I’ve been feeling nostalgic lately, and whenever I’m inclined to look back I always seem to find comfort in sugar sweet melodies layered with three or five part harmonies. Naturally I put in a lot of Beach Boys, but I also find solace in the records that continued their tradition of experimentation fused with solid song writing. Last year’s amazing Strawberry Jam by Animal Collective is a perfect example.

Philadelphia’s Dr. Dog is running with this crowd and after four albums is more comfortable with their own place than most bands. Their brand of psychedelic Brian Wilson tinged freak folk holds my mind on long walks and recently has grabbed me while driving around and looking at Georgia’s dogwood trees bloom.

A few days ago they announced that a new album entitled FATE is coming soon. They described their process for creating the record as follows:

We spend a lot of time together, maybe more than any person should spend with another, but that’s not a complaint. It’s to say that when you spend this much time with a bunch of dudes, you learn from one another and you learn something about yourself. Not sure what that’s got to do with anything, but at the moment we listen to this record and think that all the time we spend together has as much to do with the album as anything else.

No wonder their songs make me want to hold the ones I love and smile at strangers.

Dr. Dog - Heart It Races (Archetecture In Helsinki cover)