Taken off his upcoming album ‘Sunset on Sunset,’ Psychic Lines’ “LA in My Mind” emits a dreamy melancholic haze and paints a vivid picture of what it is like to choose fantasy over reality.
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Stream: “LA in My Mind” – Psychic Lines
Do you ever build something up so much in your head that when you actually experience it, the real thing does not compare?
Psychic Lines’ “LA in My Mind” explores the concept of romanticizing a city and it not quite matching your expectations. We all do this. Whether it is with a place, like in this laid-back track, or a relationship, it is a feeling we are quite familiar with.
Opening with intricate guitar plucking that leads into heart-pounding drums, the listener is instantaneously hooked. The detailed lyrics tell quirky tales of grandiose visions of Los Angeles. Though clearly an exaggeration, it is fun and whimsical to think of figures like Carl Wilson and fictional 1920s private eye Philip Marlowe roaming the streets.
Carl Wilson’s corpse rose
Humming “God Only Knows”
And Philip Marlowe brought gin
I’d rather live in
The LA in my mind
Singer/songwriter, guitarist, and saxophone player Phil Jacob sings these lines in a warm melodic tone that evokes a pensive longing. That yearning is so palpable you can fully taste the intoxicating dream he speaks of. The Ohio native’s vast talent shines through in spades.
Conceived in 2008, Psychic Lines also consists of other highly skilled members such as Dann Baker (Love Camp 7, Eljin Marbles) on bass, and Nancy Polstein (Girls on Grass) on drums. Their debut album Cubicle Puppets released in December of ’08, and in 2013 they released their sophomore offering, Everything Keeps Getting Brighter. Six years later came Dance, Cartoon Skeleton.
Now they are back with new captivating work off their upcoming album Sunset on Sunset, out August 23 – and “LA in My Mind” does not disappoint. With each line it is almost as if you are transported into a movie. There is something intensely cinematic in the way Psychic Lines set the scene.
Winding down Mulholland
A sea of lights ‘round the bend
Hugging every hairpin
I’d rather crash in
The LA in my mind
Though the song may be about Los Angeles, the music video for “LA in My Mind,” perhaps fittingly, takes place in New York.
These visuals still manage to radiate those beachy California vibes. Jacob reveals, “The idea was to document a round-trip journey from my apartment in Sunset Park, Brooklyn, to Rockaway Beach via the ferry. We wanted to capture a West Coast vibe on the East Coast, so along the way we played with various ideas, like burning palo santo and tossing a frisbee at sunset.” The video is just as calming and wistful as the song itself. It will make you want to visit…the LA in his mind.
Facing west on Sunset
The setting sun getting wet
And drowning our corruption
I’m going clear in
The LA in my mind
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Stream: “LA in My Mind” – Psychic Lines
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© Steve de Seve
© Steve de Seve
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