Album Of The Week: Coke Weed’s Mary Weaver

Psychedelic music can be amazingly groovy in many ways. It can also have a laid back tone with a clash of sounds to keep things interesting. An excellent example of this is Bar Harbor, Maine, act Coke Weed and their upcoming album Mary Weaver that’s due out on October 9. It’s mellow and funky, but it’s also pretty grounded, walking an interesting line where the quintet keeps on bringing creativity to the forefront without being pretentious. New England is a spoiled region when it comes to kickass music, and Coke Weed shows they’re one of the many reasons why with their upcoming release.

You got these surf vibes, a Bowie-esque weirdness and echoing guitars that give Coke Weed a unique coolness that sets them apart from a lot of their contemporaries. A righteous amount of feedback and reverb with each strum along with subtle rhythmic beats gives a dose of relaxation. Even if you like it fast and loud, you’ll come to appreciate the soothing sounds that Mary Weaver has with each track. Think of the album as a musical body of water, it’s just waiting for you to take a dive and bask in everything it offers.

When’s the last time you heard of any music coming out of a place like Bar Harbor? It’s known more as a popular tourist destination than a birthplace of bands. It’s kind of what makes a band like Coke Weed that much more refreshing. Speaking of refreshing, here are my top tracks off of the Album Of The Week:

With a bit of fuzz and drone, “Honky Tonk Man” is the darkest track on the album with borderline shoegaze distortion that’s bound to put you in a trance. Reminiscent of The Velvet Underground, “Street Secrets” has little hints of groovy funk and ’60s pop to make for a wonderful song that you have to plug into. It’s rare when a track lives up to it’s title, but “The Chill” is laid back as hell with the lyrics talking about being fooled and alienated.

Coke Weed’s next show will be at the Elvis Guesthouse in New York City on October 1h as part of the Beyond Beyond is Beyond Official CMJ Showcase with fellow label mates Heaters, Ancient Ocean, Annique Monet and Sam Kogon. If you happen to be reading this and you’re heading to CMJ as part of your college radio station, grab a copy of Mary Weaver at the show and play it on your radio show. It’ll give the airwaves that certain je ne sais quoi.