Two years ago, Melbourne duo Black Cab unleashed Altamont Diary, a rabble-rousing ode to the end of the hippy era, as Meredith Hunter was infamously murdered by a gang of Hell’s Angels bikies, after he reportedly brandished a gun in Mick Jagger’s direction. Jesus East picks up exactly where that album left off.

It unfurls with “Hearts on Fire”, immediately locking into a wicked groove as guitarist James Lee waxes rhapsodic with his axe, alternating between a chugging riff and freeform Can-esque freeform Krautrock abandon. It’s a heady combination, and one that Lee and vocalist/arranger/programmer Andrew Coates employ throughout this sophomore effort.

For, yes, much as Altamont Diary was fascinated with a certain period of time, so too is Jesus East. The employ of tabla on “Another Sun” immediately bring to mind George Harrison circa All Things Must Pass, while the locked-in rock grooves of others mark Jesus East as a very mid-1970s album.

Perhaps Black Cab’s next trick will be to explore the punk rock era; they certainly seem to be moving their the decades at a rapid rate. There’s a mass of sound featured on Jesus East – almost to the point of excess, the likes of Automatic’s Alex Jarvis and Ash Naylor from Even add their guitar to that of Lee, meaning that the sound of the album is a thick molasses for the most part.