Review: Big Scenic Nowhere - Lavender Blues

Big Scenic Nowhere released their full length Vision Beyond Horizon only months after their debut EP Dying on The Mountain, and less than a year after that they return with a new EP Lavender Blues. With the band being more of a project between members of other bands, you would think that getting everyone together and writing would only happen a couple of times a year, but even if it is, Big Scenic Nowhere have a magic sixth sense between them and just turn on the tape over a long weekend, and a wealth of creativity and musicianship just spills out every time.

Towards the end of 2019 the four continuing members: Bob Balch (Fu Manchu), Gary Arce (Yawning Man), Tony Reed (Mos Generator) and Bill Stinson (Yawning Man) were joined this time with: Per Wiberg (Kamchatka, Opeth), Daniel Mongrain (Voivod) and the legend that is Chris Goss (Masters of Reality), and have managed to put down on tape 3 songs that have the distinctive Big Scenic Nowhere sound, but this time

The whole of side A contains the 13+ minute title track Lavender Blues, which starts like a slow meander into some place warm and distant. There is a real feeling that Lavender Blues has been jammed out and evolved into something so unique right in front of the players with the warm psychedelic feel it gives out, their inner-prog just blossoms.

As the first real synthesizer solo kicks and lifts you up to the next level, I am getting that feeling like I’m being pulled away into one of those vast Roger Dean paintings, with all its organic world within another world complexities. It’s like taking desert musicians out of the warm dusty sun soaked open sprawl of the low desert and putting them into a world of blue and green with long winding rivers and upside down trees.

As a song, Lavender Blues has that much through the 13+ minutes, every time I listen to it, I hear something different.

Like a complete contrast to side A, Blink of an Eye is your favorite soundtrack from a 70’s movie that you used to dig in your teenage years. The opening chords have the feeling of closing a door for the final time and heading off to pastures new. With a mid-paced hook that is extremely catchy, there a positive vibe to it, as though you’re nodding at that person you recognise as your walking off into the evening sunshine.

I wouldn’t say it has the radio rock feel, but it’s a close as Big Scenic Nowhere have come to giving you an upbeat catchy track that will be stuck in your head all day. It is though, the kind of song that Tony’s voice is made for, be it the rich vocal strength he has or the ability to fit perfectly in harmonies.

As Blink of an Eye concludes, the guitars start to pick up and drift towards a place that they can soar into those huge open spaces, before the synthesizers take over and spill out a range of 70’s prog power which will make each and every one of us remember how to rock the air keyboard.

Labyrinths Fade starts with a fade-in, something I haven’t head in a while, but it works well as the riff rolls in a repeats with more of a classic rock feel to it. There is some truly epic solos that intertwine some technical mastery over the big soaring layers of guitar, that sound like they have input from the fingers of Daniel Mongrain. When the vocals do appear that have a deep hypnotic chant to them, which play well off solo after solo. The big synthesizers appear again so that you know they’re still about, before the rest of Labyrinths Fade shows off a bunch of killer musicians coming together and producing something quite magic.

At the time of writing this, I wouldn’t be surprised if they have already turned the tape on again in the studio and pressed record. It’s just a shame that the ongoing pandemic halted their planned live shows, but you know that something good will be just around the corner. Roll on 2021.

Big Scenic Nowhere – Bandcamp – Heavy Psych Sounds

Review: Yawning Man - Live At Giant Rock

After the cancelation of this years Stoned and Dusted festival due to the worldwide pandemic, the organiser's curated the online streaming party, Couchlock and Rock. With their chance to really raise the bar and produce a live cinematic experience in the style of what Pink Floyd did with Live at Pompeii, Yawning Man took their instruments and amps out to Giant Rock in the Mojave Desert and played a 52 minute soundtrack that’s as big as the atmosphere that surrounded them.

On the film, you follow the 3 band members walk towards the rock and the sound of sand and dirt crunching under foot takes me straight back to watching this live online in the middle of the night, and then seeing Mario start up the generator seemed very symbolic in the way it played its part in kick starting the music of so many good musicians.

