Telegraph Avenue is a band I saw someone post on Reddit the other day, and saved this album almost immediately. In short, the band is a psychedelic rock band from Peru, formed in the late 1960s from what I can find, which had the sound of the later 1960s psychedelic garage pop/rock mixed with some Latin elements as well. There’s not a whole lot more that I can find with a quick search on the internet, other than this was their debut album and they released a second album in 1975. With that said, I’m pretty stoked to give the band listen, so I’m going to go ahead and jump on into the music.
“Something Going” starts out with a bit of interesting Latin sounding percussion before the band gets going in a super sweet laid back psychedelic groove. Oh wow, this is sweet. There’s a really pleasant nearly Tropical feel with the percussive and full-sounding acoustic guitar strumming, backed by the Latin percussion and the pop-like vocals, which at times seem a bit chaotic and as they scatter and reverberate through the soundscape to add some psychedelic elements to the tune. Wow, great tune, and a great start to the album.
Oh wow, “Happy” starts with a super sweet and easy going psychedelic pop sort of sound that contains a big bass that grooves the tune forward while the keys/piano plays an incredibly pleasant melody. Oh wow, a really tasty violin or similar instrument comes into the soundscape, and only adds to the sweetness of the tune even more. They sort of remind me of the 1960s psychedelic rock band, Front Page Review, though with a lighter and more acoustic sound. Wow, great tune.
Holy smokes, “Sweet Whatever” starts out with some super bright and flavorful acoustic guitar that is soon joined by a Latin sounding percussion section and a mixture of background chorus vocals that alternate between a more harmonious, near gospel-like sound, and a more varied part that has a range of registers. This tune is super groovy. Great tune.
Oh wow, “Lauralie” nearly has a bubblegum dream-like sound with the super high pitched harpsichord-sounding part, which is joined by a really pleasant electric guitar line that seems to have been recorded at such a high volume that there’s the slightest amount of distortion to the tune, which I absolutely dig. Oh wow, the vocals nearly pick up the slight distortion at certain points, while consistently adding more and more sweetness to the track. This tune almost sounds like a psychedelic rock band circa 1970 was asked to play an indie rock song made around 2010, creating a super interesting combination I didn’t know that I wanted to hear until now. Wow, great track.
Oh wow, “Sungaligali” starts out with a couple of bluesy notes on an acoustic guitar and a bit of studio chatter right before dropping into a super groovy soundscape with some super tasty distorted guitar in front of a backdrop consisting of a super pleasant and full-sounding acoustic guitar and Latin sounding percussion section. Oh wow, there’s also a more traditional western drum kit creating some interesting fills alongside the Latin sounding percussion section, which seems to add a more 1960s California psychedelic rock sound, especially during the more heavily syncopated sections. Great tune.
Oh wow, “Let Me Start” starts off hot with some super tasty distorted electric guitar that plays in front of the acoustic guitar that seems to add a super interesting contrasting sound while driving the tune forward. Holy smokes, the bass line in this tune is absolutely massive. The vocals had a really tasty chorus quality reminiscent of that of late 1960s and early 1970s psychedelic rock bands, with a sound that was nearly in your face at times while still guiding you along. Super sweet track.
Holy smokes, “Sometimes In Winter” starts out with an awesome jam to get the tune going, which nearly falls into a bit of a jazz-inflected jam with the punchy clean electric guitar, which reminds me a little bit of Grant Green. Holy smokes, the amount of momentum in this track is massive, with more and more layers are added to provide even more weight to the tasty jam. Oh wow, this is sweet; the band has moved over to more of a psychedelic rock sounding jam with some distortion to the electric guitar. Oh wow, the band is in another movement right now that has a super interesting mixture of a dripping wah’d out clean electric guitar and a flute on one side of the soundscape, with the drums and the rhythm guitar keeps things going steady on the other side of the soundscape, while the bass guitar and vocals seem to be acting as connective tissue between both sides in the middle. Great track.
Oh wow, “Telegraph Avenue” begins things with a super pleasant sound with delicate and inviting acoustic guitar, with the band coming in to play a tune that sounds nearly as though they’re walking you home after a long day. Holy smokes, the blues-tinged harmonica is super sweet, while the acoustic guitar nearly has a folksy quality to it. Wow, I seem to have gotten caught up in this tune a bit. This track was super sweet, and an awesome way to end the album.
Wow, this album was a super sweet listening experience. There’s a ton of elements that seem to be pulled from psychedelic rock of 1968 and 1969, with a lighter reflection of elements from psychedelic rock from the early 1970s. Throughout, there was a definite Latin inflection as well, be it the acoustic guitar or the percussion, this Peruvian band seems to have incorporated their own musical vocabulary quite well into the genre. The playing didn’t necessarily remind me of Santana, who is the only other psychedelic rock musician that also had a Latin style in his playing from the time period that I know of at the moment, but there were still a few similarities in the percussion section. If you enjoy psychedelic rock from the late 1960s and are interested in that style with a Latin flair, you might want to consider checking 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