Color Green

Color Green’s been sneaking onto the speakers around here since their first EP, a gauzy transmission that felt like it was beamed across the canyon from another era. In the last few years the band has built its ranks and reputation, swelling to a four piece and polishing the pearl of their sound until it gleams. The band’s New West debut finds them pulling back on the cosmic country that’s been at their core, letting some pop nip at their Americana, while adding a few splashes of color to their sepia songcraft. With a woven structure that pulls the listener through on sun-warmed winds, the album winds up doused in as much psych-pop splendor as Cosmic American charms.

The band’s time on stage feeds into the structure of Fool’s Parade, and each song might as well be broken by the taper’s target, one > leading > the > other > by > the > hand. “Coronado” dusts off their old habits, but as they crash into lead single “Four Leaf Clover” there’s a grandiosity that carves the liquid light right into the title track that follows. The band hits the throttle on the choogle as the album arcs, proving that a broader palette hasn’t hampered their engine one bit, and “God in a $” already feels like a cemented Color Green classic. The band explores their more languid side as the album sets on the speakers, finding just as much heft in the quieter moments as they do in raging tempos. At 7+ minutes, and marked by brass, the B-Side nabs an anthem in “Kick The Bucket,” which has all the hallmarks of a live highlight. It’s been great to see the band grow over the past couple of years, but Fool’s Parade feels like Color Green coming into their own. It’s a contender for 2024, but I’ve got a feeling this one will endure long beyond year-end lists.