Tumbleweeds In The Snow starts high up in the sky as Gary’s guitar feels like its walking on the very edge before Mario’s bass plays out its first few chords, the oh so high riff begins, Bill’s drumbeat kicks in and your 15 minute descent begins. It drifts, it floats, it soars through the huge skies above the Mojave, and the clarity of the production makes you feel as though you are right there with them. You can truly lose yourself in Tumbleweeds In The Snow as it rolls from side to side whilst slowly pulling you towards the warm feeling of the light. Like other songs Yawning Man songs, they have the ability to write music that is hypnotic through its feeling of repetitiveness, but if you actually dissect it, very few lines are the same. What Gary does with his pedals and guitar to produce such sounds is still a mystery to me, which adds to the magic of it all, so instead of wondering, it’s good just to close your eyes, kick back and embrace the jam before you.

The Last Summer Eye starts with an epic sounding riff that takes me back to a world of 80’s/90’s surf video’s. It has a slightly loose distant feel that drifts away into the sky before expanding itself back into that epic riff that entwines itself over the rolling bassline. If I hadn’t seen the concert film and its huge overhead camera shots before hearing this, I would have pictured huge scenery shots of coastline and boards riding the endless crashing waves.

The tongue in cheek titled Nazi Synthesizer takes you out into the sun to remind you why you fell in love with the music of Yawning Man. I cannot quite put my finger on it, but it takes me back to a place when I first discovered Rock Formations and Pot Head, with that expansive feel to the guitar sound that seems to have no outer limits. Both guitar and bass play there part as they create a warm, slightly fuzzy onward motion and I can picture Gary, Mario and Bill sat back in a car, windows down, the warm breeze flowing past them as they drive off into the desert, completely content, not saying a word.

Blowhole Sunrise/Space Finger is another 17+ minutes of desert rock at its finest. It floats, it glides, it holds you in a trance as you can literally feel all 3 members musically connect somewhere beyond the realm.

What more can I say? I pained a few rooms at home and I must have listened to this 40+ times and it gets better and better every play. The sonics of the recording are absolutely huge and it deserves to be played live and loud.

They could have played live in a rehearsal room or a dark empty venue, but no, only Yawning Man could play the biggest open space you could ever find, and fill it.

I have seen them live on many occasions over the years, but now I can only imagine the 3 piece playing to the desert background and the awesome sun drenched massive blue sky, hence next time I will have to close my eyes when I’m stood in a dark club on a dark UK winters evening.

Thanks to the fine folk at Heavy Psych Sounds Records, you have a selection of vinyl versions to compliment the DVD. Shout out to how good the special edition limited cover vinyl is and would the USA postal service hurray up and deliver my DVD (damn you Covid-19!!).

All I can say is you have to own this record.

Yawning Man – Plastic Cactus – Bandcamp - Heavy Psych Sounds 

Review: Geezer – Groovy

It must have been five years ago when I took a punt on buying the LiVE! FULL Tilt Boogie cassette after hearing a track online. The tape arrived in its killer packaging with stickers and patches and the recording from Kingston NY back in 2014 totally blew me away.

Fast forward beyond a couple of “end of year top 10” albums in Geezer and Psychoriffadelia, the New York State 3-piece returned last year with the more spaced out psychedelic blues EP Spiral Fires, setting the scene for what Pat Harrington (Guitar/Vocals), Richie Touseull (Bass) and Steve Markota (Drums/Percussion) were putting together for what we have here.

Dig is a word that I recon Pat Harrington says at least 20 times per day and it kicks straight in with a huge rolling riff, backed up with some sweet cowbell. As you’re asked “can you dig it?” it’s already obvious how good the albums production is, as it feels huge. The main hook of the song is based around a couple of big groovy riffs that have that fuzzy edge, and again that cowbell appears and there’s no way you can sit still to this. With a brief interlude, the song slows down a bit, feeling like you’re off out into the swamps and you get the first taste of the bluesy solo guitars that walk away in style and take you out there, before that riff roles back in and you walk with that swagger again.

