Happy Mondays, Oasis, and Ride merge to form supergroup Mantra of the Cosmos
Happy Mondays founders Shaun Ryder and Bez have joined forces with Andy Bell of Ride and Zak Starkey, son of Ringo Starr, to form the new supergroup Mantra of the Cosmos. For their first single, the band released ‘Gorilla, Guerilla’, described by Starkey as “a fantastic psychedelic groove from a band of misfits, outsiders and innovators”.
The new track has now been accompanied by an aptly trippy music video directed by Shaun Ryder’s son, Olli Ryder. The song was previously debuted by the newly formed band at the popular London venue The Box.
Starkey had the initial idea to scrape the group of “misfits” together. With Ryder on vocals, Bell on guitar, and Bez and Starkey on percussion, they’ve set the stage for an exciting Glastonbury appearance on June 25th at 8:20pm on the Glade Stage.
Discussing the exciting new project, Ride guitarist and former Oasis member Bell says: “It’s a pleasure to be part of Mantra of the Cosmos. Four like-minded souls who get off on the same music.”
Noting that the band sounds very dissimilar from any of the members’ respective bands’ sounds, Ryder added: “It doesn’t sound like the Mondays or Black Grape or Oasis or The Who, it’s what we’re doing all together.” The singer also revealed that a full-length album was in the pipeline.
In a recent press release, the supergroup was described as “a dubby, electronic, 21st century Hawkwind of a band destined to be experienced through epic live performances”.
Watch the new music video for ‘Gorilla, Guerilla’ below.
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