Pond
The Practice Of Joy Before Death

Strange thing, the homonyms in the history of music, but not really that much. The most striking example is perhaps that of the British and American Kaleidoscope, both protagonists of their respective psychedelic scenes of the time.

You will surely also remember the American Oasis and the British Nirvana.

In the hope of not having upset the day, the month, the current year, or the life of those who have read these first lines, here we are talking about the Pond, not those Australians, appreciated quite recently (along with Tame Impala), and not even the others with the same name coming from Germany.

We are on different shores and eras, the Pond in question hails from Oregon.

Theirs is a "visceral" Rock, which does not mean it's recommended by your nearest butcher, or at least not necessarily. A music that manages to combine heart and mind, instinct and rationality, it's enough to listen to the track "Rock Collection" to understand, the most emblematic moment of their discography.

Not surprisingly, born in a period that represents the pinnacle for various historic American groups, and not coincidentally produced by Sub Pop.

The Pixies-like influence that at times meets the mood of Codeine, this is somewhat the sound of "The Practice Of Joy Before Death", their second work, released in 1995. An album that enriches and at the same time makes the style of their self-titled debut, released two years earlier, more varied.

The trio proves they can satisfy the listener both with more expanded sounds and with more direct tracks like "Union," "Sideroad," the splendid "Van," and moments like "Ol' Blue Hair," which in some ways place them at the edge of Grunge lyrical imagery. The carefree "Magnifier" will take care of resolving your troubles. A work that lacks nothing, a sort of summation of the vibes of Rock of the first half of the nineties, where every interlude in the 14 pieces that compose it is never inserted randomly.

If these are the "ultimate" Pond, it's up to you to decide.