Tag: psych rock

Video by William Ruben Helms

New Video: Psych Rock Supergroup MIEN Shares Brooding and Driving “Evil People”

MIEN is a psych rock super group that features some of the genre’s biggest and most accomplished artists:

Since the project’s inception, MIEN has been a confluence of diverse musical influences and shared histories: The band’s origins can be traced back to 2004 when Dihr crossed paths with Maas during a serendipitous encounter at SXSW. That meeting sparked a deep friendship and a series of critically applauded collaborations. Around the same time, Dihr met Lapham, whose electronic and production expertise would later become a cornerstone of MIEN’s sound. These connections led to MIEN, a band that sees its members seamlessly blending their varied musical backgrounds into a unique sound. The band’s newest member Kidd joined on in 2018.

The psych supergroup’s long-awaited sophomore album MIIEN is slated for an April 18, 2025 release through Fuzz Club. The sophomore album reportedly marks a bold new chapter for a band known for an alchemical approach to their work. Building upon the foundations of their critically applauded self-titled debut, MIIEN finds the band and its members pushing their collaborative and explorative ethos into uncharted territories.

Recorded in studios between Montréal, Abilene and Austin, the psych supergroup’s sophomore album captures a unique creative process: Most songs began as a simple idea — a loop, a vocal phrase or a groove — passed between members and meticulously layered.

The band’s collaborative workflow saw each individual sketch evolving as each member contributed their distinct sonic palette. “It’s an organic process,” Rishi Dihr says. “A simple idea can become something monumental when we each put our stamp on it.”

The album’s creative journey was heightened during key in-person sessions, including an intensive recording period in Austin during SXSW. The rare opportunities for the band to work together in the same space added a dynamic immediacy to several album tracks.

Overall MIIEN represents the strength of the band’s collective vision. Each member brings their unique perspective to the table, creating music that is simultaneously personal and universally resonant. Anchored around richly textured soundscapes and fearless experimentation, the album, purportedly sees the band crafting material that actively bridges the golden age of 60s psychedelia with the cutting edge of modern music. Lapham reflects, “Working with these guys has been one of the most enjoyable experiences in my music career. Our synergy is seamless, and I’m excited to see where this next chapter takes us.”

The album’s first single “Evil People” is a propulsive bit of synth-driven psych rock featuring a relentless motorik-like groove paired with Maas imitable delivery and a rousingly anthemic hook and chorus with expressive bursts of reverb-drenched guitar.

“‘Evil People’ has its roots in a 2015 collaboration between Alex and awesome Danish musician Trentemøller,” the band explains. “Fast forward to March 2022, when MIEN reunited in Austin for three intense days of recording during SXSW. Given how rare it is for all of us to be in the same room at the same time, the creative energy was electric—music and ideas flowed effortlessly, and ‘Evil People’ was born.”

The accompanying video by the band’s John Mark Lapham and Raz Ullah features scorching VHS fuzz, collages of the band member’s faces, psychedelic art and more.

Video by William Ruben Helms

Throwback: Happy 79th Birthday, Robby Krieger!

JOVM’s William Ruben Helms celebrates the legendary Robby Krieger’s 79th birthday.

Video by William Ruben Helms

Throwback: Happy 80th Birthday, Stephen Stills!

JOVM’s William Ruben Helms celebrates Stephen Stills’ 80th birthday.

Video by William Ruben Helms

New Video: Blue Foundation Shares Yearning “Close to the Knife”

Founded back in 2000 by Danish singer/songwriter, multi-instrumentalist and producer Tobias Wilner, Blue Foundation was inspired by The Fall’s Mark E. Smith‘s method of forming bands — with Wilner recruiting a rotation lineup of musicians over the years to fuel creativity. But since 2010, the core lineup has been Wilner and Bon Rande, working between Crown Heights, Brooklyn and Copenhagen.

Throughout the transatlantic project’s two-plus decade history, they’ve been renowned for crafting immersive soundscapes with emotive vocals and intricate production that draws from dream pop and electronic music that evokes melancholy and reflection while touching upon introspective themes.

