Babyfood
Chill Mega Chill Records, 2017
http://www.facebook.com/monogoldmusic
REVIEW BY: Vish Iyer
ORIGINALLY PUBLISHED: 01/12/2018
A “baby” album? Seriously? This Brooklyn-based psych-pop outfit does not joke around when it comes to the overall theme of Babyfood. If some of the song titles don’t speak for this fact, then the tender and innocent feel of the album certainly will.
Take the title track for instance, which is simply cooing and crying baby noises. One might find this completely adorable or totally disinteresting. Nevertheless, these baby noises are bathed in dreamy lulling guitars that are sure to captivate the listener’s hearts.
Just like the guitars on “Babyfood,” the theme of the album does not matter; it is the album’s psycehdelia that steals the show. And the psychedelia runs really deep.
Closing track “Swimming Pink” is a pretty heavy psychedelic trip that goes on for over 10 minutes. Everything on this track is slowed down to a hallucinogenic pace, especially the vocals, which are totally unintelligible and sound like a spirit from another dimension singing through a time warp. With the song’s spacey guitars and strange vocals, it’s like you are on drugs without even being on them!
On a less eccentric side are album highlights “Naked” and “Cinnamon.” Both have heavenly jangly guitars that feel like a warm and comforting sweater on a frosty day. Both numbers have an air of utter blissfulness, with frontman Keith Kelly’s falsetto vocals sounding absolutely angelic.
The super ethereal “Eye Color” and “Labia Lagoon” are also some of the stronger cuts on Babyfood. Both are slow and swooning, bringing to mind songs from the debut albums by Slowdive and The Verve. Kelly’s beautiful voice just melts into the wavy guitars on these, as the music and the vocals flow together like a gentle stream.
No one knows what to make of a “baby” album by an indie band. This concept might sound goofy, and so does the album’s cutesy hand-drawn baby cover. Without a doubt, there is no joking around when it comes to the overall theme of Babyfood. However, there is also no joking around about the fact that this is a serious psychedelic disc.