The Land of Pure Imagination Review

Get your hands on this release and you've got 11 pieces
of pure pop grandeur. Hoo baby, is this sweet.

Sturmer and Manning were two of the best pop voices since, well, you know who. On The Land of Pure Imagination, Manning did it all himself in his basement studio, with John Paterno mixing and mastering. "The Land of Pure Imagination" opens, a psych pop epic with sweet melodies, Moog textures and distinctive Manning touches. "Too Late For Us Now" scales things back (if there's such an approach for Manning), bopping along to piano and feeling like a long-lost Bellybutton track. And it's got a banjo! Dragonfly" is almost lounge-inflected, mellow with harps and synths. "Creeple People" is a chugging Imperial Drag-style groove, and it's currently number one on the Weed sales chart. "Sleep Children" bookends with "Sandman" beautifully as Manning's cirrus pseudo-strings carry us all away. And "Til We Meet Again" is the right note of optimism to wrap things up, a fond farewell after a near-perfect pop vacation. -High Bias.