THE PIPER AT THE GATES OF DAWN

The Piper at the Gates of Dawn is a huge fan favorite but I have never been entirely impressed by it it. There are absolutely brilliant tracks Astronomy Domine, Lucifer Sam and Instellar Overdrive that are almost solely responsible for the birth of one of my favorite genrese: kraut. But a lot on this album is fairly typical psychedelic stuff that everybody was doing around 66-67.

On subsequent solo albums Barrett has continued to prove that he was a whimsical songwriter with flashes of genius but also with many moments of basic chord strumming psych-pop with only rare hints of his frail talent.

I would normally opt for a fine 3.5 album with some essential moments. Considering this is from 67 it is sure one of the most outstanding release of that year. I personally prefer the debut from the Nice though.