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113-654: The Sword's third album is the first by the band to be produced by someone other than frontman Cronise, who handled production duties on Age of Winters and Gods of the Earth . It was also the last album to feature original drummer Trivett Wingo, who left the band in October 2010 early into the promotional tour for the record, citing physical and mental exhaustion. The album was also the group's last to be released under their deal with Kemado Records, before signing with Razor & Tie in 2012. The lead single from Warp Riders

226-799: A bass -heavy sound, with melodic vocals, and 'retro' production, it was pioneered by the Californian bands Kyuss and Sleep . Modern festivals focusing on psychedelic music include Austin Psych Fest in Texas, founded in 2008, Liverpool Psych Fest, and Desert Daze in Southern California. There were occasional mainstream acts that dabbled in neo-psychedelia , a style of music which emerged in late 1970s post-punk circles. Although it has mainly been an influence on alternative and indie rock bands, neo-psychedelia sometimes updated

339-561: A chart-topping version of Dylan's " Mr. Tambourine Man " in the summer of 1965. On the Yardbirds, Unterberger identifies lead guitarist Jeff Beck as having "laid the blueprint for psychedelic guitar", and says that their "ominous minor key melodies, hyperactive instrumental breaks (called rave-ups ), unpredictable tempo changes, and use of Gregorian chants" helped to define the "manic eclecticism" typical of early psychedelic rock. The band's " Heart Full of Soul " (June 1965), which includes

452-475: A completely original kind of setting to have the songs take place in." Predicting critical reception to the new direction of the album, Cronise proposed that "It will absolutely alienate some fans. The kind of music we play is partially described as heavy metal and unfortunately, a lot of dudes that like heavy metal are very narrow-minded and only like it to sound one particular way. So I'm sure we alienated people with our second album." Despite this, he assured that

565-511: A concept album centered around an original science fiction narrative". The first performance of new material came at Fun Fun Fun Fest in November, with drummer Trivett Wingo comparing this practice to the first performance of tracks from Gods of the Earth at the 2007 edition of the festival. An update regarding the album was issued in December, explaining that the band had nearly completed

678-481: A crew of space pirates with a vessel that will alter the course of history... a vessel known as, the Sword. Music website musicOMH also briefly detailed the synopsis of the album's story, explaining that "we follow the tale of an archer by the name of Ereth, who has been cast out from his tribe on the planet Acheron. As luck would have it the planet has undergone a tidal lock, causing one half to be cast in shadow, whilst

791-690: A distinctive brand of electronic rock , known as kosmische musik , or in the British press as " Kraut rock". The adoption of electronic synthesisers , pioneered by Popol Vuh from 1970, together with the work of figures like Brian Eno (for a time the keyboard player with Roxy Music ), would be a major influence on subsequent electronic rock. Psychedelic rock, with its distorted guitar sound, extended solos and adventurous compositions, has been seen as an important bridge between blues-oriented rock and later heavy metal . American bands whose loud, repetitive psychedelic rock emerged as early heavy metal included

904-506: A distorted guitar riff that replicates the sound of a sitar , peaked at number 2 in the UK and number 9 in the US. In Echard's description, the song "carried the energy of a new scene" as the guitar-hero phenomenon emerged in rock, and it heralded the arrival of new Eastern sounds. The Kinks provided the first example of sustained Indian-style drone in rock when they used open-tuned guitars to mimic

1017-453: A flurry of nimble fretwork and galloping drums storm out of the gate. The energy doesn't let up once and by the final moments of closing cut, "(The Night Sky Cried) Tears of Fire", an intensely satisfying resolution sets in. Guitarists Kyle Shutt and John "J. D." Cronise execute punishing acrobatics while injecting melody at every turn. Bryan Richie's warm bass lays down the foundation and ripples with menace. Trivett Wingo's drumming explodes with

1130-429: A gear with this release, and ought to crumble the defences of more than a few cynics." Writing for website musicOMH , Sam Shepherd praised the album, summarising it as "vital and thrilling". In Rock Sound Mike Kemp concluded that "the riffs remain as ample and hard-hitting as ever, and with Matt Bayles ( Isis , Mastodon ) handling the production, the Sword have never sounded better." The album also reached number 42 on

1243-638: A half stars out of a possible five, the same as Gods of the Earth but one less than Age of Winters , and praised the band's choice to change direction both musically and thematically, highlighting " Tres Brujas ", "Lawless Lands" and "The Warp Riders" as particularly notable tracks. Reviewing the album for the BBC , critic Noel Gardner suggested that Warp Riders "is not likely to blow the mind of anyone well versed in this strain of chest-puffing metal, either in terms of originality or any member’s technical ability", although did recognise that "The Sword have stepped up

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1356-463: A household word in New York and Los Angeles ... — Melody Maker , October 1966 Echard writes that in 1966, "the psychedelic implications" advanced by recent rock experiments "became fully explicit and much more widely distributed", and by the end of the year, "most of the key elements of psychedelic topicality had been at least broached." DeRogatis says the start of psychedelic (or acid) rock

1469-399: A kid, which I was way into. Even though I never really understood the whole story, I was nonetheless enthralled by how the album created its own world. I wanted to create a setting for our songs that would be unique and different, but still a place where epic sagas unfold in proper Sword fashion." Inspiration took hold from "lots of things ... the legend of Atlantis , old Heavy Metal magazines,

1582-413: A more extreme variation that was heavier, louder, relied on long jams , focused more directly on LSD, and made greater use of distortion. Music critic Richie Unterberger says that attempts to "pin down" the first psychedelic record are "nearly as elusive as trying to name the first rock & roll record". Some of the "far-fetched claims" include the instrumental " Telstar " (produced by Joe Meek for

