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[Hide] (103.7KB, 544x544) Reverse I've been going through a '60s psychedelia/sunshine pop phase recently. Maybe it comes across as cloying or overly treacly to a lot of people (not to mention dated), but I find the orchestration, smooth timbres, and melodic focus more appealing to my sensibilities than most of the rock from that era. I've always liked dream pop and that sort of thing, but I feel like this stuff scratches some of the same itch.
I figured it wood be worth posting specifically what I’ve been listening to and my thoughts.
U.F.O. by Jim Sullivan:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2DeAvcscc3Y
This is one I came across this last week before I went down the Curt Boettcher rabbit hole. I think it’s bretty good, but I'm not as big on the folk style as I am on the poppier approaches of these other albums I mention. It has some nice contributions from the Wrecking Crew though. Jim Sullivan’s story is sad but interesting. He ended up going missing in New Mexico in the ‘70s.
Sagittarius – Present Tense:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8pZbBZrOHJk
This is the sunshine pop album I started off with in my recent phase (I'd already heard The Mamas & the Papas a while ago and had kind of mixed feelings about them). I imagine it wood just seem saccharine and extremely cheesy to most, but I love the lush sound it has. I think “Another Time,” “Glass,” and “Musty Dusty” are standout tracks. Conversely, “The Keeper of the Games” and especially “Wood You Like to Go” I find kind of annoying. I don’t consider anything else to be bad. Mercifully, the longest track isn’t even 3.5 minutes long. Present Tense is an album that respects your time, so it has that going for it. The whole thing is over in half an hour. I like it.
Sagittarius – The Blue Marble:
I can’t say I consider this up to snuff in comparison to Present Tense, although the inclusion of Moog sounds is interesting. I haven’t been listening to this as much as the other albums and don’t really have much to say. “I Sing My Song” and “Blue Marble” are the songs that I found the most memorable.