Review: Nine Moons ‘Nine Moons’
Hailing from England’s East, Nine Moons are a psych power trio who are blessed to have a very strong debut full length that’s released on Cedar Room Records. These three gents deliver a formidable heavy blues attack in the spirit of The Groundhogs, Blue Cheer, and Cream, but with an effective modern polish. As I’ve often said, there’s nothing wrong with taking notes from past eras, but you should make a point to put your own spin on it. Fortunately, Nine Moons do this quite nicely.
Beginning with Melt The Sky Away, we get a nice slab of British riffery, mildly low fi vocals, and an appropriate rhythm section making for a fine rocking number. I especially appreciate how the guitar tones are not overly fuzzy. As much as we might enjoy a fuzz-drenched Orange Cab assault upon the ears, hearing a guitar sound with a noticeable amount of clarity in the mix is a real refresher. The second track Carpet-Sitter brings the band’s proto-punk influences on display with some great quirky Syd Barret-esque lyrics – ‘If you’re driving the road to distraction… can I tag along?’.
Stories starts with a building desert rock riff giving way to a very satisfactory blues romp and lively vocals. Nine Moons have clearly done their homework in regards to how their heroes write verses and choruses, while in other bands they can fall by the wayside. Here, the singing is just as integral as the other components and helps keep the story going, yes, pun intended!
a formidable heavy blues attack in the spirit of The Groundhogs, Blue Cheer, and Cream, but with an effective modern polish…
Things go off in a vaguely prog and spacey direction with the pleasant track The Living Thread. It’s a gentle march of melody and cymbal work that builds into a heavier wave before returning to space for some very inspired lead guitar work. Roll Up feels like The Kinks after a psilocybin session, while Burn Your Banner recalls Black Sabbath and Iron Claw ominous crunch.
The closing track is the sprawling near 10-minute The Hollow Tree, somewhat like a more visceral Dead Meadow number. It’s an appropriate closer, with gorgeous electric piano and vast psych-blues soundscapes.
My hat goes off to Nine Moons. They do their nation’s rock history proud, and not unlike Graveyard, they really do a fine job of writing a heartfelt psychedelic rock album with a fixation on good songwriting rather than just being a cosplay act of generic late ‘60s/early ‘70s LARPing. This is a great rock record that scratches the itch, and I will be keeping a close eye on the future endeavors of these three lads. Cheers.
Label: Cedar Room Records
Band Links: Official | Facebook | Bandcamp | Instagram
Scribed by: Rob Walsh
