MJ MJ Records is casting light on another stalwart local from the great northern white of Minneapolis. This time it's the solo work of Ronnie Lee, who's played in (rumored/mythologized) 9,000 bands including Is-Is, sad ghems, and Miami Dolphins. Lee makes solo psych jams under the moniker Vats, which is fitting for the heavy syrup of murky lo-fi that's packed into Iridescent Intent.
Self recorded and self-mixed, the cassette is a open door of perception, in which Ronnie Lee is hiding behind to shut you in upon entrance. Once the bolt is secured, the amps buzz and it's curtains for your ear drums. On “Lodge” the scuzz guides until the feedback turns to drone and we're humming internally. It flirts with motorik and harkens to the darker side of psych like The Warlocks. To put it in cult TV terms, “Lodge” is definitely of the black variety, as opposed to the pussy-ass white lodge.
Vats' Iridescent Intent is out January 14, 2014 on MJ MJ Records.
