Terrascope Reviews for March 2026

The Black Watch


= March 2026 =

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THE BLACK WATCH - VARIED SUPERSTITIONS

CD/LP from Blue Matter

John Andrew Frederick, who hails from Santa Barbara USA, is one of the nicest guys in rock, and it’s through no fault of his own that he’s been through more record labels in his time to date than most established bands have released albums. With all due respect to the others however, Nick Saloman and Gary Unwin’s Blue Matter label feels to me like it could well prove to be the perfect match at long last for this, the Black Watch’s 26th LP, with its acutely literate lyrics (something the Bevis Frond founder himself is a past master at), catchy melodies and trippy psychedelic flourishes (ditto) and deft dabs of colour from a slightly more indie/anthemic/shoegaze palette than one might at first glance expect from an outfit presumably named after the proudly Scottish military band that conquered the US charts in 1976 with their single ‘Scotch on the Rocks’.

But to return to the album in question, which is unquestionably a gem. The seven-minute plus opening number It Is What It Isnt’ features some gloriously shimmering, pellucid guitar work; tracks like ‘Jolly Melancholy’ and ‘In This Town’ show glimpses of a collision between The Cure and the Teardrop Explodes, and the title track anchors the whole with the band’s trademark driving bass lines and rock steady beat. And yet, despite mention of any number of other acts whether influential or otherwise, the Black Watch’s music remains as original and timeless as a bee trapped in amber, and very nearly as beautifully melancholic as well.

(Phil McMullen)

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THE GREEN RAY - ORCHARD HOUSE
CD/LP from Blue Matter

Bear with us as we unravel the somewhat confusing origins/discography of The Green Ray. Originally formed as The Archers by ex-Help Yourself members Ken Whaley and Richard Treece alongside Simons Whaley (Ken's brother) and Haspeck, the quartet released their debut EP "The Green Ray" on Shagrat in 1993. Simon Burgin replaced Haspeck and the new lineup adopted the name of their debut EP, releasing another EP on Shagrat in 1995 with the brilliantly punny title "Sighs Whales And Trees" (think about it!) Confusing matters further, a third EP/mini-album (on Father Yod) followed in 1996, also titled "The Green Ray" which included a track from "Sighs Whales And Trees" but no overlap with The Archers "Green Ray" EP. It would be nearly a decade before their next release appeared in 2004, a compilation of tracks from The Archers EP, new recordings, and two tracks from their Terrastock 3 performance at University Of London ULU in 1999. An album of The Archers' lineup (billed as The Green Ray!) appeared in 2006, followed by a live album featuring The Bevis Frond guitarist (and former Ptolemaic Terrascope publisher) Nick Saloman in 2008.

While three-quarters of that original Green Ray lineup have passed on since their Terrastock performance, Simon Whaley has revived the project, which now features ex-members of Mouthful Of Grass Martin James Gee, Mark Cullum, and Dave Mackenzie. The Green Ray's seventh album (including several live recordings) continues their well-honed legacy of fragile, dreamy psychedelia, bolstered by the addition of flautist and saxophonist Mitch Brooks who adds some deft folk/jazz/prog elements to the proceedings. Gee's vocals certainly have a hint of Mr. Saloman's nasal delivery and a veil of Floyd's heavy-lidded nodders permeates tracks like opener 'The Veil Of Certainlys.' Sax and guitar intertwine perfectly to create a comfortable, laidback experience.

There's a little more oomph and a funky backbone to 'You'll Have To Get Lost (To Find Yourself)' and Gee and Whaley pull out all the stops on their flaming solos. The band flex their considerable improvisational skills on Side 2, stretching the three tracks beyond 20 minutes with intricate guitar interplay and sexy saxy moments throughout 'Ornamentals,' a floating, Dead-like groove to the appropriately-titled 'Float, Slight Return' which you may recognise from their debut and Terrastock performance, and a title track that ties everything up in a tight little package with agreeable elements of flute and a promising declaration that "It's gonna be allright."

(Jeff Penczak)

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GER EATON - SEASON CHANGES
(LP/CD from Dimple Discs)

Irish singer, songwriter, multi-instrumentalist, hair stylist and bona fide ‘Retro Aficionado’ Ger Eaton (“it’s pronounced Jair, short for Gerard,” he assures me) has long been a mainstay of the contemporary mainstream Irish music scene. ‘Season Changes’ is his debut solo album, released by the English label Dimple Discs - also home of Nick Haeffner, who was a regular feature of the Ptolemaic Terrascope review columns back in the day, for what it’s worth.

