Beulah: Handsome Western States

I had a bootleg copy of this wonderful album for a long time before finally getting a real copy from the merch table at a Beulah show. Considering it’s out of print, I believe this, along with sending a check to the lead singer, Miles Kurosky, in Oakland, may be the only way to get a legit copy. Well, it is certainly worth the effort. While a little less polished, more straight forward and a tad more derivative than their later stuff, this album has some amazingly memorable indie pop that manages to combine their semi-psychedelic, 60’s leaning sound with the indie rock stylings of a Pavement. To this day “Disco: The Secretaries Blues” is one of my favorite songs. Somehow, through its lyrics and melody the album conveys the attitude and cynical hopefulness of The Golden State in a rockin’ half-hour of pop bliss.