We had an alarmingly warm few days here in New Jersey (nearly 70°F!) despite the obviously horrifying implications of such an oddity, the weather did inspire some breezy springtime-like listens. Here are a few sunny choices that perfectly soundtracked our recent surreal heatwave….

Mexico’s Orange Odyssey dabbles heavily in the kind of sweeping psychedelic rock that completely consumes and envelopes around the listener.

Across the four tracks on the band’s debut EP, expect wall-to-wall synths, acid-burned guitars and propelling drums swelling behind cascades of commanding, reverb-soaked vocals. Shades of Moon Duo, The Holydrug Couple and Dungen can be detected across the release, especially on the chilled-out “Voix Interieur” and the psilocybin-fueled rave-up that is “Minimalist Room.”

This is a band that any fan of the mid-2010s output of BYM Records should keep an eye out for. You can currently check them out on Spotify right here:

The High Dials – Primitive Feelings Part II 

The hazily kaleidoscopic sound of The High Dials might lean heavily into the poppier-end of psych-pop, but damn is it ever cool.

The Montreal group here emphasizes the use of killer beats and slick licks, while conjuring the trippier side of people like Beck, Joel Gion and Apples in Stereo.

Come for the fried hallucinogenic pop-funk of “Fear of Heights,” stay for the burned-out chill of “Rays of Shade.” Burnt, danceable and filled with great, unexpected turns, Primitive Feelings will certainly keep you warm and entertained for the rest of the (normal) winter.  Get this album here.

If you dig the grooves on this record, then you’ll love the sly electro-psychedelia of the preceding Primitive Feelings Vol. 1: 

The Perfect Trip – “Psychedelic Blues”

Talk about breezy, the latest track by The Perfect Trip is the very definition of the word.

The modern psychedelic folk group pulls in some jazzy and unexpected baroque influences on this track, complete with a blanketing string quartet, vibes and a few slinky flute solos.

The resulting playful tune is reminiscent of one of the headier cuts from Donovan’s For Little Ones or Trader Horne’s classic Morning Way LP. How this band exists freshly in 2020 and not say, 1968, is a true wonder.

Between all of the songs that we have heard from this band so far (and we’ve covered many of them here), this upcoming full-length record is going to be a complete banger. Rest assured that we’ll be covering it once it is finally ready to harvest from the forest floor.

-KH