Customer Reviews

Harvest of Dreams

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Ask the proverbial man on the street to name a psychedelic band and he'd probably say The Grateful Dead, or possibly The Beatles circa "Sgt. Pepper." This is nothing like The Dead, or The Beatles, although Bobb is obviously a Beatles fan. What does "Harvest of Dreams" sound like? Try a combination of homemade new wave singer-songwriter with tons of effects: phasing, fuzz guitar, double tracked obscured vocals, etc. With a feminine voice, for a guy. Oh yes, and great songs. Very melodic and cleverly worded. My favorite psychedelic album recorded after 1970. This is Bobb's 2nd album. If you like this, his first, "Iron Curtain Innocence" is worth checking out.

This is a reissue of an LP that was first released in very limited quantities back in '82. Over the years it has attained cult status, with original copies selling for many hundreds of dollars. Some pundits have proclaimed it one of the greatest psych-pop albums ever recorded. Now it's available on CD, so those of us with modest funds can afford to hear what all the fuss is about.

It doesn't live up to the hype.

Trimble's voice is very high, nasal and fragile, lapsing occasionally into a vague British accent. Reminds me of Andy Pratt singing "Avenging Annie". The effect is startling and even pretty at first, but becomes wearying after several songs.

The arrangements are filled with odd instrumentation, curious sound effects and liberal electronic processing. It's certainly ambitious for an indie album of the period, but doesn't seem to serve any musical purpose other than sounding "psychedelic".

Track 3, "The World I Left Behind", is 2+ minutes of silence. Right.

Track 5 is the same song as track 1, with a slightly different arrangement and lyrics.

And track 8 is a dumb, noisy mess of a song performed by a bunch of 15-year-old kids with no discernible chops. The reason for its inclusion in this collection is unclear.

If you're getting the impression that this disc contains a lot of filler, you're right.

The whole thing strikes me as an earnest but awkward effort by a promising beginner with real talent but undeveloped taste.

Sounding "psychedelic" when it's out of style doesn't make an album important or interesting. Neither does a high price on eBay.

Trimble's previous album, IRON CURTAIN INNOCENCE, contains one very sweet and catchy song, "One Mile from Heaven", that would have been a pop hit had it been released on a major label in 1972. Nothing else on that album, or this, strikes me as worth getting excited about.

Recommended only for VERY serious students of post-60s pop psychedelia.