Written By: Chris Parsons

Welcome back from the holidays! We’ve already undergone the mysterious transition into the “14th Baktun,” and are looking very much towards the prospects of 2013 on the horizon. Because of this in-between period, I’ve decided to draft up a retrospective for 2012. Fear not, this is not the typical ranking of the year-end “Best of…” or “Top 10, 20, 30” lists of bands and/or musical projects. Instead, I am very happy to squeeze 5 impressive artists from 2012 into this featured serial release over the weekend, before the slew of 2013 releases beginning pouring through the ozone. Since my inception into The Process Records/Think Like a Label back in April, my music collection and network has largely, and tastefully exploded and these psychedelic bands are ones that I’ve been particular smitten by, the only delay in their features being either the result of catching wind of the releases a bit too late or the increasing athletic trend of projects which are intent on producing an overwhelming output of multiple full-length releases in a single year. (Part 1) | (Part 2) | (Part 3)

Gunman & the Holy Ghost

Hailing from Berlin, Germany is the alt-country psychedelic folk project, Gunman & the Holy Ghost, which was initiated by none other than Hákon Aðalsteinsson, a.k.a. founder of shoegaze outfits The Third Sound and Singapore Sling. Almost coming full circle, January 2013 will see the anniversary of their debut release, “Things to Regret or Forget.” The sound that Gunman and The Holy Ghost yield is instantly reminiscent of J. Spaceman’s Spiritualized project at its most gospel and spiritually-infused moments, and at other times channels the melancholy, psychedelic soul of Skip Spence’s Oar. The fusion of these two somber grooves locks in to create a wall-of-sound aesthetic of downtempo alternative country and tranced-out gospel blues. The album’s overall arrangement is nothing short of a very paced and gradual rollercoaster ride of chills as the melancholy vibrations invoke a firm grip on the empathy of the collective human soul.