This album sounds like Seattle in every note and brings back the feeling for the music of this city and the dreamy lover’s view of the 90s. Grunge, alternative, stoner, a little fuzz, a little psychedelic.
DAILY THOMPSON are music nerds and collectors of this decade, so it was a matter of the heart for them to record their sixth album exactly where the roots of this music can be found.
After the previous album “God Of Spinoza” had already been mixed by Tony Reed (Mos Generator, Stone Axe, Big Scenic Nowhere, etc.), the plan to record in Seattle was quickly realized. The Port Orchard setting was certainly an inspiring backdrop for these recording sessions, not only imbuing the album with the beauty of the Pacific Northwest and sharpening the band’s signature sound, but also imbuing the band with the spirit of the musical history of the Northwestern United States.
And Tony Reed was by no means just a sound engineer. He picked up the band on the bus, discussed music with them, brought his friend Bob Balch from Fu Manchu into the studio as a guest to refine the typical Daily Thompson sound with a solo on “I’m Free Tonight”. Or a joint show was organized without further ado in a nearby club.
Only six new tracks to shine at album length. That says a lot about the song structures. The band takes its time and expands its two-part arrangements, floating in sound and space. The experience of hundreds of shows at home and abroad has clearly brought out the band’s strengths. It seems as if DAILY THOMPSON continue to glide unstoppably through their own musical universe like Omuamua – the celestial body after which they named their 2020 album.
The trio has found its sound and hovers between alternative and grunge, between stoner riffs and spacerock anthems. The joy of playing and sympathy that this band radiates can be heard in every note. Dry and stoic, they make their way through the desert sand. “I’m Free Tonight” is a song with the Fu, and not just because of the solo. “Ghost Bird” makes the self-made cigar box sound and at the end the title track “Chuparosa” surprises with new perspectives and sounds and opens up new dimensions to fly on.
This band no longer has to prove anything to anyone. They have been playing at the same festivals and clubs and touring together with their heroes for a long time. How far is Lessingstr in Dortmund from Washington Avenue in Seattle? Less than 37 minutes…