Psillobian @ The Mill on Bonfire Night

Preston's premier 'stoner-rock' band took their reinvention to the big stage with a 35 minute set at The Mill last Friday, and had a surprise up their sleeve for the interested onlookers. After a brief respite, the band have recently been parading Psillobian (mkII) around the Preston and the North West and surprised their audience with a much heavier and darker set than expected.

However, the new sound did not necessarily represent a progression from their previously unique 'hallucino-metal' but seemed to dive backwards into a heavier US rock recipe that has been done only too many times before. This may be an insight into the direction the band ultimately wants to take, and a great deal of fans were undoubtedly enjoying the performance, but it could prove to alienate the large neutral fan base that Psillobian were quickly collecting.

Typically aggressive

The set kicked off with Chasing Down The Sun which sees a typically aggressive yet funky Psillobian drumbeat complemented by a repetitive, searing and trademarked Slick lead riff. However, from second song Worthless and onwards the Psillobian sound takes on a different edge. Zombie Stampede is an aggressive metal anthem with a strident chorus repeating the name of the song.

However, the show was not necessarily a bad performance, the band are still as tight and organised as ever and fill the stage as if they should be playing arenas rather than local pubs and clubs. The sound, despite the makeover, is still Psillobian, namely due to the drummers' interesting habit of constantly mixing up the rhythm and pace of songs, Slick's uncanny knack of picking out a memorable blues riff from even the heaviest of rhythm sections and the bands' tendency to slip from all out aural assault to tuneful melancholy in the blink of a smoke-screened eyelid.

Enjoyable spectacle

The sheer enthusiasm of the band rubs off on their audience making them an enjoyable spectacle whatever your preference for their sound. Whether or not pleasing the masses is an aspect towards which the band gives a 'flying-V' is yet to be seen, but if they are insistent of looking and performing like a stadium rock band they are first going to need to appeal to a wide enough audience to fill the stadiums.

Written by: Dan Jeoffroy

Photography: Dan Jeoffroy