Black Mountain

After founding Jerk with a Bomb in the late '90s, Stephen McBean had, by the mid-2000s, transformed the Vancouver-area band into a group called Black Mountain. Drawing on blues, psychedelia, acid rock, and the Velvet Underground, Black Mountain's sound was a cross between the darkness and grit of the Warlocks and Brian Jonestown Massacre's trippiness. After debuting in 2004 with the 12" "Druganaut," Black Mountain released an eponymous full-length, issued the following January. In January 2008, the group released their sophomore album, In the Future, and showed off their willingness to explore proggy (and druggy) territory with the 17-minute opus "Bright Lights." ~ Johnny Loftus