White Fence

Songwriter Tim Presley is addicted to the music of the '60s. We already knew this from his work with psychedelic fuzz rock outfit Darker My Love, as well as his collaborations with garage rock revivalists the Strange Boys. This bedroom solo project is no exception, with Is Growing Faith containing traces of the Ventures in the surf-inflected licks of "Sticky Fruitman Has Faith" and the Velvet Underground in the fractured guitar breaks of "Enthusiasm." The closest sound-alike is the Kinks, as Presley evokes the vocal style and pop sensibilities of the Davies brothers on nearly every track. The tunes are catchy, but Presley's scrappy arrangements occasionally hinder his songwriting. "Trouble, Lies & Honesty" is made practically unlistenable by its one-note keyboard drone, which sits unnaturally high in the mix and mars the final half of the track. Such misfires aside, Is Growing Faith will please anyone who shares Presley's affinity for '60s psychedelia.