As we closed in on the end of this year of years Massachusetts institution Magik Markers presented us with the wild ride of a new album called simply “2020”; a free-ranging journey beyond the mainstream of rock and into some chaotic landscapes. Here’s the ramshackle psychedelic glory of “CDROM”:
The possessed-sounding “CDROM” takes guitarist Elisa Ambrogio’s stream-of-conciousness storytelling, with Pete Nolan’s tumbling drums keeping things on edge and John Shaw’s bass holding everything together. Things get weird. That’s a Magik Markers trademark, as well as 2020 (the year) feature.
The songs on “2020” have the unpredictable dangerous energy of early Sonic Youth and also the wild unhinged fire of The Velvet Underground at their incendiary noisy best. But that doesn’t mean this is some retro-fuelled re-grouping of familiar touchstones.
Throughout “2020” Magik Markers take their own hard-to-define path through the wreckage, subverting any stylistic norms. Delicate in places, blasts of sonic energy in other places, from Ambrogio’s extraordinary untethered guitar playing which takes uncharted improvisational flights, in a psychedelic post-punk / experimental noise-rock kind of way.
So buckle up and take a trip through “2020” with Magik Markers.
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