First this L.A. psych-pop quartet returns from a decade between proper LPs on 2010's excellent
Bananas Foster
; now they hit back with this more baroque rock masterpiece -- even more ambitiously, supremely crafted. The theme of
Jonathan Lea
and
Dennis Davison
's songs, extolling the icy season, might seem puzzling from a place where it's 75 degrees every January -- you'd expect "Winterland" to refer instead to the demolished San Francisco hall of
Jimi Hendrix
/Last Waltz/
Sex Pistols
renown -- but those who miss something most, value it most. So in the spirit of Angelinos
Wednesday Week
's "Christmas Here" from 1984 (
Kristi Callan
sings a backing vocal here), "Snow Angels of Pigtown" and "Winterland's Gone" feel that ache. Greater than an audacious, interesting concept LP, though, is the beguiling pop-art-psych beauty that fills this wondrous work. References?
Pretty Things
'
Parachute
,
Bee Gees
Odessa
Moody Blues
Days of Future Past
Love
's
Forever Changes
Syd Barrett
The Madcap Laughs
Hollies
For Certain Because...
Beach Boys
20/20
, and lately,
Baby Lemonade
Darker My Love
. (Also dig
Kinks
legend
Dave Davies
guesting on a 1974
Sundown
Gordon Lightfoot
cover, paying back
Lea
for playing in his tour band.) Prettier and more opaquely polished than
Bananas
, the group goes for it, adding sweeteners to the '60s-esque stew -- bottomless acoustic guitars,
McCartney-esque
basslines (the standout "Candy Cane"), oldie organs, Mellotron, sleigh bells, and woodwinds -- enriching an album impossible to dismiss once you discover it. ~ Jack Rabid, The Big Takeover