by King Gizzard & the Lizard Wizard
Released February 25, 2021 via KGLW
Reviewed March 8, 2021
Top tracks (based on community voting)
O.N.E. (47%), K.G.L.W. (43%), Static Electricity (43%)
As a continuation of 2020’s K.G., King Gizzard & The Lizard Wizard’s L.W. sees the psychedelic rock band once again exploring the world of microtonal tuning. Their third go-round with such style, the Australian six-piece may have crafted their best and most-defining work yet. Throughout the past decade, we’ve seen the group experiment with nearly everything from Turkish folk music to thrash metal, and they manage to seamlessly combine many of these influences on their latest record. As bouncy and vibrant as it is heavy, L.W. maximizes an atmospheric sound as just as frequent as it shoots for optimum riffage. And in typical fashion, King Gizzard’s doom-filled lyricism offers clever and crafty commentary on many of society’s recent perils. – Dominick (8.5/10)
On the follow-up to last year’s K.G, King Gizzard & The Lizard Wizard return with nine more hypnotic, psychedelic rock tracks. The opening track “If Not Now, Then When?” is far and away the project’s high point, with the grooviest instrumental on the record alongside some of the most intriguing vocals. The rest of the project can certainly feel a bit monotonous at times, but nonetheless L.W. remains a consistently enjoyable set of tracks and serves as yet another solid addition to the band’s extensive discography. – Hadley (7.5/10)
As the second half to a two-part series, L.W. continues the themes of its predecessor a little too heavily. Though it’s billed as a two-part record, nothing about it screams that they should be listened to together or that they’re a cohesive narrative together, and as such, it comes off as just the same thing again. L.W. dips its toes into the microtonal tuning of the previous release, but does nothing new to expand that idea from the other albums that feature the tuning. It also continues with the same lyrical themes as most of their recent albums, but it lacks the wit and charm that most of their writing has. While it’s still well done as a whole, it lacks a punch or any new ideas to continue being as engaging as the previous microtonal works or most of their other albums. – Jared (7/10)
Dominick: 8.5/10 | Pax: 8/10 | Hadley: 7.5/10 | Alan: 7.2/10
Cam: 7/10 | Enth: 7/10 | Jared: 7/10
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