Long before making his mark on the independent music scene as a member of Birdsongs of the Mesozoic and involvement with numerous other indie-avant-rock projects and labels, Erik Lindgren was writing and recording his own music as a teenage one-man band of sorts. Sound on Sound rescues 22 songs... [+] Expand

Long before making his mark on the independent music scene as a member of Birdsongs of the Mesozoic and involvement with numerous other indie-avant-rock projects and labels, Erik Lindgren was writing and recording his own music as a teenage one-man band of sorts. Sound on Sound rescues 22 songs in 79 minutes-worth of material he recorded in 1973 and 1974, at the ages of 18 and 19, playing almost all of the instruments (though five of the tracks include help from friends on lead guitar and clarinet). From a purely technical standpoint, that's a remarkable achievement, especially considering that Lindgren played all of the keyboards, guitars, bass, percussion, and a bit more, also singing and composing everything (though a couple numbers were written with Eric Van). Judged purely as music, it's less impressive, though its shortcomings are understandable given the performer's youth. He was obviously heavily influenced by Brian Wilson's output in the late 1960s and early 1970s, and much of this has the sort of wistful, fragile, almost bewildered feeling of the work Wilson did in the years immediately following 1967. Other obvious reference points -- they're mentioned in the liner notes, but it's obvious from listening as well -- are the early Pete Townshend solo recordings, Paul McCartney, Todd Rundgren, and Michael Brown of the Left Banke. Lindgren didn't have the melodic brilliance of those composers, though, and as he himself admits in the liner notes, he's "limited as a singer and guitarist," with a high, thin vocal range. Too, these aren't exactly polished recordings, some of the clunky rhythms betraying their origins as one-man overdubs. The collection's a whimsical curiosity with some goofy lyricism, though fitfully engaging in its naivete. ~ Richie Unterberger, All Music Guide [-] Collapse

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