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Owen:
Psychedelic Tour de Force
Apparently Owen Ashworth of Portlands Casiotone for the Painfully Alone had already taken this clever band name when the Northern California band, comprised of Zachary Carroll and Reverend Kenneth Martin formed the band: Owen. This was, of course, a better fit because their songs reflect not the painfulness of solidarity, as Ashworths band name would suggest, but the sheer expansiveness of emptinessthe extraordinary that comprises the ordinary. Owens Psychedelic Tour de Force plays like a movies drug-induced segue into a dream sequence. The mop-topped protagonist rests his head back into a pillow as his eyes, hollow and gleaming, gaze up at the swirling ceiling of colors and textures. It sounds as if John Lennons Free as a Bird and Sparklehorses Its a Wonderful Life were being played through a receiver at the bottom of the ocean or, perhaps, from the inside of a partially solidified vat of Jello. The third song on the record, entitled We, even contains the lyrics free as a bird/ as the world/turning around on its axis in a melody not so unlike the posthumously released John Lennon/Beatles song. The tenth song, an Ode to Kenneths dilapidated car Cassidy, is sung in the style of Elvis Presley. In my opinion, this song feels out of place and comes off as campy (not unlike a drunken local singing karaoke at a pub). However, after hearing only a few measures from any of the fourteen tracks on Psychedelic Tour de Force, it becomes clear that these guys are not out to impress you, but that doesnt mean they wont win you over with their kitschy and addictive music. The songs are upbeat despite a lethargic, circus-like tempo, and the compression on the microphones sounds like an a.m. radio signal. Oft times sung with a mouthful of marbles, the lyrics are uncomplicated and consistently off key. The reverb seems irregularly prolonged in places, and the songs stop, start, and stop again. Despite these imperfections, I found myself captivated like a white-eyed child on a field-trip to the planetarium. As a fickle Sagittarian, I am definitely one who has no problem discarding an album as quickly as it is acquired, but I found this to be a surprisingly charming listen.
This album can be purchased at the Owen Official Website About LOTD Contact/Staff Advertise Home All content LEFT OFF THE DIAL 2001-2005. All rights reserved. |
