In their self-titled debut album recently released by the British label Discus Music, This Celestial Engine presents a psychedelic-tinged, avant-jazz rock-fueled sonic dream, ensyruped in fractal and kaleidoscopic energy. The trio is formed by drummer Ted Parsons, bassist Dave Sturt, and keyboardist Roy Powell, musicians with established credits in the fields of jazz, metal, rock, and experimentalism. Currently based in Oslo, Norway, but hailing from both the USA and the UK, This Celestial Engine draws on its musicians’ background to create new and exciting ambiences that take the listener on a journey through the outer regions of space.

The album starts with “The Astral Doctrine,” a track where the band brings forward the strong arguments underpinning their sound aesthetics: subdued drones flowing undercurrent, glittering cymbals juxtaposed with heavy and steady drum beats, spacey bass lines that transmute into groovy takes, and tonal-centred piano melodies that turn into lysergic trips powered by the keys. Following a quiet and contemplative introductory section that lasts about 10 minutes, the trio plunges into a shiny musical space driven by hulky drums and on-beat bass. The least appealing sound is when the keys are heard in their raw form, without effects, but as soon as Powell turns on his psyched-out 70s-inspired sound, magic happens, bringing the track to an apotheotic conclusion.

Healing and echoey piano melodies kick off “Supranormal Headspace,” as they are slowly overtaken by arpeggiated synthesizers that push the trio into collectively freely improvised segments. It is in these moments that all the creative energy encapsulated in this band really pours out, and the trio comes together in a crescendo to deliver uncharted, oneiric landscapes drawn on the fly.

The bass dominates the track in “Amy The Wiser”, initially sounding round and warm, and gradually transitioning into punchy and clicky interludes. All the while, the background is splattered with jazzy synthesizer wizardry and textural percussion effects, culminating in an industrial, anxiety-inducing twist that concludes the track.

In “Rewire My Subtext” we hear This Celestial Engine at their most experimental. Suspense film soundtrack effects create an ominous atmosphere wrapped in reverse and delay effects, dissonant chords, and sprinkled with diffuse bass lines that threaten to increase the tempo of the track. Eastern-inspired keyboard melodies weave a colourful tapestry supported by the rhythm section, before fragments of trip-hop begin to emerge, as if DJ Shadow had gone into spiritual seclusion in India.

At last, “Mindmelding” wraps the record, following the same structure as the previous track, based on dark atmospheres that slowly rise up to expose all the vibrant matter that this band’s free music is made of. Just like some of the instruments played by Dave Sturt in this record, it, in itself, is weird shit… but definitely good, weird shit! It is worth a listen, and, hopefully, this is not the last time we hear about This Celestial Engine.