Ganglians

With a name that is an amalgamation of "gang" and "aliens," this Sacramento band has often been lumped in with the summery surf/garage pop that's been popular of late. But there's more of the Chills and Echo & the Bunnymen than Best Coast in the act's freewheeling, driving guitar rock...

By Tom Murphy

August 30, 2011

Audio By Carbonatix

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With a name that is an amalgamation of "gang" and "aliens," this Sacramento band has often been lumped in with the summery surf/garage pop that's been popular of late. But there's more of the Chills and Echo & the Bunnymen than Best Coast in the act's freewheeling, driving guitar rock. With a sound akin to that of contemporaries like Gauntlet Hair, Woods and the Fresh & Onlys in its wall of psychedelia, Ganglians presents itself on stage, perhaps unintentionally, as a group of playful eccentrics swept up in the breezes suggested by its songwriting. The act's latest record, Still Living, just released on Lefse, and the video for "Jungle" confirm that the bandmembers do indeed have an offbeat sense of humor and are not just pretending to be weirdoes playing catchy music.

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Tom Murphy is a writer, visual artist and musician from Aurora, Colorado. He was a prolific music writer for Westword and a documenter of the Denver music scene.

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Twitter: @simianthinker