Of Seers and Sirens, the new album by Pseudo Mind Hive, will take you on a heavy audio odyssey

Posted on November 1, 2019 by thesonicsofa

*Of Seers and Sirens was released by Salty Dog Records*

Pseudo Mind Hive is a psychedelic stoner rock band from Melbourne, Australia. They formed in 2007. The five member band is made up of Jack Ainsworth on bass, Samuel Drew-Rumoro on drums, Christopher Hockey on guitar, Mark Vincini on guitar, and new member Jess Joannou on organ and synths. All members contribute vocals. They just released their second full length, Of Seers and Sirens, a followup to their debut album, From Elsewhere, which was released in 2018. The band is signed to Salty Dog Records, a label based in Brunswick East, Australia.

“rounds of progressive patterns and guitar leads”

Though the definition varies according to who you ask, most will agree that stoner rock requires a few basic ingredients: fuzzy, overdriven guitars with heavy riffs, thunderous drums and crashing cymbals, a fat bass sound, rounds of progressive patterns and guitar leads, complex turnarounds and changeups, psychedelic lyrics, and it doesn’t hurt if your vocalist sounds just a little bit like Ozzy. Throw in a some spacey synthesizers and grinding organs for good measure and Pseudo Mind Hive checks all of these marks, cementing themselves firmly in the scene with their brand of heavy, psychedelic stoner rock. If you enjoy bands like Elder or Howling Giant, you’re going to dig Pseudo Mind Hive.

Of Seers and Sirens was released on October 25, 2019. It’s a heavy concept album filled with psychedelic textures, mythical lyrics, complex, progressive arrangements, and hypnotic dynamics. It’s also not afraid of being solely instrumental as shown on the heavy bonus track, Solstice. The album has a mythical, Homeric vibe and many of the songs reference ocean voyages and adventures, such as the mention of sirens on the title track. There’s also a tip of the hat to the famous scientist in the sprawling epic track, Gaze of Ptolemy. The artwork by Max Loeffler, famed for his work with Elder, is also very Greek in style and seems to reference Odysseus and his journeys.

1. Sails At Dawn 4:14
2. The Dreamer’s Burning Door 4:25
3. Of Seers & Sirens 6:36
4. Solstice “Bonus Track” 5:51
5. Gaze Of Ptolemy 9:16
6. Equinox 8:13
7. Broken Colours 8:09

In a statement provided by the band, the story concept of the album is as follows, “In short, Of Seers and Sirens loosely follows the journey of an explorer who is lost at sea and, due to forces that are ambiguous in their nature as either supernatural or hallucinatory, finds himself amongst scenes and figures from various mythologies and points in human history. However, each song is hoped to conjour many and varied interpretations and meanings to each individual listener.”

Check out the album on Bandcamp where you can download the digital album for $7 Australian, or roughly $4.25 U.S. The record is available for sale on Salty Dog’s Website. You can also check out Pseudo Mind Hive on Facebook and Instagram, and they can be contacted at pseudomindhive@gmail.com. Thanks for reading The Sonic Sofa. Go in peace and rock on, Sofanauts.

Listen to the heavy-psych sword and sorcery of Dimetrodon

Posted on October 23, 2019 by thesonicsofa

Dimetrodon released II on October 11, 2019

Write about the band: Dimetrodon is a three piece instrumental rock band from Austin, Texas. Their music is a progressive blend of synthy heavy psych and stoner rock. The members of the band are Jim Lecheler on bass, Ian McKinney on synths and guitar, and Rene Moncivais on drums. Their debut album, II, was released on October 11, 2019.

