Allmusic says about Polygondwanaland “[It] sounds like a consolidation of everything the band has done up until now, chewed up and spit back put in large and small chunks of psychedelic rock. The first song alone, the ten-minute-long ”Crumbling Castle,“ employs microtonal guitars, layers in synths, sounds like space prog, has laid back jazz interludes and heavy metal breakdowns, and delivers all the trippy punch of their early work. After all the experiments and tricks, it almost sounds like the band is playing it safe, even if the song is a rampaging ball of barely controlled energy. They really aren’t, though. Instead, they are delivering a record that plays to their strengths as songwriters and musicians instead of distracting people with some flashy idea. It’s straight – or as straight as possible – King Gizzard, and at this stage of their career, that’s a welcome development. Hearing them incorporate all the different sonic flourishes they’ve employed in the past in pursuit of good songs and not some higher concept means the album may slip past unnoticed, but it will sound great to anyone not scared off by the lack of theatrics. Tracks like the spookily restrained ”Searching,“ the rampaging ”The Fourth Colour,“ the tribal ”The Castle in the Air,“ or the thrumming title track are the work of a band in full command of their process and results. Their fourth album of 2017 may not be their most exciting of the year, but it is their strongest and shows that King Gizzard don’t need any bells and whistles to make a great psychedelic splash.”

The post King Gizzard & the Lizard Wizard “Polygondwanaland” appeared first on Vinyl From The Vault.

I’m expecting a bit of an adventure for this brief road trip. It’s Memorial Day weekend and we have to drive through Chicago (always a bit of a nightmare, even on a non-holiday). While trying to find a hotel around Indianapolis – and being completely unsuccessful – I figured out that it’s also the Indy 500 this weekend (me=not a race fan, obviously). While having driven through Indianapolis hundreds of times on my way to wherever, I’ve never actually stopped so I have little knowledge of the city or what to expect. But the show itself should be AMAZING. BoB puts on an incredible show wherever they play, but this one will be in their hometown with lots of friends and family (I’m guessing) in the audience. The guys will have some sweet swag available: some tasty crazy vinyl treats, shirts and posters. And to top it off, S-E-R-V-I-C-E is one of the opening bands and Russell Simins from Jon Spencer Blues Explosion plays drums so that’s the happy cherry on top of my rock-n-roll-blue-garage-punk-gospel sundae.

The sweet swag (Photos via Brother O’Brother’s Instagram).

The post Brother O’Brother “Live at Radio Radio” appeared first on Vinyl From The Vault.