…real electric spark, THE BLANK TAPES Pop Rocks + Power Trio!
The Blank Tapes Pop Rocks + Power Trio! are available at Bandcamp, Spotify, Deezer.
by Walter Price
It’s near impossible to try and predict what Roky Erickson, Eric Burdon, Lou Reed, or the like would think about the extremely prolific psychedelia output of California’s The Blank Tapes. Masterminded by Matt Adams and conjured up someplace deep in a desert, the outfit has two pandemic-era releases comprising nearly 50 tracks of demos, rarities, and alternative studio takes (and featuring a ceramic frog ocarina here and there) that’d have any of the pioneers of the psych movement twisting and grooving in unequivocal approval.
“Pop Rocks” (2021) and “The Power Trio” (2020) are both sublime long and winding trips through the worlds of Adams. And with so many tracks to get lost in, there’s absolutely something for any fan of space-rock, surf, stoner musings, and hippie escapism.
About “Pop Rocks, Pt 1”, Adams explains, “These recordings were initially intended to be demos with the intention of re-recording all of them someday. I only managed to re-record 25 of them (some released, some unreleased), so here’s the rest with some recent additional overdubs. Check out its companion piece, 2020’s ‘Power Trio’ album.”
But wait, there’s more! If you head on over to Spotify, there’s another album in the series. “Pop Rocks, Pt 2” that adds another 31 tracks to your listening experience. Whew, I’d advise you to get your chill in order lickity split and take all these songs for a spin! Sounds like your entire Spring and Summer are fully soundtracked…
THE BLANK TAPES Pop Rocks + Power Trio
Written, recorded, and performed by Matt Adams on 4-Track cassette tape in Los Angeles & Joshua Tree, CA 2014 – 2015. Vocal harmonies & a few overdubs recorded in Yucca Valley, CA 2021. Mixed by Matt Adams. Artwork by Matt Adams. Mastered by Paul Oldham.
Matt Adams – drums, bass, guitars, vocals, piano, toy piano, melodica, chord organ, lap steel, ceramic frog ocarina, percussion.
Written, recorded, and performed by Matt Adams on 4-Track cassette tape in Joshua Tree, CA 2015. Vocals recorded in Yucca Valley, CA 2020. Mixed by Matt Adams. Artwork by Matt Adams. Mastered by Paul Oldham. Available soon on cassette tape on Sour Grapes Records, Manchester, UK.
Matt Adams – drums, bass, guitar, vocals, percussion.
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βThe Blank Tapes sound like the Archies if Lou Reed had written their songs.β — The New Yorker