‘Mirage’ closes a psychedelic trilogy that started with ‘FREAKOUT’ (Lolipop Records, 2015), and continued with ‘MANTRA’ (Hypnotic Bridge Records, 2024), and it doesn’t just retread old ground. Surf rock, garage psych, lounge exotica, soul, jazz and vintage instrumental pop all pass through its fourteen tracks, sometimes politely, sometimes like a jukebox with unusually good taste and no supervision.
“Track Zero” is a doorway of barely a minute, and then “Hot Brew” switches the lights on with Panther organ, guitar and a cinematic swagger. Eric Penna wrote and recorded the album, mixed it, and plays guitars and percussion throughout, and he clearly knows psychedelic music doesn’t have to be solemn. Much of this record is grinning. “Purple Panther,” with Ron Dziubla on saxophone, saunters instead of storming, and “Soul Garage A Go Go” brings in Bryan Murphy’s trumpet and pushes things toward a brassier, rowdier corner.
The band gives Penna’s songs a wide palette. Dave Berkham plays bass and Anthony Brisson drums with Glenn Brigman adding Hammond, Farfisa, electric harpsichord and tabla, which keeps these short pieces changing color. Pete Curry plays drums on “Mirage” and both drums and bass on “Fuzz 4 Daze,” which sounds wired, a tiny burst of fuzzed-out speed. Penna’s own Panther organ on “Hot Brew,” “Soul Garage A Go Go” and “Hollywood Surf” adds period flavor without turning the music into a museum reproduction.
The title track is dreamy and a little hard to pin down, and “Mata Hari” brings in vibraphone for a seductive shimmer. “Midnight Bells” and “Five Alarm” stay in the night, each like a scene from an imaginary crime movie. “August Nights” then slows the pulse enough to let the atmosphere settle. The songs are short but rarely feel slight. Penna knows how fast an idea should arrive, make its point and leave.
That economy works especially well on “Hollywood Surf,” where the title nearly gives you the color scheme, and on “The Emerald Apricot,” which sounds like its name: exotic, bright, a bit absurd. By the time “Mantra pt II” arrives, its nearly five minutes feel roomy. Brigman’s tabla, recorded separately at Skyforest Sound, deepens the psychedelic feel, and Penna’s bass keeps it grounded.
The Bandcamp-exclusive “Mantra pt II – band version” offers one more take, extending the album’s interest in transformation instead of just repeating the ending. Nick Zampiello mastered the album at New Alliance East, and it has the warmth and depth that suit its mix of styles. More than anything, it sounds curious. Trabants aren’t trying to prove psychedelia is still relevant. They’re having too much fun bending it into new shapes. ‘Mirage’ is colorful, playful, strange and now and then beautiful, with enough personality to make nostalgia beside the point.
Learn more links: Trabants | Bandcamp
