Psychedelic art-rock pioneering band from Texas, Lithium X-Mas, re-emerge from a period of relative sedation with a fresh outburst — a new full-length limited-edition LP. This brand-new recording, which finds the legendary band’s core line-up intact, is a culmination of recently resuscitated activity; final tracks were completed and mastered late last year.
Lithium X-Mas has an influential history and heritage. Formed in Dallas, Texas, in 1985, it emerged from the punk scene that included the likes of Nervebreakers, Butthole Surfers, Vomit Pigs, and Horton Heat. The band played a diverse array of venues, from seedy warehouses to psychedelic theme parties to Dallas’ legendary, upscale Starck Club. Lithium’s first forte was the excavated cover song, bringing their own twisted spin to tunes such as Nilsson’s ‘Jump into the Fire,’ Lemon Pipers’ ‘Green Tambourine,’ and Ultimate Spinach’s ’Hip Death Goddess.’
While the new record maintains aspects of this distorted bliss, it also incorporates a more wide-ranging sonic palette. Instead of feeding every track through a chain of corroded Big Muff pedals, the new Lithium X-Mas uses a panorama of sonic crayons, from mystic Mellotron to ethereal theremin, fantasias of fuzz to freaked-out Farfisa. Forward looking — but still informed by deep excavation of eclectic record collections.
Lithium’s fans included Sonic Youth, with whom they shared bills and who advertised them on their guitars; Nirvana, who were inspired by the name for some of their source material; the Butthole Surfers, whose drummer King Coffey signed them to his record label; and many others.
This long-anticipated release, economically titled Lithium X-Mas, is on Texas label, GrooveNet Industries/Treblephone. Lithium X-Mas is pressed on clear “windowpane vinyl” and encased in an elaborate and very-limited-edition foil-printed gatefold cover.
