Review
Hippie types and proud of it, Akron/Family love the cosmic and the communal, and their live shows are maypole-dancing audience-participation frenzies. In the studio, the band is no less psychedelic; songs on their fourth-and-a-half album have titles like “Gravelly Mountains of the Moon” (a nearly eight-minute mini-suite that references the Grateful Dead in title as well as in musical scope) and wander from folk finger-picking to chamber pop to fuzz-toned squall. But this album takes major steps beyond its predecessor, Love Is Simple. It adds a streak of joyful African funk, with sputtery rhythms and guitar curlicues. And the themes are no longer so smiley; Akron/Family—now a trio since the 2007 departure of a founding member who moved to a Buddhist Dharma center—see strife along with joy, separations along with love. Admitting to the dark side gives their sunny moments far more substance.
Download “Everyone Is Guilty,” “Many Ghosts”
Download “Everyone Is Guilty,” “Many Ghosts”
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