Thee Oh Sees

On this album, San Franciscans Thee Oh Sees do the ’60s revivalist thing while still sounding fresh and exciting. Sure, it’s a pop record but on an album built on feel and atmosphere, the delivery counts just as much as the content. Thee Oh Sees triumph because they balance inventive silliness with some serious musicianship. The tambourine-rattling power pop of "Two Drummers Disappear,” replete with warped guitar solos that bleed into a rollicking, extended outro, is a fine example of this duality at work. This is followed by "Graveyard Drug Party,” which attempts to channel tie-dye ghosts by virtue of its ticking clock rhythm and John Dwyer’s reverb-soaked chants. There are many more treats like these to be discovered on this album, which owes a debt to the psych landmarks of yore but has found its own distinctive sound.