Counting Down the Days Until The Black Angels’ Live at Levitation
Get ready to celebrate March 26, because that’s the release date for The Black Angels’ Live at Levitation album. The record, although only six songs in length, is already gearing up to be a fan favorite.
The premiere curator of the psychedelic music festival, Levitation, is producing and releasing this record. The Reverberation Appreciation Society is working hand-in-hand with the festival’s founders, The Black Angels themselves, to create it. The six songs will span a lot of ground, though.
A press release announcing this second Live at Levitation album discusses The Black Angels’ choice of tracklist. Because Levitation is using their own recordings and footage from the festival sets, the rockers had a lot to choose from. They decided upon six songs that span from 2010 to 2012. Three years of Austin Psych Fest captured these live renditions and is now releasing them as an A-side and B-side album.
The A-side includes “Manipulation,” “Better Off Alone,” and “Surf City.” The B-side features “You On The Run,” “Empire,” and “Young Men Dead.” These songs all come from the band’s first three albums.
Prepping Fans for the LP
The Black Angels’ guitarist, Christian Bland, explained in the press release why they’re preparing to release this live album now. “Since the beginning… The Black Angels were meant to be heard live. This record captures the rumble of the drums and amps, and the very essence of the way it should sound. Now future generations and new listeners can now hear how these songs were meant to be heard.”
“Manipulation” was originally released on 2006’s Passover before being included on The Black Angels’ Live at Levitation album. Ahead of the March release, the band dropped the live version of “Manipulation” as a single.
The hypnotic, rough-around-the-edges live performance of “Manipulation” takes the grand rock and roll track to new heights. The band brought world famous sitarist Rishi Dhir onto the festival stage with them that year. Not only was it captured on recording, but it was captured on film, too.
The accompanying “Manipulation” video is drumming up even more excitement for The Black Angels’ Live at Levitation album. The band rips into the almost seven minute song for adoring psychedelic rock fans. Every instrument is in perfect tune and the energy between the audience and band is obvious.
Now, fans not in attendance can experience it, as well – even while cooped up inside their homes. Virtual concerts like Melanie Martinez’s K-12 Tour and Justin Bieber’s NYE show can only do so much in the moment. Fans can tune into a live album as much as they want to.
In the comments of the YouTube video, fans are already clamoring for more live Levitation content. It’s going to be hard to wait until March 26 for a new Black Angels record, but it will also be beyond worth it.
