Farflung are absolute stalwarts of the heavy space rock scene and have shared stages with some great acts such as The Melvins, Voivod, Fu Manchu, Nebula, Amon Duul, Hawkwind, Silver Apples and have collaborated with many more. This Californian band consists of Tommy Grenas (Lead vocals, oscillators, synths and guitar), Michael Esther (Guitar, synths and vocals), Paul Hischier (Guitar), Abby Travis (Bass, vocals and keys) and Chris Nakata (Drums, guitar, bass and vocals).
‘5’, the first full length from Farflung since 2008’s ‘A Wound in Eternity’ was recorded at Saturn Moon Studios, Tarantula Ranch and Rancho De La Luna. It features guest appearances from the likes of Nik Turner (Hawkwind), David Catching (Queens of the Stone Age, Eagles of Death Metal) and Gene Trautmann (Queens of the Stone Age, Eagles of Death Metal).
As you would expect from a Space Rock band, this album is chock-full of psychedelic, effects-laden synthesizers and swirling guitar overlays intertwined with frenetic, varied vocals. This chaotic slab of noise is underpinned by some brilliantly tight instrumentation. The rhythm guitars, drums and bass all work together to provide a solid foundation, never getting too complex which really allows the psychedelic aspects of this release to shine. It’s the sign of a good band that know how to write parts that benefit the song as a whole.
Heavy Psych Sounds’ releases always boast absolutely stellar production and ‘5’ is no exception. The drums are snappy yet natural. The guitars and bass are chunky and heavy without and muddiness and the vocals and synths glide effortlessly above it all, always perfectly audible with some great panning work.
Pretty much all the songs on this album have sections where the whole band seem to simply wash into a psychedelic, spacey jam and back out again like an ebbing tide. This can be heard on ‘044MPZ’, a song that literally sent shivers down my spine towards its end.
The artwork for this release is some kind of misty shoreline, which really sums up its sound as previously mentioned. This is Cosmic Rock at its finest.
Make sure you grab this release on May 27th via Heavy Psych Sounds and catch the band on tour (poster below).
https://www.facebook.com/Farflung-official-Site-21088343878
https://twitter.com/Farflungmusic
http://www.heavypsychsounds.com/
The Stoner Sound 