Loons, The: Red Dissolving Rays Of Light

The fact that lead singer of The Loons Mike Stax is a major factor in the excellent garage rock magazine The Ugly Things, has led to some reviews of the band's previous albums being almost reverential in tone and even suggesting that it wouldn't be possible to compare The Loons to anyone else due to the vast knowledge of the garage scene housed within the band. Now I don't claim to be an efficianado however that said, there's no denying the authenticity of the music on Red Dissolving Rays Of Light and while it is firmly based in the Love/Yardbirds/Pretty Things mould, the retro vibes do mange to sound current and fresh.

Stax himself has a hearty howl that is reminiscent of a younger Mick Jagger being mimicked by The Hives' Howlin' Pelle Almqvist and when the songs are raucous and vibrant, the likes of "I Wanna Get You", or "Diamonds, Garbage & Gold" are little bundles of joy that are a pleasure to unwrap ever time you hear them. The guitars of Chris Marsteller and Marc Schroeder are sharp and incisive and have the right bend of pitch perfect tone and fuzzed up jangle to make you groove to the beat. However when The Loons go for a more considered approach the results are more than a little under whelming, "Heyday" is a limp meandering that Glenn Ross Campbell's pedal steel guitar can't save, while "A Last Goodbye" never really says hello. That said the highs are greater than the lows and the likes of "Stowaway" stomps along with real conviction while the jangling aggressive closing track "The Loser Win" is a romping triumph.

For those with a love of garage rock, this album will be a God send, while there is still enough to keep most other retro rock fans happy, although a few tracks are dispensable.

Track Listing
1. Between Grey Slates
2. I Wanna get You
3. La Mesa Boulevard
4. Orphan Wing
5. Summer's End
6. Red Dissolving Rays Of Light
7. A last Goodbye
8. Stowaway
9. Diamonds, Garbage, & Gold
10. Heyday
11. The Loser Wins

Added: August 13th 2010
Reviewer: Steven Reid
Score:
Related Link: Bomp! Records
Hits: 1896
Language: english

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