Review Summary: Jump into the endless void, from which there’s no return.
It starts. Slow, quiet before the humming of the distorted six-strings become stronger and stronger. The rhythm is set, almost tribal-like. The squeezing, cerebral noises, effects all telling you, this ain’t Kansas no more. You close your eyes and feel yourself relaxing, more and more, almost too much. Voices cry out, almost incomprehensible, the guitars, the drums, the bass, the space noises all start to blend into a soup of psychedelic that pours into your body. The brain begins to melt, the mind opens up. This should be nothing but annoying, irritating noise, but it’s not. You feel its power, its momentum, the subtle shifts, its music in its purest, most unrestrained form. One that has its purpose. In this case to transport you into another dimension, a place you can’t describe with simple words, a place where you get carried through the music. Astral formed dance in front of your eyes, the colors begin harshly vibrate, everything is fuzzy. You fall and fall, then fly, than you transform and become one with everything else….and then the trip finally stops.
It’s safe to say, that most of us have never used drugs, but that’s exactly what feels is like to listen to 25…Tab, Monster Magnet’s unhinged, crazy and marvelous space freakout. Released as an EP in 1992, it is easily one of the most impressive accomplishments in psychedelic/stoner rock mostly due to the opening title track that runs for a whopping 32 minutes. A continuous wave of riffs, solos, guitar effects and one that never loses momentum and keeps the listener in its LSD-infused universe all the way through. You can only guess how high yet focused Dave Wyndorf and his bandmates could’ve been, to pull off such a musical performance. After this the faster paced (but also 12 minutes long) and harsher “Long Hair” and “Lord 13” is just a relaxer but they also clearly show off the diversive sounds and tones that became the band’s repertoire for many years to come. The production: Rough but dense and hard-hitting. The musicianship: Very loose yet thight as hell, and sometimes truly jaw-dripping. Sometimes you wonder what the hell it going on, but then you just let your the whole of it wash over you. A spaced out journey only few other albums could match, a true out of your body experience. All hail, the Church of Stoner Rock and its hymn, 25…Tab!
