THE SATORI IN ELEGANCE OF THE MAJESTIC STONEGAZER

Welsh outfit SENDELICA have been around since 2005, releasing a score of EPs and albums on various labels around the globe. "The Satori in Elegance of the Majestic Stonegazer" is their most recent production at the time of writing, and was issued on their own label FRG Records in the summer of 2012.

In terms of musical direction this is a band that fits rather smugly into being described as an instrumental psychedelic rock band on this occasion. Space rock fans will encounter infrequent futuristic effects enough to warrant an interest also from this crowd, but the heart and soul of this endeavour is a psychedelic one as I experience it. Improvisational in expression to, all cuts on this disc comes across as the result and part of jam sessions rather than premade compositions performed in a recording studio. The reality may or may not be different, but the music does come with strong associations towards this type of music.

As is rather common for such excursions, the bass guitar and drums appears to set the foundation for the musical journeys, the former mostly limited to provide a circulating base motif the non-rhythmical instruments can improvise upon, the latter more important in terms of shifts in pace and intensity. In this case this last aspect isn't a feature that defines this album I might add, as Sendelica appears to be a band that hone in on hypnotic repetition rather than more or less organically evolving sonic and cosmic journeys.

There are a number of bands out there exploring similar general grounds as Sendelica do on this album, and what separates Sendelica from the rest is that these guys have opted to go back in time for inspiration. Psych drenched arguably primitive sounding guitar riffs and soloing is at the heart of the proceedings. Primitive as in with an early 70's sound more than in tone and expression as such, but also with a fair few distinctly distorted, rough textures utilized throughout. And when not delivering psych-drenched darker toned riffs or improvised solo runs, there's also room for gentler, light toned reverberating displays void of any distortion whatsoever, and initially it's when the band explores these fragile vibes I found them most interesting this time around. Aetherland the first of these pieces, which is also among the stronger tracks on this disc as I regard it.

Four-part epic Satori in Elegance does have it's moments too I might add, but the clear highlight for me comes with Preseli Daze. On this piece keyboards and effects are ditched to find place for the saxophone instead, and the manner in which the sax and guitar complement each other and trade roles on this number adds life and vibrancy to this effort that does elevate it a bit above the others, at least as my mind decodes this type of music. Final piece The Majestic Stonegazer is another fine effort worth mentioning, a slight exception in style with it's dark, massive guitar riffs chugging on top of march inspired rhythms and a distinct drone-like, fuzzy edge, the repetitive scope of this piece a successful one as far as hypnotic effect is concerned.

Sendelica isn't a band I think will find a huge audience eagerly awaiting their exploits on the basis of this CD at least. But those with a soft spot for retro-oriented, improvised psychedelic rock of the instrumental variety should take the time to seek out this production for a psych-drenched journey back in time. Especially those amongst them with a soft spot for guitar dominated material with something of an emphasis on the use of repetitive mannerisms utilized for hypnotic effect.