REVIEW: Assemble Head In Sunburst Sound’s “Manzanita”

What I enjoy about hearing a new album is when the first few songs leaves me wondering what these guys are about. I remember reading a book on music A&R where they said that a rule upon submitting a demo is to send in three of their best songs, because that will be the deciding factor on whether or not you’re worthy enough of being signed. Even when an artist is signed, bands will often make those first three songs on an album stand out, in the hopes it will make the listener want to hold on during the duration. That’s what Assemble Head In Sunburst Sound do on a very powerful album called Manzanita (Tee Pee), a healthy mixture of things where the ingredients are thrown out, but the end results are unknown until heard and experienced. There’s a nice mixture of rich rock’n’roll, some crunchy garage rock, blues and R&B elements, country, and pinches of what those outside of this country would call Americana. In tracks like “Blue Wire”, “The Flume”, and “Low Island Blues”, Assemble Head In Sunburst Sound come off like that indie band you’ve been a fan of for years because they made you feel real, they validated your life and existence and you’d stand by/with them, no matter what. When they rock out, it’s complete with grit, oil, and raunchy scents you remember from a less-sane version of your existence. In other words, there’s that careless freedom feel to the guitar work, intense bass work, unified vocals, and that Farfisa that makes you wish you could either join the band or form one for yourself. Manzanita is an album that makes you wish they had a flag so you could pledge allegiance to it every morning. This is rock’n’roll.

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