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*** BUY & LISTEN TO THE FULL ALBUM VIA THIS LINK ***
waxmachine.bandcamp.com/album/hermits-grove
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Surfing on a sun-drenched wave of psychedelia comes
Brighton’s very own Merry Pranksters, Wax Machine.
Primarily recorded and mixed in a closet room directly
above a mortuary, their self-produced album Hermit’s Groove
is a heady trip through progressive psychedelia, kitsch
Italian library music and Brazilian tropicalia. Led off by
the single Guardians of Eden, the album is set for release
on 1st July via Batov Records (Şatellites, Sababa 5).

Wax Machine is the project of Brazilian-born,
Italian/English-raised Lau Ro, who takes a deep dive into
their Brazilian heritage on this LP, taking inspiration
from 60s tropicalia music and movement and the likes of Os
Mutantes, Caetano Veloso and Gal Costa.

“Brazil is where I was born and grew up until I was 8 years
old, and it's where my family is from. We then immigrated
to Europe and I was never able to visit Brazil after that
as it's a very expensive flight. Instead I've opted for the next best thing which is connecting with the spirit and
culture of Brazil via the medium of music.”

The album features a version of Canto De Iemanja from
Vinicius De Moraes and Baden Powell's seminal 1966
Brazilian album Os Afro-sambas. Canto De Iemanja is about
the goddess of the sea Iemanja, a chant Lau has often found
themselves singing to the sea in their hometown of
Brighton.

“The ocean is a muse of mine. I go to the sea whenever I
can, her presence enlivens, refreshes and brings me deeper
awareness. This version is a homage both to my motherland
and the great big blue that separates us.”

The first single and album opener Guardians of Eden is
carried in on a cloud of flutes and birdsong. The first
half celebrates the light and beauty of this world, while
the second half is a reflection on the shadow of our
existence here. The three minute, psychedelic explosion of
Springtime is a "meditation on the cycles of nature, the
dance of duality, the swinging of the cosmic pendulum.”

Two EPs in 2018 preceded their debut album Earthsong of
Silence in 2020, with Clash Magazine declaring that Wax
Machine “occupy a space somewhere in the gaps where English
psych-folk, sun drenched West Coast sounds, Brazilian
Tropicália and spiritual jazz overlap.” That year they also
had a track featured on the Mr. Bongo Record Club 4
compilation.

Although there is constantly evolving line up both in
studio and on stage, long time collaborators Toma Sapir
(drums, percussions, samples/synths), Isobel Jones
(Flute/Vocals) and Ella Russell (vocals in Canto De
lemanja) all appear on both albums.

A tour de force live, the group have shared the stage with
the likes of the Babe Rainbow, Kikagaku Moyo and Vanishing
Twin. The band are currently in the midst of a UK and
European tour, ending with a homecoming show in Brighton on
27th May.

On the album Isobel Jones plays Flute/Vocals, Toma Sapir -
drums, percussions and samples/synths, Freddie Willatt – sax,
Ella Russell - vocals in “Canto De lemanja”, Kate Mager - bass
in “...Iemanja”, Adam Campbell - electric piano, Marja
Burchard(from Embryo/Karl Hector) - vibraphones on “Gaian
Dream”.