Mario Lalli is a legend in the Desert Rock scene whose career started in the mid-eighties with a short-lived outfit, Across the River. From there, he’d form Yawning Man and then Fatso Jetson, (the latter with brother Larry and who’d put out their first couple of releases on the legendary SST Records label). Other bands such as
would come and go over the years, not to mention a never-ending raft of guest appearances. Continue reading
Ranging from members of Fu Manchu to Mos Generator to Yawning Man in their lineup, prolific Stoner Rock overlords Big Scenic Nowhere have left an everlasting legacy through their works for the past years. Now they are back with their third studio release, namely The Waydown– released via Heavy Psych Sounds. Consisting of seven tracks, the album presents the purest form of desert-styled riffs while also fusing them with jazz fusion-inspired elements. It’s fairly off-kilter to combine Desert/Stoner Rock with Jazz Fusion elements, so this has been a unique, newfound take, but of course in the finest way possible.Continue reading
Consisting of desert rock pioneers from the legendary acts Yawning Man and Fu Manchu, supergroup Yawning Balch releases an ever-prolific debut entitled Volume One via Heavy Psych Sounds. Just like the album title, Yawning Balch embarks the first volume of their musical career’s trajectory through this debut.
Culled from the same sessions that birthed the Lavender Blues EP in 2020, Big Scenic Nowhere’s second full-length expands the supergroup’s jammed out take on Desert Rock. However, The Long Morrow (Heavy Psych Sounds) sets itself apart from Vision Beyond Horizon by means of a more grounded approach. There aren’t as many songs as before and the album is about ten minutes shorter than its predecessor overall. The guest list also isn’t as loaded this time around, only featuring keyboardist Per Wilberg and The Cure/David Bowie guitarist Reeves Gabrels on the colossal title track.
Every decade has its own set of trends that define it. It normally takes hindsight to see what will make a particular decade stand out but 2020 has already made a horrifyingly immediate distinction for itself. A pandemic-induced alteration of the scene itself has resulted in delayed releases, canceled tours, musicians at near equal ratios of inspiration and burnout, Zoom as a primary means of communication, and livestreams taking the place of proper concerts. All things considered, I am glad that a top albums list could still be made with a multitude of strong candidates. It’s been a shitty year with the light at the end of the tunnel still out of sight, but we still got tunes.
Tony Reed has certainly kept busy in 2020. In addition to putting out new releases with Big Scenic Nowhere and Mos Generator and unearthing old material with Constance Tomb, he’s also found the time to issue the first proper album under his own name. The second release in Ripple Music’s Blood And Strings series, Funeral Suit is a decidedly stripped-down affair with often minimalist instrumentation and a Folk backdrop. It’s already a well-worn set up with so many musicians trying their hand at it these days, but Reed always finds a way to apply his signature stamp to a given style.
