Back in September, the second issue of Rolling Stone Australia included with it an in-depth guide to Australian psych-rock over the years. Had Pseudo Mind Hive’s Volume III been released just a few months earlier, the chances are almost perfect it would’ve made an appearance on the list as a vital piece of listening for any fan of Aussie the genre.
Having formed only a few years, the Melbourne outfit wasted no time in creating a musical portfolio, with debut track “Highway to The Purple Sky” appearing just a few months later, and serving as the closing cut on their 2018 debut, From Elsewhere.
Since then, the group’s profile has blossomed continuously, with Of Seers and Sirens following in 2019, before 2020 brought with it the timely Live at The Northcote Social-Distanced Club. However, all of this felt as though it was leading up to the release of their next release, with their Volume III EP appearing today.
A home recording consisting of previously-unrecorded songs while in lockdown, the four-track release is undoubtedly a product of the group’s influences, with the classic progressive-rock of the ’60s and ’70s permeating the songs, while fuzzy riffs and reverberating vocals into ethereal territory.
As they expertly master the balance between chaos and calm (as most notably evident on the seven-and-a-half opus that is “Hinterland”), Pseudo Mind Hive assert themselves as a band determined to blaze their own trail, with their unique interplay of composition and performance turning Volume III into the sort of record that should be given to every young rock musician as required listening.
Most impressively though, for a record which was produced in a home environment, and features a renewed focus on songwriting, melody, and composition, it’s in no way hampered by these new challenges, and shines as one of their strongest and most accomplished releases to date.
While there’s no word yet as to when Pseudo Mind Hive will be making a full-scale return to touring, the group are launching their new EP with a sold-out show at Melbourne’s Corner Hotel this evening.
Pseudo Mind Hive’s Volume III is out now, with a vinyl edition from Salty Dog Records set to arrive in the near future.
