Review: Unimother 27 - Frozen Information

Unimother 27 is the project of one Piero Ranalli. Ranalli first plied his trade with City Sewer System, a garage/psych band, before moving on to space/doom band Insider, who have released 4 albums to date, and he also plays bass with Areknamés who are a more dark proggy band. Since 2006 he has been working under the name Unimother 27, a solo psych/kraut/space project. 'Frozen Information' is his fourth release in this guise and is an intriguing and beguiling mix of psychedelia, prog and space rock. It is released via his own Pineal Gland Lab label.

'Moksha (to Huxley)' starts preceedings with a lush synth drone and a pseudo eastern melody before the track evolves into a seventies psychedelic party with groove and plenty of wailing guitar. The introduction of the organ really brings home the seventies vibe, but it is the guitar that is the star...boy, can this dude play! Ranelli plays all the instruments bar the drums which are credited to a Mr Fist, who proves to be a more than able partner in crime. I assume the 'Huxley' in the title refers to Aldous Huxley, and this track certainly knocks on the 'doors of perception'. 'Dancing Thought' has more of a proggy feel about it with a driving rhythm section and more ace guitarwork. 'The Oblivion's Cage' is heralded by a long, slow spacey synth introduction. The spacey vibe continues throughout, some synth lines straight from a seventies sci-fi movie soundtracked by Tangerine Dream, and underpins some tough psych guitar. 'Clear light Healing' starts out with an ambient drone and simple guitar line but soon flourishes into a melodic and laid back number. The introduction of some 'alien' treated vocals give the track a Gong-like quirky edge. 'For Mad Stray Dogs Only' is easily my fave on the album; a rollicking space rock number that takes it's cue from space rock legends Hawkwind. It is driven along by pummeling drums and some truly great acid guitar, all accompanied by some spacey synths....fantastic stuff! 'Hymn To The Hidden God' begins and ends in a slow, experimental manner - tribalistic drums and synths straight from a soundtrack, but sandwiched between is some cool acid jam psych guitar, heavy on the fuzz and attitude!. The album is brought to a close by 'Brief Moments Of Eternity'. More Tangerine Dream washes of synth lay beneath some spoken word vocals before everything gets chaotic. Some dissonant guitar and synths and an irregular drum pattern sound a bit free jazz/psych...a cacophony of experimental musings. Eventually everything returns back to the sumptuous synth drones and spoken word.

'Frozen Information'is a highly innovative and creative piece of work. The variety between, and within, the tracks is a credit to Ranalli, and the fact that he plays all the instruments (apart from drums) is a testament to his obviously high level of musicianship. I would urge anyone who digs psychedelic music to give this album a listen (or better still, buy it!). I, for one, am going to make a concerted effort to check out the Unimother 27 back catalogue. The CD can be purchased via the Unimother 27 Discogs page here.