In this edition of Thinking Man's Thursday, we're going to talk about a band that sounds like The Mars Volta, Rikard Sjoblom, and Dead Kennedys got together with some jazz fusion musicians, drank about 16 gallons of black coffee, and then tried to write the soundtrack to a Salvador Dali work that was painted in neon colors after a few days without sleep. That band is none other than The Physics House Band.
The Physics House Band surfaced in 2013 with Horizon / Rapture, and we're finally getting a followup titled Mercury Fountain on April 21. For the sake of substance, let's concentrate on just how great, underrated, and completely insane 2013's Horizon / Rapture truly is.
For about 45 seconds during the opener "ObeliskMonolith," there's no clear direction as to what you're about to hear. Organs modulate and swell, drums flail wildly, some sort of bass-centric instrument hits every note it's got, and in the distance, an electric pianos bubble and disappear. There's no real end to this free form jam either, just a jumpcut right into a relentlessly upbeat track that makes every rhythmic accentuation count. Time signatures come and go, swing feels and halftime feels alternate, atmospheric bits arise, and it all comes back to that jumpcut riff right at the start… all while being completely coherent.
The Physics House Band certainly didn't blow its musical load all on the first song, leaving the remaining five to coast off its glory. For songs like "ObeliskMonolith," there are tracks like "Hollow Mountain" and "The Great Beyond." Both are compositions could've easily been arranged for a solo piano, or even written as ambient pieces, but this is The Physics House Band and things aren't that simple. Instead, the two songs concentrate their efforts on central chord progressions, but the surrounding instrumentation creates a soundstage that's 20 miles high and much deeper than the eye/ear even cares to imagine.
Horizon / Rapture is an adventure through progressive rock, through jazz, through lessons in minimalist instrumentation, and ultimately hits that sweet spot where it's just long enough that you've got to listen to it again. Mostly because it's fantastic, but also because you know damn well that every time you listen, you're going to pick up on a new running theme, or fill, or section that you didn't dive deep enough into the first time around.
Check it out in full below, and check out The Physics House Band's new single "Calypso" below that.
