Album Details

• Artist: High Dials
• Album: Moon Country
• Label:
• Year of Release: 2008
• ME Rating:
• Reviewed by: lekwon on 2008-11-09

If psychedelic rock is the mad addiction, then The High Dials is the gateway drug. Friendlier than the works of Teenage Fanclub and The Flaming Lips, the album Moon Country has a pop essence that eases you into all the distortion that psych-rock has to offer, a quality that seems to play in their favor. 

There is something for everyone in Moon Country. If you want the full effects of the buzzing harmony that the genre has to offer, the album ends quite nicely with the eight-minute long "Open the Gates." Then there are the catchy jingles of "Killer of Dragons" and "Seagull Blues," two songs that I highly recommend for their mastery of fuzzy guitars and muffled drums alongside the sing-along pop quality. To add to the band's versatility, though I am not a huge fan of the heavily altered vocals in a handful of the songs, I can make the exception with the acoustic ballad "Angles and Devils," which not only is strong for its comprehensibility but also for its honest lyrics. 

There is a a lot of power in the The High Dial's musicianship. As a result, the album is quite friendly and colored in warm hues. It has a playable quality that could propel the band into the mainstream culture, but it still holds fast and strong to its essence. Sounds like it's time to give psychedelic rock a try. 

User Reviews and Comments