The band has cemented their distinct sound through a series of critically applauded albums including 2007’s Life of a Ghost, 2012’s In My Mind I Am Free and 2016’s Blood Moon, while collaborating with an eclectic range of artists and producers, including Mew‘s Jonas Bjerre, Au Revoir Simone‘s Erika Spring, Findlay Brown, DJ Krush, Sara Savery and Wang Wen among a growing list of others.

Adding to a growing international profile, the band’s work has been featured in Michael Mann’s 2006 Miami Vice and The Vampire Diaries. The band’s “Eyes on Fire,” was included in the Twilight soundtrack. Additionally, their work has been sampled on Lil Durk‘s “Fly High,” feat., French Montana and Young Thug‘s “She Notice.” They also cowrote Machine Gun Kelly‘s “Taurus.”

“Close to the Knife” is the first single from the transatlantic outfit’s forthcoming album. Written by Wilner and Rande and performed by Helena Gao and Wilner, “Close to the Knife” is one-part Scott Walker-era orchestral psych pop, one-part dream pop anchored around a lush yet atmospheric arrangement featuring mellotron flute, soaring strings, strummed guitar and gentle bursts of feedback pared with yearning and dueling girl-boy vocals, which gives the song a fittingly old-timey feel.

The song tells a familiar and bittersweet tale of love and longing for a connection that for can never fully materialize and will always be a bit unrequited. For both narrators, their lover disappears as quickly as they appear, adding a subtle sense of frustration and heartache to the song.

Directed by the band’s Wilner with cinematougrahy by Hannah Bertram and Erma Feng, the video showcases parallel stories of yearning: We see Tobias Wilner wandering the quiet and desolate late night streets of New York City while Helena Gao explores the vibrant yet isolating alleys of Shanghai. The video emphasizes the ache and longing at the core of the song.

Video by William Ruben Helms

New Video: Berlin’s Bloke Shares Trippy and Incisive “Money Says”

With the self-release of their first three singles “Satellite” “Chewed Up,” and “Survivor,” the Berlin-based psych rock/krautrock outfit Bloke quickly amassed a profile across Europe for a unique fusion of krautrock rhythms and shoegazer guitar textures paired with garage punk energy that’s draws from frontman and founder Jakob Buraczewski’s five year stint in London, where the band was originally founded.

The Berlin-based outfit has shared stages with Helicon, Verstärker, Data Animal, Body Horror, The Shadracks have developed a reputation for a raw, intense and noisy live set.

Building upon growing buzz, Bloke’s highly-anticipated debut EP Living Without Expectations is slated for a February 14, 2025 release through Tonzonen Records. The band’s Jakob Buraczewski explains that the EP was “envisioned as the foundational collection of sounds, noise and concepts that would give life to the project Bloke in a musical scene. It was essential for me to ensure that each song resonates with the others, creating an interconnected and cohesive experience. The journey from capturing the essence of the songs in the intimate setting of a home studio to meticulously re-recording each instrument in the refined atmosphere of a professional studio can be quite an emotional rollercoaster. It’s a process filled with passion and dedication, where every note matters and every sound contributes to creating something truly special.”

The EP’s latest single “Money Says” sees the Berlin-based outfit pairing a forceful and thunderous motorik-groove, scuzzy, distortion-fueled power chords and swirling feedback with enormous hooks and choruses. While sonically recalling A Place to Bury Strangers, Hookworms, METZ and others, the song as the band explains is inspired by the childhood game Simon Says, “using it as a metaphor to explore capitalism’s impact on society and relationships. Just as in the game, where commands prefaced with ‘Simon says’ must be obeyed, we often silently comply with what ‘Money Says’ reflecting societal norms. This subtle agreement can feel like conditioning, offering a poignant commentary on our interactions. The melody features a persistent feedback tone and guitar strums that punctuate the social narrative.”

Fittingly, the trippy visual for “Money Says” features moments of commerce and business in super saturated colors.

