Vinyl Relics: Before The Dream Faded by The Misunderstood
- Farmer John
Fifteen years after its original release, “Sunset,” the hypnotic lead single from White Noise Sound’s self-titled debut, is set to return to the digital realm. Rocket Girl Records will reissue the track and album on July 18, marking the first in a series of three planned re-releases from the Welsh psych drone outfit over the coming months.
Blending pulsating electronics, layered distortion, and trance-inducing rhythms, “Sunset” remains a powerful testament to White Noise Sound’s sonic ambition. With overridden 808 beats, swirling oscillations, and a wash of feedback-laced guitars, the track captures a ritualistic energy that channels both cosmic disorientation and inner awakening. As the band describes it, the song rises “from psychic fracture, through a hypnotic trance and into an ecstatic surge of saucer-pupiled transcendence.”
Originally released in 2010, the White Noise Sound LP was recorded in the isolation of the Welsh mountains, a creative retreat that allowed the band to fully immerse themselves in their signature sound—a swirling, relentless wall of psychedelia. Lending his unmistakable touch to the production was Pete Kember, aka Sonic Boom (Spacemen 3 / Spectrum), with further contributions from Super Furry Animals’ Cian Ciaran. Their involvement helped shape an album that was as meditative as it was menacing, as blissed-out as it was brutal.
“Sunset” quickly garnered admiration from both psychedelic rock veterans and forward-thinking electronic producers. It earned praise from Bobby Hecksher of The Warlocks, and found fans in DJs like Daniel Avery and Phil Kieran. Even the late tastemaker Andrew Weatherall took note, with the track becoming a mainstay among his Scrutton Street circle.
Now remastered and available digitally for the first time, “Sunset” is set to reach a wider audience, its signal stronger than ever. The reissue not only introduces a new generation to White Noise Sound’s transcendent noise ritual, but also reaffirms the track’s status as a modern psych classic.
“Transmission resumed. Plug me in.”
Order/stream here: https://orcd.co/wmvo6yx
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