The Wind: Harum scarum (2011)

"It’s telling of a band’s ambition when their first full-length is a double-album. The Wind’s Harum Scarum is just that. Except unlike the plethora of double-album misfires – a trend prevalent even among music veterans – Harum Scarum is an exceptionally crafted and well-paced epic that is bound to do more than generate buzz for the Long Beach-based quartet. This is the sort of album that launches an artist into cult status. Such massive followings are rarely possible after one album, but The Wind touch on forms of throwback pop and rock that very few artists the past decade have successfully conquered. Perhaps Dr. Dog at their brightest (We All Belong) came closest among the surveyors of ‘00s indie-rock, and even certain releases like David Vandervelde’s The Moonstation House Band and several from The Walkmen approached the realm of late ‘60s/early ‘70s songwriters in the idiosyncratic vein of Brian Wilson, Harry Nilsson, and Roger McGuinn. But as far as authentic re-interpretations of vintage sounds go, few releases the past few years come close to Harum Scarum..." (Vía: TheWind.us)