Clearly, there is a 60s revival going on in the UK with bands like this one and Jarvis Humby. And they're doing it right too. A Band of Bees is so immersed in the sounds of the 60s, you'd think they shared a bill with The Kinks or The Who.Free the Bees kicks off with "These are the Ghosts," which has vocals that sound similar to "I Can See for Miles" by The Who. The sounds of the 60s continue with "Wash in the Rain," a song that combines piano, Hammond organ a la the Spencer Davis group and, Kinks-style guitar riffs. But that's not all. The Bees also have shades of The Beatles in this album. (They did record this at Abbey Road, after all.) The beginning of "Go Karts" somehow reminds me of "Maxwell's Silver Hammer."
Maybe it's silly to compare a live band to Dr. Teeth and the Electric Mayhem, but "No Atmosphere" sounds like the sort of song that Dr. Teeth and his band might have played in one of the Muppet movies, or an episode of The Muppet Show.
And then there is "Chicken Payback." I don't really know what it means to pay a chicken back, but I'd be willing to find out after hearing this song. This song starts of with an intro that could have been placed at the beginning of some 60s detective show. Then there are some blaring horns and the backing vocalists blurting out the word "Chicken!" I want to say this is similar in style to Wilson Pickett's "Land of a Thousand Dances." However, I don't know that I've ever heard a song quite like this one. It will make you want to get up and move, that's for sure, but describing it any further wouldn't do it justice. This is a song you need to hear. Period.
Free the Bees is an excellent album. If you like sounds 60s style rock n roll and R&B, you should have this album. Actually, you should have this album just to see the dance moves your friends will perform when you play "Chicken Payback" for them. And trust me, this is a song you will want to play for your friends.
