One of the biggest surprises in Milwaukee music this year has been Calliope’s ORBIS, a big, brash, unapologetic slab of psyched-out goodness that’s miles removed from the band’s previous efforts. With swirling organs, synth-drenched drone, and singer Al Kraemer’s Jim Morrison swagger, ORBIS plays directly to the current psych revival and bucks against it at the same time. There’s nothing fashionable about Calliope’s strain of unabashed psych-rock, which seems to suit the band just fine.
Similarly, there’s nothing subtle about the ridiculously tripped-out video for ORBIS standout “Casino”—and thank Christ for that. Featuring some vintage headphones, 3D-damaged color palettes, and a sexy fortune teller, the clip is as bold and confident as the song and band behind it. “Crystal balls, Afros, rainbows, flying through space, crazy psych rock, f— yeah!” says Myles Coyne in an accompanying blurb. (He’s writing blurbs now? This man can’t be stopped.) ’Nuff said.