Altered Zones

One of the lost pleasures of the pre-Internet era was taking a chance on a record that you knew nothing about. Such was the case with my purchase of The Well of Memory seven years ago, an album full of of downbeat, mysterious ruminations by Patrick Gubler, AKA P.G. Six. Gubler was a principal in Tower Recordings, a loose, Manhattan-based collective of like-minded musicians that included Matt Valentine and Samara Lubelski (who also plays with Gubler and Helen Rush in Metal Mountains), and that helped define the "free-folk" sound at the close of the last century.

Since the dissolution of T.R., it has been a pleasure to watch the trajectories of its various members. P.G. Six's career has seen intermittent releases on labels like Amish and Perhaps Transparent, chronicling his low-key, affecting explorations of diverse instrumentation. The Well of Memory employs harp, whistle, recorder, and more alongside Gubler's distinctive guitar and harmonica technique.

For his latest full length, Starry Mind, Gubler has recruited a full band, including long-time associates Bob Bannister (guitar), Robert Dennis (drums), and Debby Schwartz (bass, backing vocals). Starry Mind offers a glimpse of Gubler's more traditional songwriting proclivities, and is probably the perfect accompaniment to the end of Summer and the coming of Fall. "Crooked Way" is a master class in pitch-perfect American rock idioms, beginning with an extended instrumental of dueling guitar lines and chugging percussion that kicks into high gear with the appearance of a gorgeous vocal from Gubler and Schwartz, spinning a plaintive narrative of loss. The rest of Starry Mind follows suit, recalling the pleasant mid-tempo jams of classic Dead and the eclecticism of early work by The Incredible String Band. --Max Burke, Visitation Rites

MP3: P.G. Six: "Crooked Way "

Starry Mind drops August 23rd on Drag City in CD, LP, and MP3 formats