The album is beautifully produced and features string arrangements by my own favourite arranger whose name isn’t Robert Kirby, Andrew Keeling. Six of the songs have been released as singles, which indicates perhaps the market this is aimed at: aficionados of the late 60s and early 70s melodic rock big-hitters such as Colin Blunstone and the Walker Brothers, though I am also reminded in places of glam-rockers The Cleaners from Venus (led by poet Martin Newell) and introspective singer-songwriters such as Clifford T. Ward.

The lyrics and songwriting reveal this to be a “an old fashioned break-up record. Mirroring the seasons, the songs were written and recorded towards the end of my marriage, from the glowing bloom of its springtime right through to its wintry conclusion.” The stand-out track is undoubtedly the title song itself, ‘Season Changes’, which closes the album; however the Honeybus-esque ‘Heaven Knows’ is a gem, and the cleverly arranged ‘To The Ones’ is a real heartstring-tugger. I also really enjoyed a couple of the instrumental interludes particularly ‘Estival Air’ and the piano-driven ‘Wintertide’. The album cover’s nod of acknowledgment to Fleetwood Mac’s Kiln House is also nicely done.

(Phil McMullen)

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ASTRALASIA - AN INTRODUCTION TO
(4xCD set from Fruits De Mer)

[Apologies for the long read, but I felt it was worth it - JP]

Marc "Swordfish" Hunt's career stretches across nearly 45 years so this extravagant, hand-picked, 40-track, four-disc set only scratches the surface. Completists with froth over the dozen unreleased and rare, hard-to-find tracks, but new fans who discovered him and his projects via his numerous Fruits De Mer releases will also find much to enjoy across the 4-plus hours of material, including that very first release recorded in 1982 on a 4-track Teac A3340 reel-to-reel that was actually a mistake (trivia fans). The female vocalists couldn't actually sing so the track, 'Girls Talk' released on a compilation cassette and credited to Commodore 64 Choir is essentially them having a chat over a musical loop in the background! Various magic mushrooms of the hallucinogenic mind tripper variety followed (Magic Mushroom Band, Mushroom Project, Mushroom, the latter not connected to former Terrascope editor Pat Thomas' West Coast project) before Astralasia began life in 1990.

Swordfish and his band of merry mirth makers (which once included Yardbirds vocalist Keith Relf's son Jason as an early member) have successfully traversed the world of ambient dub, acid house, trance, dance, psychedelic pop with occasional toe-dips into krautrock, soundtracks, and remixes, all of which are on offer. 'Cresta Run' begins the adventure in a dreamy mood before the title track from its parent album Wind On Water floats by over an hypnotic bass pulse. 'Astral Voyager' will have your heart racing like a marathon runner and the first of many covers (a Fruits De Mer specialty) Brainticket's 'Cotton Wood Hill'/'Places Of Light' features some fancy frantic fretwork, a HI-NRG disco stomp, and a gnarly organ solo. Just beware the siren if you're driving home after a night out at a techno underground party! 'Tangerine Skies' and the 'Alooland Ambient Mix' from the Oceania double album end the first disk in a laidback, chill out groove with hints of Eno and The KLF hovering in the air.

Several selections from The Darkest Voyage 6-CD compilation featuring Astralasia and friends/side projects highlight the second disc, which includes the dancefloor magnets 'Really Stomp,' 'Dream Sequence,' and Finnish space rockers Superfjord's "whirly remix" of Astralasia's take on John Coltrane's 'A Love Supreme' ('Deep Magick') which might have 'Trane rolling in his grave, but will have you boogieing on the dancefloor. The bonus 7" tucked inside the special edition of Oceania features 'Shala Dub Dubber' which will have you checking the label to make sure some long lost PiL throbbing bass dub outtake hasn't found its way inside. Jah Wobble fans will smile and nod approvingly.

Both sides of their pseudonymous alter egos The Fishheads successfully tackle Chet Power's old chestnut 'Let's Get Together' and it rightly holds its head up, er, high among the numerous versions recorded over the last 60 years. I should add they got our old Terrascope friend Anton Barbeau to provide a guest vocal! Barbeau's dulcet tones also feature on the flip side, a faithful 'Pleasant Valley Sunday' which is a rare pop/psych treat. I think I can say without fear of contradiction that Astralasia/Fishheads is the only band to cover a Mighty Baby track and their 'Egyptian Tomb' adds a female choir and sympathetic flute solo to good effect. An appropriately spacey Floyd cover 'Remember A Day' also features from The Fishheads Lobster Basque Replica album, another sign of the wonderful, if occasional groan-worthy album titles the band (and Fruits De Mer head honcho Keith Jones) have unleashed over the years.

