Rating: NNNN
Opening with lush, echo-laden free jazz that fades into bombastic psych drone, the Gris Gris’s follow-up to last year’s eponymous debut is an astounding step forward. Band leader Greg Ashley loses many of the trite riffs that once marred otherwise good songs, resulting in a melodically novel take on 60s Texas psych – one that transcends established bounds. The pairing of Ashley’s fuzzed-out guitar meltdowns with Lars Kullberg’s ascending organ lines may rival Sister Ray-era Lou Reed and John Cale.
