Black Moth Super Rainbow – Cobra Juicy (Rad Cult)
CD/LP/DL
Out Now
Experimental psychedelic rockers Black Moth Super Rainbow released their latest album Cobra Juicy at the end of last year. Below is our review.
Mysterious name, mysterious presence, bloody great slice of slightly ditzy pop which can make you smile even in the crummiest of moods. Quirky Devo type synths and song structures meet the psychedelic qualities of early Flaming Lips and poppiness of the massively under rated B.C Camplight in an album of sweary, dreamy delight.
Black Moth Super Rainbow have been in existence for around 10 years and have been quietly gaining notoriety in the underground culminating in this, their latest release of many. Their ability to mix early eighties electronic pop with early seventies glam rock seem to have finally found the right mix to make for an enjoyable album from start to finish.
A cheery Sweet / Glitter band drumbeat sets the tone nicely, the masked freaks dive headlong into bizarre album that probably defies critique due to its complete bizarreness but I’ll try. From the gritty Glam Rock like opening we drift towards Dream Pop with the lovely “Psychic Love Damage” which would be out of place on an early 90’s 4AD record.
“We Burn” brings to mind “Odelay” era Beck with its prominent bass, slide guitar and chirpy synth. The layered vocals continue the Dream Pop age however, and if you’re not a fan of Cocteau Twins and the like then you’ll probably want to avoid this.
There is also the inescapable fact that Ariel Pink releases albums that sound like this every few months as well, and they’re very close musically, but again, if that’s your kind of thing then there’s a lot to take from this.
It’s worth sticking with this one, as final track “Spraypaint” as the vocoder treated voice and music brings to mind Giorgio Moroder which in turn means it’s brilliant. It’s as catchy as the norovirus and will have anyone hearing it once humming it for the rest of the day, which is what all good pop songs should do.
If you’re worried they’ll cross into the mainstream due to their new found cohesiveness, don’t be. They swear in quite a lot of songs, rarely give interviews and their music is interesting so that automatically rules them out for the mainstream. Wearing masks also makes the mainstream too far away, so you’re safe to listen to this quirky pop album without worrying Radio 1 will pick them up!
Black Moth Super Rainbow are on Facebook, Soundcloud and Youtube.
All words by Nick Wood. You can read more from Nick on LTW here.
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