of the Holy. Elsewhere, “Sunrise” begins with a chorus-drenched post-punk groove until a sonic boom of heavily distorted guitar skree erupts out of nowhere. Nearly as suddenly, the song returns to its lulling core, subtly building the tension until it ruptures completely in a blast of noise. Likewise, “Carry Her” establishes a dark, sparse melody and distinctly thin sounding drums not far removed from early work of The Cure. However, BlackWater HolyLight’s penchant for surprise attack finds a sudden shift into a doom-like dirge, colored with eerie synth notes and pounding shards of fuzz. Throughout the album, their songs shirk traditional verse-chorus-verse structure in favor of fluid, serpentine compositions that move with commanding grace. The band expertly, yet subconsciously, incorporates hints of Chelsea Wolfe, Celebration, Captain Beefheart, The Raincoats, The Stooges, Pink Floyd, Jane’s Addiction and more to form their unique brand of dark’n’heavy transcendence..
BlackWater HolyLight was recorded by Cameron Spies at Gold Brick Studios and The Greenhouse, and with Eric Crespo at Touch Tourcher Recording in Portland. The album will be available on LP, CD and download April 6th, 2018 via RidingEasy Records. Preorders are available for LP & CD at www.ridingeasyrecs.com and digital at blackwaterholylight.bandcamp.com.
BLACKWATER HOLYLIGHT LIVE:
03/24 Boise, ID @ Treefort Music Festival
04/12 Portland, OR @ Mississippi Studios
Artist: BlackWater HolyLight
Album: BlackWater HolyLight
Label: RidingEasy Records
Release Date: April 6th, 2018
01. Willow
02. Wave of Conscience
03. Babies
04. Paranoia
05. Sunrise
06. Slow Hole
07. Carry Her
08. Jizz Witch

On The Web:

Keep your mind open.
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Earthless – Black Heaven

Psychedelic / stoner metal trio Earthless (Mike Eginton – bass, Isaiah Mitchell – guitar and vocals, Mario Rubalcaba – drums) decided to shake things up on their newest album – Black Heaven – by giving the majority of the tracks vocals by Mitchell.  Their three previous records have all been comprised of long instrumental tracks that blend into each other, but Black Heaven opts for shorter cuts (one is even under two minutes) that still shred and astound.

Starting with “Gifted By the Wind,” Rubalcaba lures us in with almost a jazz beat until Eginton and Mitchell hit you like a one-two punch.  Mitchell’s voice automatically brings Cream to mind (certainly a major influence on the band).  “End to End” pans back and forth in your earbuds like a swaying cobra and then comes at you like an angry mongoose.  Eginton’s bass riff in it is quite good, and the whole song is perfect for driving done the centerline on an open stretch of I-80.

“Electric Flame” is the longest song on the record (8:51, which is about half the length of most tracks from Earthless‘ previous three records) and Mitchell uses the “extra time” to deliver a great solo around the five-minute mark that takes the track into a great jam from all three guys.  “Volt Rush” is the track that’s under two minutes, and it shows how Earthless can do in under two minutes what most bands can’t do in three times that – shred with jaw-dropping furor.

Don’t worry if you’re a fan of Earthless’ instrumental work, because the title track is nearly nine minutes of the band hitting harder than the Thing punching the Hulk.  One of the many things I love about Earthless is how all three guys can launch into a solo at the same time, yet it all fits together, and how all three can come back to the same groove in the blink of an eye without missing a step.  All you can do is let it hit you and say, “Holy [insert expletive of choice here].”

“Sudden End” is a great title for an album’s final track.  It almost sounds like a Bad Company song, if Bad Company had opted for louder amps, heavier bass, and guitar that seems to be propelled by solar winds.  Rubalcaba puts down chops that seem simple at first, but you soon realize that he is putting down a deceptively heavy groove that has to fade out because it shows no signs of stopping until the next time all the planets are in alignment.

Black Heaven is another fine record from Earthless and as good to hear as it sounds like was for them to make.

Keep your mind open.

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Riding Easy Records’ sixth “Brown Acid” rare stoner rock / psych rock compilation out April 20th (of course).

