This is a band that was listed under Apple Music’s suggestions for me based on a recent album I listened to, but I don’t quite remember which one that was. This is the only album this band released under this name, though they did have different names with different iterations of the band throughout the years. They were a part of the San Francisco psychedelic rock scene, and they did a lot of touring for this album, according to wikipedia. The band broke up after they couldn’t find any record label to release their second album, unfortunately. With that, I’m going to jump on into the music.
“Up Down Turn Around World” has a really interesting fuzzy drone intro note, after which point there’s a bit of a raga influenced psychedelic circus sort of sound that the band is playing. The vocals are really interesting in how they’re mixed in the song, sounding like the main vocals are mic’d up a good distance away from the singer. I really dig the shakers/maracas that travel around the soundscape from side to side. Oh wow, that guitar sounds like it just turned something on in a certain way. The bass line is pretty sweet with how it’s bopping around, and has a nice elasticity to it.
“Long Years in Space” definitely has a spacey feel to it, or perhaps even a deep ocean sort of vibe. Oh wow, the female vocalist’s voice is like a guiding beacon in this strange setting. I really dig the percussion and bass in the track, almost like they’re cooking up something as they play in tandem. I’m really reminded of the Gong album I listened to a little while ago. Oh wow, I really dig these space-like beeps; they have a sort of extra-terrestrial quality to them. The hollowness of that cowbell sounds really cool in the context of the rest of the song.
“Feeling Zero” has a classic psychedelic/acid rock jam feel to it, with some super fuzzed out electric guitar that sort of takes you down the rabbit hole, while a keyboard/organ keeps things moving upward with how and what it’s playing, and the drums and bass tie everything together. The vocals definitely add a whole lot to the song, and used very well in terms of how they fit in with the instrumentation. The electric guitar and the organs have an awesome counterpoint going on. It’s sort of like a combination of Big Brother and the Holding Company and The Doors in a certain way – pretty sweet.
“Over the Rainbow” starts out with a really strange tone that sets the tone for the song, which turns the classic song into a strange psychedelic march of a song. Honestly this version is unlike any version I’ve ever heard. Oh wow, things change up big time when a super fuzzed out acid rock guitar solo comes into play, while the bass translates the chaotic energy of the drums into a groove that the keyboards play off of in the background. Wow, everything falls back into place – super sweet.
“Changes Brought to Me” has a super high energy feel from all of the instruments that really keeps the tune going full speed. Oh wow, I really dig that electric guitar solo, while the drums and bass keep chugging along with no sign of slowing down. The vocals serve as the engineer adding more coal to the engine to this proverbial train of a song. Really cool jam.
“Please Leave Me Alone” has a really shimmering psychedelic pop feel at the beginning, almost sounding a little bit like The Beach Boys in both instrumentation and with the more layered vocal arrangement. The high notes plucked on the acoustic guitar have such a delicate feel to them in the greater context of the song and the album. Oh wow, there was some sort of discordant harmonization between the acoustic guitar and another guitar, really giving a bit of darkness to this otherwise major key feeling song.
“Chocolate Angel” is in your face right away with some super heavy acid rock jams. The electric guitar is super fuzzed out and going everywhere, and the keyboards pull you in different directions, and then the drums come in providing some semblance of a path forward, where things get almost primal in terms of energy and style of play. It’s just drums for a moment, shifting about the soundscape until the electric guitar comes in with some feedback. Holy psychedelia, the song changes up so much with a little ditty hummed along with the keyboard, and everything gets taken super far out by the band – pretty awesome.
“Happy Child” has such a contrasting feel to the previous song – this one actually has a bit of structure to it and takes some influence from medieval folk mixed with psychedelic pop – definitely really interesting. It’s got a kind of psychedelic circus vibe to it – like you’re on some sort of spinning teapot ride at an amusement park while the band’s music bubbles up around you. The ending of the song has a pretty experimental feel with how it sounds like the tapes were sped up – pretty sweet.
“Patterns” has a really tasty feel to it, and has a bit of a psychedelic r&b sort of vibe to it, with the keyboards keeping the rhythm alongside the drums with this one. The smooth groovy playing from the bass serves as a jumping-off point for the other instruments. The guitars are super tasty in sound and have this bluesy tinge to them, while the female vocalist’s voice once again feels like a guiding beacon through this foggy psychedelic voyage. The playing from the electric guitar gets quite delicate at times, and does an excellent job playing off the vocal lines.
“Happy World of Captain K” starts out like chaos being pulled through a vacuum where everything coalesces at some musical entry point, before dropping into some strange almost polka-like psychedelic rock groove tune. Definitely really sweet. Everything sounds like it starts getting sucked back through to the other end of the vacuum where the instrumentation hastily plays through the chaos to keep the groove going.
“She’s Got No Identification” has a super groovy feel to it. The song starts out like a relatively structured song at the beginning, but as the song gets going you feel like you’re slowing getting whirred down a rabbit hole of sorts with all of the syncopation going on between the different instruments. The jam keeps going strong as the song nears the end, during which the electric guitar gently brings the tune further out as the drums and bass hold a steady groove.
“Hobbit’s Dream” has a very conclusive feel to it, like nearing the completion of a journey of sorts. There’s definitely a bit of a folksy feel to this one, as the vocals sort of gently slow down the momentum, while the instruments play a bit looser and gently as the band eases things to an end. The song fades out quite nicely, and gives a really nice ending to a groovy album.
Wow, this album is full of psychedelia, and definitely has some songs I’ll be listening to again. It’s a shame the group never got to release their second album from what I can tell, though they could have done it at some point and I just hadn’t found that info online. Either way, if you dig acid rock or psychedelic rock, this one is a pretty interesting album you might enjoy. If you do decide to give it a listen, I do sincerely hope you enjoy it at least as much as I did.
-A