Although the material
the Music Machine
recorded for
Warner Bros.
(released under the name
Bonniwell Music Machine
) is little-known, it's almost up to the high standards of their
Original Sound
sides. It's also been extremely hard to find, until this excellent 20-track reissue. This contains the entire contents of the 1968
Bonniwell's Music Machine
album (some of which had actually been released on
's 1967 singles for
), plus various rare singles, and a couple of unreleased tunes. Though a bit erratic, the best of this is thrilling stuff, as exciting as experimental
garage rock
ever got.
"Bottom of the Soul,"
"The Eagle Never Hunts the Fly,"
"Talk Me Down,"
and
"Double Yellow Line"
all count among their toughest
pop-psych
punkers. Tracks like
"Tin Can Beach,"
"The Trap,"
"Discrepancy"
also show songwriter and lead singer
Sean Bonniwell
expanding from the pounding guitar-organ prototype into more eclectic, but equally compelling, directions, with touches of
folk
and orchestration. Inventive studio arrangements and lyrical wordplay are constants throughout. You won't find
Bonniwell
's name mentioned in many standard
rock
reference books, but this CD further bolsters his credentials as one of the most underappreciated innovators of late-'60s
. ~ Richie Unterberger