The United States of America

Only God knows how much I tried to like this, alas, I did not.

Too experimental/funky to my ears, like a circus and Sousa concert put together. 1*
I wonder if it sold well because of the band's name.

Impressive. A combination of a number of great styles, and a very avant garde style for the time. The vocals and instrumentals were great. All around not a perfect album (some of the songs ran a bit similar) but still very good. 3.5/5 -> 4/5

September 8, 2024

"Cloud Song", "The Garden of Earthly Delights, "Where Is Yesterday", "Coming Down", "Love Song For the Dead Che"

Almost anti-musical at times (a la Throbbing Gristle, if that's not too extreme a comparison), but a majority of tracks are disarmingly pretty. I missed a lot of the satire/politics, though, maybe that's a lack of 60's education on my part (though it shines through on titles like "Love Song for the Dead Ché" and "The American Metaphysical Circus".
Delirious and dreamy

Batcrap crazy and lots of fun

No los recordaba, pero ya tenía una canción de ellos en mis favoritas. Si te gusta la psicodelia es un disco a conocer. Me he guardado: The garden o earthly delights en las dos versiones del disco extendido de 20 temas, Where is yesterday, Coming down, Stranded in time y No love to give. Volveré a escucharlo.

Far out man.

Joseph Byrd is an under appreciated genius. This is far ahead of its time.

Pushing boundaries and both provocative and innovative in themes as well as production.

this feels so far ahead of its time. innovative sounds, cool riffs, leftist politics, sign me up

Definitely in my top 1000 albums of all time.

I had never heard of this and was excited to listen. I was disappointed. I’ve heard way better psychedelic music from the 60s. This reminded me of Velvet Underground and Jefferson Airplane, but worse.

Ergens in het begin krijg ik een sterke punk-associatie. Natuurlijk, het is heel andere muziek en er wordt gezongen. Maar ze lijken wel erg hun best te doen om hun eigen muziek te verpesten. Geen idee waar ze mee over de snaren wrijven. Maar het lijkt geen strijkstok.

Zo gek wordt het gelukkig niet meer. Maar de band is wel continue op ontdekkingsreis. Met rare geluiden en elkaar raar opvolgende fragmenten. Soms pakt het goed uit. Maar zoals wel vaker in deze lijst; het was wel fijn geweest als ze zelf die selectie hadden gemaakt.

60's psych rock is my poison. The singer adds a lot here. Her voice is kind of whimsical but also grounds the more experimental aspects with a pleasant and poppy sheen. Really interesting story behind them too. I dig it!

The United States Of America was a really weird case for me. The album left off a rather bad first impression with its weird composition ideas which did make it sound like random sounds at random times. But unlike most albums on this project, This album actually benefitted from its length because it allowed me to get used to all the weirdness. And when it was all past me, the album could have a few interesting ideas. It isn't a perfect album but i have done far worse on this project.
Best Song: Cloud Song
Worst Song: The American Metaphysical Circus

This felt ambitious. There was a lot of cool stuff on this album. The instrumentation was great, some really cool bass lines, and all around interesting choices. Where the album falters for me is in the actual songwriting and the vocals. These are not the best singers and for me it ruined a lot of the songs. I think this would’ve worked better as an instrumental album. Also, while some songs were exploratory, most of them were, at the heart, pretty standard blues rock songs with some zany effects over them. I know that is what a lot of 60s psychic rock was like, basically blues rock with a twist, but for all the talent this group seemed to have I felt like they could’ve done more.

A one way ticket to the asylum.

This was a horrible, torturous listening experience that i hope ill be able to soon forget

Very avant-garde at a time when that was a term that meant something. The acid trip allusions are a bit much in this day and age but I'm sure at the time very subversive. Some intriguing sounds and themes. Music for musicologists, could be considered progressive Classical if not for rock instrumentation. Worthy of a place on the list but not something I would listen to repeatedly, though I do appreciate stuff that veers in this direction: music you might hear at an academic Art museum retrospective and go "huh!"Sort of surprising this ever got pressed. Interesting

This was entirely unexpected for me.

Looking at the band's name and cover art, I expected something like 60s rock, Beatlesque, or The Byrds-influenced band. The name suggests a typical American nationalism that is easy to identify and criticize, which is typical for people from the USA and annoying.

Keeping the comparisons, I found a great band in line with the best of the Beatle's last albums and the best of the Beach Boys. The lyrics are the opposite of my first impressions, and it's excellent!

It's a shame not to know this band before; sadly, this is the only album.

Hard Coming Love is really grating on me this morning. this album is a visionary pioneer of 60's noodling, noise, and bullshit. Love Song For The Dead Che is fine.