Inhabiting a modern-day realm in which what is termed ‘psych’ is all-too-often a codified and predictable incarnation entirely at odds with the original free-flowing spirit of psychedelia, it can be a struggle to find a band who can marry the essence of its inception with an adventurous mindset – one with the ability to render their creations beyond clichéd genre trappings and studied thriftstore cool. Who knows whether through study or serendipity, but MIEN – a Transatlantic four-way collision of considerable force involving luminaries who have each forged a reputation for headspinning audial magick in their own right – are just such a band. What’s more, their eponymous Rocket recordings debut is no less than a rich tapestry of third-eye visions and nocturnal serenades both vivid and vital.

Yet the seeds were sown for this collaboration as long ago as 2004, when Rishi Dhir (Elephant Stone/The High Dials) found himself in a chance encounter with Black Angels frontman Alex Maas whilst performing sitar with his former band on a bill at SXSW in Austin with The Brian Jonestown Massacre. The two became friends, and Dhir would soon end up contributing to The Black Angels’ records and even touring with the band.

Not long afterwards, he would also stumble across the Anglo-American band The Earlies, who he would similarly collaborate and share a stage with. This led to essentially the genesis of MIEN, via a shared love for one song – the ‘classic sitar banger’ by the Association, ‘Wantin’ Ain’t Gettin’. Upon finding that both he and The Earlies’ electronics guru and producer John Mark Lapham had a particular desire to cover this ditty, they began a slow process of putting together the version they’d always dreamt of. Whilst this would never come to fruition – (“I gave a stab at singing the tune, and noone needs to hear that” notes Rishi) the sparks that flew between them lit up a collaborative path clearly worth following.

Some years later, another piece of the puzzle came into place, when Dhir was now playing bass with The Black Angels in 2012, and found the band sharing several bills with The Horrors, whose ‘Skying’ album had been on heavy rotation for him during this period. Thus he made the acquaintance of Tom Furse, and yet another pact was made to work together in the future. Soon, via yet another pass at the ill-starred Association cover, the four planets of the MIEN universe were to align, as a long-standing demo of John Mark – originally based on a Beastie Boys sample – was passed from the cutting-roomfloor through the hands of Rishi, Alex and Tom to undergo an alchemical process that startled all four – this was to become ‘Black Habit’, the second song on this debut.

Thirteen years and several traversals of the globe by both plane and audio-file later, the result is an album that sees this quartet transcending their origins whilst maintaining a cohesive unity borne of a desire for outward exploration. John Mark’s vision, as he puts it, was “imagine the Black Angels as Nico in her 80’s industrial phase mixed with George Harrison and Conny Plank.” – true to form, it’s an album that finds equal room for radiant groove-based propulsion and ambient dreamscapes alike – as comfortable with the murky hallucinogenic voyage of ‘You Dreamt’ as the powerful widescreen sweep of ‘(I’m Tired Of) Western Shouting’, yet with songwriting acumen as potent as the production values are expansive and exploratory.

This may have been a record put together at a distance – “Honestly, this is the only way of recording I’ve ever known as it was how the Earlies recorded their two albums. At this point, I’m not even sure how I’d be able to process recording in the same room as my bandmates!” notes John Mark – yet the chemistry between these four figures is manifest amidst a kaleidoscopic series of atmospheres and excursions whereby the fertile songwriting of the golden age of ‘60s psychedelia is transmitted into a transcendental realm above and beyond the second decade of the 21st century. John Mark may c influences as disparate as Ike Yard, The Inner Light, Neu!, Beak> and Led Zeppelin, yet the MIEN album lands on co-ordinates entirely of its own making – equally haunted by Texan heat-haze delirium and a gritty European chill.

“I can only speak for myself, but working with these guys has been one of the most enjoyable, free flowing experiences in my two decades of music production” reckons John Mark “We seem to fit together seamlessly and I’m excited to explore this potential further.”