Foxy Shazam/Larry and his Flask

Upon cueing up Foxy Shazam’s 2012 album, The Church of Rock and Roll, everything sounds pretty classically rock-oriented. But singer Eric Nally’s impassioned delivery suddenly gets chopped up by various effects, and, just after the two-minute mark, the song abruptly dies off. There’s nothing particularly routine about how this Cincinnati-based band approaches its music. That’s even truer on this year’s release, Gonzo (available on bandcamp.com). The title track on that album is a laid-back, brass-buffeted affair. It’s groovy as all hell. And the rest of Gonzo follows suit. There are some pretty clear signals throughout the album that Foxy Shazam has landed on a certain sound they’ve been seeking for a few years now. Both “Poem Pathetic” and “Have the Fun,” for instance, cover a lot of ground in just a couple short minutes. Inventive, hook-laden harmonies seem to be the band’s calling card, which is totally cool with us. (Sandy)