On the 29th of March, Iowa City will a reunion of sorts as well as the return of a past festival guest. The returning guest is Daniel Higgs. A long-time staple of the underground, both internationally as well as in Washington, D.C. for his work in Lungfish and more general epicness, Higgs played a beautiful acoustic set at the Cave of Spirits during the 2009 festival. This time, he is coming with a bunch of Swedes better known collectively as The Skull Defekts.
The Skull Defekts is a band that exists outside of Daniel Higgs. Combining classic rock rhythms and intensity with krautrock tendencies (read: repetition) and experimentalism, Gothenburg’s The Skull Defekts share a sound similar to bands such as The Fall, The Ex, and Sonic Youth. For their new album Peer Amid, the band merged their sound with the apocalyptic lyrics of Higgs, providing a singular experience that is both haunting and pure rock and roll. I know that it is hard to imagine, but watch the posted video to better understand. Fans of the aforementioned bands as well as desert rock groups like Kyuss and Queens of the Stone Age/ Desert Sessions should be able to lock into this groove without a problem.
The reunion comes from the presence of Zomes. The solo project of Lungfish guitarist/longtime Higgs collaborator Asa Osbourne, Zomes is drum loop backed keyboard annihilation. His sound is purely instrumental and hypnotic, evoking swirling fractals and desolate desert landscapes. After thirty seconds of listening, it feels like you’re floating on a cloud of synths. It’s really quite lovely. Osbourne’s sound will be a nice counterbalance to the rock and roll fury provided by Skull Defekts. Fans of the tape-based neo-psychedelica that has been coming out of the 2000s (read: Pocahaunted, The Savage Young Taterbug, Sun Araw, Ducktails, Peaking Lights, Wet Hair) should find themselves thoroughly entertained.
Playing with these two bands will be locals Joe Pavillion and Alex Body, both of whom are excellent performers and will fit well into the psychedelic night that this will surely turn out to be. Fans of drones and general psych goodness should find their way to the Wherehouse for this show.
Tickets are $6 at the door. If you have a pass, this show is obviously covered by that.
The doors are at 9, and the show starts at 10. It’s an all-ages show, so no one is getting kicked out at Midnight.
