Lacewing, a band also known as The Measles both before and after the release of this album, is a band from Ohio that played a variety of West Coast influenced genres from folk to acid rock. Joe Walsh played in the band in its earlier days according to the biography on discogs. This one came across my dashboard a couple of days ago when listening to that Fields album, so I’m pretty excited to take a listen. Mainstream Records, who also released albums from bands like Big Brother and the Holding Company, was the record label that this album was released under. There’s not a whole lot more I can find at a quick glance, so I’m going to go ahead and jump on into the album.
“Paradox” has a really gentle acoustic intro, and then enters some super awesome fuzzy guitar. Oh wow, those vocals are so smooth and very serene in the layering. That electric guitar tone is really sweet, and has a nice squeezing feeling to it. That bass line is so smooth and rolls with that piano so well, and really adds to the atmosphere of the song very well. I love the bass drum and the way it rolls in. Oh wow, this electric guitar solo is extra crispy and is traveling all around the soundscape. The song feels so fresh throughout, and definitely has an almost 80s feel in the approach. Really sweet honestly.
“Crystal Myth” starts out extra gentle with the acoustic guitar, and really sounds like a traditional English folk song in its approach – somewhat reminding me of Steeleye Span. Oh wow, those vocals are awesome – they’re super layered, but still retain individuality across the soundscape. Oh wow, the harpsichord (I think?) comes in and really adds to that folksy feeling. They almost remind me of Caedmon a bit with that psychedelic medieval folk feel. Oh wow, the pace picks up big time as the song nears the end and turns into some strange medieval folksy jam, befitting a voyage to a mythical land across a perilous track. That ending note is absolutely awesome.
Oh wow, “Our World (It Can Happen)” is extremely interesting. The approach this song has makes it sound like some sort of 60s psychedelic rock band being asked to play some early 80s rock – very intriguing. There’s this strange effect where it sounds like the soundscape is constantly moving from left and right as the instrumentation and vocals constantly enter and quickly exit the left part of the soundscape, while meaning somewhat constant near the right side. This song is messing with me a little, and I keep listening closer to the right speaker to make sure I’m not missing anything. Really sweet, honestly. I dig the approach in this one.
“Time To Go” starts out with just acoustic guitar, and the vocals come on soon after. The vocals keep that rotating feel where the soundscape moves from right to left and back really quickly, though is definitely a lot more smooth and subtle in the approach. The vocals are really sweet as they sort of sound a little off-kilter and and sync back up. Wow, that little electric guitar solo was pretty sweet with how it sounded like a couple different guitars alternating the same phrasing for a moment. Definitely a pretty cool psychedelic song.
“The Storm: Epicycle and Rebirth” has a darker, more blues-inflected psychedelic feel to it at the start, and then it all drops together into a psychedelic blues song. Wow, this song is super interesting with the way it’s playing around with fading in and out of the soundscape. The left speaker just sort of keeps swishing a fuzzy guitar riff with other instruments coming in from time to time. Oh wow, this piano riff is almost sinister, but definitely sounds really interesting. Oh wow, now the only thing that’s left is the left speaker and I’m super intrigued. I’ve never heard an approach quite like this one to a psychedelic rock song. When all the instruments in the right speaker dropped and the left guitar part suddenly became a much clearer, more steady drone, the amount of tension relieved was absolutely insane. Now the song is on some sort spacey psychedelic voyage, with the piano just entering in to sort of test the waters with something quite melodic. This song reminds me a lot of the Gong album I listened to a while back. Oh wow, this piano part is absolutely lovely now as the song is nearing its end.
“I’ll Play For You” has a super interesting, bluesy psychedelic rock feel to it. Now that I sort of see what’s going on with the soundscape shifting around so much and the way they mixed the tracks, hearing that shifting soundscape is absolutely lovely and very welcoming. Oh wow, it sounds like they’re letting the soundscape fire on all cylinders right now though for this guitar solo. Though this album isn’t really all that folksy, I feel like I finally understand why the genre ‘freak folk’ is called such. Wow, that guitar in the left speaker is has such an awesome fuzz to it. Wow, that piano hits some super flavorful notes. Oh wow, the guitar, piano, bass, and drums are really all grooving right now. Holy smokes, that keyboard/harpsichord comes in out of nowhere for an absolutely smoking crescendo at the end of the tune.
“Galvenized Midget” has a super neat feel to it, and almost sounds like a psychedelic parlor tune with what the piano is playing and the upbeat feel of the bass and the drums. That guitar really gets out there while the rest of the instrumentation keeps the song somewhat grounded. Honestly I’m reminded a little bit of Sopwith Camel on this one. So far there aren’t any vocals, and this sounds like a pretty sweet fun jam piece for the band that also the purpose of wrapping up the album. Oh wow, that bass is sick, and has an almost bebop feel to it. Meanwhile the electric guitar is absolutely going in on this track dropping some super sweet fuzzed out tones. Oh wow, when that keyboard comes in strong with those playful flavors the tune feels very well rounded. Oh wow, there’s an absolutely sweet drum solo right now that sort of comes out of nowhere, and totally makes the song feel like it’s getting wrapped up with a nice conclusive finish. Holy smokes, those drums are sweet. Those kick drums are swimming around the soundscape to that snare that continually speeds up and really keeps things grooving. Wow, this drum solo is awesome and really gets me on the edge of my seat for this conclusion. It’s almost like the drums just landed an airplane with that finish, and was absolutely awesome.
Wow, this album was absolutely intriguing, and pretty far out there at times in ways I’d never even heard before – going from soothing to uncomfortable to melodic to high energy, and to all of the above, it’s definitely a pretty sweet listen. If you enjoy 60s psychedelic rock and/or experimental rock like from Spectrum, you might get a kick out of this album. Either way, if you decide to give this one a listen, I sincerely hope you enjoy it at least as much as I did.
-A