Dead Meadow have been making crusty, fuzzy psych rock for 25 years now. Their self-titled debut dropped in 2000, setting the stage for the DC psych rockers to lead future packs of stoner/fuzz rockers across the nation to a new generation of slackers wanting desperately to tune in, turn on, and drop out.
Dead Meadow and their tape wobble sound have remained steadfast for over two decades. Each album after their debut kept to the mold of that dank first record, with little twists and turns along the way. They paved the way for bands like Carlton Melton, Eternal Tapestry, The Black Angels, and King Gizzard & The Lizard Wizard to emerge from their various points of departure and spread the gospel of fuzz rock even further.
After releasing the 20th anniversary edition of their 2005 classic Feathers back in February, original members Jason Simon(vocals, guitar) and Mark Laughlin(drums) have dropped the band’s latest album titled Voyager To Voyager. If you’re looking for major shifts in sound and fidelity, you’re in for some disappointment. But if you’re wanting that gauzy, mildewed basement sound of album’s past then you’re in for a treat.
Dropping into a Dead Meadow record isn’t rocket science. There’s nothing to unlock, or repeat listens needed in order to “get it”. Voyager To Voyager is surface level psych rock. Mid-tempo grooves, lazy and distant vocals, and the wobble of 70s-era Electro Harmonix phaser pedals coating the guitars. You need some tunes to soundtrack a night of beers and laughs on the porch as the summer humidity settles on your brow in trickles of sweat? Look no further. Dead Meadow has you covered.
“The Space Between” provides just the right amount of head bopping groove and dual guitar jamming to set the stage for some killer summer hanging. Dead Meadow have gotten tighter as a band over the years, while the muted fidelity keeps us firmly in garage rock territory. “Not The Season” has a cool swing to it, and along with Simon’s vocal delivery makes this track sound like it could have fit on either The White Album or Deerhunter’s Microcastle. “A Wave Away” has the loose vibe of Neil Young and Crazy Horse.
Dead Meadow seem to worship at the altar of Crazy Horse here. There’s a feeling that the train might come off the rails at any minute, yet Dead Meadow keep it running. Simon even does a pretty good facsimile of a Neil Young solo. The highlight here is title track and closer “Voyager To Voyager”, a spaced-out 8-minute jam that at times sounds like Physical Graffiti-era Zep, and then segues into some cosmic floating only to end things back on earth.
25 years in and Dead Meadow continue to keep it real on Voyager To Voyager. Real heavy, man.
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