Hail to the Clear Figurines

Philadelphia’s Asteroid #4’s sixth album *Hail to the Clear Figurines* is a brilliant mining of all the band’s pop, psychedelic and country influences  The reverb is deep and entrancing. The rhythms slide wherever they need to go. And an organ haunts these tracks with ghostly chords that lay down the perfect drone. That’s just the first third of the album. Things turn straightforward and poppy near the middle with “Got Nowhere to Go,” which could’ve been an AM smash in 1965.  “All False Reasons” is equally delicious with sweet harmonies and an old-fashioned sense of song. “In the Interest of Captain Marbles” is a groovy instrumental with fuzzed- out tones and zoned-out chants that lead to the beautiful wash of “Be Yourself By Yourself,” where the group churns out hooks as strong as Guided By Voices in their prime. “A Sunny Day” (One Afternoon)” is fantastic subliminal underwater psychedelia. The music seems to emanate from an anonymous duct behind the speakers. “Carnival” is a plaintive acoustic folk song redolent of early Pink Floyd.

Get the LP at theasteroidno4.com/collections/frontpage/products/hail-to-the-clear-figurines