Tranquonauts | Interview | New Album, ‘Tranquonauts 2’
Tranquonauts is a collaboration project between Seedy Jeezus, Isaiah Mitchell from Earthless, and Tony Reed from Mos Generator. The recent release feels like a true interstellar sonic voyage—whatever that means.
‘Tranquonauts 2’ isn’t just an album—it’s the kind of musical journey that feels like drifting through the galaxy with your favorite record on repeat. With fuzz-laden guitars, synths, and Mellotrons weaving through the mix, it propels you on an interstellar trip you’ll never want to return from. Born out of a creative collision between Seedy Jeezus, Isaiah Mitchell (Earthless), and Tony Reed (Mos Generator), this album is a testament to the raw power of musical chemistry.
When Isaiah Mitchell’s guitar roars through ‘Fugitives from the Void,’ it’s not just music—it’s a transmission from a cosmic frontier. The fuzz grips you by the ears, pulling you through a journey of desolation, unease, and cosmic wanderings, leaving you breathless as it navigates the unknown. Tony Reed’s opening vocals set the tone with an eerie sense of departure, leading the ship into uncharted territory.
Meanwhile, ‘Ground Control’ takes you somewhere else entirely—imagine Joy Division jamming with Kraftwerk in a cosmic lounge, with Neu tweaking the controls. This track is an existential trip where freedom feels so close, yet so impossibly distant, a paradox wrapped in haunting lyrics: “To be yourself is to be set free.”
It’s a project that took years of anticipation and some serious late-night jamming sessions in a Melbourne studio, but when Seedy Jeezus, Isaiah Mitchell, and Tony Reed finally locked themselves in, the magic was unleashed. What emerged was a sonic explosion that effortlessly melds the past, present, and future into one unforgettable record.
The fact that ‘Tranquonauts 2’ was born from pure jamming—with zero expectations other than having a blast—makes the final product not just an album but a declaration of unfiltered musical freedom. It’s rare to find a project that sounds this spontaneous yet this refined, and it’s clear that every note was shaped by the creative chemistry between these rock titans.
Tracks like ‘Fugitives from the Void’ push genre lines to the limit, while ‘Ground Control’ blends early Kraftwerk with eerie prog-rock undertones. This isn’t just music for fans of stoner rock and psychedelic journeys; it’s a manifesto for anyone willing to strap in, shut up, and take the trip.
With guitars that seem to melt your speakers and Lex Waterreus’ eerie Theremin humming in the background like a beacon calling lost souls home, ‘Tranquonauts 2’ demands attention. It doesn’t just ask you to listen—it drags you into its orbit, tears through your expectations, and leaves you floating in a soundscape like no other.
For those looking for a blend of space rock, prog, and something completely out of this world, ‘Tranquonauts 2’ is a sonic voyage worth taking. It’s the kind of record that sets bold goals, achieves them, and makes you question why you ever doubted where it could go.
Lex and Paul initiated the first Tranquanauts album in 2016. Both were seeking to investigate free form music across genres rather than the usual stoner/psych/heavy rock shtick. Like most people, they’re big fans of Isaiah’s work and loved his spontaneity and ability to just kick off under any circumstances. Seedy Jeezus had played several times with Earthless and Isaiah had completed an East Coast Australian Tour with Seedy as his backing band called ‘Under the Influence’ where they played songs that had inspired Isaiah through the guitar. Everyone know what each other were capable of.
Paul Crick of Seedy Jeezus took some time to share further insights about the project:
This new album (‘Tranquanuts 2’) was initiated by Isaiah, who had been touring Australia with the Black Crowes and had a free day at the end of the tour. This time, we wanted everyone to be in the studio together. It was also decided to push the musical boundaries even further, beyond what would be expected from both bands, and into realms that reflect the diverse influences of the group. While it may be tricky to release a full-blown homage to the likes of Joy Division, Kraftwerk, and Neu in our respective bands, in Tranquanauts, it’s easy—you just do it.
Enter Tony Reed. For more than a decade, Tony has been working with Seedy Jeezus, flying to Australia and producing their studio albums. He has also mixed and mastered most of their catalogue. It was suggested that, rather than just mix and master this album, he should feel free to embellish the songs if he wanted. His personal catalogue of work is immense, to say the least—Mos Generator, Stone Axe, solo albums—you name it, he’s done it. His work on the editing, production, and polishing of the Big Scenic Nowhere project with Gary Arce, Bob Balch, etc., was seen as a high point in the scene, and when Tony listened to the songs, he saw space for creative development. One of the highlights is the ’80s electronic drums he dusted off and added to Ground Control, purely of the era!
The second installment naturally found a connection to the first album. Tranquanauts had developed its own sound—long songs creating a journey, an almost intergalactic musical experience. While this isn’t exactly new for the albums usually covered in this magazine, the textural, almost orchestral use of guitars possesses an almost Roxy Music-like harmonic quality. This was captured in parts of the first album and most definitely in the opening track, ‘Fugitives from the Void,’ on the second. The two additional tracks, available via a 7” in the deluxe edition of the album, present songs that tip their hat to other influences. One, ‘Down,’ sees Lex playing a wonderfully melodic progression on the Mellotron, and Isaiah generating a moving solo in the realm of ‘Maggot Brain’ that shreds emotions to pieces. The other, ‘Down,’ features a scaled-back traditional musical set, evoking a sense of floating in an ocean, eyes fixed on a ledge in a sea that sighs and swallows the dead. Lex then sings in te reo Māori about his spirit heading to Te Rerenga Wairua, where Māori believe the spirit goes after death, and into the underworld.
As a band, we are really happy with the results. The process we used in the studio worked well. Lex’s editing skills and the polish Tony brought to it hails it as a success. Everyone who has heard it didn’t expect it to sound the way it does, but they love the results and the way this ‘experiment’ turned out. It’s a spontaneously recorded album, but it doesn’t lack listenability. It also sets bold goals and achieves them. Lex’s artwork looks unbelievable, and the lenticular artwork on the cover of the deluxe edition is stunning. The additional contents—patch, sticker, and photos by the great photographer Stephen Boxshall—are top-notch.”
Isaiah is working on solo shows and kicking off the winter touring season with Earthless and Sacri Monti. Tony is off on a global adventure with Pentagram after recording and mixing a new album with Bobby Liebling. Paul, Lex, and Mark have just completed studio album number III, which will be released in early 2025. They will also be heading off for a quick European tour around Desertfest Antwerp, bringing a quick whiff of Seediness to Holland, Belgium, and Germany in October. They’ll be playing with Fu Manchu, Causa Sui, Delving, and more at Desertfest on Saturday (which is already sold out), as well as an awesome Sunday gig with Daily Thompson at Lukaz in Lünen, DE. Lex will also be working on another album with Sula Bassana (Dave Schmidt). See you there!
Paul continues, “There are tentative plans to reconvene the Tranquanauts crew in early 2025, and we’re sure to find time to be in the same space again. Who knows what direction the next one will take, but that’s all part of the adventure.”
Klemen Breznikar
Headline photo: Stephen Boxshall
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