The Black Angels’ tag-team with Roky Erickson for something called the Winter Psych Storm Tour is almost too obvious. The five-piece Psych Rock crew has long adored the era in which Erickson was a trailblazing figure with The 13th Floor Elevators. Throw in the fact that each hails from the musical mecca known as Austin, Texas, and collaboration was all but inevitable.
Word is that the Angels will back Erickson for an opening-set trip into the past, an unearthing of the Elevators’ fuzzed-out classics that can’t help but highlight how much the ’60s pioneers have influenced current-day carriers of the Psych Rock flag. It’s a touchstone frontman Alex Maas is the first to admit.
“It’s so unbelievable,” he told CityBeat in 2010 when asked about playing with and being inspired by those he admires. “It’s so dreamy. I know how lucky I am. I know that our band isn’t the best band, either, and I know there are bands out there that can play circles around our band. For us to be in the situation we’re in is very, very fortunate.”
The Angels follow their sonic forefather with a headlining set that draws heavily from Indigo Meadow, the band’s latest dark-hued collection of head-trips, which further refine their undying love of all things psychedelic.
THE BLACK ANGELS AND ROKY ERICKSON play Newport’s Southgate House Revival on Friday, Feb. 7.
Details here .
This article appears in Feb 5-11, 2014.