Stagestruck

TEXAS PSYCH FEST
@Stubb's, Austin, TX, August 10, 2002
@Room 710, Austin, TX, August 11, 2002
Psychedelia, it has been argued, was invented in Texas. Music critics and historians, especially those in the Lone Star state, claim that the 13th Floor Elevators were the very first psychedelic band. Certainly they were the first group of longhairs to refer to themselves with that designation via their 1966 debut album The Psychedelic Sounds of the 13th Floor Elevators. But to back up that argument you'd have to have a solid description of exactly what psychedelic music is, and that's a term for which you'll find as many definitions as dictionaries. Is it improvisational electric music as heavy on volume as on technical prowess? Is it droning atmospherics coupled with angelic vocals and poetic stream-of-consciousness lyrics? Is it spacey instrumental effects and Beatles-derived melodies stretched beyond their limits? Is it heavy metal informed as much by bong hits as by unfocused rage? It's all these things and more, as this weekend proved.

The whos and wherefores aren't truly important; what is significant is that Texas has a rich history of psychedelic rock stretching back to the 60s. The first annual Texas Psych Fest paid tribute to that history, gathering a diverse set of contemporary psych bands together for two weekends (the first one in Houston) of fan camaraderie and mind-expanding sonics, all for the benefit of Great Britain's venerable Ptolemaic Terrascope, the most fanatical and most interesting magazine covering the ongoing evolution of psychedelic rock. Organized by Primordial Undermind leader Eric Arn and featuring an ongoing light and film show by Lori Surfer, the Fest gathered freaks of all stripes in happy harmony for many hours of border-blurring sonics and acid-fried melodies.

While the term psychedelia may be associated with West Coast bands like the Grateful Dead, there was no Jerry Garcia-style jam band boredom on display at Stubb's. Opening the show was Denton's Wild Bull Orchestra, the latest project from North Texas psych genius Wanz Dover, late of space rock combo Mazinga Phaser and currently heading up the rocking Falcon Project. Though usually a larger band that includes a choir, for this appearance Dover had slimmed his group down to a quintet: a bassist, keyboardist, singer and himself and another dude on guitar and laptops. If what psychedelia means to you is the exploration of sound within the context of a strong melody, the Wild Bull Orchestra was probably the weekend's purest expression of the form. On tunes like "Nick at Night" and "Evening Sun," Dover switched back and forth from strumming his Fender to tapping out electrobeats on his Mac; the other musicians provided samples and sounds to accent his tuneful drones, while vocalist Sarah Alexander manipulated her ethereal cooing with a vocal processor. Under all the special effects, however, were songs with strong backbones that could even be called catchy; Dover's warm singing made it even more accessible. The band was a perfect example of the marriage between old-school psychedelic philosophy and futuristic technology, blurring the line between ambient soundscapes and song-oriented psych. The Wild Bull Orchestra's performance got the Fest off to an especially impressive start. (more)

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