Hands down one of the most prolific bands in the world right now, Melbourne psych rock maestros King Gizzard and the Lizard Wizard have announced they will play Dublin’s Olympia Theatre on February 23. The show takes place as part of a four-date run that also sees the band play London, Manchester and Glasgow. Tickets for the show go on pre-sale this Wednesday and general sale at 10am on Friday, October 27.
To describe King Gizzard and the Lizard Wizard as prolific would be an understatement. They’re the sort of band who write, record and release 6 EPs, 2 double LPs and 36 singles in the time it takes you to read this sentence. Having already released one full-length in February of this year, they’re evidently proponents of a more is more philosophy. That belief permeates to every part of the outfit. From their roster of members to the songs themselves which oscillate between folk, free form jazz, psychedelia and good old fashioned 1970s prog rock epics. So how does their second…
Their long-winded name gives the distinct impression King Gizzard and the Lizard Wizard are some whacked-out middle-aged men playing 80’s progressive rock, talking about spirituality and shit. And on previous albums they have leaned in that direction, with sustained improvised grooves, but it has always been more in line with repetitive psych rock rhythms, than drawn out introspective jams. On last album Quarters! there were majestically sprawling tracks, four of them to be precise, lasting 10 minutes and 10 seconds each. They used wizardry of Gandalf proportions to instil magic in songs of that length, intricate musical patterns were weaved…
Having seen a real upsurge over the last while, 2013 was a particularly stellar year for psych rock (and all its many manifestations) the world over. With mind-expandingly exceptional albums from the likes of Hookworms, Goat, Destruction Unit and Unknown Mortal Orchestra sating the psych thirst of the more cosmically-inclined amongst us, it might yet pale in comparison to the sheer abundance of first-rate psychedelia that’s been released (and is set to be released) in 2014. Here’s my picks of the year so far. Blank Realm – Even The Score [from Grassed Inn] Two years on from the psych-tinged art-rock of their debut album, Go Easy, Brisbane sibling trio Blank Realm made…