Volume 9

Volume 9 of East Coast psychedelic collective Bardo Ponds ongoing archival series is drawn from sessions recorded in 2005 and 2006 when brothers John and Michael Gibbons, along with viola and flute player Isobel Sollenberger, were jamming with guest drummer Michael Zanghi. The groups longstanding heaviness is present even in Vol. 9s most subdued moments, with "Conjunctio" combining thoughtful acoustic guitar, meandering, distant flute, and softly tapped hand percussion with waves of thick, overpowering fuzz guitar. This Popol Vuh-meets-Hawkwind style continues on the amorphous, free-of-form "The Nine Doubts," with spirals of feedback and tambourine rattles bumping into each other gleefully without finding any discernible patterns. The slow-rolling, two-part "War Is Over" introduces more traditional groove, with a gelatinous and repetitive rhythm serving as a backdrop for droning synths and comforting guitar lines. The drone all but swallows the rest of the song on the second part of the piece, which stretches out to over 20 minutes. Its a musical idea that feels troubled and reassuring at the same time, consisting of a dreamy groove akin to the misty space rock of Kranky Records early-90s catalog, and violent dissonance on par with the first Velvet Underground album or Meddle-era Pink Floyd. The energy just ramps up and up and up, with Zanghis playing becoming more insistent and wah-wah guitars and viola scratches taking the sound from Jessamine-esque mumbling to Fun House-styled explosibility. Even with this slowly rising tide of aggression, Bardo Pond show restraint and mastery of their psychedelic fury in this incarnation, just as they do in most of their other configurations. Zanghis presence on Vol. 9 gives the album a distinctive feel, and it stands as one of the most exciting entries in a series that rarely disappoints. ~ Fred Thomas