Ever wonder what The Mamas and The Papas would sound like playing in a dirty basement show on a college campus? One would imagine it sounding something like this album. Garage rock takes on San Francisco summer of love psychedelia in Cool Ghouls’ “A Swirling Fire Burning Through The Rye”. Myself being a fan of the Haight Ashbury scene that Cool Ghouls draws from so heavily, I had high hopes for the album. “A Swirling Fire” however, did not deliver. The album desperately lacks variety with very little change in tone, dynamics, structure, or even tempo, and many tracks are nearly indistinguishable from one another. The last track however offers some respite from the noise. “Sweet Rain” is a slow burning groove that is the only really memorable moment on the album. It seems like Cool Ghouls had one good idea for this album, but couldn’t think of any more.
5/10
