Comets on Fire: Avatar

Label: Sub Pop

With every album, Bay Area bad boys Comets on Fire just get better and better. Avatar has more of a classic-rock sound for the band, augmented by the chaos-punk-psych jams that ruled their earlier releases. While there are still plenty of adrenaline-fueled freak-outs referencing the best of the Blue Cheer back catalog, a good portion of Avatar is lushly mellow, with bluesy interludes, piano flourishes and lead vocals straight out of the best ‘70s rock hits. It’s clear that the band’s members, who belong to such disparate projects as Six Organs of Admittance, Howlin’ Rain and Colossal Yes, have thoroughly enriched the overall palate of the group, bringing even more influences to the mix of their blues-psychedelic overdrive. This album is as much of a surprise and joy as it is a question mark of what they have in store for the future. All hail the Comets!