The Smoke doesn’t have a whole bunch of information on the internet about them, but they were a psychedelic pop/soft rock group from England, though they seem to have caught the most attention in Germany, and didn’t seem to catch on in the U.S. The group pays homage to groups like Brian Wilson and The Beach Boys as well as The Beatles with references to their music throughout the album, from what I can find at a glance. From what I can find, this album seems to be the only release from the band, which has become a collector’s item for fans of the era and genre of music. I’m pretty stoked to give this one a listen, so with that said, I’m going to go ahead and jump on into the music.
“Cowboys And Indians” is supposed to be a tribute to Brian Wilson and the song “Heroes and Villains”, and it starts out with a super interesting way with effects and studio chatter before the tune drops into place. Oh wow, this song has some great psychedelic rock flavor that has a sort of unpolished garage rock sound with some incredibly flavorful jams. Holy smokes, the organs are awesome. I really dig the vocals, which take on a more polished sound than the other instrumentation and at times reach reach a higher register, reminiscent of The Beach Boys, while retaining a sort of cool, laid back approach compared to the other instrumentation in the song. Great tune, and I’m excited to listen to the rest of the album.
“Looking Thru The Mirror” has a really nice, softer psychedelic rock sound, which seemingly keeps you in a whirl with some soft, approachable sounds that have a carnivalesque tinge as the tune spins about. Really pleasant track.
“Self-Analysis” starts out with some nearly dark sounding drums at first, before the bass and organs come in to give the tune a bit more of a positive sound in general. Oh wow, the piano comes on and gives off a bit of darkness at first before working towards a resolution in the chords. Oh wow, this is sweet – the bass and chimes seem to meander about in a somewhat purgatorial manner, neither positive nor negative, which drives the tune forward really nicely. Really sweet track.
“Gold Is The Colour Of Thought” starts out with some interesting vocals and some sweet orchestral strings to introduce the track. Oh wow, this is really sweet – the chorus of the tune really sounds something reminiscent of The Beatles circa Sgt. Pepper’s, from the pop-y guitar chords, to the somewhat muddied bouncing bass, to the drums that serve the track very nicely, to the vaguely kaleidoscopic vocals. Oh wow, the strings take on a nearly classical, courtly feel for a moment until the vocals come in again. Wow, this track is really sweet, and has a really nice breakdown jam at the end. Great tune.
“Hobbit Symphony” comes on hot with some super tasty distorted guitar work that makes this feel like a classic psychedelic blues rock song for a bit, with some flavors that remind me of The Jimi Hendrix Experience. Oh wow, the distortion drops away and now the tune has turned into a bopping, winding journey that really remind me of The Hobbit and the winding journey from the books/movies. The song also features some harpsichord, and plenty of bopping and galloping movements from the super flavorful rhythm section while the lead guitar seemingly meanders about, though in a notably directed fashion as the instrumental tune comes to an end. Holy smokes, there are a ton of different movements in this song. Great track.
“Daisy Intermission” is a really interesting intermission, with some very pleasant instrumentation and a message from the band about the mono stylings of the original recording. Really sweet.
“Fogbound” has a really nice psychedelic pop-y sort of sound with the guitars, bass, drums, and vocals reminding me a fair deal of The Beatles circa Revolver, with the addition of some super sweet swirling organs and some nice horns that add a great deal of texture and flavor to the soundscape. Wow, I’m really digging this track. Oh wow, you can even hear the lyrics from “Lucy in the Sky with Diamonds” by The Beatles as the song fades out in the outro. Great tune.
“Song Thru Perception” has a very pleasant soft psychedelic pop orchestration to this tune, with lots of nice orchestral strings and horns, with some simple drums keeping the tune stepping along while being guided by the vocal performance. Oh wow, there are some great lines from the violin/orchestral strings. Really sweet track.
“Philosophy” is almost exclusively orchestral strings accompanied by some sweet vocal parts to this quick track. Really nice quick tune.
“Umbrella” has a super interesting sound that really reminds me a lot again of The Beatles’ Sgt. Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band (1967), and in particular of the tune “Fixing a Hole”, which is in part due to both the lyrics and the general forwardly driven feeling in the instrumentation, which seems to cover a lot of ground in a relatively short tune. Great track.
Oh wow, “Ritual Gypsy Music Opus 1” picks up with the melody with some orchestral strings from the previous track in an almost unnoticeable segue to this short track. Really sweet and interesting way to keep the tunes flowing and changing.
Oh wow, “October Country” also picks up with nearly no noticeable segue from the previous track, almost like this and the previous two songs are really part of one extended set of movements, though this has changed considerably from “Umbrella”. Wow, I really dig the shimmering keyboard/organ work in the tune, which is complemented very well by the sweetness of the orchestral strings, which is all driven forward nicely by the sturdy drums. Great track.
“Odyssey” starts out super nicely and turns into a soundscape that sounds very nearly like it could be a lost tune from The Beatles. Oh wow, there’s almost a bit of a raga sort of breakdown for a moment, once again reminiscent of the Sgt. Pepper’s album by the Beatles. Holy smokes, this is sweet. I really dig the psychedelic pop stylings of the keyboards, alongside the different orchestral type arrangements. Oh wow, the outro of the tune nearly gets to a bit of a darker sound as the whimsical psychedelic pop style seems to fade away in lieu of some acoustic guitar and breeze-like vocals. Wow, great track.
Holy smokes, this album is awesome. I can understand why it’s a collectors item for fans of the genre. If you dig psychedelic rock and/or psychedelic pop, and you enjoy The Beatles, I would recommend checking out this album. There are a ton of really flavorful and unique ways that The Smoke seems to pay homage to The Beatles throughout, as well as to Brian Wilson and The Beach Boys as well. Though I can’t help but feel disappointed that this is the only album by The Smoke that I’ve been able to find thus far, I am thankful that there is this album left behind by the band. If you do decide to give this album a listen, I do sincerely hope that you enjoy the listening experience at least as much as I did.
-A