TRUST US

I remembered vividly that a friend had lent me I a copy of this 2-CD album back in 1999-2000 and that I enjoyed it. Unfortunately, until recently, I haven't followed up on my first encounter with Motorpsycho even though they had a beautiful vibe to them that appealed immensely to my young inexperienced prog ears. Luckily now that I have an almost unlimited access to discographies of artists through the magical world of steaming media I am once again able to relive this album and its memories. The only difference is that I now have a decade of experience behind me to fill in the blanks that I might have missed out on back in the day.

Motorpsycho seemed to be one of the more prolific rock bands out there, releasing three albums over the course of the last 24 month and a total of 14 studio releases since their debut in 1991. The 1999 release Trust Us was not only the band's seventh full length album but also their second double album, clocking at the 82 minute mark. Unfortunately I'm unable to give any own analysis of how the band's music had evolved up to this particular point but from what I've been reading Motorpsycho took a major leap with the release of their third studio album Timothy's Monster and Trust Us was the next logical step in the band's development.

Spanning over 14 tracks and a total of over 80 minutes, Trust Us might be a tough cookie for anyone wanting a good Motorpsycho introduction album and it did take me personally a few spins, back in the day, to get a grip on just parts of the material incorporated into this album. Listening to it for the last couple of days was a pure pleasure to my experimental music senses and I did in fact recognize most of the material even though it was a long time since my previous visit.

The music on Trust Us is split between different spectrums of the rock music that is incorporated under the Motorpsycho's moniker. May it be the heavy hitting rockers like Psychonaut and Evernine, softer rock music of Ozone and Hey, Jane, the lengthier experimental beauty of The Ocean In Her Eye, Radiance Freq and everything in between.

One thing that really surprises me about this lengthy album is that there are surprisingly few instances that don't work, which is usually a major problem for most albums that reach over the 60 minute mark. Aside from the relatively short Mantrick Muffin Stomp, that feels completely out of context, and a few instances towards the end of the album, the material on Trust Us fits together really well. The three longer tracks are definite show stealers for me where The Ocean In Her Eye sets just the right mood for what is about to happen on Vortex Surfer. Once those 9 minutes start playing I become surrounded by sheer beauty of the performance. There isn't really a way to describe Vortex Surfer any better since this is definitely one of those wonderful pieces that just have to be experienced in order to be believed.

Even though Radiance Freq. follows the same basic pattern of the two previous lengthy pieces it looses a bit of its momentum due to one fatal flaw. The big contrasts between the soft and heavy sections on the track make me have to adjust the volume every time I listen to the track meaning that I get too distracted by the tedious procedure and can never truly enjoy this creative piece of music.

I highly recommend giving Trust Us a go since, judging from my review, there is a lot to be experienced over the course of the album's running time. The material might take a while to get used to but once you're there the album will become one of those gems that you'll want to revisit time and time again.

***** star songs: Vortex Surfer (8:59)

**** star songs: Psychonaut (6:58) Ozone (4:33) The Ocean In Her Eye (9:15) Siddhardtino (1:37) 577 (7:48) Evernine (5:07) Radiance Freq. (10:21) Taifun (7:09) Superstooge (6:48) Coventry Boy (2:32) Hey, Jane (5:14) Dolphyn (1:25)

*** star songs: Mantrick Muffin Stomp (3:50)

With 2CDs spawning 81 minutes, "Trust Us" is definitely the ultimate Motorpsycho album from their early period. There's nothing I'd label filler, making this is a remarkably consistent album from these Norwegians.

As with all Motorpsycho albums, "Trust Us" covers an extensive range of styles, with influences from Sonic Youth's alternative rock, Sabbath's heaviness, Beatles' psychedelic pop, and, certainly on the longer tracks of this album, an oriental flavor that reminds of Led Zeppelin's "Physical Graffity". The dirty grinding Stooges rock of the opening track "Psychonaut" needs a separate mention, it's an instant classic. Simply brilliant what you can achieve with just one riff repeated for 5 minutes.

Over the course of the preceding albums, the band had been fine-tuning their original grunge/stoner sound to something more subtle, textured and ambitious. "Trust Us" is an end-point in that evolution. The next couple of albums would explore more poppier terrain.

Prog fans beware as this is still far removed from the Progressive direction they took with "Little Lucid Moments" and "Heavy Metal Fruit", but if you feel like rocking out, this is one to get.

This is the last Motorpsycho album they released in the 90s. Released one year after Angels and Daemons at Play and two promotional EPs, this album would be considered one of the band's best works in their hectic starting decade, and it's easy to see why many people, especially Prog rock fans, gravitate towards this album. I think it's because it released at the perfect time in the 90s when Prog rock was starting to get back into popularity with acts like Porcupine Tree and Dream Theater, and with Motorpsycho's glamorous mix of Prog rock, hard rock, folk, and jazz, it would make sense people would find a huge attachment to this album.

For me, Trust Us is an interesting record, and quite a hefty one too. If, say, Blissard was an experiment in composition, and Angels and Daemons was an experiment on releasing, then Trust Us is an experiment on what the band wanted to be in their next decades to come as this marks the band's turning point to tried and true Prog rock music. They dabbled in it earlier in the decade, but here we get full on Prog rock music that sounds really good.

What I think this record has a good hand in is the amount of variety you get on here. You get some slower movements like Vortex Surfer and Coventry Boy, but also some really hard hitting psychedelic heavies like Psychonaut and Mantrick Muffin Stomp. Really, this album is one huge collage of various artistic examples the band has nods and winks to. From hard rock, to jazz, to psych, to folk, basically what the band would be highly known for can be found on this album in spades, and I really love the album for it. It is like going to a museum and looking at different paintings by the same artist. They all look different, but you know they are made by some artist from like Sweden or something who was a painting prophet at an early age but died at the age of 20 due to a falling anvil in their grandfather's workshop. It is really special in a weird way.

Though, like a museum, it can be a little tiring, standing and walking around, and also not every painting will be as amazing as some others. This album is long, and as someone who generally likes hour-long albums, this one feels a bit too long for me. With a lot of songs on here, some ranging to the 10 minute mark, it starts to feel tedious sometimes, and I feel as though that is the album's biggest weakness. This is an album that is packed to the brim, but it feels like it is in a small box. To be honest, I feel like some tracks on here could be cut down, like some of the tracks that were on the two EPs that were released prior to this, Ozone and Hey Jane. Personally, the big amount of stuff on here feels a tad overwhelming, especially with the harder stuff. You kinda have to be attuned to what the band wants you to get into this giant album.

I think, though, Trust Us has a lot of good things about it to where it outweighs the bad stuff. The songs are tightly knit, heck even more so than prior releases. You can tell they had a clear idea and wanted to expand on it each waking moment, and I love that. I love Motorpsycho for their prowess of song making, and I never get bored of their music even after listening to them for a long time. They are just that good.

That is the best thing about this album, it isn't boring by any means. You'll get a lot of stuff out of this, though it is an album that is quite a bit too big. It's a museum of various artistic paintings by one artist. It is a very nice experience but one that'll leave your feet feeling very tired. If you liked Blissard or Angels and Daemons then this album is a great treat for you.