Review: Polska Radio One - Early Broadcasts

One of the real surprises of last year was 'Cosmos Inside' by Polska Radio One (who are not from Poland but from Yekaterinburg in Russia - go figure!). It was a fine collection of songs that took in sixties psychedelia, contemporary fuzz laden rock and krautrock. Sulatron Records has taken advantage of the well-received reviews and notices and are releasing this gathering of pre/peri 'Cosmos Inside' material (recorded between March 2012 and March 2014) and a very nice collection it is too.

'North Berry' kicks it all off with a tambourine and bass drum before some fuzzy guitars and sitar set up a nice Black Angels vibe with the vocals down in the mix and the fuzz quotient high..it has a real sixties feel about it in the quiet moments but when the reverb guitars kick in it would fit in very nicely on a Fuzz Club 'Reverb Conspiracy' album. 'Volga' is more of the same except some lovely drone added and the vocals have a Gregorian chant quality. It has a slight melancholic feel about it, but maybe that's just me.....(the name 'Volga' to me always brings to mind 'The Song of the Volga Boatmen'..a turgid traditional Russian song about the grim life of barge haulers along the river...with its 'yo, heave ho' chorus..very dark).'Time-Eternity' is a much more uplifting affair ...reminiscent of 'Tomorrow Never Knows' era Beatles, it has a jaunty melody plucked out on sitar (or sitar sounding guitar....I'm not musical enough to tell the difference!). It is rooted in sixties British psychedelia and provides a real contrast to some of the other fuzz heavy tracks. This is the only track on this collection that appeared on the 'Cosmos Inside' album. 'New Space' starts with some nice and funky wah wah and drums and is a stormer!....the pace is rapid and sounds like the Stone Roses on speed and given a crash course in sixties psych. There are neat little synth flourishes which give it a spacey edge and the drums are fantastic.....they really throw everything at this track, there is a even a burst of organ in the middle. 'Heather And Wormwood' looks backwards for inspiration, but this time it is sixties Britain via seventies west coast US with its harmonies and the ever present sitars, but the heavy fuzz is still there to bring it a contemporary feel. 'Shroomin' may sound like a title from the latest Ozric Tentacles LP but starts with a sultry lounge jazz sax and drums and, with the addition of a farfisa, sounds as genuinely sixties as anything on the album - nice! 'Radio Motorik' as the name implies is a krautrock number, the drums keeping a titular groove and the synths and guitars keeping tight to the rhythm, there are occasional bursts of psych breaking out via some nice Beatles-y harmonies but the motorik drums keep it all locked on to the krautrock vibe. 'Rhymes And Harmonies' closes the set and is a slow burning psychedelic number rooted once more in the sixties ...again the Beatles are once more touchstones but also some early Floyd...this is pure 'flower power' stuff.

All together this is a solid collection of songs from a band who are obviously well-versed in psychedelic history and are not afraid to wear their influences on their sleeves. There is plenty of variety in the collection to keep the listener engrossed and even the most fickle of music lovers will find something to love.

'Early Broadcast' will be released on Sulatron Records sometime in June, limited to 500 copies on heavy orange vinyl and artwork by Lulu Artwork.