Review by Gary Cordwell
Release date: 27 November 2015
To a certain extent you know what you are going to get here. The name of the band lets you know what you can expect from this Polish 5-piece – dusty, down tuned and sun-kissed. And the title does exactly what it says on the tin, a reissue of their 2013 EP with 4 extra tracks – all produced on high performance coloured vinyl for a limited edition, 400 copy run.
And yes, that is what you get, in spades. But that doesn’t prepare you for the sheer warmth, flair, style and variety on offer here. The desert dust is certainly kicked up on the opening track with its wobbly blues-isms and thick, sludgy Kyuss sound. Then we have a gentle acoustic intro to ‘End Of The Certain’ – but hang on, there’s no pre requisite explosion, it stays acoustic and instrumental…nice.
Another punk stoner bruiser cruises by and then the boys set up their small arsenal of effects pedals. Having tried out a touch of wah wah on the aforementioned bruiser it’s full steam ahead (in a lazy, stoned kind of way) into a hazy FX netherworld. ‘First Scream’s barrelling momentum nods off into a woozy chill out jam which sets the pace for the rest of the EP.
And wonderful it is too! Languid, mellow and very different to your average desert rock fare, the FX adding colour and character to their sound. ‘Overload’ adds female harmony vocals to a loose, trippy jam while the 9 minute ‘Dusty’ is more of the same – really creating a sunset and boat-drinks vibe. It’s almost a stoner Grateful Dead – unhurried and sleepy, full of distant, schoey chants and ambling solos. A riff appears out of the haze, which proceeds to run out of steam before taking off again.
The EP alone is wonderful. It was recorded in one day, and it shows…in a good way. The songs flow into each other and it really creates a feel-good mood. If they can produce something this good in one day, then they are definitely worth watching. And what a day it must have been!
The new tracks follow in a similar vein. ‘Let It Go’ (no, they’re not doing a stoner tribute to Frozen) is a brief spoken word monologue over an easy noodle while the following two tracks are riff monsters – heavier and more focussed than what has gone before. We end where we began, with a groove similar to the EP…and the blues!
Any vinyl junkies out there would be well advised to snap this up, it looks and sounds beautiful. Oh, and any stoner junkies? Just get it for the music, it’s seriously good.
8 out of 10
http://www.palmdesert.bandcamp.com
Track List:
Leave Me Alone
End Of The Certain
Among The Stones
First Scream
Overload
Dusty
Let It Go
Ain’t Easy
Shoutstone
Rise Above (Root Version)
