White Hills – H-p1

There seems to be a lot of pretty great psychedelic rock out at the moment. Well, either that or we’re just listening to quite a lot of psychedelic rock at the moment. Maybe it’s a refreshing alternative to the ambience of drone and the impersonality of the computer generated sound. Or maybe it’s a subconscious revolt against our pitifully damp squib of a hot season and its concurrent sunny sounds. Maybe we’re secretly harbouring urges to grow our hair long and live in caves. Or maybe it’s just a coincidence.

Either way, with the likes of Wolf People, Moon Duo, Wooden Shjips, Ttotals and White Hills all featuring frequently on our playlists at the moment, we thought it’d be worth putting something up that bore witness to our current likes. So here you go: a selection of the latter’s tunes, starting with the opening track from their recently released megalith of an LP, H-p1. Heavy, man.

If you like what you hear hop over here to pick up many more of their excellent albums.

Image is by Jason Nocito.

Pure X – Pleasure

This band’s got a bit of a misleading moniker. ‘Pure X’, with its faux-eroticism and early 90s connotations, tends to conjure preconceptions of text-book witch house, saccharine chillwave or maybe some kind of industrial-fetish-rave throwback thing. But what this Texan three-piece actually produce is understated, heartfelt, midnight-by-the-bayou blues overlaid with a caterwauling, psyched-out guitar and treated with layers of opalescent scuzz. Like Moon Duo jamming with Real Estate remixed by Jim Ferraro. Or something like that. Either way it is very, very good.

Thanks to Altered Zones for uploading the album in full.

Image is a phone photo (I know!) by Matthew Lever.

AV Best Of March

As usual our monthly round-up of musical treats is here a little late, but hopefully it won’t detract from your enjoyment of it. There’s 14 brilliant tracks on this mix and it is a privilege to be able to bask in their reflected glory. Listen, download and, with any luck, enjoy…

Click here to get the full track list and to download the mix for free.

Painting is by Nadia Duvall

Moon Duo – Mazes

The new LP from psych-kraut twosome Moon Duo was released on Sacred Bones Records this week. It’s a fantastic addition to the Brooklyn label’s roster and another brilliant example of the kind of minimally repetitive, yet dynamically expansive sound that’s flicking a lot of our switches at the moment. Check out the title track here.