Azonic!

After Blind Idiot God broke up in 1993*, guitarist Andy Hawkins released some material under the name Azonic, chiefly the two releases here: Halo, a 1994 collaboration with Bill Laswell for Laswell's now-defunct specialty label Strata; and Hawkins' half of Skinner's Black Laboratories, a 1995 split with Justin K. Broadrick (part of Sub Rosa's Subsonic series).


This is electric guitar music from outer space. It has some antecedent in Jimi Hendrix, sure: the use of feedback, the wah, the divebombs - but Hawkins sounds HUGE and slow and epic here in a way Hendrix did not (well, maybe parts of "1983").

Azonic is seriously heavy and yet not oppressive whatsoever. Halo in particular has a rare quality of religiosity. It's a great album to come up or down with.

Azonic - Halo
Azonic - Skinner's Black Laboratories


*Blind Idiot God started playing shows again in 2006 and were reportedly playing new material.