Dandelions tapes are now shipping, and can be purchased HERE.

Download available HERE.

Promo clips for "Asphalt Sherwood Forest" and "Helena Sunshine":

It’s 1968. Cold humid air in the window. A candle glowing. A time that will quickly pass. From a castle by the lake in Oakland, California- a thin fingered hand from the arm of a man strums a guitar. And we go where we go. Any place we don’t know. And we must take comfort in survival. And we must take comfort in arrival.

And so it arrives: Troun Records is pleased to announce a new solo record from Magic Hero vs. Rock People frontman Donny Lang, Dandelions.

And we do mean solo. These recordings were made with a single microphone into a 1960s Ampex suitcase recorder. Shure, a little echo was added- courtesy of an old friend called the Vocal Master. That’s the castle.

The Guild guitar Mr Lang settled on came with a story too. The seller said he’d had it since ‘69- the Jesus guitar. A former truck driver, he picked up a hitchhiker near the Mojave desert and gave him a ride to L.A. Upon letting him off, the hitchhiker insisted the truck driver keep the guitar: “I don’t need anything but Jesus now …” The guitar returned to California just in time.

The record’s subject matter varies from the intangibility of nostalgia, to mysterious and failing relationships, Charles Manson as a CIA asset, California from San Francisco to L.A., women as flowers, and spirit guides- among other threads. When asked to describe the new record, Mr Lang simply stated, “I’m presenting an alternate history of the ‘60s from where I sit.”

While it’s challenging to define exactly where he sits, we’re interested in hearing all about it. And we hope you will be too.

- David Vaughn

Dandelions can be purchased HERE (limited edition vintage-style cassette) and HERE (download).

​

We have decided to join the Rock People in creation of a Bandcamp page:

https://magichero.bandcamp.com/

Here, you can listen to/download our latest release, Mystery of Revival.

If you've checked out our music in the past, stop by and say hello, and thanks for your support!

MYSTERY OF REVIVAL -- Now shipping

Troun Records is pleased to announce a new cassette-only release from Magic Hero vs. Rock People, Mystery of Revival.

Donny Lang has been making vintage-sounding 'Thrift Shop Psych-Pop' since 2007 with his group of revolving minstrels, Magic Hero vs. Rock People. The Magic Hero sound relies heavily on a unique sort of lo-fi vision -- through the soundscape of late '60s-early '70s soft-psych, calling to mind long-lost would-be outsider classics.

Mystery of Revival is a compilation featuring songs culled from all of the group's albums: Oak of the Golden Dream, Secret Enemies, Magic Hero vs. Rock People, Begin Thee Again, Odd Zen Ends, and Great Gondolas Calling, along with previously unreleased outtakes.

These recordings were made in an old-fashioned manner: tapes, tubes, transformers, and transistors. The original 1/4" 2-track and mono masters were used for this collection.

Side One: 1 I Live in a World / 2 Treat It Like Your First / 3 Black Magic / 4 Astro-Turf / 5 Letters in the Sun / 6 A Grand Stop in the Best Direction / 7 Only Road You're Gonna Find / 8 He's Gone / 9 Begin Thee Again (Movements) / 10 Oklahoma Rain -- Side Two: 1 It All Depends On Everything / 2 Hole in Time / 3 You Must Stand On Your Own / 4 1978 / 5 Who Are the People in Your Neighborhood? / 6 Contraband / 7 Pretty As Can Be / 8 Beware the Young / 9 A Season in Time / 10 You Must Stand On Your Own (Reprise)

Order HERE.

Troun Records is pleased to announce a new release from Magic Hero vs. Rock People, OAK OF THE GOLDEN DREAM.

"I had a really great time last night. I don't know if it was the booze or the overdose of human contact, but something emphasized the impact of suddenly realizing that another drone who lives in the factory as a human cog was, in reality, a great showman.

He lives in the same world that I do, 'where schools try to fool me and fools try to school me,' but he's managed to find a place to create a possibility ... the thing that happens with the perfect combination of substance, will and innocence.

Who is this magic hero who sees Charles Manson as the one president of the U.S. that can really end the war? It is necessary to go to a live performance by this craftsman to understand the complete dimension of his work. Don 'hates to perform', so it's a great night when you get to see him play live in front of, well, the other bands that will play after him that night, and a few other aliens, like me. It's all so … kind of ridiculously spontaneous.

'I live in a world where love is dying' ... the world we are all stuck in. He invites us to take that statement, if anything, home from this evening. We do. We realize we live there too as we play it in our heads, and wonder how we ever got here, as the he throws clues at us, in hope that someone is listening: 'Mister Rogers.' 'Charles Manson.' Perhaps there is hope. We also hear the Sesame Street theme and get a recommendation to watch Mr. Wizard: 'He might teach you something'.

For the few there, the trip has been a memorable one, which we'll talk about with our trusted peers. Or maybe not. Maybe it will remain a secret. An undocumented rarity from the music underworld.

So now there is a new refinement of the Magic Hero sound, a California album: 'Oak of the Golden Dream' … 12-string & fuzzed-out guitars. Harpsichords, flutes ... Mellotron. A dizzying array of tripped-out pop music,  a distant orchestra … recorded on ancient Ampex tape recorders. With old tape. And old ways … but it's all new really."

- Pablo M., San Francisco, Calif.

Order HERE.

"Treat It Like Your First" Promo Clip

"Summer Is a Place in My Mind" Promo Clip

"It All Depends On Everything" Promo Clip

Rock People live in the shadows and run from the shadows. They are permanently stoned on false promises. We must avoid the television, that is one of the ways that they are programmed (how easy it is to fall into that trap). Light a candle in the evening instead, prepare a good meal. Create something. Enhance your environment. Avoid gratification and decide instead to contribute. You will find that your spirit is lifted and the insecurities of your body are no longer the boss. Find allies. Watch out for devils that may follow you around. These can be disguised as harmless consumer products which are presented in attractive packaging. They will follow you. Once you have recognized what is bad for you and what is good for you, it becomes very clear how very strong the bad will hold on to and entice you. Don't give in. 

This is not outsider philosophy, it is real. This is not conspiracy, it is human nature and the end result of a brand of capitalism so extreme it will stop at nothing. It needs more, it is never satisfied, nothing is ever good enough, no amount or speed or growth is as large and fast as they want it to be. The machine never stops, there is no humanity. To rock people, there is nothing wrong with any of this, they don't even see or hear what is there. There are some that recognize truth, or acknowledge small pieces of reality, but they push it away and continue to play along. Realize what's real and don't give up. Would you prefer your eyes to be glowing or stoned dead? Would you prefer your ears to hear beautiful sounds or machines pumping waste? Do you wish for your heart to be open? And your will free?

One of their main goals is to keep everyone content and comfortable. It is when people are uncomfortable that they begin to think, they begin to challenge things. Allow yourself to become uncomfortable. Involve yourself in strange situations. Become a Magic Hero. Only then will the truth reveal itself.

- Magic Hero vs. Rock People