King Gizzard and the Lizard Wizard – PetroDragonic Apocalypse

King Gizzard & The Lizard Wizard is an Australian band renowned for exploring multiple genres and performing energetic live shows while building an extensive catalog.

King Gizzard’s primary songwriter and guitar virtuoso, Stu Mackenzie also records, mixes, and masters their albums – though no single person should be perceived as responsible.

The Story

With PetroDragonic Apocalypse, King Gizzard expanded their previous full-on thrash experiments. Their bold no-holds barred approach pays homage to metal, prog, and thrash forefathers like Motorhead on “Motor Spirit” before going full speed on “Super Cell.”

Gizzverse II, their second chapter of their parallel universe that explores psychedelic and science fiction themes. Leah Senior returns as the narrator, further weaving a great concept album around an altered bear-human beast; an epic battle between Zeus-like Lord Lightning and Balrog, straight out of Tolkien; Han-Tyumi and her murder of the Universe plot; as well as Han-Tyumi herself and Han-Tyumi herself as one story line after another.

This album also finds the band exploring more sonic textures with songs like “Alluda Majaka” with some fun sitars and an easygoing groove, as well as “Stressin'”, which features some of Stu’s stellar harmonica work, while closing track “Float Along-Fill Your Lungs” makes an impactful ending of an incredible journey.

The Band

King Gizzard & the Lizard Wizard is a touring machine, relentlessly covering towns and cities at an astounding rate. As one of today’s most captivating live acts, their influences range from Anatolian microtonal music, jazz, prog rock and heavy metal to garage punk jam bands – melded into a delightful garage-punk jam-band aesthetic that keeps audiences mesmerized!

Beginning with their debut album 12 Bar Bruise in 1999, the band has continued to produce nearly nonstop since. Over the years that followed, they’ve explored fried echo-chamber psych-surf shenanigans, Spaghetti Western epic narratives, heady jazz fusion and extensive experiments in microtonal composition.

Their albums stand out due to how seamlessly they flow together, with songs coming together into an organic whole rather than remaining individual entities. This was evident on Nonagon Infinity – their 2016 magnum opus designed to loop all nine tracks. Their latest release The Silver Cord also follows this path – each song anchored by Mackenzie’s joyful “woooo’s”, adding an air of musical improvisation.

The Albums

The band‘s albums have had an enormous influence across genres from rock and psychedelia to jazz and metal music. Songs by this band often address environmental topics while their fictional universe known as Gizzverse features environmental issues and mythological creatures as characters. Furthermore, this band often experiments with microtonal tuning techniques as well as eastern musical influences for an exotic yet hypnotic musical experience.

Mind Fuzz is an outstanding debut for Mind Flayer’s extensive catalog, featuring their signature psychedelic jam rock sound. This expansive album showcases fuzzy guitars, wailing harmonicas, flute and powerful vocals – providing a fantastic introduction to their repertoire for anyone interested in starting to listen to this band‘s work.

Made in Timeland is an exceptional offering from King Gizzard’s discography, often described as an audiobook-style spaghetti western tale. It follows a Wild West town with spoken word interludes and instrumental music as it explores philosophical and introspective themes – making for an intriguing listen for anyone curious to explore King Gizzard’s varied influences.

The Tours

King Gizzard and the Lizard Wizard has made an immense mark on modern rock, and remain one of the most influential bands ever since they emerged in Australia as experimental six-piece. From exploring new modes of music to showcasing psychedelic hues from their back catalogue, their freewheeling approach has endeared them to many.

Their latest album, Laminated Denim, is no exception; featuring an eclectic blend of uptempo songs that encompass R&B, fusion and hyperpop genres while remaining true to their freewheeling sound.

Supporting their release, they took to the road and dazzled audiences with an electrifying set that pulled from every corner of their catalog. Opening with a high-energy rendition of L.W’s signature track “Oxygen”, followed by an encore performance that left audiences mesmerized, beginning with a foot-stomping rendition of its title track; audiences were left mesmerized! The entire audience became completely entranced.