Narc. Magazine Online
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The Cluny welcomes a bill of pure lysergic rock action
Psych was always far more of a global phenomenon than people give it credit for: American and British pioneers might often get the credit, but it’s acts like Japanese avant-garde icons Les Razilles Denudes or Brazilian tropicalia pioneers Os Mutantes that have often proven the most influential. If there is such a thing as a universal language, the countercultural potency and perception altering qualities of psychedelia might be it.
Newcastle has been fortunate enough to see an influx of performances from brilliant psych artists across the world in the last few years thanks to hard-working promoters like Leave Me Here and Snakes Don’t Belong In Alaska, and these global contacts have come up with the goods once more with the return of Chilean trio La Hell Gang to The Cluny on Friday 23rd September.
Having started life as a more traditional garage rock trio steeped in The Jesus & Mary Chain and Black Rebel Motorcycle Club, their superb second album Thru Me Again delved into stranger and murkier territory to powerful effect. They’re a formidable live act, not afraid to rip apart and explore their songs, but with a grit that keeps things tight and aggressive.
With support from local overlords Blown Out (themselves attracting significant international acclaim with European tours and festival appearances), this is an unmissable bill for anyone after a dose of pure lysergic rock action.
La Hell Gang and Blown Out play The Cluny, Newcastle on Friday 23rd September.
