With Nik Turner’s “Space Fusion Odyssey” still reverberating in my now stardust coated brain, I find that this newly released album is seriously dynamic. His new work debuted on September 18th, and you get exactly what you sign up for with Nik Turner’s jazzy and psychedelic jam sessions through the cosmos. Nik Turner manages to help the listener musically smoke peyote in an underground jazz lounge, on Mars with amazing technical precision.

His widely acclaimed skills on saxophone and jazz flute are solidly represented and accompanied by some face melting guitar riffs and funky walking bass lines. There are no corners of music and sound these guys are not willing to dive into and twist into a cacophony of wild licks and sultry harmonies. The instruments in these tracks fade into one another seamlessly after stretching the sound to the brink of reason and back again. Turner has really used this album to showcase his, and the other artist’s ability to play with time signature and tempo. So many of the tracks break into classical and jazz inspired time signatures that throw the whole thing off-kilter and into another dimension. This melodic dimension however, catapults you into a smoke-filled club where one could consort with aliens and participate in a drum circle simultaneously. The first track “Adjust to the Future” is a great introduction to the album.

Nik Turner being a vocalist in so many of his other projects has gone silent in “Space Fusion Odyssey”. His voice makes appearances along side a female vocalist in whispers and groans throughout the album. These moments feel as though they act as a guardian angel guiding you through the album’s back to the future, acid trip saying cryptic lines such as, “you know just what we’re after” and “come with us to the other side”. I don’t know about you but I would gladly go with them.

This album really is an ode to the long career Nik Turner has had as an accomplished space rocker with Hawkwind and a decorated jazz musician. This time he threw in so many elements that really spiced up his cosmic stew. With tribal drums, bells, and a lot of instrumental showcasing, you can listen to this album over and over again and still hear something new. “Space Fusion Odyssey” is another great look into the insane amount of talent and innovation that goes into Nik Turner’s endeavors that continue to leave us enthralled and with our heads in the clouds.

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PsychRock Staff

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