ponytail- Ice Cream Spiritual

Next up is a record that has made me look at music in a completely new light. That may sound like a gross exaggeration and awful use of a literary cliché, but take notice of the name of this blog. “Celebrate the Body Electric (It Came From an Angel)” was the first single released from Ponytail’s sophomore album Ice Cream Spiritual, which arrived mid-June from We Are Free Records, home of fellow musical shamans, Yeasayer. And I couldn’t think of a better title for either the track or the album. The band’s sound can best be described as a channeling of some sort of animalistic, tribal spirit, expressing exuberance for love and life through their wild energy that blasts past conventional ideas of how instruments and singing should sound. A lofty description, right? Take one listen to the single and try to disagree.

And while individual songs may be self contained packages of sonic explosions, this album is best experienced as a whole. After repeated listenings, you begin to understand how much of an uplifting experience this record is. The positive feeling and aura that these songs give off shines through the band’s use of inventive guitar work and vocals. Two lead guitars take you on an exhilarating ride on rolling surf-rock waves. And lead singer Molly Siegel’s banshee vocals seem to combine Yoko Ono with a screeching owl. But somehow it all fits together; Ponytail wouldn’t work with typical lyric structures. Their goal is to show us the true beauty in the world we live in through the layers and layers of positive energy seeping out of each track. And these crazy kids from Baltimore come damn close to succeeding.

Ponytail- Celebrate the Body Electric (It Came From an Angel)