Video by William Ruben Helms

New Video: JOVM Mainstay MAGON Shares Dreamily Introspective “Circles”

Prolific, JOVM mainstay MAGON closes out 2024 with his third album of the year and 10th album overall, the recently released World Peace. And in the lead-up to the album’s release, I wrote about two, previously released singles:

  • The Happy Mondays and The Stone Roses-era Madchester scene-like “Stoned Seclusion Blues” a track that saw the JOVM mainstay revealing another shift in sonic direction.

  • “Falling In Love,” a dreamy psych folk ballad featuring strummed acoustic guitar, bursts of buzzing power chords and ethereal flutes paired with the JOVM’s mainstay’s introspective and thoughtful vocal turn.

The album’s latest single “Circles” is a dreamy, post punk-meets-Brothers In Arms-era Dire Straits like tune anchored around a gated-reverb beat, bluesy and shimmering arpeggios and a soulful horn solo. Thematically, the song sees the JOVM mainstay reflecting on the seemingly unending cycles and endless changes of life with a weary acceptance.

The accompanying video for “Circles” features animation sourced from John and Faith Hubley’s 1986 film The Cosmic Eye.

Single Review by William Ruben Helms

New Audio: Pittsburgh’s Sunny Daze and the Weathermen Share Blistering Ripper “Wax Lips”

Pittsburgh-based outfit Sunny Daze & the Weathermen formed back in the summer of 2022. And since then, the band has been hard at work sculpting what they’ve dubbed “flower punk,” which combines elements of garage rock, psych rock and post-punk.

The Pittsburgh-based outfit released their full-length debut, Sunny Daze for President earlier this year. They close out the year with “Wax Lips,” a blistering, mosh pit friendly ripper with a wild organ solo, fuzzy power chords, thunderous drumming and shouted vocals that sounds like a synthesis of Question Mark and the Mysterians, The Mummies and Miranda and the Beat with Thee Oh Sees.

The band explains that the track is about their personal experiences of the simplicity of youth — and that it’s the first of a batch of singles to build up buzz for their sophomore album, which is slated for release late next year.

Video by William Ruben Helms

Throwback: Happy 82nd Birthday, Jimi Hendrix!

JOVM’s William Ruben Helms celebrates the 82nd anniversary of the birth of Jimi Hendrix.

Video by William Ruben Helms

New Video: JOVM Mainstay MAGON Shares Dreamily Introspective “Falling In Love”

Earlier this year, the prolific JOVM mainstay MAGON released his ninth album, Wedding Song, which featured two tracks I managed to write about here:

Album track “The Wedding Song,” a 70s Laurel Canyon/AM rock-like number featuring shimmering guitars, a shuffling yet propulsive rhythm and a glistening and soulful guitar solo paired with MAGON’s unerring knack for crafting catchy hooks. But under the slick and seemingly effortless craftsmanship is a song that feels much like the contented sigh of someone who after much effort and struggle, has found the true, long-lasting love they’ve long hoped for. The song marks the one-year anniversary of MAGON’s wedding to his now-wife Alexa, and is dedicated to their love.

“Portobello’s On The Run,” a mediative and folksy bit of Nick Drake-like psych folk anchored around an ethereal and old-timey mellotron flute lines, strummed acoustic guitar and tight-drum pattern paired with the Israeli-born, Costa Rican-based artist’s plaintively singing whimsical yet introspective lyrics. 

Closing out 2024, the JOVM mainstay will be releasing his 10th — yeah, 10th overall and third this year y’all — album, World Peace. World Peace will feature the previously released “Stoned Seclusion Blues” reveals yet another shift in sound direction with the track seemingly drawing from the Madchester sound of The Happy Mondays and The Stone Roses.

World Peace’s second and latest single “Falling In Love” is a dreamy psych folk ballad featuring strummed acoustic guitar, bursts of buzzing power chords and ethereal flutes paired with the JOVM’s mainstay giving an introspective and thoughtful vocal turn.

Thematically, the song is a journey of love and self-discovery, honed by hard-earned wisdom, experience and understanding of how difficult and maddening love can be — especially in a desperate, stark world.

