HELEN KELTER SKELTER – Chroma Crawl (CD)

HELEN KELTER SKELTER – Chroma Crawl – (CD) – single pocket jacket

Horton Records 087 – Released 06.16.2023

Recorded in December 2019 at an undisclosed church in northwest Oklahoma City, HKS’s new EP showcases the band’s established wild-yet-tuneful style while still showing off new ways to keep things fresh. With their trademarked, reverb-drenched, chill vibe intact, the band fearlessly joust in several directions – all successfully – whether it’s the Hawkwind versus Krautrock tug-of-war in EP opener ‘Best Friends’ which brilliantly dives into a Sabbatherian outro complete with extra trippy percussion or if it’s the slow and lurching ‘Sceptre,’ summoning Red-era King Crimson with its ominous shifting time signatures with Eastern-tinged riffs that twist uneasily but resolve just in time before becoming sinister. It’s a quick and compelling ride for fans of Black Mountain but who also might desire a more song-conscious path.

*Recommended if you like: King Gizzard & The Lizard Wizard, Ty Segall or Thee Oh Sees

1. Best Friends
2. Feel That?
3. Ship Of Fools
4. Sceptre
5. Chill

Eli Wimmer – guitar / vocals / lyrics
Tim Gregory – guitar
Cody Clifton – bass
Scott Twitchell – drums / programming
John Goodell – synth / keys

Recorded & mixed by Joe Bello
Produced by Helen Kelter Skelter
Mastered by Trent Bell at Bell Labs
Artwork & Layout by Scott Twitchell