The Good Earth

Six years after releasing a debut that would stand as a critical achievement decades later, a slightly different lineup of the Feelies produced a second record, one with softer edges and a mellower world view. Although The Good Earth feels like the band traded in amphetamines for decaf chai and yoga, the album carries nearly the same weight as Crazy Rhythms in terms of its critical success and influence. Now two drummers strong, this lineup shares the insistent, propulsive energy of the original group, but it’s tempered with a more relaxed, grounded feel, befitting its title. A perfect road trip record, you feel summer wind in your hair as the guitars churn and chime on tracks like “On the Roof” and “Let’s Go,” you hug a curvy, country road as the hazy psych-pop of “Tomorrow Today” unfurls around you. Even when toms are struck and guitars are strummed in hummingbird time, even when reedy Velvet Underground guitars ring out, The Good Earth somehow soothes and calms, its yin and yang creating a wonderful harmony.