Aural Fixations

NICOLAI DUNGER
This Cloud is Learning
(Overcoat)
Originally his third album, Nicolai Dunger's This Cloud is Learning finally sees American release. That it took so long—it was recorded in 1999—is puzzling not only because of the Swedish singer/songwriter's ever-growing status in American underground rock, but also because of his high-profile collaborators on this record. (more)

HIGH ON FIRE
Blessed Black Wings
(Relapse)
There's heavy and then there's heavy. Forget alleged leading lights like Lamb of God or Shadows Fall. On its third album Blessed Black Wings, California's High On Fire blasts past any simple designations like "stoner rock" or even "metal" into its own rarefied stratosphere of tonnage. (more)

OUTRAGEOUS CHERRY
Our Love Will Change the World
Why Don't We Talk About Something Else E.P.
(Rainbow Quartz)
Once known mainly as a spinoff of country rock band the Volebeats, Detroit's Outrageous Cherry has grown into an impressive entity that stands on its own. Songwriter Matthew Smith and his compadres have moved through different permutations of 60s-derived psychedelic rock over the past decade, from straightforward pop tunes to outwardly cosmic epics and back again. (more)

ST37
The Insect Hospital
(Black Widow)
Destiny
(Blue Circle)
As any freak knows, Texas has a proud tradition of psychedelic rock that stretches to the mid-60s and the 13th Floor Elevators, who are often credited as the first band to employ the term "psychedelic." Austin's ST37 isn't that old, but the quintet has been melting minds and shifting perspectives since 1987, which is pretty impressive by any band's standards. The group's latest projects revolve around its ongoing affiliation with classic silent films, especially the work of German master Fritz Lang. (more)