Kind: Rocket Science

Stoner/psych rock veterans let off some steam

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Like many supergroups, Kind mash their respective musical backgrounds together like they’re frying up last night’s leftovers.

Formed from members of Elder, Black Pyramid, Rozamov and Roadsaw, the lineup won’t set the world on fire unless you only listen to bands who play Desertfest, but the prospect of four seasoned guys from heavy psych and stoners’ fertile pastures is intriguing. Dissecting the spun-out, stonerish grooves of their other projects and yanking out its psychedelic membrane, Rocket Science sounds more like a bad trip than a backyard party.

Craig Riggs sings with an ever-present reverb that’s as haunting as it is old-school and as the album slowly ploughs through the heavy psych dirge the mood occasionally lifts, hopping along like an inebriated rocker on Pastrami Blaster and offering some chilled-out respite on Siberia.

But those thick slabs of psychedelia, like the hypnotic Hordeolum and the crooked jam on the anguished German For Lucy, are the real hooks, building up an atmosphere that’ll sound awesome played live.

Holly Wright

With over 10 years’ experience writing for Metal Hammer and Prog, Holly has reviewed and interviewed a wealth of progressively-inclined noise mongers from around the world. A fearless voyager to the far sides of metal Holly loves nothing more than to check out London’s gig scene, from power to folk and a lot in between. When she’s not rocking out Holly enjoys being a mum to her daughter Violet and working as a high-flying marketer in the Big Smoke.