Pearl Earl is a neo-psychedelic rock band formed in Denton, Texas in 2014 by multi-instrumentalist and singer/songwriter Ariel Hartley. The band was originally a three-piece outfit but has since expanded to include a rotating lineup of different members, including Bailey K Chapman, Stefanie Lazcano, Chelsey Danielle, Teddy Georgia Waggy, and Leeza V. The sidereal/prog sound you hear always looming above every note and down every riff isn't coincidental, as Hartley first conceived of the project in her college bedroom as an inheritor of the spaced-out psychedelic of the 70s, to the point where the project now bares the "Once described as Pink Floyd in the sunlight” tagline as a badge of honor, since that's both a compliment and an achievement in and of itself.

Pearl Earl has toured extensively throughout the United States, sharing bills with a variety of acclaimed bands, including Death Valley, Girls, Oh Sees, Post Animal, The Black Angels, Acid Dad, Frankie and The Witch Fingers, Black Lips, and more. They have also performed at major festivals such as Levitation and SXSW.

Today, we'll be looking at Pearl Earl's latest release, a full album by the name of "It's Dread". A playful, takedown of our modern global dystopic climate draped in schlocky aesthetics for a fun twist rather than a fully pessimistic tone. Ariel Herself describes the album as "a journey through the existential crisis of apocalyptic anxiety and ego death. With a tongue-in-cheek attitude and flavor for sci-fi, It's Dread immerses itself into a doomed Earth plagued by a capitalistic and patriarchal society captivated by celebrity worship and consumerism. Despite the majority of the album being written during a global pandemic, there is an underlying glimmer of hope and resolution throughout its subversive demeanor"

Damage Control is a lush, synth-soaked first plunge into a flowery, colorful pool of kaleidoscopic mirth. Funny that an album named "It's Dread!" would start out on such a hypnotic and even uplifting note. As soon as Ariel's echo-y vocals begin massaging your front lobe with acid-tipped fingers, you know that the trip is fully on and there's no turning back, we've left earth behind in the blink of an eye, and with it a lot of modern, mainstream conventions along with it. If you're at all into Hawkwind, I think you'll feel in good company right away.

Evil Does It has this menacing percussion to it accompanied by a moody synth melody that hints and reeks of funny, whimsical evil (though the lyrics make it clear that it's all very serious indeed). Think of something along the lines of "Where There's a Whip, There's A Way", only less jarring and more mysterious. With this song, we can fully begin to appreciate the creative and playful riffs that Pearl Earl can produce, as the acid trip begins turning delightfully unsettling and genuinely Dreadful!

The Titular It's Dread! with its subtle snares can feel a lot like Jefferson Airplane's 'White Rabbit', and I count that as a very good thing, but it's when that military undertone becomes subsumed by the dainty, angelic vocals out of Ariel Hartley that you feel the track take on an even more powerful aura as if it's priming you to hallucinate something truly fantastic and scary. The nearly 5-minute track became an instant favorite for me.

While one corner of the world is abuzz with UFO disclosure discourse, I think that Alien Brew presents the perfect opportunity to go outside at night and hope you get a glimpse of a weird light you cannot easily explain. The dreamy, melodious riffs are amazing and some of the best in the entire album -and that's really saying something, as I'm sure you'll come to realize. The entire track is perhaps best summarized as a piece of musical virtuosity in full display, right in the middle of an already excellent album dripping with insane-o talent.

Ok, perhaps Slime Green is in the very middle and not Alien Brew, but that's only a mathematical technicality. With its name and themes, the song could take me to 50s sci-fi B-movie headspace, but instead, it's this very strange but incredibly charming place where 60s French Pop/garage-rock meet with Frank Zappa and Plastic Beach-Era Gorillaz. If by now you haven't been convinced and thoroughly entertained by the huge creative breadth and aesthetic range of Pearl Earl, then you *seriously* need to have your ears checked.

Full Moon Power is even more peculiar and full of arcane influences. The way I heard it, it's kind of a light-hearted 60s spy thriller theme song if it was written and arranged by Arthur Brown. As fun and fanciful as the album's been so far, it's also amazing how it keeps ramping up the weirdness without being *too* weird altogether. This track in particular is funky and bouncy, but it's acid-washed in pretty heavy rock riffs that somehow tie it all down to a comforting structure.

With Jock Goth is in some ways the most contemporary-sounding track so far thanks to the droning rhythm in the background, however, it is still not at all what you would call conventional by any means, and the strange rhythm melody stands halfway between a carnivalesque fever-dream or some piece of prog-pop music inspired by a shady and Womanizing Yogi-Guru of the stars.

Baby Blue Looks Good on Mars is by far the catchiest song in the entire album, it is the kind of sound and melody that you won't be able to get out of your head any time soon. Its crash-bang loud rhythms and echo-y vocal distortion do little to assuage the addictive sugar rush that the two main riffs provide.

You're Not A God is the biggest takedown on celebrity worship that the album has to offer, In my opinion. To fit with this theme, the song shows you down a groovy and exuberant synth path that flirts with dance/electro sensibilities that suggest high fashion and red-carpet walks; all without ever abandoning the psychedelic foundations of the Band.

Miss Milky Way's Mental Breakdown is the kind of song that makes you want to drift away into infinity. Lyrically, it's all very up to interpretation, but to me, it seems to be heavily about disillusionment with the state of the world, and a huge sense of exhaustion washing over a body that's been overloaded with feelings and threats. The track feels like a very personal statement by Heartley, less wrapped up in some of the Rock & Roll coolness of before and more vulnerable. However, that doesn't mean that the band is done rocking, because just before the track hits the minute mark, it evolves into a rollercoaster prog-rock mini-journey within the album, condensing a lot of the sounds and textures we experienced before it as a sort of epilogue. A brilliant sendoff to an already brilliant album.

Nothing I've read about Pearl Earl could have prepared me for the sheer quality and impetus that the band was packing for his monumental release, and you better believe that I can't quite do it justice with my words either. Just remember that on pure Rock qualities alone, this album is just something that nobody should miss, boasting incredible production and arrangement on one end and pure virtuous talent on the other.

"It's Dread" might be only 10 songs long, but averaging at roughly 4 minutes and 30 seconds for each track, it's far from a short experience, and each of those minutes is jam-packed with nothing short of Excellence. If you're considering a trip to the outer reaches of perception and consciousness, you can pick no better partner today than Pearl Earl, guaranteed.

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Pearl Earl’s Psychedelic Masterpiece Is Here

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