With a release date of September 13, “Dallas Orbiter” releases a new album, “Spaceman Things.”
Dallas Orbiter is:
Greg Flanagan, Drums
Dan Gahres: Bass/backing vocals
Mark Miller, guitars/vocals
Jon Schmig, Keyboards
It’s been a long time coming but Dallas Orbiter has a new album, Spaceman Things! They have always had this psychedelia space vibe but this new album brings their sound to a whole new level of space rock!
The press pack tells us that “Dallas Orbiter” is a long-running Minneapolis-based rock quartet exploring the cusp between pop songcraft and modern, spaced-out psychedelia. The group began with long Krautrock and electric Miles Davis-inspired space jam sessions in the late 90s/early 2000s in the process of refining an ensemble sound. The band released 3 full-length albums and 2 EPs between 2000 and 2008, along with an online-only monthly singles project in 2011. Their new full-length LP entitled “Spaceman Things,” recorded and mixed with John Miller at Future Condo Studio, is released in the fall of 2024, along with archival self-recorded releases of freestyle improvised music under the band’s collective alter ego Laser Bats From Mars.
The recording of 12 songs for the ‘Spaceman Things’ sessions was completed at Future Condo in 4 days in late April/early May of 2023, and the mix was completed over several evenings in the ensuing weeks. Mastering was expertly done by Bruce Templeton soon thereafter. It’s a much more stripped-down beast than most of the band’s previous self-recorded albums, with an agile, muscular and BIG rhythm section sound plus the interplay between Miller’s guitars and Schmig’s keys somewhat reminiscent of Can’s Karoli & Schmidt, Television’s Verlaine & Lloyd, or Magazine’s McGeoch & Formula.
And so onto the review. Let me say hello to regular readers here who are used to the review team of Lorraine and Stevie, but I volunteered to do some reviews and here I am! Benny sent me this one over for my first review with the team and I’m looking forward to it. Perhaps I got this one due to noting in my application that I liked “Space Ace’ Frehley, so it’s time to get spacey with Dallas Orbiter.
“Into Position” is full of swirling sound medleys. The guitars have a space edge and the keyboards are up in the mix, the drums heavy and anchoring a throbbing rhythm. As an introduction for me to the band and their music, it gets me on the rocket, but where will the ride take us?
“To the Breakdown” has a simpler sway; it almost felt like the musical equivalent of a Martini. I’m not entirely convinced by this track; it seemed to want to be a sixties trippy number with a psychedelic modern edge. The chorus was fine, and the melody worked, but I only really liked it when it really kicked in around the 4 minute mark with a rocky instrumental close.
“Radiate Atcha” is spacy and poppy. I can see I need to gain a wider range of adjectives as a reviewer! “The sun is a crazy cosmic gun,” I’m told with this one. The song is positive, with plenty of blue skies and I liked the 1.30 drum kick that gives the song some boom in the room. The guitars are strong again when they up a gear.
“Forth Gen” is a little strange! I’ll note the vocals placed on the piano sound as if from one of those old horror movies. It’s vocally slow, almost spoken and then there is this background chant. It’s very experimental, like those avant-garde-style musical pieces in the late sixties.
“The Fragile Epigram” is more of a traditional slow rock number, melodic and I really enjoyed the piano feel under the rhythm. This one was my favorite so far, actually. It has a dreamy quality about it and I liked the drum kicks.
“MIDAS” is a rocky instrumental. It’s an enjoyable listen and the keyboards were a highlight here, along with my compliments to the drummer again.
“Blue Sky, Chrome White.” I loved the rhythm and beat on this one—a very uplifting feel, if a bit wistful and dreamy lyrically. Around the 2.30 mark, it changes direction a bit and introduces an interesting new layer that was musically inventing.
“Avenge Me” opens in an exciting manner with a great beat and an upbeat tension. I liked it; the drums act as a heartbeat to the vocals. This one I could see getting some radio play, simple but effective.
“Star Flutes” is another track that retains a light melody and a dreamy chorus. Plenty of stars here and the birds fly through the psychedelic sundown. I loved those heavy guitar riffs that closed the song.
“Fade Away, Just Begun” closes the album for me and it is a fine track to end on with all the best of their instrumental ability on show.
Following my little reviewer template that Benny sent me, I now come to the summary. That is a bit tricky. A lot of it I did like; some of it was a bit too far off field for me. For my older British readers, does anyone remember a children’s program called ‘The Magic Roundabout’ with a character called Dylan? Dylan would be totally into this! Instrumentally, these guys are really capable; the music is distinctive and layered. I will also highlight that every song is different; this is not one of those albums where every song is kind of the same; no, this album is full of light and shade. It’s absolutely worth a stream, and there will be different tracks you will enjoy and come back top. At its best, it’s top drawer indie pop.
Standout tracks are “The Fragile Epigram,” “Avenge Me,” and “Star Flutes.”
As a finishing point, to keep us improving the magazine, we really do need your support, and if you can go to the ‘Support Us’ button and buy us a coffee, it helps us feel appreciated and keep improving the magazine. I mean, this is my first review here, so do cheer me up! We also have our merchandise shop. Read on, check out our many great features and reviews, and do bookmark us on your pages!
Band website here
You can stream music by Dallas Orbiter here
Additional backing vocals by Mark Edwards
Gang vocals on Forth, Gen! by Rachelle Evenson, Maggie Flanagan, and Brandi Raddant
Recorded and mixed by John Miller at Future Condo, Minneapolis, MN
Mastered by Bruce Templeton at Microphonic Mastering, St. Paul, MN
Review by Anna-Louise Burgess.