1695-647: A musical manifesto. By the end of the 1960s, psychedelic rock was in retreat. Psychedelic trends climaxed in the 1969 Woodstock Festival , which saw performances by most of the major psychedelic acts, including Jimi Hendrix, Jefferson Airplane and the Grateful Dead. LSD had been made illegal in the United Kingdom in September 1966 and in California in October; by 1967, it was outlawed throughout

1808-475: A narrative to base the songs around was essentially to provide interesting and varied lyrical subject matter with a core theme to tie it all together." It was revealed as early as November 2009 that the band were aiming to take a new direction with the third album, with Cronise explaining that "coming up with eight or nine or 10 different themes [for songs] every couple years, well, it's a little daunting some times, especially for me personally" and noting that "Given

1921-408: A rock album. Some parts will be heavier than the heaviest stuff we've done, but at the same time, there will be acoustic stuff. It is a varied record, I guess. Music news website MetalInsider.net mentioned the album on its Twitter profile, saying "Listening to some new Sword album. Mind blown. Sounds like Lynyrd Skynyrd crashed into C.O.C. instead of a mountain." According to the press release ,

2034-544: A screenshot from one of the videoshoots. Beginning on August 20, the Sword have been streaming Warp Riders in full on their MySpace page for free. The music video for "Tres Brujas" began streaming, also on MySpace, from August 23. In reply to a query from a fan on Twitter , the band revealed that they are planning on releasing a comic book based on the Warp Riders album. Warp Riders has received generally favourable reviews from music critics. The A.V. Club awarded

2147-413: A soundtrack to a story I came up with. All the songs are about aspects of the story, but they don't cover every detail from beginning to end. It's a science fiction story, and it deals heavily with themes of light and dark and perceptions of time. One of the main settings is a planet, which has experienced tidal locking , creating a side of perpetual day and a side of perpetual night. The reason for creating

2260-471: A specialist in comedy and novelty records , responded to the Beatles' requests by providing a range of studio tricks that ensured the group played a leading role in the development of psychedelic effects. Anticipating their overtly psychedelic work, " Ticket to Ride " (April 1965) introduced a subtle, drug-inspired drone suggestive of India, played on rhythm guitar. Musicologist William Echard writes that

2373-404: A way. It's not like Star Wars science fiction ... laser guns and action all the time. It's more cerebral in that it's still mythological in the way it's told. It's science fiction and there's spaceships and robots, but it doesn't take place in the future. It's just like another planet far away sort of thing. Otherworldly. And of course, it will have universal-type themes in it. I wanted to create

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2486-400: Is "best listed at 1966". Music journalists Pete Prown and Harvey P. Newquist locate the "peak years" of psychedelic rock between 1966 and 1969. In 1966, media coverage of rock music changed considerably as the music became reevaluated as a new form of art in tandem with the growing psychedelic community. In February and March, two singles were released that later achieved recognition as

2599-443: Is composed by The Sword Psychedelic rock Psychedelic film Psychedelic rock is a rock music genre that is inspired, influenced, or representative of psychedelic culture, which is centered on perception-altering hallucinogenic drugs. The music incorporated new electronic sound effects and recording techniques, extended instrumental solos, and improvisation. Many psychedelic groups differ in style, and

2712-561: Is notable for possessing a darker sound and subject matter than many contemporary psychedelic albums, which would become very influential to the later Gothic rock movement. Aided by the No. 1 single, " Light My Fire ", the album became very successful, reaching number 2 on the Billboard chart. In February 1967, the Beatles released the double A-side single " Strawberry Fields Forever " / " Penny Lane ", which Ian MacDonald says launched both

2825-553: The Billboard 200 chart, a personal record for the band. All lyrics are written by J. D. Cronise ; all music is composed by Cronise and Kyle Shutt Age of Winters Age of Winters is the debut album by American heavy metal band The Sword , released in the United States on February 14, 2006. The Japanese edition, released by record label Toy's Factory , contains three bonus tracks recorded live at

2938-462: The Amboy Dukes and Steppenwolf . From England, two former guitarists with the Yardbirds, Jeff Beck and Jimmy Page , moved on to form key acts in the genre, The Jeff Beck Group and Led Zeppelin respectively. Other major pioneers of the genre had begun as blues-based psychedelic bands, including Black Sabbath , Deep Purple , Judas Priest and UFO . Psychedelic music also contributed to

3051-587: The CBGB club in New York City on April 9, 2006. The single released from the album was " Freya ", which did not chart. Age of Winters was later reissued as part of a two-disc box set with Gods of the Earth on November 25, 2008. The Sword's debut album received a widely positive critical reaction. Reviewing for music website AllMusic , critic Eduardo Rivadavia awarded Age of Winters 4.5 out of 5 rating stars, qualifying it as an "AMG Album Pick". In

3164-790: The Grateful Dead , the Steve Miller Band and Country Joe & the Fish . Helms and San Francisco Mime Troupe manager Bill Graham in the fall of 1965 organised larger scale multi-media community events/benefits featuring the Airplane, the Diggers and Allen Ginsberg. By early 1966 Graham had secured booking at The Fillmore , and Helms at the Avalon Ballroom , where in-house psychedelic-themed light shows replicated

3277-763: The Merry Pranksters ) helped thousands of people take uncontrolled trips at Kesey's Acid Tests and in the new psychedelic dance halls. In Britain, Michael Hollingshead opened the World Psychedelic Centre and Beat Generation poets Allen Ginsberg , Lawrence Ferlinghetti and Gregory Corso read at the Royal Albert Hall . Miles adds: "The readings acted as a catalyst for underground activity in London, as people suddenly realized just how many like-minded people there were around. This

