Edward Sharpe is the alter ego of Alex Ebert, former Ima Robot front-man, who has seen God — or something similarly uplifting — and metamorphosed into a bearded, robed, faux messiah. He's surrounded himself with a flock of disciples who seem equally keen to plough through the doors of perception by means of sheer willpower. Nominally LA-based, Sharpe and the Zeros, inspired by Ken Kesey's Merry Pranksters, have been touring the States in a multi-coloured school bus. They sing, clap and testify to the joys of being, with the gospel harmonies of the Edwin Hawkins Singers and the psych-folk wide-eyed wonder of the Polyphonic Spree.

All of which might be a tad irritating and shrill were it not for the fact that, beneath the surface of cosmic glee, there lurk songs of real power, depth and sometimes darkness. The arrangements are busy and emotive, and as the album progresses the group offers horn-charged funk rhythms and even a couple of tracks (“Carries On”, “Black Water”) which might be old demos of Roy Orbison songs written for him by U2.

From the euphoric opening surge of “40 Day Dream” — with its Arcade Firing arrangements and witty, mystic lyrics (“She got sunset on… read more »