Atlas Electra starts with a slow riff with a massive groove to it and I can see why people are giving comparisons of 70’s rock here. The song in many ways feels like the more laid back Geezer with a psychedelic touch to it, and that riff wraps itself around you and slowly grows as it takes control. As Atlas Electra slows down in parts, the production has a real up close and personal feel to it, as though you are right there in the studio with Geezer. Again, the solo work, laid back blues and slide guitar pull you in before Pat’s solo elevates everything higher and higher.

Dead Soul Scroll is a real moody affair with a dark trippy atmosphere that sometimes strips it so far back that it feels like Pat is having some sort of spiritual awakening. The final 90 seconds feel like he has been reborn as when the riff kicks in, the whole band let loose and rock out.

Awake rocks like a classic rock 70’s jam with its slow groove that tells you a story on the way to the last couple of minutes when the guitar solo takes over with epic proportions and you can feel your hair in the wind as you cruise on into the night.

Title track Groovy is something else. In my younger years when I first discovered Kiss, their unique way of strutting their stuff made a real impression on me, and the first time I heard Groovy it took me right back there. The riff is warm and fuzzy but has real purpose as you can almost see them strutting down 42nd street, cool as you like and not giving a fuck what you think. From drums to bass to the vocals, everything here just screams Groovy. The chorus with some keyboards and organ in the mix, will be in your head all day. When Kiss first appeared and did their thing on the streets of New York, there was a raw touch of magic, and Geezer have found it here.

The opening riff for Drowning on Empty is downright sleazy in the vein of ZZ Top or Mountain and just rocks after that. Throw in some Hammond organ and big 70’s solos and your set.

Now if you want to lie back and feel the night sky as you take a trip to the unknown, then Slide Mountain is your jam. A slow and winding journey into desert territory, the guitar glides in and out and soars towards the stars in the night sky. Sit back, close your eyes, open your mind, and this trippy five minutes of bluesy psychedelic magic is quite a ride.

Black Owl concludes the album with a huge near ten minute jam. Starting off with a big stoner groove with a southern twist that almost drifts into doom metal territory, Black Owl stomps around like a hurricane moving slowly across the land. Sounding more in the territory of some of their earlier work, I am definitely getting the sounds of Saint Vitus or Spirit Caravan here. As the song stretches out, the instrumental trip through its second half is another hazy trip, seeing all three members musically on top of their game.

What more can I say? Every time you think Geezer have hit their heights, they come back with something even better. With Groovy they pay homage to the best of 70’s rock and fuse it into the bluesy swagger they have more than already perfected. I could sit here and write line after line about how cool the record is, but you really have to go out and experience it for yourself.

Add to the listening the awesome artwork that shines like a backlight and you have an album that you’ll keep going back to for a long time to come.

Released on Heavy Psych Sounds, you know that there is a variety of cool versions to purchase. Dig!

Bandcamp – Instagram – Heavy Psych Sounds

Review: Black Rainbows - Cosmic Ritual Supertrip

It feels to me as though Black Rainbows have been around for forever, and as time moves on they seem to get more and more productive with new records and touring, and the more they do it, the better they get. Stellar Prophecy and Pandaemonium raised the bar for the band and the subsequent live shows blew me away every time I witnessed them. With the constant touring, successful side projects and record label, I wonder how they get time to sit down and craft out more killer songs at such a pace, but here we are, Cosmic Ritual Supertrip.

It takes about 20 seconds before At Midnight You Cry kicks in, and kicks in it does. The song has all the structure of a Black Sabbath track with the open ended riffs to the full on rockin’ ones, but that fuzz n’ roll sound that is quite unique to Black Rainbows is all over it. The vocals fit perfectly round the hook of the riff that steam rollers itself through just under three minutes and doesn’t let up. Defiantly a song that will open a show and get the crowd going.

