Third LP from
Scotland's premier neo-psych band!
Glasgow may be 5,000
miles from San Francisco, and nowhere near as warm and sunny but
maybe it's looking out from a west coast onto a large body of water
that induces a psychedelic mindset. Okay maybe not, but there's
certainly plenty of that psychedelic mindset on the latest LP from
The Fast Camels, one of the best neo-psych outfits in Britain right
now. And plenty of the Glasgow-based band's inspiration comes from
that other west coast. Check out their debt to Jefferson Airplane's
'White Rabbit' on 'Watchmaker', or the dark acoustic vibes of 'Madame
Matron' a track that would fit in easily on Love's Forever
Changes.
It's been 2 years since
their previous long player, Deadrooms And Butterfly Dreams,
and 9 since their debut, The Magic Optician. There's been no
major stylistic overhaul, with the band content to mix '60s psych
influences with some '90s Britpop swagger. Though the band seem
re-energised with a fresh batch of tunes that if anything surpasses
their previous output, playing to their strengths in the studio and
gelling like only a well-gigged and rehearsed band could.
The primary influences
of US psych bands from '66 onwards (A support slot at one of the
recent Love Revisited gigs must have been a boost and a validation)
is there in the music but lyrically they couldn't be from anywhere
else except these isles. The sense of humour found in their Kinksian
vignettes is purely British, a tradition that goes right back to the
days of music halls. Check out their dig at bar-room bullshitters on
the title track opener, or 'Joy Of Roy', a character study that peers
beneath the surface of ordinary everyday people to reveal their
quirks and foibles. So musically it's a pill-poppin' trip down the
rabbit-hole, while lyrically ripping the piss out of their
acquaintances like only us Brits know how to do. A true transatlantic
trip, and one you need to experience.
The Fast Camels are -
Drew Sturgeon:
vocals/guitar
Mark O'Connor:
vocals/lead guitar/12 string acoustic
Andy Rene: vocals/bass
guitar
Joe Smith:
drums/organ/vocals
Craig Jenkins:
vocals/percussion
Click here for The Fast Camels' website
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