Song of the Day: GospelbeacH “California Fantasy”

Featuring veterans of Beachwood Sparks, the Tyde, Everest, and the Watson Twins, GospelbeacH are a band that wears its California heart on its sun-bleached sleeve. Formed in 2014 by vocalist and guitarist Brent Rademaker and drummer Tom Sanford, the lineup was completed by guitarist and singer Neal Casal, bassist Kip Boardman and guitarist Jason Soda.

Following up on a 2015 debut, Pacific Surf Line, that owed more than a small debt to early 1970s Grateful Dead, GospelbeacH return with the newly-released sophomore effort Another Summer of Love. The band largely abandons the folk and country rock influences of their debut for a more straightforward pop sound. With close vocal harmonies straight out of the Byrds playbook and a mix of classic instrumentation including ringing 12-string guitar jangle, warm keyboards, vintage Mellotron (courtesy 1970s soft rockers America), and an economical bass & drums rhythm section, GospelbeacH mine that familiar but rich vein of laid-back California rock that’s been the stock-in-trade for classic-minded acts ranging from Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers to [post-Creation Records] Teenage Fanclub and Neil Halstead (Mojave 3) to the Avett Brothers.

These influences are generously on display in “California Fantasy,” a freewheeling power pop ode to the West Coast lifestyle.

California fantasy
We’re gonna overdose on reality
I’m losing my mind
And taking my time
Don’t want to leave it all behind
Yeah!