The Diamond Center's Only Companion

The Diamond Center are a psychedelic folk outfit who echo and bash their way through the ten songs that make up their album, My Only Companion. Sounding something like Nico and the Velvet Underground if they were all sick and on the verge of death, The Diamond Center sound disembodied and at times possessed.

My Only Companionis a bizarre album that sounds as if it's The Diamond Center's only companion. This is a record that seems to thrive on being introspective. It's raw, atonal, and lo-fi stuff that at times sounds to far gone to redeem itself, but then does with a stirring, creepy folk pop song that sounds as strange as they must be.

The Diamond Center have come up with a record here that initially just seems too annoying to be any good. But what they don't tell you is that after a second or third listen, bits and bobs start to creep out of the recording and help reveal My Only Companion's charms. It has them, believe it or not, you just have to get past the ghostly production and sparse feel this record suffers from. The title track is a perfect example of how good The Diamond Center can be when the spirits leave them alone. It's a jumpy, nearly rockabilly affair that's catchy as the plague.

Twisted and slightly mentally ill, The Diamond Center write songs for those dearly departed. My Only Companion contains songs from the great beyond and The Diamond Center are here to channel them to us. It's eerie stuff that might just cause you to look under your bed. Interesting to say the least and if they were to hire an exorcist, The Diamond Center might very well be the biggest band on the planet.