Album Review...Buried Feather - Mind of the Swarm

Australia's Buried Feather have been making heads turn for a while now: the band are known for their engaging live presence, something  that's afforded them a loyal fanbase and following. 'Mind of the Swarm' is the follow up to the acclaimed Self Titled 2013 debut.
The Album was recorded by Paul Maybury (King Gizzard & the Lizard Wizard) and mixed by Nick Franklin (The Grates, Deep Sea Arcade) and is considered to be a more dynamic realisation of the band’s hypnotic sound.

The record opens with 'Would I Miss You', a cheeky Creedence Clearwater Revivalesque guitar lick starts the track and leads straight into heavy organs and pounding drums.  The track, itself, is dark, psych pop and it's irresistibly cool.

Lead single 'Dust' follows, hitting immediately, like a lost Wooden Shjips track, complete with phased guitars and hypnotic beat.
The title track is a fuzz fuelled dope trip; It's tone is hazy, but warm with serpentine synths.  'Sunshine' is much more garage rock inflected than previous songs, but still maintains a gothic-synth like aura.
Further on the record, there is the dirty, electro stomp of 'Regular Creep' and the drunkern drone  vibrations of the cinematic 'Screen Dreamer'. It's the sublime closing track 'Well Wishes' that steals the show, like an amalgamation of every note and beat that came before it; the track is a hard reverberating mammoth; its sonic grooves swell over a rolling drum pattern and help bring the LP to its intensely satisfying conclusion.

It's fair to say I was taken by 'Mind of the Swarm' pretty much on its first listen.  Theres plenty to recommend about its addictive sounds. There's no doubt it works well, on one hand as a rock album, however, the drones that inhabit the songs and the drowsy vocal on tracks like 'The Stranger' give it something far more alluring than the bands enjoyable debut record.  The fuzzy guitars and mesmeric drumming serve to add to the overall approach the record strives to achieve.  Its stoned, psychedelic feel is pitch perfect.  Buried Feather have released one of the first essential listens of 2017.  This is something fans of Moon Duo, Dead Meadow and The Cult of Dom Keller will definitely want to hear.


Buried Feather Bandcamp

Buried Feather Facebook

Cobra Snake Necktie Records (Aus)

Kozmik Artifactz Records (Eur)