TAROT, PART II

1. "Strength" (5:05) some of Eva's sultry pagan poetry played over Ozrics-infused funky psychedelic rock that sounds as if it were a cover of a classic 1960s pop song. Nice lead guitar solo from guest Tony Jagqar in the fourth minute. The presence of creepy Fender Rhodes and sitar add to the occult-esoteric mystique. A charming, promising, top three song. (9/10)

2. "The Hanged Man" (3:31) a percussion-entrenched instrumental that moves through two or three parts with layers of synths and heavily-treated piano washing over the top. (8.75/10)

3. "The Unnamed Arcane" (3:25) an instrumental that was resuscitated from the cutting floor of Tarot, Part I. (8.7/10)

4. "The Temperance" (4:26) another throwaway instrumental that they forgot to throwaway. (8.7/10)

5. "The Devil" (3:23) trying to inflect a little Zeuhl into the Canterbury soundscape? In the third minute Eva's spoken voice reverberates like a 1970s Elvira casting spells. (8.75/10)

6. "The Tower" (3:16) now back to the 1960s--like something from a female-fronted psychedelic rock band like the or Ultimate Spinach, It's A Beautiful Day, Pan & Regaliz, Carol Of Harvest, Earth And Fire, or perhaps Jefferson Airplane. (8.875/10)

7. "The Star" (5:00) a spacey New Age Gong or Steve Hillage song. Lots of Ozric bubbles, erps, stretchy weirditudes and oolite plurnies with and gentle keyboard and guitar apreggi floating around in and around the soundscape. A top three song. (9/10)

8. "The Moon" (5:54) Eva's vocoder voice with more soft-core Ozric-Gong-Hillage sounds built over a straight 1965 psychedelic rock foundation. (8.75/10)

9. "The Sun" (4:42) a decently constructed 1960s pop song with great bass play, Mellotron, and heavily treated (and nicely arranged) vocals from both Xavi and Eva singing in unison. Lead guitar in the fourth minute is performed by guest Tony Jagwar. My final top three song. (8.875/10)

10. "The Judgement" (5:56) sitar and acoustic guitars and dreamy ethereal female whispervocals dominate this simple almost-Prog Folk song. Sounds a lot like the music that Mediæval Bæbes' Katharine Blake continues to make. (8.875/10)

11. "The World" (7:12) another pointless, meandering, needlessly drawn out pseudo-POPOL VUH-like jam with strummed and picked acoustic guitars, sitar, treated piano, and heavily-reverbed female vocalese (mostly aaah's) that achieves non of the transportive/transcendent effect of Florian Fricke's ground-breaking band. (12.75/15)

Total Time 51:50

While still of excellent sound quality and very consistent in terms of sound and stylings when compared to Tarot, Part I, the music here feels more "supplemental," less developed, polished, and/or finished. There are far more minutes of instrumental music--a lot of it what feel like "background msuic" jams--and less of Eva's wonderful vocal stylings and arrangements. Where Xavi and Eva rushed to get this out to the public? Was this really the finished product they wanted to share with their admiring audience? After the delightfully high quality and consistency of Tarot, Part I--on which the band felt like it had grown (since their self-titled 2020 debut)--I had expectations for Part II that are here sharply disappointed.

B/four stars; a decent collection of what feels like unfinished psychedelic covers of classic 1960s hit songs.

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