Label mates The Chemistry Set remix 'Neptune Eruptus' and it's bong-os away with lots of things that go "swooosh" to keep your head throbbing and body swerving at about 180 BPMs (that's "blood pressure medicines" for the in-Experienced!) Astralasia also had the pleasure of remixing Hawkwind's 'Spirit Of The Age' for the rather confusing "Solstice Remixes" album. A previously unreleased alternate version of their 'Flesh To Phantasy' remix (a remix of a remix?) highlights their ambient trance period.

Most of disc 3 features previously unreleased material, starting with a 10-minute psychedelic jazz jam from The Mushroom Project II side project (aka Mushroom). 'Dr. Terror' feels like we walked in on the band mid-performance, but we caught the groove quite quickly and let our freak flag fly. Imagine a krautrock Crimson and you're nearly there, although the '(Outs Demons)' subtitle might invoke hints of the Edgar Broughton Band. Simon House jumps onboard to pen 'Cluster Of Waves at The Devilles [sic] Bridge', featuring his violin virtuosity.

The Magic Mushroom Band signposted the name (and stylistic) change to the eponymous 'Astralasia' 35 years ago on their Spaced Out release. Ambient dub, Goa trance, and house music morphed into the amoebic throb of hallucinatory happiness that permeates this 4-disc set. DJ duo Salt Tank (David Gates - no, not that one and Malcolm Stanners) deliver an electronic / progressive / trancy heart-stopping collaboration with Néve (aka Angela John)'Butterfly' (featured here in its previously unreleased demo version). It's twice as long as the released version on an obscure New Zealand compilation and had me searching for more. Apparently they're quite the prolific chaps so I've got my work cut out for me.

The remainder of disc three highlights previously unreleased tracks from an Astralasia EP that might excite fans of The Shamen, The ORB, The KLF, and their ilk and/or induce you to book a flight to Ibiza asap. 'Keep On Loving You' got my blood boiling, 'Freedom' is one of my favourite tracks on the whole set - an appropriately soaring symphonic triumph with a booty-boppin' backbeat that reminded me of M83's Versailles theme, 'Outro' with the BPMs pumped up several notches to be honest, and 'Mystic' has a nice New Order dance groove. A rare example of Astralasia onstage can be experienced via their cover of Salt Tank's 'Sargasso Sea' recorded at a 2014 benefit concert for the Penrose Almhouses (Litchdon Street in Barnstable). The disc ends with the aforementioned infamous 'Girls Talk.'

Moving on to the fourth disc, completists will drool over nearly half an hour of outtakes from the Something Somewhere album (a Rundgren reference?), all featuring the entrancing vocals of frequent collaborator Melanie Taylor, and space out to lengthy paint-peeling wah-wah solos (the title track from A Coloured In Dream [sic]). 'Johnny Remember Me' comes off like Motörhead attacking 'Ghost Riders In The Sky,' and we end our four-hour trip through Astralasia with half of Marc's 22-minute remix of The Chemistry Set's devolution of Hendrix's 'Love Or Confusion,' 'Set The Controls For The Heart Of The Laboratory.' Only Swordfish could figure out how to transform Hendrix into Pink Floyd. Whew!

(Jeff Penczak)

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JOHN TOWNLEY - ROUND SWAMP ROAD
CD/LP from Lollipoppe Shoppe

The 80-year old Townley's career stretches back over 60 years to his days studying under Rev. Gary Davis, playing in Greenwich Village blues clubs, forming a duo with David Blue, founding the Psychedelic Rangers in 1965, and eventually joining folk rockers The Magicians on their post-'An Invitation To Cry' singles (1966-67). Townley then opened Apostolic Studios in New York where Zappa recorded several albums and Townley recorded eponymous albums by his subsequent projects Family Of Apostolic (1968) and Ocean (1969, released in 2020 by Lollipoppe Shoppe). Townley then focused his energies researching and recording maritime folk music as a member of The X-Seaman's Institute throughout the '70s (several albums on Folkways) and recently as a solo artist (recent albums are also available on Lollipoppe Shoppe).

