Weedpecker - III

It's time for the first Cover Roulette of the year!!! For my first pick, I've gone for III by Warsaw psychedelic stoners, Weedpecker.  I know nothing about these guys, zip, zilch, nowt!  So, a quick read of their Facebook page shows that they first came together in 2012, they have released two other albums (Weedpecker and II, I'm sensing a pattern), and III was released on 5th January 2017.  The image of a river, surrounded by a forest and with broken lines in the sky and water is captivating, it grabs your attention and it makes you curious as to what the music sounds like.  So, without further ado, let's find out......

01 - Molecule

After a cascade of guitar loops, Weedpecker drops this psychedelic shoegazing rock and it's easy to see why this band is currently gaining a lot of hype.  Their sound is timeless, heavy in debt to Pink Floyd in place, but their originality is engrained in this song as well, more than for them to claim it as their own.  The beautiful opening gives way to some heavy riffs, which adds a layer of depth that adds another layer to this song.  Overall, this is a good opening number for this album.

02 - Embrace

"Embrace" is the longest song on this album, just over ten minutes in length and it's not for people with a short attention span.   You do feel like you've been on a journey on this one, but you always do when you're listening to such a long song.  I could write a whole blog just based on this album, but I'll have to do that another day. It's a towering song on this album, definitely worth the effort!

03 - Liquid Sky

"Liquid Sky" marks the midway point of III, with another psychedelic journey through the more active landscapes of Progressive Rock.  The song feels like the band is constantly going to break into another note drenched solo, with beautiful notes cascading out of your speakers and it all pools down into this dream filled song.  A beautiful, glorious number that never fails to deliver, it just hits the right spot each time.  It's the best song on offer here, hands down!  Again, it's another lengthy number, but it's well worth the effort as there are some many great passages of music on this one!

04 - From Mars to Mercury

"From Mars to Mercury" is the shortest track of this album, and it's still just over six and a half minutes long!  It's quite possibly the most aggressive song on this record, it never seems to want to stay still for too long.  The sound of this song brings to mind that wonderful Canadian Rock trio, Rush, I think that is as big a compliment as I can give this band, as they also (once again) add their own identity as well to "From Mars to Mercury", which is refreshing to hear in this day and age.

05 - Lazy Boy and the Temple of Wonders

The album ends with "Lazy Boy and the Temple of Wonders", and we find Weedpacker keeping to form on this track.  Pink Floyd daydreamers, Porcupine Tree riffing in places and their own tones tattooed all over it like a snake, it's a song that sounds as if it's hunting its prey.  It takes a while to get going if I'm honest, but you should keep faith with it, you'll love the results in the end!

Weedpecker is a brilliant band, their music is something that will please anyone who has ever needed something to lose their mind into, to empty all their thoughts, anxieties and energy and let the music was over them.  Their homebrew mixture of shoegazing, progressive rock and alternative sensibilities is very intoxicating, so much so that it should come with a health warning.  Now, this is one for a very specific audience, the stoners, the prog enthusiasts, the people who value notes and musical numbers that come with their time zones.  You will either love this or hate it, personally, I think it's a great record, but I'm a big progressive rock fan these days. If there is one problem I have with III, it's that it doesn't feel as if there is anything personal on the record.  It is a technically brilliant record, but it's that big that it misses a bit of the small detail. However, that doesn't change the fact that it still sounds brilliant, I'm definitely counting this as a win for Cover Roulette!

7.5 out of ten - This is good and worth checking out

Top track - Liquid Sky

You can purchase III on Amazon here.

You can purchase III (and other Weedpecker albums) on the Weedpecker Bandcamp page here.

You can follow the activities of Weedpecker on Facebook here.

You can stream III on Spotify here.

You can stream III on Deezer here.

You can stream III on Tidal here.