Eclectic prog geek pop. Debut LP by this local (SF) trio (two women, one guy). Female and male vox. Very tight & very musical playing by these extreme music geeks. As with all prog-oriented music (hey, which by my warped definition includes Frank Black’s solo work), this takes a few listens to adapt to and enjoy the complex structures. Moog, melodica, organ, guitars, drums. The women in the band were previously in The Hairdressers (who morphed into The Music Lovers). No FCCs. Start with 3, 4, 7. Note hidden track as part of track 8.
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1. Epic 21st-century prog-pop. Female vox. Starts with solo melodica, traverses continents of musical distance. Prog influenced but not prog burdened... but over 9 mins long. Ends abruptly.
2. Flowing & a bit dark & geeky. Male vox. Starts with guitar & cymbals. About Iraq, but not obviously so.
==> 3. Jazzy, proggy, low-key. Male vox. Quirky and a bit drugged-out.
==> 4. Rockin’, with fuzz lead guitar, insistent drumming, and slightly manic female vox. Starts quiet & slow, has extended quiet & trippy bridge & ending.
5. Short, instrumental intro that continues into next track. Starts with silence and slow fade-in of sleigh bells, then echoed horns. Gets a bit noisy, then fades to sleigh bells and goes into next track.
6. Continues from previous track. Jazzy (brushed drums), swaying. Vibes and semi-sleepy male vox. Gets semi-mariachi in the middle... then fades on vibes note.
==> 7. Acoustic folk rock with layered slide guitars, organ, and a touch of noise. Slow fade.
8. Starts with silence and slow Moog fade-in, then full band. Includes vocal samples from Bob Moog. Other than that... instrumental for first 2+ minutes. Then overlayed female vocals. A bit reminiscent of Kate Bush, oddly enough. This track ends at –15:33 with spoken sample.
8b. Hidden track starts at –5:22 of track 8. Male vox, female backing, and a 15/4 time signature. Starts with Moog.