Having already had the Stoned: A Psych Tribute To The Rolling Stones come at us in January, it seems about right to now be given the audio delights of, yes, you've probably already guessed it, The Magical Mystery Psych Out: A Tribute To The Beatles.

There popularity among music fans is undeniable, their status with music critics unimpeachable, and their influence across a multitude of genres - from pop to rock, world music to country - is thoroughly indisputable. And so now, here and today, there's a bunch of psych rock new radicals that have decided to bring forth their very own interpretations of some famous Beatles tracks.

Unlike its predecessor, The Magical Mystery Psych Out: A Tribute To The Beatles actually focuses more on the psychedelic elements of the band’s music, and therein brings us an interesting selection of compositions.

German acid rockers Electric Moon kick things off with the song that many consider the defining birth of psychedelic rock music, 'Tomorrow Never Knows,' and unleashes walls of erratic, distorted guitars and haunting female vocals. With absolutely no tracks from Sgt. Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band, a fair few from both Revolver and The Beatles album (known, forever, as The White Album), Sugar Candy Mountain chose a rarer tune from the same era, the B-side single, 'Rain.' The hypnotic, far-out soundscapes continue on onwards with such cuts as The Vacant Lots (a very groovy 'Julia'), The Blank Tapes aka Matt Adams ('The Word'), and Kikagaku Moyo’s 'Helter Skelter' is just, well, loud and intense!

Other bands featured include The KVB (with a slow, dark version of 'Taxman'), The Ruby Suns with 'Martha My Dear,' and both The Lucid Dream ('And I Love Her') and rising stars Strangers Family Band with 'Sun King.' In closing, The Magical Mystery Psych Out: A Tribute To The Beatles is, for my money, heartier psych fodder than the Stones tribute that came before it, and therefore blows my mind just a wee bit more. But only just!

Reviewed by: Russell A. Trunk