Review Summary: You gotta hang on to the trip you're on.
Vibravoid, the psychedelic rock veterans from Germany, celebrate their 35th anniversary this year with a brand new record,
Remove the Ties. Strongly influenced by late ‘60s psych sounds, they have always maintained a retro image and vibe. From the vinyl-only releases during their earlier years, featuring excellent material such as
Void Vibrations,
The Politics of Ecstasy, and
Distortions, to their most prolific post-2010 era, the group preserved their output quality while expanding on their own sonic take on the genre too.
This latest effort fittingly summarizes what Vibravoid is all about, providing both pop-tinged psychedelic ditties and hallucinatory space jams.
Remove the Ties starts with the synth-heavy “Computer Dreams,” channeling Kraftwerk through its catchy leads and samples over a Mellotron-based rhythm. After this brief warm-up, the cosmic trip ensues through “Neustart.” As the groove kicks in right from the opening notes, a round of sharp, Hawkwind-esque riffs transports you directly into outer space, whereas the accompanying reverbed vocals only add to the psychotropic atmosphere. “The Power of Dreams” & “Your Revolution Is Dead” provide further fuel with a blend of both fuzzed-out and twangy guitars over steady beats. The band perfected their sound over the years, managing to produce immersive journeys even on four-minute bangers. Nevertheless, they still stretch things out on the title track and “Follow Me Follow You,” which get closest to their extended, mesmerizing odysseys. Once more, the buzzing riffs work really well over bouncy bass lines, various oscillators, and effects-drenched progressions. The latter even features an electric jug-like sonic layer a la 13th Floor Elevators. In between them, “Increasing the Pain,” a playful psych-pop number, as well as the mellower “A State of Mind,” offer a lighter approach, nicely rounding the release. The only missing thing is a lengthy spaced-out cut, which would have further enhanced the LP’s vibe, akin to previous gems such as “Your Mind Is at Ease” or “The Essence of Noise’’, to name a couple. Even so,
Remove the Ties is one of the strongest affairs Vibravoid has offered recently, quickly becoming a highlight in their discography. Thirty five years later, the band remains just as relevant to the psychedelic/acid rock scene with no signs of stopping.
