• Monday Mixtape: Slomatics

    November 2, 2020 - By 

    Belfast’s primary exponents of titanically heavy sludge, Slomatics, give us a rundown of some of their all-time essential tracks, from krautrock through to horror OSTs. Hawkwind – The Watcher Live Hawkwind albums can be a real mixed bag, and even for fans with as low a quality threshold as me they can be fairly disappointing. I’d avoided The ‘99 Party Live for years as I assumed it was recorded in 1999, a bit of a low point for the band, but this was actually recorded during Lemmy’s last tour with the band in ‘74 when the concept of 1999 was still very futuristic, and…

  • Psych-Rock Revolution: Ireland and Beyond

    April 16, 2015 - By 

    When you consider Ireland’s rich history of iconic rock bands, those of a psych-rock persuasion don’t feature heavily on the list. Bands labelled as psychedelic were emerging in the US and Britain as early as the 1960’s. At the beginning it was defined by experimental songwriting, mind-altering drug culture, and a penchtant for flamboyant silk shirts. Tracing its roots back to the 1960’s you find bands like The Beatles, Pink Floyd, The Yardbirds, Jimmi Hendrix, The Doors, Soft Machine, Sly and the Family Stone and The Grateful Dead. Although Ireland could not be seen as a psych-rock hub, it has…

  • Dig Early: Six Months of Psych (Part I of II)

    June 6, 2014 - By 

    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…