The album opens with the short instrumental "Wake Up Sleepy Head". A short acoustic-based tune, it features some haunting Mellotron as well as some great vocals from singer Rosalie Cunningham. A short, but very atmospheric opening that sets the tone for the album quite nicely. The song segues into "The Contract". A hypnotic swirl of bass and Mellotron lays the psych on heavy. Cunningham's vocals remind me of the critically underrated Shocking Blue and their sadly-departed singer Mariska Veres. A great voice in rock, a star among the many similar sounding female-fronted rising occult rock bands. A great song, with some creepy lyrics about what seems to be the fate of your soul.
"Spiderwood Farm" opens with some Bill Ward-like jazz drumming from great talent, drummer Jack Hobbs. A heavy Sabbath-like riff then comes in, with hints of Iron Butterfly. Cunningham's voice is simply jaw-dropping, one of the more hauntingly gorgeous voices I have ever heard. The folky verses provide a nice balance between the very heavy choruses. The lyrics seem to concern a group of ghouls haunting the premise of said farm. The song is one of the heavier on the album, and one of the more memorable. "Sailor's Wife's Lament" is the band's take on the classic sea songs of yore. Shocking Blue would again be the reference point here, you could easily mistake this song for a Shocking Blue tune, but I'm certainly not complaining about that. I like the sounds of the sea playing the background, as well as the creepy keyboards, which sound like Tom Waits "vibes" at certain points.
"Leaning On a Bear" is another straight-up psychedelic romp. One of the songs that has helped break the band, I like Deep Purple-like instrumental combined with Cunningham's stellar vocal performance. Like Deep Purple, multiple members get to solo on the track. Keyboardist Samuel Shove provides a great example of the long lost art of the keyboard solo, only to be soon taken over by guitarist George Hudson, who provides a Ritchie Blackmore-esque solo. A great tine about what appears to be an occult meeting, one of the best songs on the album. "Tempest and Tide" brings us back to the folk influence. Pastoral acoustic guitars pluck over sombre strings. Fans of 1960's psychedelic folk will certainly love the track. The ethereal lyrics, delicate instrumentation, and great vocals make for a killer track. Detractors criticize the band and the genre very much for trying to emulate the past, but with music this beautiful I don't care how old they are (Purson are pretty young) or who they take influence from. In any case, a great track, and my pick for best song on the album.
"Mavericks and Mystics" shows why some have compared the band to the almighty Jefferson Airplane. Think Black Sabbath meets Jefferson Airplane and you get how this track sounds. Bluesy at points, but also quite heavy, the song picks up the pace nicely from the last, sleepy track. I love the bouncing bass-lines of Barnaby Maddick on the track, and the band has a great rhythm section. A great solo rounds out a smokin song. "Well Spoiled Machine" is a love song, of sorts. The gyrating, distorted bass drives the song along with the jazzy drumming of Hobbs. Hudson injects some pretty heavy and sludgy guitars, a great sound, very clear compared to so many occult/doom bands that try to make their guitars as distorted as possible. The Mellotron is laid on thick, and provides a very full sound. Progressive elements enter the song, and some sections change key multiple times, a very interesting song structurally speaking. But the highlight is again the brilliant vocals and lyrics of Cunningham, I cannot praise her performance on the album enough.
"Sapphire Ward" is another trip down the proverbial "rabbit hole". The heaviest song on the album, you'll love the crashing drums, huge riffs, and strangely calming chorus. Cunningham's vocals have a bit too many effects on them in my opinion, but that's one of the few faults I could find with this album. A great track again, it's shaping up to be a pretty damn good album. "Rocking Horse" is a slower, Airplane-like tune. One of the weaker songs in my opinion. There's nothing wrong with it, I just find it a bit slow and plodding. The song actually reminds of the Beatles at certain points, specifically the sound honed on Abbey Road. "Tragic Catastrophe" takes us back to where we left off. "Coven" would obviously be an influence here, and I need to mention said band's influence on the movement, which is huge (just check the eBay prices for anything "Coven"). A slow-burner, the song grows on you, and you'll find yourself humming the song days later. The song seems to concern a tragic figure of sorts, a rocker looking to make his way in a world that has passed him by. I think the song references the feelings of being born at the wrong time, clearly something that Ghost, Purson, and many other bands can attest to, with their vintage brands of rock and metal. A beautiful tale, Purson are great storytellers, and their lyrics are a treat compared to the exclusively demonic lyrics of many of these occult rock bands.
"Purson" is about as good a debut as a band could hope for. Fans of late 1960's heavy psychedelic folk/rock will certainly enjoy the band. Some might be turned off by the folk elements, but the songs contain more than a few killer metal riffs. I look forward to what the young band has to offer, and I recommend that you check out their debut if you are into the whole retro thing going down in the music industry right now.
Rating-9/10
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