REVIEW: Charles Moothart—Chaotic Shimmer (2025)
New 6-track mini album released just in time for the UK tour.
I wonder if Charles has any idea how many albums he’s been part of over the past 20 years? Under his own name, or the CFM moniker it looks pretty sane—about five. But then if you start adding all the adjacent projects, it quickly gets out of hand for even those who feel like they’ve kept up over the years.
Deep breath. You’ve got Fuzz (3+1 live album), GØGGS (2+1 live album), Charlie and the Moonhearts (2+ 2 mini albums), Epsilons (2 ish), The Perverts (1), Culture Kids (1ish) and then god only knows how many as part of Ty Segall’s collective (at least 15). And let’s not forget his contributions to Mikal Cronin’s albums as well (3), oh and King Tuff (1). So, somewhere around 38? Since he’s only actually 36 this year, that’s a fair resume.
The Californian psych collective seem to be on some kind of mission from god to release as much music into the world as humanly possible (oh, and he’s also formed Primitive Ring, a power trio with Bert Hoover of Hooveriii this year and put out two 7” singles already—unsurprisingly, it rocks).
No surprises, then, that we have some more music from Charles, this time in the shape of an LP of sorts, or one that exists in that grey area of being a shortish LP, but at 26 minutes and 6 tracks, arguably too long to be an EP. Whatever you wish to call it, it’s a cool collection of tunes that ebbs and flows between Charles’ default psych rock god mode, and some more chilled numbers.
Opener Carried In The Wind has the required stank face psych riff, with a lolloping groove, before they pick up the pace and really lock in for a big ending. Title track Chaotic Shimmer just gets on with it from the off, bashing out as close to a pop song that this record offers, all taut riffs and clattering drums to get the mosh pit swirling.
Having seen the band in action at The Hug & Pint in Glasgow the other night, the five-piece band Charles has assembled for the tour are the kind of match fit musicians you only come across once in a while. The sort of band you could get a perfect take from first go. No wonder so much music comes out of this lot. They’re not messing about tuning up between songs, they just blaze the whole set out and make it look ridiculously easy.
The rest of the record keeps it all coming. The Path (I’d Like To Follow) has a kind of lilting early 70s folk riff running through it, giving it that Wolf People-esque restraint, before the band are permitted to cut loose with gentle feedback for the final minute to remind us what we’re dealing with here. The folkiness continues on Bring To Bloom, where he even busts out the acoustic guitar and we get a rare chance to hear Charles croon. Yeah he can croon. What of it?
Of course it’s a temporary pause in the rock, because Caught Waiting clatters its way into view, deploying some electronics for a change, which continues on sparse final track Music For The People as the guitars drone and weave over a distorted beat. All round, a pleasingly diverse selection of cuts, and apparently only available in an edition of 250 on green vinyl for the UK tour, so you know what to do…
