Endless and constantly shifting are the boundaries of psychedelic rock. In a sound where anything can seem possible, it can sometimes be the case that bands come around and take a bigger bite than what they can swallow with their ambition outweighing knowing when to simply pull back. That sense comes naturally for many though with new acts still continuing to come around in the current digital underground with Delving certainly qualifying as such a name. It was with their debut effort that they tickled the fancies of many, but it's here with their sophomore effort that they've truly sprouted into a magnificent act that is so layered and kaleidoscopic that it demands to be experienced by anyone who considers themselves a fan of the genre.
It can be all too easy for any band in a sound like this constantly rip from material that other bands put out to then put it into some amalgamation and pawn it off as some image of their own. It takes real passion, talent, and perseverance to deliver a creation that is well and truly solely the work of one unit. Since day one, Delving has made itself known to be a name that stands out for the rest not just because of the pedigree of its members, but the simple fact that they seek glory of all kinds through instrumental rock that peels apart the very layers of reality itself to piece together an experience that only they can put together in such an impactful form. In no small way, that's precisely what they've accomplished with the seven tracks of "All Paths Diverge". A simply captivating experience that takes great inspiration from the likes of krautrock to make this an exceedingly diverse and expansive creation even by the standards of some of the best in the realms of instrumental psychedelic rock, to step into this album is to witness all of creation open up before your eyes with its secrets, beauties and terrors, intricacies, and far more laid bare. Never once settling in one place and always maintaining a hypnotic presence throughout all the gorgeous notes for the absolute entirety of the album, Delving delivers on every front.
This is what it means to watch psychedelic rock become all that it can possibly be when it is well and truly unrestrained. When the spirit is simply allowed to do its own thing and breathe in such a way that feels organic and fascinating from start to finish, works like "All Paths Diverge" are what many of us hope for. Given what the members of Delving have been doing for years now in other acts, excellence here shouldn't come as surprise, but that doesn't diminish the magnificence for so much as a moment.
"All Paths Diverge" releases on August 23rd via Blues Funeral Recordings!
LISTEN to advanced tracks from "All Paths Diverge" on Bandcamp here.
LIKE Delving on Facebook here.
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