Bright Spirit marks the third instalment in a trilogy that began with The Universe Also
Collapses (2019) and continued with Unending Ascending (2023). Recorded with
long-time collaborator Frank Byng in his South London studio, Bright Spirit sees
Gong at their experimental best, more adventurous and more open to the dream
than ever.
And dreams are central here. Not just as lyrical imagery, but as a way of thinking –
where psychedelia, love, and the thin membrane between worlds feed into the
music. The opener, ‘Dream Of Mine’, unfurls like a transmission from the in-between,

its mid-section blooming into harmonies and an angular melody that feels like a key
turning in a long-awaited lock. Frontman Kavus Torabi describes it as a moment
everything has been pointing toward, a flash of clarity inside the swirl.
Elsewhere, there’s tenderness – unexpected perhaps, but unmistakably Gong,
‘Fragrance Of Paradise’ being Torabi’s first-ever love song. ‘The Wonderment’ finds
Gong in deeply meditative form, a mystical and explorative journey both inwards and
outwards, timeless and expansive, another piece of the kaleidoscopic puzzle that
makes up Bright Spirit.

Personnel

Kavus Torabi vocals, guitar
Fabio Golfetti guitar, vocals
Dave Sturt bass, vocals
Ian East flute, sax
Cheb Nettles drums, vocals