Gal Gracen from Vancouver debuted with a fine EP in 2013 that sounded like a more experimental mix of Real Estate and The Clientele. He hasn’t been super-productive but this year his first full-length finally saw the light of day. Fantasy Gardens is an artful mix of él Records flair and Broadcast-esque aesthetics. On the eight-minute instrumental “She’s the Queen” I think of Felt and Neu! simultaneously. And I don’t reckon many other people than maybe Vini Reilly would call a composition “Orffesque Redux”, like the beautiful closing track. The LP came out on Jazz Records in September.
