Last night The Ghost of a Saber Tooth Tiger followed the other-worldly Fever The Ghost at the El Rey theater. Fronted by Sean Lennon and girlfriend Charlotte Kemp Muhl, The GOASTT have worked diligently under the radar to create their own authenticity. The audience at the El Rey were walked through a dream – hand in hand with the GOASTT we strolled through a cerebral mix of sixties and seventies play. With enough psychadelia to keep us interested but not too much that our eyes glaze over, GHOASTT and crowd escaped into arty eastern tones and extra-terrestrial percussion. Lennon’s nasal vocals paired nicely with Muhl’s candy-coated siren call. Fan-favorites “Animal” and “Xanadu” were derivative of inescapable influences and laced with esoteric guitars and tambourines. Like any artist of Sean Lennon’s pedigree, referential comments were unavoidable as proved by the head that shouted “Welcome to Los Angeles beautiful boy!” Nevertheless, the GOASTT enjoy tinkering with and tweaking their eccentric individuality – but not SO individual that we can’t liken them to fellow shape-shifters/mind benders Tame Impala and the Flaming lips. With a gorgeous retro-fied psych-orientation of rock histrionics, The Ghost of a Saber Tooth Tiger were out to illuminate their metaphysical ruckus. Encore song “The World Was Made For Men” was a ghostly track of harmony and weightlessness. Closing the night with Syd Barrett’s “Long Gone” the GOASTT pulled us through a dissonant and kaleidoscopic ride as they continues to give future to nostalgia.

All words and photos by me for LA RECORD