time machine. vinyl kings. review by alan haber. buhdge

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Time Machine Vinyl Kings Vinyl Kings (2005) Vinyl Kings (no The, thank you very much) have done it again, but it's different this time, the it, as if it were another time and place altogether. Actually, it's times and places this time around, and it's all to your benefit, an anything is possible kind of affair, a splendid time being the guarantee on offer. You can play spot the influences or you can simply enjoy the ride back through Paul McCartney's favorite travel destination, the mists of time, or you can do both. Both is probably the way to go, a good way for you to bathe yourself in the all-encompassing Time Machine experience. Largely eschewing Beatlesque for Sixties-esque (although there are many Fabbish touches), Vinyl Kings pay tribute this time around to the spirit of the decade's mid-to-late period, covering a variety of aural touchstones in general, and one unmistakable sound in particular. The sounds of the time machine revving up give way to a decidedly ELO-reminiscent trip beginning in the early 1960s that encompasses pop, rock and music hall on its way to a wash of backwards percussion and the poppy, trippy "Mr. Greedyman," which wouldn't have been out of place on the Beatles' Revolver, thanks to a most McCartney-like bass line. Idle King Pat Buchanan take a guest lead vocal on the time machine-in-miniature "67 (Home)," a journeyman's tour of later-sixties musical signposts that pays the most debt to the Fabs on this album. The tender, melodic "Your Turn to Shine" features some wonderfully delicate harmonies and some George Harrison-esque slide guitar in a song that somehow presages the sound that Bread would begin to make famous starting in 1969. Gently rushing waves, and a gorgeous a cappella nod to the ultimate place to go to get away, lead into Time Machine's core, an affectionate, multi-song tip of the Vinyl Kings hat to the Beach Boys. The Kings approach their homage with the same attention to detail they applied to the songs on their previous disc, a love letter to all things Beatles called A Little Trip. "Sycamore Bay" mixes the prototypical Boys of Summer elements, including sleigh bells; dense background vocals; signature percussion; and even a clever "Sloop John B" homage that quickly and expertly morphs into something altogether different and wonderful. The winsome "Pale Blue Dot," a slice of late-sixties Beach Boys mid-tempo balladry, the could-have-been-on-Pet Sounds "One Love at a Time," and the made-for-Carl Wilson's-voice look at "Just Another Day" complete the trip to the beach. The chorus of "One Love at a Time" is among the best I've heard in any song this year. I want to single out the incredible "Pray for Peace," an astounding creation that sounds like an authentic, unreleased Marvin Gaye song, right down to the pin-point accurate vocal that sounds so much like the real thing it's uncanny. The song's message is universal and sorely needed in these heightened days. A remarkable song. What will Vinyl Kings tackle next? With Time Machine and A Little Trip, the band has proven that anything is possible. So it's probably not out of the realm of possibility for the band to tackle the classics--a little Bach, a little Beethoven, with McCartney bass lines and Louis Clark orchestrations. The possibilities, with a time machine at your disposal, are endless. Alan Haber March 23, 2005
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Time Machine
Vinyl Kings
Vinyl Kings (2005)

vinyl kings' time machine Vinyl Kings (no The, thank you very much) have done it again, but it's different this time, the it, as if it were another time and place altogether. Actually, it's times and places this time around, and it's all to your benefit, an anything is possible kind of affair, a splendid time being the guarantee on offer. You can play spot the influences or you can simply enjoy the ride back through Paul McCartney's favorite travel destination, the mists of time, or you can do both.

Both is probably the way to go, a good way for you to bathe yourself in the all-encompassing Time Machine experience. Largely eschewing Beatlesque for Sixties-esque (although there are many Fabbish touches), Vinyl Kings pay tribute this time around to the spirit of the decade's mid-to-late period, covering a variety of aural touchstones in general, and one unmistakable sound in particular.

The sounds of the time machine revving up give way to a decidedly ELO-reminiscent trip beginning in the early 1960s that encompasses pop, rock and music hall on its way to a wash of backwards percussion and the poppy, trippy "Mr. Greedyman," which wouldn't have been out of place on the Beatles' Revolver, thanks to a most McCartney-like bass line. Idle King Pat Buchanan take a guest lead vocal on the time machine-in-miniature "67 (Home)," a journeyman's tour of later-sixties musical signposts that pays the most debt to the Fabs on this album. The tender, melodic "Your Turn to Shine" features some wonderfully delicate harmonies and some George Harrison-esque slide guitar in a song that somehow presages the sound that Bread would begin to make famous starting in 1969.

Gently rushing waves, and a gorgeous a cappella nod to the ultimate place to go to get away, lead into Time Machine's core, an affectionate, multi-song tip of the Vinyl Kings hat to the Beach Boys. The Kings approach their homage with the same attention to detail they applied to the songs on their previous disc, a love letter to all things Beatles called A Little Trip. "Sycamore Bay" mixes the prototypical Boys of Summer elements, including sleigh bells; dense background vocals; signature percussion; and even a clever "Sloop John B" homage that quickly and expertly morphs into something altogether different and wonderful. The winsome "Pale Blue Dot," a slice of late-sixties Beach Boys mid-tempo balladry, the could-have-been-on-Pet Sounds "One Love at a Time," and the made-for-Carl Wilson's-voice look at "Just Another Day" complete the trip to the beach. The chorus of "One Love at a Time" is among the best I've heard in any song this year.

I want to single out the incredible "Pray for Peace," an astounding creation that sounds like an authentic, unreleased Marvin Gaye song, right down to the pin-point accurate vocal that sounds so much like the real thing it's uncanny. The song's message is universal and sorely needed in these heightened days. A remarkable song.

What will Vinyl Kings tackle next? With Time Machine and A Little Trip, the band has proven that anything is possible. So it's probably not out of the realm of possibility for the band to tackle the classics--a little Bach, a little Beethoven, with McCartney bass lines and Louis Clark orchestrations.

The possibilities, with a time machine at your disposal, are endless.

Alan Haber
March 23, 2005