Mad River
Mad River

How can we not talk about this extraordinary album, a hidden gem of its time? Formed by Lawrence Hammond, David Robinson, Rick Bockner, Thomas Manning, and Greg Dewey, this rock band in 1967 changed its name from "Mad River Blues Band" to "Mad River," encouraged by the acid folk wave of the time and especially of the area.

Mad River, hailing from Berkeley, is just one of the many little-known bands of the period, characterized by guitar interweaving and the powerful voice of the singer. Only in 1968 did they manage to get a contract with Capitol and release this first and only psychedelic album of the band (in 1969, the folk album "Paradise Bar and Grill" would be released).

Produced by Nikolas Kostantinos Venetoulis, the album is finally recorded, and the result is outstanding like few other works. Recorded at a relatively high speed, the album presents a certain frenzy in the arrangements and guitar solos, reminiscent of the best Quicksilver and not the Fish, as many believe. This record is a long trip through the deserts of your mind, long rides along the river of your memories, a liberation of your thoughts from your body, a dream. The journey begins with the beautiful "Merciful Monks," which sets the stage for the entire album, with time changes and vocal explosions that do nothing but give you a ticket for the tour. It will be "High All The Time" that presents you with the madness of the album and warns you that there is no turning back! "Amphetamine Gazelle" is nothing but the tale of a day as a Hippie, full of trips and fun. With "Eastern Light," your mind begins to see without the use of eyes, only with intellect. If you're afraid of hell, then don't listen to the next two tracks "Wind Chimes" and "War goes on," long instrumental pieces that frighten your limbs and leave them burning from the demon’s breath, but fortunately, from a remote corner of your brain, a winged horse named "Hush Julian" appears to save you from your own screams and madness and take you to a paradise to discover that there is always something better than life.

If my silly story has piqued your interest, listen to this great masterpiece in the history of psychedelia and rock in general! You won't regret it. Regards from Psychobonco.

P.S. Sorry if I provided little information about the group, but after all, that’s all that is known about the band!