3390-659: The Revolver sessions, was the first pop recording to contain reversed sounds. Together with further studio tricks such as varispeed , the song includes a droning melody that reflected the band's growing interest in non-Western musical form and lyrics conveying the division between an enlightened psychedelic outlook and conformism. Philo cites "Rain" as "the birth of British psychedelic rock" and describes Revolver as "[the] most sustained deployment of Indian instruments, musical form and even religious philosophy" heard in popular music up to that time. Author Steve Turner recognises

3503-472: The tambura on " See My Friends " (July 1965), which became a top 10 hit in the UK. The Beatles' " Norwegian Wood " from the December 1965 album Rubber Soul marked the first released recording on which a member of a Western rock group played the sitar. The song sparked a craze for the sitar and other Indian instrumentation – a trend that fueled the growth of raga rock as the India exotic became part of

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3616-408: The "English pop-pastoral mood" typified by bands such as Pink Floyd , Family , Traffic and Fairport Convention , and English psychedelia's LSD-inspired preoccupation with "nostalgia for the innocent vision of a child". The Mellotron parts on "Strawberry Fields Forever" remain the most celebrated example of the instrument on a pop or rock recording. According to Simonelli, the two songs heralded

3729-466: The "retro-metal" universe, while also managing to sound refreshing even to calloused heavy metal ears," which, he suggests, "is no small achievement." Other reviews of Age of Winters were similarly positive – webzine PopMatters , awarded the album a favorable rating of seven out of ten, describing it as "one fine, headbang-inducing beast of a debut record," while The Austin Chronicle summarised

3842-511: The 13th Floor Elevators in October that year. It was one of the first rock albums to include the adjective in its title, although the LP was released on an independent label and was little noticed at the time. Two other bands also used the word in titles of LPs released in November 1966: The Blues Magoos ' Psychedelic Lollipop , and the Deep 's Psychedelic Moods . Having formed in late 1965 with

3955-698: The 1970s, including Pink Floyd, Soft Machine and members of Yes . The Moody Blues album In Search of the Lost Chord (1968), which is steeped in psychedelia, including prominent use of Indian instruments, is noted as an early predecessor to and influence on the emerging progressive movement. King Crimson 's album In the Court of the Crimson King (1969) has been seen as an important link between psychedelia and progressive rock. While bands such as Hawkwind maintained an explicitly psychedelic course into

4068-440: The 1970s, most dropped the psychedelic elements in favour of wider experimentation. The incorporation of jazz into the music of bands like Soft Machine and Can also contributed to the development of the jazz rock of bands like Colosseum . As they moved away from their psychedelic roots and placed increasing emphasis on electronic experimentation, German bands like Kraftwerk , Tangerine Dream , Can , Neu! and Faust developed

4181-611: The Animals ) and the Who, whose The Who Sell Out (December 1967) included the psychedelic-influenced " I Can See for Miles " and " Armenia City in the Sky ". Other major British Invasion acts who absorbed psychedelia in 1967 include the Hollies with the album Butterfly , and The Rolling Stones album Their Satanic Majesties Request . The Incredible String Band's The 5000 Spirits or

4294-619: The Bangles and Rain Parade . In the late '80s in the UK the genre of Madchester emerged in the Manchester area, in which artists merged alternative rock with acid house and dance culture as well as other sources, including psychedelic music and 1960s pop. The label was popularised by the British music press in the early 1990s. Erchard talks about it as being part of a "thread of 80s psychedelic rock" and lists as main bands in it

4407-617: The Bear . It was also revealed at this time that recording for the album had begun, at a recording studio in Austin, Texas known as The Wire. By April the Sword had completed the recording of its third album, although no further details were given regarding a track listing, title or release date. Cronise assured fans in April, in response to the query "Give us a status report on what's been recorded so far and what it sounds like" from an interviewer, that

4520-536: The Beatles employed several techniques in the years up to 1965 that soon became elements of psychedelic music, an approach he describes as "cognate" and reflective of how they, like the Yardbirds , were early pioneers in psychedelia. As important aspects the group brought to the genre, Echard cites the Beatles' rhythmic originality and unpredictability; "true" tonal ambiguity; leadership in incorporating elements from Indian music and studio techniques such as vari-speed, tape loops and reverse tape sounds; and their embrace of

4633-479: The Beatles had employed feedback in " I Feel Fine ", their sixth consecutive number 1 hit in the UK. According to AllMusic , the emergence of psychedelic rock in the mid-1960s resulted from British groups who made up the British Invasion of the US market and folk rock bands seeking to broaden "the sonic possibilities of their music". Writing in his 1969 book The Rock Revolution , Arnold Shaw said

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4746-551: The Beatles' album Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band (May 1967) and the staging of the Monterey Pop Festival in June. Sgt. Pepper was the first commercially successful work that critics recognised as a landmark aspect of psychedelia, and the Beatles' mass appeal meant that the record was played virtually everywhere. The album was highly influential on bands in the US psychedelic rock scene and its elevation of

4859-413: The Beatles' brand of Romanticism as a central tenet of psychedelic rock. Jefferson Airplane's Surrealistic Pillow (February 1967) was one of the first albums to come out of San Francisco that sold well enough to bring national attention to the city's music scene. The LP tracks " White Rabbit " and " Somebody to Love " subsequently became top 10 hits in the US. The Hollies psychedelic B-side "All

4972-401: The Beatles' success in conveying an LSD-inspired worldview on Revolver , particularly with " Tomorrow Never Knows ", as having "opened the doors to psychedelic rock (or acid rock)". In author Shawn Levy 's description, it was "the first true drug album, not [just] a pop record with some druggy insinuations", while musicologists Russell Reising and Jim LeBlanc credit the Beatles with "set[ting]

