HARVESTMAN

Harvestman biography
Founded in 2005, Harvestman is the folk-leaning USA-based psychedelic rock project of Oakland-born Neurosis guitarist/vocalist Steve Von Till. Currently located in Coeur d'Alene, Idaho, Harvestman has released five full-lengths and one split in its nearly twenty-year existence, all of which through Neurosis' label Neurot Recordings. The project began after Von Till, inspired by dub's studio experimentation and the possibilities of the electric guitar, accrued a number of improvised recordings which didn't fit in his solo career or Neurosis and their spin-offs.

Demonstrating his more progressive side compared to the more Americana albums issued under his given name, Harvestman sought to bridge Von Till's myriad influences from krautrock, space rock, ambient music and 1960/70s British acid folk, reconciling the worlds of Flying Saucer Attack, Skullflower, Coil and Heldon with the likes of Bert Jansch, John Martyn, Steeleye Span and particularly Sanny Denny and her various projects. But it's perhaps the presence of Hawkwind which looms greatest over Harvestman, a love which manifested in the 2010 Hawkwind Triad split with like-minded artists Minsk and U.S. Christmas, each band covering a handful of their favourite tracks.

Von Till generally handles all instrumental duties while building his albums, wielding guitars, bass, synthesizers, Mellotron and vocals, with the studio the ultimate arbiter, though each of his LPs sans Trinity have featured a bevy of guest performers such as Om's Al Cisneros, Crash Worship's John Goff and current and former members of Amber Asylum.


- Gordy, June 2024