MOON DUO OXFORD ART FACTORY 13/02/20 The evolution of Moon Duo has been a slow and steady one over the last decade. Originally starting as a duo of Wooden Shjips guitarist Ripley Johnson and Sanae Yamada, the pair have retained their minimal aesthetic and core personnel but expanded their live performance to include a drummer and most recently, a stunning light show, by Manchester-based visual … Continue reading LIVE REVIEW: Moon Duo @ OAF, Sydney
Moon Duo return with the first of two albums they plan to release in 2017, with both volumes rooted in balanced and oppositional ideas and textures. The conceptual approach of the double album is, in their words “an intricately woven hymn to the invisible structures found in the cycle of seasons and the journey of day into night, dark into light.” That Yin Yang format … Continue reading ALBUM REVIEW: Moon Duo – Occult Architecture Vol. 1
Opening this evening of psych rock was Glass Skies who whipped up a hard stoner/space rock barrage of riffs and grooves for the few early arrivals. The singer/guitarist overplayed his hand with teeth and behind-the-head solos but they nailed the ‘rock’ aspect of psychedelic music convincingly. Grinding Eyes enhanced the tripped-out mood of the evening with a a sea of projected images flooding the band … Continue reading LIVE REVIEW: Moon Duo, Grinding Eyes, Glass Skies @ NSC, Sydney (10/12/15)
Anything Can Be Psychedelic Moon Duo’s Sanae Yamada discusses their place in psychedelic music, adding a live drummer to their line-up and performing to the ashes of dead people, with Chris Familton. As the name suggests Moon Duo are a musical pairing, the collaborative project of Yamada and partner Ripley Johnson. The latter is best known for his work with San Francisco psych/drone group Wooden … Continue reading INTERVIEW: Moon Duo
Making use of a limited palette of instruments and ideas is an approach that has tripped up many a musician as they’ve endeavoured to get to the core of their creativity and cut out any frills and fireworks. Both Moon Duo and singer/guitarist Ripley Johnson’s other band Wooden Shjips have always attempted to do just that and almost without fail they’ve succeeded. Moon Duo’s fourth … Continue reading ALBUM REVIEW: Moon Duo – Shadow Of The Sun
by Chris Familton It was only last year that Moon Duo gave us their debut album Mazes, a record which showed that though guitarist Ripley Johnson (Wooden Shjips) was still operating in similar terrain to his aquatic pals, the addition of Sanae Yamada’s synth textures provided plenty of new angles to discover and bliss out to. Circles takes that template and stretches and tightens it … Continue reading ALBUM REVIEW: Moon Duo | Circles
NEW RELEASES This week sees a handful of noteworthy album releases with the most prominent being the new Tame Impala LP Lonerism. The hype has been building for this one for a while now and on early listens it doesn’t disappoint. There is a huge widescreen sound happening with Kevin Parker’s trademark psych signature all over the guitars, drums and increasingly – synths. San Diego’s … Continue reading New Releases | October 6th 2012
written by Chris Familton Melbourne’s Fabulous Diamonds set the mood of the evening with a set composed around drone and hypnotic repetition. Featuring just drums and keyboards the duo were in no rush to get anywhere in particular with songs that slowly evolved from metronomic drum patterns into gently pulsing waves of analog synths, grinding organ, sparsely decorated with vocals from drummer Nisa Venerosa. When … Continue reading LIVE REVIEW: Moon Duo @ OAF, Sydney 30/09/11
INTERSTELLAR OVERDRIVE RIPLEY JOHNSON IS A BUSY MAN, RECENTLY RELEASING NEW NEW ALBUMS WITH WOODEN SHJIPS AND MOON DUO. HE TAKES THE TIME TO EXPLAIN TO CHRIS FAMILTON WHERE THE LATTER FITS INTO THE WORLD OF DRONING PSYCHEDELIC ROCK. Establishing yourself outside a band where you have gained a loyal following can be a tough task. There are the perils of not being as good … Continue reading INTERVIEW: Moon Duo
Doubtful Sounds 