BEHIND THE SUN

My fourth foray into Motorpsycho territory and, so far, my favorite. The excellent harmonized vocals present on almost all the songs are awesome--reminiscent of several of the best rock bands of the early 1970s. The foundational instrumental performances are as solid as ever but they are now enhanced, expanded upon by lots of mellotron and, of course, the always welcome contributions of guitar wizard Reine Fiske.

1. "Cloudwalker (A Darker Blue)" (6:06) is a good mid-tempo rocker with great bass, good harmonized vocals, and some catchy guitar riffing but lacks something to pull me in deeply. (8/10)

2. "Ghost" (6:38) opens with a bit of a Country/Western or Southern Rock like SWANS sound, with an unusually delicate vocal like a cross between Larry Lee from THE OZARK MOUNTAIN DAREDEVILS or Wayne Coynes of THE FLAMING LIPS. A pretty song, once again, the song never seems to catch into third gear (a problem I have noted in the past with regards to Motorpsycho songs). (8/10)

3. "On a Plate" (4:09) opens with a repetitive 70s rock sound and feel (GRAND FUNK RAILROAD and BLACK SABBATH?) which continues with the joining in of cowbell and vocals. This one goes on just long enough to get under your skin. Solid. Great sound recording and production. (9/10)

4. "The Promise" (4:40) presents the power of the psychedelic hard rockers of the 70s with the awesome clarity of 21st century recording technology. Great drumming and guitar leads. (Is that a Farfisa I hear?) (9/10)

5. "Kvæstor (iimcl. Where Greyhounds Dare) (7:09) is a hard driven' instrumental that opens with an robotic/industrial sound before a barrage of drums enters and fills the waves. Droning organ and Southern Rock (à la THE ALLMAN BROTHERS) riffing guitars join in and then the guitar soloing goes shit crazy! shredding at searing speeds, at times in tandem with another guitar (or echoe/delayed) or keyboard. At the four minute mark the continuously traveling drums are left virtually alone save for screeching pitch bending of strings (violin or saw?). The song eventually kicks back into its original Allman Brothers riff until the band gets stuck, like a robot on repeat, to fade. Awesome song! (9/10)

6. "Hell, parts 4-6: Traitor/The Tapestry/Swiss Cheese Mountain" (12:21) opens with some wonderful mellotron intro before giving way to some equally awesome guitar picking. The gentle vocal stylings (layered two or three times) from "Ghost" return. Some great chord progressions and key changes lead into an heavier electric guitar strum bridge to instrumental guitar jam section--two electric guitars taking turns and/or playing with and over each other. Then, around 4:25 things quiet down, mellotron and organ and saw playing along with softly picking acoustic guitars. The song begins to climb out of the delicate mellow section around 7:05 and finally returns to the beginning section at 7:45. At 8:09 full power is unleashed with a turgid interplay of multiple guitars (electric and acoustic) and mellotron--which plays out to the end. Prog heaven! (10/10)

7. "Entropy" (7:23) opens like a CROSBY, STILLS, NASH & YOUNG song ("Déjà Vu") before CSN & Y-like vocal harmonies join in. Gorgeous! Beautiful electric guitar slides around along with the vocals, though more in the background. Amazing song. Stunningly beautiful. Makes me miss the 70s. And Yoshimi. (10/10)

8. "The Magic & The Wonder (A Love Theme)" (4:41) opens with an awesome guitar, bass, and drum combination. Second guitar and keys come in to fill the song's palette, setting it up for wonderful vocals--psychedelia from the realm of three- and four-part harmony. Wonderful exchange of guitar soli by the two leads in the third minute! Just enough unexpected twists and turns throughout to make this one fresh and fantastic! (10/10)

9. "Hell, part 7: Victim of Rock" (7:36) The hard driving music I became so familiar with on Death-Defying Unicorn, coupled with an awesome psychotic encounter with a pitch modulator in the middle, and some great BUDDY GUY-like guitar shredding, makes this an incredible high energy finale. (9/10)

Too bad the album starts out a little weakly or it'd be vying for my favorite album of 2014. Four and a half stars bumped up for seven (7) five star songs.