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| 2.5 average | Iai EMERITUS | October 4th 09 |
Well, I don't know. The major criticisms of this album are really obvious ones - mostly, Hamana is a massive hippy who writes unironic lyrics like 'our people foretold this' and 'I woke up with my socks on last night because I got high'. Either he took way too many drugs or none at all, because his ideas about what psychedelia is are pretty far removed from either the real experience or from any other musical exploration of it I've heard. The real problem that festers throughout the lyrics, and that drags the album into near-mediocrity, isn't so much that the lyrics are bad or cringeworthy, it's that they're just impossible to believe in.
On the plus side, "Why Can't I Understand" and "Be Free With Me" are pretty catchy, and much of the guitar playing throughout is damn good; the fluidity of it is a considerable redeeming feature. While some of the musical ideas are reminiscent of Tim Buckley's more driving and direct moments, it's the guitars that keep it in its own territory. But really, it's all too hard to work up an opinion on this album one way or the other, because while it's clearly not awful and clearly not brilliant, it also mostly just washes over you. I suppose it's obscure for a reason.
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