Nightstalker – 'Great Hallucinations': A world of hallucinations

They have great dynamism in their music, capable of moving crowds. Their energy, moreover, doesn't stay confined to the "grooves" of their vinyl, but comes to life in every live show I've happened to catch them at. The 'Great Hallucinations' simply came to reinforce everything I already believed about the band.

The album presentation

It was Friday, January 17, 2020 when I was heading toward Gagarin 205, for the concert that marked the presentation of this record. Now, reading that date, it's fair for you to say to me: 'What are you on about, Jimmy?! Sour grapes from last year?'. And yet, stay with me, folks…

I confess this was my first live encounter with the band. I'd been looking forward to it big time. Walking in, my eye caught the album's impressive artwork. It gave off a psychedelia that, at the same time, was totally alive right there in front of my eyes, mainly because of the colours they used.

Right after the support act (the equally beloved Big Nose Attack that day) and after the usual procedural minutes, Nighstalker hit the stage. From the very first roars, a shiver ran through me. First track: the powerful 'Black Cloud'. Oh, yes! That's exactly how a concert should start…

What followed was just as tremendous. A mix of the band's old hits and tracks from the new record. From my first contact with the latter, and the crowd's reactions, I understood that these too would enter the Pantheon of the band's songs. Since then, I saw the band again, about a year later, at Electric Haze Concert. It was as if not a single day had passed. The energy was godly, and the crowd was going wild.

Business and Pleasure!

Leaving, I wanted to take this album of hallucinations home with me. On the one hand, to listen to it again and be able to put my thoughts about the Fuzzy Hound (aka Business) into words. On the other hand, to keep enjoying this music in the best possible way (aka Pleasure). After all, I suffer from guitar-observation syndrome! It's the "condition" all us guitarists share. We never just watch a concert plain and simple. We're always analysing the music in terms of how it's played on the guitar! It's an affliction, but we love it!

On the music

Musically speaking, 'Great Hallucinations' differs from Nightstalker's earlier work. The band doesn't stray from the Desert Stoner Rock style we've come to expect. But it tries to evolve it, adding its own touches.

Here, the instruments are far more atmospheric and place emphasis on the psychedelic sound, without forgetting their heavy, distorted roots. On one hand, we get clean, sweet passages that calm the track down. The use of guitar effects swells the sound and makes it multi-dimensional. On the other hand, the dynamics are never lacking. And in the end, when the band "kicks in" on a track, the volume and intensity of the distorted sound becomes enormous. Listening to the record, you feel the sound has texture. That it's like a hot cream you can actually taste. Or, in guitar terms, the music is defined by that excellent, raw double-pickup guitar sound, run through the hazy "eye" of an Orange amp. A Fuzzy Sound, for all of us, the Fuzzy Hounds!

All of the above, combined with the distinctive vocals of Argy and Nightstalker deliver us a record that could easily be called their best yet.

On the themes

'Great Hallucinations' is an ode to the dreams we chase. A journey in pursuit of happiness, one that ultimately never stops. This very journey will lead us to an internal reckoning with our lives and, in the end, might even become the cause of our unhappiness. The images and colours the songs conjure range from the mildest states of daydreaming all the way to the dulling of the senses that brings on the so-called hallucinations.

Editor's Choice: 'Sweet Knife'

Trying to pick a favourite track from 'Great Hallucinations' is like trying to pick your favourite among colours. Sure, you can do it. Sure, one exists. But they're colours, and each one offers something different. It's kind of the same here. Every track offers a different feeling. 

I ended up settling on 'Sweet Knife'. Here, Nightstalker open with a calm, sweet intro. Almost whispered. The track looks like it's going to be a ballad, right up until Argy "comes in" with his gut-wrenching crescendo. And from that point on, everything changes. The song takes on a whole different dynamic, with a heavy sound and impassioned vocals. Wrapping up, the track picks up speed in the outro. But it returns to the same slow tempo it started with.

'All the time here and there, but never on time
What ever happened to my head, still losing my mind

I can't sleep at night
The air is so thick you can cut it with a knife
I can't sleep at night
The pain is so deep like you cut me with a knife'

Behind the record

The production and release of the record is handled by Heavy Psych Sound Records.

A journey worth taking

With this record, I believe Nightstalker have reached a point where they've defined their roots and can now start incorporating new elements into their music. The record is an example of exactly this kind of experimentation. We no longer have the heavy, dry, desert distortion. The sound is enriched with a lot of atmospheric effects, an undertaking that seems to have paid off tremendously. The blend of this atmospheric element with the melodies of hard, desert, stoner rock music makes the tracks by Argy and his crew unique right now on the Greek Hard Rock scene.

At the same time, the band is fully aware of its own style. The tracks are dynamic, keeping the same character live. What's more, the performances remain full of intensity, which gets the crowd fired up. So, we wait for their next studio effort. We are the children of the Sun…