Let's see: If I were writing promo copy for an underground band with a completely bizarre-ass name and a psychedelic sound that fused very early Pink Floyd, Neil Young and Crazy Horse, Jimi Hendrix, The Doors and Blue Cheer, I would probably opt for something along the same lines as a fine promo-copy writer at Tee Pee Records: "Like a lost Fillmore broadcast scrambled in the ionosphere before crashing meteor-like into the Mojave sand, the Assemble Head in Sunburst Sound funnels a Technicolor panorama of California rock and roll history into soulful, high-energy nuggets of contemporary, bluesy choogle n' fuzz and wistful moonbase laments."
Well, that's my review, folks.
Actually, that same copywriter's claims that this colorful blur of three core musicians also explores "the houses that Bill Withers, Spirit, Blue Oyster Cult, the MC5 and Beach Boys built" is debatable. But the point remains that the nine tracks on Ekranoplan, the Assemble Head in Sunburst Sound's first CD – a debut record was released in 2005 on vinyl only – conjure a bygone era like the music of few modern bands can. Weaving in between the dense melodies of tracks like the title cut, "Mosquito Lantern" and "Occult Roots" are "Rudy on the Corner," "Summon the Vardig" and the lushly titled "The Chocolate Maiden's Misty Summer Morning," which each display strong melodies and song structures with a startling amount of breathing space. The album cover, apparently created by an artist indulging in hallucinogens of all sorts, helps create the perfect mood for this 38-minute spin through time and space that's full of surprises. It seems like these guys are only getting started …
Track Listing:
1) Ekranoplan
2) Mosquito Lantern
3) Rudy on the Corner
4) Summon the Vardig
5) Occult Roots
6) Message by Mistral and Thunderclap
7) D Brown
8) The Chocolate Maiden's Misty Summer Morning
9) Gemini 9
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