White Manna
Dune Worship

THE REVIEW

There are labels that alone represent a sound or a genre.

Several come to mind: In The Red for garage from the '90s onwards, Kranky for post-rock, Island in the '70s for reggae, but there are many examples. In the psychedelic realm of the last 15 years, a place of honor should be reserved for Holy Mountain.
Even the name, a clear nod to Jodorowski's film The Holy Mountain, visionary in itself, clarifies the label's intentions. Intentions confirmed by a portfolio of out-of-this-world bands: in no particular order, Six Organs Of Admittance, Residual Echoes, La Otracina, and many others have graced us. Last but not least, the White Manna, who release a second album even more successful than their already interesting predecessor.

The winning recipe remains almost unchanged, based on hypnotic rhythms, delayed guitars (did someone say Spacemen 3?), and effected vocals, shared by many other contemporary psychedelic bands, notably the Wooden Shjips. But the guys push more on volumes and guitars, often embarking on interstellar psycho journeys typical of Hawkwind (“Ascension” and the opener “Transformation”) and do not disdain the mantra-like tour de force (“Illusion Of Illusion”). They also deserve credit for sneaking in a brilliant cover of the Deviants, transforming the hyperacid blues of their classic “I'm Coming Home” into a straight beat accompanied by an assault of space guitars.

In the genre, already a sure thing.