Bananagun is an Australian band that released their debut album in 2020, The True Story of Bananagun, and I’ve been seeing a lot of people talking about the album and the band on reddit recently, so I figured I ought to take a listen. Jay Ruttenberg, a writer for the New Yorker, described the album as one along the lines of a hidden gem from the 60s that has been unearthed by enthusiasts and collectors decades later. That description is enough to get me excited to give this album a listen, but the icing on the cake is that the album debuted at #40 on the ARIA charts. With that said, I’m stoked to give this one a listen, so I’m going to go ahead and jump on into the music.
“Bang Go the Bongos” starts out with some super interesting sounds with the different percussion and instrumentation, which almost feel out the space for the background of the tune, which is soon joined by some super groovy electric guitars that come in and seem get the tune flowing along with a mixture of modern sensibilities with a sound reminiscent of the late 1960s. Holy smokes, the wah-pedal’d guitar comes in and drips some super groovy psychedelic flavor into the soundscape. The vocals have a quality that also seems to put the listener at ease, especially when the background chorus vocals come in. Great track, and I’m stoked to listen to more.
Oh wow, “The Master” comes on with a sound that sort of reminds me vaguely of bands like Little Feat, with a bit of a swampy groove, but the music picks up a bit of a sound that reminds me a bit of King Gizzard & the Lizard Wizard. Oh wow, this tune is super groovy. The drums get into a bit of a psychedelic shuffle, with the rest of the band coming together in something that reminds me of the pseudo-orchestrated jams of Quicksilver Messenger Service. Holy smokes, this the jams in this tune just keep on giving. Great tune.
“People Talk Too Much” starts off the heels of the previous track with a smooth segue, which gets the listener relaxed while the band picks up the groove. The band sort of remind me a lot of Goose in this extended jam at the moment, with some quick pace and staccato’d notes from most of the instruments. Oh wow, some vocals finally come in with a sweet chorus sound, which seems to serve as the segue for the band into the next movement in the track. Holy smokes, the keys almost sound a bit like an electric harpsichord of sorts, adding notes into the tune with a delicate plucking sound. Holy smokes, this jam keeps on giving more and more. I’m really digging this tune and the album at this point. Wow, great track.
“Freak Machine” seems to start out as though the band is receiving signals from outer space, which they begin to channel through their music. There’s a bit of a psychedelic shuffle in the rhythm section between the quick, syncopated rhythms, which resolve nicely during the chorus. Holy smokes, this track is groovy. The brass instruments play off the spacey keys in a super interesting way, which seems to invite in some guitar work that reminds me of Fifty Foot Hose. Oh wow, the jams in this track are super flavorful, and seem to continually evolve as the track progresses. Great tune.
“Bird Up!” starts out with a bit of studio chatter mixed with some spacey nature sounds, which sound like they were recorded in a jungle of sorts. Super sweet and interesting track.
Oh wow, “Out of Reach” starts out with some super sweet guitar work that is soon joined by a sweet vocal line that’s backed by a flute of some sort. The rhythm section feels very wholesome and natural with the combination of bongos, the groovy snare, and what nearly sounds like a clapping sound at times. Holy smokes, this track is groovy. I can understand why so many people have been talking about this band on the internet. I’m already looking into getting this record on vinyl while I enjoy this groovy jam. Holy smokes, the bass hits some super flavorful notes in a portion of the jam in the latter half of the tune. Great tune.
Holy smokes, “She Now” introduces an acoustic guitar that jangles around with the psychedelic flavors of the electric guitar in the tune, while the rhythm section has a sound reminiscent of Little Feat or Widespread Panic with the bongos and the bouncing and rolling sounds of the bass line. Holy smokes, this tune builds up to melting jam as the track comes to an end, which only hooks me further into the groovy jams in the album. Wow, great track.
“Perfect Stranger” starts out with some sweet flute sounds and some gradually grooving sounds from the electric guitars. Oh wow, the harpsichord sound of the keys add such a delicate and pleasant flavor, especially as the jams build within the tune as more layers are added and evolved. There’s almost like some sort of smooth elevator jazz underbelly to this tune, which is meshed quite well with the psychedelic jams that the band makes in the song. Great tune.
Oh wow, “Mushroom Bomb” picks up a bit of grit and nearly a bit of a psychedelic blues-inflected sound, which seems to match the name of the tune to some degree. Oh wow, there’s some sort of crashing or exploding sound at one point, which the band seems to possibly be building up to again as the jams in this track continues. Oh wow, the electric guitar picks up this reverberated wah-sound that melts into the track super well. Holy smokes, the track nearly picks up a bit of raga sound as there sounds to be an instrument that’s a mixture of a mandolin and a sitar that the band brings into the soundscape. Great track.
Holy smokes, I didn’t even realize that “Modern Day Problems” had started until about 20 seconds into the track when I looked at the audio player on my computer. The mandolin/sitar-sounding instrument may have been at the beginning of this tune, but regardless, the segue into this track is seamless. Wow, the tune has a bit of a shimmer as chords come into the soundscape from that harpsichord-sounding instrument, while the rhythm section of the bongos, traditional rock and roll drum kit, and bass guitar keep the jams grooving and flowing along. Holy smokes, the band seems to tease the 007 theme song at the end of the track. Great tune.
“Taking the Present for Granted” picks things up almost immediately off of the heels of the previous track, with a sound of the band gradually winding up the album as the notes seem to sound like they ring out a bit more. Wow, the band seems to be returning the listener back to reality after the intense and super groovy jams from earlier in the album with this tune. Wow, great track, and a great way to finish this album.
Holy smokes, this album is sweet. I think I might need to start expanding my vocabulary more while I listen, because someone looking at my reactions might become numb to all of my uses of “holy smokes”, or “oh wow”, but these are my legitimate reactions. Bananagun has a sound that is both familiar and unique at the same time, with a style that harkens back to the psychedelic rock of the late 1960s, while combined with a modern style at the same time. To me, an approximation of the sound might be bits and pieces from late 1960s groups like Quicksilver Messenger Service and Fifty Foot Hose, combined with the sounds of groups like Little Feat and Widespread Panic, which are then stirred with some doses of modern groups like King Gizzard & the Lizard Wizard and Goose. The resulting combination is music that I want to keep listening to more of. I’m stoked that I checked out this album tonight, and definitely am going to look into getting it on vinyl. If you enjoy the sounds of late 1960s psychedelia combined with tight, pseudo-orchestrated modern sounding jams, you might want to consider checking out this album. If you do decide to give this album a listen, I sincerely hope that you enjoy the listening experience at least as much as I did.
-A