Formed in 2013, York psych stalwarts Soma Crew will be releasing their fifth album Confused OK on CD and digital download through Bandcamp on the 3rd of April 2024. The album was written during the latter end of the pandemic and recorded last year. It “addresses the turmoil in the caged conditions of lockdown, reflecting on recent years of political unrest, public mistrust and personal mental health.”
The first music to be revealed from the upcoming album is the last track on the record, ‘Propaganda Now.’ Soma Crew readily acknowledge the influence of Spacemen 3 on their sound and with its narcotic texture and hypnotic elliptical groove ‘Propaganda Now’ does pay a certain debt of gratitude to those 80’s psychedelic explorers.
Speaking about ‘Propaganda Now’, Soma Crew say: “‘Propaganda Now’ was lyrically informed by an awareness of the increased discrepancy between fact and its interpretation through social media. Participation in the dispersion of information is unavoidable in contemporary society, and it is virtually impossible to be sure of the veracity of sources. Visual cues are taken from historical posters where images are used to persuade the viewer of a particular point of view. In these circumstances we are presented with a dichotomy, and our innate circumspection is smothered.”
Video, lyrics, recording, and production by Si Micklethwaite
Song mastering by Dave Keegan
Song performed by:
Si Micklethwaite – electric guitar / lead vocal
Steve Kendra – electric guitar
Nick Barker – floor tom / snare
Joe Sellers – electric guitar
Chris Goodhead – bass
Chris Wilkinson – electric guitar
Soma Crew remain a prominent feature of the city’s alternative music scene and have performed live with The Fall, Focus, Hawklords, Japanese Television, Blown Out, Three Trapped Tigers, Soft Machine, Gong, and Lucid Dream.
