The Psychic Alliance proves itself insanely accomplished on Flux Capacitor

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      The Psychic Alliance
      Flux Capacitor (Independent)

      Mixing mind-altering psychedelia-lite with carnivalesque pop guaranteed to leave you with a sugar hangover, the Psychic Alliance seems to have come from another time and place. The temptation is to suggest the Vancouver-via-Calgary unit has arrived in a paisley-patterned time machine from the late ’60s, but that somehow doesn’t work, mostly because Flux Capacitor is too clever. So let’s suggest the band is more from a lineage that’s brought us the likes of early ’90s Redd Kross and Australia’s Hoodoo Gurus, groups that paid tribute to old Pebbles compilations with a lovingly knowing, retro-cool wink.

      The playing here is insanely accomplished, from the disorientingly garage-y kick-off “Lunar Patrol” to the piper-at-the-gates-of-dawn prog of “The Psychic Detective”. In between, the Psychic Alliance imagines Ween doing the Beatles with “Cradle of Creation”, cooks up British Invasion–flavoured bubble-gum on “The Land That Cool Forgot”, and gives a good idea what Nashville would sound like doing Sid and Marty Krofft’s drugs with “Transfiggr’d”.

      So what differentiates the band from those who were inventing this stuff back when the Floyd Dakil Combo was king? Well, as newly sexually liberated as people were back in the ’60s, you didn’t get them bridging new wave and rocksteady while singing “Your tits are big, your pussy’s tight/And when you get me to your place I’m going to bust my nut right in your face”.

      Comments

      1 Comments

      Shaun Lee

      Nov 7, 2013 at 1:04pm

      Thanks for the nice review Mike! As guys who spent more time practicing air guitar in our bedrooms than going on dates, it was sweet to have our musicianship described as "insanely accomplished," it kind of takes the sting off the years of crippling sexual frustration and social awkwardness. We also really appreciate your calling Flux Capacitor "clever," I know I'd personally like to show that to some of my high school English teacher and say "in your face Ms Sparks!" Sadly, I must protest your including some of our more distasteful lyrics in your article, because now my dad is going to beat me.