THE SOFT MACHINE

I think an important thing to consider when listening to this album is that some of the songs form suites, like 1-3 are one song. Anyways the music here is cool at times, at others to psychedelic.

Hope for happiness opens the album with organ drone and Wyatt ramblin. Soon the song kicks it up and you hear, "Hope For Happiness, Happiness Happiness" it's memorable and catchy but not superb sounding? There's an organ solo in here that's spear to short I want to hear Ratledge rip some more, sad. Anyways a janky organ interlude segues into the second part, Joy of a toy. This track is very chill. I believe it's guitar on this track that leads the song, it has a bubbly tone that's quite nice. The end of the track kicks it up a bit and returns to hope for happiness which ends on some organ playing. There are some good moments on this suite.

The second song starts with Why Am I So Short, which is a lovely song with great singing and really just everything. This track goes into the great So Boot If At All. Full of organ, awesome. Bass solo in the middle and drum solo at the end keep the 7:41 section engaging. Right as the track ends it repeats part of Why Am I So Short, establishing an undeniable continuity. A Certain Kind then begins, yielding more beautiful Wyatt singing plus organ playing of a more melodic style. The song ends with percussion, marking the end of side one? This track is excellent and along with the first song are actually quite good, the second side is where the quality dips.

Save yourself on the debut is better then the 1967 demos which have some pretty bad back up vocals. Still, I dislike the backup singing "Save yourself~" The scatting and organ on this one are nice. This song goes straight into Priscilla which is a pretty interlude. Lullaby Letter then begins in the same style of Save yourself. The organ playing here as usual is wonderful. From here we go to the spectacularly bad We Did It Again. Annoying sixties chanting for a stupid joke, skip. This then goes into Plus Belle an interlude of screaming organ. Why Are we sleeping then begins which has talking over the music in an accent? sigh. Box 25/4 ends the sidelong suite with some piano. And boom, the album is done.

Tldr the first side is two songs and the second side is one song.

Overall this is a good debut/album but there is a bit to much singing and not enough instrumental playing plus one track I hate which strikes this album for 4*.