The Telescopes – As Light Return

English space rock veterans The Telescopes emerged in the late 80s alongside fellow heads Loop, Spacemen Three and My Bloody Valentine and this ninth album adds fuel to the argument that they deserve their place among these luminaries as one modern UK psych's most important bands.

It's easy to forget that a period on Creation Records saw Telescopes main man Stephen Lawrie feted as a potential hitmaker with their self-titled 1992 album brimful of melodies and hooks reminiscent of Love or The Notorious Byrd Brothers-era Byrds. The intervening years however, have seen Lawrie revert back to the dark psychedlia of the group's debut with noise and experimentation taking precedent over any notion of traditional song structure and thick layers of distortion replacing chart bound shoegaze soundscapes. 

If that's your bag, As Light Return will be a thrilling ride. ‘You Can’t Reach What You Hunger’ recalls the Mary Chain's knack for burying poppy prettiness beneath a haze of feedback while Down on Me sees Lawrie's vocals dug so deep down in the mix they resemble something resembling a droned chant. Hand Full of Ashes meanwhile is as dark as its title suggests with pounding drums adding to the claustrophobic fuzz of oscillating guitars and shifting reverberation for the song's 14-minute duration. 

It's not an easy listen and it's hardly surprising that Lawrie has admitted his intention was "always to create a listening experience reaching beyond the realm of natural vision" but as Something In My Brain grabs you by the neck and thrusts you into the void, it's hard not to give into its dark and welcoming charms. 

Listen to: You Can’t Reach What You Hunger, Handful of Ashes