American outfit Moon Letters release their third studio album, This Dark Earth, on 13th June. You can collect yourselves a copy of this by taking off to their Bandcamp page at https://moonletters.bandcamp.com/

The album is described as a guided prog-psych adventure through the catacombs of the mind, weaving personal stories with fragmented cinematics, the hero’s journey toward transformation after battling personal and physical monsters.

So, six pieces to consider.

Energy of the Heart starts us off. It talks of a deceiver and a ravoness flying over, the raven traditionally a portent of doom, but ends on an upbeat note of awakening a summer of song. The opening notes are pretty before riffs dominate the picture, the contrast interesting. The rhythm section is thumping and the vocals more akin to a prog metal outfit at times, there being a complexity here you would associate with a Dream Theater type album, the mid-section instrumental then veering into quite bizarre psychedelic swirls alongside the riffs before the track settles down into more pastoral territory. An interesting start, and certainly one which will awaken you from any slumbers you might have.

Silver Dream has an official lyric video, and it is embedded below for you. It has our hero sinking through the floor, separated from his love. The music is suitably downbeat as it starts, but as it develops, we get more of the riffing from Dave Webb, and he does catch the ear, for sure. I really like Michael Trew’s vocals on this as well, with John Allday on the piano (he later provides a great trumpet burst) and Mike Murphy on bass providing for a melodic interlude, Kelly Mynes all the while a solid foundation, a track which does take one back to the adventurous spirit of the early seventies.

Island of Magic Mirrors references the Chimera, a mythical creature with parts taken from a variety of animals, the hero underground, wings melting. It is frenetic from the off and a more traditional sort of psych rock track, the harmonies strong here and the guitar work at the forefront before the collective provide us with a solid instrumental passage, and the organ work on this is good above some thumping riffs as it moves on.

Lonely Moon is a short instrumental to close off side one, and I really like it, the acoustic guitar a joy alongside a sparse, but effective, bass melody and keys.

The second side opens with In the Catacombs, those networks of tunnels containing the dead bodies of citizens awaiting judgement day, a place where your voices just carry on echoing. It acts as a sort of overture, screaming and all, to the main epic to follow, swirling keys and riffs.

The album closes with a huge epic track over seventeen minutes long, Dawn of the Winterbird. There are three parts to this, and it brings about the final transformation. I love the funk groove we have at the very start, the bass alive with intent. Some of the interaction between guitar and keys feels like a dance between the two, sparring for the lead and attention.

The second movement has a more mystical, eastern, feel to it, stripped back and interesting in its voices against the guitar chords, the track expanding nicely as it progresses, with some pop psych inherent within it, very tuneful, the lead vocals yearning and a fresh, pastoral synth, albeit too briefly before the guitar solo pumps up the volume very well.

The third movement takes a more traditional prog rock approach. Trew plays his flute well, and I, for one, wish we had heard more of this on the album. The vocals are very good here, emotive, and carrying the listener with it. The guitars and keys interact nicely as we move towards the closing section, and we are set up for a grandiose feeling finish. When we get there, it satisfies, the soundscapes soaring.

This Dark Earth is a good album. No, it doesn’t break any radical new ground, but it is certainly worthy of your attention those who enjoy the dreamier end of the spectrum.