The Freak Scene was a psychedelic rock band from New York back in the latter half of the 1960s, and according to Wikipedia were also known as The Deep. This album was mostly conceived, it seems, by Rusty Evans, who started out as a rockabilly singer, before becoming a folk musician, and finally delving in psychedelic rock. David Bromberg also plays guitar on the album, though it seems unclear which tracks and how many he plays on. This seems like quite an interesting album, so with that said I’m going to jump on into the music.
“A Million Grains of Sand” starts out with some super sweet raga inflected electric guitar on the left. Oh wow, I really dig the effect of the vocals – they almost sound like a sort of inner monologue to this strange sounding psychedelic raga rock sort of tune. There’s a mystifying breeze sound in the background, like wind blustering through a city in the cold of a winter night, which I think is some super reverberated organs or something of the sort. I really dig this tune, and I’m pretty stoked for the rest of the album.
“. . . When In the Course of Human Events (Draft Beer, Not Students)” picks up from the previous song in a super pleasant way, having a very natural segue into this groovy little political tune. There’s some vague psychedelic stylings to different overlays and arrangements of different chants protesting the draft back in the 60s. Super interesting tune.
“Interpolitation: We Shall Overcome” segues into things perfectly as this song is just a continuation of the previous tune, bringing more commentary on the politics of the United States back in the 1960s, all delivered with a bit of a strange psychedelic twist. It’s almost a bit of a response to the previous tune, though not necessarily at the same time. Really cool concept and sweet delivery.
“Rose of Smiling Faces” start out with some really delicate guitar that almost sounds like a harpsichord for a moment, while taking in some sort of raga qualities to bring about a psychedelic soundscape. Oh wow, I really dig the simple and repetitive bass line. The bass line with the nearly whispered sweet vocals sort of reminds me of a rough framework for what the band Spiritualized would sort of play for some songs. I really dig this tune. The electric guitar really jangles around nicely as it sort of haphazardly meanders around a distant, improvisatory sounding part that really has a raga quality, especially in combination with the sort of tabla sounding percussion behind it. Really sweet tune.
“Behind the Mind” has a super groovy early psychedelic rock sound right away, which sounds like it takes vague cues from electric blues and folk in the bass guitar and rhythm guitar section with the lead electric guitar taking on a bunch of different effects and developing a sort of raga quality that is used to help bring out some psychedelia in the soundscape. Really sweet tune.
“The Subway Ride Through Inner Space” starts out with some absolutely delicious drums and a super sweet, tight bass line. There’s almost a cutting breeze noise that comes across the soundscape, beckoning the vocals to follow suit. The vocals have a strange, nearly in your face element. I really dig the melody at the end. Another really sweet tune.
“Butterfly Dream” comes on with a great psychedelic garage rock energy, with the strange vocal chorus beckoning you to follow as the floaty percussion rattling seems to meander about with the bass and guitar keeping the tune grounded to some extent on both sides of the soundscape. Really interesting tune.
“My Rainbow Life” starts out with a heavy raga sound, served up in a bit of a psychedelic garage rock manner with the bright and raw guitar sound and the nearly distorted vocals. That bass line has a super interesting raga quality to it that really makes me listen closer and closer. There are quite a few different guitar layers in this one, each bringing something pretty different to the soundscape. Super interesting tune.
“The Center of My Soul” comes on like a psychedelic garage pop tune with the tight drums and bass and cheery vocals that seem to keep the tune bopping along. Oh wow, the guitars bring in an almost dark raga sound to the tune. I really dig the way the vocal seem to travel around the soundscape. The quick percussive hits to some sort of block almost rake my ear closer to the left speaker. Super sweet tune.
Oh wow, “Watered Down Soul” changes things up with some super twangy lonesome acoustic guitar, sounding straight out of the delta blues. Then things change back up into a bit of psychedelic garage rock tune heavily influenced by raga. Oh wow, those bubbling sound effects have a super sweet sound to them, and really bring a really sweet different dimension into the soundscape. I really dig the outro, nearly bringing the tune full circle back to the start. Super sweet tune.
“Red Roses Will Weep” has a super interesting sound to it, with an almost marching folk nature with the drums and acoustic guitar, while the large and warm chorus vocals fill up much of the soundscape in a really pleasing way. There’s still a psychedelic nature to this one, though it’s not necessarily as overt. The bass line has a pretty fat sound to it in this one, which almost carries you along as the rest of the instrumentation envelops you. Great tune.
“Mind Bender” starts out with an interesting, nearly Latin flair at first, before slowly becoming more of raga-inflected tune. The first vocals are very straightforward, and then the second vocal line comes on and nearly wraps around the first vocal line. The electric guitars really seem to be jamming on both sides of the soundscape, much like the different percussion instruments going back and forth as well. Super interesting tune – I really dig it.
“Grok!” starts out with some strange squealing from some sort of keyboard or synth that sounds like it’s pitched up 3 or 4 octaves, creating a nearly ornate sound to this raga rhythm from the drums and the melody from the electric guitar. This is a super interesting way to exit the album, and it works quite nicely.
Wow, this album was pretty sweet. I really dig that sort of raga sound that you can hear in a lot of psychedelic rock from the 60s, but this one is especially overt in that influence. Really sweet listen, and it was a really pleasant way to spend a half an hour. If you enjoy psychedelic rock from the 60s, especially that of a raga nature, you might want to consider checking this one out. If you do decide to give this album a listen, I sincerely hope that you do enjoy the experience at least as much as I did.
-A