Ears Wide Open: James Allen Spirit

Kevin Bronson on January 13th, 2016

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James Allen Spirit are yet another band of Utah transplants, a trio whose West Coast psych-pop is likely better suited to L.A.’s beaches than the shores of the Great Salt Lake. The band — singer-guitarist Tyler Godfrey, guitarist Dante Sessions and bassist Tyler Kennedy — have recorded a bunch of music but released little. They made their debut EP with Nate Pyfer (Kaskade, Neon Trees, The Moth & The Flame), with producer/engineer Tom Biller doing the mixes. Now they’re working with Biller (Karen O, Warpaint and Kate Nash, among many others) on a fresh batch of songs at Biller’s new home studio. “Sea the Current” tugs you toward the ’60s with a chugging beat, airy harmonies and then a bass-driven shift into dreamland, and “Morning Sun” soars like birds as sunrise, prettier than a beachfront picture. James Allen Spirit has more in the pipeline, all of it coming from the various nooks and crannies of guitar-pop’s past, some of it baring some rock ’n’ roll teeth; stay tuned for release news.

||| Stream: “Morning Sun”