Acid King, the pioneering heavy rock band fronted by the inimitable trailblazer Lori S., return with their new studio album “Beyond Vision” on March 24th, 2023, via Blues Funeral Recordings, an album that sees the iconic San Francisco-based band lean into psychedelia and the avant-garde.
A taste of the new collection arrives with a video for “Destination Psych/Beyond Vision,” which can be seen below.
“The band was never really that psychedelic, but this is definitely more trippy because we’ve got keyboards and synthesizers”, Lori explains. “That’s something we’ve never had before on Acid King records. The songs really have no beginning or ending – they all just flow into each other. It’s meant to be listened to as one piece. The whole point was to have the listener feel like they’re on a journey. If you put headphones on, it’ll take you to whatever places you’d like to go to”.
One might even say that “Beyond Vision” is a concept record of sorts. “The record is based on the journey of life”, Lori says. “Jason [Landrian] and I were having these heavy pandemic conversations at the practice space for two years, talking about all the stuff you go through being in bands, touring, your relationships in life, all that stuff. You think this trip is supposed to go one way, but it goes in very different ways that you can never imagine”.
It’s not just life on Earth she’s talking about. “Beyond Vision” contemplates life on Mars, life on the moon, and death in the furthest reaches of space. Kubrick’s 2001: A Space Odyssey was a key influence. Then there was the mesmerizing 2019 documentary Apollo 11. “I was hugely inspired by that documentary”, Lori enthuses. “I absolutely love the soundtrack Matt Morton did for that. I’ve probably listened to it a million times. I really loved the journey it took me on, even without the movie. It just made me ponder life”.
The 7-song, 43-plus-minute collection was recorded to two-inch tape courtesy of Dead & Company at Sharkbite Studios in Oakland, Calif.. Lori worked hand in hand with Black Cobra guitarist & vocalist Landrian on “Beyond Vision”, with the pair sharing writing and production credits. The band is rounded out by Bryce Shelton (bass, synthesizer) and Jason Willer (drums).
Album pre-orders are available now here and Bandcamp, with “Beyond Vision” available on a variety of limited-edition formats including multiple vinyl and cassette variants along with CD and digital/streaming.
Tracklist:
1. One Light Second Away
2. Mind’s Eye
3. 90 Seconds
4. Electro Magnetic
5. Destination Psych
6. Beyond Vision
7. Color Trails
Adopting the nickname of notorious teenage slayer Ricky Kasso, Acid King came screaming out of San Francisco in 1993 with a sound that fused heavy ’70s proto-metal with the kind of bleary, slow-rolling dirge power being harnessed by their contemporaries in Sleep and Electric Wizard. The band’s 1993 debut 10″ was followed two years later by their full-length debut Zoroaster. Acid King’s acclaimed 1999 album Busse Woods solidified their reputation amongst a generation of riff worshipers, and heavy rock enthusiasts. Acid King, founded by and helmed by vocalist/guitar player Lori S., have released four full-length studio albums: “Zoroaster” (1995), “Busse Woodsv (1999), “Acid King III” (2005), and “Middle of Nowhere, Center of Everywhere” (2015), as well as a collection of EPs and split releases.
Weblinks:
acidking.com
facebook.com/acidkingsf
