What I’ve Been Listening to: The Reverberations/Changes

If you read my previous Best of What’s New post all the way to the end and know me a little bit, it probably doesn’t come as a shocking surprise that the ’60s retro sound of The Reverberations proofed way too seductive to leave things at one clip. I’m still somewhat in disbelief this band from Portland, Ore. doesn’t do a better job to make it easier for music fans to find them. In my case, I have to thank Apple Music for including these guys in their most recent New Music Mix playlist.

The good news is in the meantime I uncovered some more background information, but I still feel it’s not nearly enough. According to Discogs, as of Changes, their second and most recent full album released in February 2019, the band’s members are Dave Berkham (lead guitar, vocals), John Jenne (rhythm guitar), Bob Fountain (keyboards), Cam Mazzia (bass) and Ian Bixby (drums, percussion). June Coryell and producer Pat Kearns are listed as guest backing vocalists.

According to Wikipedia, Kearns is a singer-songwriter for Blue Skies for Black Hearts, another Portland-based band, and has done production and engineering work for various other artists, such as The Exploding Hearts, Pat McDonald and Jerry Joseph. None of these names ring a bell, but that doesn’t mean much.

Among things that remain unclear is the origin of the band’s name. Given their psychedelic garage touch, I’m wondering whether it’s a nod to ’60s psychedelic garage rockers The 13th Floor Elevators and their song Reverberation (Doubt). Another clue is the album’s cover art, which was designed by Bixby and has features that are reminiscent of the Elevators’ debut The Psychedelic Sounds of the 13th Floor Elevators.

But, all of what I said in the preceding paragraph is speculation. It’s also not clear to me how long The Reverberations have been around. The oldest listing in Discogs is a self-released EP from 2015. What I do know is I really dig the band’s sound that heavily borrows from the ’60s, especially The Byrds and The Beatles. And, if you look at the image above, these guys kind of look like transplants from that era. Time for some music!

Here’s the excellent opener Footsteps. It appears all songs are credited to the entire band. Don’t get fooled by the track’s beginning, which sounds psychedelic but perhaps not so much like The Byrds. But wait until about 1:42 minutes into the song when that mighty jingle-jangle Rickenbacker gets going – can’t get enough of it!

Here’s Dream Catcher. Man, again, what a cool sound. And that harmony singing is just awesome!

The beginning of Left Behind has the same chord progression like Nights in White Satin by The Moody Blues, while the sitar-sounding instrument (I assume it’s sampled) reminds me of Paint It Black by The Rolling Stones. Not trying to be a smart ass here, but it’s obvious. Plus, the tune then takes off in its own direction. It’s all good!

Another great tune is Levitate Away. And, yes, the beginning sounds like Jimi Hendrix’s Purple Haze. But similarly to the previous track, the song then goes in a different direction. It’s quite catchy!

I’d like to call out one more track: What Can I Do? Coz, I dig these guys, what can I do? It’s another beautiful jingle-jangle guitar-driven tune.

Changes appeared on Beluga Music, which according to Discogs is an independent label based in Stockholm, Sweden, and has been around since 1994. On their website, they describe themselves as “The Home of Punk & Garage Records”. It does seem to be a bit odd for a U.S.-based band to have a Swedish label, but hey, what do I know? Plus, at the end of the day, it’s all about the music. And their music surely sounds sweet to me!

Sources: Wikipedia; Discogs; Beluga Music website; YouTube

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