ALC #13 World's Most Stressed Out Gardener

[Purplepash]

Thumbnail. Click to enlarge.

World's Most Stressed Out Gardener by Chad VanGaalen

Chad VanGaalen is a Canadian DIY musician who has been making music since the early 2000s. He also recorded both of the Women albums. This is his eighth studio album but I have only recently discovered him so this is the only album of his I've heard. He uses the analogy of growing a garden for making this album, hence the album title. This is an entertaining and enjoyable album with a bit of variety and a few surprises here and there. Have a listen and see what you think.

[Hayden]

In the queue

I've given two of Chad's albums a listen and they never clicked with me as much as others, but I have seen this cover floating about with some decent reviews...

[RoundTheBend]

Neo-psychedelia indeed. Sometimes this type of dissonance with no release drives me bonkers. Like idk how to explain it, sometimes there's this drone of dissonance to keep the neo-psychedelia "alive", but what it ends up doing is suffocating the song. Starlight could've been mindblowingly awesome if it had been mixed differently, or even written to minimize the "drone". Don't get me wrong, it's not drone that's the problem, it's the application of it here.

Hmm... this album started to change for me starting with track 4 into something a little more interesting. It feels fresh without being "hey hey look at me" annoying.

I was going to give this a 3, and it bounced up to a 3.5 by the end, and then furthermore, I could see it growing on me with more listens. I remember Tame Impala records being like that for me.

Thanks for the choice PurplePash.

[EyeKanFly]

Listened just now. First impressions are that this is wonderful. Never heard of Chad VanGaalen before.

I think I mostly agree with RoundTheBend except maybe slightly in the opposite direction? I thought the beginning of the album was quite strong, and then by "Inner Fire" the drone started to annoy me, and then by the end of the album I was really enjoying it again. Maybe there's just a few songs in the middle that were a low point to me.

Major vibes of early King Gizzard and the Lizard Wizard (or some of their later stuff, but only when they're at their lightest/folksiest) or Tame Impala at his most acoustic. The album was folksy but not so folksy that it was boring, psychedelic but not so much so that it drowned out the instrumentation, and experimental but not enough that it became inaccessible. This contained everything I loved about KGLW early albums like Oddments and Paper Mâché Dream Balloon (early is relative, 2015 obviously wasn't that long ago but they've released SO many albums since).

I liked how this album went from manic and "stressful" (as the album title and artwork suggest) to light, silly, and humorous ("Samurai Sword"). Again, KGLW vibes.

Definitely a contender for top 10 of the year. There's been such strong stuff released already this year that I have a hard time seeing this go top-5, but I definitely see myself listening to this quite a few more times. And that's not something I've said for most of the ALC picks.
_________________
51 Washington, D.C. albums!

[dihansse]

I'm more with EyeKanFly than with RoundTheBend. When I started listening to the first 3 tracks, I thought that I would like the album, but after that I had the same annoying feeling about the rest of the album and even more so with every new track passing so for me it didn't really get better near the end. It's certainly an interesting album as a whole but just not good enough to really appreciate it as whole.

[craola]

sounds like something straight out of 2008. i love it.

[Tha1ChiefRocka]

I had coincidentally listened to this album a few days before you posted the thread. I dug it.

[Keatownrodriguez]

I was really into it at the beginning. The folk psych thing was pretty interesting. But about halfway through I either became tired of the shtick or the songs just got more boring. I think the latter because I actually like the last two tracks a good deal. Anyway, it was definitely worth a listen and I'll probably come back to it a few more times but I don't see those middle tracks growing on me. Nice pick!

[Mercury]

lazily taken from my chart and album comment:

"(I wildly fascinating psych rock and folk album. I thought of many other artists when listening yet, at the same time, generally VanGaalen manages to carve out a place which is his and his alone.)

Yes, I heard elements of MGMT, KGLW, Animal Collective, Of Montreal and whole oodles of other artists that came into my life when I was 19 years old in the summer of 2008. That may be due to the fact that he was and is a contemporary of all those acts (outside of King Giz) and thus has a similar DNA in his music as those artists. (although, side note, gotta admit I was 100% unaware of him, his name and his music before this album adventure.) Yet... despite there beings myriad moments that would make me go "oh wait, that reminds me of ____!" there was a unique power to these tunes that I chalk up as distinctly VanGaalen's.

The way he creates these unexpectedly moving and brittle and beautiful melodies is brilliant, Going in, I didn't think I'd get misty eyed on some of these tracks, moved to near tears. But that is what happened on "Where Is It All Going?" and on the instrumental just after "Earth from a Distance" to a lesser or less overwhelming degree - oh and on the instrumental "Plant Music" as well I felt a sentimental something I never though I'd feel. That ability to kinda conjure up these psych dreams is on display with that fucking killer start to "Nothing Is Strange" which sounds like a stroll through some kaleidoscopic jungle, or on the mysterious trip of "Inner Fire" or the childish and dreamy romantic something on the ramshackle "Golden Pear". The rockers and more out-there jamming bits/tracks are cool too, such as on "Nightmare Scenario", and "Starlight".

Anyway, this is getting a little rambly. In closing (I Think) I really thought this was a fascinating and warm and creative and nostalgic album for me. It is just a solid as hell album. The only critique (and I'm not fully convinced of what I'm about to say) is that the general through-line or vibe or flow of the album is broken up and fractured half a dozen times. What it has in variety it loses in some cohesiveness.

Okay, that's all I'll say. "

Thanks for picking this one, purplepash, It's a goodie indeed. Easily to 40 or so of the year so far. Also introduced me to a new artist which is an added bonus.
_________________
-Ryan

ONLY 4% of people can understand this chart! Come try!

My Fave Metal - you won't believe #5!!!

[kokkinos]

Never listened to anything by Chad VanGaalen, so it was nice being given this chance.
Not my favorite branch of psychedelic music, but this clearly defied expectations.
The most striking aspect of this album is how it's always on the run,it keeps changing moods and styles, endlessly moving and constantly evolving, it's all over the map, maybe that explains the emerging debate regarding the strongest and weakest parts of it, it is highly diverse and something different will appeal to each listener. Overall, it was quite a ride and I would easily rank this in the top tier of ALC nominations so far.
And Plant Music is majestically beautiful in the most romantic way.