Review: The Liquid Scene - Revolutions

I've been on bit of a sixties groove of late, and this has coincided, quite serendipitously, with The Liquid Scene getting in touch with their new album 'Revolutions' - a glorious slice of sixties psych, best summed up by the band's motto "Yesterday's sounds.....today". Based in the San Francisco Bay area (a city with sixties love and peace running through it's veins) the band have, between them, worked with artists of the calibre of Todd Rundgren, Chuck Prophet, Andy Partridge (XTC) and The Tubes. This wealth of experience and talent has borne fruit with 'Revolutions'. The band are: bodhi (Becki diGregorio), the lead singer/songwriter and also plays acoustic guitars, sitar and dilruba; Tom Ayres - electric guitar, Endre Tarczy - bass and keyboards, and Trey Sabatelli - drums and percussion.

'The Other Side Of The Sun' gets the album off to a sparkling start with some cool sixties garage punk guitar and bodhi's vocals soaring like Grace Slick in her prime. 'Letterbox' is a down tempo number with some ace organ/keyboards, the melody reminiscent of the Fab Four circa the White Album. The songwriting of bodhi comes to the fore...some delicate and sensitive phrasing adding some pathos to the song. 'The Mystery Machine' brings a more eastern influence to the sound, with some lovely dilruba in the background, and the band's natural feel for psychedelic music is evident..this could have been recorded in the late sixties.'The Mad Potter of Biloxi', as well as having an ace title, benefits from some nice effects throughout; some treated vocals and some nice echo, and a section with some jaunty piano and spoken word which has a distinctly British psych feel. 'Leave me here' is a melancholic number which showcases bodhi's vocal talents...if this was released in another age, I have no doubt she would be up there with some of the great female singers of that age - Mama Cass, Judy Collins, Joni Mitchell etc. 'Which Side Of Time Are You On' is a more upbeat number with some, what sounds like, harpsichord and a nice psychy guitar solo. 'Love Was Here' is a folk based track, with some delicate acoustic guitar and bongos...it has a rich Topanga Canyon vibe about it with some nice Byrdsian harmonies. 'Hey Moondog' has a guitar intro uncannily like The Beatles' 'Dear Prudence' from the White Album while the song structure and atmosphere is more 'Sgt Pepper's...', without doubt the most psychedelic track on the album. 'In My Water Room' closes the album and starts with some nice sitar and drone before launching into a jaunty psych pop song. It has flashes of Barrett era Floyd and that, with the sitar and the imaginative stucture of the track, make it the stand out track, which, on this album, is no mean feat.

The Liquid Scene have not created anything earth-shatteringly revolutionary, but that's not really important here. What they have created, however, is a beautifully crafted and performed trip to a time long gone; a time when peace and love were on everybodys lips, and in these turbulent times that is a very good thing. 'Revolutions' is an album of sixties psych pop par excellence, the vocal talents of bodhi and the musicianship of the band raise it into a class of its own. It is a genuine 'feel good' album full of atmosphere and grooviness. Fab gear! The album can be purchased via the band's Bandcamp page here.