Play a song for me.
The vocals are rough and dark and strangely reminiscent of former times. Due to the album title and the mention of Mr. Tambourine Man there seems to be the need to mention this album in relation to the Byrds and how it offers a different slice of 60s psychedelia that they did. Which is fair enough, The Dilettantes provide a far darker and dangerous brand of guitar rush that The Byrds could offer but theres a whole host of established bands that they are sounding like.
Album opener 'Ready To Go' has the vocal delivery of The Seeds or a toned down version of The Thirteenth Floor Elevators whilst 'Subterranean Bazaar' has some backing vocals that sound as though they've been sampled directly from a Lou Reed song. Every track on the album could probably be reviewed in the same manner (track three, that's the one that sounds like Gene Clark, the real Mr. Tambourine Man) but the review could get a bit annoying if it carries on in this manner. Who knows, there may be a bullet-point section at the end. So by all means place this album in your mind as reaching out for the sound of the sixties, just remember that its not about the obvious bands.
It is a tambourine shaking classic though and for all that it stands as a nostalgic reminder of days gone by, they aren't the first and they wont be the last band to make a living this way. A few years back there was a blinding album by a band called Cotton Mather. 'Kontiki' managed to sound like The Beatles 'White Album' and the excitement of hearing new songs that firmly belong to the same stable was a great boon. The Dilettantes tread in that same path and repeated listens may lose the charm that the first few listens have brought but what the heck, how many records in your collection do you always return to?
Another major point for the album to be talked about is that it features Joel Gilon who you may have heard of but you've likely to have seen. Joel is a member of The Brian Jonestown Massacare and as the CD cover proudly proclaims was also in the film "Dig!" If you never got the whiff of old-time fashioned rock from the first few paragraphs, this one has surely sealed the deal.
It's a fairly consistent record, each song has the dark and jangly elements combining to take the listener a walk down memory lane, with 'Kiss & Run' standing out because it sounds positively Prozac compared to the rest of the album. Its hardly Steps but in comparison there is more of a spring to its step. Lets just say, Black Rebel Motorcycle Club fans will love it.