5085-579: The Billboard charts in the US. Influenced by Aldous Huxley ’s The Doors of Perception , and with lyrics referencing LSD, it contributed to bringing psychedelia to the mainstream. The Beach Boys' October 1966 single " Good Vibrations " was another early pop song to incorporate psychedelic lyrics and sounds. The single's success prompted an unexpected revival in theremins and increased the awareness of analog synthesizers . As psychedelia gained prominence, Beach Boys-style harmonies would be ingrained into

5198-871: The Doors , there were three categories of US psychedelia: the "acid jams" of the San Francisco bands, who favoured albums over singles; pop psychedelia typified by groups such as the Beach Boys and Buffalo Springfield ; and the "wigged-out" music of bands following in the example of the Beatles and the Yardbirds, such as the Electric Prunes , the Nazz , the Chocolate Watchband and the Seeds . The Doors' self-titled debut album (January 1967)

5311-425: The LP format benefited the San Francisco bands. Among many changes brought about by its success, artists sought to imitate its psychedelic effects and devoted more time to creating their albums; the counterculture was scrutinised by musicians; and acts adopted its non-conformist sentiments. The 1967 Summer of Love saw a huge number of young people from across America and the world travel to Haight-Ashbury, boosting

5424-769: The Layers of the Onion (July 1967) developed their folk music into a pastoral form of psychedelia. Many famous established recording artists from the early rock era also fell under psychedelia and recorded psychedelic-inspired tracks, including Del Shannon 's "Color Flashing Hair", Bobby Vee 's "I May Be Gone", The Four Seasons ' " Watch the Flowers Grow ", Roy Orbison 's "Southbound Jericho Parkway" and The Everly Brothers ' "Mary Jane". According to author Edward Macan, there ultimately existed three distinct branches of British psychedelic music. The first, dominated by Cream ,

5537-498: The Merry Pranksters. Their stage performance involved the use of strobe lights to reproduce LSD's "surrealistic fragmenting" or "vivid isolating of caught moments". The Acid Test experiments subsequently launched the entire psychedelic subculture . Psychedelia. I know it's hard, but make a note of that word because it's going to be scattered round the in-clubs like punches at an Irish wedding. It already rivals "mom" as

5650-584: The Moody Blues , Pink Floyd, Procol Harum and the Nice , was influenced by the later music of the Beatles. Several of the post- Sgt. Pepper English psychedelic groups developed the Beatles' classical influences further than either the Beatles or contemporaneous West Coast psychedelic bands. Among such groups, the Pretty Things abandoned their R&B roots to create S.F. Sorrow (December 1968),

5763-601: The Sky Cried) Tears of Fire" will also be released as a 12" picture disc . In revealing details of the album's artwork, Blabbermouth.net also named more new songs to be released as singles and/or music videos: lead single "Tres Brujas" and music videos "Lawless Lands" and "Night City". On July 18, 2010, the Sword reported on their official Facebook page that "We are almost done shooting our radical video trilogy for Night City, Tres Brujas and Lawless Lands. First installment should be out first week of August", and uploaded

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5876-520: The Stone Roses , Happy Mondays and Inspiral Carpets . The rave -influenced scene is widely seen as heavily influenced by drugs, especially ecstasy ( MDMA ), and it is seen by Erchard as central to a wider phenomenon of what he calls a "rock rave crossover" in the late '80s and early '90s UK indie scene, which also included the Screamadelica album by Scottish band Primal Scream . In

5989-801: The Tornados in 1962) and the Dave Clark Five 's "massively reverb-laden" " Any Way You Want It " (1964). The first mention of LSD on a rock record was the Gamblers ' 1960 surf instrumental "LSD 25". A 1962 single by the Ventures , " The 2000 Pound Bee ", issued forth the buzz of a distorted, "fuzztone" guitar, and the quest into "the possibilities of heavy, transistorised distortion" and other effects, like improved reverb and echo, began in earnest on London's fertile rock 'n' roll scene. By 1964 fuzztone could be heard on singles by P.J. Proby , and

6102-623: The Turkish rock scene with artists such as Cem Karaca , Mogollar , Barış Manço and Erkin Koray. In Brazil, the Tropicalia movement merged Brazilian and African rhythms with psychedelic rock. Musicians who were part of the movement include Caetano Veloso , Gilberto Gil , Os Mutantes , Gal Costa , Tom Zé , and the poet/lyricist Torquato Neto , all of whom participated in the 1968 album Tropicália: ou Panis et Circencis , which served as

6215-630: The US and reached the top 30 in the UK. Contributing to psychedelia's emergence into the pop mainstream was the release of the Beach Boys' Pet Sounds (May 1966) and the Beatles' Revolver (August 1966). Often considered one of the earliest albums in the canon of psychedelic rock, Pet Sounds contained many elements that would be incorporated into psychedelia, with its artful experiments, psychedelic lyrics based on emotional longings and self-doubts, elaborate sound effects and new sounds on both conventional and unconventional instruments. The album track " I Just Wasn't Made for These Times " contained

6328-524: The US top ten, and three platinum albums. While psychedelic rock wavered at the end of the 1960s, psychedelic soul continued into the 1970s, peaking in popularity in the early years of the decade, and only disappearing in the late 1970s as tastes changed. Songwriter Norman Whitfield wrote psychedelic soul songs for The Temptations and Marvin Gaye . Many of the British musicians and bands that had embraced psychedelia went on to create progressive rock in

