The Plastic Cloud was a relatively short lived Canadian psychedelic rock and folk rock band, which formed in 1967 but only lasted about a year. The band was inspired in large part by groups like The Byrds and The United States of America. The band never really caught the success nationwide like they did in places like San Francisco. The original record from the groups has become somewhat of a collectors item, reaching prices up to $1000. This seems like it ought to be an interesting listen, so with that said I’m going to jump on into the music.
“Epistle to Paradise” starts out in a somewhat dream-like soft folk rock fashion, with gentle guitar chords and pleasant chorus vocals that beckon the listener to follow the airy beat of the drums further into the soundscape. There’s a really nice pleasant sound in this one, which has a really nice inviting sound produced by the band. I really dig the guitar work in this one, with the rhythm guitar almost producing some swishing sounds while the lead has a really nice tone that reminds me a bit of a soft rendition of some Gene Clark songs. Really pleasant tune that makes me look forward to the rest of the album.
Oh wow, “Shadows of Your Mind” starts out some super flavorful lead fuzzy guitar, which is promptly joined by some nearly garage rock sounding rhythm guitar while the drums and bass are performed in a driven sort of psychedelic fashion. The vocals have a ton of flavor to them too, which only add to the massive flavor profile in this super groovy psychedelic garage rock sounding tune. Oh wow, the lead guitar keeps going further into this jam – I’m super into this song. This tune seemingly got introspective at times too. Great track.
“Art’s a Happy Man” takes on a bit more of softer, nearly pop rock sort of sound, with really pleasant guitars and some super sweet drums that keep the song propelling forward with a beat that reminds me a bit of The Byrds. The chorus vocals bring another level of pleasantness to this groovy tune. Really sweet tune.
“You Don’t Care” starts out with some super fuzzy and crunchy guitar, which almost has a sort of raga quality to it, which is promptly joined by some smooth, rolling bass notes, some nearly marching drums, and some rhythm guitar chords that seem to swish behind everything as some connective tissue of sorts. The vocals even seem to have some sort of raga tinge to them. Oh wow, this tune drops into a super sweet sounding jam with some psychedelic qualities that seems to take you down a stream of consciousness of sorts. Holy smokes, this jam is sweet. Everything gets a bit heavier in sound between the verses when the chorus introduces an extended jam period for the band, while still holding that built up momentum quite well when the vocals do come back on. The crunchy fuzzed out guitar has some super great flavor to the tone and what it’s playing in this one. Each chorus starts out with a super tasty drum fill too – really awesome. Holy smokes, this tune comes back around to some great sounds again and again – I really dig it. The bass really gets some great tone as it seems to connect everything together really well throughout the tune. Oh wow, this tune just keeps on going and giving; I’m really digging this track. The outro sounds like it is coming to a massive momentum-filled crescendo – super sweet. Great track.
“Bridge Under the Sky” starts out with some dreamy arpeggios from one guitar and some bright chords from the other, with some super sweet dream-inducing drums that are able to create a great rumbling with the kicks and some super tasty snare hits. The chorus vocals really seem to swim between the instrumentation, creating one large cohesive and interconnected soundscape when taking everything into account. Oh wow, there’s some great flavor from the vocals in the verses too – really sweet. Great tune.
“Face Behind the Sun” starts out with some really fuzzed out, crunchy guitar going through an extended, meandering line that takes a huge route to get back to its start, and is super tasty for doing so. The rhythm guitar and drums almost remind me a bit of Iron Butterfly’s first album, Heavy (1968). Oh wow, the lead guitar keeps going in and meandering about even further – I really dig it. The band sounds super cohesive in this one, with all the instruments emphasizing the next. Holy smokes, the lead guitar had a super sweet solo for a moment too. Wow, I’m really digging this track. Great tune.
“Dainty General Rides” starts out with an almost psychedelic pop sort of sound, which sounds somewhere in between The Byrds and Iron Butterfly. Oh wow, this tune seems to have a sort of galloping acid rock sort of feel. I really dig the subtle movements of the bass line in the background, which seems to keep the tune bopping along to some degree, especially in conjunction with the garage rock-esque rhythm guitar and pulsating drum beat. Oh wow, the lead guitar takes on a super delicate tone for a moment, and almost sounds like a harpsichord – awesome. Really sweet track.
“Civilization Machine” starts out with some nearly ominously bopping bass, which is soon followed by the rest of the instrumentation, which has an almost experimental quality in this extended psychedelic jam piece. The rhythm guitar plays some raw garage rock sounding chords alongside the bopping bass and driven drums, which all work in tandem to propel the song forward while the lead guitar absolutely goes in on this track with some great fuzzed out psychedelically exploratory lines. Oh wow, the vocals and the rest of the instrumentation keep extended the choruses and verses even further without any indication of slowing down or stopping – super sweet. Oh wow, this bridge is super sweet – some of the raw garage rock qualities sort of drop out and are replaced by some sweeter, nearly more melodic vocals for a moment, until the tune sort of comes back around to the main chorus. Oh wow, this outro portion just keeps on going too. Holy smokes, the music is replaced by sounds of an explosion and are promptly replaced by a church organ of sorts. Super sweet way to end this great track and sweet album.
Wow, this album was pretty sweet. There were definitely a lot of sensibilities I could hear from The Byrds, and though I haven’t checked out The United States of America yet, I heard some things that also reminded me of Iron Butterfly, in that there were some sort of softer psychedelic folk rock elements, psychedelic garage rock elements, and some more acid rock elements, with some tinges of the Indian raga style peppered throughout. If that sounds interesting to you, you might want to consider checking this one out. If you do give this a listen, I sincerely hope you enjoy the listening experience at least as much as I did.
-A