The Mojave Experience Festival Announces Festival Line-Up For First Annual Edition from March 20th-21st 2026

The Mojave Experience festival announces the dates of the first annual event taking place from March 20th-21st, 2026 in Joshua Tree, California. The festival is the brainchild of organizer and longtime High Desert native Patrick Brink, frontman of VOLUME and Superkool Booking.

Co-headliners Earthless and Dead Meadow are the first artists to be announced in the lineup, with many more of the 16 bands confirmed to perform over two nights. The lineup includes legends in explorative and countercultural music, as well as future ones now making waves.

The Mojave Experience takes place over two days at two different venues. Friday kicks off the festival at Mojave Gold in Yucca Valley, while Saturday will be an outdoor event in Joshua Tree, California at the Joshua Tree Lake RV & Campground. Attendees are encouraged to make use of the camping, hiking and rock climbing in the area while taking in the vast beauty and mystery of the region that birthed the Desert Rock movement.

The Mojave isn’t just a backdrop — it’s the raw, unfiltered stage where music, art, and chaos collide. Out here, under endless stars and brutal sun, the desert strips away the fake and leaves only what’s real.

The Mojave Experience was born from that spirit. It’s not another sanitized festival in a city park, it’s a gathering for the wild ones, the wanderers, the true believers who know the desert doesn’t hand out comfort, only freedom.

This is where local desert legends share the stage with national heavyweights, weaving new stories into the myth of the Mojave. No velvet ropes. No corporate gloss. Just artists, misfits, and seekers coming together for a weekend that won’t be forgotten.

We bring the sound. You bring the fire. Together we’ll carve something into the desert that echoes long after the amps shut down. This is more than a festival — it’s a ritual. A pilgrimage into the heat, dust, and sound that will rattle your bones and rewire your soul.

Come ready. Come raw.

The Mojave Experience isn’t here to entertain you — it’s here to change you.

THE MOJAVE EXPERIENCE 2026:

03/20-21/2026

Friday 3/20 Mojave Gold- Yucca Valley, Ca

Saturday 3/21 Joshua Tree Lake & Campground - Joshua Tree, CA

mojaveexperience.net Poster by @mattjadamsart

Stoner Rockers VOLUME announce full US tour starting in May

VOLUME announce full US tour starting in May

29 Palms, CA Desert/Stoner Rock supergroup led by Patrick Brink (Fu Manchu), Ed Mundell (Monster Magnet), Mike Amster (Nebula, Spoon Benders), Dave Catching

“Pure, unadulterated desert rock by masters of the genre.” – Decibel Magazine

“Beefy, noisy, crunchy primal glory... One hell of a trip you should take.” – Metal Injection

"Feels like an acid trip in a sandstorm." -- Psychedelic Baby

Twentynine Palms, CA band VOLUME announce full US tour dates today supporting their new album Joy of Navigation (A Trip Through the Eternal Unknown). Please see all dates below

It's Psychedelic Baby Magazine. recently featured an in-depth interview with frontman Patrick Brink HERE.

The band is VOLUME and it deals primarily in density: Thick and weighty as the abundant sand surrounding their Twentynine Palms, CA hometown, but also comprised of a mass of fine grit that can sear the skin with a gust of wind, and quickly dissipate into the ether.

Yes, that is to say, VOLUME are purveyors of Heavy Acid Rock. Doomy psychedelia, but with more raw 70s punk brash than masquerading metal. VOLUME draw musical influences from bands such as The Stooges, MC5 and Black Flag to name a few, while also crafting their own distinctive heavy psychedelic identity. And, with Joy of Navigation, the band ventures into heavier, more psychedelic tones, while also keeping powerful hooks as the focus.

Originally formed in 1993 by ex-Fu Manchu singer Patrick Brink, the band has featured a revolving set of collaborators, with ex-Monster Magnet guitarist Ed Mundell playing leads on the forthcoming Joy of Navigation mini-album. David Catching (QOTSA, Arctic Monkeys, Iggy Pop) co-produced the tracks with Brink, as well as playing synth on the recording. Mike Amster (Nebula, Mondo Generator, Spoon Benders) plays drums on the mini-album. The current live lineup includes Mingus on drums, bassist Jason Hernandez and lead guitarist Derek Christensen.

Brink founded the band in order to take the lead and steer the musical reins down psychedelic rocking routes. Having performed with a number of acts including the aforementioned vocals for Fu Manchu in their early days, VOLUME offered Patrick a new creative outlet. Over their career the band has shared stages with Queens of the Stone Age, Mastodon and Goatsnake, and performed at festivals including Emissions of the Monolith and Stoner Hands of Doom (SHoD).

Brink’s upbringing in the secluded desert town east of Joshua Tree and 60 miles north of Palm Springs had a huge impact on his songwriting. It is a place of beauty and harsh realities, and those contrasts are present throughout Patrick's lyrics and songs. After getting into punk rock by accident in high school Patrick started his first band a couple of years later with the only other punks in town. This early love of punk rock inadvertently led him to the heavier bands on SST Records such as Wurm, SWA, DC3 and St. Vitus.

