It would be easy to dismiss the musical ramblings of the Crown Larks – from Chicago it would seem – as simply unfocussed and directionless with their album “Population” drifting without apparent purpose for its whole length. However, if you are in the mood to let the mood take you then this somewhat psychotronic experience could prove rewarding.
I don’t suppose that the titles of these songs have any particular significance other than as simple punctuation for some left field thinking that never really goes anywhere yet seems to come from everywhere. Influences from the past do indeed make fleeting visits but there is something very modern going on here as if, in their own free form way, Crown Larks are making the point that the modern world is just another case of confusion disguised as progress. Certainly, words have no more meaning than they have in tone poems here with the sound of the human voice duly spending as much time in the clouds as the instruments do.
If this were the late sixties then “Population” would be the source of the sounds that Mary Jane would dance to in her delusions but this is today and, despite the times being very different, the Crown Larks manage sound like the soundtrack for the modern day city in despair. So, this album will likely fail to find many friends in the mainstream but I think that the more adventurous may find this both challenging and rewarding.
Available from Bandcamp.