The Heartwood Institute & Panamint Manse – Parapsychedelia (Castles in Space)

The Heartwood Institute & Panamint Manse collaboration on Castles in Space is an otherworldly exploration of reality that is as haunting as it is thrilling

The world we live in has been changed beyond belief. Humankind has been cowed by the microscopic. Low-level post-apocalyptic scenarios play out. Bunker isolation is the new order. Hope in change slips through the associated anxiety, but neoliberalism’s corpse only slumbers, awaiting re-animation post-event. Altered fucking states indeed. If reality is being re-shaped before our eyes, then what of reality-bending explorations in art, through music? On the evidence of Parapsychedelia by the dream(ing) team of The Heartwood Institute & Panamint Manse, it remains absolutely essential. Not so much a salve for these times, but rather an interrogation with normal conditions re-set as paranormal. The ghosts are out of the machine and walking among us, albeit at the safe distance of two metres.

It is no secret that here at Concrete Islands we’re fans of all parties involved with this release. Before getting to the music itself, it’s worth pausing to admire the artwork. Ace label Castles in Space have once again worked with Nick Taylor and this might well be their finest collaboration to date. The black and red spectral research pamphlet cover, spirit world snap-shot vinyl, mysterious Mobius Group paraphernalia, faded parapsychology photography, potent symbols recalling those from the hatch in Lost and masterful use of the graphic design grid system. In short, this is a stunning looking record that you may derive as much visual as aural pleasure from.

The haunted electronic transmissions from The Heartwood Institute and that shadowy organisation’s director Jonathan Sharp are well documented across physical formats, with significant releases on Polytechnic Youth and Castles in Space. The addition of Panamint Manse is an inspired move, bringing his peculiarly Mojave Desert-tinged vintage electronic manoeuvres into the orbit of the Institute’s Lake District location. We documented Panamint Manse’s two self-released digital albums and more in an early Concrete Islands interview and have watched closely as the artist has appeared on various compilations since. It feels more than right that his work should appear on a label such as Castles in Space; we look forward to any future releases, collaborative or otherwise.

Parapsychedelia is a sonic experience that cannot help but conjure pictures in the mind’s eye. Expect some degradation in the image as you hear these picture-sounds from the depths of a sensory deprivation tank. The fantastically titled “Clairvoyeurism” opens proceedings with a sampled spoken word introduction concerning ESP, before ascending into a slow-rave marvel. This is somnambulant techno for frozen-in-the-moment experiences where future and past are as one. Its elastic electronics fluctuate between states of being as the listener’s body is primed to make primordial moves on a sunken cosmic dancefloor. “Clairvoyeurism” is also, it must be noted, one of the standout tracks of the year so far.

“Zenner Cards” then draws matters behind the veil and into the laboratory with a synth-assisted and gentler excavation of interior landscapes. Whilst “Black Ant, White Magic” throbs and insinuates its way into the ghost remnants of a warehouse party, a psychogeographical manifestation of the rave experience that stands up alongside Pye Corner Audio’s Sleep Games. In other words, the sound of John Carpenter scoring The Stone Tape after immersing himself in Detroit techno. On the flipside, “Mesmercuria” swallows god’s tongue and communicates with the other side; a drifting soul cut in shadowed electronic clothing. The beauty on the edge of “Etching Mirage” is take-you-by-the-hand electronica that leads the listener through the American desert and into lands touched by Arthur Machen, its breathing soundscape a balm with menace tucked away in corners.

A very particular universe is explored and brought to our reality over the course of Parapsychedelia’s runtime. The album charts electronic incursions of varied tempo and style, but of consistent temperature: that suitable for hauntings to occur. It thus delivers the coldest coldwave and the most spine-tingling electronica. The ghosts are indeed out of the machine, but evidence now suggests that they are in it for the machine music.  

parapsychedelia.bandcamp.com