The mega-lineup Orange Humble Band, release their first Orange Humble Band album since 2001 (and only their third overall). Rooney and Mather don’t just share a love of power pop driven by ex-Lime Spider Darryl Mather, who was aided and abetted by no less than Jody Stephens (Big Star/Those Pretty Wrongs), Ken Stringfellow (The Posies/Big Star), Jon Auer (The Posies/Big Star), Rick Steff (Lucero), etc and their guests (Van Duren, Dwight Twilley, Susan Cowsill).
When you’re putting out your first record in 14 years you need to hit it out of the park with the first track. You Close Your Eyes could be from Big Star’s Radio City. The Orange Humble Band are back. Two songs later, Conversations With Myself is the most perfect song about it being 4am and missing that special one .
Their release, “Depressing Beauty” was just one dynamic head turner that encapsulates all I love in music – pop, rock, psychedelic, ballads, classic ’60’s pop – all of it is here, with equally hypnotic songwriting and vocal gymnastics. One of the finest things to hit my ears and certainly one of the high places in my year-end list.
The Fat Angel Sings 