Townley's latest effort continues on from the folk blues style of 2020's The Old Sailor, easily sliding between such blues classics as Blind Willie Johnson's 'What Is The Soul Of A Man,' Arthur Phelps's 'Dirty Dealing Blues,' and his mentor Rev. Gary Davis's 'Soon My Work Will All Be Done.' He even dips his feet (and fingers) into the traditional gospel sermon 'When The Train Comes Along' and completes the album with numerous originals that capture the social consciousness of the blues. Grammy award-winning producer John Kilgore recorded the basic tracks (acoustic guitar, vocals, and foot percussion) to which multi-instrumentalist Townley completed his one-man band supplementations - banjo, accordion, harmonica, etc.

His gravelly vocals imbue his selections with the well-worn emotion of a man who's lived through the turbulent '60s and find things haven't changed much six decades later. There's an atmosphere of anger at life's injustices (a la the Guthries) in 'When The Train Comes Along' and 'I'm Going Down Tonight' which are tempered by the lighthearted playfulness of tracks like Bo Carter's 'Let's Get Drunk Again,' the traditional hoedown 'Waterbound,' "the 7/4 oddity in gringo Spanish" 'La Ley De Dios,' and the jump up, spin around, shout along original 'The Little Things.' A Christian prayer for forgiveness reaches out from 'Always Companion' nodding towards the spiritual element of the blues and Townley brings it on home with a heart-wrenching rendition of Rev. Gary Davis's 'Soon My Work Will All Be Done.'

(Jeff Penczak)

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LAURA SNOWDEN - THIS CHANGING SKY
(CD/digital from Bandcamp)

This one’s been marinating with me for quite some time and has become a fixture among my favourites. The debut album from acoustic guitarist Laura Snowden is full of unexpected treats and creativity. It’s quite unlike anything you’d expect to hear from someone you might think is narrowly defined as a classically trained instrumental player of the acoustic guitar. It’s also quintessentially English.

Snowden has taken a long path to get here. At sixteen, the gifted musician won a scholarship for guitarists to the Yehudi Menuhin School courtesy of the Rolling Stones. She’s also a graduate of the Royal College of Music, and studied and worked with the late, great Julian Bream. She performed both classical works and her own compositions for years, winning many accolades. She’s also been commissioned to compose many pieces for other instruments. Now about this remarkable debut album.

First track out of the gate is a classically inspired guitar work, right? Wrong. 'The Dragon’s Lair' is a spoken word piece by Snowden, featuring her on guitar and guest Loz Garratt on bass. The narration is a Lewis Carroll-like bit of the Jabberwock, one of three such tales peppered through the album. Now you’re thinking this isn’t quite what I expected. The second track is traditional folk tune 'Carrickfergus.' The pretty melody is complemented by Snowden’s lovely singing voice. It’s such a delightful piece, but it left me thinking why, oh why, Laura, did you make this the only track you sing on when you have such a charming voice? More of this please on album number two.

The remaining tracks are instrumental. There are some very tasteful guest contributions, such as the poignant, soft saxophone by Amy Green on 'Picking Up the Pieces,' next to Snowden’s gentle guitar work. The other is arguably even better - 'Love, Eternal,' with an achingly beautiful violin lead by Joo Yeon Sir in front of Snowden’s understated guitar melody. This one leaves you reaching for the hanky.

All the rest are Snowden originals on solo guitar, and they’re all simply exquisite. Highlights – well, they’re all highlights – so, highlights of the highlights include 'Home,' a tender farewell she wrote to her mentor and collaborator Julian Bream upon his death in 2020. It’s full of thoughtful pauses and lots of breathing space. It’s another one that had me grabbing a Kleenex. The title track is a five-and-a-half-minute meditation on the changing and moving clouds overhead. In it, there are unexpected charming moments where Snowden sings or hums along with her playing (she does the same on the eerie 'The Unknown.'). Finally, there’s 'Song for Maria,' a hauntingly beautiful melody she wrote for her sister who’s six years younger. It has a touch of classical, lyrical guitar, with lots of arpeggios and harmonics. It’s a tune perfect for heartbreaking movie scenes or to contemplate just how much you love someone.

On This Changing Sky, Laura Snowden proves indubitably that less is more. The talented musician always chooses melody and subtlety over demonstrations of technical prowess. Everything here is understated and quiet, and the effect on the listener is to only love it more. I can’t wait to hear what she has up her sleeve for the follow-up.