Universal Phase slows it down a bit with a big stomping monolithic-like riff that roles across the plains. Add in some Sci-Fi film quotes in the background and the track conjures up the images of the Earth under attack. The vocals are more hypnotic this time and Gabriele has this great ability to let his voice drift away at the end of a line, adding to the magic. As the song speeds up, the cymbals keep crashing, the guitars keep buzzing and the song finishes as powerful as it started.

You can see why Radio 666 was used as a single/promo video as it has that laid back California vibe to it. Starting off with the strumming guitars and cleaner vocals that have me thinking of 60’s/70’s psychedelia in the way that Monster Magnet always excel at, it creates that easy going feel to it. Whenever I think of Black Rainbows its always bad ass motorbikes, but this time they’ve swapped that for an open top Chevy or Mustang, and the riff hook roll’s on and on likes it’s tearing up the asphalt. I really dig the retro sound here.

You cannot but feel the 70’s groove of Isolation. Opening with a blue’s riff that gets the head nodding instantly, the lead guitar work over the riff is something rather special. After this the track tempo builds and builds with soaring vocals and some water tight percussion and half way through the song just opens up, jams along and doesn’t stop.

Hypnotized By The Solenoid keeps the fuzz but drifts into a warmer trippy psychedelic world. Drifting in with a hypnotic vibe, there’s lots of 60’s coloured lights that drift into Pink Floyd and Hawkwind territory, but still sound distinctly Black Rainbows. Gabriele’s vocals soar throughout, really making this one of the stand out tracks and the awesome solo at the end takes you high in to the sky.

The Great Design is a 2 minute trip through the mind and in to your sub-conscious, building a trippy atmosphere behind a mesmerizing guitar that walks you in to the light. 

Master Rocket Power Blast pulls you straight back from the sub-conscious with a full force assault of big fuzzy guitars. It’s loud, straight to the point and rocks with a slightly punk edge to it. 

Snowball has a huge groove that swings back and forth, soaring vocals, crashing cymbals and lots of guitar soloing and blues work.

Glittereyzed pulls away from the fuzz and creates an atmosphere built up on the strumming guitar work and rolls along with a hypnotic rhythm to it before everything turns to 11 and the song explodes. This is Black Rainbows showing many a band how to do stoner rock.

Sacred Graal closes out the album with more full force stoner rock that many bands only wish they could play. Again, Gabriele’s vocals are absolutely superb.

Now if you have the special edition record or digital version, your journey doesn’t end here, as you have 2 bonus tracks, starting with Searching For Satellites Part I & II, a mystical up-tempo acoustic trip that must have been created whilst sat round a fire under the stars of the night sky. Add in some sci-fi effects in the background and maybe we aren’t alone in the universe.

Fire Breather starts with the line “If you see this big bird, it’s the sign that you’re going to die real soon” which could be very true with the way the world is right now. Lyrics aside, Fire Breather is another rocker of a song that motors down the highway and out in to the desert sun.

Cosmic Ritual Supertrip is quite a ride and Black Rainbows are again on top of their game. The huge fuzzy songs get fuzzier and the psychedelic outings become more trippier. With various special edition versions provided by Heavy Psych Sounds, you know what to do.

Website – Bandcamp – Heavy Psych Sounds 

Review: Big Scenic Nowhere – Vision Beyond Horizon

The fruition of Bob Balch and Gary Arce’s Big Scenic Nowhere project was 2019’s Dying on the Mountain EP, three songs showcasing their mix of prog rock and desert psychedelia. With their other bands still in full rotation I had no expectation for the band to regroup at any time soon, so the news of their return to the studio and the penning of an album deal with Heavy Psych Sounds showed that they meant business and the collaboration of the various players had already come together to work on something rather special.

With this recording the line-up consists of Gary Arce (Yawning Man), Bob Balch (Fu Manchu), Tony Reed (Mos Generator), Mario Lalli (Fatso Jetson, Yawning Man), Per Wilberg (Spiritual Beggars, ex-Opeth), Nick Oliveri (Mondo Generator, ex-Kyuss, QOTSA), Bill Stinson (Yawning Man) Lisa Alley and Ian Graham (The Well), and Alain Johannes (Them Crooked Vultures, Chris Cornell, Eleven).

