This is the first, fiery single release by the Austin, Texas psych band The Black Angels, a dirty, apocalypse-driven protest rocker with a dark intense drone-inflected B-side not available anywhere else.

Yes, it’s a protest song. No, it’s not the product of cloth-capped Dylan wannabes. This is The Black Angels, with a debut single that’s not just a menacing statement of intent, it’s a rallying cry for American youth. And just as The First Vietnamese War equates the war in Iraq with the titular conflict, the sound blends modern influences with the dark underbelly of ‘60s psychedelia. It’s The Doors, The Velvet Underground, Satanic Majesties-era Stones and The 13th Floor Elevators via Spacemen 3 and Primal Scream. They call it Native American Drone ‘N’ Roll.

It’s probably best to agree with them. “We think it’s important that we learn from our past and avoid falling into the same pitfalls that we’ve already fallen into,” says guitarist/vocalist Christian Bland. “There should never be a second Vietnamese War. Our message is one of telling people to wipe the sleep out of their eyes and to WAKE UP. Open up your mind and let everything come through, because closed minds lead to open caskets.”

Some introductions are necessary:
The Black Angels formed in May 2004 in Austin, Texas. The fact that they named themselves after the Velvet Underground track The Black Angel’s Death Song is telling. The fact that they have a full-time ‘drone machine’ player (Jennifer Raines) even more so. Alex Maas (vocals/guitar), Stephanie Bailey (drums), Kyle Hunt (bass/guitar/keyboards/floor tom), and Nate Ryan (bass/guitar) complete the line- up. Together they make whiskey-sodden trance-rock with a depth and darkness that’s all-too rare (but all too relevant) in today’s paranoid world.

Now for the mythology:
The following is all true: Ryan was born on a cult compound, Bland is the son of a Texas preacher, Raines grew up in a mortuary, and Bailey and Maas believe a little girl in a red linen dress haunts the group’s home. This is also true: The First Vietnamese War is the year’s most exciting debut single.
Listen and digest - there’s a bad moon rising...