Cairo Jag “Digital Manipulation” 2026. Romanus Records, limited edition Nebula variant. Heavy psych from Indianapolis. Wow, this album is killer! I was unfamiliar with Cairo Jag but because one of my life’s goals is to have a copy of every Romanus release, I obviously nabbed this one when it was came out last month. Hard rocking, super-grooving, hypnotically head-banging sludgy good stuff. They’re a great match for the Romanus brand, reminiscent of Milwaukee’s own heavy psychers Astral Hand (formerly Calliope) who also have releases on the label. Cairo Jag formed in 2017 and features Curt Turner on vocals and guitar, Nolan Schockman on drums and Joe Wise on bass. Digital Manipulation looks to be their first “official” album release, with two other EP + live cassettes that came out in 2019, 2022 and 2023 and a digital-only EP back in 2018. Digital Manipulation includes some tracks from those previous releases. My top tracks are “Rotten Throne,” the ass-shaking “N.R.G.” and the garage rocker “Queen.” “Terminal Existence” is pretty excellent, too, with a space nerd, Devo-esque vibe but filtered through some seriously heavy rock.