Album Review

Ganglians – Monster Head Room

• 1st Jun 2010

Opener ‘Voodoo’ establishes Ganglians as something far, far removed from the indie zeitgeist. Big, retro vocal melodies dominate their psychadelic sound, accompanied by jangly guitars. It’s a strong start, resembling something from the sixties – The Band’s first album comes to mind. The songs that follow are stylistically something of a mixed bag – shades of folk, noise rock, blues, 60s pop – but share a hazy, dreamlike atmosphere and penchant for gorgeous melodies.

It’s an uncompromising record, where a blissful acoustic number might be followed by five minutes of harrowing noise, and this boldness alone makes it an admirable effort.

Already well-received in the indie media, it will be very interesting to see what the future has in store for this intriguingly singular new band.