Houstonist Listens: Ghost Mountain's Summer Tapes EP

Dear reader, Houstonist is most certain that you've seen us gushing about Ghost Mountain, our favorite teen duo from Baytown. Rest assured that when we are extolling their musicality via H-Town Rock installments and urging you to attend their performances, the hype is indeed worth it. To evidence that, we bring you the latest iteration in their catalog: the Summer Tapes EP.

The EP, a VHS release accompanied by a mini-cdr of the songs [yes, you read that correctly], is adorned with Ghost Mountain's familiar collage-style artwork. The video itself is a mish-mash collection of samples from thrift-store and yard sale acquired tapes, recorded from a circuit bent VCR. Somewhat wacky, a tad disturbing, but entirely entertaining, the video serves as a fine backdrop for the EP's music. A much more finely tailored compliment to this February's Siamese Sailboats - which was a superbly bombastic celebration jam - Summer Tapes may lack the immediate appeal of accessibility that its predecessor possessed, but it is an amazingly strong endeavor.

Clocking in at a bit over twenty-six minutes, it is an album meant to be played in its entirety on a lazy summer afternoon while driving around in the car, hand out the window. A mellow, ethereal jaunt across time, Summer Tapes seems designed for the slow-burn of Houston's hyper-humid August: the mild distortions, circuit bending, and cascading acid wash indicative of the ambition-destroying, mind-numbing heat. It is a musical embodiment of someone melting into the sidewalk, too fatigued to do anything, with moments of stellar energy popping in and out of the mix.

The opening track "Eye Rings" launches in with a rollicking bounce before burning away to the airy "Turn Colors" which drops the listener into "Nap in the Woods" - arguably the strongest track on the album. Daniel and Stephen have employed countless en-vogue tricks in weaving their layers of sound, but they have done so without retaining the kitcsh factor associated with said tricks. Thus, when "Nap in the Woods" refrain, "Getting trucks stuck in mud on purpose isn't my thing, I'd rather get up to watch Sesame Street early in the morning" drops into a screwed vocal loop, we are not shaking our heads in disappointment, but rather are left screaming for more. Other favorite tracks on the album include the hyper-fantastic hip-hop instrumental "The Tree Wall" and the slow catchy roll of "Sloth Bear Possum."

Simply put, Summer Tapes is yet another fine release that Houstonist is proud to add to the ever-improving roster of 2009. Perhaps one of our favorite lines on the album is the instruction, "do what you wanna, do what you wanna do" - a line tucked away in the hazy vignette "Treasures in My Mind." Ghost Mountain is certainly doing what they want to do, and we wouldn't have it any other way.

You can catch Ghost Mountain tonight at The Mink [with Female Demand, Stove Blow, and Spelling Bee] or tomorrow night at Notsuoh [with EAR PWR and Toro Y Moi].