Search - Polyphemus :: Scrapbook of Madness

Its tragic that this band didnt get the praise it so rightly

Jonathan Levitt | Somerville, Ma United States | 03/19/2006

(5 out of 5 stars)

"This album is amazing in how compact dense aand full of originality it is. I was lucky to find an LP of this record in Boston, one day. This is Psych for anyone who loves fuzzed out , totally acid drenched music , you will not go wrong. Dont bother with stone house that album sucks! Worth all of the 1 cent it costs used trust me."

Nineties psychedelia

Pieter | Johannesburg | 03/27/2003

(4 out of 5 stars)

"Scrapbook of Madness is a type of nineties pychedelia with among others, layers of acoustic guitar, hypnotic feedback and beautiful blending of voices. The songs mostly have slow build-ups that transport the listener to far away places. My favourite songs include the title track, The Sea Map with its mesmerising vocals, Masses Of Tiny Dots which was a hit single, plus This Day Of Mine and When The Ancients Fly. If you like a cascade of guitars with lots of reverb creating dreamy soundscapes, a sort of jangling drone, you will love Scrapbook of Madness."

A masterpiece of pure psych pop goodness

Peter Williams | Pasadena, CA United States | 07/16/2004

(5 out of 5 stars)

"My music find of the year - mesmerizing!First and foremost, this is psychedelic rock built on a strong pop framework. A first-time listener might guess this was an undiscovered gem originating from London, circa 1968. From then on, it becomes a game of "spot-the-reference". The early Who, Pretty Things, Love, Moody Blues, the Beatles, 13th Floor Elevators, and any number of the 60s British one-hit wonders would probably come to mind. Combine all of them, get Thurston Moore to play (a real) melody lead on electric guitar, add a bit of distortion, and you begin to get the idea. Sixties-wise, it has all the right elements: layered guitars, reverb, echo, jangle, phasing and harmonies. And Brian Leary's voice is the perfect accompaniment to it all, pulling it all together like Rain Parade did in their best moments.Though Scrapbook resembles 60s psychedelia, it doesn't feel dated in the least; this is no doubt due to the updated post-rock guitar sound that appears throughout. There are a few straightforward pop songs; I would defy anyone to listen to "Your Kind Turn Me All Around" without catching it flying sorties around your brain a day later. Other songs, including "Eyes", "Masses of Tiny Dots", "All of the Lovely Sounds" and "Color It" are closer to garage proto- psych/punk. The albums opus is "Sea Map", which straddles some nether-ground between Led Zeppelin, Bardo Pond and Porcupine Tree. This is balanced by the delicate beauty of "Scrapbook of Madness" and "Satellite Sun". And there's a hint of Beatles flavour to "When the Ancients Fly". It's a diverse album, moody, brilliant and completely satisfying. The album was good enough to make me go and locate all Polyphemus material I could find. You're going to wish you had this when you find it's no longer available; so do yourself a favor and get it now. And if you enjoy this, watch for their next incarnation: "Gangster Hippie". I've heard the first GH album, and it's equally amazing..."