Fruits de Mer Records specialize in vinyl only releases featuring contemporary bands covering songs – many quite obscure -from the 1960s and early 1970s. The Lucid Dream are from Carlisle, Cumbria, UK and have been together since 2008. Their new single on Fruits de Mer’s Regal Crabomophone label includes a Lucid Dream original and a cover song.
The A side, Hits Me Like I’m Stoned, is the original and is a nifty slab of cosmic heavy rocking psychedelia. And at nearly 7 minutes The Lucid Dream really stretch out, with lots of deep space guitar and liquid dripping down the walls acid guitar. Wow, based on this track alone I gotta check out more from these guys.
The flip side features a cover of The Factory’s 1969 song, Try A Little Sunshine. I’d never heard the original, though that’s a mere trifle, quickly rectified by the magic of YouTube. The music on the original is fairly heavy and intense, with potent guitars and a driving rhythm section. And while you might expect aggressive vocals to accompany such music, that’s not the case at all and the combination works well. The Lucid Dream’s version is faithful to the spirit of the original, though the music has a spacier psychedelic vibe, and the vocals have that edgier feel that for me goes so well with the music. A fun contrast, especially having listened to the two back-to-back.
The single will be available mid-June or so and is limited to 800 copies, and as usual this is vinyl ONLY, no CDs or downloads. If interested you better hurry because Fruits de Mer releases sell out QUICK!
For more information visit the Fruits de Mer Records web site at: http://www.fruitsdemerrecords.com
Reviewed by Jerry Kranitz