Volume (ex-Fu Manchu, ex-Monster Magnet, Nebula, w/ Dave Catching) drops cover of Union Carbide Productions classic »The Golden Age«
Californian desert rock band Volume drops a cover of »The Golden Age« by Swedish rockers Union Carbide Productions. This is the second single taken from their new album, »Joy Of Navigation (A Trip Through The Eternal Unknown)«, set to release on November 1st, 2024 via Golden Robot Records (digital) / Kozmik Artifactz (vinyl).
Tracklist:
01. Joy Of Navigation
02. Mercury
03. Heavy Sunshine
04. Golden Age
05. Space Baby
Courtesy of US/THEM Group:
“Pure, unadulterated desert rock by masters of the genre.” – Decibel Magazine
“Beefy, noisy, crunchy primal glory.” – Metal Injection
“Feels like an acid trip in a sandstorm.” — Psychedelic Baby
Twentynine Palms, CA band Volume shares a new single from their forthcoming album »Joy Of Navigation (A Trip Through The Eternal Unknown)« alongside an in-depth interview with It’s Psychedelic Baby Magazine. The single, »The Golden Age« is a spot-on cover of a classic track by 90s Swedish punk/stoner band Union Carbide Productions (members of which later went on to garage-psych band The Soundtrack Of Our Lives). Hear the song & read the discussion HERE (Direct to DSPs and Bandcamp).
Metal Injection previously launched the video for title track »Joy Of Navigation« HERE. Decibel Magazine premiered the lead single prior HERE.
Volume also announce Western U.S. tour dates in support of the album. See all dates below.
The band is Volume and it deals primarily in density: Thick and weighty as the abundant sand surrounding their Twentynine Palms, CA hometown, but also comprised of a mass of fine grit that can sear the skin with a gust of wind, and quickly dissipate into the ether.
Yes, that is to say, Volume are purveyors of Heavy Acid Rock. Doomy psychedelia, but with more raw 70s punk brash than masquerading metal. Volume draw musical influences from bands such as The Stooges, MC5 and Black Flag to name a few, while also crafting their own distinctive heavy psychedelic identity. And, with »Joy Of Navigation«, the band ventures into heavier, more psychedelic tones, while also keeping powerful hooks as the focus.
Originally formed in 1993 by ex-Fu Manchu singer Patrick Brink, the band has featured a revolving set of collaborators, with ex-Monster Magnet guitarist Ed Mundell playing leads on the forthcoming »Joy Of Navigation« mini-album. David Catching (QOTSA, Arctic Monkeys, Iggy Pop) co-produced the tracks with Brink, as well as playing synth on the recording. Mike Amster (Nebula, Mondo Generator, Spoon Benders) plays drums on the mini-album. The current live lineup includes Mingus on drums, bassist Jason Hernandez and lead guitarist Derek Christiansen.
Brink founded the band in order to take the lead and steer the musical reins down psychedelic rocking routes. Having performed with a number of acts including the aforementioned vocals for Fu Manchu in their early days, Volume offered Patrick a new creative outlet. Over their career the band has shared stages with Queens Of The Stone Age, Mastodon and Goatsnake, and performed at festivals including Emissions of the Monolith and Stoner Hands of Doom (SHoD).
Brink’s upbringing in the secluded desert town east of Joshua Tree and 60 miles north of Palm Springs had a huge impact on his songwriting. It is a place of beauty and harsh realities, and those contrasts are present throughout Patrick’s lyrics and songs. After getting into punk rock by accident in high school Patrick started his first band a couple of years later with the only other punks in town. This early love of punk rock inadvertently led him to the heavier bands on SST Records such as Wurm, SWA, DC3 and St. Vitus.
»Heavy As Fuck« (1996) and »Love Is A Mountain And Heavy As Fuck« (1998) were the band’s first recordings. In the Fall of 1998, the seven inch »Check This Planet I’m Gone…« was released on Superkool Records. »Requesting Permission To Land« (High Beam Records) was recorded with the help of Mike McHugh (Train, Jon Spencer Blues Explosion). Each song was recorded in one or two takes to retain the original heart and soul of the piece.
“It’s rock and roll. Not brain surgery,” says Patrick of the recording process. The end result is a potent blend of thirty-plus minutes of psychedelic fuzzfest freakout and perhaps some of the rawest riffs you’re likely to hear.
Volume draw inspiration from a time when music was truly experimental and free. They see themselves as rock’n’roll torch bearers whose duty it is to bring the flame, intact, into the future. They invite you to join in that endeavor, for the »Joy Of Navigation«.
»Joy Of Navigation« will be available for download/streaming on November 1st, 2024 via Golden Robot Records, and on LP via Kozmik Artifactz. Pre-save HERE, pre-order HERE.
Line-up:
Patrick Brink – Guitars, Vocals
Ed Mundell – Lead Guitar
Mike Amster – Drums
Abraham Parker – Bass, Acoustic/Electric Sitar, Rhodes, Piano, Synth, Backing Vocals
David Catching – Synth, Moog
Volume Live 2024:
11/01 Las Vegas, NV – Red Dwarf (Record release show)
11/02 Reno, NV – The Cellar Stage at Alturas Bar
11/03 Salt Lake City, UT – The DLC
11/04 Spokane, WA – Jackson St. Bar and Grill
11/05 Seattle, WA – El Corazón / Funhouse
11/06 Portland, OR – The Hawthorne Hideaway
11/07 Medford, OR – Johnny B’s
11/08 Santa Cruz, CA – The Jury Room
11/09 Oakland, CA – The Golden Bull Bar
Bojan Bidovc // music enthusiast, promoter, misanthrop and sometimes a journalist as well