Wooden Shjips

Wooden Shjips, a quartet from San Francisco heavily influenced by the experimentalism of psychedelia, classical minimalism, and garage rock excess, started as an experiment in rhythmic primitivism and group improvisation. The current roster brings a more structured rock approach to its performances, utilizing a traditional lineup of drums (Omar Ahsanuddin), bass (Dusty Jermier), organ (Nash Whalen), guitar (Erik “Ripley” Johnson), and vocals. The band released two acclaimed records in 2006, beginning early in the year with a self-released 10-inch, Shrinking Moon for You. The record quickly sold out, after capturing the attention of well-regarded tastemakers, such as Tom Lax and Byron Coley, who penned rave reviews on Siltblog, and in Wire magazine, respectively. A 7-inch followed on the Sick Thirst label, and received similar praise from music bloggers, as well as from veteran scribe David Fricke in Rolling Stone. The band has three 2007 releases planned: this LP/CD for Holy Mountain, a 7-inch for Sub Pop, and a 7-inch for Pollymaggoo Records. “Wooden Shjips are from San Francisco, but the concentrated ferocity of the freakouts on their two very-underground releases—a white-label ten-inch EP (the band gave away the first 300 copies) and a clear-vinyl single (“Dance, California”)—arrives via the ’70s Germanic-guitar lunacy of Guru Guru and the confrontational repetition of VU.” —David Fricke, Rolling Stone “..tight-wound repeato psych guitar raunch with spoony (maybe even imaginary) percussion, surprisingly Rev-like keys, and vocals buried under burning driftwood.” —Tom Lax, Siltblog

San Francisco quartet finds inspiration in the California frontier sex-and-death cult mentality, as they blend 1960s-style desert mysticism with hypnotic jams sometimes reminiscent of Spacemen 3.

It isn't that hard to make music that sounds hallucinatory, but it's hard to do it as well as the San Francisco quartet Wooden Shjips, who fall on the more compact, song-oriented side of neo-psychedelia. On the band's self-titled debut LP, tracks like "We Ask You To Ride" and "Losin' Time" combine tight, minimalist…

The Wooden Shjips -- Ripley Johnson, guitar and vocals; Dusty Jermier, bass; Omar Ahsanuddin, drums, and Nash Whalen, organ -- play minimal, droning, garage band-meets-Krautrock psychedelia full of long instrumental passages and pounding, primitive rhythms.

If Wooden Shjips were not from San Francisco they ought to be required, by some little known psychedelic garage law, to move there immediately.