I added this album a few days ago while listening to another album when this album was suggested by Apple Music to me. I really dig the script of the band name on the album cover, so I figured I’d give this one a listen. I don’t know anything about the band before googling them (other than they’re in the psychedelic rock area), and upon looking them up it seems they were a club soul band in the U.K. before picking up more psychedelic influences for this album. After they released this album, the band changed the name to Black Widow and caught some traction in the music world. I can’t find a whole lot more information on the band, so I’m going to go ahead and jump on into the music.
“Another Country” starts out with some whirling hammond organ that gently brings you into this tune that has a really nice smooth intro. There definitely does sound to be a bit of a club-like feel to the orchestration with the use of horns and the nearly croon-like vocals. I really dig the progression of the guitars and the hammond organs very slowly continuing further into the song with little breakdowns between vocal lines. Oh wow, there’s a really nice soulful jazz club feel to this instrumental part for the second movement of the song. The electric guitar gently frames out the line with high notes that provide a nice almost counter melody to the hammond organ all while working really nicely in conjunction with the bass guitar. The drums have a really nice swing to them too. Oh wow, this guitar solo that just came on really hits some tasty notes and elaborates on the swirling melodies laid down by the organ. The horns are back again and really provide that really interesting club feel to the mix as the tune seems to pick up in speed and becomes a little more chaotic. There’s definitely a really nice groovy feel to this, and definitely gives off a pretty unique feeling the mixture of genres all being tied together with a subtle psychedelic presentation. Really nice intro to the album.
“Pigs Foots” starts out with some studio chatter right before some super tasty playing from the bass, drums, guitar, and organ all synchronized extremely well and accentuating the beat very nicely. Oh wow, this walking bass line in conjunction with that swirling organ while the guitar and drums keep things in a nice swing is super groovy. Oh wow, the saxophone comes on and serves up a heaping helping of blues soul that meshes well with this pseudo psychedelic bluesy swinging groove that the band has going at the moment. Now it’s the electric guitar’s turn to really go in with some super tasty, crunchy distortion to really further evolve the lines laid down by the organ and saxophone. Oh wow, the bass changes up a little bit and the tune sounds like it turned around some bluesy corner for a minute before getting right back into the swing of things. Really groovy tune.
“Season of the Witch” starts out with rolling cymbals for a slow intro to this cover of the tune originally by Donovan. There’s almost like a soulful jazz bluesy rock swinging version of the tune. Oh wow, those vocals by the female vocalist seemingly come through a void that this song has seemingly found in the middle of this musical dimension they play in. The vocals have such a really nice, relaxed jazz club feel that seem to be sent through some psychedelic music machine – absolutely awesome. The hammond organ really sets the pace really well in this tune, really teasing a resolution of sorts in the form of a massive jam while the guitar, drum, and bass all seem to attempt to build up to it. Wow, the tune sort of has a bit of a meandering improvisational line from the organ while the drums, bass, and guitar delicately keep the tune in that steady swing that has persisted throughout the tune. Oh wow, all the instruments just started to come together and synced up with a whole lot of intensity as they get further into this jam that had been teased earlier. Absolutely delicious groove. Oh wow, those vocals come on almost as an indication that you’ve arrived back on earth without even traveling anywhere. The female vocalist’s voice has a really subtle raspiness in its timbre that really adds a whole lot of flavor. There are some background vocals that seemingly melt all the elements of the tune together. Great cover of a great song.
“A Place of Heartbreak” has a really intense sound right away with the fast-paced chopping beat accompanied by the distortion that seems to encompass both the guitar and the vocals. Oh wow, the sound in this one is super weighty, and definitely has a sense of familiarity in terms of the melody, all while being served up with a really interesting psychedelic swirl. There’s almost a baroque flare to it too. Definitely a very interesting tune and really sweet too.
“Where Is My Mind” is a cover of the tune originally by Vanilla Fudge, and the band really gets down and grooves heavily to this song. Each drum beat sounds massive as the drums, bass, and guitar all accentuate the beat at the same time, while the vocals seemingly plead into the music. There’s some saxophone in the background of the main chorus as well that further carries the song along. There seems to be a layer of distortion over basically over the whole tune that sort of makes the whole thing blend together really nicely. The organ comes on to delivery a sweetness to the tune as seemingly the only instrument that doesn’t have distortion when it comes on. Really sweet cover.
“Piece of My Heart” has a really great romantic soulful almost funk feel in this tune originally performed by Erma Franklin, and later by Janet Joplin and Big Brother and the Holding Company. There’s a great funk feel served up in a somewhat psychedelic manner reminiscent of English rock from the time period. Really nice tune.
“Dharma for One” gets chopping away really quickly with some quick chopping chords from the electric guitar that almost sound like they’re in a garage rock tune, until the the saxophone comes in and delivers some interesting bluesy soulful jazz type of flavor and then the hammond organ comes on and smooths everything out with the swirling, nearly bubbly approach. Oh wow, the drums are absolutely sweet and provides a really sturdy groove for the tune to work off of. This instrumental piece really has some nice movements as it progresses through this extended jam, bringing in a swath of flavors from different genres. Great tune.
“Peace of Mind” starts out with some quick drum hits spaced out throughout the steady introductory line. Then the vocals come on and the tune seems to fall into place with an almost ballad-like nature, as this tune seems to be wrapping up some musical ideas from earlier in the album as the album is nearly completed. This tune seems to have a somewhat introspectively psychedelic approach to it. Definitely a nice little tune.
“Born to Be Wild” has a really groovy sound to it with this Steppenwolf cover as the band is bringing things to a really groovy conclusion, almost giving the listener instructions through the musical journey that has been this album as a whole. Oh wow, this jam that proceeds that classic vocal line from this tune is absolutely awesome. The organs are really awesome as the swirl around during the little jams. The bass guitar really goes in on this song and really goes all out, with the electric guitar laying down subtle lines that frame the tune, while the saxophone goes in and echoes the other instruments from the other side of the soundscape. Absolutely awesome tune and a great finish to this album.
This is one groovy album. There are songs in it that are really awesome jams by themselves and could stand alone as a single from the album really well, but the added context of the rest of the songs allows everything builds quite nicely throughout. I’m not even sure what this could be considered in terms of genres – it’s a really nice medley that incorporates many elements of blues, soul, jazz, funk, rock, psychedelia, and even progressive rock too. It was an enjoyable 41 minutes, to say the very least. If you enjoy fusions of genres like these, you might want to consider checking this one out. If you do decide to take a listen to this album, I do sincerely hope that you enjoy the experience at least as much as I did.
-A