The David was a psychedelic garage rock band from Los Angeles, first formed in 1965 under the name of ‘The Reasons’, which eventually changed by the time the band released their only album in 1967. The group attained some local success, and in recent years have caught the attention of psychedelic and garage rock enthusiasts as some of the band’s singles were re-released on compilation records, and their album was reissued as well. The band stayed together for a few years after their only album was released, but split up in the early 1970s. I really dig psychedelic garage rock from this time period, especially from Los Angeles, so I’m going to go ahead and jump on into the music.
“Another Day, Another Lifetime / I Would Like to Know” drops into things immediately with a super upbeat groove with some psychedelic flavorings underpinning the song. There’s some really nice orchestral strings and horns that add a lot of sweetness to the already sweet soundscape. I really dig the chorus-style vocals. Oh wow, I’m super into the tune by the time the second movement begins with a lot of raga flavors – there’s some raga-ish guitar alongside what sounds to be a sitar and a tabla. Oh wow, this is pretty sweet as the orchestral parts gently weave into the raga-styled parts. The tabla percussion part is super groovy and keeps the song feeling very directed while the mix of styles for the string instruments gradually weave together in a super groovy soundscape. The orchestral parts almost sound celebratory in nature – super sweet. Oh wow, the soundscape seemingly melts together into a dream-like world at the end of the track. Great tune.
“I’m Not Alone” starts out with some super tasty, upbeat acid rock sounding guitar with some heavy distortion that’s on top of another guitar part that sounds more garage rock in nature. Oh wow, the swirling organs come on and produces an effect akin to cartoonish birds chirping around your head after getting disoriented to some degree – awesome. Great track.
“Sweet December” has some pure garage rock energy from the raw sounding guitar and strong drums grooving the track forward. Oh wow, the organs come on and the rest of the instrumentation seemingly mellows out. I really dig this track – the guitar has a really great raw distortion to it, while the drums nearly sound like they’re raining into the soundscape at times, with the organs doing some tasty work trading the lead with the guitar at times. Wow, the bass line works really well in the soundscape as well. Great track.
“Tell Me More” starts out with some intense playing from all of the instruments, which all seem to move together as one gritty, vaguely jangly, garage rock unit, while the vocals have a relaxed feel that contrasts nicely with the instrumentation. Oh wow, there’s a super tasty and groovy psychedelic jam in the latter half of the tune that takes things relatively far out for a moment. Great tune.
“Now to You” starts out with an upbeat psychedelic garage pop rock sort of feel, which nearly gets a polished sound from all of the orchestral strings. Oh wow, I really dig the bass work in this one, which has a bit of a syncopated sound between the drums and guitar that really creates a lot of forward moving feeling in the soundscape. Oh wow, the energy in this one is infectious – there’s such a nice upbeat feel to the track. Really sweet tune.
“Professor Crawford” starts out with a really tasty bass note that brings a ton of flavor as it sets the tone for the soundscape when the rest of the instrumentation comes on after a few seconds. The vocals have this sound as if they’re peering into the soundscape from an increasing distance as the reverberation increases and general clarity of the lyrics seems to decrease as the vocal lines continues. Oh wow, there are some super tasty psychedelic licks from the guitars that ring out in the chorus. I really dig how the song seems to pick up a vague distortion as it continues along – things almost meld together because of the effect. Really sweet track.
“Time M” starts out with the ticking of a clock, which is joined by some quick guitar, and then the lonesome ticking continues again for a moment until the rest of the instrumentation comes on. Oh wow, I really dig this tune. Holy smokes, there is some sort of effect on the guitar for a moment that produces a really distorted tremelo effect for a moment, almost like the guitarist is switching his amp on and off quickly. Oh wow, this is interesting. In the previous track, as the chorus progressed, the song seemed to pick up a light layer of distortion, whereas it seems to be the opposite case in this track, where the chorus starts out vaguely distorted and becomes clearer as the chorus progresses. Great track.
“So Much More” starts out with some really sweet orchestral strings that remind me of the baroque quality from the Scott Walker album I listened to yesterday. I really dig this tune – the band sounds like it’s climbing you up to higher levels as the tune progresses. The drums and bass work very nicely with one another to produce a really sturdy, groovy rhythm section in this track. Really sweet tune.
“Mirrors of Wood” starts out a bit more intensely than some other songs on the album, with the rhythm guitar producing a loose, bright tone for some staccato’d chords that nearly jangles a bit alongside the drums, with the bass guitar adding an extra ‘oomf’ to the chords and making the playing that much more impactful. The organs also seem to playing alongside all those instruments for a really interesting, layered rhythm section. Oh wow, the rest of the instrumentation has some raga-esque lines as things are brought far out from where the track began as the playing continues. Great track.
“Of Our Other Days” has a nearly celebratory chattering in the background to accompany the upbeat track, almost like the band recorded sounds at some sort of beach party in the midst of Summer to serve as the background to this track. Oh wow, there’s a flute sounding instrument that seems to beckon you through the celebratory soundscape, serving as a warm invitation of sorts, while the other instrumentation frames the soundscape with some super groovy sounds. Great tune.
“I Don’t Care” starts out relatively overtly psychedelic, with a vague layer of distortion on the entire soundscape, while the band seemingly jams out within the space of the tune with some flavorful guitar work, tasty swirling organs, strong and sturdy drums, with sweet bopping bass that connects the rockin’ drum beat to the rest of the instrumentation really nicely. Great jam track.
“Mister, You’re a Better Man Than I”, a song originally by The Yardbirds, starts out with some super flavorful, nearly ominous organs, and some tasty garage rock sounding guitar, with the strange nearly shuffling drum beat. I really dig how the bass seems to produce a vague deep reverberation from the lines the guitar and organs are jamming out with. There haven’t been any lyrics thus far, but instead there have been some super sweet psychedelic jams with a hint of raga to them. Oh wow, this jam is super tasty with tons of energy. The band ties this album together really nicely with the final rumblings of the drum in this jam piece. Great track and great way to finish up the album.
Wow, this album is filled with interesting combinations of baroque orchestral pieces with some psychedelic garage rock, with an enduring upbeat sweetness prevalent in much of the album. There’s a bit of a raga tinge to this one, and the interesting mixture of the orchestral parts with the psychedelic rock jams made for an interesting experience that kept me intrigued throughout. The purely psychedelic garage rock jams to tie up the album were super flavorful as well. If you dig baroque orchestral instrumentation and 1960s psychedelic garage rock, you might want to check out this album. If you do decide to give this album a listen, I sincerely do hope that you enjoy the experience at least as much as I did.
-A