Reviews by Jason Barnard
There’s a wash of releases related to Fruits de Mer building up to their Summer All Dayer at the Borderline, London on 10 August.
Hailing from Barcelona, Stay kick off their seven incher with the self-penned baggy psych of “Mersey Dream”. With infectious organ, riffs and percussion it takes its inspiration from their Merseyside base reminding me of Bill Wyman faves The End. Recording in a similar vein, they’ve remodelled three 60s gems; “Guess I Was Dreaming” originally by The Fairytale is fairly faithful to the excellent original but with a great middle eight and extra sprinkling of psych. “If I Needed Someone” is spiced up with sitar, like George Harrison might have done for Revolver a year later. Marmalade’s “I See The Rain” was said to be a Hendrix fave and Jimi would have enjoyed Stay’s treatment.
[tubepress video=7OkCOfER-SQ]
Swedes’ Me and My Kites have dusted off a long forgotten demo by Fuchsia and scored a coup by coaxing Fuchsia’s Tony Durant to sing lead. The group, as you may tell from their name, take inspiration from the early seventies acid-prog-folk icons, and “The Band” transports the listener back forty years with a gorgeously played, acoustic number recalling Dead End Street chords, strings, beautiful harmonies and summery lyrics. It deserves a wide audience so grab it now before word spreads. The b-side “Isis’ Adventure” continues this sound but is more harmony led showing the group can shine on their own merits.
[tubepress video=0xE6GBQU3-k]
White Sails, a US-Finnish trio, championed by the Strange Brew this year, present four gentle acoustic numbers; two self-penned, two covers. A couple are Black Sabbath originals, “Laguna Sunrise” and “Fluff”, an inspired choice that shows Tony Iommi and the group were much more than electric warriors. The two White Sails originals, “The Answer” and “Death on a Pale Horse” balance the EP perfectly.
[tubepress video=bODzqyXl4hI]
Dutch psychedelic wizard, Jack Ellister is a prestigious songwriting talent showcased with “The Man With The Biochopper” last year. This EP shows his production skills. “Within Without You” gets a revamp with the rest of Pepper skillfully crafted into the indian original taking the psych into the stratosphere. Mark Fry’s “Song For Wild” is a lovely acid folk song that shows his reflective side. “Flaming” is another superb Pink cover for the Fruits Floyd canon- surely there’s an LP in it guys. Like “Within”, Jack weaves Piper in and it would make an outstanding extended mix if Jack would bless the listener with it.
Crystal Jacqueline, first heard in The Honey Pot, branches out with her first release on this package of synth laden pop-psych. “Cousin Jane” originally by The Troggs sounds even creepier with female vocals. Second Hand’s “A Fairy Tale” weaves I Can’t Explain driving mod with lysergic freakbeat. “Play With Fire” stares coldly at the baroque psych of the Stones for an essential addition to the Jagger-Richards covers collection.
Last but not least, Sendelica release their new album the 9 track “The Kaleidoscopic Kat And It’s Autoscopic Ego”. Available on their bandcamp site in various sumptuous formats it’s a magical trip into space psych. The Welsh band’s lead track demonstrates that they are at the top of their game. “Tinsel Tears” is an instantly catchy bone-crunching guitar riff ably augmented by the band. “Sets The Controls For The Heart of The Buddha” jams Floyd with electronic beats whilst they similarly remould King Crimson and Neu! on later tracks.
It’s a consistently engaging long player for those who like their aural hit a tad kraut, psych and/or proggy. If so you should board the Sendelica spaceship now.
[tubepress video=B6ZUa95PO78]
Hi Jason I agree with you what lovely records.working on some reviews for the pod cast
cheers
Mark