Back in September, at the R.E.M. tribute concert at the 40 Watt, a hastily-assembled Elephant 6 supergroup dubbed "An Observatory" performed a set of R.E.M. covers--you can hear an MP3 here. The band was led by Bill Doss on vocals, with members of Olivia Tremor Control, Of Montreal, Dark Meat, Pylon, Fabulous Bird, and Beijing filling out the band. Those last two bands have merged to form King of Prussia, whose debut album, Save the Scene, has just been released. (You can order it directly from the band at their MySpace page.) I highly recommend it to fans of Masters of the Hemisphere and the poppier leanings of E6 in general.

But wait, you say--they're not really an Elephant 6 band, so why are you talking about them at Optical Atlas? Well, (a) I thought they'd be of interest, given the aforementioned "Observatory" connection and the fact that they're amazing, and (b) it gives me an excuse to cross-plug a new non-E6 music blog I started last week called Electric Sailor. The conundrum is that a lot of bands give me CDs and MP3s and ask me politely to review them, and I can't, because this blog would lose its focus. But if I like them, I want to enthuse somewhere. So if you're looking for MP3 downloads and music recommendations in the "somewhat similar to Elephant 6" category, you can check out my new site here. It has a broader focus on psychedelic music in general, so you'll also find, in the months to come, scattered essays on bands of the past as well as new ones influenced by them. If it's poppy and/or psychedelic, chances are it's something I'll want to write about there. (Also similar to Masters of the Hemisphere, with touches of The Essex Green, is a Brooklyn-based band called The Shot Heard 'Round the World--I have a review of their new album, and an MP3, at Electric Sailor, so check it out.) Chances are that I'll update that blog a bit less regularly than I do this one (I have a film blog too, so I keep busy)--but, hey, it's an outlet. Now back to the E6 stuff. Expect a Captain23 installment shortly.

Electric Sailor
Electric Sailor on MySpace