With their heavy psychedelic sound, Oklahoma’s Helen Kelter Skelter have been towing the indie line for a decade now, and their fans know what the expect. But like everyone else, the Covid-19 Pandemic struck and threw their plans into disarray. You can’t keep creatives down though, and Helen Kelter Skelter (HKS for short) made productive use of their “downtime” and the results are to be found on their latest EP, ‘Chroma Crawl’, on Tulsa label, Horton Records, available to pre-order here.
In their time HKS released an EP as well as two full length albums, their eponymous debut in 2015, and ‘Melter’, in 2018 both of which met with some acclaim. They’ve also toured locally and regionally, building up a considerable fanbase.
The ‘Chroma Crawl’ EP was recorded in December 2019 in a church in northwest Oklahoma City, and serves as a showcase for HKS’ existing style, while throwing in some new vibes to keep fans on their toes.
Reverb-drenched chill vibes are their stock in trade, and the EP opener, ‘Best Friends’, is raw, fuzzy, and industrial. Like a blend of Hawkwind (RIP Nik Turner) and your favourite Krautrock band, it’ll chew you up and spit you out before you even know it. The track comes with an appropriately trippy music video which ends with what may or may not be zombies (or are they fans?) attacking the band’s VW Kombivan. Before we get to that point however we’re treated to footage of the HKS playing in a carpark, and then in the Kombi itself. The clip has a very homemade feel to it (there’s a mysterious masked character who runs about the place – and is even driving the Kombi at one point), but it’s all very fitting for the song itself.
HKS are getting their next album ready for release later this year, through Horton Records. They’re also touring, and all dates can be found here.
Watch the music video for ‘Best Friends’ below, and stream and download the single here. ‘Chroma Crawl’ is set for release on June 16. You can pre-order it here, and here.
Check out more about HKS and their music online on their official website, Spotify, YouTube, Twitter, Facebook, and Instagram.
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