Gloomy day... an endless wheat field all around… in the midst of a sea of fog, a colonial-style house with a porch... under the porch, a rocking chair... on the chair, a dear little old lady seems to be talking to her granddaughter tenderly sitting on her lap... they turn towards me… wait a moment, the old lady grins… three teeth in total… red eyes scrutinizing… she turns to the granddaughter who then turns to stare at me as well... oh my god, but she's horribly deformed and hairy... she runs towards me... I flee into the fog while the little girl chases me… crows, crows everywhere… then, clear and ringing, a voice exclaims: “PAPÁ!”

No, I'm not talking about the remake of Texas Chainsaw Massacre, but it's an example of what the music of Dead Meadow is capable of evoking in more sensitive minds. That is what I dreamed one night after falling asleep listening to this record. Although moving within the so-called "stoner" genre, this Washington trio stands out for the almost doom-like cadence of their music, characterized however by subtly 60's sounds. From doom, they adopt the ponderous obsessiveness, the disorienting power of music that seems to drag itself wearily, almost rolling, towards the listener.

It is precisely the mantric and hypnotic repetition of rhythms that contributes to making Dead Meadow's music psychedelic. A psychedelia devoid of the genre's clichés, but which produces the same effect of space-time dilation. I would call it "rural psychedelia" or rather "agrarian," a sound that seems to come directly from the earth. A significant contribution to the "mind-blowing" effect of the album is given by the voice of the singer John Simon, more akin to the rhythmic lament of a child than to an adult voice.

A psychedelia devoid of the genre's clichés, but which produces the same effect of space-time dilation. A significant contribution to the "mind-blowing" effect of the album is given by the voice of the singer John Simon, more akin to the rhythmic lament of a child than to an adult voice.

I cannot recommend listening to one track over another, as the material this album is made of is so cohesive. The only advice I feel like giving is not to judge the album on a first listen; like a good pachyderm, it moves slowly, and at first, you'll distance it. But in the end, it will reach you. And it will crush you…

Tracklist Lyrics and Videos

01   I Love You Too (07:16)

02   Babbling Flower (04:48)

03   Everything's Going On (07:05)

04   The Whirlings (03:24)

the rushing whirling wind over and over again
as beginning eats the end
I guess I'll see you soon, Friend

the rushing whirling wind
round and round we spin
I'm with you without end
I guess I'll see you soon, Friend

you stop the whirling wind that spins in my head
as beginning eats its end
I feel like I'm with you without end
as beginning eats its end I'll be with you again

05   Wayfarers All (01:41)

06   Good Moanin' (06:41)

07   Golden Cloud (06:32)

08   Me and the Devil Blues (03:37)

09   Shivering King (05:59)

10   She's Mine (01:18)

11   Heaven (06:51)

12   Raise the Sails (06:52)

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