BROWN SPIRITS – Solitary Transmissions (2023, LP/CD Soul Jazz Records)

RELEASE INFO:

Label: Soul Jazz Records

Format: LP, Album, Limited Edition, Brown-tint sleeve, insert, inner + Download

Format: CD, Album, Limited Edition

Release Date: 12 May 2023

Brown Spirits is a Heavy-Funk-Psych-Krauty trio from Australia. “Solitary Transmissions” is their 4^th LP album, a follow-up to 2020’s “Vol.3” (Check my Review here:) Brown Spirits are launching a collaboration with Soul Jazz Records (British jazz/funk/soul/reggae label) that started with the two exclusive 100-pressing white label 45s “Dead End Exits (Parts 1 & 2)” (2022) and “Space Race (Parts 1 & 2)” (2023). Both Singles were sold out in less 30-mins, and now Soul Jazz Records is releasing Brown Spirits’ first album for the label! (An album that includes the full-length versions of both singles)… Here’s a little info taken from Brown Spirits’ Bandcamp page:

“Stunning heavy new album! Sounds like Can meets Hawkwind!
Unbelievably killer and super, super heavy brand new Psychedelic Rock/Krautrock album coming out of nowhere from the group Brown Spirits, new on Soul Jazz Records!
Brown Spirits are from Melbourne, Australia. Their stripped-down and tight musical unit is a trio (think Cream or Hendrix!) of raw bass, drums, and shared guitar/keyboards that meet the D-I-Y attitude and punk/post-punk intensity giving them a unique hi-octane sound.
With a range of influences that range from Neu! to Soft Machine, Gang of Four, Miles Davis, Hendrix, Argent, Lonnie Liston Smith, King Crimson, and beyond, their powerfully progressive hard, and hypnotic sound is truly unforgettable.
Like their labelmates Trees Speak, Brown Spirits have a love of all things Krautrock – mixed with an overwhelmingly powerful lo-fi psych and punk attitude. The album features super heavy and raw drums, tough basslines, heavy fuzzed-out wah and psyche guitar, and analog Moog synthesizers, all recorded on analog ¼ inch tape.
In short – they rock!”…
The trio of Brown Spirits consists of Tim Wold (Guitar, Keyboards, Moog, Bass, Sitar), Agostino Soldati (Drums, Percussion), and Ash Buscombe (Bass). The entire collection of songs on the album “Solitary Transmissions” is written and produced by Tim Wold and Agostino Soldati. “Solitary Transmissions” contains 7 tracks in total, 5 of them on the first side of the LP album and the rest 2 on the second side. The album opens with “Repeat Transmission”, a 57sec noisy and full of-abstract drumming intro that leads to “Space Race” a track that is based on pounding drumming, a dynamic instro, a ‘set-the-fuels’ track, a Krauty track deeply influenced/inspired by Jaki Liebezeit’s style… “Dead End Exits” is a much faster instrumental with powerful playing that blends Kraut and Space Rock with pounding drums (for once more!) and shimmering guitars… The next one, “Ode To Dorothy”, for some unexplained reason is my personal favorite here, a much Groovier track with a kind of a Funky-a-la-distorted rhythm, becoming Heavy at times, Space-Dub at others, a track that manages to flirt not only with some mid-70s Prog Rock but also with some Psych… Side “A” closes with the adventurous “Sevens 8ths Of Madness”, it is built upon some really heavy drums and Moog effects, a quite experimental tune with a Space-Punky attitude… Side “B” opens with “Solar Kollektiv”, a Space-Funky Hawkwind-ized track introducing a Neo-Psychedelic dialogue between drums and guitars, managed to get lost in Space but finally succeeded in getting back in orbit… The album closes with “Who’s At The Door”, starting in a slow trippy bluesy, and creepy psychedelic Sitar-laced way, with a tremendous subtractive Space-a-Delic soundscape, an improvisational jammy attitude that becomes mystical emerging a strange ceremonial feel while at some point the Heavy Spacey guitars are leading the track to a Free Cosmic Funk Krauty environment… Okay, I will include that too, in my personal highlights of the album… So, if you are into a blend of Psych Rock with Kraut Rock and some Cosmic Funk, then this album is definitely for you! And of course “Solitary Transmissions” is highly recommended for all you Strange-Astral-Kosmische Underground Seekers out there… TimeLord Michalis

Tracklist

Links

Buy / Listen through BROWN SPIRITS Bandcamp

Visit BROWN SPIRITS Facebook