Brown Acid: The Sixth Trip compilation to be released 4/20, hear first track via Paste
Rare 60s-70s pre-metal, hard rock singles curated by L.A.’s Permanent Records & RidingEasy Records
Read The Guardian UK‘s excellent feature on Brown Acid series.
Hear/share Gold’s “No Parking” (YouTube) (Paste Magazine)
“So rare that diehard fuzz junkies say you’d have a better chance of winning the lottery than finding a physical 45 rpm single by one of the bands featured on their latest installment.” — Dangerous Minds
“Will do for hard rock, proto-metal and heavy psych what Nuggets did for garage rock, and bring it to a wider audience of collectors and music fans.” — The Guardian
The forthcoming latest edition of the popular compilation series of long-lost vintage 60s-70s proto-metal and stoner rock singles, Brown Acid: The Sixth Trip, is set for release on April 20, 2018. Hear & share the first track, “No Parking” by Gold via Paste Magazine HERE. (Direct YouTube HERE) The series is curated by L.A. label RidingEasy Records and retailer/label Permanent Records. 
About Brown Acid: The Sixth Trip:
This time around we have 10 deep cuts from across the continental US of A and one from our neighbors up North. This Trip kicks off with an outrageous number from Gold out of San Francisco circa 1970. The band used to open their sets with this over-the-top frantic jammer which is absolutely mind-blowing and also leads one to believe that the only band that could’ve held a candle to Gold back in the day would’ve been the mighty Blue Cheer.
As we delve deeper into the depths, Canadians continue to prove that they could bang heads with the best of ’em!  Heat Exchange from Toronto released the rollicking ripper “Inferno” on the Yorkville label way back in 1968 and it’s still thumping almost 50 years later! Missouri isn’t a state that brought us a lot of heavy 45s, but there are a handful of outstanding tracks from the Show Me State, one of which is the funk-laced anthem “Give Me Time” by Backwood Memory from Kansas City.
The longer we do this, the more we begin to believe that Youngstown, Ohio was the Hard Rock Mecca back in the day.  Travis is yet another Youngstown group that aimed to get asses out of seats and out in the streets.  “Lovin’ You” is a groovy banger with a sultry riff originally released on the prolific Starshine Productions imprint. Six years prior to his Arcadian synth-funk novelty hit “Space Invaders” from 1980, Victor “Uncle Vic” Blecman took Flight into the studio with a list of relationship requirements.  Amongst which are his need for “Luvin’, Huggin’, & More”, with emphasis on the “More” part if we’re to believe the urgency with which he delivers this fist-pumper.
If you don’t immediately recognize the Truth & Janey moniker, you need to get with it and familiarize yourself with their incredible 1976 LP No Rest For The Wicked. It’s a proto-metal masterpiece that’s been reissued on Rockadrome.  Released four years earlier than their debut LP, “Midnight Horseman” is a 45-only track backed with a cover of “Under My Thumb”. Another Iowan group, West Minist’r, self-released three 45s between 1969 and 1975. They’re all great in their own way, but “My Life” hit the crunchy sweet spot in ’71 with vocals sounding like a fresh from primal scream therapy John Lennon over a zonked-out Hendrix groove. You can count on hearing more from West Minist’r on future Trips.
It’s nearly impossible that Dayton, Ohio’s Purgatory didn’t seize the “Strange Days” and join “The Soft Parade” while “Waiting for the Sun”.  And although “Polar Expedition” wears its influences on its sleeve, 1969 would have been at least a little worse off if the band hadn’t self released this single. Johnny Barnes was definitely “smokin’ that reefer” and “drinkin’ that wine” when he released “Steel Rail Blues” in 1976. The label states that you could order a copy of this 45 for by sending $1 to a PO Box in Boston and it’s the only record on the Brown Acid series that seems to be obtainable currently for about the same amount it was sold for over three decades ago. That said, it’s doubtful that it will remain so cheap for much longer.
With a track as heavy as “Is There No Peace” it’s easy to let the name of the label on this 45 slide.  In Chicago in 1970 PSLHRTZ seemed like as good a label name as any for the guys in Zendik to release this insane recording on. Halfway through the track you might be wondering to yourself, “How was this not a hit?”, and then you hear the lyrics to the last bit of the song and understand.
About the Brown Acid series:
Some of the best thrills of the Internet music revolution is the ability to find extremely rare music with great ease. But even with such vast archives to draw from, quite a lot of great songs have gone undiscovered for nearly half a century — particularly in genres that lacked hifalutin arty pretense. Previously, only the most extremely dedicated and passionate record collectors had the stamina and prowess to hunt down long forgotten wonders in dusty record bins — often hoarding them in private collections, or selling at ridiculous collector’s prices. Legendary compilations like Nuggets, Pebbles, ad nauseum, have exhausted the mines of early garage rock and proto-punk, keeping alive a large cross-section of underground ephemera. However, few have delved into and expertly archived the wealth of proto-metal, pre-stoner rock tracks collected on
Brown Acid: The Sixth Trip.
Lance Barresi, co-owner of L.A./Chicago retailer Permanent Records has shown incredible persistence in tracking down a stellar collection of rare singles from the 60s and 70s for the growing compilation series. Partnered with Daniel Hall of RidingEasy Records, the two have assembled a selection of songs that’s hard to believe have remained unheard for so long.
“I essentially go through hell and high water just to find these records,” Barresi says. “Once I find a record worthy of tracking, I begin the (sometimes) extremely arduous process of contacting the band members and encouraging them to take part. Daniel and I agree that licensing all the tracks we’re using for
Brown Acid is best for everyone involved,” rather than simply bootlegging the tracks. When all of the bands and labels haven’t existed for 30-40 years or more, tracking down the creators gives all of these tunes a real second chance at success.
“There’s a long list of songs that we’d love to include,” Barresi says. “But we just can’t track the bands down. I like the idea that Brown Acid is getting so much attention, so people might reach out to us.”
Brown Acid: The Sixth Trip will be available everywhere on LP, CD and download on April 20th, 2018via RidingEasy Records. Pre-orders are available for digital (with immediate download of the first single) at Bandcamp, physical pre-orders at RidingEasy Records.
Artist: Various Artists
Album: Brown Acid: The Sixth Trip 
Label: RidingEasy Records
Release Date: April 20, 2018
01. Gold “No Parking”
02. Heat Exchange “Inferno”
03. Travis “Lovin’ You”
04. Enoch Smoky “It’s Cruel”
05. Backwood Memory “Give Me Time”
06. Flight “Luvin, Huggin & More”
07. Truth & Janey “Midnight Horsemen”
08. West Minst’r “My Life”
09. Purgatory “Polar Expedition”
10. Johnny Barnes “Steele Rail Blues”
11. Zendik “Is There No Peace?”

On The Web:

Keep your mind open.
[Don’t trip out on me just yet.  Subscribe first.]