ORANGE WEDGE 1972

Upon first listen to psyche-rock obscurity ORANGE WEDGE, one would think they came from the darkest depths of Deutschland. In actuality, these folks come from the Pooch’s neck of the woods in Baltimore, MD. Information on the band is scarce at best, but here’s the skinny: they released two albums, this being the first. It was limited to only 500 pressings; so yes, “obscure classic” would be the appropriate term here. They’ve since gained a little exposure from the track “From the Womb to the Tomb” (not featured here) which can be found on a few psyche-rock rarity collections. Now while this is all well and good, the important thing is obviously the music itself. Thankfully, we’re talking high quality, well crafted stuff that still sounds good 35 years after the fact.

Album opener “Love Me” is a catchy little folk rock number, with a crisp, clean blend of electric and acoustic strumming. The band’s singer has a powerful voice that’s versatile enough to work with the musical changes that occur throughout the album. Good thing, too, because the next track, “Death Comes Slowly”, is where these guys really get adventurous. It’s an 11+ minute jam with a totally unexpected jazzy breakdown in (I believe?) 11/8 time. Song three, “The Comfort of You”, is a tender semi-ballad that would have probably been better served with a higher key (the singer sounds like he’s struggling with the low register), but the acoustic to electric build-up is done quite nicely. Following that, we have a straight-forward, upbeat anthem in “Keep on Livin’”, and then a bit of a darker, minor-keyed rocker in “One Night Lover”. Still not satisfied with the musical exploration they’ve done so far, these guys completely switch gears on the classic rock & roll boogie of “Meat House Shuffle” before shoving the listener head-first into a sea of psychedelic with album closer “Revenge”, a 6 ½ minute jam full of solos and flanger drum effects that also proves to be the album’s darkest and heaviest moment.

If there’s any major criticism to be offered here, it’s that the 11+ minute jazzy jam “Death Comes Slowly” probably should have been quite a bit further down in the track listing – y’know, let the listener get their feet a little wet first. Other than that, “Wedge” is a solid album that has stood the test of time rather well. I’d be interested to see what sort of stories the either the Pooch or Ray have on these guys. In the meantime, I’ve all of a sudden become intrigued as to what Detroit obscurities are out there that I’m missing out on…

Tracks :

01 - Love Me
02 - Death Comes Slowly
03 - Comfort of You
04 - Keep on Livin
05 - One Night Lover
06 - Meathouse Shuffle
07 - Revenge

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Artwork Included