PSYCHEDELIC SCENE MAGAZINE REVIEWS "NOCTURNAL EMISSION"

by Piotr Dudzikowski - September 14, 2026

Paul “Pablo” Thomas, frontman for the Latino-funk outfit Spellbound, returns three years after his previous album, Neutron City, with a new solo project called Nocturnal Emission.

Pablo, a vocalist, songwriter, multi-instrumentalist and producer utilizes his sonic palette with a classic selection drawn straight from the golden age of psychedelia: guitar through a germanium fuzz, twelve-string guitar, Farfisa and Hammond organs, harpsichord, vibraphone and sitar. The effects are equally familiar territory – deep reverbs, long delays and extensive stereo-panning experiments. The result is a dense collection of instruments and sonic effects, combined with an extremely pleasant and positive atmosphere.

From the very first notes, we’re treated to charming Summer of Love-style songs that evoke the spirit of The Pop Art Experimental Band, Strawberry Alarm Clock and 13th Floor Elevators with echoes of more contemporary bands such as Kula Shaker. The harmonies, compositions and instrumentation all seem to have been lifted from the era, but as the album progresses, Pablo gradually moves towards a more modern sound and begins to surprise us with his arrangements.

Unexpected instruments, like the Hawaiian slack key guitar, suddenly appear at seemingly unlikely moments. At other times, Pablo catches the listener off guard by dropping a heavy metal riff into a composition, only to transform it further down the track into classic krautrock in the style of Amon Düül, complete with distinctive spoken-word delivery. Sitar, tanpura, synthesizers and distorted guitars then combine to create a wonderfully twisted, completely far out sonic space that works surprisingly well. Pablo is also comfortable with more contemporary neo-psychedelic sounds, featuring swaying riffs, intelligently handled harmonies and expressive vocals that give the songs a pleasant, hypnotic pulse. There are also pop-rock numbers reminiscent of classic acts like Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers. The album closes with a psycho-funky track built around distorted bass, a string machine, an unusually textured guitar sound and a nicely executed Hendrix-style guitar part.

The songs are sung well. Pablo has an interesting voice and comes up with plenty of good melodic ideas. The backing vocals are also well-arranged, entering at just the right moments to create additional harmonic depth. As compositions, all of the songs are quite good. They may not be especially original – it is usually easy to identify their sources of inspiration or find a familiar point of reference – but the album remains enjoyable from beginning to end. Although the music can certainly be described as psychedelic, and Pablo himself calls it “psychedelic alternative rock,” it is not intensely challenging. At the same time, it is far from banal. The real strength of the album lies in its positive, slightly off-the-wall feel.

Unfortunately, there is another side to the story. The entire album was created and performed by one person. There are musicians capable of doing everything themselves, but here it becomes clear that Pablo is first and foremost a guitarist. The guitars are played quite well, and this is where the album truly shines.  Pablo wrote, performed, and produced the entire project.  As impressive as this is, there are artists who can genuinely pull this off to great effect. Pablo is clearly a guitarist, and the guitar work is quite good. It is equally clear, however, that he is not a particularly skilled drummer or keyboard player, nor is he a sound engineer. Leaving the lo-fi aesthetic aside–which can be a perfectly valid artistic choice–the drums are played at a decidedly amateur level, and that is a shame.

The material on Nocturnal Emission is already interesting in its present form, but professionally played drums would significantly raise its artistic impact. The keyboards do not play a major role in the arrangements – they mainly function as pleasant harmonic background. However, whenever they take on a melodic role, a certain lack of self-assurance becomes noticeable.

There are also some perceptible production issues. You can hear places where different sections of the songs have been joined together, as well as moments where the timing and precision simply fall apart. Precision is not necessarily a prerequisite for good music, of course – plenty of great records deliberately embrace looseness – but it becomes a problem when the various elements occasionally seem to drift apart rather than lock together.

