Monster Magnet will be releasing their new covers album “A Better Dystopia” through Napalm Records on May 21st. The album will find the band covering various tracks in the proto-metal and psych vein from the 60s and 70s.
Frontman/guitarist Dave Wyndorf had the following to say of the project:
“We all agreed that we would be bored out of our minds within a month of lockdown. Monster Magnet loves the road. It’s a lifestyle. So, I considered our options. Rather than panhandle on the internet, hawking masks and Zoom-rocking practice sessions for dollars, I suggested we record a “bunker record”. A total DIY affair (band only) recorded and mixed in Bob Pantella’s small but potent Freak Shop Studios/rehearsal space right here in New Jersey. But what to record?
I didn’t feel much like writing, but working on anything was better than watching the news as hospitals filled up, people died, and American politics went bat-shit crazy. The world roared ‘Dystopia! Apocalypse! Revolution!’. I’d heard those words before, and they brought to mind my childhood in the late 60’s/early 70’s… and the music… and short playlist of songs (just one of many) that I’d been carrying around with me on my whatever device to listen to before shows.
Of course, these tunes have also been in my head for more or less my whole life. These were not the popular hits of the time. This was like a playlist from the 4th dimension… strange bits of musical obscurity, mostly dredged up from that inglorious and freaky “twilight zone” time that preceded Arena Rock, Heavy Metal, Reggae and Disco. A no-man’s land of hard rock that still had remnants of psychedelia and garage punk but had abandoned any notion of “flower power” or frat house fun. And of course, they rocked. Yeah, these songs were it.”
The band’s take on Poo-Bah‘s “Mr. Destroyer” has been released as the first single from the album and you can find a lyric video for it below. Pre-orders for “A Better Dystopia” are also available and can be found here. As for the album’s track listing, exact details weren’t provided, so you’ll have to make some educated guesses for now as to who else got covered on the release:
01 – “The Diamond Mine”
02 – “Born To Go”
03 – “Epitaph For A Head”
04 – “Solid Gold Hell”
05 – “Be Forewarned”
06 – “Mr. Destroyer”
07 – “When The Wolf Sits”
08 – “Death”
09 – “Situation”
10 – “It’s Trash”
11 – “Motorcycle (Straight To Hell)”
12 – “Learning To Die”
13 – “Welcome To The Void”
