There is grand hint of the absurd in Sulphur, Glue The Star (Locust) from UK unknown Tom Fazzini. Couching often humorous lyrics in gently strummed acoustic guitar and decidedly mellow atmospheres, Fazzini initially comes off like a comic Nick Drake, or perhaps a devotee of the David Gray school of folk songcraft gone totally bonkers. And there is no denying Fazzini's obvious debt to '60s psychedelia and its outgrowth of cosmic consciousness in '70s stoner rock. The melodramatic guitar work and reverb filled vocals of "Urge," for example, could be acoustic Led Zeppelin, or even some early flower power Yes track. Fazzini sings of beach walks and forest fairy talks, his lustrous  guitar plucking creating a web-like world of silly pronouncements ("Moths fill the room for its light and dance and play and disappear at day") and profound utterances ("What you can see in the space it takes a match to burn down").

Sulphur, Glue The Star is one of the most refreshing giggles of the year. Fazzini never fails to extract a kernel of nonsensical wisdom from his bong-blown songs, such as the sexual frolicking with fingers in "Dell" (French female vocal and backward loops not optional), the Elizabethan references and paper crumbling antics of "Zone," the gurgling bong bubbles (really) of "Duplex," and the refracting vibraphone and sci-fi narration of "08."

A former member of A Small Good Thing and O Yuki Conjugate, Fazzini is the rare musician who doesn't take himself too seriously. Or perhaps he does, and his muse is a small troll directing his inner movements, Fazzini's message a big fart joke and middle finger to one and all. Either way, the fractured fairy tales of Sulphur, Glue the Star supports repeated listens, loud volume at parties, and flashlights and brownies in the tent at midnight.

"Dell"

Throw in the "trowel," you freaks!: Continuing today's freak folk theme, Apothecary Hymns lift from psy-era Beach Boys ("Feel Flows," "Surfs Up"), similar stoned cousins Moby Grape, and even Syd Barrett on their debut, Trowel And Era (Locust). Truth be told, this is an old release (2005) but Apothecary Hymns presciently forecasted the whole freak folk thing with this, their lone release.  The nom de plume of one Alex Stimmel, AE single-handedly operate acoustic and electric guitars 6- and 12-string guitars, banjo, bass, drums, Wurlitzer, synth, organ, flute, recorder, kalimba, autoharp, glockenspiel, voice, and tape manipulation. But unlike most modern freak folkers, AE's tunes are lashed with energy and insight, from the galloping "In The Icy Beds" and the Appalachian Monkees warble of "Watching The Bays" to the urgent country and western waltz of "The Marigold." AE sings like a confused adolescent throughout the album, but it only adds to the feeling of merriment and disturbed playfulness. AE also loves to wash in the ambient space rock sink, as heard in "The Conclusion, In Which Nothing Is Concluded," a brief sea journey of bell overtones, backwards guitar and feedback. Conversely, "A Sailor Song" recalls the Band or the Byrds, all jangling instruments and yearning vocal. A superb effort, a great surprise, and at this point, lost to the ages.

"All True Love Is Happiness" is a non starter considering the effusive paragraph above, AE taking an acid rock pill and utterly failing. Better to search out Trowel And Era than this derivative track of dreck. But do download for a hint of what is possible from Apothecary Hymns.

Apothecary Hymns
"All True Love Is Happiness" (mp3)
from "Trowel & Era"
(Locust Music)

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