Hey There Golden Hair

iTunes Review

Poughkeepsie-to-Brooklyn pop-rockers Robbers On High Street turn up the Beatles influence on their third album, Hey There Golden Hair. There’s still plenty of dense fuzz-guitar and electronic manipulations, courtesy of a clever production from Robbers frontman Ben Trokan and engineer Matt Shane. The Daptone horn section adds an extra brightness, but it’s the vocal interplay that drives the majority of the tracks. “Second Chance” is a bouncy piano number. “Electric Eye” punches up a compact pop groove with groovy keyboards and an airtight rhythm section. Amidst the manic psychedelia of “Crystal Run,” with its splendid guitar solos, hides a Magical Mystery Tour-era Beatles base of operations. “Hollow Hill” could be an earnest lost Paul McCartney track. (The group has covered Macca’s “Monkberry Moon Delight.”) “Face In the Fog” makes great use of Hammond organ. “Hey Unbelievers” and “The Man From the Turnaround” spark more fine Fab Four harmonies. “Monkey” brings forth a ‘60s energy into a modern context. It’s a satisfying mix of old and new, borrowed and almost blue.