GOLDEN DAWN

Power Plant

(Sunspots) Used CD $15.00

Originally released in 1967 on International Artists, the debut album by this Austin group, easily one of the best of the Texas psychedelic underground, is considered a folkier, more West Coast-influenced companion to Easter Everywhere; it was recorded before the The 13th Floor Elevators’ psychedelic masterpiece, though the label released it after. Lead vocalist George Kinney was friends with Roky Erickson and they briefly played together in a teenage garage band, and while Kinney lacks Erickson’s feral intensity, and his songwriting couldn’t quite match the acid-fueled philosophizing of Tommy Hall, lyrics do reach for something deeper than the “listen to the sound of purple” clichés. The band’s gentleness sets them apart from their contemporaries, and the sophisticated interplay of guitarists Tom Ramsey and Jimmy Bird makes Kinney’s melodies all the more compelling. 2002 reissue.