Vibracathedral Orchestra

Second in a trio of limited edition new LP’s from the ever mysterious Vibracathedral crew, returning from another relatively quiet period with an uncompromising set of outre’ jams. Slightly reorganized around a lineup of stalwarts Mick Flower and Adam Davenport with frequent collaborators John Godbert (Total) and John Moloney (Sunburned Hand of the Man), the band here stretches way, way out over these six sides, taking in several different styles while maintaining “that” sound all the way through. The Secret Base starts up at full throttle, straight into the middle of a raw sounding live outing, Flower’s overdriven guitar occupying the same sonic space that gives his signature japan banjo/shaahi baaja workouts with Chris Corsano their urgency. The sound is dark and rough, almost Xpressway-like in its claustrophobic atmosphere. The percolating Krautrock stylings of “If you can’t smoke ‘em, sell ‘em” chugs along hypnotically for over 13 minutes to close out the side. On side 2, the entire 20+ minutes are devoted to the clanging free sound of “Eyes of Wood,” where gamelan-like metal percussion dominates the proceedings. Cut by John Golden, audiophile pressed at RTI. Limited pressing.