The Dark Fantastic - Goodbye Crooked Star
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The Dark Fantastic is a bizarre hybrid: Mark Pickerel on drums, guitar and vocals,
formerly of the Screaming Trees and Truly, playing India-inspired psychedelic rock.
The result is pretty much like 1966 San Francisco channeled through 1992 Seattle.
He seems sincere enough (bully for him), but how seriously can one take lyrics like
"follow bliss and doors will open?"
The band is your standard four-on-the-floor rock, with some keys thrown in to
sweeten the mix, playing melodic, mid-tempo numbers. The guitar, when it riffs,
has a cool, menacing edge, recalling the sweaty machismo of grunge, but is
generally relegated to either generic, space-taking strums or fake sitar-style
licks. The bass follows the guitar. The drums pound in a way fitting for the
Screaming Trees (Pickerel beat the skins in that band) but lack any finesse, which
is disappointing considering how long he has been playing.
To be honest, I am not too sure what to make of this record. Maybe it's for aging
Northwesterners. Or nostalgic grungers. I don't know. Here is what I do know:
Pickerel is a better singer than he is a drummer, but he's a better drummer than he
is a lyricist. I didn't like this record too much but maybe if you like the Screaming
Trees and Jefferson Airplane and want to hear them play together, you will.
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