When you find yourself sifting through the digital annals of what modern music has to offer, it’s only natural that at some point you find a creation that well and truly catches you off-guard sooner or later for what it dares to be. I do not consider myself an expert in any field of music, but of all the times I found myself searching for likewise music, Lord Buffalo has always stood alone. In a field that feels completely their own, Lord Buffalo has been a rising name for all the right reasons with their evolution a true wonder for the senses with every album offering something different from the last as the act’s brand of hypnotic and ritualistic folk rock something that has only gotten better with time. With the arrival of their forthcoming creation, the act is poised to remind us why that’s precisely the case.
The last creation from Lord Buffalo, “Tohu Wa Bohu”, still undeniably holds a strong sway over my listening habits with it never being long before I find myself coming back to its reeling expanses and gorgeous atmospheres even years after first losing myself in its magnificence. It’s a wild ride across the plains with Lord Buffalo showcasing a strong side of their sound around a somber atmosphere that’s constantly swirling around undeniable riffs and melodies that flesh out the experience into something that I still struggle to compare to something else. By and large, it was a bold new step in the band’s sound. Lord Buffalo’s trademark brand of unique meditations were absolutely present through the many different instruments that were showcased, but, compared to previous efforts, it felt like Lord Buffalo maybe pulled back in that aspect the tiniest bit. As if to showcase they’re still able to deliver such deep ravines for the soul to lose itself, it’s within the six seven tracks of “Holus Bolus” that we see the opposite brought to life in exquisite detail.
While still absolutely catering to those of us who love the band’s more rhythmic, melodic, and expansive side of their rough-around-the-edges yet still beautiful violin-driven Americana in pieces like the title tack and “I Wait on the Door Slab”, it demands to be made known that “Holus Bolus” is a work that feels specifically made to evoke the sensation of a sleep-deprived drive across the plains with the mountains encroaching you in the far-off distance with the occasional blur of a single pair of headlights your only loose tether to this reality. A trip laced with psychedelia that allows the shadows and skies to come alive in such a form that almost feels biblical in certain moments, “Holus Bolus” takes on a life that is simply awe-inspiring to watch come to life. Lord Buffalo pulled out all the stops to ensure that “Holus Bolus” is a singularly captivating creation that doesn’t grab you by the throat or anything of the sort. Rather, through haunting dreamlike rhythms, vocals that have long been pitch-perfect, drums that can shift from thunderous to downright hypnotizing, a strings of influences that can vary wildly from the deep American West to the spiritualism of the Middle East, and a clear vision that has propelled Lord Buffalo far and wide, “Holus Bolus” coaxes you into the haze under your own power and free will.
Soulful and utterly invigorating from the very beginning, Lord Buffalo has done nothing but succeed at every turn throughout these seven enrapturing pieces. We have seen loads of excellence this year already with bands that deal in psychedelia, and Lord Buffalo certainly counts as such with it being surprisingly likely that Lord Buffalo has topped much of what has already come despite the insanely stiff competition. Art and soul have prevailed in many instances with “Holus Bolus” being the golden example that 2024 has given us thus far. Dozens have come around to show us what excellence is to be thrown down in many different forms, yet I have a feeling that when it comes to recount the records of the year that we are the most fond of, Lord Buffalo will once again be a name we simply cannot get off of our lips.
“Holus Bolus” releases on July 12th via Blues Funeral Recordings!
LISTENÂ to advanced tracks from “Holus Bolus” on Bandcamp here.
LIKEÂ Lord Buffalo on Facebook here.
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