(Mark Feingold)

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LAMP OF THE UNIVERSE - EXISTENCE OF THE SELF
(LP from Sound Effect / Echodelick)

It's an anniversary of sorts for New Zealand's pre-eminent psychedelic folkie Craig Williamson who released his beloved debut album 25 years ago on Cranium. His visionary head music for the soul induces warm glows, heavy lids, dry mouths, and a sense of calm all too absent in these troubled times. From the opening sitar strums, fluttering flute, and monotonic chanted vocals of opener 'Sceptre Of Healing' we know we're in for another spiritual awakening of the inner light that resides in all of us if we take the time to discover it and turn it on.

Tabla tapping accompanies the sitar backing on 'Ship Of Eternity' that has an ominous sense of endlessly floating in an amniotic bath, as does 'Mantric Waves' which adds percussion and keyboards to the trip. This is one of those nearly 10-minute songs that seem to last for hours. It's easy to get lost in Williamson's musical universe and your own personal "mantra."

Williamson has more trips, er, tricks up his sleeve on the Harrisonesque 'Into The Light' which brings phased guitars, echoed, treated vocals, and a tasty solo to the party. The sleepy, dreamy title track is another navel-gazer primed for inner exploration of self awareness. There's even time for a gnarly solo sure to please Nick Saloman/Bevis Frond fans, of whom I assume there are a few out there! Finally, the sleep-deprived may want to hunker down and absorb the 'Arkkadian Ritual' that assures a satisfying, mellow landing in dreamtime. Sitar, tabla, Mellotron, and double-tracked vocals that I could've sworn I heard before Williamson actually sang them (but I may have been hallucinating) end this trip on a high note.

(Jeff Penczak)

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BLACK PIG MEAT - SYMBIOTIC DREAM
(CD, Digital from Raging Planet Records)

This is a most excellent debut from Portugal’s Black Pig Meat. It’s all instrumental jazzy space rock, and boy, do these fellas have it down. The band formed in 2022 as a power trio featuring Marcelo dos Reis on guitar, Pedru Lameira on bass, and Tiago Vaz on drums. They found their early identity through jamming, as you do when you play this kind of music. However, the band truly found their footing with the addition of André Duarte on keyboards.

When you listen, it’s apparent all four are stalwart musicians. The five tracks are all lengthy excursions between five and ten minutes long. That they could have formed such a solid, cohesive sound this quickly is a testament to both their chops and sense of teamwork. It isn’t just their talent as musicians; this could’ve been a jammin’ mess, but the sonic separation between the instruments, the light and shade, and their tunefulness all contribute to their overall success.

Lameira and Vaz lay down a rock-solid rhythm section foundation, while dos Reis and Duarte are the band’s twin North Stars. While dos Reis does the lion’s share of the band’s lead work on guitar – and he is splendid – Duarte divides his duties between rhythm and lead on keyboards. He does bring the space synths, but it’s his more frequent use of conventional instruments like organs and Rhodes electric piano that accentuates the band’s sound so brilliantly.

The album’s centrepiece is the ten-minute-plus 'Veggie.' It’s got everything good about this band. It’s built around an endlessly repeating seven-note guitar riff (you won’t grow tired of it). The riff is so ingrained that it even stumbles in a morphed version like a dizzy drunkard on a Saturday night into the following track 'Sóbole.' 'Veggie' has multiple fast/slow and loud/quiet sections, brilliant guitar work by dos Reis, a spiffy jazz electric piano solo, and a trippy synth section both by Duarte, and even a fine bass solo by Lameira. On the aforementioned 'Sóbole,' though it’s mostly in the background, Duarte plays some wickedly bluesy piano that finally pokes its head out in the clear in the closing sections of the song.

On closer 'Savana,' yet another show of extended improvisational excellence, if there was any restraint left, and I doubt there ever was, dos Reis does some maleficent shredding, while drummer Vaz gets a supreme workout, showing both variation and incredible dexterity on his kit.

While their choice of band name might not necessarily rocket them to the top of the charts, Black Pig Meat is one talented band who show up on this debut a fully formed aggregation who play improvisational rock, jazz, and space riffs off each other beautifully. They’d be an intense band to catch live in the act. Hopefully we won’t all have to go to Portugal to do that, not that I would mind the trip.

(Mark Feingold)