There's no question about the sonic legacy surrounding Nashville, Tennessee; folk, bluegrass, country, jazz, and American rock all have a slice of Nashville's lauded music history, and it continues to maintain its status as a hub for musical talent and innovation to this day. Adding to the dynamic melting pot, Psychic Research is a new artist collective headed by some of Tennessee's preminent taste makers in electronic music. With an initial roster including Waterchild, The Space Cadet, Nimbo, and Alex Fun, they're well positioned to infuse a new source of sonic oddities into the nation's undercurrent of novel electronic productions. For their debut collective release, they've conscripted the talents of an additional six producers to design and curate the 13 track compilation album Reality Test Vol. 1, and they've slated every cent earned by the album to be donated to the NAACP in perpetuity.

Reality Test Vol. 1 is the first foray into the potential of Psychic Research's vision, and it leaves an impactful first impression. The compilation's tendrils sink into a wide berth of psybient and succulent territories, and each individual producer's touch feels lockstep with the aqueous atmosphere that surrounds the album. Tracks like Void and The Space Cade’s “STRANGE FRIENDS” and Amalgamy’s opening tune “Elipsism” feel iridescent in contrast with Shapesift’s undulant journey in “Resurgance”, but all three feel equally amorphous and unconstrained by theory conventions. The gradual evolution of tension across the compilation facilities a listening experience that demands to be aired out in its entirety, and it underscores an attention to detail that extends beyond just tertiary elements in musical releases. There's no doubt that Reality Test Vol. 1 exhibits the eccentricity and focus of the roundtable knights behind the face of Psychic Research.

2020’s tumultuous existential landscape has left an indellible impact on the American cultural consciousness, and Psychic Research's decision to entrust the indefinite earnings of their initial release to the NAACP is a spot on show of solidarity from and within the alternative cultural fabric of America's movers and shakers. Be it for a good cause, or for the quest of new sounds and musical adventures, Research Vol. 1 stands out as a necessary acquisition amongst this year’s growing troves of new, cutting-edge electronic music.

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