Article By: Pat ‘Riot’ Whitaker ‡ Edited By: Leanne Ridgeway
There was an era in rock music, say between 1968 and 1975 or so, when some of the best stuff ever was created. That period is held in such high regard and bands struggle to this day to nail down its sound. Very few manage to capture the fuzzy guitars, lo-fi vibes, and raw bluesiness of that long-gone age. Occasionally someone does, they succeed in channeling it all into their own modern output. Today that someone is Vortical Minds.
Vortical Minds hails from Rome, Italy, and recently issued their four-song EP, ‘The Orange Box‘. The folks at the retro heart of the band, Vukasin Rodic Vule (bass & vox), Gianluca Ortu (drums), and Gianluca Paladino (guitars) adhere to the “less is more” approach to things. Foregoing any unneeded frills or other excesses, the trio opts instead to allow their music to do the talking.
And talk it does, as intro song “Maybe But Not Today” is a fevered blues-fueled stomper right from the start. Laden with swagger and rippling with vintage textures aplenty… it’s 1972 all over again! They take the grooves even deeper on the second song “I Bought Myself” before relenting and going into some melodic atmospherics. Keeping things toned down and hazy, the song is a quite powerful example of the guys’ knack for psychedelia.
Staying on cue with the heady aesthetics, the next track “My Game” is another turn toward inwardly hallucinogenic-like nuances. The slide guitar reaches an almost hypnotic rhythm at times, while the song boasts a fantastic vocal delivery. The trio turns the power back on with the album ending, nearly nine-minute “Ticking Time“. It is definitely my favorite song, one where greats like Grand Funk Railroad, Highway Robbery, or James Gang are instantly brought to mind.
‘The Orange Box‘ EP from Vortical Minds asks you to think outside of all the boxes, regardless of color, for some killer classic rock. Keeping it Lo-Fi and electrifying is what they’re shooting for and they hit the mark. It appears that this is the band’s debut release and if so, it bodes so well for a true revival of legitimate acid rock.
“What’s in the box?” you ask..well stream it via the Bandcamp embed below and discover for yourself. It gets better too, sort of like a gift box, if you will, as this release is currently being offered as an NYP (Name Your Price) item via that Bandcamp stream.