I had read a couple of reviews of the record before its release and they talked about this super group had produced a desert rock or stoner rock classic, but after a few listens I have to question if they have really listened to it properly because the core of the band take the listener in several different directions and Vision Beyond Horizon offer so much more than expected. To say it’s just stoner rock or Fu Manchu or Yawning Man can be heard in all the writing does this collaboration a dis-service. As much as I like both the bands, this is a collaboration and release that cannot be pigeon holed or compared to anything else. The first time you listen to the record, you will understand.

The Glim starts with a big stomping riff that hooks you straight in before one of several quick guitar solos. The song as a whole has a mid-pace loud David Bowie channelling a psychedelic space rock Soundgarden kind of vibe, if that makes sense? It sounds big and bold with layer after layer of guitars that roll over you like the oceans tide and the waves of dark psychedelia already have you hooked. 

If your still somewhere between the layers of The Glim then The Paranoid grabs you by the throat for the next ninety seconds with something that took me by surprise. I remember a few years ago talking to Gary about his love of 80’s punk rock and this is definitely a homage to the likes of The Exploited, UK Subs and GBH. Fast, manic and in your face.

Then I Was Gone has a really fuzzy guitar tone to it with the bigger riffs sounding like they’ve been turned up to eleven. Between the surges of guitar, the over-layered dual male/female vocals add a more complex melody to the haunting wizardry that Master of Reality continuously perfected, mixed with the darker vibe that played heavy on many of the tracks from QOTSA’s Lullabies to Paralyse. I really like how the appearance of a few keyboard lines hang nicely off the vocals and fill a gap that you don’t even realise is there.

Mirror Image starts ever so slightly up in the clouds before the big mantra chanting vocal lines implant themselves deep in your mind. Half way through a huge slow monolithic like riff starts with one guitar, then the second guitar adds to it and that’s it, this is the band that I keep subliminally hearing but can’t quite put my finger on, its Cathedral. The riff is pure Cathedral at their finest. The vocals kick straight in after that before the epic sounding guitar solo and it all makes sense now. In no way is this replicating something Cathedral have written, it just has that vibe and gives me that feeling of doomy rock n roll with that haunting like Lee Dorrian voice. 

Hidden Wall floats you to a laid back place that I picture as those moments before the dawn sun appears from the night sky. It’s trippy, it’s psychedelic and it takes you on an adventure across the sprawling landscapes that are seeing the first glimmers of the light. If you wanted a reference point away from any of the members’ bands then the band the King Buffalo have blossomed into is definitely it. The song grows and evolves and has sown the seeds in to what could be an epic 15-20 minute opus, unfortunately it ends on seven minutes.   

Shadows from the Altar slides back into the doom n roll with the deep layered drifting vocals that sit between two riffs which the song is built around. The first being something of a rolling wave and the other being big rock riff that deserves a fist pump and “oi” chant after it. 

En Las Sombras is again going into the territory of King Buffalo but this is the song that takes all the drifting magical waves of the desert mystery courtesy of the Yawning Man connection. The trippy verses roll in and out against the deep meandering baseline which creates a magical journey, taking you “in the shadows”. To top this off, there’s a combination of two kick ass guitar solos.

Tragic Motion Lines is a mix of psychedelic stoner rock and some riffs and melodies that come from the darker side of an Alice in Chains record.

As the album draws to a close with The War Years, the channeling of their inner Pink Floyd concludes what is a quite magical collaboration. The strumming of acoustic guitars, the tapping of keys, the light yet powerful drums and a variety of keyboards and synthesizer work that builds a small passage into the inner mind. You can almost picture the setting on a small boat on a small stream, drifting slowly towards the horizon.

Vision Beyond Horizon is full of musical surprises and will hold its own for many years to come. With the incoming success of the record and a debut live performance planned for Stoned & Dusted, I really hope 2020 see’s Big Scenic Nowhere bring their live performance over the pond in some way or another. I can also honestly say that each of the nine songs has something for the listener, meaning that there is no filler on this record, it’s that good. Shout out for the quality album artwork as well.

