Spiral Shadow

With 2009’s astonishingly tight and fearsomely heavy don’t-call-it-a-crossover crossover album, Static Tensions, still ringing in fans’ ears, Kylesa burst back immediately with a “psychedelic” record that trashes everything you might expect from the genre in the 21st century, whether that means whimsical hippie folk or too-drugged-to-boogie sludge. A metal band to the bone, Kylesa stomp the clichés right out of psych-rock on Spiral Shadow. The Georgia band’s new album, their fifth in less than a decade, is the next step in a pretty seamless evolution that’s hidden increasingly complex (and catchy!) music behind an attack that still hits with the in-the-red rawness of hardcore.
With two percussionists going full-tilt— check the way they build to a Godspeed You! Black Emperor-esque climax on “Distance Closing In”, or the Can-on-uppers groove that pushes “Drop Out” to its final, roaring refrain— Kylesa are as rhythmically complex (and diverse) as any current band that might pop up as “hard rock” when you rip the album to iTunes. Likewise with an arsenal of arena-era Floyd keyboard effects, and production that’s incredibly dense with trippy sonic embellishments while still offering psych’s sensual spaciousness, Kylesa’s music is more enveloping than ever. All of which might lead you to expect meandering 10-minute “journeys,” the kind of spaced-out noodling beloved only by a certain kind of stoner.