Heavy As F*ck (1996) and Love Is A Mountain And Heavy As F*ck (1998) were the band's first recordings. In the Fall of 1998, the seven inch Check This Planet I’m Gone... was released on Superkool Records. Requesting Permission To Land (High Beam Records) was recorded with the help of Mike McHugh (Train, Jon Spencer Blues Explosion). Each song was recorded in one or two takes to retain the original heart and soul of the piece.

“It’s rock and roll. Not brain surgery,” says Patrick of the recording process. The end result is a potent blend of thirty-plus minutes of psychedelic fuzzfest freakout and perhaps some of the rawest riffs you're likely to hear.

VOLUME draw inspiration from a time when music was truly experimental and free. They see themselves as rock'n'roll torch bearers whose duty it is to bring the flame, intact, into the future. They invite you to join in that endeavor, for the Joy of Navigation.

Joy of Navigation (A Trip Through the Eternal Unknown) is available for download/streaming, released on November 1st, 2024 via Golden Robot Recordings, and on LP via Kozmik Artifactz. Order HERE.

VOLUME LIVE 2025:

05/16 Las Vegas, NV - Dive Bar
05/17 Salt Lake City, UT - DLC
05/18 Denver, CO - The Crypt
05/19 Kansas City, KS - Mini Bar
05/20 Des Moines, IA - Lefty’s
05/21 Chicago, IL - Reggies
05/22 Detroit, MI - the Sanctuary
05/23 Lakewood, OH - 5 O’Clock Lo unge
05/24 New York, NY - Lucky 13
05/25 Boston, MA - Mid East Upstairs
05/26 Philadelphia, PA - Animated Brewing
05/27 Baltimore, MD - the Metro
05/28 Louisville, KY - Mag Bar
05/29 St Louis, MO - Red Flag
05/30 Tulsa, OK - Whittier Bar
05/31 Albuquerque, NM - Echoes
06/01 Phoenix, AZ - Yucca Tap Room

Joy Of Navigation (a trip through the eternal unknown) will be available to buy via the following records and formats listed below:

Golden Robot (digital) / Kozmik Artifactz (vinyl)

Links

Facebook | BandCamp | Instagram

Thanks to US / THEM PR Group for all of the details.

VOLUME - Joy Of Navigation (a trip through the eternal unknown) (Album Review)

Release Date: November 01st 2024. Record Label: Golden Robot (digital) / Kozmik Artifactz (vinyl). Format: DD/Vinyl

Joy Of Navigation (a trip through the eternal unknown) - Track Listing:

1.Mercury Pull

2.Joy Of Navigation 

3.Heavy Sunshine

4.The Golden Age 

5.Spacebaby

Members

Patrick Brink - Guitars/Vocals

Ed Mundell (Monster Magnet) - Lead Guitar

Mike Amster (Nebula, Spoon Benders)- Drums

Abraham Parker - Bass/ Acoustic / Electric Sitar / Rhodes / Piano / Synth /Backing Vocals

David Catching - Synth, Moog

Review

Stoner Metallers VOLUME return with their new mini-album Joy Of Navigation (a trip through the eternal unknown) which features around thirty minutes of classic Spaced Out Stoner Metal with a vintage Punk Rock vibe throughout the whole album. This is a supergroup of sorts on this record alone with appearances from Ed Mundell (Monster Magnet), Mike Amster (Nebula), Abraham Parker and David Catching lending their creative talents to VOLUME head-honcho - Patrick Brink.

VOLUME were one of the unsung Stoner Rock/Metal bands within the late 90’s until they originally split back in 2004. The band have reformed with VOLUME re-releasing their seminal record Requesting Permission To Land back in October 2023 to critical acclaim. So I’m pleased to say Joy Of Navigation (a trip through the eternal unknown) is another classic record for the band with VOLUME bringing the nostalgic vibe in a big way that screams 1990’s Stoner Metal attitude throughout the whole album.

This feels like the twisted and bolder offspring of NEBULA, Monster Magnet and FU MANCHU but with a more Out There and Spaced Out Spirit which comes into life with the standout track Mercury Pull. 

The song lasts around nine minutes with VOLUME blending Middle Eastern sounds and LSD influenced lyrics that perhaps owes a nod of gratitude to Dave Wyndorf in places but Patrick Brink builds his own blend of tantric mantra with a subtle style of 1960’s philosophy before the aggressive Stoner Metal passages appear. Catchy SPACE ROCK sounds and Ambient rhythms allows VOLUME to create their own highly anthemic blend of raw-sounding grooves that shines a light to the classic era of STONER METAL.

The album then leaves the progressive sounds of the opening track behind and aims for a Punk Rock vibe with frantic Garage Rock obsessive STONER based sounds allowing the record to be more rebellious with each passing moment especially on tracks such as Joy Of Navigation, The Golden Age and Spacebaby. 