According to a statement by the band, “The 12 instrumental tracks of Dimetrodon’s *II* loosely follow the story of a savage barbarian as he faces off against a wizard and his monster friends in the windswept deserts of Mars. Drawing from stoner, prog, proto-metal, krautrock, and other influences, *II* is a window into of the mind of a boomer dad describing the airbrushing on the cargo van he had back when he was your age.” The album has no lyrics, but the full-blooded song titles like are enough to put an interesting picture in your mind and the music itself will take you there. There are really heavy songs like Dragonslayer, Antimagic Field, and Bonestorm, but there are also plenty of of reflective, softer tracks like Ogre Horde and The Druid’s Funeral. The album is a virtual kaleidoscope of psychedelic sound textures, running the gamut from chunky stoner rock riffs to dreamy psychedelic synth tones.

1. Dragon’s Lair 1:57
2. Dragonslayer 4:14
3. Antimagic Field 6:18
4. Ogre Horde 5:03
5. The Druid’s Funeral 3:16
6. Finger of Death 4:30
7. Hobgoblin 2:37
8. Stalactites 2:32
9. ☠️Bonestorm☠️ 2:40
10. Dispel Evil and Good 2:19
11. Sunbeam 2:13
12. Grimlock 2:52

The whole album sounds like something that could have been produced in a garage in the 70’s. You can hear early doom influences from Black Sabbath and Electric Wizard as well as krautrock such as Neu! and Amon Duul II. You can also hear healthy doses of modern psych as well as synth-forward film score influence peppered into the mixture. Whether you’re you’re perusing Frank Frazetta paintings, playing Dungeons and Dragons, or just putting on music for a spacey drive in the car, Dimetrodon makes a great soundtrack. Purchase a digital download of the album today on Bandcamp for $7. Also, make sure to check out the band on Facebook and Instagram. As always, thanks for reading The Sonic Sofa. Go in peace and rock on, Sofanauts.

Snake Mountain Revival release surfy stoner rock EP, The Valley of Madness

Posted on October 20, 2019 by thesonicsofa

Snake Mountain Revival is a three piece heavy-psych band from Virginia Beach, Virginia. They produce a blend of psychedelic and stoner rock with strong elements of surf rock. The Valley of Madness is their new EP. It’s a mature and polished follow up to their debut EP, Snake Mountain Revival, which was released in 2018.

The Valley of Madness was released on October 4. It’s made up of four easy flowing songs filled to the brim with driving guitar riffs and surfy leads. The vocals are melodic and dreamy, with healthy doses of reverb. The bass is chunky, often using phasers and a wah pedal to give it a nice heavy-psych sound. The drums keep things moving forward, often using a tambourine and lots of trashy sounding cymbals (I mean trashy in an especially good way) to produce a rolling, crashing wave sound. The artwork on the album was produced by Ryan Chandler. Both EPs are available digital download for “name your price” on Bandcamp and The Valley of Madness is currently available on translucent purple cassette tape for $6.

1. The Valley of Madness 3:43
2. Just a Feeling 5:38
3. Water Moccasin 3:36
4. Everything in Sight 8:30

The Valley of Madness is a great opener with a swingy, waltzy riff that recalls some of the style of Uncle Acid and the Deadbeats. Don’t miss the creative guitar and bass lead, when the two play off of each other in polyphonic melodies.

Just a Feeling slows things down, with a much softer feel and more pastoral vocals that have a lot in common with the dreamier style of Sleepy Sun. The song has a beautiful blending of melodies between the vocals and guitar.

Water Moccasin returns to a classic surf sound with that characteristic tremolo on the guitar and several tasty guitar leads. The song is instrumental, with the vocals occasionally appearing with wordless melodies in the background. The phasing, chunky bass sounds great paired with the drums which create a tumbling, wave crashing sound that adds to the watery feel of the song.

Everything in Sight is the longest track on the album. The track is driving, with fast proficient drum work and plenty of surfy changeups. The vocals are closer to the style of their first EP, with touches of Jim Morrison’s influence. The song features an extended, heavy psych ending with a tasty double guitar lead and a chunky, fuzzy bass tone.

Both of the bands EPs are available for free on Bandcamp, so make sure to download those today, and consider supporting the band. Also check out Snake Mountain Revival on Facebook as well as Instagram. Thank you for reading The Sonic Sofa. Go in peace and rock on, Sofanauts.