In their various incarnations, iterations and configurations, Gnod [pictured, top] have been blowing minds and amps since 2006. Easy To Build, Hard To Destroy harks back to those early days, gathering together material from before they were the house band at the Islington Mill in their native Salford or had begun their occasional forays into electronic territory.
In the words of sometime member Alex Macarte, quoted in Harry Sword’s superlative history of drone Monolithic Undertow, Gnod’s specialism is “essentially trance music”. That much is amply exemplified here in the form of everything from mantric Eastern grooves (Elka and Frostbitten, which bookend the album) to impeccably relentless Stooges vs Can psych rock (Inner Z and They Live), lumbering, frazzled doom (5th Sun) and total, uncompromising, far-out headfuckery (both parts of Deadbeatdisco!!!).
Shrouded in joss-stick smoke and speaker steam, simultaneously minimalist and maximalist, Gnod’ll take your face to another dimension. Pay close attention – if you weren’t doing so already.
After many manufacturing delays we are happy to say that GNOD's 'Easy to Build, Hard to Destroy' and the reissue of Hills – Frid are released to day on vinyl and CD from your local record shops.
GNOD – Easy To Build, Hard To Destroy’
A 2LP/CD compilation of tricky-to-find, obscure and unreleased material from the heady early days of the band, all released on vinyl for the first time is finally out on sale today.
Watch the retina burning video above created by Rocket's John O'Carroll for the previously unreleased track 'They Live' – a just shy of 10 minute psych-out that marries the droned repetition of Spacemen 3 and the punk urgency of early Stooges.
'Easy To Build, Hard To Destroy' can be ordered from all good record shops as ltd edition 2LP versions on 'Blue' and 'Black' vinyl. All versions come in a gatefold sleeve.
"...the GNOD that are totally fucking up for it and just don’t want to let go… BY COMPLETELY FUCKING LETTING GO!"
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HILLS - ‘Frid' (Re-Issue)
After the huge demand for the Hills 'Frid' repress (one of the finest psych bands to come out of Sweden) we're are finally releasing the new limited gatefold version.
The repress is out on sale available on 'Blue' vinyl (400 copies) via your local record shop & a new run of CDs which is also be available too.
Hills are part of a rich scene from Sweden which also including friends and Rocket Recordings label mates Goat, Josefin Öhrn + The Liberation, Flowers Must Die, Och etc . This collection form the new chapter in a tradition of Swedish psychedelia that found its origins in late-'60s and early 70's freakouts and mind-melts by the likes of Baby Grandmothers and Älgarnas Trädgōrd - not to mention the unholy trinity of Pärson Sound, International Harvester and Träd Gräs och Stenar - before being developed by the likes of The Spacious Mind and Dungen in the last two decades. These inspirations make their mark on 'Frid' by journeying inward, via mantric repetition and hip-shaking pulsations as on the ten-minute monolith, ' Och Solen Sankte Sig Rod', yet they can also lurch into the unknown via the fuzz/wah odysseys of the aptly monikered 'National Drone' and the ceremonial exhortations of the closing 'Death Will Find A Way.'
Frid has been out of print for several years now, so this gives fans and the curious the chance to immerse themselves in this wonderful and classic album.
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Again, we apologise these have taken so long to be released after the initial presale, we have found it as frustrating as I am sure you have.
Today is the last Bandcamp Friday – so thanks to everyone who has bought stuff from us this last year, it has helped us and all our bands tremendously, so thanks for your continued support, means a bloody lot!!
