Pop Yeh Yeh-Psychedelic Rock From Singapore And Malaysia: 1964-1970

Pop Yeh Yeh
Reviewed by Sadie O., 4/30/13
Great early rock (some of it is actually “Psych”, but not all) from Singapore and Malaysia. Apparently “Pop Yeh Yeh” is the name of a movement, fairly analogous to Tropicalia in Brazil. Everything’s loud, a lof of it is offkey, and these folks mean every word! All tracks are at least “keen”, some are “ultra-ginchy”.
1. 2:52 ***chugging guitar and squeepy farfisa, probably recorded in a bathroom. Finger right on the pulse of 1964 rocknroll! And yet, it’s about good manners…
2. 2:02 ***fast frug-a-gogo, twangy guitar, a bit surfy. Upbeat, yet all about teen heartbreak.
3. 3:18 **upbeat, twangy, female vocals, another upbeat song of lost love.
4. 2:58 ***upbeat with atmospheric keyboards, female vocals, love song to a bachelor.
5. 1:31 ****fast, driving, twangy, female vocals, playing hard to get.
6. 2:46 ****uptempo pop, vocal harmonies, great energy. Not so much ability, but hey.
7. 2:03 *****dischordant, fuzzy, psychy, screamy, reverby – yay!
8. 3:01 ****impossibly happy and bippity-boppity, female vocals, very teenerific.
9. 2:49 ***upbeat, surf guitar, male vocals and female chorus. Happy happy.
10. 2:55 ***BIG DRUMS, Dick Dale guitars, female warbly vocals.
11. 3:30 ***goofy farfisa, twangy guitar, rather odd vocal chorus, love song.
12. 2:23 ****twist-worthy, disturbing female vocal harmonies. I’m easily amused, and this does the trick.
13. 3:28 ***do the Pony. Pretty male vocals – almost a bit Bollywoody. Good twangy surf guitar solo.
14. 2:59 ***midtempo surfy sound, far away male vocals, rockin’ and yet piquant.
15. 3:05 ****seriously garage rock, stuttering guitar, pretty yet offkey vocals.
16. 1:50 ***the mysterious chord of death. Midtempo pop with rather rubbery bass, rather formless song. Twang. Twang!
17. 2:39 *****fuzz, farfisa, fast pysch. Woot! Hella deep lyrics, if you know Malasian…
18. 2:35 *****wow! GNARLY guitars! Midtempo march, female vocals, every possible psych effects on the guitars.
19. 2:51 ***Yardbirds guitar riff, uptempo romp, male vocals, groovy and psychy.
20. 1:56 ***psych sax? Huh! Female vocals – quite pretty, almost Motown.
21. 3:24 *****profoundly weird keyboards, very fast and rather syncopated, female vocals. Make that female yodeling. GNARLY.
22. 3:09 ****doing a pretty good job of channeling the Count Five. Male vocals, deep longing in a Bollywoodish vein.
23. 3:19 ****weird every which way. The drums are weird, the keyboards are weird, the vocals are weird (at least at the beginning.)
24. 2:28 ***very pretty male vocals, midtempo sashay. Wild guitar solo.
25. 2:54 ***rather downbeat, but not slow, pretty male vocals.
26. 2:39 ****rather “normal” music – midtempo, guitar and farfisa – but rather special female vocals.