Weekend Music Roundup

Welcome to the long holiday weekend! This week I'm rounding up some new releases that I've recently got around to listening to, as well as some reissues and discoveries. I've been spending a lot of time recently listening to some of my vast CD collection that has been neglected of late, spinning some old gems that I'd forgotten about to some extent. I'm not going to bore you with reviews of old albums here, but needless to say, it pays to go back now and then to discover the things you've loved from the past. Enjoy.

Low - Double Negative: The first album in three years from the legendary slowcore band is more drone than some of their recent efforts. The bass is soooo heavy on this that levels need to be adjusted to prevent it from sounding like muddle. This weight, mixed with the fragile dream like beauty that they are known for, has a great effect. As usual, this is an album meant to be taken as a whole, but that said, a few standout tracks for me are "Fly," "Always Up," "Always Trying to Work It Out," and "Dancing and Fire."

The Mind Garage - The Mind Garage: The 1969 debut from the West Virginian psychedelic band is a great example of the genre from that time. It has the same feel as bands from the San Fran area of the time. With an ethereal garage quality to these tracks, it's sure to appeal to fans of other lesser known psychedelic bands from the late '60s and early '70s. It's one of those albums that serves as a soundtrack for lazy sunny days.

Oh Sees - Smote Reverser: The newest offering from the prolific San Fran psychedelic garage band (Thee Oh Sees) is one of their wilder ones, which is saying a lot. This is a bit heavier than their typical albums, which is nice to hear. It reminds me of a more garage rock version of Tame Impala. I prefer the more structure songs than the longer ramblings, but this is definitely one of their more complete works to date. "Enrique El Cobrador," "C," "Sentient Oona," and "Moon bag" are my personal favorites.  

The Remains - Live 1969: The Boston garage rock band released one album in 1966 and it is considered one of the nuggets of the psychedelic garage rock genre. This live album was just released and features many of the song from their album as well as a slew of cover songs, as was the tradition back then. The band is tight and full of energy on this almost proto-punk record featuring great covers of "All Day and All of the Night," "Like a Rolling Stone," and "La Bamba/Empty Heart" medley. The original "Why Do I Cry" is a true gem. Good stuff, this.

Mazzy Star - Still EP: The first release in four years from the L.A. based dream pop legends includes three new songs and reworking of a classic tune from their '93 album, So Tonight That I Might See. The band has never had a big range, focusing instead on what they do best, which is to create dreamscapes that are haunting and soothing at the same time. This completely felt like outtakes from their heyday, which definitely appeals to me. It doesn't explore any new territory, but fans in search of more material will be happy.