I had the pleasure of witnessing Psychedelic Porn Crumpets turn a sold-out Factory Theatre to pure liquid chaos the night before this album was released. Playing songs old and new, it was celebratory for the occasion. ‘Night Gnomes’ came out fittingly at midnight, lurking in the quiet darkness, waiting for the prime listeners to play the fluid brilliance through any form of speakers whatsoever.
And so, the journey begins; ‘Terminus, The Creator’ slowly erupts with the familiar fuzz that welcomes and captures our ears, a measured trance that seeps into the following track ‘Lava Lamp Pisco’, where the party skips second gear and bursts into technicolour. Psychoactive instrumentation gels effortlessly as the texture cultivates beautiful anarchy, intensifying and diminishing at all the appropriate times much to highlight the imaginative craftsmanship of each individual musician in the group.
‘Dread & Butter’ brings the energy down with melancholy reminiscence, an evocative sound hinting towards an earlier innocuous phase, spoken in the language only an acoustic guitar and some haunting strings could convey. This is complimented by the bizarre and eccentric stratums of ‘Bubblegum Infinity’, a song that reminds us that even though philosophers seem to have the answers, half the time we don’t even know the questions we’re asking. Absurdity manifests itself throughout this gloriously crafted track, further enforcing the dark themes that the album withholds.
There’s something eerie and fanciful about the combination of the filtered guitar melody and the everchanging time signatures in ‘Sherbert Straws’ that just confirms Psychedelic Porn Crumpets have perfectly ordered each track on this record. The fifth track is resonant to Desert Sessions albums (anyone?) with its hallucinogenic nature that floats like a benumbed time machine. Arriving at the title track ‘Night Gnomes’, the band tap into a whimsical fauna that exposes the true nuttiness that the greatest artists possess, splashes of clever licks and conducting percussion keep the song relatively tame until the final third where the hazardous layers of the cacophony begin to unravel.
‘Bob Holiday’ is a voyage through multiple decades with the particles of influences attached to the gritty microfibre. Echoing vocals guide us through the song’s wild qualities, another temporary ecosphere created inside the mind of main songwriter Jack McEwan. Harmonic effects and fluttering chords greet us in the interlude ‘Microwave Dave’ before launching into recent single ‘Acid Dent’ where frantic guitar riffage ramps the intensity back up to a superior level. Clever ascending intricacies add sparkle and volatility to the enigmatic mix, further confirming that you can never predict this band’s next musical move, but you can always count on it being one of genius.
The penultimate interlude ‘In Dream, Out’ blends a mixture of synthesisers to create an ethereal atmosphere that sets the tone for the record’s final track ‘Slinky / Holy Water’ to put the final touches on an explorational and ingenious expedition. Five minutes of lingering virtuosity, like a farewell hug that doesn’t want to let go, an embrace that beckons for a little more time before the door gently closes on the world of ‘Night Gnomes’.
Commenting on the themes of the album, McEwan says:
‘Night Gnomes’ is a bit darker than the other four releases. I don’t know if that’s the byproduct of being locked inside Western Australia for the past two years but it’s definitely given us a lot of time to think. I reckon this record has a bit more of a KID A/Amnesiac vibe to it, it’s a bit weirder, a little left of the ‘psych/pop’ world we’ve been tagged under. I kind of like that though, forever expanding, variety is the spice of life! It starts moody, talks of break ups and new relationships; gets kind of chirpy in the middle and then ends beautifully, a bit like Jurassic Park 3. I reckon Spielberg might rate it, he’s a mixture of a bag, isn’t he? All in all, I’m very proud of everyone’s efforts, it’s a step up which is a good direction to be stepping and it’s a good body of work that I’m happy to share with the world, our little patch of darkness. And if deeper isn’t your cup of moonshine, then at least you know the sixth album will be upbeat as F@!#.
‘Night Gnomes’ is out now and available in a variety of formats here and through the link below:
With the optimistic outlook and possibility of the world opening back up, Psychedelic Porn Crumpets will be embarking across the earth to deliver their live performances to venues across Australia, the US, the UK and Europe. Full details are here.
Boasting an already impressive resume that includes excess streaming numbers, almost five hundred thousand monthly listeners and the ongoing support from some of the largest tastemakers in Australia and the world, this band does not seem to believe in slowing down. Psychedelic Porn Crumpets have masterfully completed a degree in world building with ‘Night Gnomes’, a record that boasts the joy of playing God when it comes to song writing while also highlighting the serendipitous comfort in ludicrousness.
Feature Photograph: Tristan McKenzie