6441-543: The United States. In 1969, the murders of Sharon Tate and Leno and Rosemary LaBianca by Charles Manson and his cult of followers , claiming to have been inspired by The Beatles' songs such as " Helter Skelter ", has been seen as contributing to an anti-hippie backlash. At the end of the same year, the Altamont Free Concert in California, headlined by the Rolling Stones, became notorious for

6554-730: The World Is Love" (February 1967) was released as the flipside to the hit single " On a Carousel ". Pink Floyd's " Arnold Layne " (March 1967) and " See Emily Play " (June 1967), both written by Syd Barrett , helped set the pattern for pop-psychedelia in the UK. There, "underground" venues like the UFO Club , Middle Earth Club , The Roundhouse , the Country Club and the Art Lab drew capacity audiences with psychedelic rock and ground-breaking liquid light shows . A major figure in

6667-408: The Yardbirds and Hendrix, was founded on a heavy, electric adaptation of the blues played by the Rolling Stones, adding elements such as the Who's power chord style and feedback. The second, considerably more complex form drew strongly from jazz sources and was typified by Traffic, Colosseum , If , and Canterbury scene bands such as Soft Machine and Caravan . The third branch, represented by

6780-462: The aim of spreading LSD consciousness, the Elevators commissioned business cards containing an image of the third eye and the caption "Psychedelic rock". Rolling Stone highlights the 13th Floor Elevators as arguably "the most important early progenitors of psychedelic garage rock". Donovan 's July 1966 single " Sunshine Superman " became one of the first psychedelic pop/rock singles to top

6893-415: The album "is anchored by an epic science-fiction narrative" and "the storyline is a psychedelic space opera that explores temporal themes of death and rebirth." The band's official website gives an in-depth description of the album's science fiction storyline: Warp Riders is the Sword's first concept album, a science fiction maelstrom put to the storming, relentless riffage and pounding rhythms upon which

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7006-418: The album an A grade in its review, with critic Leonard Pierce summarised the album by noting that "the music is gripping, intense, and unimpeachably heavy from the psyched-out mania of “Acheron” to the end." Pierce also suggested that "There isn’t a bad song on the record, and it delivers solid stand-outs ... while remaining a surprisingly unified whole." Eduardo Rivadavia of allmusic awarded the album three and

7119-683: The album as "literate" and "visceral". " Freya " appears as a playable song in Guitar Hero II and Guitar Hero Smash Hits . as well as the soundtrack of Burnout Dominator , and Wayne . "Barael's Blade" was used in the season five American Dad! episode " Rapture's Delight ". "Celestial Crown" is featured on the Jennifer's Body soundtrack. "Iron Swan" appears in the 2006 video game Tony Hawk's Project 8 and also appears in season nine American Dad! episode " Minstrel Krampus ". All lyrics are written by J. D. Cronise ; all music

7232-441: The album was "completely done" and contained "things ... that our fans will be very glad to hear, and ... things they don't know they'll be glad to hear until they hear them". In the band's first update regarding the third album, it was revealed that the album was to be "a concept album centered around an original science fiction narrative." In March 2010, primary songwriter Cronise added further detail to this idea by suggesting that

7345-518: The album was promoted on the Warp Riders Tour starting in November 2010. It first came to light that the Sword was working on a follow-up to Gods of the Earth in August 2009, when the band revealed that "The writing process is nearing completion, and demoing will soon commence. Recording will follow in the fall with a release as soon as the suits can get it together. The record will be

7458-430: The album would have a "broader hard rock sound", explaining that "It's really a concept record. The songs revolve around a concept we came up with or spin off from it. It's not the kind of fantasy concept though, it's more sci-fi." Cronise also offered the following explanation of the album's direction in an interview with Decibel : "This is what you'd technically call a 'concept album,' though I'd describe it as more of

7571-482: The album's lyrics. It was on April 30, 2010 that the album's title and release date were confirmed as Warp Riders and August 24. On May 14, 2010 the first song titles for Warp Riders – "Acheron/Unearthing the Orb" and "(The Night Sky Cried) Tears of Fire" – were confirmed. Blabbermouth.net reported the following descriptions: Opening track "Acheron/Unearthing the Orb" begins with ominous, fog-drenched atmosphere before

7684-794: The approach of 1960s psychedelic rock. Neo-psychedelia may include forays into psychedelic pop, jangly guitar rock, heavily distorted free-form jams, or recording experiments. Some of the scene's bands, including the Soft Boys , the Teardrop Explodes , Wah!, Echo & the Bunnymen , became major figures of neo-psychedelia. In the US in the early 1980s it was joined by the Paisley Underground movement, based in Los Angeles and fronted by acts such as Dream Syndicate ,

7797-426: The area's population from 15,000 to around 100,000. It was prefaced by the Human Be-In event in January and reached its peak at the Monterey Pop Festival in June, the latter helping to make major American stars of Janis Joplin , lead singer of Big Brother and the Holding Company , Jimi Hendrix , and the Who . Several established British acts joined the psychedelic revolution, including Eric Burdon (previously of

7910-450: The avant-garde. In Unterberger's opinion, the Byrds , emerging from the Los Angeles folk rock scene, and the Yardbirds, from England's blues scene , were more responsible than the Beatles for "sounding the psychedelic siren". Drug use and attempts at psychedelic music moved out of acoustic folk-based music towards rock soon after the Byrds, inspired by the Beatles' 1964 film A Hard Day's Night , adopted electric instruments to produce

8023-431: The band has staked its reputation. It's also their most flat-out, supercharged, adrenaline-pumping work yet, a chrome-plated war machine that lords over the blackened sky. From the street-prowling anthems "Night City" and "Lawless Lands" to the two-part showdown of "The Chronomancer," to the furious mechanics of closing track "(The Night the Sky Cried) Tears of Fire," the Sword forces eminent domain ruling over heavy metal for

