Japanese psychedelic quintet Hibushibire released their fifth album, Phantom Fuzzy Exotica, on August 28 via Riot Season Records. The record arrives three years after Freakout Orgasm! and finds the band sharpening the collision of garage drive, cosmic jam sprawl and freakout guitar abandon that has defined them since their early shows alongside Acid Mothers Temple in the Kansai scene.

David Bowes, reviewing for Echoes and Dust, calls it their most complete and fully realised work to date. He highlights changchang's guitar work — shifting between driving garage rhythms and searing, fret-worrying leads — and Tetsuji Toyoda's insistent bass as the album's timeless backbone. 'Minagoroshi Western' builds a desperado tension through dizzying loops before collapsing inward; 'Daydream Rendezvous' drifts as a hazy summer psych piece with Aoi Hama's playful drum fills and a bluesy lead break. Most ambitious is their reimagining of the medieval Occitan song 'Ai Vist Lo Lop', which moves from a haunting pastoral vocal into a distorted, bonfire-lit explosion of colour and momentum.

The review notes Hibushibire have moved well beyond any Acid Mothers Temple shadow, forging a distinct voice through consistent studio output and a stellar live reputation confirmed on their recent European tour. Phantom Fuzzy Exotica is available now on vinyl and digital via Riot Season.