Bandcamp – Facebook – Heavy Psych Sounds 

Yawning Man Interview: Gary Arce

I did this interview with Gary Arce at the end of 2017 when Yawning Man did a week of shows in the UK. It was supposed to be published in something else I did which never happened, so here it is. 
It was mid December in Newcastle and we were in the middle of some really bad winter weather. It took some doing getting through all the snow and ice to get to the Cluny in Newcastle and as I got out the car the temperature was -6. It didn’t stop people from showing up though. In a lot warmer bar with a couple of drinks, Gary was kind enough to give me a half hour of his time.

TH: When you think of a Yawning Man show, this is not the weather you imagine?

GA: No I did not expect this weather but I’m kind of liking it actually. Back home in the high desert we get snow every couple of years but it's nothing like this.

TH: At least you managed to get over from Manchester due to the snow drifts.

GA: Yeah, luckily we didn’t get stuck and the travelling has been good at the moment.

TH: It’s good to see Yawning Man all over the UK this time.

GA: We’ve played the UK on the last few tours and usually we’d only play London and everyone kept asking us, when are you playing more shows in the UK and we kind of went outside of our usual booking circle and talked to some friends and booking agents and kind of did it ourselves with little help and did it punk rock DIY stile. The audiences have been really good and the shows have been packed the last few nights. I think last night in Coventry there was around 150 people there on a cold Sunday night which was really cool.

TH: So your back to being a 3 piece on this tour.

GA: Well we’ve always really been a trio but last time we had a fourth person which was Dino which was cool but this time he’s in college and we had our friend Justine (Ruiz) play which was cool but we feel as a trio we have much more time and room to jam and experiment live together.

TH: Like the other day with your early jam session in London at The Dev?

GA: Yeah, that was trippy because we started at like 5:30 in the day and it just went from there and I think people really appreciated what we did there. I think we often feel a bit more afraid when there is a fourth person and I kind of find myself not playing as much but when it’s a trio it’s like a wheel to me with the bass, drums and guitar and it just flows and flows and flows.

TH: So have you had a chance to take in much of the UK?

GA: Manchester was really beautiful and was probably the one place I got the most to check out. London to me is cool because there is a lot of people, and being from the desert, I’m not used to it seeing people running about all over and in front of the cars and just the general mayhem. The thing I do like about the UK is that everyone is super nice, cool and everyone is so chilled out and friendly. There’s no attitude. Even people who aren’t at the shows but just in the streets and shops are super friendly.


TH: Now I know that you like English music and punk rock.

GA: Yeah I love punk rock. Amebix, Discharge are one of my favorite bands. I remember from the first time I saw them as a kid they were my favorite punk band. I also really like Bauhaus.

TH: The Beatles?

GA: No, I’m not a fan.

TH: Morrissey?

GA: I really like The Smiths but not so much the solo Morrissey stuff. I remember when that record “Meat is Murder” came out and I was really digging the guitar player (Jonny Marr) and the stuff he was playing. But punk rock to me has always been close to my heart.

TH: You’ve been few a few venues this week which most of these bands have probably played.

GA: I’ve seen quite a few old punks around that look like they’ve been here since the 70s that look like they’ve played in the UK Subs. I remember seeing The Exploited back in 82 in Los Angeles and there was a huge riot and I think Wattie was the one who incited it. It was scary but cool at the same time.

TH: Ha, you still see him wandering the street of Glasgow walking his dog with a bottle of cider!

TH: You’ve been touring a lot lately. The US, South America, Canada. You’ve certainly done some miles over the last 12 months.

GA: Yeah, we toured the US twice this last year. The US can be a tough gig and I probably like Europe better and I really like Canada. Canada is beautiful and the people are like the UK. Super cool, super friendly, great music scene. You hit the US and it gets a little different. Some parts, well you get to the south and it gets interesting. The south is a hard fuckin place to tour.

