On this, the third full-length release from Paloma, California’s answer
to “The Magical Mystery Tour” (known to the uninitiated as the trio
of Geggy Tah), nothing is a given. Geggy Tah doesn’t just break the
accepted rules of musical convention. This band re-invents the entire
construct. Propelled by lyrical ingenuity, vocal creativity and musical
mastery, Into the OH is a groovy/funky/jazzy/electric amalgam of
resonant, otherworldly sounds, life-affirming and timelessly enchanting.
Tommy Jordan, lead vocalist and multi-instrumentalist, displays a
comforting ease with his many talents. Among the tools at his disposable
are bass, nylon string guitar, steel drum, casio keys, trumpet, Wurlitzer,
all sorts of computerized programming wizardry and a smoldering, soulful
tonality that rivals that of Curtis Mayfield one minute (“Sweat”), Eagle Eye
Cherry the next (“Love is in Love”) and Double’ crossed with Prince in the
following moment (“Holly Oak”). All the while, deep reflection and penetrating
observation take center stage.
Lyrically, Geggy Tah is unparalleled. Acknowledging the depth of emotion,
the yearning for love and the wonder of life itself, Into the OH combines the
whimsical and the tragic to arrive at a place where it all comes together,
connecting the isolation of modern living with the longing for a gentler,
more humane time. Note the lines from “Special Someone”
(..I am waiting for that special someone/ ….I am waiting for someone to
manifest my dreams/ to make this bitter world a sweeter place/….
dead dreams lying all over the place/I wish I could erase what I didn’t
do while waiting for you…). Or, the meditative stance taken in
“Dumb Submarine” (…if this is the age of communication../how come
I feel lost in isolation?…). Instruments used on the latter track include:
a mini-moog, paradrums, surflutter and shortwave radio.
Come on. You gotta just love that!
From subtle scatting, to alterna-narrative beat-speak and bluesy crooning
then back again to a sophisticated playfullness ("I Forgot" and in the Beck-
like “Aliens Somewhere”, with guest star Laurie Anderson), Geggy Tah
embraces both the ordinary and the extraordinary, delivering the kind
of off-center listening experience one would expect from a David Byrne
production. (Which, in fact, this is !).
Like a seductive hallucination, Into the OH beckons you to journey
through the looking glass and discover a surreal world where sound is
fluid and vision is maleable. Fasten your seatbelts and get ready for a
trip like noneother.