Despite these shortcomings, I find Nocturnal Emission an interesting and worthwhile listen. There is plenty of good stuff here–a genuine feel for psychedelic textures, and a clear enthusiasm for the music that inspired it. What I find slightly puzzling is why, with such a promising musical proposition, Pablo chose not to put a band together. This material could probably benefit enormously from a group of musicians capable of bringing its ideas to life with greater precision, energy and spontaneity. Perhaps that is where the real potential of Nocturnal Emission lies – not in adding more sounds, but in allowing these already interesting songs to breathe through the hands of a full band.

The album will be released digitally via Selfish Recordings on all major streaming platforms, with a limited-edition CD edition scheduled for release on September 15th, 2026.

Piotr Dudzikowski is a sound engineer, producer, composer, musician, and founder of the Polish psychedelic band More Experience. He holds a PhD in art history and works as a university lecturer.

KAMP STUDENT RADIO REVIEWS "EXTERMINATION OF THE HEIRARCHY"

by Isabelle Tuli - Date Reviewed: 03/09/2016 [kamp.arizona.edu]

Usually I hate music but this album was pretty good.

Literary figure Oscar Wilds once famously said, “All art is quite useless.” Wilde was wrong, but in his defense he was never able to give this album a listen..

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WEED WORLD REVIEWS FULLY BAKED

Copyright 2011 [Issue 92]

Fully Baked

By Pablo

Independent music producer and mult-instrumentalist Paul “Pablo” Thomas has created a mind-melting new album called Fully Baked, which he refers to as “a radical musical antidote for popular culture.” In addition to the exotic instrumentation and rhythmic emphasis, Pablo’s ingredients include: several chunks of guitar, a litre (sic) full of keyboards, a healthy pinch of select Indian spices and a chunky slice of old movie and TV Ham! Themes of alienation, heartbreak and twisted social comment have been added for a multi flavoured (sic) offering. Once mixed up, Fully Baked is a more lyrical affair than Pablo’s previous albums with contributions from Thomas’s perennial collaborator Bobby Moon, of Spellbound.

 

Fully Baked represents the most fully realized Pablo vision…

SOFT SECRETS REVIEWS "FULLY BAKED"

Issue 3 - 2011 [Established in amsterdam, 1985]

Pablo "Fully Baked" [Selfish  Recordings]

Los Angeles-based artist and lover of everything psychedelic, Pablo releases his third album - Fully Baked - a true mind bending explosion of style, tone and color, a little akin to the infamous 1960s album White Noise.

Created as 'an alternative to consensus reality', multi-instrumentalist Paul 'Pablo' Thomas was sickened by media obsession with celebrity culture. Playing most of the instruments himself - including guitars, sitar, organ, Meinl Helix Bowl and percussion - the album is a roller coaster ride through a gamut of genres, from acid rock and garage through blissed-out ambience and trance, into psychedelic folk (with a cover version of Jerry Garcia's Bird Song). There's even a starngely atmospheric take on 1950s rock 'n' roll tune Got My Mojo Working.

TWISTING AND TURNING LIKE THE CHANGING PHASES OF AN ACID TRIP, FULLY BAKED OFFERS A COMPLETE PSYCHEDELIC EXPERIENCE. HOLD ON TIGHT!

 

LEICESTER BANGS REVIEWS "FULLY BAKED"

Reviews - march 2011

Reviews

Pablo - Fully Baked (Selfish Recordings)

"Fully Baked" isn't the best title for any album, but it adds nothing to the summerizing of this one by Pablo, only suggesting to me that "half-baked" might be more accurate (after listening to ONLY the opening tracks, I must add). You can only get casually acquainted with it at first, as it meanders a path that incorporates Zappa homage, ambient electronica, '60's retro (a cover of "Psychotic Reaction", of all things), a song that could have been by Sly and the Family Stone called "Live To Trip (Another Day)", and if we ignore the mock glam of the first track we still have 10 tracks to cover! Initially, cohesion does not appear to be this band's strong point, and Pablo is almost a one-man band, named for Paul 'Pablo' Thomas, with one Bobby Moon as the other contributor.

