For nearly a decade The Warlocks have sought out the scenic route; foregoing the well-treaded comforts of expectation and opting instead for those seldom traveled paths that delve into the latent lands where listless consciences, romantic flirtations with suicide, and the conjuring of mind-blowing vistas where the demise of our own ethereal realms stand lurking around every dark bend. Dabbling in such excesses has long been the staple of this Los Angeles band. Previous efforts have contained periodic moments of pure psychosis blended with waking moments of consciousness acting as a barometer of reason. The group’s fourth LP, Heavy Deavy Skull Lover, though, is so visceral a plunge into the moodily psychedelic abyss that one wonders if re-surfacing into the physical world is a real possibility or merely a fever dream.

Frontman by Bobby Hecksher makes this a rhetorical question begging no answer. Almost like Freddy Krueger trespassing into people’s heads as they sleep, Hecksher this time delivers a seemingly somnambulate opera where the listener is encouraged to paint their own canvass with the blistering, yet amazingly hypnotic collection of sounds arranged from a piano, drums, bass, and guitars with surreal reverb. Lyrics are few and far between; their intent simply a means of gently pulling you along on this spacey odyssey. Indeed, the second track “Moving Mountains” is a tremendous three part sonic marvel that begins with an acoustic guitar and ends 11 minutes later with a pulsating psychedelic symphony that may very well result in lesser men abruptly jumping out of windows in some sort of spasmodic jubilation.

Prior to that, the record begins with the aptly titled, “The Valley of Death,” a song whose beginning is surprisingly lucid, yet angry and cynical. Hecksher sings about ‘magazines filled with bullshit trying to sell me something I don’t need.’ Disgust and disillusionment gives way to a detachment of mind and body that feels akin to a desperate sole standing atop a high bluff, issuing a heartfelt “fuck you” to the languishing world just prior to jumping. What separates the feel of this album from the band’s other work is the fact that the miserable jumper is equipped with a set of gliders, and the act of jumping is not a lonely end, but only the beginning of a life destined to seek a new course. Even then, there is ample room for reflection. “So Paranoid” is a hauntingly morose arrangement that harkens back to so the band’s first LP Rise and Fall (2001). Whereas Heavy Deavy Skull Lover consists mainly of out-of-body experiences, “So Paranoid” is more of a spiritual sojourn with a pleasing, melodic consistency complete with Hecksher’s faint whispery vocals.

“Slip Beneath” and “Zombie Like Lovers” will grab the attention of those who prefer up-tempo noise with crashing drums and slashing, biting guitars. Once again, the use of insane reverb alongside the precise banging percussion mimics what Dagny Taggart must have felt on a speeding locomotive; only this train is not equipped with brakes. But tempo on this album is like the general happiness of you and I. It comes and goes. “Dreamless Days” once again forces us to stop and take in wherever it is that we are with a reflective air. For many, resting on the davenport with the lights turned low and a few [un]controlled substances having aided us on the trip, things begin to make sense. “Interlude in Reverse” and “Death, I Hear You Walking” round out the experience with a final chaotic sprint followed by a groggy re-awakening; only when the sound fades out and silence ensues do we know that this dream was far from make-believe.

For those who consider experimental, avant rock of the psychedelic variety to be essential to the progression of the rock genre, then The Warlocks is simply a band that cannot be overlooked. Fans should not be surprised by the increasingly experimental turn. As mentioned, the group has never hesitated at jumping into the fray with some long, psychedelic jams. But they have certainly never produced anything as consistently deep and dark as that of Heavy Deavy Skull Lover. For fans, it might take a few listens, but the latest chapter for The Warlocks is as satisfying as ever.

The Warlocks Discography:

1) The Warlocks (EP) 2000
2) Rise and Fall (LP) 2001
3) Phoenix (EP) 2002
4) Phoenix Album (LP) 2002
5) Surgery (LP) 2005
6) Heavy Deavy Skull Lover (LP) 2007

By Chris Virnig