Fallen Angels – FALLEN ANGELS***

Room At The Top/Love Don’t Talk To Strangers/Your Friends Here In Dundersville/I’ve Been Thinking/It Might Have Been Easier To Stay At Home/Most Children Do/Introspective Looking Glass/I Don’t Wanna Fall/No Way Out/Painted Bird/Mother’s Homesick Too/You Have Changed

The self titled debut album from the Washington DC psychedelic garage band Fallen Angels. It features a lot of experimenting with pop styles and a variety of musical instruments.

“I've listened to these guys with never-ending pleasure, singing along enchanted by their groovy playing, hip-poetic lyrics and experimental production.”

“All the songs are solid, with a few big standouts. You could call it psych pop or garage, but the best way to put it is that the songwriting always stays a bit off kilter, but with nice melodies all over the place. Quality lyrics throughout, too. And they manage to stay away from overboard effects and orchestration.”

“A sadly overlooked album by one of the era's standouts, their debut is totally overshadowed by its legendary follow-up. Were this their only release, it would have been entirely commendable.”

“It's a little difficult to accurately pigeon-hole this, but it is often touted as being pop/psych. I have my reservations about that, but for lack of anything better, I'll go with it, though garage/psych would apply equally well. There is mild use of horns and significant use of psych effects. This is one of those albums that if you are forced to individually rate the tracks, they don't fare too well. But listening to the album as a whole, they all seem much better, and will often leave you humming some of them later in the day.”

“On first listening I thought this album was no more than good, though with some great moments. This is a real grower however and I now personally rate it amongst the best psych albums of the 60s. Their second album is even better.”

“The group could lay down a groove with the best of them but on this LP they favour song craft over noodling. Jack Bryant’s moody vocals and the album’s interesting production tricks catch the ear first, but the group’s energetic drive, personal lyrics and catchy melodies will win you over in the end. The band's garage roots are evident, but with various psychedelic touches to make for an interesting listen.”