MYTH OF THE LOVE ELECTRIQUE

The amazing cosmic cowboys of the east return with yet another new album, and it's fantastic as is relentlessly usual. In fact, it's probably one of their more essential pieces of work. 'The Man From Giacobinid...' is pretty much the Acid Mothers blueprint, with the tempo revved up and Kawabata and his ever-present knob-twiddler Higashi trading whizzes and swoops and huge arching sweeps of sound. It rocks out for fifteen minutes with their trademark freewheeling abandon before petering out, then comes their flipside: the drone-outs. Some of their previous work in this field is a little ponderous, but not on 'Myth Of The Love Electrique'. Here it's as layered and deep and compelling as ever.

And that's the reason this album is among their best. Whether it's the storming slow jam of the (almost) title track or the blissed-out latest version of the classic 'Pink Lady Lemonade', there's not a moment on this 75-minute disc when the listener is even considering turning it off or skipping track. There's no sharp turns, no abrasiveness, nothing too musically complex - but it commands the attention to the last. Its huge and spacey production and rich exotic instrumentation create a unique atmosphere that cannot be turned off. Not all AMT albums have this quality, but most do. That's what makes them an essential item in the 21st century psych-rock fan's collection.