8136-619: The centre of influence had moved from London to California by 1967, it was British acts like the Beatles and the Rolling Stones that helped inspire and "nourish" the new American music in the mid-1960s, especially in the formative San Francisco scene. The music scene there developed in the city's Haight-Ashbury neighborhood in 1965 at basement shows organised by Chet Helms of the Family Dog ; and as Jefferson Airplane founder Marty Balin and investors opened The Matrix nightclub that summer and began booking his and other local bands such as

8249-589: The development of British psychedelia was the American promoter and record producer Joe Boyd , who moved to London in 1966. He co-founded venues including the UFO Club, produced Pink Floyd's "Arnold Layne", and went on to manage folk and folk rock acts including Nick Drake , the Incredible String Band and Fairport Convention. Psychedelic rock's popularity accelerated following the release of

8362-400: The dueling lead guitars of J.D. Cronise and Kyle Shutt, and the concussive rhythm section of bassist Bryan Ritchie and drummer Trivett Wingo – underscores the narrative with molten steel and unreal precision. Guitarist and lead vocalist J.D. Cronise explains the lineage of Warp Riders: "I'm pretty sure the first concept album I ever heard was Operation: Mindcrime by Queensrÿche when I was

8475-399: The earlier 1960s psychedelic rock musicians were based in folk , jazz , and the blues , while others showcased an explicit Indian classical influence called " raga rock ". In the 1960s, there existed two main variants of the genre: the more whimsical, surrealist British psychedelia and the harder American West Coast " acid rock ". While "acid rock" is sometimes deployed interchangeably with

8588-580: The early 1960s experimented with unusual recording techniques, including backwards tapes, and novel instrumental accompaniment including flute and sitar. His nineteen-minute "The Great San Bernardino Birthday Party" "anticipated elements of psychedelia with its nervy improvisations and odd guitar tunings". Similarly, folk guitarist Sandy Bull 's early work "incorporated elements of folk, jazz, and Indian and Arabic -influenced dronish modes". His 1963 album Fantasias for Guitar and Banjo explores various styles and "could also be accurately described as one of

8701-441: The early 1960s work of Davy Graham , who adopted modal guitar tunings to transpose Indian ragas and Celtic reels. Graham was highly influential on Scottish folk virtuoso Bert Jansch and other pioneering guitarists across a spectrum of styles and genres in the mid-1960s. Jazz saxophonist and composer John Coltrane had a similar impact, as the exotic sounds on his albums My Favorite Things (1960) and A Love Supreme (1965),

8814-512: The essence of psychedelic rock. Music historian George Case recognises Rubber Soul as the first of two Beatles albums that "marked the authentic beginning of the psychedelic era", while music critic Robert Christgau similarly wrote that "Psychedelia starts here". San Francisco historian Charles Perry recalled the album being "the soundtrack of the Haight-Ashbury , Berkeley and the whole circuit", as pre-hippie youths suspected that

8927-539: The fatal stabbing of black teenager Meredith Hunter by Hells Angels security guards. George Clinton 's ensembles Funkadelic and Parliament and their various spin-offs took psychedelia and funk to create their own unique style, producing over forty singles, including three in the US top ten, and three platinum albums. Brian Wilson of the Beach Boys, Brian Jones of the Rolling Stones, Peter Green and Danny Kirwan of Fleetwood Mac and Syd Barrett of Pink Floyd were early "acid casualties", helping to shift

9040-599: The films of René Laloux , a childhood dream, and The Teachings of Don Juan by Carlos Castaneda to name a few." The story of Warp Riders , entitled "The Night the Sky Cried Tears of Fire" (written by Cronise), follows Ereth as he discovers a mysterious orb and meets the Chronomancer, a being beyond time and space who enlists him in a quest to restore the planet's balance. Along the way he encounters strange warriors, mysterious witches, ancient androids, and

9153-474: The first British band to have the term "psychedelic" applied to one of its songs. On "Eight Miles High", Roger McGuinn 's 12-string Rickenbacker guitar provided a psychedelic interpretation of free jazz and Indian raga , channelling Coltrane and Shankar, respectively. The song's lyrics were widely taken to refer to drug use, although the Byrds denied it at the time. "Eight Miles High" peaked at number 14 in

9266-486: The first example of a psychedelic rock opera. The US and UK were the major centres of psychedelic music, but in the late 1960s scenes developed across the world, including continental Europe, Australasia, Asia and south and Central America. In the later 1960s psychedelic scenes developed in a large number of countries in continental Europe, including the Netherlands with bands like The Outsiders , Denmark, where it

9379-568: The first psychedelic hits: the Yardbirds' " Shapes of Things " and the Byrds' " Eight Miles High ". The former reached number 3 in the UK and number 11 in the US, and continued the Yardbirds' exploration of guitar effects, Eastern-sounding scales, and shifting rhythms. By overdubbing guitar parts, Beck layered multiple takes for his solo, which included extensive use of fuzz tone and harmonic feedback. The song's lyrics, which Unterberger describes as "stream-of-consciousness", have been interpreted as pro-environmental or anti-war. The Yardbirds became

9492-652: The first use of theremin sounds on a rock record. Scholar Philip Auslander says that even though psychedelic music is not normally associated with the Beach Boys, the "odd directions" and experiments in Pet Sounds "put it all on the map. ... basically that sort of opened the door – not for groups to be formed or to start to make music, but certainly to become as visible as say Jefferson Airplane or somebody like that." DeRogatis views Revolver as another of "the first psychedelic rock masterpieces", along with Pet Sounds . The Beatles' May 1966 B-side " Rain ", recorded during

