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"DISTANCE"

AHKMED DEBUT ALBUM OUT NOW THROUGH ELEKTROHASCH RECORDS

Buy it now at www.elektrohasch.de

"CHICXULUB"

AN AHKMED COMPILATION ALBUM FEATURING SONGS OFF OUR FOUR INDEPENDENTLY RELEASED EP'S.

RELEASED THROUGH R.A.I.G. (RUSSIAN AGENCY OF INDEPENDENT GENRES)

NOW AVAILABLE ONLINE THROUGH:

RARE RECORDS www.rarerecords.com.au

Formed 1998 in Melbourne, Australia .. .. .. .. ..

REVIEWS

Ahkmed - DISTANCE

Reviewed by Woody (http://ripplemusic.blogspot.com/)

I always thought I was the only one who liked Pink Floyd’s Ummagumma album, but it sounds like the 3 guys in Ahkmed also dig it. I think it’s safe to say that these guys have thoroughly absorbed Space Ritual, Funhouse, Tago Mago, Maggot Brain, Meddle, In A Silent Way and the Mick Bolton era of UFO. Probably some Sun Ra, too. If you’re gonna play space rock this well, you must know something about the man who said “space IS the place.”

Ahkmed is a 3 headed unit from Uranus sent down to free the shackled minds of planet Australia. Their mission will tolerate liberating mental slaves throughout the rest of the galaxy as well. Their deployment began in 1998. Four EP’s were released prior to their new CD titled Distance. Chances are I’ll never get to enjoy this record correctly: under the influence, staring at a lava lamp in a dark basement with a clean bucket to drool in, but I can dream about it.

If you’ve worn out your copy of Pink Floyd Live At Pompeii, you owe it to yourself to pick this up. This sounds like the late night set they played under the stars when they let that stray dog run the mixing board.

The 7 songs of Distance comprise an hour of uninterrupted music. The songs flow into each other but also stand on their own wherever you decide to push play on it. The 9 minute opener “Strega” starts off with some tribal drumming before the space echo guitar comes in. Eventually the bass joins up with them and it’s an echoplex explosion of sound with some slowed down space announcements. Trippy. An actual human voice doesn’t appear until about halfway through the 3rd song “lemanja.” It’s almost unsettling to hear a humanoid in the middle of the cosmic mist and thankfully the vocals are not groaned in some kind of Isis/Neurosis s t y l e. The drummer is also the singer of Ahkmed, which is always a plus in my book. The tempo picks up a little towards the end of the record in “Temple” before orbiting back to the home planet of the title track.

People of Earth need to buy this record so Ahkmed can buy a huge light show and travel the spaceways.

Ahkmed - Chicxulub

Reviewed by Andy O'Conner (Sonicfrontiers.net)

Pelican...in space

Ahkmed take a Kraut/Space-rock approach to the “post-metal” sound we all know and love with Chicxulub, a collection of EPs recorded in 2003 and 2005. Imagine Hawkwind, in their cosmic, amphetamine-driven prime, joining forces with Isis, and you have a nearly dead-on description of their sound.

The opening track “Kirrae,” wonderfully explores the dynamics of loud and soft that post-rock and its derivatives are known for. The track goes from clean guitar jamming that seems high in the sky, then kicks in the distortion. Akhmed then go back to the softness, but when the amps are cranked again, they outdo themselves. The songs drifts off into spacey ambiance a pedal geek is sure to love. The band cuts some of the drone and ups the dexterity on the next track, “Ilanesia.” Though space-rock is mostly associated with bliss, it can convey fear as well. The muted wah in “T” creates an ominous claustrophobia. It’s also in this track where the vocals, a wispy drawl, are introduced. They are not in the forefront, like in Isis, and overall serve to add to the atmosphere of the album.

Akhmed’s songwriting is also more diverse than their classification would make them out to be. “Viceroy” sees the band successfully taking on a Fudge Tunnel-like tune, the most conventionally metal (though not by much) of the tracks. “Welcome Mat” finds them indulging in some Acid Mothers Temple spazz-outs. The fresh interpretation of a sound that some would already considered played-out makes Chicxulub worth it for any fan of heavy music.

Ahkmed - In Your Neck of the Dying Woods

Reviewed by Andy "Dinger" Beresky (StonerRock.com)

Melbourne, Australia's Ahkmed is really on to something. Their self-described sound is "post-stoner," and that's an apt des c r i p tion, as the band fuses the more traditional psych and fuzz utilized so often by the best of the stoner bunch with the more atmospheric instrumental approach of bands such as Pelican and the more recent Mogwai albums. Cool concept - it's like somebody put chocolate in my peanut butter, and peanut butter in my chocolate, and I'm loving it. What's even cooler is that this trio isn't afraid to throw a little kraut into the mix as well, and while that might sound really disgusting if we were still talking about peanut butter and chocolate, musically it works well.* I hear echoes of Neu!, Amon Duul II, and Tangerine Dream in some of these sprawling tracks. Oh, and for the record, the last track has vocals; the other three do not. These guys have been around since 1998, and it's a shame that they haven't gathered more notoriety, because this is pretty intriguing stuff, and they actually manage to take modern heavy psych and put their own spin on it. I really can't recommend this enough. Now come to America so I can see it all live.

*For the record, I do hold the patent for a candy bar that mixes the enticing flavors of peanut butter, chocolate, and sauerkraut.

AHKMED - In your neck in the dying woods

The Australian Psychedelic Stoner Rockers are back with a EP, called IN YOUR NECK IN THE DYING WOODS. Especially the guitar sound and the kind of playing are unique for the scene. What Carlo, JP, Dan and Dave did on these 4 tracks is very innovative and really unique for the scene. Long sounds capes get breached through heavy Stoner riffs and I haven’t heard a band so far who created such awesome psychedelic guitar music. KIRRAE is a great, 10 minute long opener with silent moments. A must have for Hawkwind fans. ILANESIA follows in the same direction before CURLIE will give you some vocals. Get it - awesome band!

Live at the Espy, 2003. Review by Neil Wedd

"Ahkmed set their controls for the heart of the sun. Pink Floyd meets Mudhoney. Moving to another astral plane. Relentless riffing that goes on forever. Close your eyes, take another toke and it all becomes clear. A definite experience. During the last song a bloke began dancing, jumped up on stage danced around and made a huge leap off it. He was in the moment."