The Decibel Tolls » sunny psychedelia

Friends – “A Tale of Your Life” and “One Sweet Day”

Kenny Bloggins — Wed, 30 Jul 2008 01:09:55 +0000

Oh, junk! I’ve finally been awarded the opportunity to grip some serious Friends grooves. Friends was the project of Peter Howell and John Ferdinando. Both dapper gentlemen were involved in headtrip psych groups Ithaca and Agincourt – two bands that, unfortunately, never widely released any of their music. The best of the crop, though, was their baroque-esque, harmonic psychedelic pop collaboration on the rare gem Fragile, released in 1972.

Howell and Ferdinando, between cutting rollicking folk records, were both members of the BBC Radiophonic Workshop. As you know, I’m extremely fascinated by the Radiophonic Workshop. Howell himself played a key part in the composition for the Dr. Who and Through the Looking Glass scores. Time Has Told Me has a pretty in-depth bio.

Not only is the Fragile LP difficult to find, it’s also tricky to find information on Friends since they, uh, fuckin’ called their band Friends! Obviously, Lisa Kudrow’s gonna Google rank a little higher than Howell and Ferdinando, whether it’s fair or not. Anyway, enjoy these two jam hives that were ripped straight from the vinyl for full bass explosion, and definitely czech out “One Sweet Day” if you’ve been rocking that Fleet Foxes record as of late. Get shattered.

MP3 :::
Friends – A Tale of Your Life
Friends – One Sweet Day

Koushik – “Lying in the Sun”

Kenny Bloggins — Tue, 29 Jul 2008 03:45:23 +0000

Yeeeeah, new Koushik joint. Koushik’s Be With compilation was amazing, but a little brief (only one track made it over the three minute mark). That issue is fixed with “Lying in the Sun” off the forthcoming Out My Window. “Lying in the Sun” is sunny psychedelia that comes correct and interpreted electronically – kinda like Caribou (Koushik even provided throat duty for some jams on Up in Flames, back in the pre-MySpace days when Danny S was known as Manitboa). However, Koushik remains very distinct, particularly by way of his clam, insanely reverberated vocals. All that was good about Be With is brought to the forefront – the sonically organic, lush, and hazy textures juxtaposed against crashing beats. However, you can tell, with this track alone, that Out My Window is going to showcase a lot more new ideas. Koushik is the latest heir to the Free Design’s throne, as long as that throne has room for some thumpin’ low end.

This… this sweet psych slice is so sickeningly good. It’s an IV drip of technicolor beauty. This groove can heal most terminal illnesses. I’ve got my headphone technology strapped on and am pumpin’ my fist hard to this. Get on it, share it with your friends, and pick up Out My Window when it drops like Chicxulub on Sept. 30 at your favorite local record slinger or at Stones Throw.

MP3 :::
Koushik – Lying in the Sun