Six Organs of Admittance mastermind Ben Chasny might be the hardest working man in the psych scene. Whether blowing out amps with Comets on Fire, mapping wierdo territories with Badgerlore and Basalt Fingers or surveying his own material, Chasny’s been behind some of the highest profile psych recordings in recent years. Chasny now returns with Ascent, an album recorded with a handful of his Comets brethren.
Previous LPs like School of the Flower and For Octavio Paz were largely acoustic affairs that looked inwardly for mind expansion. Chasny created intricate auras and deeply sonic territory with a surprisingly limited palette, only hinting at electric touches and leaving the full-blast material for Comets. Still, Chasny’s signature style and groove was embedded in everything he touched though.
Ascent is the new face of Six Organs, and it mixes the old acoustic and new electric evenhandedly. “Waswasa” opens this set by hurling itself into the air with a psych-riff worthy of “The Bee and the Cracking Egg” (from Comets’ Blue Cathedral). The rhythm section on “Even If You Knew” and “Close to the Sky” set a firm stage for Chasny to let completely loose. “Solar Ascent” and “Your Ghost” resemble the project’s previous material, with haunting lyrics and sparse arrangements. It’s definitely worth the trip.
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