STARLING ELECTRIC - Clouded Staircase

THIS is why I do what I do. A melting pot of 60s and 70s influences - the melodic harmonies of the Beach Boys, Zombies, and Byrds; the prog and art-rock of Yes, 10cc, Genesis, and Elton John; the baroque craftsmanship of The Left Banke and Love; and the pomposity and swagger of The Who, Queen, and ELO. Cool? You bet yr sweet butt it is! It is what we live for here - The discovery of a band completely out of left-field, a band who blend so many influences and make them all sound fresh and with a long-list of consistently very good-to-excellent songs. Listen to song #3 below and hear some very real Big Star going on and then on Songs # 4 and #6 for the complete immersion into the very best of the Brian Wilson worship.

Of course, this is dropped all the time by pundits(and myself) but, seriously, listen here for proof. This came out as a self-release back in 2006 - I missed it completely. Jon Auer and Robert Pollard became fans, which is unsurprising as many of the tracks here sound like *brilliant* Pollard compositions. Now, reissued for 2008 and making its way into our lives, which is a wonderful, wonderful event! "Admired by the Posies, this lush, finely hued pop dressed in a foliage of guitar crunch will appeal to the long lost lovers of 1990s soulmates like Teenage Fanclub and even Mathew Sweet." - LeftOfDial.

"4 stars. The group`s sound echoes its love of melodic `60s and `70s pop and art rock, but behind that paisley pulse are four forward-thinking multi-instrumentalists who are just as comfortable launching an air-raid siren of post-rock feedback as they are in re-creating Pet Sounds. heady vibe of Zombies-inspired vocal acrobatics, Brian Wilson arrangement know-how, and patchwork bell bottom-pantedness. Clouded Staircase is most decidedly retro all around, but pulling from so many different period sources that the music can be described more precisely as retro-informed, rather than retro for retro`s sake. These gentlemen have record collections -- big, sprawling, eclectic ones. The kind that any serious `60s-`70s pop aficionado would have accumulated over the course of a lifetime (Brian Wilson, Left Banke, ELO, the Beatles, Love, Gilbert O`Sullivan, solo McCartney, pre-disco Bee Gees) with the added spice of some kitsch favorites, as well as the work of more modern pop purveyors (Jason Falkner, Eggstone, Matthew Sweet, the Posies). A pretty standard lineup for fans of this stuff, though you might also notice that there`s a huge stack of Guided by Voices 7"s next to the turntable. Make a note of that, because what Starling Electric has, over every other `70s pop-kissed revival band out there, is guts. Among the pretty and the flowery lurks an element of sexy danger -- a real "rock" danger, bordering on punk -- that manifests itself in the lyrics as well as the frequent fearless guitar outfreakages. Not a twee note to be found here, no sir. Dewy, yes -- but never overtly precious. Just listen to the glorious and garagey din the fellows whip up on "The St. Valentines Day Massacre" and "Black Ghost/Black Girl," two bona fide rockers that manage to deliver the goods in the "pretty" department as well. That`s a tough trick to pull off without sounding like a schizophrenic train wreck, and the Starlings make a habit of pulling it off, with aplomb, throughout Clouded Staircase`s 18 tracks."-AMG. Where ambition connects with achievement. Grade: Solid "A".

Song #1 - mp3

Song #2 - mp3

Song #3 - mp3

Song #4 - mp3

Song #5 - mp3

Song #6 - mp3