Needles & Grooves AotM///Vol. 30 December 2021///The Bright Light Social Hour - Space is Still the Place

Tj. said:
Hey sorry everyone, didn't mean to leave you all hanging, I have been crazy busy the last few days. But I actually realized over the weekend that the album had been guessed before I even gave my last couple of hints, I just missed it somehow. So I think I will just go ahead and announce it now, without further ado my selection is...

N&G December AOTM: The Bright Light Social Hour - Space is Still the Place

My reason for picking this is simply because it makes me happy every time I listen to it, so I want to give others a chance at that experience. I love so much about the album, from the echoing harmonies and the fuzzed out guitar licks, to the jam sessions, as well as the dancy tracks, and just the overall spacey vibe. This album has it all and blends it together perfectly. But it never got the recognition I felt it deserved so I'm excited to present it as AOTM.

I also think the packaging is fantastic, as it comes with 5 full sized, double sided art prints with song lyrics that really enhance the experience. However, the only place I could find it was Bandcamp, but they do seem to be stocked, and prices for international shipping didn't look bad so I hope everyone can get a copy.


Here are a couple samples:






And a (much better) short review from All Music

  • Texas is a place where folks do things their own way, which may be why so many artists in the Lone Star State love psychedelia but play it with a distinct twist, as anyone who has spent much time listening to the 13th Floor Elevators, the Red Krayola, or Cold Sun can tell you. Austin's Bright Light Social Hour are doing their part to keep the grand tradition of Texas Trippiness alive, and their second album, 2015's Space Is Still the Place, is an ambitious and wildly entertaining journey into the minds of the men who created it. While the echoey stirrings of the more languid songs reveals a lovely, lysergic sparkle that rises and falls over the whole of this album, Bright Lights Social Hour draw from an impressive range of influences, rhythm & blues, and off-center pop music, and even though these ten songs explore the nooks and crannies of the musical space around them, this is thankfully short on jam-band-style meandering. Bassist Jack O’Brien and drummer Joseph Mirasole keep this music tightly on track throughout, with rhythms that are rock hard or coolly grooving depending on the number (and sometimes adding a subtle electronic assist), and guitarist Curtis Roush punctuates the songs with clever solos and instrumental textures that add to the mood of the songs without calling undue attention to themselves; Edward Braillif's keyboards gracefully shift gears from the cool post-disco feel of "The Moon" to the '70s-rock stylings of "Aperture." While the members of Bright Lights Social Hour have said they intended Space Is Still the Place to make a statement about the need for new thinking at a time when economic and social woes are sapping the spirit of younger Americans, most of the lyrics don't stand out much on the first few listens, as they're mixed into the middle distance and layered with echo and reverb effects. But the band's intent to take the listener somewhere else succeeds admirably, and Space Is Still the Place is a smart, fearless work from a band whose inner journey is paying impressive musical dividends.
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Wow!! Awesome pick. Their self titled album was a legitimate contender for my ROTM in February.

Truly a diverse and fun band.
 
avecigrec said:
I streamed this after guessing and hoped it would be the AOTM, but was excited to have come across it even if it didn't wind up being the case. Great choice! I'm excited to spend some more time with it. And obviously (probably) I really love and appreciate the nod to Sun Ra.
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How on earth did you get the correct guess w the limited clues he gave?
 
oooeee!! I'm catching up on the last few excellent months, and glad to have stopped back by in time for this pick, too.

love this band and have been fortunate to see them play some funky spaces in Austin, but I don't own any of their records. looking forward to spending time with this one.
 
scotthilk said:
How on earth did you get the correct guess w the limited clues he gave?
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...more seriously though - I was already planning to settle into an evening of looking over release lists for the past 10 years in search of interesting astrologically titled albums when the 75k Spotify followers clue dropped and wound up proving to be a perfect filter. This album obviously caught my attention extra hard for the Sun Ra nod and their follower count seemed right on track with that clue.

At first I thought it was simply a worthwhile guess, then I actually listened to it and started hoping it would in fact be the one!
 
Has anyone who ordered from Bandcamp received anything yet? I placed an order for their record on Nov. 11th and have not heard anything from the band. I sent a couple messages through their bandcamp messaging and no response yet, either.
 
cul8er said:
Has anyone who ordered from Bandcamp received anything yet? I placed an order for their record on Nov. 11th and have not heard anything from the band. I sent a couple messages through their bandcamp messaging and no response yet, either.
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Nope, but I just ordered a week or so ago. But nothing here either.
 
cul8er said:
Has anyone who ordered from Bandcamp received anything yet? I placed an order for their record on Nov. 11th and have not heard anything from the band. I sent a couple messages through their bandcamp messaging and no response yet, either.
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Nope which lead to me not remembering this entire thread. But when I went to Bandcamp, I had ordered.
 
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