TH: Have you been to Australia yet?

GA: Not with Yawning Man but with my other band Ten East which was me, Billy Cordell, Bill from Yawning Man and Bryan Giles.



TH: And you played as Ten East the other night?

GA: Yeah we did but Ten East is a project I started that was usually more an improv thing and to be honest I wasn’t even sure who was playing. My friends in the Netherlands were like “hey dude do you wanna do Ten East tonight?” and I’m like “sure” so they just brought their guitar amps and bass and off we went. It kind of just evolves every time.

TH: Any more plans for Yawning Sons?

GA: Yeah, with Yawning Sons we actually recorded the other day but I’m not sure what’s happening with it yet.

TH: What about doing it live again? It’s been a few years since the Desertfest thing happened.

GA: Yeah I remember that, it was cool but my amp kept going out and the sound guy was being all weird and shit.

TH: I remember watching Mario saving the day though.

GA: Yeah, Mario basically took over and acted as my roadie. It could have been a real disaster but the crowd seemed to dig it.



TH: There’s enough people here that want to see it here again, or even Ten East playing a Desertfest?

GA: Ten East is fun, the version I liked was, well there’s been so many versions, but the first one was be and Brant and Mario and Bill, and the second version was me and Bill and we brought in Scott Reeder, the guy from Red Fang Brian Giles played guitar and Greg Ginn played guitar and bass, from Black Flag. And the third version was me and friends from the Netherlands and that was the version we played the other night as I was in the Netherlands.

TH: You probably just missed the Red Fang guys as they’ve been in Europe the last few weeks.

GA: Yeah, they are such good musicians live.

TH: So a new song dropped the other day.

GA: Yeah, “Ghost Beach” came out the other day. We went into the studio as we got some free time.

TH: Was it intentional or a spur of the moment thing with the free studio time?

GA: Well what happened was, somebody offered us a few hours in the studio and we had the day off so we went in there, very Yawning Man style, very natural, Mario started a bass line and I came up with a guitar melody and it just flowed out live. It was written there and then in the studio. We just pieced together everything. Part 1 then part 2, pressed record then off we go.

TH: And where are you at with a new album?

GA: We’re in the process of coming up with new songs. There’s three new ones written. One is very different for Yawning Man which you’ll hear tonight. It’s got a very repetitive riff, quite an up paced one. I’m not sure when we’ll record yet. When we get back to California everybody is busy with their families and jobs and getting back to regular life. But it will be coming sooner rather than later.

TH: What about Zun, any more plans for that?

GA: I really want to try and do more Zun. Me and Sera keep in contact and John lives where I live. It’s just a matter of trying to get everyone on the same page at the same time. It’s usually me actually getting off my ass and doing it.

TH: You must have been happy with finally seeing the record get released as “Burial Sunrise”?

GA: Yeah, what it was, was Yawning Man songs that never got release so we worked more on them and the label dug what we did.

TH: The actual release also just appeared out the blue with no build up.

GA: What happened was that me and Bill got in the studio to start a new Yawning Man record and I recorded like 6 songs on guitar and then Bill wrote his bit and we had it all there with no bass. We had it sat there for 2 months and Mario was busy, so the engineer was like you have to come down, these songs are really good and you just play bass on it. So I went in there and I started playing bass on some of the songs and Mario got in there finally and played bass on one songs and I played bass on the rest. Then we did some keyboards and experimenting with it, then he goes “let’s call John” and I go, “I got a friend called Sera from Black Math Horseman, let’s call her”, so like everybody’s like yeah this is cool. John says he can do 3 and Sera says she can do 3, perfect and it worked.

TH: Do you ever think you’ll have a chance to play it live?

GA: I tried to and we got offered some tours and some big festivals, especially the European ones. The minute the record came out I was getting emails. I contacted Sera who was busy with her own band and John was busy so it was unfortunate we couldn’t as Zun is one of the better albums that I would have loved to play live. Sera’s schedule was more lenient but John has music and work and family, so is always super busy.

