ALBUM REVIEW: Psychic Death Safari – Electric Jaguar Baby

Hailing from Paris, ELECTRIC JAGUAR BABY are back with their sophomore effort Psychic Death Safari. It’s a record which, and we quote, sounds like “a gangbang between TY SEGALL, JOSH HOMME, JACK WHITE and OZZY OSBOURNE” …quite a sentence and a bold statement to make. So, how accurate is that comparison? Well, they weren’t lying but it might not be obvious on first listen.

Opening with Hitmaker we’re introduced to the record with rather cool guitar riffs that are reminiscent of that of THE BLACK KEYS‘ Gold On The Ceiling. Given the name of both the duo and the record you would expect it to be just pure noise but it goes in a slightly different direction by having quiet, just barely clear vocals that work perfectly with the style they’re going for. Of course, things don’t stay quiet when we get to Shiver River. This one has a fun, bouncy beat where you’ll find yourself unintentionally bopping your head along and picturing a sweaty gig where the entire crowd is jumping and dancing along.

Along with classic rock influenced tracks, such as Jaguar’s Boogie which you could compare to 50s rock ‘n’ roll, more specifically in its CHUCK BERRY-style guitar riffs, we also see some tracks that can be seen as a homage to grunge. Songs like Cannibal Animal and Magik Queen have elements that remind you of NIRVANA, and then as a closing track we have Sundaze which starts out with funky guitar riffs before shifting to grunge that works so beautifully.

To sum up this album in a short sentence is tough as it goes in different directions. On the one hand you have the rock ‘n’ roll tracks that can make you feel cool as you walk to your destination, or do a work out (you know if you really wanted to), and then the bouncier tracks that you easily picture yourself at a small, sweaty gig happily jumping and dancing around. We also need to appreciate the more grunge-style tracks as they are simply so damn cool.

Rating: 7/10

Psychic Death Safari is out now via Rebel Waves Records.

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