There are no new releases from us this month but we have raided the archives for a few rare releases we had buried in boxes:
GÅS – GÅS 7" Yellow vinyl copies of this sought after 7"
Teeth of the Sea – Wraith LP Fluro Green vinyl first edition of the bands last album
Deafkids/Petbrick – Deafkids LP Red/black splatter of the bands incredible collab release
Hills – Alive at Roadburn 2LP Long sold out vinyl edition of this amazing live album
Pigs Pigs Pigs Pigs Pigs Pigs Pigs – King of Cowards LP Gold vinyl version of the bands second LP
Autotelia – I Out of print green vinyl edition
Anthroprophh – Toilet Circuit EP 7" (First press) First press of our 200th release on pink vinyl
Urdog – Long Shadows: 2003-2006 LP Ltd edition Ice Black splatter vinyl version of this incredible retrospective compilation, if you are a true lover of psychedelic music then you will love this, essential jams
Pigs Pigs Pigs Pigs Pigs Pigs Pigs – Off Cuts LP We have a handful of copies of this album on Purple/Black splatter – this is the band sounding at their most ferocious best
VED – Ett visst fängelse 7" Banging two track ltd edition 7" from these Swedish master of repetitive psych rhythms
J. Zunz – Hibiscus Exotic Swirl edition of the amazing album by Lorena from Lorelle Meets The Obsolete
Sex Swing – Type II Clear vinyl edition in heavy weight, high gloss sleeve
GOAT – World Music LP/CD Our best ever selling album, now on ltd 'Sacrificial Blood' vinyl, plus on CD in mini LP gatefold packaging
When I stumbled into what became known as the ‘psych scene’ around a decade ago, GNOD were already a thing… a collective that was revered by many who I talked and sought inspiration from in terms of taking that next turn down the rabbit hole. At the time my touchstone was the Liverpool Psych Fest, which was my annual introduction to new ideas and new bands. So it was in 2014 that GNOD played the Rocket Recordings stage on that unforgettable evening.
I used to love seeing the list of bands who were playing the festival and really getting into them as a way of deciding who I wanted to see (and yes it did involve the use of spreadsheets). I remember quite clearly listening to GNOD, and especially the ‘Chaudelande’ albums, ‘Ingnodwetrust’ and ‘Gnod Drop Out With White Hills II’ (White Hills were also on the bill, and Dave W played with GNOD that night); and being totally blown away by them.
This was the GNOD that I got into and the GNOD that lives with me to this day – although I have seen many great performances from them since (in various guises) most notably at the Rocket 20th Anniversary weekend – and this is the GNOD that I find here on this compilation of early tracks never previously released on vinyl… a couple only on MySpace! Indeed, it is interesting that I referred to the ‘visceral’ nature of GNOD’s performance back in 2014, because that’s exactly the word that came up for me when listening to this album. There is an underpinning sense of excitement borne from discovery here… you really get the sense of a group of individuals who are pushing the envelope… who are taking it just that little bit further… who are pushing themselves into something altogether more dimensional and spatial...
GNOD Easy To Build Hard To Destroy is a compilation of hard to find and unreleased materials that are heady droned out rock from the underground heavy weights GNOD. The music thrives in retention, drone, awesome tones and varied instrumentation. GNOD is eclectic and has continuously evolved making music that is always unique and extremely creative. This compilation is not just a piece of fanfare but presents great music that sound hi-fi and is every bit as great as their many albums and collaborations.
GNOD Easy To Build Hard To Destroy is a droning fuzz rock album that is experimental, stoney and relentlessly interesting. Their tones and approach to songwriting are as impressive as ever. It is amazing to think that this band has been making innovative music with such skill for such a long time.
GNOD is from Salford, UK and their first release was in 2007 and they have minted 49 releases including EPs, singles, collaborations and full-length albums. Every year this band graces the blogosphere’s best fo the year lists for psych, drone, stoner, and heavy psych. They are legendary as a live band and they play loud on the stages of the coolest music festivals in the UK and EU. This compilation has the raw energy and inspiration found on their albums and has a live room vibe on many songs giving the audience a taste of their prowess...
