Matt Stevens‘ instrumental arsenal does not compare to a full-blown orchestra, which can be a challenge for one without the flexibility of vocal accompaniment. Percussion, bass, and guitars are all he needs, with glockenspiel and strings entering the fray occasionally. His two past full-lengths have resulted in a significant online following, who are bound to swoon over his third album, Relic. Recorded after a serious back injury confined Stevens to the floor of his home, the North London-based guitarist has found the perfect medium between individual creativity and odes to legends. Stevens’ technical skills are breathtaking, but it’s his songwriting and infusion of various genres that separates him from other guitar-based instrumentalists. You are going to hear glimpses of guitarists like Tom Verlaine, Jonny Greenwood, and Katsuhiko Maeda throughout the album, but only occurring in certain sections of his continuously evolving song structures. There is never the sense that Stevens is ripping off renowned guitarists; his songs are so lively and diverse on their own that comparisons are complementary rather than self-defeating.

The Greenwood/Radiohead comparisons are rather evident from the get-go with “Nightbus”, a track that touts a leading crisp guitar arpeggio comparable to the legendary group in tone and composition, particularly on efforts like “Arpeggi” and “Street Spirit”. To further the matter, the drumming sounds automatic and robotic without being stale, much like Phil Selway; the rhythm section only does more to confirm the fact. You expect Thom Yorke’s voice to kick in at any point. By the time the brilliantly infused glockenspiel projects a gentle scale over the richly evolving guitar progressions, it is apparent that “Nightbus” is the perfect opener for an album full of diversity. Some of Stevens’ songs may sound like an emulation of some other guitarist at first, but attentive listeners will be rewarded with a songwriter evolved into his own force – even if Relic may be too stylistically schizophrenic for some.

The diversity touches on everything from gentle folk to the sweltering electro-ambience of “Sand (Part 2)”. The tinges of Celtic folk in “Rusty” appear as a cross between Zeppelin’s folky leanings and World’s End Girlfriend’s anxiously bustling compositions, which always resonate with a subtle darkness despite such clarity in the production. The latter comparison is more prominent at mid-point, when strings glide over guitars that rival in tempo and frequency to a mariachi-like fervor. Another stylistic exploration, “20 GOTO 10”, plays around with static-y Mega Man­-like synths, reaching a satisfying full-bodied approach a minute or two in after some awkward rhythmic dynamics (again reminiscent of Maeda). Its transition to a more pop-punk progression, abruptly followed by a quick arpeggio-based lead, is another one of those excellent moments that is exemplary most of Stevens as a strong songwriter, rather than exclusively as a technical wiz.

For more conventional beauty, look no further than “Rushden Fair”. While lush like its Scarborough counterpart, the liveliness that eventually overtakes the delicate ballad-like approach is truly unique. One of Stevens’ more minimalistic efforts, “Rushden Fair” is one of the finest examples of perhaps his most prominent gift as a songwriter: transitioning between various conflicting emotions and styles, all done so cohesively that I was often stunned simultaneously at both his technical skill and melodic ability. This track isn’t the most technically challenging by any means, but it flows beautifully. Whether melodically rich, instrumentally impressive, or both, the efforts on Relic are all worth multiple listens.

RIYL: John Frusciante, World’s End Girlfriend, The Books, Radiohead, Television, Quiet Village, Van Morrison, José González, Junip, Nick Drake, Iron & Wine, Zero 7, Devendra Banhart

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Soft Landing remain somewhat elusive, but the members’ experiences are never in question. Frontman Paul Collins is part of the traveling circus that is Beirut. And so is Perrin Cloutier, who Collins recruited just as Soft Landing passed its preliminary stage. Mike Lawless, Collins’ friend from college, later rounded out the trio as they began recording their debut full-length in Chicago with Icy Demons’ frontman Griffin Rodriguez. The self-titled release predictably found a home with Ba Da Bing Records, the label to bands like Beirut and Shearwater. Soft Landing was released last fall but just recently found its share of press. The trio possesses the same angular approach to rock, folk, and pop that frequent collaborator Zach Condon does, but Soft Landing implement their diverse showing of styles – from tropicalia and mariachi-driven chillwave to twangy folk and rhythmically combustible pop anthems – more succinctly than Condon. The result is not as grandiose or individualized as Beirut, but with greater stylistic prowess and arguably more percussive involvement.

While Condon plays with enjoyably rigid sentiments of Balkan folk and unconventional fusions of electronica, Soft Landing is a breezier and more accessible interpretation of freak-folk, electronica, and art-rock. The world influences are not as striking – like Condon’s Balkan folk – but Soft Landing provide plenty of international flair mainly pertaining to South American and African folk/pop. “Papaya” shows this off well with the exotic woodwind-like synths and fast acoustic arpeggios. One can envision a blue-sky atmosphere, mainly on account of the handclap-percussion and vibrant guitars resembling both an Irish jig and tribal dance. Collins has a voice most comparable to The Veils’ Finn Andrews in a half-nasally half-anthemic croon that fits well, particularly for this fun track.

“Mic Check” boasts a little electro bass gargle and quick strums of a ukulele. During its build-up, Collins’ gradually raises the pitch of his voice until the falsetto signals a fury of percussion, which is mastered subtly in its panning but still unavoidable considering its incredible workmanship within the track. “Mic Check” is constant and somewhat repetitive, but the subtleties inherent in Collins’ vocal usage and percussive involvement prevent even the slightest moment of predictability. The stampede of percussion and revolving synth licks create an infectious quality rarely found in driven works like these and Soft Landing should be commended for it. They are able to manipulate a flimsy synth sound into the capabilities of a retro-friendly organ, and these bursts bring along sentiments of psychedelia and classic-rock that fit seamlessly into Soft Landing’s creative presentations of freak-folk and Balearic-influenced electronica.

