The Embryos - Open The Kimono +3

Released: Aug 2019 (on CD)
Label: Kool Kat Musik
Listen on Bandcamp

Chicago band, The Embryos are another new discovery for me and I was instantly drawn in by their melodic power pop songs. This album was originally out last year but is now available for the first time on CD.

'Circleville' is the opening song and it immediately drew to mind Tom Petty and the 90's power pop of Velvet Crush. The chorus has an anthemic quality to it. The songs on this album are not short of strong, memorable hooks.

The best song here is 'Ghost Dreams, Mainly'. It is a beautiful but sad song looking back on a past relationship. The music itself is upbeat and energetic with aching harmonies in the chorus. There is some great guitar work and psychedelic jamming towards the end. The whole song is pretty epic, and well worth a listen.  

Other highlights are 'The Frightened Few' and 'Eleven Forty'. Both are melodically strong and very catchy. The psychedelic element is still prominent, especially in the former.

There are 3 extra songs here, singles which were previously only available on 7" vinyl. 'Wasting all my Time' is the best of these and very jangly like The Byrds. It features some great guitar solos too.

On the whole, this album is well worth investigating. It's well-written with some really memorable songs and melodies. Highly recommended.