•
Rating:
I have always considered the London band as a quintet of Martians who landed by mistake on planet Earth aboard their spaceship completely lined with acids and equipped with "mushroom" beams.
This album is their first, dated 1997, and the title alone indicates the mental state of the confused Albions. In short, you can say anything about their "shattered neurons" condition, but it's the final product that explains why certain music can only be created in particular types of situations and especially when chemistry flows through the veins.
The formula is a classy psych-acid-fuzz-rock, very expansive at times powerful and technical at the same time; it starts with the onslaught of "The Astral Project" and "Magic Carpet," then transitions to the liquid-rubbery intro of "Saruman's Wish" and the 2 minutes and 30 of "Song Of The Purple Mushroom Fish," entirely acoustic with a clover flavor where the mind is transported to a dimension made of bubbles and "rubbery Venuses".
Noteworthy are the next two tracks, "Aquatic Fanatic" and "Lothlorian"; the former gives back the guise of "classy hitters" to the orange goblins, while the latter encapsulates in just over a minute what Dead Meadow has been aiming to achieve for years.
Towards the end, we have "Land Of Secret Dreams," "Orange Goblin," and "Star Shaped Cloud"; the pattern remains the same, transitioning from moments of pure psychedelia to impassable walls of sound where monolithic guitars lay the groundwork for Ben Ward's strictly filtered voice.
I wonder if this "planet ten" really exists; I believe it does, but perhaps it's purely the imagination of this orange goblin who has been coming back to annoy me for a few days and keeps turning up in my CD player and refuses to leave.
Let there be stoned!
Tracklist Lyrics Samples and Videos
05 Aquatic Fanatic (04:15)
Riding a crystal shell into the deepest sky Heading into the abyss, watching the watcher's eye Drowning in memories, falling eternally Lord of Aquarium, my tidal fantasy In search for mystery, we find insanity The lady of the sea reaches her hand to me Drifting through the corals of waters unknown in a cosmic submarine It's so serene Living in the colors of the ocean, taste the blue and smell the green You know what I mean Dragging me under leagues Exploring hidden seas Saying I'm sure to please For I hold the silver keys Reach the sunken city, hear the silence, see the lights You know it's right It must be right Touch the ancient treasure, feel the pleasure and delight That's what I like That's what I like Alright Sonic rays are shining through clear water and a rainbow's growing To the pot of gold that lies beyond this land, the water's flowing Chase the aqua-dragons way up high to find the sirens dancing Rise upon the surface of the ocean, see the shores advancing Let's go
10 Nuclear Guru (06:46)
Father figure of invention
Universal soul within the planet's core
Read your tarot cards, Shangoma
Bring the Voodoo Child's creation to the fore
Supersonic information
Spiritual computer in your brainwashed mind
Send your evil ways throughout us
Cast your magic spell to end all of mankind
I know, oh I said I know
Operation radiation, interplanetary commotion
Blackest magical illusion, futuristic lord of this world
It's in effect from when you throw your magic bones
Littered galaxy with nuclo-phonic clones
Blind religious cult will always fail to see
Time creator and destroyer now supreme
Alright let's go
Now the world is your possession
Can you walk me through the orbital remains
Planets drifting, slowly melting
Radiation burns the lunar sonic plains
Astro-palace, fourth dimension
Neutrons gathered in a cosmagnetic shell
He's Satan's scientific offspring
Nuclear Guru of interplanetary hell
I know, oh I said I know
Mama said she's come to take us home
Leave this broken planet all alone
Find a world where love is here to stay
Peace and happiness in every day, it's gonna be okay
It's gonna be okay...
Loading comments slowly
