The debut long-player from the eclectic Austin-based combo,
Samsara
delivers a rich and hip-shaking amalgam of pop, soul, R&B, funk, gospel, and psychedelic rock. An assured effort, especially for an inaugural release, the 13-track set bristles with intent, yet plays with its quarry like a bored house cat. "Monsters," which evokes
the Heavy
's "How You Like Me Now" by way of
the Fixx
's "One Thing Leads to Another," makes for a bold and brawny opener and segues nicely into the like-minded lead single "Testify." Both cuts make a strong case for
Los Coast
's reputation as a voltaic live band, and allow frontman
Trey Pivott
, who sounds like an amalgam of
Cee Lo Green
,
Wilson Pickett
, and
Mystikal
, to channel his Southern Baptist upbringing. The band shifts gears on the breezy "Greaves," a laid-back but soulful 1980s pop workout that all but namecheck's
Dirty Mind
-era
Prince
, and shifts again on the kinetic, Dirty South-tinged banger "(Everything But) The Kitchen Sink." The stylistic shifts can be a tad neck-snapping, especially when the vibe goes from acid rock sock hop ("Masquerades") to space age instrumental synth pop ("Cymatic"), but
always feel in control of the vehicle, which appears to be of multiple vintages. By the end, the transition from the funked-up disco of "Weekend Lover" into the bucolic, country-folk of nostalgic closer "Chesapeake" feels expected, but no less electrifying than everything that came before it. ~ James Christopher Monger