The Strawberry Moons' big psych rock chaos of "Cigarette Hills"

AP Review:

The track Cigarette Hills begins with a cagey drum beat and bass, garden rock guitar, swelling organ lines and an ambient tone that sounds like a storm coming. Soon you find out that storm is named Aimee Jacobs, her vox start from a soft wail to a big one. The band is The Strawberry Moons and as the song erupts into the chorus and dense guitar lines and organ converge in a back and forth push and pull you are lost in the powerful beautiful chaos. They create a dense rock atmosphere full of big downbeats and bigger crescendos pulling in folk rock, psychedelia and blues rock all tied together with a goth rock bow. You can't help but think of bands like Nick Cave, The Birthday Party, The Doors, Fleetwood Mac and artists / singers like PJ Harvey, Grace Slick, and Patti Smith.  The psyche garden rock-ish sound feels timeless. The Strawberry Moons, in fact, would of fit the original Woodstock bill just fine. There is a touch of hippie and protest in their sound. 

The band is comprised of the aforementioned Aimee Jacobs (vocals, keyboard), Will A Lerner (vocals, keyboard, guitar), John Falk (guitar, vocals), Jason Areford (bass) and Dustin Schemensky (drums) and they are based out of San Diego, California though, by their sound, I thought immediately of Haight Ashbury, San Francisco (1969). 

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Robb Donker




THE FACTS AS WE KNOW THEM - PRESS NOTES:

Knowing Aimee's astounding vocal range and considerable skill as a musician, Will Learner approached Aimee about collaborating. The idea was to form a band that showcased male/female vocals and strong melodies and harmonies, with influences including '60s baroque/vocal pop, the highly personal and intense folk rock of the 70s, as well as more aggressive and modern post-punk.

Over the last two years, The Strawberry Moons have become one of the most active bands on the San Diego scene. They recorded a 4-song EP at Emerald Age Studio in Vista, and have performed at some of the most noteworthy venues in the county, including The Belly Up, Casbah and Soda Bar. They also performed at the 2017 In-Ko-Pah Festival alongside acts such as Mattson 2, Playboy Manbaby and Mrs. Magician. The band has been nominated for a 2019 San Diego Music Award, Best Rock Band category. They’ve been featured on the county’s most popular local radio programs (91X Loudspeaker and The Local 94/9), have been the subject of feature articles in SD CityBeat and the San Diego Reader, and have been spotlighted on local television programs SoundDiego (NBC) and Unherd (ABC). They went on their first tour in the spring of 2018, playing in cities in Arizona and California, and they are currently in the mastering stage of their first full-length album, produced and engineered by Ben Moore (Hot Snakes, Diamanda Galas, Ravi Shankar). In January 2019 Hector took over John’s role in the band; his talent and energy have allowed the group to move forward with no signs of stopping.