Psychedelic Pill
One of two albums Neil Young released with Crazy Horse last year, Psychedelic Pill finds the group in its distorted and feedback-drenched mode. Reminiscent of their early '90s classics like Ragged Glory and Weld, this double CD set is very much worth your while if you like your rock served with lots of noise.
The opening track, "Driftin' Back," is a gently paced rocker which lasts about 27 minutes (?!) yet has just enough of a solid hook and melodic variety to keep things interesting all the way through. The title track, available in two versions on the album, is by contrast a short and danceable rock song. The main version is a wild ride through phase shifters and flangers, with Young's vocals and guitar sliding across your speakers, up out of one end of the sonic universe and then rising into space. The "alternate" mix removes all the aural processing, stripping the song down to its '60s rock homage basics. Young explores a relationship failing from too much time and alcohol in "Ramada Inn," while "Born In Ontario" is a folksy remembrance of Young's home and his craft:
"Once in a while and things go wrong
I pick up a pen, scribble on a page
Try to make sense of my inner rage."
For my time, the standout track on this lengthy double CD is the closing number "Walk Like A Giant." Over a churning, funky rock groove which sits easily alongside the best of Crazy Horse, Young offers a heartfelt meditation on the faded idealism of his youth, his struggles to maintain sanity in the face of life's trauma, and his desire to step out of the stream of the years which have carried him away from his youth, and once again, walk like a giant on the land. Unfortunately, the song loses itself in a hopelessly self-indulgent coda of feedback which drags on for several minutes, which is really the only misstep on this magnificent album.
On a side note, the other Crazy Horse release in 2012 was Americana, which finds Young and company in a more folk/country rock twang mode. While the album does offer some historical curiosity (particularly the cover of "This Land Is Your Land" which includes controversial lyrics from the Woody Guthrie original which are usually left out of performances of the song), I much prefer the crazier side of Crazy Horse, feedback and all.
To reserve a copy of Psychedelic Pill, click here:
Psychedelic Pill
To reserve a copy of Americana, click here:
Americana
And, to get a copy of Young's autobiography, click on this link:
Waging Heavy Peace
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