photo by jan kuca

“Árirang was born in Milan as a matter of sound. Maybe an orchestra, maybe just a solo.”

Being well acquainted with fellow Milanese noise merchants, The Gluts and Giöbia, I feel a certain sense of shared DNA with Árirang, if only through guilt by association.

Tenuous as this link may be, having met and trusting the impeccable good taste of The Gluts and Giöbia, Árirang are a more than comfortable fit within my listening palette. A further introduction through Monica at A Giant Leap, has cemented this aural relationship.

Photograph by Eugenio Crippa

I love bands who have the self-assurance and presence of mind to produce a clear, concise and informative website, Giöbia are one such band…

“Giöbia has been one of the most influential psychedelic bands in Italy over the last years. Seduced by the lysergic side of the ‘60s, by exotic mantras and the evocative power of space-rock, Giöbia is a band from Milano, Italy with many facets and one only faith, that is to turn every encounter with sound into a psychedelic experience”.

Ever since I had first clapped ears on The Gluts‘ debut LP ‘Warsaw’, I had been longing for the opportunity to see them play live. There was the small matter of their being based in Milan, which is only 1475km from Belfast as the crow flies… No matter, when the opportunity for The Gluts to open for White Hills in their home town presented itself, having missed White Hills at Liverpool Psych Fest last September due to crazy stage time overlaps, I knew that this was the gig I had been waiting for…

Saturday, 01:56 and my “spidey senses” have me, as ever, wide awake just before the alarm goes off. 2 hours later I am checking in at Dublin Airport for the 07:10 flight and the sense of anticipation is already palpable. On arrival in Milan I am met by Nicolò and Claudia from The Gluts, the wonder that is social media has them putting flesh and bone to their already warm and amenable digital selves.