Search - Green Pajamas :: All Clues Lead to Meagan's Bed

Green Pajamas do it again.

08/03/1999

(5 out of 5 stars)

"The Green Pajamas are one of the best "unknown" bands out there. Formerly known for cassette only releases on their own Green Monkey Records they have now released 4 CDs (one a singles comp) and the have held the same high standards for each. All Clues Lead is far superior to the more popular Elephant Six bands, but it doesn't eschew the experimentalism of those bands. Instead they renew the hard rocking r&b backbeats that 60s psychedelia made great. Buy this, buy them all."

Fab four from Australia

pumpkin.ronny@skynet.be | Leuven, Belgium | 01/01/2001

(5 out of 5 stars)

"It's a real shame that this Australian band is still unknown. Leadsinger Jeff Kelly combines the skills of Lennon & Mccartney in one person. He's an excellent singer and a very talented songwriter. If you like the Beatles in their "revolver" and "rubber soul " period then you will definitely like this album. It's a gem from popheaven."

Great Songs, Great Guitar, Great Album, Great Band

If | Ohio | 09/17/2007

(5 out of 5 stars)

"Of course I agree with the other reviews: if you come across this band, buy something! They are seriously good and it's great to see a group so prolific that keeps up the quality consistently. But most reviewers aren't very specific beyond saying it's great so I'll flesh out this album a bit more and be more helpful in helping you decide which one to get if you're thinking about it.



This is the second album they released after their seven year break that lasted from 1990 to when Camera Obscura Records got them to put out Strung Behind The Sun in '97. This album is a bit more accessible than that and is an excellent place to start. It still has them doing "psychedelic" music, though that's a title I don't truly understand, but this one doesn't have so many extended songs as Strung Behind The Sun. Beatles-esque yes, but not just a mere rip-off, these songs would still be excellent without the bright sonic sheen of the production/arrangements. These are just 15 mostly bright pop songs (an hour in length), all with good melody, most every one with some tasty guitar playing. Jeff Kelly is indeed an excellent guitar player and weaves nice guitar parts around songs here like "The Secret Of Her Smile" (I can almost guarantee it'll make you smile the first time you hear the opening riff and really get into it), "Shock Of Blonde", and the somewhat-heavier "Sweet Sorrow", and his playing is always a great addition to the albums that came in the future. Like I said and everybody else has, this is a fantastic album, great throughout like almost all their albums are, or at least the one's I've heard and I've got 13 CDs of theirs I think and 1987's Book Of Hours which isn't available on CD. Jeff Kelly's lyrics are usually deep, always good, and he always displays his love of beauty and art. There aren't many things left to say without repeating myself ("'Death By Poisoning' - great song! 'Queen Of Sunshine' - great song! 'Dear Jane' - great song!").



Future albums mostly lost the amount of brightness that this album and its predecessor have (that doesn't mean they got any worse, mind you), so Seven Fathoms Down And Falling is probably a better representation of their overall style as it blends the bright and the dark in throughout, but it is shorter and a bit less satisfying than this one. However, if you tend to dig the darkness, 21st Century Séance would be a great place to start, or This Is Where We Disappear, darker, or Northern Gothic, even darker still. The newest album, Box Of Secrets, is another with a pretty good balance of light and dark and it's got some seriously good songs. My favorite is Narcotic Kisses - an out-takes collection, actually - with its great autumnal feel and absolutely full running time, exceptional songwriting throughout, though I wouldn't start there. You've got to get into them first, which shouldn't take long if you buy one of the albums I've mentioned (I didn't even say anything about their pre-hiatus Ghosts Of Love. Amazing!). Once you do, pick any album they've released and you'll love it. Then tell your friends to do the same.



Also, check their myspace often because they usually will put up songs that haven't been released yet (and may never be, Jeff's just got SO many): http://www.myspace.com/greenpajamas"