I don’t get a lot of out of left field submissions for the blog but Swiss psychedelic band Harvey Rushmore & The Octopus sit right in that space. The quartet of Jonathan Meyer, Jakob Läser, Massimo Tondini and Stefan Cecere have spent more than fifteen years circling each other through various projects before settling into this formation. That long history together shows in the way the band operate. There is trust in the playing and they all seem comfortable following each other wherever the groove leads.
Across their first three albums the band developed a sound rooted in fuzz guitars, kraut rhythms and the sun scorched glow of sixties surf. Their 2022 record Freedomspacecake leaned heavily into that bright psychedelic side and the band took those songs across Europe on a run of shows that turned plenty of heads. Mindsuckers arrives after that touring cycle with a noticeable shift in mood. The guitars still carry that familiar psychedelic bite yet the atmosphere feels darker and more unsettled. Old horror cinema, B movies and strange visions of the near future seep into the record. It feels like the soundtrack to a late-night screening where the film flickers between past and future while the band hold the room in a hypnotic trance.
Let’s dive in and see where it takes us.
The album opens with ‘Wet Rabbit’ and straight away the band pull you into their world. A steady motorik pulse locks in beneath a swirl of guitar and synth. The rhythm section keeps everything tight while the guitar lines snake through the mix. It carries that classic krautrock sense of forward motion where the groove does the talking. This opener reminds me of an amped up West Coast Pop Art Experimental Band.
‘Hope’ follows with a slightly brighter tone though the sense of unease remains. The keys shimmer across the track while the thrashing guitars lean closer to garage rock territory. The song balances melody with a restless energy. You can totally hear how the band’s live experience feeds into these recordings. The groove sits comfortably yet there is always the feeling that the band might push things further at any moment.
‘Bitterkraut’ feels like a nod to the band’s love of motor driven psychedelia. The drums settle into a hypnotic pattern while the guitars form a dense wall of fuzz. The song stretches its legs and lets repetition work its magic. Small changes inside the arrangement keep the listener hooked as the track gathers momentum.
Up next ‘Painting Colours’ shifts the pace slightly. The opening guitar line carries a loose surf flavour that links back to the band’s earlier work. Acoustic guitar gives the track a more organic vibe. That familiar brightness flickers through the song though before darker textures start creeping into the background. Those synth tones colour the edges of the track and give it a slightly dreamlike quality.
‘Moon Reject’ pushes deeper into the shadowy side of the album. The groove slows and the atmosphere thickens. Fans of Pink Floyd will adore this track. Slide guitar weeps while the rest of the band’s sound grows heavier. The rhythm section hold steady to create a steady pulse that feels almost ritualistic. The band sound completely locked together here.
From the moon to the clouds next with ‘Cloud Driver’ opening with a somewhat gentler touch. The guitars ring out clearly while the rhythm moves at a measured pace. The song explores the fragile space between connection and disillusion. As the track unfolds the band gradually thicken the sound until the whole thing explodes in a psychedelic wig out. It’s one of the more reflective moments on the album and it adds an important contrast within the record’s flow.
Pulling us straight back into darker territory is ‘Acid River’. The bass and percussion drive the track forward while the guitars rise and fall around the groove. The song has a cinematic quality. You can picture the band performing it beneath swirling projections while the rhythm locks the audience into its hypnotic pattern.
‘Cosmic Waves’ feels expansive and slightly hallucinatory. The guitars stretch out and the synth textures float around the rhythm section. This is far out and trippy in the best way possible. The band show their patience here, letting the track evolve slowly while the tightest of grooves holds everything together.
The closing track ‘Mindsucker’ brings the album full circle. The song carries a darker edge. Drum machine pulses, shadowy guitar lines and eerie textures combine to create something that feels part psych rock and part strange horror soundtrack. It closes the album with a lingering sense of mystery, like the final scene of a film where the lights come up yet the images stay with you long after the credits roll.
Mindsuckers captures a band who know exactly how to balance groove, atmosphere and melody. Harvey Rushmore & The Octopus continue to pull ideas from the past while shaping them into something that feels alive in the present moment. The record moves between hypnotic repetition and bursts of psychedelic colour with a confidence that comes from years of playing together. By the time the final notes fade you realise the band have quietly pulled you into their world and left you happily under the spell of the Mindsuckers.
Mindsuckers is out now via Taxi Gauche Records. You can check it out over on the Harvey Rushmore & The Octopus Bandcamp page.
You can follow Harvey Rushmore & The Octopus on social media here…
Discover more from Static Sounds Club
Subscribe to get the latest posts sent to your email.
Static Sounds Club 