Psychlona - Warped Vision

Rating

4.0/5

Flyctory.com Pros

Nice stoner rock and metal style
Versatile, entertaining tracks with nice atmosphere

On their Bandcamp account, the band Psychlona describes their music as heavy psychedelic sounds with a stoner/desert rock flavour. Their new album has been released on 27th September 2024. As the slogan felt as interesting as a first touch of Warped Vision, I took a deeper listen. Here is my album review.

Psychlona – About The Artists

Psychlona is a band from Bradford in Yorkshire in the United Kingdom. So far, they have released three albums, the latest ome, Palo Verde, dated as of 2022. The band is a quartet, consisting of Phil Hey (vocals/guitar), Martin Wiseman (guitar), Izak Gloom (bass) and drummer Scott Frankling. Frankling joined the band in 2018. Before their fourth album Dave Wainfour (guitar) and Martyn Birchall (bass) left the band.

Psychlona – Warped Vision – Track by Track

The eight song album lasts 46 minutes.

1. Jasmine

Psychlona allows themselves a slower start into Warped Vision and Jasmine. However, after the intro part of the opening part, they present nice rock’n’roll with nice rhythmic guitar parts and heavier riff elements. The more rocking parts, which are interrupted by more gentle, melodic elements, remind of Southern rock. Definitely an entertaining opening with an interesting, promising plot.

2. Let’s Go

Like the opener Jasmine, Let’s go has been featured as a single release before the album has been published. Again, this six minute song slowly builds up some atmosphere, before Phil Hey and Dave Wainfour head for the full guitar blast. I like the style of the recording. The usage of reverb leads to a wide sound, the vocal side, which is working with different kinds of distortion, leads to a very versatile listen with a touch of alternative. This time, there are fewer quite moments and the British band simply rocks.

3. Smoke

Warped Vision continues with five songs, which have so far not been released. The first one of these is Smoke, another almost six minute track. Again, the band is initially focusing on an extended, groovy intro, before the microphones open. The sound of Smoke has a more stately character, which also leads to a bit of melancholic feelings. Martyn Birchall on the bass is a bit more in focus than in the songs before.

4. Cut Loose

Cut Loose heads into a darker direction. This also leans the song closer to metal than for example to alternative rock. This time, the band is focusing on both vocalists, which leads to a dialog, almost dialectic feeling. The howling sound of the guitars add a lot of atmosphere as well. The marching rhythm drives you through the listen and gives you a catching experience.

5. Topanga

Topanga is one of two songs which in fact exceed the six minute mark. The song has a slightly sloppy groove, which actually works out very well. Despite the duration, Topanga is a nice, fluent listen with an intense drive from the guitar side.

6. Kaleidoscope

The typical Psychlona sound is here and there disrupted by almost spoken word parts. They also slow down the pace of the song, which is quite speedy in the other parts. Thus, Kaleidoscope offers an interesting plot and a quite good listen.

7. Split

The guitar solos in Split come with a nice groove and even spread a touch of blues rock to Warped Vision. Overall, the laid back, groovy style are a nice fit. For the chorus, though, the quartet is raising the guitar level again.

8. Magic Carpet

The chucker-out of this album is Magic Carpet. It is not only another single release, but also the shortest track of Warped Vision. This still means it is a 5:07 minute listen. The plot is the quite expected one, coming with a long instrumental intro and the characteristic vocal style. A good listen, even though you shouldn’t expect too many new features in this song.

Psychlona – Warped Vision – Spotify

Here is Warped Vision on Spotify:

Psychlona – Warped Vision – My View

Psychlona nicely work with different styles and kinds of atmosphere. They sound gentle, thoughtful in one moment and lean towards hard rock and metal in the next one. Nonetheless, these changes do not cause a break. The eight songs feel surprisingly harmonious. It is not a top notch album, but a really good record.

Favorite Song: Cut Loose

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