Band: Oresund Space Collective

CD Title: “Good Planets are hard to Find”

Band Website: www.oresundspacecollective.com

Label: Transubstans Records

Release Date: 2009

My 18 year old daughter has a thing, where anytime she’s hears a sitar on what I’m listening to, she’ll affectionately call it ‘hippie music’. And she means that in the nicest possible way. Now what I was listening to was the latest release from Oresund Space Collective entitled Good Planets are hard to Find and she had no idea how correct she really was in that description. This is the bands 5^th official CD and her ‘hippie’ observations are more accurate than I initially expected. Especially when you understand that hippie music - is to psychedelic music - is to acid rock - is to space music - is exactly what we have here.

It is true that OSC are very much a space-rock band, but I guess you could say that space-rock comes in many shapes and sizes and this time around with their ever revolving set of players the music has taken on a more decided psychedelic feel, especially with the guitar. I was just blown away by the many subtle sixties references. The overall feel is still long-extended musical works that move you to trance like states, but at the same time with the music on Good Planets are hard to Find, you could almost feel the floor moving in one of the San Francisco ballrooms while listening to this stuff. The mix made it even more so, where one instrument would slide out of the picture only to have another slide in with a different riff. It was all very organic and yet still very spacey. But I have to say on this disc the guitars really made it for me; a hint of Quicksilver Messenger Service, a dash of early Pink Floyd and smidgen of Jefferson Airplane…but without the vocals. What we have here are six really long instrumentals; the shortest being a ‘mere’ 6:01 and the longest being 19:28. The sitar I mentioned makes a powerful appearance on the opening and closing tracks and is provided by KG from the band Siena Root. On top of that the music’s overall feel is pretty up-tempo, especially in “Orbital Elevator [16:12] where it starts slow and then just keeps building and building going faster and faster. Wild!

Oresund Space Collective have made it a point to capitalize on their revolving door of members, seeing it as a way to breathe new life into their sound and style. Each disc comes with a completely fresh approach. That’s not something that every group can handle but OSC seem to thrive on it. And if the music on Good Planets are Hard to Find is any indication their formula has a lot of life left in it. This is a great disc; it’s interesting to listen to, sounds good and is played well. Space-rock fans, you’ll want to avail yourself of this disc as soon as humanly or alienly possible.