The Tampa, FL based progressive rock band, My Wild Heaven's self-titled debut is an aggressive yet melodic journey of the aural kind. Songs are short and concise and the overall vibe I get is Hawkwind meets Blue Oyster Cult with some nods to David Bowie’s Spiders from Mars era as well as early King Crimson (mostly in the Mellotron sounds). I can’t pinpoint the vocals so it would appear, for a change that a vocalist just sounds like him or herself .
My Wild Heaven is basically a trio consisting of Bill Bechtel (producer, guitar, keyboards, and lead and background vocals), Ed Lowery (drums), and Robert "Red" Redmond (bass). Joining the trio are Jeff Braden ( the second guitar solo on "The Life and Times of General Jacket"), Ryan Danger (proxy triangle), and Josh Young (jumbus banjo, Irish bouzouki, and additional background vocals).
This is a fun album to listen to as loud as you can handle, especially on headphones. It’s available in both a physical and digital formats. Personally, I’m partial to having the physical CD in the same way some like LP’s. But which ever way you like to listen to your music, there’s a choice.
I do look forward to seeing what comes next for the band. Hopefully an album that doesn’t take 4 years like this one. If you like the bands mentioned above, then My Wild Heaven’s debut album is a must have.
Reviewed by Ron Fuchs on July 3rd, 2009
