Photo titled "Dog Sleigh Team" in Timmins, Ontario from Timmins Porcupine Gold Camp, Illustrated, 1900
Nesey Gallons may not be a familiar name, but he has a pedigree that gives a pretty solid indication of who he is and what his music's all about. Originally from Maine, he has lately been working with the Elephant 6 crew, most notably as a member of Circulatory System and in the various projects of former Neutral Milk Hotel member Julian Koster. Will Hart of Circulatory System has credited Gallons with being instrumental in shaping their most recent album, Signal Morning - this immediately sparked my interest. I immediately thought, "If Gallons was responsible for some of the interesting sounds that caught my ear on that record, his solo record could be full of interesting psych-rock as well."
With that set of expectations, Gallons' first real full-length release Eyes & Eyes & Eyes Ago was disappointing on first listen. Mostly lacking in psychedelic weirdness, Gallons' songs have more in common with "outsider" folk music, with stripped-down arrangements and Gallons' weird, wobbly singing voice pushed way up in the mix. It reminded me much more of Julian Koster's projects like Music Tapes or Chocolate USA (not that many people have heard those records). Gallons' voice is right in your ear throughout the record, and it's a voice that takes some getting used to. The other thing that struck me as odd about Eyes & Eyes & Eyes Ago is that it is lyrically very thin - I expect folk records with a prominent voice to have something interesting to say, but Gallons often seems content with mumbled nonsense and repeated phrases.
However, I found myself going back to Eyes & Eyes & Eyes Ago for more listens, liking it better each time. There is an intimacy in the creaky recordings that creates a sense that you are in Gallons' world, and the simple melodies are quite ingratiating once I got past his odd, high voice. The instrumentation varies from song to song in a nice way, introducing organ and singing saw to augment the acoustic arrangements, and a couple of the songs have a full band feel (with drums!), sounding almost like an old-school Elephant 6 band. "Old Echo", "There Won't Be Any Crows", and "Aurora Borealis" are all successes in this regard, giving the album some substance - without them, Eyes & Eyes & Eyes Ago would be all airy, spooky folk music. As it is, there are two songs that push too far in this direction - "Mornings as a Mouse" and "My Lighthouse" are too long, too aimless, and just too boring.
Luckily, there are songs that strike the balance between E6 pop and outsider folk, like the excellent "Jupiter and I". It captures the intimate atmosphere and eerie vibe of the album's most unique songs, but the insistent drum beat, wobbly saw melody, and great bass line make it much more compelling and listenable. Stuff I find online leads me to believe that Gallons' solo recordings have been a long time coming and, although it seems like he still has a bit further to go to fully win me over, there's enough to enjoy on Eyes & Eyes & Eyes Ago to keep me interested while he works on his next project.
"Jupiter and I" by Nesey Gallons
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