The Bell House
149 Seventh St., Gowanus
Wednesday, October 6, $12, 7:30
http://www.myspace.com/whitehills
Based in New York City but apparently from another galaxy, White Hills plays psychedelic space rock that goes off in all kinds of heavy, far-out directions. Their recordings are often hard to track down, either self-released or released on small labels in very limited editions on vinyl and CD, although Thrill Jockey is just bringing out 2007’s raucous HEADS ON FIRE, in which White Hills founder and guitarist Dave W., bassist Ego Sensation, and drummer Bob Bellomo freak out on such killer tunes as “Radiate” and “Oceans of Sound” before calming down with short throwaway “Return of Speed Toilet.” But then the band reaches new intergalactic heights with the endlessly groovy ten-minute “Visions of the Past, Present and Future,” which encapsulates what White Hills are all about, consisting of furious jams, electronic meanderings, space-age blasts, and slowed-down, ethereal breaks. And then they really blow your mind with the atmospheric twenty-six-and-a-half-minute epic “Don’t Be Afraid,” which sounds like a soundtrack to a creepy psychedelic thriller set aboard a ghost ship. The album concludes with the nearly nonstop fury of “Eternity,” which pauses only for a few seconds of eerie children’s laughter. Thrill Jockey also released the two-track vinyl A LITTLE BLISS FOREVER this year, which sold out instantly. And now comes the vicious twelve-incher DEAD, a four-song EP that includes the sonic blasts “Another Coming,” “Red Sun,” a remix of “Oceans of Sound,” and the deadly title track. The band will be playing what should be a wild and woolly show on October 6 at the Bell House with Wovenhand and Silver Summit.