On
Project Gemini
's debut album,
The Children of Scorpio
, bassist/producer
Paul Osborne
proved himself a master at funky, murky, and magical psychedelia. Rounding up a bunch of sidekicks -- including guitar wiz to the stars
Barry Cadogan
--
Osborne
whipped up a batch of songs that landed right in the sweet spot of the Venn diagram where fuzzy folk, head-nodding beats, mystical psych rock, and shimmering soundtrack sounds met, made friends, and proceeded to leap to the front of the line, beating out most of the many, many practitioners of this sound. It was good enough that one almost hoped it was a one-off and there wouldn't be a second record that might bring the project back down to earth with a thud. Luckily,
Colours & Light
is just as good as its predecessor, and there are even some new twists and tweaks that might make for an even richer and more satisfying listening experience. Much of the same crew is back, including
Cadogan
, keyboardist
Markey Funk
, and
the Soundcarriers
'
Paul Isherwood
-- who once again proves he knows what he's doing when it comes to mixing a record like this -- and the new comrades make some important contributions.
Gloria
vocalist
Wendy Martinez
adds sultry vocals to a couple of songs, guitarist
Jack Sharp
(of
Large Plants
) takes over from
a few times and proves just as trippily powerful, and drummer
Tony Coote
holds it all together, proving equally adept at both thundering through riff-heavy jams and pushing the slower songs along with maximum slinkiness.
once again proves invaluable, giving each song a boost of energy with his serrated riffs and blown-out solos. Hearing him wend his way through the mists of "The Sun Devil" like a hissing, spitting snake, or flat out abusing the speakers on the Turkish psych-influenced "After the Dawn," makes it clear why he's first call for many bands and artists when they need some six-string stardust sprinkled their way. The former song is evidence of one of the other shifts here, as
delves into Anatolian psych, showing a real knack at capturing the menace that often lurks behind the grooves. In other spots, there are more synths than before (like on the spookily elegiac ballad "Twilight," which does a perfect job of bottling the mood one so often feels at that time of day) or a little bit more folk around the edges ("Lost in the Woods") or more French ("Extra Nuit," which features
Martinez
on vocals and holdover contributor
Kid Victrola
on guitar). Most importantly,
's songs sound more confident this time around; quite focused and concise, though not at the expense of any of the woozy charm of the first record. Instead of a sophomore effort that fumbles away all the goodwill engendered by the first album,
makes even more of an impression and gives one hope that the project might turn out to be long-running and fruitful. Even if it doesn't, these two records will stand tall as shining examples of first-rate 2020s psychedelic music. ~ Tim Sendra