Short Reviews [Lemurian Folk Songs - 2020 - "Logos"]

Here we have the latest release from Hungarian quartet Lemurian Folk Songs who comprise Istvan Baumgartner (drums), Krisztina Benus (vocals, tambourine, keyboards), Attila Nemeshazi (bass, tambourine) and Bence Ambrus (guitar, soundbowl, lyrics, artwork). Interestingly the band have made this available as “name your price” on Bandcamp and also released it on vinyl, so I presume they believe people will listen to this and enjoy it so much they will then want to own it as a record. I can see why, as this is not an album which belongs in the digital age but somewhere fifty years earlier. I have no idea where the title comes from, but this is not a folk band. They describe themselves as “perspective shifting in processive blues, stoned forest jamming, endless psychedelia and heavy riffing falls straight down from the big sky”. Hmm, okay then. I have no idea what “processive blues” actually are, but if they mean here is a band who have been heavily influenced by psychedelic rock, and then moved it somewhat to the stoner end of the spectrum then I wholeheartedly agree. Over the years I have dealt with quite a few Hungarian artists, and from my experience most of them perform in their own language, but here we have a band performing in English. Benus has a voice that in many ways reminds me of classic Grace Slick, and there is no doubt this band have been heavily influenced by the late Sixties San Francisco music scene. There is a lot of space in their music, with drums and bass creating a platform for the electric guitar to often be picked as opposed to riffed, and the vocals having plenty of reverb and placed over the top. Apparently the album was recorded live in one take in the Summer of 2019, and with a dreamy production combined with hard hitting songs and great vocals, the result is something that takes the listener back in time yet also feels fresh and new. Worth investigation.