9605-745: The focus of the respective bands of which they had been leading figures. Some groups, such as the Beatles, the Jimi Hendrix Experience and Cream, broke up. Hendrix died in London in September 1970, shortly after recording Band of Gypsys (1970), Janis Joplin died of a heroin overdose in October 1970 and they were closely followed by Jim Morrison of the Doors , who died in Paris in July 1971. By this point, many surviving acts had moved away from psychedelia into either more back-to-basics " roots rock ", traditional-based, pastoral or whimsical folk,

9718-402: The genre in its American form represented generational escapism , which he identified as a development of youth culture's "protest against the sexual taboos, racism, violence, hypocrisy and materialism of adult life". American folk singer Bob Dylan 's influence was central to the creation of the folk rock movement in 1965, and his lyrics remained a touchstone for the psychedelic songwriters of

9831-534: The genre include: The term "psychedelic" was coined in 1956 by psychiatrist Humphry Osmond in a letter to LSD exponent Aldous Huxley and used as an alternative descriptor for hallucinogenic drugs in the context of psychedelic psychotherapy . As the countercultural scene developed in San Francisco, the terms acid rock and psychedelic rock were used in 1966 to describe the new drug-influenced music and were being widely used by 1967. The two terms are often used interchangeably, but acid rock may be distinguished as

9944-565: The label is often applied spuriously. Originating in the mid-1960s among British and American musicians, the sound of psychedelic rock invokes three core effects of LSD: depersonalization , dechronicization (the bending of time), and dynamization (when fixed, ordinary objects dissolve into moving, dancing structures), all of which detach the user from everyday reality. Musically, the effects may be represented via novelty studio tricks, electronic or non-Western instrumentation, disjunctive song structures, and extended instrumental segments. Some of

10057-565: The late 1960s. Virtuoso sitarist Ravi Shankar had begun in 1956 a mission to bring Indian classical music to the West, inspiring jazz, classical and folk musicians. By the mid-1960s, his influence extended to a generation of young rock musicians who soon made raga rock part of the psychedelic rock aesthetic and one of the many intersecting cultural motifs of the era. In the British folk scene, blues, drugs, jazz and Eastern influences blended in

10170-464: The latter influenced by the ragas of Shankar, were source material for guitar players and others looking to improvise or "jam". One of the first musical uses of the term "psychedelic" in the folk scene was by the New York-based folk group The Holy Modal Rounders on their version of Lead Belly 's ' Hesitation Blues ' in 1964. Folk/avant-garde guitarist John Fahey recorded several songs in

10283-567: The loss of some key individuals, and a back-to-basics movement led surviving performers to move into new musical areas. The genre bridged the transition from early blues and folk-based rock to progressive rock and hard rock , and as a result contributed to the development of sub-genres such as heavy metal . Since the late 1970s it has been revived in various forms of neo-psychedelia . As a musical style, psychedelic rock incorporated new electronic sound effects and recording effects, extended solos, and improvisation. Features mentioned in relation to

10396-438: The newer psychedelic pop. In 1967, psychedelic rock received widespread media attention and a larger audience beyond local psychedelic communities. From 1967 to 1968, it was the prevailing sound of rock music, either in the more whimsical British variant, or the harder American West Coast acid rock. Music historian David Simonelli says the genre's commercial peak lasted "a brief year", with San Francisco and London recognised as

10509-460: The next decade, and welcome all challengers for an ill-fated shot at the title. Warp Riders tells the tale of Ereth, an archer banished from his tribe on the planet Acheron. A hardscrabble planet that has undergone a tidal lock, which has caused one side to be scorched by three suns, and the other enshrouded in perpetual darkness, it is the background for a tale of strife and fantasy, the battle between pure good and pure evil. How it's told – through

10622-404: The origins of glam rock , with Marc Bolan changing his psychedelic folk duo into rock band T. Rex and becoming the first glam rock star from 1970. From 1971 David Bowie moved on from his early psychedelic work to develop his Ziggy Stardust persona, incorporating elements of professional make up, mime and performance into his act. The jam band movement, which began in the late 1980s,

10735-399: The other is burnt to a crisp by a set of unforgiving suns. With light and shade being quite a feature of the planet, it was only a matter of time before a battle between good and evil broke out – cursed metaphors. Warp Riders follows this tale to the bitter end." The album cover was revealed in late June; designed by artist Dan McPharlin, it is said to pay homage to the authors that inspired

10848-420: The perfect balance of both precision and dexterity. The lead single from the album was "Tres Brujas", which was released as a digital download on July 6, 2010. The song is also the first in a planned trilogy of music videos to be produced by Artificial Army (who worked on the video for "Maiden, Mother & Crone"), which will begin in August and continue with "Lawless Lands" and "Night City", while "(The Night

10961-474: The review, Rivadavia claims that the band's debut record "sees them joining California's High on Fire , Sweden's Witchcraft , and Australia's Wolfmother (to name but a few) at the forefront of what's gradually become known in the mid-'00s as the "heritage" or "retro-metal" movement." He goes on to suggest that "the album's main attraction [is] its megalithic guitar work," concluding that "Age of Winters provides [...] listeners with as good an entryway as any into

11074-498: The songs were inspired by drugs. Although psychedelia was introduced in Los Angeles through the Byrds, according to Shaw, San Francisco emerged as the movement's capital on the West Coast. Several California-based folk acts followed the Byrds into folk rock, bringing their psychedelic influences with them, to produce the " San Francisco Sound ". Music historian Simon Philo writes that although some commentators would state that