The accompanying video follows a young woman wandering through the damp Costa Rican countryside and is shot with a loving, dreamy quality.

Video by William Ruben Helms

New Video: San Francisco’s The Spyrals Share Forceful and Anthemic “Dream Believin'”

I’m in Philadelphia for the final edition of Asian Arts Initiative’s Sound Type Music Festival and Music Writers Workshop. It’s been an odd and very short trip. And it’s probably the last bit of traveling I’ll do this year. I wanted to travel more this year, and I definitely got that.

I head back home in a few hours but in the meantime, there’s still work to do. So let’s get to it, right?

Founded by Jeff Lewis back in 2009, the San Francisco-based garage psych rock outfit The Spyrals — currently, Lewis (vocals, guitar), Georgia Feroce (keys) and Dash Borinstein (drums) — quickly received attention for crating unapologetic garage rock and a loud, live show rooted in the band’s forceful stage presence.

The San Francisco-based outfit’s recently released fifth album Retrograde see the band paying homage to their earliest work while boldly stepping into the future. Retrograde‘s eight songs touch upon themes of isolation, heartache and self-assurance among others. The album’s material comes from several months of jamming and sees the band digging deep into their psych rock roots while continuing to serve up raw, gritty rock ‘n’ roll that gets straight to the point. After self-recording much of their earliest material in practice studios and garages, the band recorded the album earlier this year at Los Angeles-based Station House Studios with Mark Rains.

Retrograde‘s latest single “Dream Believin'” is an anthemic and loud bit of psych rock that brings Phosphene Dream-era The Black Angels to mind. And much like the acclaimed Austin-based JOVM mainstays work, “Dream Believin'” thematically focuses on the remarkably contemporary — capturing the unease and desperate desire to escape of our current moment.

The accompanying video for “Dream Believin'” features a mysterious black-clad figure wandering the beach. At one point we see the black-clad figure peering into a mysterious tablet.

Video by William Ruben Helms

New Video: JOVM Mainstay MAGON Shares Madchester-like “Stoned Seclusion Blues”

Over the course of the past couple of years of this site’s nearly 15 year history, I’ve managed to spill copious amounts of virtual ink covering the remarkably prolific, Israeli-born, Costa Rican-based singer/songwriter, musician and JOVM mainstay MAGON. 

Earlier this year, the prolific JOVM mainstay released his ninth album, Wedding Song, which featured two tracks I managed to write about here:

  • Album track “The Wedding Song,” a 70s Laurel Canyon/AM rock-like number featuring shimmering guitars, a shuffling yet propulsive rhythm and a glistening and soulful guitar solo paired with MAGON’s unerring knack for crafting catchy hooks. But under the slick and seemingly effortless craftsmanship is a song that feels much like the contented sigh of someone who after much effort and struggle, has found the true, long-lasting love they’ve long hoped for. The song marks the one-year anniversary of MAGON’s wedding to his now-wife Alexa, and is dedicated to their love.

  • “Portobello’s On The Run,” a mediative and folksy bit of  Nick Drake-like psych folk anchored around an ethereal and old-timey mellotron flute lines, strummed acoustic guitar and tight-drum pattern paired with the Israeli-born, Costa Rican-based artist’s plaintively singing whimsical yet introspective lyrics.

Closing out 20240, the JOVM mainstay will be releasing his 10th — yeah, 10th overall and third this year y’all — album, World Peace. The forthcoming album’s first single “Stoned Seclusion Blues” reveals yet another shift in sound direction, with the track seemingly drawing from the Madchester sound of The Happy Mondays, The Stone Roses and others with the track anchored around a languid and and fuzzy guitar line, tambourine-driven percussion and swaggering boom bap-like drums, soaring and swelling strings paired with the JOVM’s easy-going and laconic delivery and catchy hooks.

The accompanying video by Alexa & Magon, stars presumably their children and their dog, who happily chases after the family vehicle, and footage of the kids bopping around to the song with psychedelic imagery in the background.