Tracks : 01 Direction 02 Livin' In The U.S.A. 03 Two Roads In The Night 04 Buffalo 05 Saga 06 Carol 07 Rock Me 08 Sweet Dream
Personnel : John Furland bs, vcls Henry Lamarca drms, vcls Dave Nelson gtr, vcls, hrmnca Mike Olson gtr, organ, vcls
This
is pretty amateurish stuff, and falls into a category somewhere between
Bachs/Mystery Meat garage and post-Iron Butterfly hard rock. There's
lots of organ and wah-wah, phased drums, an energetic Steve Miller
cover, a definite soul influence, and harmonies that don't quite cut
it. The best thing about the album is the interplay between the lead
guitar and the eerie-sounding organ. None of it is played particularly
well, but the spirit is cool in a youthful way and the songs aren't
bad. Best song: "Two Roads In The Night," which has a memorable guitar
hook, varying speeds and a tricky chord progression. The songs are
surprisingly complex; they have ambitions beyond their chops.
"Direction" has its faults, but overall it's one of the more enjoyable
albums of its style. A long bluesy cover of "Rock Me" is regrettable,
though. Recommended to people who like prep rock but wish it was
heavier. [AM]
Bread'n'butter local basement longhairs who
probably played high schools and clubs in their home-town without
aspiring to a high level of artistry. The vibe is post-psychedelic,
rootsy bluesy in parts, proggy hardrock in parts. Setting is typical
guitar/organ interplay, with some surprisingly sophisticated jazzy
guitarwork that doesn't quite gel with the bonehead feel of other parts
of the LP; good old local LP idiosynchracy in other words. The vocals
tend to fall in the unfortunate soulful macho style of the era which
keeps this from attaining the full teenage realness of albums like Top
Drawer or the Rockadelic roster. All over a difficult album to knock,
but equally difficult to find reasons for people to pick up, unless
they have some personal memories attached to the scene. Probe released
this to get gigs and delight friends and family, and apart from the
excellent "Two Roads", the "Direction" trip doesn't really extend
beyond those humble ambitions. The small press size has been reported
by the band. [PL]
Main
Registration
Login
