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The Chemistry Set — Pink Felt Trip
(Fruits de Mer winkle 46, 2022, CD / LP / DL)

by Henry Schneider, Published 2022-08-04

Pink Felt Trip Cover art

The latest tasty concoction of psychedelia The Chemistry Set has been brewing was finally released on June 5, 2022.  Founded by Dave McLean and Paul Lake in 1987, The Chemistry Set has been consistently churning out music.  Their latest, Pink Felt Trip, includes a poster with their discography.  Starting with cassette releases and then moving to vinyl on Fruits de Mer Records ten years ago, their discography lists 45 prior releases (singles, compilations, and albums).  However, the FdM promo sheet states that Pink Felt Trip is the band’s 61st release, so somewhat confusing.  Be that as it may, Pink Felt Trip pulls together music from three FdM singles:  Lovely Cuppa Tea (2017), Firefly / Sail Away (2018), and Paint Me a Dream / The Witch (2020), for those of you who may have missed these earlier releases. One of the high points of the album is their cover of Mark Fry’s cult acid folk classic “The Witch,” where these psychedelic chemists not only include their 2020 cover, but also three remixes on the bonus CD: “The Witch 138,” “The Witches of ’69,” and “The Witches of ’69 (instrumental).” Swirling lysergic drones, weird sounds, and Mellotron flute take Fry’s song into new realms with a definite warning for Macbeth, especially with the inclusion of the Gregorian chant intro from what I consider to be The Bee Gees’ best song “Every Christian Lion Hearted Man Will Show You.” Pink Felt Trip is another contender for the best of 2022, with the title track melding edgy punk psych with Zappa-esque doo wop and the ten-minute “Self Expression Triology” that closes the album, chock full of Mellotron, piano, gongs, choirs, orchestral percussion, classic psychedelic melodies, and stunning guitars. And to complete the package, the cover art is in the style of a 60s Fillmore East concert poster created by Swedish designer Robin Gnista who has created designs for John Cale, The Pretty Things, Television, and both Austin’s Levitation Festival and The Black Angels.

Filed under: New releases, 2022 releases

Related artist(s): The Chemistry Set, Paul Lake

More info
http://thechemistryset.bandcamp.com/album/pink-felt-trip-plus-bonus-tracks

 

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