ALBUM REVIEW: Lunacy – Space Coke
To many in Europe at least, Columbia, South Carolina, sounds like a mysterious place from an obscure sci-fi horror novel. However, it is the capital city of the aforementioned state and home to the ominous and enigmatic blues laden, psychedelic rock entity known as SPACE COKE. Bending reality with their music, the band’s fundamental premise is of a space trip from which you break away from an oppressive society that has gone mad with power but you also never return. Even so, there is an aural magic to SPACE COKE‘s music; despite its vertigo inducing trips to space it is also firmly grounded in the planet’s vibes and aura. This constantly evolving, dizzying cocktail of conceptual Lunacy makes the band’s music exciting yet relaxing, and a truly immeasurable listening experience.
Lunacy takes on a darker and more occult theme than the band’s previous albums. With processed vocals, equivocal lyrics and eerie, perplexing snippets of audio extracted from strange films of yesteryear, SPACE COKE achieve this darkness effortlessly, whilst the music itself, an acid drenched selection of riffs and organ passages, creates a hazy and disorientating atmosphere that feels oddly comforting. This kaleidoscopic Twilight-Zone journey through the universe is influenced by a plethora of different musical backgrounds. Vocalist and guitarist Reno Gooch pulls from his childhood influences of Indian Classical music alongside more contemporary artists such as SUN RA, SONIC YOUTH, BLACK SABBATH and rock legend Jimi Hendrix.
This eclectic mix provides the diverse foundations upon which Lunacy was built. This only adds to the album’s deep complexity as it ventures beyond the typical psychedelic, stoner and doom hallmarks of fuzz and bass. In essence, Lunacy is a dynamically thrilling relationship between the band’s lucid dreaming and the listener’s sleep paralysis. The intricate dreams in which SPACE COKE manifest are completely within their control. As they decide the final outcome, the listener is fully absorbed and locked into its sibylline atmosphere.
Musically what stands out the most is the organ. Moses Andrews III’s mastery of the instrument and vivid use of it gives the album a unique dimension, in which the organ is just as important as the guitar. This is best demonstrated on Frozen World and the unnerving Lightmare. On the latter, the organ heralds the existence of sinister space demons that will curse your dreams, taking the world’s occupants one by one where eventually no one will be there to hear you screams.
Lunacy feels like the darker successor to the band’s last album L’Appel Du Vide (The Call Of The Void). Utilising similar elements from its predecessor, it feels like Lunacy has doubled down on the strange and weird whilst infusing it with weighty doom sensibilities. There is also something distinctly old school about the album, harkening back to the LSD drenched, magic mushroom befuddlement of the 1960s/early 70s golden age of psychedelia, offering a well balanced mixture of abstract obscurity and straightforward, heavy southern blues soaked riffs.
For all of Lunacy’s strangeness, it is an intensely enjoyable listen; the album’s unpredictability and variety are its greatest strengths. Some parts are downright terrifying as the band builds up tension before releasing it by launching into the song itself. This mainly refers to the monologue at the beginning of Lightmare and the ritualistic vocals at the beginning of the twelve-minute epic Alice Lilitu. SPACE COKE have created a texturally rich album, each layer bringing something new and interesting into the fold. They demonstrate an eager curiosity to explore outside the realms of consciousness despite being rooted deep within the earth’s own unexplainable peculiarity.
SPACE COKE have read between the galactic lines on Lunacy, fully immersing you within its own morphed reality, yet simultaneously making you feel comfortable enough to embark on this crazy trip with them. While many things remain uncertain and unexplainable, one thing is clear for SPACE COKE: Lunacy marks the beginning of a significant spiral upwards in their tie dye rocket of madness.
Rating: 9/10
Lunacy is set for release on January 14th via Forbidden Place Records.
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