New England Teen Scene: Unreleased! 1965-1968

Liner Note Author: Erik Lindgren.
Unknown Contributor Role: Jonathan Wyner.
Even by the standards of '60s garage reissues, we're talking obscure here. None of these 30 tracks were released at the time, and several of the bands represented never managed to issue any official product at all; five of the songs, in fact, are totally uncredited, having been found on undocumented tapes. It's about what you might expect from this sort of project: lots of imitations of the Byrds, Beau Brummels, Zombies, etc., though there's nothing that demands attention, or provides evidence of woefully undiscovered talent. New England bands in general seemed to favor melodic pop and Zombie-ish keyboards more than groups from other regions, and that's reflected in many of the selections on the disc. If such grave-digging appeals to you, however, you could be a lot worse off. The sound quality is mostly excellent -- largely taken from master tapes, it's actually considerably better than the usual garage reissue norm. And while none of this is truly excellent, none of it's truly awful either, most of the acts adhering to basic standards of instrumental competence, and presenting original material rather than overdone covers. ~ Richie Unterberger