When we consider the modern heavy psych scene as we know it, it’s a true wonder to behold, isn’t it? It’s one of those sights that never gets old, and it’s all too easy to forget the very roots of the sound while we’re sitting here basking in the names that make the sound great today whether it’s King Buffalo, Spaceslug, Naxatras, or any other name that might come to mind. Hands down, one of the bands that helped create the style altogether and set the stage for all those bands to pop up years down the line, we wouldn’t be here today without Josiah. Their three-album run at the start of the century was and still is what legends are made out of, and their long silence has been a true gut-punch for those of us who know what they’re capable of. Fourteen years later though, it’s now that the English act has returned to us to really show us what the style is capable of, and it’s in every way that we must bow down before the very glory that is their return.

A comeback like this is what fairytales and movies are truly built out of. A long silence from a band that was damn near revolutionary in their own right and managed to truly cultivate a scene that is as thriving as what we have today only to be ceased by an utterly exemplary creation that builds off of the glorious albums of years past and one that’s to reset the standard for years to come, it’s so fantastic to witness the very return of Josiah! Their return has been highly anticipated for many across the scene, and this certifiably has to be one of those releases that actually warrants to be considered “highly anticipated” with all that’s brought forth within “We Lay on Cold Stone” the very definition of greatness for heavy psych rock in recent times. A six-track monolith of riffs and delightfully bent psychedelia that pulls you further into the band’s swirling cosmos of talent and passion the likes of which are a true rarity to bestow your eyes upon, there’s no way to deny the gravity of the situation we have here as Josiah really throw their weight around in this record to make for a more than memorable performance that is sure to not leave the consciousness of the scene anytime soon even if were to foolishly try to forget. It’s the exact sort of record that you must lean back into and simply let the mastery of Josiah take you for all that it’s worth for it’s whether you’re falling back into your mattress with your eyes closed or feeling the wind whip through your hair on a day’s drive, the very intoxicating essence of “We Lay on Cold Stone” is not something that any of us are able to take lightly.

There are already loads of excellent talent to be had in the realm of heavy psych this year with Big Scenic Nowhere coming around again, Stöner putting out a work destined to be replayed countless times, King Buffalo’s newest creation in the chamber to be fired upon us, Naxatras tripping our minds completely out of this universe, but it is undeniably with Josiah that we get an album that really goes for the very throne of excellence that this year has to offer, but it’s even then that we shouldn’t be so narrow-minded with this creation. “We Lay on Cold Stone” is a genre-defining album by all rights in every feasible consideration, and it demands to be named among one of the best albums of this year, this decade, and one that is to shape the very sound going for. As if we could come to expect anything less from Josiah who has already accomplished such a feat multiple times before.

“We Lay on Cold Stone” releases on July 15th via Blues Funeral Recordings!

LISTEN to singles from “We Lay on Cold Stone” on Bandcamp here.

LIKE Josiah on Facebook here.