“By The River” is a psychedelic delight from The Crystal Teardrop, a band from Midlands, UK. Their second single achieves a stellar balance of hypnotic steadiness and hooky immediacy, following up definitively on the success of debut single “Nine Times Nine.” Their ’60s psych-friendly inspirations ring true with infusions of mandola, guitars, and harmonious vocals, bolstered further by a heady sitar performance from Lucian Thomas (Farfisa).
Per the band, the track’s lyrics and narrative “seek to highlight the profound nature of love, loss and the human condition.” Alexandra Rose’s enamor with a laid-back enamoring, depicting walking alongside a river amidst atmospheric guitar lines and the sitar’s entrance. Wordless vocal chills resonate prior to an organ’s more prominent backing. Buzzing guitars and sitar converge beautifully past that one-minute turn. “By The River” is a delectably trippy psych-pop showing from The Crystal Teardrop.
—
This and other tracks featured this month can be streamed on the updating Obscure Sound’s ‘Best of September 2023’ Spotify playlist.
The track is also featured in the genre-based, best-of Spotify compilation Emerging Indie Psychedelic.
We discovered this release via MusoSoup, as part of the artist’s promotional campaign.
