Feel it, heal it
The latest offering from The Psychotic Reactions is full of psych goodness and a mix of longer jams and short hits across the fourteen-track album. Split into two halves – healin’ and feelin’ – the Reactions are gettin’ concept on us.
Opening with a sample telling us to push ourselves to greater things, Intro sets the scene for the album, with a groove sitting right in the pocket, accompanied by dirty lead licks and vintage keys. It’s sparse and knows when to fill the little gaps.
Ask follows the intro jam and offers the antithesis to the opener. Danceable, catchy guitar licks, and closer to the indie-pop sound Perth (Boorloo) is known for (let’s call it a little bit of late 80s Pixie-era indie-rock but also leaning on 90s indie-pop). It’s also an intimate portrait of the darkness that can lie deep in the mind, released at the end by a searing guitar solo.
The immediate response is Answer. The band mellows momentarily as guitarist/singer Hannah Smillie ponders her inner self and tells her friends she’s going to open up and be honest about what’s going on inside, singing the hook “all you had to do was ask” as a signal to the future. There is a concept-like connection between the tracks, linking the songs in sound while shifting in mood. Clearing the Air keeps the tempo down with a mellow jangle, before building to one of the best guitar moments on the album in a slow-blues jam.
How Can They Sleep? is acoustic psychedelic dreamscape with 60s/90s influence. The biggest moment comes when Smillie, backed by harmonies, sings “you don’t get it, we gotta change it”. It could be the album’s strongest track; it has everything that makes the band pop. Don’t Take My Side backs this with a real showcase of Smillie’s vocal range, moving from pop drawl to something more bar-room smokiness.
It’s hard not to focus on the guitar work, as yet another tune delivers plenty of bluesy-psych lead work. A Minor Spoken Word (I’m a sucker for these spoken word jam tracks) sees the continued restraint from rhythm section Jacob McAneny (bass) and Rory Lowe McLoughlin (drums). The two are rock tight as Smillie riffs both verbally and with her axe, with some Echoes-esque noise work holding the tension.
The album’s healin’ half starts with, you guessed it, Healing. Essentially the album title track with the chorus vocal hook “now baby I’m healin’, how’s that making you feelin’”. We’re almost in Portishead territory now, with synth loops and trip-hop beats from McLoughlin going for late night Rage feels.
Growing Old is the single of the album with the gorgeous chorus “and I realise, I’m not mad about growing old” full of melody and harmonies. Did I mention Smillie’s guitar work – as sharp and soulful as ever here. The song is pure pop goodness with edges.
We then enter classic 60s psychedelia with Take It Easy. The track is about as pop as the band get, and comparing to the 60s doesn’t do it justice, as there are touches of 80s and 90s indie-pop resonant throughout. If that wasn’t enough, country-pop barnstormer Chills & Fever comes along and says you ain’t seen danceable yet (this is pure early 60s rock n roll from 1961, originally by Johnny Love and His Orchestra). Punk, rock n roll (aren’t they the same thing deep down), country, catchy as hell.
The Psychotic Reactions close out with Black Coffee, and the versatility of the trio shines again. It’s a nice approach having the jam-out songs early on and the happier, poppier tunes at the back, to go along with the conceptual split between feelin’ and healin’. Keep ending on positive vibes; if we all approached life like FeelinHealin, wouldn’t it be a trip.
