Devendra Banhart – Smokey Rolls Down Thunder Canyon (2xLP)

During spring of 2007, Devendra Banhart and his band took up residence and built a studio in a house in Topanga Canyon. Topanga is located in the Santa Monica mountains and is bound on one side by the Pacific Ocean. Neil Young once lived there while recording After The Gold Rush and the area has also been home to Emmylou Harris, Taj Mahal, Joni Mithcell, Mick Fleetwood and members of the Doors. Those ghosts inhabit the sound and vibe of these recording sessions. Everyone wants to say that an artists' new album is the best thing they've ever done, but this is truly the case here. The whole "freak folk" tag is gone and in its place is a classic, gorgeous rock album. There are songs that are fragile and solipsistic, ones with a pronounced Tropicalia influence, and ones that are wildly electric and epic.