- The first few times I heard the band name King Gizzard and the Lizard Wizard I couldn't help but cringe just a little. That name alone could only mean that the Melbourne seven piece would either be the best band on the planet or a stinking load of trash. Eventually curiosity got the better of me and I cautiously delved into their debut long player sometime late last year, taking baby steps as I went.

Maybe not as polarising as I had first dreamed up, that record, 12 Bar Bruise, certainly wasn't trash. It certainly wasn't rocket science either, but there was a spark laying semi-dormant there. Though there's been a definite resurgence in the whole garage-rock with a psychedelic tinge thing, King Gizzard are imbued with a strange and mature presence in their brand of throwback rock, young men operating far beyond their relatively few years. It was a refreshingly genuine listen and displayed little in the way of pretension.

On 12 Bar Bruise 1 track stood out more than any other. 'Sam Cherry's Last Shot' is a modern psychedelic Spaghetti Western jam, a faithful recreation of a timeless sound that has has remained relatively untapped, at least as far as revivals go. While the instrumentation was more than above board, their was another element at play here, something that tied the whole wild ride together, one of those captivating voices that could read MX out loud and you'd likely listen in some hypnotised daze.

Upon further investigation I discovered that mysterious and captivating croon was the speaking voice of ex-Dingoes frontman Broderick Smith, and before I could even contemplate how he'd gotten himself involved with King Gizzard I stumbled across another little fact, Broderick Smith is, apart from a forefather of Australian rock, the actual father of one these slithering Lizard Wizards.

Apparently I wasn't the only one that really dug that song, because King Gizzard and the Lizard Wizard took that idea and ran with it- sophomore record Eyes Like The Sky playing out as one long variation of 'Sam Cherry's Last Shot', this time around with more room to explore musically and theatrically, the group also tightening their sound and grasp on the Western sound, expanding and experimenting, taking their noodling to places far outreaching that of their debut.

While a whole record self coined as a "psychedelic western audiobook" (which is actually a very apt description) may seem like it could be a little drawn out, cheesy or bizarre on paper, the whole thing plays out perfectly. Smith (snr.) may as well turn this seven piece in to an eight, this time around both penning and delivering the spoken word vocals, his voice now even more alluring and confident than ever: part Johnny Cash, part Tom Waits.

Eyes Like The Sky is a record that words truly can't do justice and for that matter is most definitely best enjoyed in one sitting, the songs here taking on an added life of their own as you become enveloped in twisted, unforgiving tale.

King Gizzard and the Lizard Wizard are a band that confuse and astound me in many different ways. I don't know how many tricks they have remaining up their flamboyant sleeves, but for the time being I couldn't be more in to it.

- Jay Edwards.