SpaceManAntics

On The Bird’s tiny stage, SpacemanAntics’ six live members may have seemed cramped, but their tunes went on for miles, baby. The sextet sounded like a massive production even in the tiny bar, without ever sounding cluttered or noisy. Delivering hook after hook, the group’s undeniable 60′s influence was cut with modern nuance, with synth whooshes and extra prominent bass reminiscent of fellow Perthians Tame Impala.

Where Puraede’s parade is heading or celebrating is locked somewhere in the minds of the members of SpacemanAntics, but if their music is any indication, it’s a land of rainbow colours and lots of white smoke. - Spaceship News - Chris Gardner

Riding through space on a purple unicorn in your mind may have gone out of style, but don’t tell that to SPACEMANANTICS. The tie-dyed five piece have unleashed their debut album Puraede’s Parade onto our collective, unsuspecting consciousness. Featuring lush production by frontman Broderick Madden-Scott that transforms the swirling synths, chiming guitars and throbbing bass into transcendent walls of sound, the group channel balance the most lush excesses of the hippie era with a melodic sensibility that has an almost country edge.

The imaginatively titled ‘Intro’ primes the listener for what is ahead, a stately demonstration of the band’s widescreen sound that segues into lead single ‘A Man Is A Ghost Of Peter Pan.’ Madden-Scott’s vocals are nasal and piercing, but they are a perfect match for the warbling instrumentals under them, coming through clean and clear, weaving the trip’s psychedelic narrative. The band bury songs within extended instrumental freak outs, obscuring the otherwise excellent ‘Is This A Test?’ and the two part ‘We Could Have Gone Far’ with jams that, beautifully produced as they are, smack slightly of filler, or at least shameless imitation of their 1960′s forebears.

‘The Man From Mars’ has a theatrical pomp, one that requires more confidence to pull off than many bands require. The seemingly endless closing guitar solo could have very easily become self indulgent, but once again Madden-Scott’s stellar work behind the dials make it too beautiful to complain, capturing a truly excellent piece of guitar noodling in all of its glory. The monster psychedelic carnival draws to an end on second-to-last track ‘Bloomsbury Puraede’, while the lilting countrified anthem ‘Outside Sun’ closes the album in playful style. Like all good trips, it’s all over too quick, yet it seemed to go on forever while you were there.

With the exception of the last track, every song is as large and rich and full as the last. While this makes for an album that is superficially beautiful, it also robs the album of any dynamic contrast; without any valleys, all the peaks become one big plateau. This is not to detract from any of the songs on the record, which if taken separately are all excellent in their own right. But taken as one cohesive whole, the constant hugeness makes the entire package seem smaller.

SpaceManAntics have embraced the full mind-bending potential of psychedelic rock on Puraede’s Parade, indulging in excesses that other bands of that ilk may shun. Confidently performed and expertly recorded, this has echoes of MGMT’s brilliant-yet-underrated sophomore effort, Congratulations; ridiculously melodic and unashamedly out there. Best enjoyed with headphones, Puraede’s Parade is a modern studio masterpiece, a sonic reward for the pop-inclined audiophile. - Spaceship News - Chris Gardner

SpaceManAntics are a band that really deserve a proper write up – which we promise we’ll get to someday very, very soon. But now it’s crunch time – defcon one – final answers – pens down – cone o’clock – etc, because they’re launching their ripper of a new album this weekend down in Melbourne.

Quick spiel on the album – it’s got amazing potential as the new Aus-psych record on everyone’s lips. While nobody cares about Tame Impala any more, while Cloud Control roll down the acoustic road, as Pond start charging more $$$ for their shows and as King Gizz gear up for a third album, Puraede’s Parade could be the next underground success in the biz. It’s spacey, it’s fuzzy, it’s groovy, its modulated to all buggery and its wholly, wholly accessible – a fucking dangerous combination if good songs have a tendency to worm their way into your head. If you’re not biting your lower lip and clutching that air-guitar during The Man From Mars, you’re doing something wrong with your life.

