These days, as anyone who has seen them in the flesh could tell you, Kula Shaker’s live shows are less like gigs than bona-fide happenings… communal gatherings of like-minded souls where the bilateral flow of positive energy feels powerful enough to levitate the Royal Albert Hall. Named after a 10th century south-Indian poet King, Kula Shaker, carried their royal flag of retro freakery and spiritual sonics to the toppermost of the poppermost during the heady days of Britpop, with songs like ‘Tattva’ and ‘Hush’ and from the multi-platinum selling album ‘K’. Fast forward to present day, and 2024 sees the band ride out once again, mystical-machine-guns-a-blazing, with the release of ‘Natural Magick’ — their 7th studio album. Kula Shaker’s timely reboot seems in no small part due to one key development, which Kula konnoisseurs have long dreamed about — the return of Hammond organ wizard Jay Darlington after a decade with Oasis and various Gallaghers. Now the four original members of the band’s classic line-up: Crispian Mills (guitar) Alonza Bevan (bass) and Paul Winter Hart (drums) — are reunited for the first time since 1999’s ‘Peasants, Pigs & Astronauts’, and with a 13-track album featuring some of their best songs to date, the band look set to scale the dizzy heights once more.