Kategorie: CD-Reviews | Genre: Stoner/Desertrock, Prog | Heft: Jahrgang 2013, eclipsed Nr. 150 / 5-2013 | VÖ-Jahr: 2013 | Wertung: 8/10 | Label: Stickman | Autor: MaB
The mammoth work "The Death Defying Unicorn", published in 2012, marked the artistic zenith in the work of Motorpsycho. The three Norwegians took a high risk in the seafarers' marriages, conceived together with Ståle Storløkken, by combining hard rock, jazz and orchestral sounds. But what would follow such a monolith? The answer was obvious: Bent Sæther (voc, b), Hans Magnus Ryan (g, voc) and Kenneth Kapstad (dr) had already collected enough material that didn't fit on "The Death Defying Unicorn" and was more song oriented again. Five of a total of twenty pieces can now be found on "Still Life With Eggplant", whose natural and at the same time powerful sound puts the three protagonists and the two guest musicians (Thomas Henriksen, Reine Fiske) in the best possible light. Special praise is due to Kapstad, who recently released himself with his project Grand General and enriches the songs with jazz-twisted grooves. "Hell, Part 1-3" captivates with choral songs and psychedelic thunderstorms and only loses momentum in the final jam. The following "August" is a real bundle of energy, and "Barleycorn" reveals again the special motor psycho qualities: longing vocal harmonies, rousing refrain vibes as well as a bridge that opens up new worlds. "Ratcatcher", on the other hand, is an epic hussar ride in the best motor-psycho-tradition, where rock-, psychedelic- and jazz-fans are offered a lot of wondrous things and the musicians create nerve-racking sound vortices. With the outstanding half ballad "The Afterglow" the listener is plunged again into an alternating bath of feelings. "Still Life With Eggplant" is another highlight in Motorpsycho's career.
Top Track: Retcatcher
