Rangda

The Balinese demon from which this trio of out-psych warriors get their name was originally a witch queen before trying to spread chaos amongst her kingdom. Ben Chasny (also known as Six Organs of Admittance), Richard Bishop (of Sun City Girls fame) and percussive maestro Chris Corsano aim to wreak havoc across the globe with False Flag, their first release. Over the course of the album, Chasny and Bishop lay down some serious psych guitar damage, while Corsano literally destroys his drums. That's only half the story here; there are moments ("Bull Lore," "Sarcophagi" and the brilliant "Plain of Jars") where the smoke clears, the dust settles and Rangda let loose whispers of guitar bliss. That's the most impressive talent of all: allowing collaboration to trump virtuosity and musicality to win out over blistering noise. False Flag demonstrates that Rangda are masters at their craft.