Monday 23 September 2013

Mazzy Star - California

Single review by kev@thesoundofconfusion.co.uk


You're probably familiar with this song already, it's been a free download on Amazon for a month, and if you know Mazzy Star then you'll know this shows no wild deviation in sound, the only difference perhaps being less of their trademark background hum. This week they release 'Seasons Of Your Day', their first new album in 17 years. According to the band they never actually split and this album has been an occasional work-in-progress the whole time. It's a beautiful piece of dreampop, but then you'd expect nothing else from the band who've done as much to influence the sound of today's dreampop explosion as anyone, combining folk, shoegaze, fuzz-rock and psychedelia.

Which leads us to this frankly baffling line from NME's review of the album: "Mazzy Star may be the best band in history never to have influenced anybody." Erm, sorry? I'm not sure what Ben Cardew has been drinking but just a cursory Google search throws up Mojave 3, Beth Orton, Taken By Trees, The Concretes, Isobel Campbell, Karen Elson and more. And that's before we even get to the modern pack led by the often compared to Mazzy Star band Beach House. In fact, in reviews on this site the legendary duo would probably be in the top ten most referenced bands. 'California' is as otherworldly and beautiful as ever, but it seems some writers spend a bit much brain time on different planets too.





Download 'California' for free by heading here

Mazzy Star's website

Stream the album in full

Buy the album

Catch them live:

Nov 03 Crystal Ballroom, Portland, OR  
Nov 04 The Neptune, Seattle, WA  
Nov 06 The Warfield, San Francisco, CA
Nov 07 The Wiltern, Los Angeles, CA
Nov 10 Ogden Theatre, Denver, CO
Nov 12 Mill City Nights, Minneapolis, MN
Nov 13 Vic Theatre, Chicago, IL  
Nov 15 Majestic Theatre, Detroit, MI
Nov 16 The Danforth Music Hall, Toronto, Canada
Nov 17 Club Soda Montreal, Montreal, QC  
Nov 19 Paradise Rock Club, Boston, MA
Nov 20 Terminal 5, New York, NY
Nov 22 Union Transfer, Philadelphia, PA
Nov 23 The Fillmore Silver Spring, Silver Spring, MD





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