TH: You’ve also been doing some stuff with Toby Wrecker who has put out a series of 4 EP’s over the last few months.

GA: I met Toby when I travelled Australia with Ten East. Him and his brother have a band who played with us as a duo and they were really good, the Hotel Wrecking City Traders. I did stuff on a couple of their records and Toby’s solo album.

TH: Did you record over there or vice versa?

GA: No, it was through files which was kind of weird for me as I’m so used to just jamming it out live. They sent me the files whilst in the middle of another album and the engineer was cool to say I’ll give you like 4 hours for free. So for the next 4 hours Toby and his brother sat drinking beer sending file after file through. It was a strange experience doing it but it came out really cool.

TH: You must now look back at the last 4 or 5 years to see the desert music scene take off. As you’re one of the first names on the Desert Rock team sheet you must get all sorts of requests?

GA: Haha, i’m so busy when at home as I got my own life to the point, sometime I won’t even play my guitar for weeks as I just get wrapped up in normal life stuff. The emails come and go and I know Mario looks after that stuff more than I do, and someone will contact me going “hey dude did you read that email” and I’ll be like “err no” and they’re like “it’s super important that you have to read your email”.

TH: What’s coming up after this tour?

GA: Well we’re going to finish up a few more shows then start properly writing a new Yawning Man record which is the number 1 priority as we need one (**Note - This interview was done just before "Revolt Against Tired Noises" was released**). We’re than planning on going to South America. We have some festivals coming up next year but I can’t really say anything about them yet.

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Brant Bjork "Jalamanta" 20th Anniversary Reissue

*** BRANT BJORK - JALAMANTA ***  

Reissue for the 20th Anniversary - remastered/remixed version with brand new cover art !!!
HEAVY PSYCH SOUNDS is really proud to unveil cover and details of the upcoming Brant Bjork reissue JALAMANTA !!!
RELEASE DATE:

SEPTEMBER 13th
PRESALE STARTS:

MAY 23rd
It's been 20 glory years when desert rock icon, BRANT BJORK, released his first solo album Jalamanta.

2019 will see the Kyuss and Fu Manchu - legend celebrate his 20th anniversary in style, when he will re-release his pathbreaking, cult album Jalamanta on September 13rd with Heavy Psych Sounds Records!

Recorded by Tony Mason at Rancho De La Luna, Joshua Tree, California, in February 1999 and produced by BRANT BJORK, Jalamanta still belongs to the most distinctive desert rock records of all time.

“Jalamanta was a life changing record for me. It's the record that launched my journey as Brant Bjork.“ he comments. “Listening to the tapes 20 years later was amazing. Tony Mason and myself were transported back to that moment in time. Jalamanta was a first for both Tony and myself. My first record as a solo artist and his first record as an engineer. We didn't think twice about re-mixing it. With our combined experience over the years, we knew we could take Jalamanta to the place we always wanted it to go. And we did. Dig it.“

Jalamanta has been re-mixed by Tony Mason, with a freshly baked re-master by John McBain at JPM Mastering, San Fransisco. New cover art by Branca Studio. Heavy Psych Sounds is proud to start the pre-order of this timeless classic on May 23rd, in the following available album formats:

RELEASED IN DOUBLE GATEFOLD VINYL IN:

- 45 ULTRA LTD TEST PRESS VINYL

- 250 LTD WHITE SPLATTER RAINBOW VINYL

- 250 LTD WHITE MARBLED PURPLE VINYL

- 600 SOLID YELLOW VINYL

- BLACK VINYL

- DIGIPAK

- DIGITAL

TRACKLIST

Lazy Bones
Automatic Fantastic
Cobra Jab
Too Many Chiefs... Not Enough Indians
Sun Brother
“Let’s Get Chinese Eyes”
Toot
Defender Of The Oleander
Bones Lazy
Low Desert Punk
Waiting For A Coconut To Drop
Her Brown Blood
Indio
Take Me Away ( Blue Oyster Cult cover )

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