Mooner – Tabiat album review

Unless you’re fluent in Indonesian languages, you won’t be singing along to Mooner. You may however be nodding with happy familiarity at their music. A vigorous fusion of heavy psychedelic riffs and intriguingly fresh raga and Middle Eastern touches, it’s stoner rock with a lick of the spiritual. They don’t mess about getting down and dirty, but you feel there’s a desire for elevation at the core. That might seem a pretentious comment when you first hear it, because at times the guitars have no loftier ambition than to match the oft-overlooked oeuvre of 70s Brit outfit Blackfoot Sue. In phases, there’s a curving upwards to the more tricksy emissions of Argent or Nektar. Yet Mooner use the roots of psych as their basic platform, then blow the cobwebs away with a contemporary hunger. They’re both taking glee in the medium and recharging it as they enjoy the ride. Hard for us to grasp, perhaps, is how big they are at home: a supergroup of sorts, the quartet includes members of The Slave, Sigmun, The Sigit and Sarasvati, all of whom draw big crowds there. Mastered by US guitarist/producer James Plotkin (Khanate/OLD), this will draw big pictures in your head.