Purson – In The Meantime EP

Machine Elf

It’s 1967, The Beatles are No 2 in the charts with “Strawberry Fields,” Pink Floyd are playing The UFO Club, The Incredible String Band are discovering layers of the onion and Hapsash are designing posters to blow your mind. Fast forward 20 years and you have the Alice in Wonderland Club, The Dukes of Stratosphere, The Magic Mushroom Band and Freakbeat magazine. Now in 2014, yet another new wave of psychedelia has been making its way back into the underground clubs and venues for the last couple of years. One of the best bands to get the psychedelic/progressive tag is Purson and this new EP (OK, in my day a four track disc was called an EP) or mini-album shows just why.

The opening track is wonderful experience full of exotic musical colours. Its called “Death’s Kiss” and is performed entirely by Rosalie Cunningham — it’s here where she pushes her Beatles influence to the fore, creating a musical garden of earthly delights. The opening lines sung over an acoustic guitar have an almost Sandy Denny-type feel to them before the track spirals off in to a marvellous catchy refrain not a million miles away from the music heard in Pepperland. Mellotrons, guitars and recorders cast a spell over the listener whilst the sound is transformed by some amazing phasing. At just under three minutes though, it did feel like it could go on for a while longer to really indulge in its multi-coloured range and hues.

“Danse Macabre” is more of a straight-ahead rocker with a catchy chorus and some Rick Wright organ stabs by Sam Shove. Here we get closer to their sometimes doomy occult sound as the song powerhouses along. It still has some marvellous phasing and a wonderfully dramatic guitar solo. There’s something almost anthemic about it and has enough retro early Seventies goodness to make you want to drag out your flared jeans with the smell of patchouli oil on them. A Bowie “Five Years” rolling drum pattern from James Last introduces “Wanted Man,” which mixes descending chords, not unlike a Budgie song, over some bluesy guitar and a heartfelt vocal from Rosalie. When the middle section hits in the band take it right down for some nice laid back guitar and some phased and echoed back tracking that gives a psychedelic feel. Then the band gets all proggy with a big bombastic riff before hitting back into the track. Some Gilmour-sounding lead guitar slides back into the verse which even features an Aleister Crowley quote.

Haunted organ chords open “I Will Be Good” with some beautiful vocals from Rosalie, before the band kicks in to a 1967-sounding stomper that should be playing whilst strobe and liquid lights fill the club. A good powerful guitar riff carries the song through, the organ sounding like an old Farfisa mixed with a bit of Hammond. By the time the lead guitar settles in for some nice psych-out touches, the front row should be making groovy hand gestures towards the stage. Its a classic slice of British psychedelic rock, well-written and executed to perfection, and a great way to end the EP.

As always, Purson deliver a strong set of songs that are high on the melody count and will keep you humming and tapping your toes for daze. Get this direct from their website and help support the band. If this is a precursor of songs and sounds for the next album, then we are in for a treat folks.

-Gary Parsons-