Detroit progressive rock/psych band Custard Flux follows up on 2024’s Einsteinium Delirium with the new Enter Xenon, the release of which coincided with a couple of live dates in Portland and Eugene, Oregon, supporting British space rock pioneers Gong.
Enter Xenon was recorded at Rabbithole Studio, Detroit, and produced by band leader Greg Curvey (voice, guitar, Arp Odyssey synthesizer, Pro One synthesizer, Mellotron, tape loops) with vinyl mastering by Mike Hagler at King Size Sound Labs, Chicago. The album features Vito Greco on guitar, Timothy Prettyman on bass, Nick Pruett on drums and percussion, with additional Mellotron courtesy of Andy Thompson.
Enter Xenon opens with “The Escape,” a short SCI-FI intro replete with B-movie samples and sound effects, and “Winter,” an urgent psychedelic rocker that channels Yes, Pink Floyd, and Curvey’s previous band, The Luck of Eden Hall.
“Opportunity Knocks,” a standout cut and advance single that has racked up airplay globally via underground stations and college specialty shows, finds the band at its catchiest, while the cryptically-titled “The Oblivion Capsule” is an atmospheric, Mellotron-driven instrumental and the album’s most lysergic track.
“Icy Tranquility” is both playful and austere; a spinning carnival motif is countered by a moodier neo-psych/post-punk vibe that recalls The Teardrop Explodes, The Church and Echo and the Bunnymen.
“Tomorrowland” transports the listener to a slightly sinister theme park where the rides spin dizzy, while “Superposition” flirts with Power Pop.
The album’s title track is another short instrumental piece (fans of Radiohead will want to take note for the atmospherics alone) and album closer “The Floating Chamber” is an epic, 12 minute progressive rock workout that launches the listener into outer space.
We described Einsteinium Delirium‘s closing track “Fat Man” as “a feast of sounds” and the same thing can be said of Enter Xenon as an album proper; let’s gorge our ears on these heavy sounds.