11187-432: The sound of the music would not change as much, explaining that "There'll definitely still be heavy stuff on the record, and fast, thrashy, and slow and sludgy stuff like we've done before. Heavy metal, basically. But a lot of the songs are just what I'd call hard rock songs. The attitude and the vibe is different. It's not as aggressive, sonically. It's a little bit more ... I don't know how to explain it. It's just rock. It's

11300-458: The stage for an important subgenre of psychedelic music, that of the messianic pronouncement". Echard highlights early records by the 13th Floor Elevators and Love among the key psychedelic releases of 1966, along with "Shapes of Things", "Eight Miles High", "Rain" and Revolver . Originating from Austin, Texas, the first of these new bands came to the genre via the garage scene before releasing their debut album, The Psychedelic Sounds of

11413-408: The term "psychedelic rock", it also refers more specifically to the heavier, harder, and more extreme ends of the genre. The peak years of psychedelic rock were between 1967 and 1969, with milestone events including the 1967 Summer of Love and the 1969 Woodstock Festival , becoming an international musical movement associated with a widespread counterculture before declining as changing attitudes,

11526-398: The two key cultural centres. Compared with the American form, British psychedelic music was often more arty in its experimentation, and it tended to stick within pop song structures. Music journalist Mark Prendergast writes that it was only in US garage-band psychedelia that the often whimsical traits of UK psychedelic music were found. He says that aside from the work of the Byrds, Love and

11639-413: The types of themes we'd covered already, I didn't really want to revisit the same stuff again on another record and talk about the same things and doom and gloom and sorcerers and ravens and things. So, we just kind of wanted to change it up and do something a little different." Further elaboration was also given on the 'science fiction concept album' idea, with Cronise explaining that "It's psychedelic , in

11752-549: The very first psychedelic records". Barry Miles , a leading figure in the 1960s UK underground , says that " Hippies didn't just pop up overnight" and that "1965 was the first year in which a discernible youth movement began to emerge [in the US]. Many of the key 'psychedelic' rock bands formed this year." On the US West Coast, underground chemist Augustus Owsley Stanley III and Ken Kesey (along with his followers known as

11865-536: The visual effects of the psychedelic experience. Graham became a major figure in the growth of psychedelic rock, attracting most of the major psychedelic rock bands of the day to The Fillmore. According to author Kevin McEneaney, the Grateful Dead "invented" acid rock in front of a crowd of concertgoers in San Jose, California on 4 December 1965, the date of the second Acid Test held by novelist Ken Kesey and

11978-458: The wider experimentation of progressive rock, or riff-based heavy rock. Following the lead of Hendrix in rock, psychedelia influenced African American musicians, particularly the stars of the Motown label. This psychedelic soul was influenced by the civil rights movement , giving it a darker and more political edge than much psychedelic rock. Building on the funk sound of James Brown , it

12091-502: The writing process for the record, would begin recording in early 2010, and were to embark on a short regional tour in January. In February 2010 it was revealed that, contrary to the practice exercised on the band's previous two albums, frontman J. D. Cronise would not be producing the upcoming third album; instead production and engineering would be led by Matt Bayles , known for his work with such bands as Mastodon , Isis and Minus

12204-493: Was "Tres Brujas", which was released as a digital download in July 2010. The song is also featured as the first in a trilogy of music videos to promote the album, which also includes "Lawless Lands" and "Night City". The second single from the album is "(The Night the Sky Cried) Tears of Fire", released in November 2010. Warp Riders was a relative commercial success, peaking at number 42 on the US Billboard 200 chart, and

12317-533: Was also the year that London began to blossom into colour with the opening of the Granny Takes a Trip and Hung On You clothes shops." Thanks to media coverage, use of LSD became widespread. According to music critic Jim DeRogatis , writing in his book on psychedelic rock, Turn on Your Mind , the Beatles are seen as the "Acid Apostles of the New Age". Producer George Martin , who was initially known as

12430-441: Was influenced by the Grateful Dead 's improvisational and psychedelic musical style. The Vermont band Phish developed a sizable and devoted fan following during the 1990s, and were described as "heirs" to the Grateful Dead after the death of Jerry Garcia in 1995. Emerging in the 1990s, stoner rock combined elements of psychedelic rock and doom metal . Typically using a slow-to-mid tempo and featuring low-tuned guitars in

12543-1052: Was pioneered by Steppeulvene , Yugoslavia, with bands like Kameleoni , Dogovor iz 1804. , Pop Mašina and Igra Staklenih Perli , and Germany, where musicians fused music of psychedelia and the electronic avant-garde. 1968 saw the first major German rock festival , the Internationale Essener Songtage  [ de ] in Essen , and the foundation of the Zodiak Free Arts Lab in Berlin by Hans-Joachim Roedelius , and Conrad Schnitzler , which helped bands like Tangerine Dream and Amon Düül achieve cult status. A thriving psychedelic music scene in Cambodia , influenced by psychedelic rock and soul broadcast by US forces radio in Vietnam,

12656-633: Was pioneered by artists such as Sinn Sisamouth and Ros Serey Sothea . In South Korea, Shin Jung-Hyeon , often considered the godfather of Korean rock, played psychedelic-influenced music for the American soldiers stationed in the country. Following Shin Jung-Hyeon, the band San Ul Lim (Mountain Echo) often combined psychedelic rock with a more folk sound. In Turkey, Anatolian rock artist Erkin Koray blended classic Turkish music and Middle Eastern themes into his psychedelic-driven rock, helping to found

12769-598: Was pioneered from about 1968 by Sly and the Family Stone and The Temptations . Acts that followed them into this territory included Edwin Starr and the Undisputed Truth . George Clinton 's interdependent Funkadelic and Parliament ensembles and their various spin-offs took the genre to its most extreme lengths, making funk almost a religion in the 1970s, producing over forty singles, including three in

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