TRIPPY WICKED & THE COSMIC CHILDREN OF THE KNIGHT (Going Home) LP/CD
'Going Home', released in April 2012, is the newest album of TRIPPY WICKED & THE COSMIC CHILDREN OF THE KNIGHT to which I will just refer to as TRIPPY WICKED, you’re invited to guess why! I am not familiar with the previous albums of TRIPPY WICKED, but knowing the other band of Peter Holland (vocals/guitar) and Chris West (drums), STUBB, and already seeing them live, I was quite curious about this release. The band is completed by Richard King on bass and presents nine songs on this record, which was mixed by STONE AXE’s own Tony Reed, who also did the last ST. VITUS album. The first song which is also the title track kicks off with pounding drums, accompanying fuzzy guitars, before switching into a groovy mid-tempo rocker.
Holland’s vocals are rather high pitched and float above the dense layer of warm, detuned distortion created by guitar and bass. With eight and a half minutes this song is the longest on 'Going Home' and evolves into a heavy, yet relaxed instrumental with multilayered guitars and keyboards, which creates a nice trippy (!) atmosphere. The second song 'Up the stakes' is a head-nodding rocker, featuring some nice stoner-riffs and tasty breaks. The drums are up front in the mix with a biting snare and a booming bass drum, while the bass lays a growling fundament. Sometimes they almost drown out the rhythm guitars, so loud and punchy they come along. In 'Go Outside' Holland shows some nice guitar licks and great vocal delivery. The band sounds very tight, the rhythm section locks in really well.
What gives TRIPPY WICKED a nice stand-out feature is the well-placed use of uncommon sounds, like brass instruments, especially in the slow-pounding groover 'I Want Another Drink', which also features great whiskey-soaked vocals and tasty acoustic guitar parts, although the song is mainly based on some mighty sludgey riffs. Definitely an outstanding track. Another really great song is 'Change Your Mind', a nearly seven-minutes long journey through catchy riffs and superb vocals harmonies, which almost sounds like a combination of EYEHATEGOD and SOUNDGARDEN, if that’s possible. 'Home' ends this enjoyable record with a short instrumental. Could have gone on for some more minutes for my taste, but nonetheless a very good album with some great tunes, definitely recommended.
(Steve Albino)