THE :EGOCENTRICS (Love Fear Choices And Astronauts) LP/CD
Already the first demo 'Mystic Initiation' from the Romanian power trio THE :EGOCENTRICS has delighted me. They play an enthralling heavy instrumental psychedelic rock - blending Colour Haze-like rock riffs, progressive song structures, fluid Hendrix styled guitar lines, jazzy musicianship and improvistaion. This results is a sumptuous and wonderfully mesmerizing sound. No wonder then that Nasoni Records have signed THE :EGOCENTRICS, so that they were able to release their debut record 'Love Fear Choices And Astronauts' in 2010. Behind the strange album title, you will find four monumental epics, all of the tracks clock in between 10 and 13 minutes. Obviously with such grand works, designated listening is required to really feel and get the album as a whole. If you let them, the tracks really draw you in, engulfing you in a sea of sounds and styles, and all hit the skies with amazing climaxes.
Brenn's impressive guitar style is central to the music. He shines with virtuosity and displays his inexhaustible expression possibilities on the guitar without sounding boring or repetitive. Despite the blues and 70's heavy rock influence on their music, it is quite noticeable that THE :EGOCENTRICS are not averse to jazz. This is most conspicuous in the example of the opening track 'Spacewulf' where especially drummer Hera adds a fresh jazzy vibe to the song. The most fascinating thing is for me, how they loose themselves in improvisatory interplay of guitar, bass and rums. They manage to make songs that feel like a narrative; tenuously shifting enough without overindulging in an avant-garde sonic masturbation of sorts. It seems as if an invisible command suddenly leads them all back to the melody at the same time. And, of course, they are also able to unleash a blistering barrage of heavy riffs such as '20 12' or 'Bright Dawn Of The Soul'. To sum up, 'Love Fear Choices And Astronauts' is a 48-minutes long trip through the realms of cosmic heaviness. This is an absolutely incredible debut, coming from a band that has only been around for a few years.
(KK)