The record feels more powerful when VOLUME adds a Speed Rock element to their music and sludgy guitars within Joy Of Navigation and Heavy Sunshine. If Joy Of Navigation (a trip through the eternal unknown) was released back in the 1990’s then it would easily be considered one of the landmark records of the Stoner Rock/Metal era. This allows VOLUME to create an album with an essential timeless quality which should appeal to a wide section of the Stoner Rock/Metal community.

The lyrics are wonderfully subversive and quite playful with VOLUME living up to the true ROCK & ROLL lifestyle in so many ways within the short running time of the whole album. This is a record I’ve completely fallen in love with from the very first listen as it takes you back to the golden age of Stoner Rock/Metal whilst still having something original to say as well.

Joy Of Navigation (a trip through the eternal unknown) is one of the must have records to own right now and one that can easily speak for any generation of the Stoner Rock scene. And with this being called a “Mini Album” then I’m hoping VOLUME has new music in the near future. 

Words by Steve Howe

Thanks to US/THEM PR for the promo.

Joy Of Navigation (a trip through the eternal unknown) will be available to buy via the following records and formats listed below:

Golden Robot (digital) / Kozmik Artifactz (vinyl)

Links

Facebook | BandCamp | Instagram

Stoner Metallers VOLUME Cover Saint Vitus Classic Track SAINT VITUS For A Summer Series Of Covers

Hidden for decades, VOLUME unleash their rendition of a classic St Vitus song “St Vitus". Full of psycho fuzz and angst in only the way that VOLUME can do it. St Vitus was originally recorded for a Tribute in 2002 that got shelved and never saw the light of day. But now the time has come to share it with the world. It's the first single in a summer series of covers. 

If you like St Vitus and you also like your music fuzzy as hell with a heavy psych bent, this is the song for your ears. It is both faithful and unfaithful to the original classic all at the same time. Once you hear it you'll know why - play it loud like it was intended to be heard. 

Now streaming everywhere or you can get it at VOLUME’s bandcamp https://volume-rocks.bandcamp.com and from https://distrokid.com/hyperfollow/volume5/st-vitus

Links

Facebook | BandCamp | Instagram | Twitter

Vinyl Pre-Orders Going Live On Friday October 06th for Space Rock/Stoner Rockers VOLUME Album REQUESTING PERMISSION TO LAND

Pre-orders for Requesting Permission to Land by Space Rock/Stoner Rockers VOLUME starts Friday October 6th. This record will twist your mind and make you move to the psycho groove. Heavy, Fuzzy, and full of energy. 

Check out what people have said: 

“This is not traditional rock but if you like the experimental sounds of psyche that revved up a generation then this is a heavyweight entry in every sense of the word.” - Ramzine 

“VOLUME kick up one hell of a racket…” - Shindig 

“If these Stoners don’t beat down your F**king door to come and get this, then I F**king give up…” Sargent Signals - DJ at WRUW-FM 

“This is self-indulgent, uncompromising rock and roll, fully capturing and exploiting the moment, and it is magnificent". - PunkNews.org 

HABIT "sounds like a lost MC5 track. The track is packed with the same energy and delivery that Monster Magnet has been struggling to regain since signing over to a major label". - Bully Magazine

 “'Requesting Permission To Land' has some very cool moments and is extremely timeless” - Metal Temple 

This record will be available worldwide through:

Echodelick Records (US)

The Weird Beard (UK)

Worst Bassist Records (Germany)

Ramble Records (Australia) 

We, Here & Now (Canada). 

We will have a few limited copies as well on our Bandcamp page. 

Don't sit on this one - get your orders in

Psych Stoner Rockers VOLUME Release First Single From Their 20th Anniversary Edition of Requesting Permission To Land

Psychedelic rockers VOLUME have released the "Colossal Freak". The first single from their upcoming 20th Anniversary release of Requesting Permission To Land which will be released on vinyl on October 27th, 2023.

Listen: https://open.spotify.com/album/0im1BpYHWUbRklmIyIGOii?si=5U9sJuipTUKrE_A_i1EUkA

 

About VOLUME:

Patrick Brink began VOLUME back in 1993 with the desire to have a project with which he could take the lead and steer the musical reins down psychedelic rocking routes. Having performed with a number of acts including doing vocals for FU MANCHU in their early days, VOLUME offered Patrick a new creative outlet. Over their career the band has shared stages with QUEENS OF THE STONE AGE, FU MANCHU, MASTADON and GOATSNAKE, and performed at festivals including Emmisions of the Monolith and Stoner Hands of Doom (SHoD). VOLUME draw musical influences from bands such as THE STOOGES, MC5 and BLACK FLAG to name a few, while also crafting their own distinctive heavy psychedelic identity.

Requesting Permission To Land will be released via Weird Beard (UK), We Here & Now (CA), Echodelick (US), Worst Bassist (EU) and Ramble Records (AU)

Tracklisting

Habit
Colossal Freak
Dont Look Around
Make Believe
Headswim

Links 

Facebook | Bandcamp | Twitter | Instagram | Spotify

Thanks to C Squared Music for all of the details.