The Laissez Fairs - Curiosity Killed the Laissez Fairs?

 

After not playing for over a couple of years, the Laissez Fairs put on a fine show the other night at the Double Down, where I was graced with a copy of this, their latest (Fifth?! How did that happen already?!) release. 

Continuing with their psych-pop sounds, "Image" could easily fit in with any late 60's combo - big keyboard sounds, jangly guitars, harmony vocals, trippy lyrics and a groovin' beat! "Sunshine Tuff" keeps plenty of psych elements but has more of a rockin' pop edge to it - although that kinda comes and goes throughout the tune - and has some far out leads, "Tell You What It Means" kinda reminds me of later period Kinks in their more trippily melodic periods with, oddly, maybe some bits of Hermans Hermits-like melodies, "Somewhere Man" throws in so many influences that I can't even sort them out but it all melds into another hip piece of kaleidoscopic pop, "Sad Girl of the High Country" has nothing to do with the similarly named Dylan number, but continues with the dramatically hallucinatory themes, "Two Sides of the Same Coin" is a bit more straight-forward garage-y tune, but "Everything (I Ever Wanted)" is a more ominously melodic number in the style of Q65's moodier moments, "Sensation" is an upbeat bit of Byrds-ian jangle, I'm thinking kinda updated Peter and Gordon pop for "Drydenseek", maybe a little bit of a "She Said" vibe for "Crying City" and the album culmination is a bit of spoken word silliness over some psych meanderings in "Upside Downer".

John Fallon (ex-Steppes) has always specialized in pyched-out 60's-oriented pop and he has found himself a great foil in Joe Lawless (Trevor and the Jones) on guitar, vocals and keys and John's son Cromm on bass and Aaron Archer (yes, he is in Cromm's band, the P200, as well) keeping the time. If you are looking for a modern day band in the mold of Chocolate Soup For Diabetics, then look no further!