|
This compilation rounds up 20 (previously uncomped on CD) tracks, all of which have been enriched, rather than diluted, by orchestration. There has long been a prevailing school of thought that psychedelic bands and orchestras do not mix. Even the compiler, Nick Saloman (The Bevis Frond), admits he has been guilty in the past of dismissing many a fine track because of the unwelcome intrusion of brass and strings. It was down to bands like The Left Banke, with their innovative use of baroque instrumentation and chord structure, to show that psychedelia could be orchestrated and still sound superb. You'll hear fuzz guitars, flutes, organs, sitars, horns, strings and some strange, strange lyrics. Okay, we concede that the mental image of a mob of penguin-suited, straight-laced classical musicians sawing away over a tripped-out psych backbeat may not appear particularly "rock & roll" (well actually, maybe it does!), but open your ears and your mind, and you cannot fail to be seduced. In among these mellifluous sounds you'll find a future Allman Brother, Texan garage band The Kitchen Cinq operating under a pseudonym, a band of loggers and firemen from the Pacific Northwest who nabbed a brief one-album deal, a former member of Paul Revere & The Raiders, and the man who would become Bruce Springsteen's manager. Step right this way. Artists include: Burned, The Subterranean Monastery, The Moon, Bubble, Compass, Tim Wilde, The Sound Solution, The Mystic Astrologic Crystal Band, The Byzantine Empire, A Handful, Douglas Fir, Gregg Shively, Nobody's Children, The Balloon Farm, Dunn & McCashen, The Visions, Drake, The 31st Of February, Natty Bumpo and The Little Boy Blues.
|
|