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Big Black Plume is the fifth album from Melbourne-based, California-born musician Michael Beach. The nine tracks cover intimate folk songs and sprawling psychedelic pieces, connected by what Beach calls a "propulsive cosmic pulse." Influences include Bill Fay’s melodic sensibilities, the minimalism of Tony Conrad and Terry Riley, and the garage energy of Poison City and Goner Records.

Beach built the album around collaboration, bringing together key figures from the experimental scene. Dirty Three guitarist Mick Turner and Tropical Fuck Storm's Gareth Liddiard anchor the sessions, with Liddiard also co-producing. The Necks' Lloyd Swanton plays upright bass alongside electric bassist Nick Brown, whilst drummers Joe Talia, Utrillo Kushner, and Peter Warden create rhythmic layers that shift throughout the album. Maddy Macfarlane's saxophone work and backing vocals from Leah Senior, Fiona Kitschin, and Sarah Gilsenan round out the ensemble. Beach himself handles piano, guitar, synthesisers, bass, and vocals, grounding the record with his distinctive songwriting.

Thematically, Beach reflects on environmental destruction and human connection. "I was wrestling with the beauty and intensity of the natural world and coming to grips with the...destruction of it," he explains. These concerns also shape the music's structure - pristine passages give way to distorted sections, and pastoral melodies dissolve into feedback. Immediate hooks draw you in, with new details surfacing on each listen.

For the chance to win a vinyl copy of this week's Album Of The Week, Triple R subscribers can enter here before Sunday 10 August 2025. We have a prize policy of 1 album per subscriber per month so we can share the love and make it fair for all!