A guitar arpeggio and more intensified synth-organs than before propel “Live with Birds” into yet another memorable effort. Big bass drums dominate shortly thereafter, with a poppy synth line only to designed to tease. The initial vocal introduction is complemented by only an acoustic guitar, and this bass drum/synth collaboration reveals itself as a killer hook once it appears again, now laced beautifully under Collins’ soaring vocals. XTC, David Bowie, and Deer Tick are just a few comparisons that come to mind. “Pendleton Woolen” has a type of lush delicacy that the band should pursue more. An acoustic track for the most part, a little bass shuffle enters concurrently with Collins’ voice. “All my kisses turned to ash,” he sings at one point. “I wish I could control the beats of my heart.” This is one of the more aptly emotional tracks on the album, and more developments like these should result in heavy exposure for this promising trio.

RIYL: Beirut, Au, XTC, David Bowie, Deer Tick, Rita Lee, Os Mutantes, Devendra Banhart, Fanfarlo, Andrew Bird

Soft Landing – Mic Check

Soft Landing – Pendleton Woolen

Soft Landing – Baptism

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Jay Watson and Nick “Paisley Adams” Allbrook are not unfamiliar with success. They are used to it as members of Tame Impala, the group from Western Australia that released perhaps the best psychedelic-rock release of 2010 in Innerspeaker. It was a beast of an album that has drawn acclaim for a genre too familiar with criticism. Their own project, Pond, will inspire kudos for similar reasons. Many contemporary “psychedelic” artists ignore the concept and aim of the genre, which to many is the emission of music that is both invigorating and calming; the namesake alone recalls the intent, which should be receptive to a subdued and tranquil mindset without being too simplistic or over-done. It is understandably a thin line to tread, so I find the premature criticism against psychedelic-rock as “a genre for fetishists” to be a bit off, as success within the genre is renowned to the point of the style being inarguable. When you hear quality psychedelic-rock, you just know it. Innerspeaker was one of the few psychedelic-rock releases in the past few years able to accomplish that.

It is easy to throw around criticism when artists focus too much on how their pedals sound or whether a sample from an actual psychedelic track would fit, and THEN attempt to call themselves psychedelic musicians. Call it a plague brought on by our modern days, where the superfluous multitude of sub-genres dilutes the tradition of certain styles. Or you could pin it on the availability of technology, which could allow your little brother’s guitar to sound like David Gilmour if he familiarizes himself with Pirate Bay. These are absurd things to blame it on though, like blaming a McDonalds for obesity. More options should result in more creativity, not an over-dependence on substitutes for artistic expression. No one wants to hear “drone-rock” with three chords played over a Native Instruments program, just like how listeners could give a shit if you play a backwards loop of a Jefferson Airplane song over ambiance. Optimistically, hearing shameful examples like these makes Tame Impala and past psych-rock heroes sound even better. These revered groups do not need inferior comparisons to prove their selective worth though.

Watson’s history with Tame Impala goes back to their beginnings, as he performed on their 2008 self-titled debut EP. Allbrook has been touring with them for several years and was named an official member earlier this year due to his participation on Innerspeaker. Tame Impala’s head honcho/lead songwriter, Kevin Parker, has returned the favor for his friends by playing live with Pond on occasion. Their fourth studio album, Frond, was released earlier this month and is clearly their best. Chalk it up to experience perhaps, but regardless this is an album that is not a far cry from Innerspeaker, both in terms of quality and style. Pond treads in areas of garage-rock more than Tame Impala by using a sharper tone of distortion and less reverb, while sharing some electronic components that never override the psych-rock feeling. For example, the trickles of synths during “Mussels Tonight?” is not distracting or superfluous, while the vocoded bridge in the middle is simply preparation for a dizzying guitar progression that recalls the best of the genre.

Under the gauzy layers of guitar in “Cloud City” there lies a bit of funk, which in addition to the garage-rock in the self-titled cut and extensive prog-rock in “Duck and Clover” provides for Frond’s fresh perspective on psychedelia. There is not one effort on Frond that lingers away from psychedelia, but the flourishes of various stylistic attemps within concise bridges or outros is always delightful. The last four minutes of “Frond”, for instance, is a beautiful arrangement of orchestral elements and guitars that evolves with superb organization from the track’s initial pop-heavy leanings, which is led by a sprightly piano and choir-like procession. A track like “Torn Asunder”, which recalls Suede and Brett Anderson in more ways than one, contains the type of songwriting that most psych-rockers envy. Complete with delicate keys, a calming background of strings, and flourishes of woodwinds, this is the type of effort that will stun a listener making their way through the entirety of Frond. The album has so many surprises, twists, and hooks that one may question its stylistic consistency, even if it is clear. It just contains so much excitement and variation, two components that modern psychedelic-rock has been lacking.

RIYL: Tame Impala, Here We Go Magic, Suede, Beach Fossils, Midnight Juggernauts, Male Bonding, Wild Nothing, MGMT, Wavves, Friendly Fires, The Faint, Justice, The Teenagers, Late of the Pier,Phoenix, Shiny Toy Guns, VHS or Beta, Klaxons, Lotus,  Passion Pit, Wolfmother, Pink Floyd, Jefferson Airplane, Hawkwind, Devendra Banhart

Pond – Frond

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