Starting this Saturday (15th Feb 2014), the Freemantle five piece gear up for a string of shows launching their brilliant odyssey, beginning at The Bird alongside Hunting Huxley, Leure and Rabbit Island. Check out the dates below if you can’t make it, but make sure to get on top of this band while they’re still playing $10 shows ($15 if you want an album too) and allowing you to stream their work for free. Literally can’t wait for these boys to make it up to Sydney. - hhhhappy.com - Alex Gordon

I’m sorry Melbourne, even though you’re king at finding great new bands, the prize for psychedelic music belongs to Perth. We all know about Tame Impala and Pond, but the next wave is coming.

I’ve been told that there are several really exciting bands out west in this field that simply dont’ have an online presence. One band that does exist online, Silver Hills, put us on to SpaceManAntics’ first single ‘A Man Is A Ghost Of Peter Pan‘ from their debut album Puraede’s Parade, due out 1 February.

The lyrics are a little silly: “and it works to be a man, like the ghost of peter pan, but it’s worse to be a pearl, in your shell, until the end of the world,” but it doesn’t really take anything away from the song because you can tell by watching their self-described “super personal homemade” DIY video that SpaceManAntics are just having fun.

The video clip was shot in their rehearsal room and has the cameraman spinning around as the band plays ‘A Man Is A Ghost Of Peter Pan’ while slowly being taken over by some tie dye visuals (not quite on the production level of ‘My Girls‘ by Animal Collective), before exploding at the 3:51 mark.

As simple as the music video clip may appear, there are a couple little things you may also notice. First is the guy eating cereal at the end, who can be seen making the cereal at the 1:26 mark in the background. Second is the appearance of the rando dancing as the camera moves out of the room at the end of the song. Where did they appear from? My guess is they crawl in to the room during the final camera spin, but they also may have completed a sneaky camera hand-over to reward the dizzy cameraman by putting them in the video.

Either way, well-played SpaceManAntics. - The Ripe

You've gone and bloody killed it with this one. Doesn't sound like a song that runs for five minutes, and that's a huge testament to your ability to write and arrange engaging music. Deary me. Well done. - Triplejunearthed - Max Quinn

Bit of an interesting name is old SpaceManAntics. I mean it’s probably not as good as SpaceManAntiques, at least conceptually, but it still rolls off the tongue quite smoothly. SpaceManAntics, come on readership, say it with me. They’re fresh out of Freo (as in, fresh enough that their manager’s mobile phone number is freely available on their facebook) but it’s not stopping them from angling straight for an LP by February 1st. The debut song is called ‘A Man Is A Ghost Of Peter Pan’ which is probably insinuating that in growing up we die. That’s what I take from it anyway and my blog = my rules. Plenty of lovely delays and pedalled out guitar tones. It sounds like the spawn of Bearhug and an early Band of Horses and by my numbers that’s a two from two so now I’m rather keen to hear the record. I was mid-way through writing this when I came upon the bio on their Unearthed profile which is a far more entertaining read than any of my emotional livejournal spoutings here. Please see below. - Sound Doctrine

Just when you thought you’d heard enough Australian psych-rock five more dudes from WA come along and breathe life back into that dead horse. Gross analogy, sorry. Anyway, SpaceManAntics have got this shifting soundscape thing down pat; it’s music to make you want to grow your hair and start ending sentences with “man” more often. - Faster Louder

The risk of being unimpressed by SPACEMANANTICS has been steadily declining over the last year or two to the point where it is now a non-concern. This band has vitality and skill coming out of every one of its many orifices and they use it to create dense, dynamic, creamy psychedelia in the lineage of Bowie and (more contemporaneously) MGMT; or, as a former member of Mink Mussel Creek today mused on Facebook, a bit like Mink “but less heavy and dirty and way better at music.” Despite being crammed into a minuscule corner they’ve decided to actually add another member, Jamie Canny on saxophone. I have never been one to criticise the decision of adding a saxophone to anything, and I certainly won’t start now. Keep it up, Spacemen. - Cool Perth Nights

SpaceManAntics brought down a tidal wave of dark, psychedelic rock riffs that reignited the show. Combined with everyone’s favourite instrument the saxophone, the band had a distinct 70s urban feel with a punchy, eclectic, and ethereal mix. - The Music