P.G. Six – Parlor Tricks and Porch Favorites

Amish Records gives an overdue reissue to a folk gem that stands at the axis of quite a few RSTB faves. P.G. Six, better known as Pat Gubler, is a member of Garcia Peoples, Weeping Bong Band, Metal Mountains, contributed to the excellent Sella Kola LP this year, and has played with Wet Tuna and psych-folk flashpoint The Tower Recordings. In the crossover between the last years of Tower, Pat began to work on solo recordings that embraced traces of his classical composition roots, Irish folk inclinations, and psychedelic folk tethers. Parlor Tricks and Porch Favorites was his 2001 debut, originally issued on LP for small Jersey label Perhaps Transparent Record and on CD for Amish. The latter has put the album back into print alongside a bonus LP of live recordings from around the time the album was recorded, framing the album in the context of WNYU sessions, Festival appearances, and on stage at the legendary Tonic.

The album sounds as engrossing as ever — a folk journey that’s not afraid to follow a tributary or two away from the easy road. The paths lead Gubler to moments of quiet reflection, overcast intensity, and plaintive resolve that’s less visceral than what Tower was doing at the time, but no less impactful. The record stands as a turning point for Gubler, mapping out much of the direction that he’d take with P.G. Six on through the Drag City years, and even now hinting back to some of the Anglican folk impressions he’s left on recent Garcias’ records. The bonus disc is a must for collectors and completists of the early aughts psych-folk wave, a tag that P.G. Six would find itself inextricable from over his tenure. Amish have done the album its due, both in the aural restoration and the visual overhaul, with artist Meredyth Sparks reimagining the beautiful Chris Krol cover art in a woodcut gatefold design.

Support the artist. Buy it HERE.