RECYCLED

The 70s era of Psych rock is an odd ball of a time for the genre. This was after its huge boom in the 60s that was revolutionized by The Beatles and Jimi Hendrix, but was before its later rise in popularity in the modern age with neo psych rock bands like King Gizzard & The Lizard Wizard and Psychedelic Porn Crumpets. It was in a weird middle ground where it was filled with more experimentation on what could be done with the genre which resulted in a ton of hits and misses from a variety of bands. A few big names came out during this period, namely Pink Floyd, Hawkwind, Eloy, and the star of today, Nektar. I have already reviewed a Nektar album before this one, but due to a request to check out this album from the band, I thought to check them out again and possibly get hooked on their more fun type of trippy music that they are known for.

The album is devised in two parts, however each part has their own individual songs separate from each other, with the first part starting with the song Recycle. This is a short opener to the album. While not too long, it does a good job with hooking you into this album, and establishes their sound immediately, like a snap.

The next track is Cybernetic Consumption, another 2 minute track. Unlike the first one, this is a very nothing track where it only really picks up towards the end with an actually coherent tune. Otherwise, the first half is very noisy, and weird, but not in a good way. It's all over the place with no sense of any direction and it feels way too messy for its own good. At least this is a pretty short song, so it does get a pass for that.

Coming off of that, we got Recycle Countdown, which seems like a sort of second part to Recycle, sort of like A Concise British Alphabet by The Soft Machine where the two parts are split apart with a song in between them. This takes the mantle the first song had and improves upon it with a more symphonic feeling sound that gives this song a more epic feeling. I really like this cause it makes the band feel way more in tune with the music around them and not the music that would be most recognizable to psychedelic rock fans. It leads to a great diversity in sounds that continues through the album.

Next up is Automation Horrorscope. This song is a lot more jammy and hard hitting. It has a sort of space jam feel, like you are on a space jet flying to the moon with an electric guitar by your side. It is super fun and it never wastes its time with filler. However I do wish it went on a bit longer. It feels like when it was really getting to some epic proportions, it ends, which I wished didn't happen so quickly.

Recycling takes center stage. It is a bit more acoustic with a tinge of folk, however it really goes hard near the middle which is always appreciated, until it goes more baroque, creating a nice sense of rhythm and flow. It's very nice and has a lot of fun rhythms and playing. I do think it should've gone on a bit longer though. This is sort of a problem with the first side on the album where each song is really good, but they are pretty dang short to where they feel very lacking in the grand scope of this album. Just a nit pick though, but you will at least notice it when you hear them for the first time.

Fight To Reality, much like Recycle Countdown, is a continuation to Automation Horrorscope. It doesn't change too much with Automation Horrorscope, but it does give you more of that great space jam feel that was present before, which is always appreciated.

Next up is Unendless imaginations. This feels like a combination of all the songs from this side. The awesome space jams from Automation Horrorscope and Fight To Reality, the symphonic qualities of Recycle and Recycle Countdown, and it has its own original sound with the second half of the song being this space sounding ambient bit that has a lot of charm to it. While it definitely needs a bit of improvement, the first side leaves a good impression already and makes you very excited to see what side 2 has to offer.

Side 2 starts with Sao Paulo Sunrise. It starts with the same spacey ambience from the ending half of Unendless Imaginations, but then it goes into this funky and jammy song that is very grooving. It's super fun and danceable, and definitely gives me a lot of vibes from the old disco that was popular in the 70s. You can definitely feel the inspiration that sort of movement had on this song, which is always appreciated when you take into account bands of Nektar's nature. Heck this reminds of how Pink Floyd was inspired by the punk rock movement of the late 70s which resulted in Animals, but that is a story for another day.

Next up is Costa Del Sol, which is another fun and danceable tune. If side one was a series of great short songs, then side two is a series of fun and catchy tunes that still retains those psychedelic bits and pieces Nektar is known for. This song also has some symphonic qualities too, so it makes it feel even better when listening to it. Even if it's clearly inspired by a more poppy sounding music style, it doesn't feel out of place next to a lot of psychedelic bands, in fact with the eclectic nature of the genre it fits right in. I gotta say, it's rare for side 2 to shine as bright as side one, but definitely a welcomed surprise.

Next up is Marvellous Moses. Back to some familiar routes with a similar sound that was found in side 1, a more symphonic take of the psych rock sound. This is a super enjoyable song with a very enjoyable flow, but it does feel weak next to the other songs in the album with how traditional it feels in comparison to the more eclectic and varied works here. Obviously not that huge of a deal, but certainly one that should be addressed briefly. Otherwise, this song ain't half bad.

Lastly, and most appropriately, It's All Over. This is a very nice ballad that gives a fine closure to the album. Where the first half is a more acoustic and symphonic sounding song, the second half is a more quiet ambient passage that wraps a nice bow around this very nice experience, and certainly one that I think shouldn't be underestimated.

While this album does have a few small issues, it isn't a bad album, in fact it's very enjoyable. Lots of fun variations of sounds with a very nice flow through it all. It's not perfect, but it's great enough to where I'd say you should check it out if you want some fun psych rock in your life.