A warm glow breaks the horizon today in the psychedelic form of V, the fifth studio album from those West Coast long-time leaders of the contemporary psychedelic movement Wooden Shjips. At a time when politics weighs heavily on many minds, it’s also healthy to step back and appreciate what is good in the world. Wooden Shjips’ V is filled with warmth and optimism, the ideal conduit for that shift in perception, an album to welcome in the summer. Just check out their video for Already Gone. “Why be low? All of us are sitting here, feeling strange / Light a merry cigarillo,” sings bandleader Ripley Johnson. “Ride on.”
The video, shot in Portland, shows the band revelling in sunshine and companionship, including the band showing off their hacky sack skills, Johnson playing guitar outside, and a cameo by labelmate Dewey Mahood, aka Plankton Wat.
Wooden Shjips will be playing songs from V. on the road for the next several weeks, with their North American tour starting tomorrow in Portland, OR, before embarking on a full tour of the UK and Europe this September – full list of dates below. After witnessing a recent set at the Levitation Festival in Austin, the Austin Chronicle wrote that the band “drew as much inspiration from Northern California ancestors Quicksilver Messenger Service as it did from mantra masters like Guru Guru, lowering heart rates with more boogie than blast. Johnson’s lead guitar favours plangent tones and melodic phrases, which may have been just what the wired audience needed.”
Wooden Shjips tour dates
May 25 – Portland, OR – Mississippi Studios
May 26 – Seattle, WA – Crocodile
June 1 – Nelsonville, OH – Nelsonville Music Festival
June 2 – Chicago, IL – Empty Bottle
June 3 – Chicago, IL – Do Division Fest
June 4 – Detroit, MI – Marble Bar
June 5 – Toronto, ON – Horseshoe Tavern
June 7 – Los Angeles, CA – Bootleg Theater
June 8 – San Francisco, CA – Slim’s
June 9 – Sonoma, CA – Huichica Music Festival
30 Aug – Zurich, CH – Bogen F
3 Sep – Berlin, DE – Lido
4 Sep – Amsterdam, NL – Paradiso Noord
6 Sep – Antwerp, BE – Het Bos
7 Sep – Charleroi , BE – Rockerill
10 Sep – London, UK – Heaven
11 Sep – Leeds – Brudenell Social Club, UK
12 Sep – Glasgow, UK – St Luke’s
13 Sep – Gateshead, UK – The Sage
14 Sep – Liverpool, UK – Invisible Wind Factory
15 Sep – Manchester, UK – Gorilla
16 Sep – Birmingham, UK – Institute 2
17 Sep – Belfast, UK – The Empire
18 Sep – Dublin, IE – Whelans
20 Sep – Barcelona, ES – Upload
21 Sep – Madrid , ES – Caracol
22 Sep – Donosti, ES – DabaDaba