Enter Carroll’s primary color world with As Far As Gardens Go
With great singles like “Talking To My Own Mirage” and “Red Giant” leading up to this album’s release, it was a pretty safe bet that Carroll had cooked up something special. If those songs weren’t enough to convince you, you could have just looked at their producer’s fantastic track record, but let’s not dwell on the past. The Philadelphia-via-Minneapolis psych rockers have put together a stellar ten song set that feels as modern as it does timeless, and they’re calling it As Far As Gardens Go.
The two tracks we’ve already heard feel right at home amongst their peers, with “Talking To My Own Mirage” setting the tone nicely thanks to its starry-eyed, swirling instrumental and Brian Hurlow’s alien falsetto. It’s immediately followed by the one-two punch of “Fly Trap”, which features the album’s loudest and quietest sections in the span of a few minutes. After the sentimental “How It Used To Be” comes highlight “Sun 1,” which stands out in the track list for its prominent acoustic guitar strum and woodwinds.
That brief touchdown to earth is followed by the aptly-titled “Hover” and the equally space-y “Easy Target”. Then, we’re treated to the pulsing ear massage of “Shout” and a righteous, fuzzed-out guitar solo courtesy of penultimate track “Side by Side.” The band brings things home on “Goat,” which begins as an enchanting, expansive ballad and ends in a warm bath of synth and slide guitar. I don’t know where gardens stop growing, but if this is what that place sounds like, it’s pretty far out.