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Heavy Metal FruitJanuary 2010

Heavy Metal Fruit cover front

2x 12″ / CD
Rune Grammofon RLP3098
Rune Grammofon RCD2093
Stickman Records Psychobabble 065

The double 180g vinyl edition is a three sided affair with side one having great etched artwork by Kim Hiorthøy. The lavish sleeve comes as a triple gatefold with printed inners.
CD format: digipak

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Side A

  • Etching

Side B

  • Starhammer (feat. The Electric Psalmon) {12:56}
    (Ryan/Sæther)
  • X-3 (Knuckleheads in Space) / The Getaway Special {9:03}
    (Kapstad/Ryan/Sæther)

Side C

  • The Bomb-Proof Roll and Beyond (for Arne Hassle) {6:01}
    (Ryan/Sæther)
  • Close Your Eyes {3:39}
    (Sæther)
  • W.B.A.T. {9:43}
    (Sæther)

Side D

  • Gullible’s Travails (pt. I-IV) {20:42}
    (Ryan/Sæther)
    • I Eye All-Seeing
    • II The Elementhaler
    • III Circle
    • IV Phoot Flower (a Burly Return)

Reviews

With a gracious liner nod to “the mighty BÖC for the album title”, Motorpsycho´s 14th magnum opus in 20 years is, finally, their definitive record. From Stoogey roots in ´89, the trio blossomed into northern Europe´s own Zeppelin, thanks to the copiously Ledded prog-punk-metal of their marathon live shows. Mid-period albums ably digressed into delicate West Coast pop, but since losing their drum anchorman in ´05, they´ve not faltered, re-embracing mountain-high rockage on a run of four pulsatingly heavy albums, culminating with this 60-minute monster. The opening Starhammer finds axe-wizard Hans Magnus Ryan picking brittle, otherwordly abstractions like latterday Tom Verlaine, but by The Bomb-Proof Roll And Beyond, he´s thrumming up a rotor-blade cyclic storm. W.B.A.T segues startlingly from skittering Miles´s Dark Magus fusion into skyscarping Physical Graffiti riffage, before four-parter Gullible´s Travails mood-hops Quadraphenia-like towards an epic, arms-aloft conclusion. 4/5.

Mojo (UK)

 

Their facility for experimental rock, metal and pop coalesced recently on their monumental 2008 outing, “Littel Lucid Moments”, and “Heavy Metal Fruit” sees them explore this progressive side of themselves to its outer limits. Bassist Bent Sæther and guitarist Hans Magnus Ryan sing and play with the near-clairvoyant fluidity that only exists between long-term musical partners. They´ve found the perfect foil in drummer Kenneth Kapstad, and they make a hell of a racket for three people. A 13-minute slab of spacerock, “Starhammer” lollops easily on its inscrutable, top-heavy rhythm, breaks down into a meandering instrumental and rises ecstatically again. The Byrds meet Deep Purple on “X-3”, a driving, downhome rocker with knowing lyrics about taking a trip to space past the stars all the way to Mars. At the end we´re left somewhere past Neptune, as a heavenly female choir references the outer edge of Holst´s “The Planet” suite. “Heavy Metal Fruit”´s defining aspect is this clever sense of noodly fun, delivered with an exquisite raggedness. Sæther and Ryan´s taste for west coast harmonies pervade the record. With its cascading lines sung over each other in counterpoint, “The Bomb-Proof Roll And Beyond” is as Beach Boys as it is Pink Floyd. The rattling, psychedelic jam W.B.A.T is lettered with organ stabs and Ryan´s meaty, bluesy guitar squalls (dripping in classic rock authenticity, his style is symbolic of the entire band ethos), while the whopping closer “Gullible Travails” is a sprawling space-rock epic. Its age-of-Aquarius lyrics might be daft, but its tune and chorus are both irresistible and beautifully structured, bringing the album to a transcendent climax. Run your fingers across the sound of Motorpsycho 2010 and you´ll pick up the dust of a classic era. Yet, like fellow Scandi-rockers The Soundtrack Of Our Lives, they bring a modern slant to their discrete mishmash of retro references and styles, making “Heavy Metal Fruit” one nourishing trip.

Prog (UK)

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