Review: Vibravoid - Mushroom Mantras

Vibravoid are a band that surely need no introduction; if ever the epithet 'living legends' can be attached to a band then Vibravoid are that band. Since the early nineties they have been producing truly psychedelic music inspired by the original psychedelic scene of the late sixties and the 'revival' years in the eighties and to say their output is prodigious is a bit of an understatement! It came as a surprise then when I realised that in the three or so years of this blog I have never reviewed a Vibravoid album....something I intend to put right now. 'Mushroom Mantras' is released in November on Stoned Karma and is a hefty dose of lysergic psychedelia. The CD version also comes with 3 bonus tracks, previously unreleased, from one of the very first recording sessions way back in 1992.

'Mushroom Mantras', as a title, is based in Buddhist traditions - small mushrooms that are painted with blessings and prayers and this pretty much sets the scene for the album....deeply rooted in spirituality and the ongoing mission of the band to spread love and peace via their music, and in this day and age the world really needs both of those things. The spiritual aspect is expressed straight from the get go with opening track 'Om Gang Ganpataye Namah', an important mantra in the Hindu tradition. From the opening note we are immersed in the exotic sounds of the electric sitar and the soundtrack to a trip opens up in front of us. The juxtaposition of the message of healing and love with the 'traditional' psychedelic sounds creates something that is deeply trippy. It is hard to separate what Vibravoid do here from the work that The Beatles started...visions of Lennon et al sitting around in Rishikesh do seem to spring to mind but musically it is closer to 'Piper...' era Floyd. 'The Legend of Doctor Robert' would also seem to be a nod to the Fab Four and is another wonderfully trippy number with backmasked music and the sound of the Mellotron while 'Echoes Of Time' adds layers of fuzz to the recipe and is a belter....it harks back to the days when those great sixties garage punk bands started experimenting with sounds and techniques (and drugs!) to produce the seeds of psychedelia..a fantastic track! 'Sarveshaam Svastir Bhavatu' sees the band dig deep in the Hindu tradition again to produce a track that is as trippy as it is joyful....there is something about Vibravoid that makes me smile, a real 'feel good factor' that cannot be overlooked, their music is always full of optimism and light and it just makes you feel, for a short while at least, that all is right with the world. 'Apollo 69' is a short trip to the cosmos, beneath the everpresent sitar there is a driving space rock track with plenty of verve and attitude while 'Purple Pepper' opens in a much more sedate manner that changes the mood from one of energy to something more introspective. The treated vocals and the sitar over a delicately strummed guitar produces an atmosphere of calm and tranquility but as the track draws to a close this is replaced by the spacey hum of distortion, as if to signal that you have reached your destination. 'The Orange Coat' (two tracks with 'purple' and 'orange' in their titles...karma anyone?!) is the album's magnum opus at almost twenty minutes in length. I doubt you will hear anything as lysergically charged this year! It takes the traditional raga and mixes it with fuzz and meditative music to produce something deep and immersive. As a track it ebbs and flows and takes the listener on a journey through the nethersphere and is a real highlight.

'Vibrations From The Cosmic Void' are the bonus tracks on the CD taken from an early session and take the form of 'Krautfaktor I,II & III'. 'I' opens with a deep drone that envelops everything in its path, leaving room for only some spacey effects and the odd snippet of spoken word samples. It is full of foreboding and yet there is something blissful about the space it creates. 'II' is a lengthy 22 minutes in length and segues nicely from 'I' with the continuing drone and effects but as it progresses it evolves slowly into something completely unexpected...a techno-esque drum pattern is introduced that runs alongside the drone and the effect is something akin to 21st century kosmische...there are passages of sheer but gentle distortion and loops that seem to go on forever. It is deeply mesmerising and in stark contrast to the 'Mushroom Mantras' material. 'III' is much shorter and is full of bubbling synths and discordant piano chords...it seems to predict a great deal of the experimental music that is being produced now....it is atmospheric and thought provoking and really hit home with me.....great stuff.

'Mushroom Mantras' is Vibravoid doing what Vibravoid have always done so well and that is make music that is trippy, optimistic and truly psychedelic. It channels the spirit of the early psychedelic bands and adds a touch of the Paisley revival scene and is frankly a joy from start to finish. The addition of the 'Vibrations From The Cosmic Void' tracks on the CD serves as a marker to chart the band's evolution and growth and, whilst sounding completely different to the 'Mushroom...' album, shows that they have always been in search of musical Nirvana - searching for that point where music transcends just sounds and crosses into something deeper. Great stuff all round! 'Mushroom Mantras' can be preordered now from the Stoned Karma website here and comes in the aforementioned CD format as well as some groovy vinyl packages.