Former
Fu Manchu
guitarist
Eddie Glass
formed
Nebula
in 1997, releasing the band's first EP,
Let It Burn
, on tiny
Tee Pee Records
. Over a decade later, after time served on
Sub Pop
and
Liquor and Poker
,
Glass
and a new bassist and drummer are back on
Tee Pee
with an album that could have been recorded the day after the
sessions. His stinging guitar leads (and gift for artful bursts of noise -- check out the speaker-frying intro to
"Aphrodite"
), the occasional trips into space via pedals and keyboard accents, and the slow and steady drumming are all in place just as they've always been. There are some surprises, like the two-minute instrumental
"Dream Submarine,"
which pairs bouzouki-like guitars with thunderous timpani bashing. The album's longest track,
"The Other Side,"
is also one of its most melodic, and lives up to the album's title quite well, as it's trippy and somewhat soothing as its fuzzy main riff works its way into your brain. Put simply, if you like any of
's earlier work, not to mention the 1990s work of
Monster Magnet
Brant Bjork
, or
, you'll like this album just fine. ~ Phil Freeman