None of the above remotely prepares you, though, for the following version of "Got My Mojo Working" which, to Pablo's great credit, manages to sound unlike any previous cover that has ever gone before. The duo turn this R&B classic into a psyche rock groove. I have no idea what "Braking Dub" (sic) could have been spawned by, although it's actually a cracker of a track, as is "Codi Can't Chill", in a similar yet entirely different vein...eh?

More monster psyche comes in the form of "Dumbing Down", the utterly glorious "Fuzzy", a brilliant take on The Dead's psyche folk classic "Bird Song", two more self-penned sizzlers, together with a cover of Bruce Cockburn's "Different When It Comes To You" - with added Middle Eastern 'edge' - say what?

In the word's (sic) of George Harrison it's "All Too Much", and if you want the definitive version of what I am trying to say, then go out and get a copy, and it will all make the most perfect sense. Bliss will be yours, and Pablo's profile will be deservedly be raised one more notch.

Kev A.

SKUNK REVIEWS PABLO "TAKE TWO"

SKUNK [2008 - Volume 5, Issue 1]

Pablo

Take Two

Indie

One of the most interesting CDs to cross my desk in the last little while is a true stoner classic. This is the type of CD that you don't expect too much from at first, but as you listen to it you start to get engulfed by its various trips and beats. It's impossible to label the sound of Take Two, as underground L.A. artist Pablo changes gears and genres track after exciting track. Given a chance each song seems to work well on their own, but by the CDs end you will have captured a full psychedelic experience. ML

HERENCIA LATINA.COM REVIEWS "TAKE TWO"

Resenas Neuvos CD Mayo 2009

Pablo – Take Two (Selfish Records)

Paul Thomas – Pablo -- es uno de los músicos más creativos que he conocido. Su nombre debe ser familiar para muchos de ustedes, pues en ocasión he reseñado compactos del dinámico grupo californiano Spellbound, el cual Paul lidera junto a Bobby Moon, su gran amigo.  Pero Paul no se puede estar quieto, y siempre tiene que estar creando, y su más reciente trabajo lo trae nuevamente como solista. El resultado: “Pablo – Take Two”, un álbum fascinante y ecléctico que revela la mente de este talentoso músico.

 

Aunque la producción de “Pablo – Take Two” es una labor conjunta entre Paul y Bobby, todos los instrumentos estuvieron a cargo de Paul Thomas, con excepción de un tema, donde Bryan Marye tocó la batería. Para disfrutar de este CD, hay que tener una mente sumamente abierta, debido a que Pablo usa cuanto ritmo tiene a su alcance, incluyendo los efectos especiales y sonidos electrónicos. Dicho esto, diría que me gustaron “Soto Street Taxi”, número sicodélico que nos da la impresión de estar en una jungla”;”The Drum”, interpretado por Danielle DeCosmo, que suena como un tema de Los Beatles; y “Lena Lâo-Vyu”, con un piano bien apasionado, provisto de un sabor sensual que me recordó a “Nights in White Satin”, de the Moody Blues, y que luego cambia a un vibrante boogaloo. También me gustaron “El Cuervo”, donde Pablo nos brinda un delicioso solo de piano; “Nepotism & payola Blues”, un blues sicodélico, con un fuerte y sarcástico mensaje contra la payola; y “If You would”, cantada por Bobby Moon, y dotado de un sabor del rock de finales de los 60, principio de los 70s; y “Lost in Surf”, que me trajo a la memoria la música de las películas de vaqueros italianas (spaghetti westerns).

 

Es de verdad un placer apoyar el trabajo de Pablo y el de Spellbound. Como mencioné anteriormente, Paul Thomas es un genio musical, de esos que llevan la música al próximo nivel. “Pablo – Take Two” dice eso y mucho más. (EEG)

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