Monster Island: From the Michigan Floor (CD)

“From the Michigan Floor” is a period piece, and the period, stylistically, is somewhere between 1967 and 1970. Full-fledged psychedelic revivalism going on here, bathed in sitars, bells, vague religious musings, and even a reference to the Kent State shootings. Beginning with “Lady of Shalot” (adapted from a Tennyson poem), Loren’s acoustic guitar and gruff vocal delivery (which sounds almost identical to Giant Sand’s Howe Gelb) weave through 11 songs about death, Jesus, war, magic mirrors, and Japanese movie monsters with such conviction that it doesn’t take much suspension of disbelief to imagine this album is some lost psych-rock gem. The warm production of Warren Defever (from His Name is Alive) helps matters, as does the sitar playing of Outrageous Cherry member Matt Smith, who appears almost throughout the album. Erika Hoffman of Godzuki is also featured prominently, singing and playing violin and bells. Highlights include the ironic “Happy Girl,” sung by Hoffman in a Nico-esque deadpan accompanied by head-bobbing handclaps and shakers, and the following track, “Blue Revolution (Yves Klein),” which somehow makes lyrics like “the void shot out a flame from the heart of the earth” make sense. Overall, the album is pretty mellow and subtle; no fuzz guitar freakouts really. Rather, Loren chooses to explore the folkier side of psych with “From the Michigan Floor.” Similar in tone to albums by other latter-day psych revivalists like Bardo Pond, In Gowan Ring, and Bent Leg Fatima.”– Jason Nickey, source: All Music Guide

The original tracks are collected with 11 bonus tracks (outtakes from the LP sessions), the packaging is new, with band photos by Carrie Kelly. The album is dedicated to the memory of Theresa Duncan, a muse who inspired many of the songs.

$ 15.00