Released: 2022

Genres: Psychedelic Rock, Jam Band, Jazz Rock, Progressive Rock

The Musiquarium’s Ice, Death, Planets, Lungs, Mushrooms and Lava Review Score: 9 out of 10

Having already released two albums in 2022, the ever-prolific King Gizzard & The Lizard Wizard had announced in summer that they’d be releasing three more albums in October. Back in 2017, the band had already released five albums in one year (likely some sort of world record), which was all the more impressive when you discover that every one of them was very good to great. Based on the reception of their last album, Omnium Gatherum, there’s no doubt that the band has it in them to release another five solid records before the end of the year.

Similarly to 2015’s Quarters! and the recent Omnium Gatherum track The Dripping Tap, which found King Gizzard & The Lizard Wizard jamming and improvising for 18 minutes, Ice, Death, Planets, Lungs, Mushrooms and Lava is another excursion into jam rock, and the sextet’s most collaborative work to date, with most of the band credited on all the songs.

Mycelium is a buoyant opening jam with some reggae influence, sounding like a spiritual successor to the brand of rock music that Grateful Dead pioneered decades prior. Lead single Ice V is the type of jazz fusion that Frank Zappa might enjoy, had he been around to hear it, at least until he discovers that the band is full of hippies. Magma is another jazzy song, with some truly volcanic riffs, where Lava is a slower jam, with tribal drumming.

Hell’s Itch is the longest track at 13 minutes, with rather verbose ways to describe scratching an itch, and the joys that come with it. The claustrophobic Iron Lung might just be the cream of an already impressive crop, with some of the most insane guitar solos in the KGATLW back catalogue and a great vocal hook. The King Crimson-like closer, Gliese 710, is another powerhouse of a track.

Ice, Death, Planets, Lungs, Mushrooms and Lava is a showcase of just how incredible the chemistry is between these six musicians, making for an overwhelmingly successful execution of jam rock from King Gizzard & The Lizard Wizard.

For credit breakdowns and historic release details, view King Gizzard & The Lizard Wizard on Discogs.

Back to the 2022 Album Reviews Guide or the King Gizzard & The Lizard Wizard Reviews page.

Written by Brett Nippard