"I don't feel a need to distance myself from anything I like," Ezra Feinberg told a magazine in 2006, not long after the release of Citay, his extravagant self-titled debut of unbridled classic rock grandiosity for Important Records. "If anything I want to bring myself (and my bandmates, as well as my friends and family) closer to everything I like." The interviewer had asked Feinberg about irony in his music-- specifically, how he hoped the irony of Led Zeppelin references, sizzling electric leads, and a heroic, fantasy-rock instrumental dubbed "Vinter" might work amidst a landscape of cynics and smartasses. After one record, it might've been hard to say much of Feinberg's intentions. Yeah, those classic riffs ruled, and the layers of warm Jethro Tull and ELO textures that he and producer (and former Fucking Champ) Tim Green stuffed into Grateful Dead-like shapes sounded fantastic. But what about that flute? And those keyboard layers and string-section sprees? He must be teasing at least a little bit, right?
If any doubt lingered after Little Kingdom, Citay's triumphant and enormous 2007 debut for Dead Oceans, then Dream Get Together-- Feinberg's third and most expansive album as Citay-- dispels it entirely. From the Fleetwood Mac grandeur of the ballad "Mirror Kisses", sung by tUnE-YaRdS' Merrill Garbus, to the five minutes of instrumental swagger of "Secret Breakfast", Dream Get Together gathers the totems and taboos of 1970s rock and, as the record's title suggests, treats them all like the guests of some imagined jam session. At times, it might seem a tad cornball or cute, but Citay make triumphant, affirming music that leaves no room for irony.
Dream Get Together's closer, a cover of the 1988 Galaxie 500 single "Tugboat", is the most concise and accessible example. A room-filling acoustic guitar, more brisk and bold than it is schmaltzy, takes the rhythm, and a radiating electric line washes atop, announcing the theme in advance of Feinberg's, for once, dominant vocals. "I don't want to stay at your party/ I don't want to talk with your friends/ I don't want to vote for your president," he sings in harmony with himself. If the original take followed those declarations with question marks or uncertain ellipses, Feinberg chases them with exclamation points. Like the Galaxie 500 take, Citay end with an extended guitar vamp. But Galaxie 500's dissonance and stuttered lines wound tightly in turmoil. Feinberg and Green whirl in delight, their foil guitars treating the exit more like a liftoff than a comedown. It just feels good.
That holds for much of Dream, too. The title track, for instance, is a total celebration-- shakers, strums, and big drums opening the door for a sharp guitar line and Feinberg's summertime revelry. In one verse, he references Neil Diamond and Steely Dan and, more importantly, details the joy of his dreams-- "two hands out the window, two hands shifting gears." Opener "Careful with That Hat" is a sidewinding epic veering between choral swells, a Motorik midsection, and a solo that sends San Francisco's past exploding into the air like sparks.
Through it all, Citay supply a surprising amount of editing and elegance to these jams. Just two break the seven-minute mark. When Garbus' oohs and aahs float through a thick keyboard-and-acoustic haze on "Mirror Kisses"-- or even when the guitars lock in long, winding harmonies during "Fortunate Sun"-- Citay remain controlled and careful. Songs are constructed so that each line plays a certain role, every note tells its tale. Maybe that's where it will lose some listeners, too: It's not tough and rough and wild around the edges like Green's old band could be, or a lot of heavy metal can be. And it's not open at the ends like jam-band music. But this is Feinberg's third album of eight tracks in about 40 minutes, all exploring the same excitable intersection of psychedelia and pop. By now, he doesn't seem to be the sort to back down from his musical decisions or not to pursue the lavish sounds he hears in his head. Good thing, too: If he did, these intense little trips would be a lot less fun. From: https://pitchfork.com/reviews/albums/13936-dream-get-together/