Sex Swing – Passover (IDLES Remix) (Great to have this and many other rare Rocket remixes coming out on vinyl for the first time, on our Record Store Day exclusive 'Aphelion Vol.1/2' LPs) Record Store Day
De Witte Kunst – Op Zee (KIKOK Remix) (Gnoomes drummer takes it nice and slow on this remix) KIKOK
Dwellings – Three new tracks (Three new tracks from Chris GNOD) Dwellings
Beyaz Kelebekler – Esmerim (Turkish wah sounds) Beyaz Kelebekler
John Dwyer and Co. – The War Clock (From the man who never sleeps) John Dwyer and Co.
Work Money Death – The Space In Which The Uncontrollable Unknown Resides, Can Be The Place From Which Creation Arises (Pharaoh worship) Work Money Death
Kvartetten Som Sprängde – Gånglåt Från Valhallavägen (Swedish psych from '73) Kvartetten Som Sprängde
Pasteur Lappe – Na Real Sekele Fo'Ya (Afro disco banger) Pasteur Lappe
We’re really excited to announce that we’re launching a music label «Zonned». The idea of the label appeared during the first wave of the pandemic when we realised how it is actually easy to loose the ground. Thoughts were spinning in my head: what could possibly become an oasis of calm and peace at these tumultuous times? When clubs are shutting down, when you’re not able go touring anymore and visit your pals, is there still music going on? I believe it was still playing but its frequencies were not easily got caught.
The answer came to my mind when I was listening to something at the 5% volume. What if not ambient could bring you from the flight - fight state to a zone of comfort and warmth!
In the last few years we’ve heard so much cool stuff from our friends all over the globe. Sometimes they lack of understanding what they’re supposed to do with this? Sometimes they don’t quite find a belief in themselves. And we thought: Oh, my God! This is so beautiful, what if nobody will hear it ever?
We decided that it’s not fair in a way. It’s become our driving force alongside with the desire of creating healing content for people.
For me a label is not only a signature music style, but it’s always an aesthetic and design. That’s why we’ve teamed up with Vitalic Ten who’s in charge of visual content at Zonned. I’m really proud that he’s in our team.
We’re gonna release a digital comp soon with the artists all over the world! Watch this space! Please sign to our social media, etc!”.
Much like the elusive Theory of Everything in physics, with Hills‘ universal psychedelic premise is underlined by almost unaccountable gravity. Released in 2011 through Intergalactic Tactics and Transubstans Records following a 2009 self-titled debut, Master Sleeps basks these 10 years later in its breadth of influence and establishes its aesthetic on a per-track basis, presenting two vinyl sides of resonant, spaced-out intergalactic fare with an awakened nature that’s nothing if not contradictory to the title. It’s a record about which much was said at the time by the in-the-know-telligencia, and that’s cool, because it’s cool, and, hey man, cool, but any and all past hype aside — it’s amazing how the years turn these things into wisps of recollection; the fervent talking-up of records fading to echoes even as attention spans are criticized for their shortness; hypocrites to a hyperlink, everyone — it’s a cool record and to deny it is to deny oneself the pleasure of a 35-minute, mostly instrumental outward journey of jams and in-on-it-early-next-gen heavy psych. Suffice it to say, if this shit was due in June instead of a decade gone, you’d still see as much desperate preening of feathers in order to curry its vaunted favor. And fair enough.
I have the CD, which was the Transubstans version, that I apparently picked up later in 2011, but I’ll be damned if Master Sleeps doesn’t hold up. It was ahead of the game on vinyl structuring, presaging the larger-platter-as-format-of-record (pun absolutely intended) explosion by a year or two, and each of its two sides brought three tracks in a nearly even break of structure to what seems to be utterly fluid throughout the listening experience, opener “Rise Again” and closer “Death Shall Come” creating a loop from one to the other that feels all the more geared to encourage multiple listens in a kind of sonic reincarnation. Accordingly, the more you hear Master Sleeps, the more you hear in it. First? Swirl. “Rise Again” fuzzes and unfolds a careening spaciousness that calls out early space rock and psych drift with shoegaze vocals buried in the mix à la The Heads where you wonder if anything’s really being said or you’re just imagining it and does it really matter anyway. I don’t know...
