THE TRIP TAKERS - THE TRIP TAKERS EP (Area Pirata Records LP, D/L).

New from Area Pirata Records, the home of Italian Garage Rock, comes the debut mini-album/EP from Garage/Beat obsessives The Trip Takers. Eschewing modern recording techniques to create an authentic vintage lo-fi analogue sound, The Trip Takers EP revisits the classic mid 60s proto-Nuggets era of American Garage/Psych with six tracks that channel the slightly shambolic records by “British Invasion” influenced bands such as The Groupies, The Velvet Illusions, The Inmates, The Cave Men and Satan & The G Men whose two minutes of fuzzed up teen angst tend to turn up on one of the many Pebbles compilations and the much weirder early acid heads who were the psychedelic trailblazers. The Trip Takers have lovingly recreated these sounds with such an ear for detail that they do sound like songs that could have been recently rediscovered after decades lost in the archives somewhere.

With a mix of Beatles pop smarts and Byrdsian jangle, side one of the EP is firmly rooted circa 1965/66 with the sound of early Garage bands more than evident on the three tracks on this side of the disc. While side one is firmly inspired by early Beat bands, side two sees The Trip Takers exploring wonky mid 60s Psychedelia and sounding not unlike Nashville Psych Pop outsiders The Sufis with three tracks of acid drenched strangeness. Recalling the first wave of acid advocates where the Beat bands began turning on, tuning in and freaking out, ‘Misty Shore’, ‘Above’ and ‘You Are Not Me’ are recreations that tap into the vibe of the times with swirling organ and sitar pushed way up front in the mix. For serious RetroHeads, The Trip Takers EP is well worth your time………………..it may not be in anyway original, but that’s not really the point.

The Trip Takers self titled EP is out NOW on deluxe 12" vinyl (limited to 300 copies) and also as a digital download. Available from the Area Pirata website and also their Bandcamp page where you can also buy/stream the EP here………………..

https://areapiratarec.bandcamp.com/album/the-trip-takers

THEE PSYCHEDELICATESSEN  

VUELVETELOCA - SONORA (Fuzz Club LP, CD, D/L).

Outta Santiago, one of the greatest Psych Rock bands you’ve never heard of…….that is till now. With four albums already under their belt in a decade long career blowing minds in their home country, Chilean Psych-Rock outfit Vuelveteloca are no doubt the missing link between Black Sabbath and Neu! mixing 70s style heavy riffing with trance like rhythmic grooves. Newly signed to Fuzz Club for their fifth LP, Sonora, Vuelveteloca are destined to follow other South American noiseniks such as Follakzoid and The Holydrug Couple in gaining a global reputation with their twisted mixture of doomy Stoner Rock and the kinetic psychedelic rhythms of modern bands like Kikagaku Moyo or King Gizzard & The Lizard Wizard. Relentlessly hurtling forward at maximum velocity, motorik precision meets the face melting psychedelic swirl of skyscaper guitars as Vuelveteloca tear the Universe a new one with this absolute wild ride of a record.

The record is nine tracks of a ferocious hybrid of Stoner Rock and brain scrambling Psychedelia and from the get go, Sonora grooves like a muthafucker and never lets up. Kicking off with the psychedelic squall of ‘La Niebla’, Vuelveteloca have perfected blending their mix of influences from several psychedelic eras creating an expansive sound that sounds familiar but also excitingly unique. Mashing together heavy Stoner Rock influences on tracks such as ‘Alta Montana’ and the claustrophobic ‘L.A.’ with Lemmy era Hawkwind-esque sounds seeping into tracks like ‘Tormento’ and ‘Chepical’, and with a massive Krautrock influence added to the sonic melting pot, they have created a absolute monster of a record, heavy enough to destroy everything that stands in it’s way but with a pulsing core of electrifying Acid Rock………..it’s “Classic Rock” and modern Psych melting together and sharing DNA. Again, Fuzz Club are totally on the money with this LP…………..essential listening if you dig 70s Heavy Rock with a bit more of an edge or sonically charged Psych Rock that can peel paint off the walls.

Released on LP with limited edition of 600 copies (200 Deluxe and 400 standard vinyl), CD and as a digital download, Sonora is out NOW and available from all the best record shops, the usual suspects on line and directly from Fuzz Club. Check out the Fuzz Club Bandcamp page where you can stream/buy the D/L here……

https://fuzzclub.bandcamp.com/album/sonora

THEE PSYCHEDELICATESSEN