If rock n’ roll survives the current decade — let alone the 21st century — we can thank the dimly lit garages of sunny Southern California. What other creative environment could produce Meatbodies? The band’s sound is pure, classic, pulsing, guitar-driven “FUCK YEAH” rock laced with a psychedelic cocktail of sonic distortion, space age noise effects, and surrealist lyrics unleashed from the dark, oozing subconscious of lead singer and songwriter Chad Ubovich.

Forged in the collaborative garage rock scene of the Greater Los Angeles area, Meatbodies was founded by Ubovich and a loose collection of buddies with their own bands and notable side projects: the de facto godfather of contemporary LA garage Ty Segall, Mikal Cronin, Erik Jimenez of Together Pangea, Cory Hanson of Wand. Meatbodies began as Chad and the Meatbodies, yet Ubovich’s self-obliteration from his solo project remains a subtle but important distinction. The identity of the artist is less important than the creative output of the collective. Though for the record, Meatbodies’s current lineup also features Kevin Boog and Patrick Nolan. Still, the cooperative nature of this scene more or less turns the idea of what makes a band into a metaphysical riddle. Nothing sums this up more than this fact: Meatbodies opened for Segall’s band Fuzz despite (or maybe because of?) the fact that Ubovich is more or less a part of Fuzz as well.

So what’s the result of this on the group’s output? Two full length albums in, the band has emerged with a thrashing update of psychedelic and acid rock, though even this label feels too confining for a band that seems to have elements of surf music and cosmic horror woven into its DNA. Then again, this type of alchemy feels natural for a group of artists who have played in so many other different types of band. The influences cease to be influences, just existences. And this is how rock evolves.