[This review was originally published in Badaboom Gramaphone #3 and appears here with permission.]
Where most space rock outfits aim for the heavens, Magnog takes you by the hand and lead you into a netherworld of dark, atmospheric psych jams. Heavily reverbed guitar explorations fill the void with uneasiness and dread.
Magnog is an absolute left-field shocker that sounds like the work of psychedelic elders, not three youngsters from Edmonds, Washington. Each track ebbs and flows like the ocean; Magnog isn’t concerned with writing “songs” as such; in fact, vocals detract from the rush their instrumentals inspire.
The two-CD More Weather is a collection of home recordings compiled from the band’s early home-brew tapes. Tracks take a bow before the mighty oligarchy of King Reverb and Queen Delay, rendering the improvisations awash in a soupy spectrum of sound. For Magnog, music lives inside a moment of inspiration, a singular abstract groove, as opposed to climactic build or the cohesion of song structure. Meandering is a statement of protocol for the group, and Prince Fade-In takes his seat by family throne. There are moments, as on “Chopstick,” where everything falls away, the particles of loose connection unfettering to the brink of silence before building up again with new ingenuity. Other tracks, like “Goom Chi Pan,” provide a brief window on a particularly intriguing moment. The home recordings suffer from limited range, but the ideal Magnon listener does not think in terms of sonic precision or time measured.
Octal is a side project for bassist Jeff Reilly. He plucks light, ethereal tones, avoiding Magnog’s sludgy wall of sound. Much of Octal ventures into the desolate soundscapes Flying Saucer Attack and Labradford occupied early on in their careers, but lacks the textured beauty of either band.