Tuesday, February 20, 2007

The Explorers Club - new tunes and tour

And here you thought the Elephant 6 were ripping off Brian Wilson? The Explorers Club, out of Charleston, SC, are not in the business of doing Beach Boys pastiche, covering Pet Sounds in its entirety, or serving as Mike Love's backing band. No, these guys want to be the Beach Boys, in the worst way, or the best way, depending on your perspective. I (predictably) choose the latter, and, frankly, am racking my brain to think of a band that has pulled off the Wilsonian harmonies, melodies, and even the dynamic rhythm section so capably.

They're also hitting the road soon, and while they seem to stay farther down South, maybe they'll get up this way sometime soon. Can't really imagine what they sound like live though. The Wondermints, maybe?

The Explorers Club - Forever
The Explorers Club - I Lost My Head

*Also, it's worth mentioning that allmusic's Album of the Day is the Lovin' Spoonful's Do You Believe In Magic? I once saw the lyrics from this song scrawled on some kind of wrapper at the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. One of the coolest things I've ever seen in person. Also one of the finest tunes ever -- it would definitely crack my all-time Top 25. Check out the outro, with the backup vocals "Do you believe like I believe?" running behind John Sebastian's "Please believe".

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