Playing loud and proud garage metal with fuzz pedals blazing, Wand has two previous releases which both brought chaotic psychedelic anti-culture back into the fray for indie followers going to festivals expecting chill pop.
For that purpose, the first release, Ganglion Reef (QRO review) was a much more complete effort, than the overly simplified Golem (QRO review). 1000 Days picks up where Ganglion Reef left off by making use of acoustic rhythm and guitar solos in a way that Golem didn’t. The first number “Grave Robber” has a trailing keyboard solo and vocals that are full of reverb.
That said, metal is still the core of Wand, and the second track, “Broken Sun” shows this perfectly in the Nirvana-like guitar riff. The release shows more maturity and smoothness than the previous two with both “1000 Days” and “Paintings are Dead” being impressively artful and poignant, while “Lower Order” and “Sleepy Dog” are psychedelic echo filled jams.
1000 Days continues with the variety. “Stolen Footsteps”, “Little Dream”, and “Passage of the Dream” are all surprisingly classic rock sounding, long, and involving songs that seem to trail along a sun beam in the guitar. “Morning Rainbow” is a relaxed overarching philosophical trip, with lyrics more versed than sung opening with, “Lucifer… come back to me / Don’t let them see / What they never want to see”.
In the end, 1000 Days lives up to the psychedelic moniker. A record worth listening to for fans of the band, but also a complex listen for newcomers.
