Somewhere in the middle of the mad ramblings that follows is a review of San Pedro’s Vision latest album ‘Subconscious Reflection’, somewhere… 23 November 2020.
We found this note in a bottle washed up on the shores of Gilmoss. We’d been sunning ourselves, gazing at the far off mountains of Fazakerley when we suddenly noticed something shining on the long cool sands that stretched out to Kirby. The words on it said:
I have a story to tell. I went out to a Grateful Dead gig in San Francisco in 1987, when I was only 15. It was my first ever gig - and my first ever acid trip. As it turns out, it was my last... though, to be correct, man, it never ended. I have no recollection of the past 33 years of my life, one day I just realised I was 48 and sat at a bar in Birkenhead, drinking lager and holding a fag thats burning my fingers.
"Hey John, do you want a beer?"
"Huh?" I mumbled turning my head back to the person who asked the question... or turning it back to the past, as that was my last memory from that fateful evening in 1987, when Bob McNuckles asked me the same question, offering me a yellow pill with Jerry Garcia's face on it.
And, just like that, I snapped back to reality. This time though, it was a friend, offering me a pint. We were sitting at the semi-derelict pub facing the old tyre factory and wondering what to do with our lives. I had not been to a gig nor listened to any new music since 1987 and now, in 2020, I was craving for both. Bad timing.
But sure as bad things follow good ones, so do good ones follow bad things. And soon as I accepted that lukewarm pint I’m offered a recently ‘found’ laptop. on it there are files marked 'San Pedros Vision'. An accompanying press-release tells us they're "an up-and-coming psychedelic rock band hailing from Merseyside." Sounds good, so I decided to check the three songs provided and fulfil my teenage dream, aborted after the 'Dead gig, of becoming a rock journalist. This is my first review.
It's hard to tell if San Pedro's Vision are the future... or the past. Does it matter? To my ears, their music sounded like Stevie Nicks singing with the Grateful Dead, or maybe the more esoteric moments of Peter Green's Fleetwood Mac with Gilmour-era Floyd. In other words... psych-prog at its best. Not the most original here in 2020, to be sure, but sounding very accomplished nevertheless - it's rare for a new band to be either, so never mind both, that'd be in tall order to ask for. Which means, to put it simply: San Pedro's Vision are already one step ahead of the game, at least.
Second track on the EP, 'Subconscious' is perhaps the best introduction to the band, being the shortest track and with an almost shoegazey, Slowdive-style vibe to it. Pleasant and easy to listen.
The other tracks 'The Nervous Center' and 'Reflection' are long, truly epic tunes that are proof of this band's promising future. When the latter one sounds as if it's finishing, and then kicks into new gear, it's sublime.
I
f you love prog or psychedelia, you definitely need to check this release. This is a band who knows what they're doing, and are working hard to make the best music they can. Can't ask for more, right now.
Inspired by San Pedro's Vision, I decided to pursue my own vision of San Pedro, and joined a cargo ship crew to cross the Atlantic towards California, longing for the palm trees and the beautiful Pacific ocean. I write this on the seventh day of my journey, when, under the harsh conditions of the sea and after an outbreak of the plague amongst the seamen, I face an uncertain future. The storm is getting worse, the crew are rebelling against the captain and here I am, locked in my cabin, writing tis review, just to fulfil my dream of at last becoming a music journo, and to let people know about this new band.
I can't trust anyone on this ship would pass on my message to the world, so my only hope is to do it in the old style - put my words to paper, put the paper on a bottle, and put the bottle on the sea, in God's own hands.
May someone find this one day. May this band be discovered, just like this message. May all of you enjoy their trip as much as I did.
I
don't know if I'll ever reach San Pedro. I can hope. But I am just following my vision, and that's all that matters right now. Here, with my (final?) words, I bestow you San Pedro's Vision - perhaps my last trip, but perhaps the best. Please enjoy. Godspeed.
Yours truly,
Acid John Silver
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/SanPedrosVision
Linktree: https://linktr.ee/SanPedrosVision
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