Monster Magnet Debut First Track on New Obscure Psychedelic Covers Album ‘A Better Dystopia’

Psychedelic rock veterans Monster Magnet made ideal use of their downtime amid the coronavirus pandemic and tracked A Better Dystopia, an album of obscure cover songs. The first track, “Mr. Destroyer,” originally by Poobah, has now been released.

The song originally appeared on Poobah’s 1972 album Let Me In and Monster Magnet put an excellent spin on the hard-driving psych rocker. There’s plenty of the band’s familiar sense of gyrating groove and, tonally, it’s a faithful ode to the loud abrasions channeled by Poobah nearly 50 years ago.

Speaking about how the album came to fruition, frontman Dave Wyndorf said, “We all agreed that we would be bored out of our minds within a month of lockdown. Monster Magnet loves the road. It’s a lifestyle. So, I considered our options. Rather than panhandle on the internet, hawking masks and Zoom-rocking practice sessions for dollars, I suggested we record a “bunker record”. A total DIY affair (band only) recorded and mixed in Bob Pantella’s small but potent Freak Shop Studios/rehearsal space right here in New Jersey. But what to record?”

“I didn’t feel much like writing, but working on anything was better than watching the news as hospitals filled up, people died, and American politics went bat-shit crazy. The world roared ‘Dystopia! Apocalypse! Revolution!’ I’d heard those words before, and they brought to mind my childhood in the late 60’s/early 70’s… and the music… and short playlist of songs (just one of many) that I’d been carrying around with me on my whatever device to listen to before shows,” he continued.

“Of course, these tunes have also been in my head for more or less my whole life. These were not the popular hits of the time,” added Wyndorf, alluded to the fairly obscure nature of the track listing. “This was like a playlist from the fourth dimension… strange bits of musical obscurity, mostly dredged up from that inglorious and freaky ‘twilight zone’ time that preceded arena rock, heavy metal, reggae and disco. A no-man’s land of hard rock that still had remnants of psychedelia and garage punk but had abandoned any notion of ‘flower power’ or frat house fun. And of course, they rocked.”

“Yeah, these songs were it,” he beamed, concluding, “The great bands whose music we lovingly interpret here were (and some still are) on the fringe, underrated, and in our opinion, really, really cool. I think that’s reason enough for us to do this album. Furthermore, A Better Dystopia is a collection of songs that I think reflect (knowingly or unknowingly) a paranoid time in history, but also deflect that same paranoia by owning it, fully. And of course, it ROCKS.”

Listen to Monster Magnet’s version of “Mr. Destroyer” directly below and view the album art and complete track listing further down the page.

Look for A Better Dystopia to be released on May 21 on Napalm Records and pre-order your copy here.

Monster Magnet, “Mr. Destroyer” (Poo-Bah cover)

Monster Magnet, A Better Dystopia Album Art + Track Listing

01. “The Diamond Mine (Dave Diamond DJ monologue)
02. “Born to Go (Hawkwind)
03. “Epitaph for a Head (JD Blackfoot)
04. “Solid Gold Hell (The Scientists)
05. “Be Forewarned (The macabre)
06. “Mr. Destroyer (Poo-Bah)
07. “When the Wolf Sits (Jerusalem)
08. “Death (Pretty Things)
09. “Situation (Josephus)
10. “It’s Trash (The Cave Men)
11. “Motorcycle (Straight to Hell) (Table Scraps)
12. “Learning to Die (Dust)
13. “Welcome to the Void (Morgen) *Bonus Track