Over the last two-plus decades, John Garcia‘s voice has set the standard for the sound of the California desert. His work in genre-progenitors Kyuss speaks for itself — loudly, and with much fuzz — and subsequent outfits Unida, Slo Burn, Hermano and more guest appearances than one can count have kept his presence steady in the international underground he played an essential role in forging, and his first solo outing, John Garcia, arrives via Napalm Records following a run with the semi-Kyuss reunion outfit Vista Chino, which ultimately brought together Garcia and drummer Brant Bjork with guitarist Bruno Fevery and Corrosion of Conformity bassist Mike Dean to tour the world in support of their 2013 outing, Peace (review here), after a couple years prior on the road as Kyuss Lives!, that project born out of Garcia‘s own Garcia Plays Kyuss, which launched at the 2010 Roadburn festival. In some ways, the album John Garcia is an extension of Vista Chino, particularly in terms of Garcia‘s performance and in terms of the production. An 11-track/45-minute full-length, material was culled from years of Garcia‘s own tapes, freshly arranged by the singer with some input by Hermano guitarist Dave Angstrom, and brought to bear by producer Harper Hug at Thunder Underground, the same studio where Peace was recorded. However, since some of the source material for these songs is older, and because there are a variety of players appearing throughout, from The Doors‘ Robbie Krieger on acoustic-led closer “Her Bullets Energy” to Danko Jones, Angstrom himself, Nick Oliveri and The Dwarves‘ Mark Diamond and Tom Brayton, there’s also no shortage of diversity in the sound.

That being the case, John Garcia ran a pretty hefty risk in the making of coming across disjointed, but the consistency in the production and of course the focus element of Garcia‘s voice tie tracks together neatly, the album opening with its biggest chorus in “My Mind,” a track that immediately casts the wide-open spaces in which the rest of the songs will take place. Those familiar with his work will hear shades of various Garcia-fronted bands throughout the album, from the Slo Burn-style rush of later cut “Saddleback” to the Vista Chino-esque bounce of “Rolling Stoned,” a cover of Canadian trio Black Mastiff which undercuts some of its laid-back vibe with the opening lyrical threat, “If you leave me, I will kill you.” Nonetheless, “Rolling Stoned” follows “My Mind” as part of a strong opening salvo that continues through “Flower” and “The Blvd” and “5,000 Miles” to proffer memorable hooks, compressed but warm tones and an engaging presence from Garcia, who departs from the post-lawsuit bitterness that comprised much of the thematic of the Vista Chino offering to tell more of a story, as on “The Blvd” or the following “5,000 Miles,” which resounds as a classic coming-home song set to a particularly effective riff, somewhat more open than the first four cuts, but still largely consistent in pace and quality. Truth be told, though the mood changes somewhat along the way, there really isn’t a point where John Garcia falls into clunker-ism. And neither should there be. This project was years in the making and even more years in the discussing, and with Garcia‘s experience in the studio and on stage, it’s perfectly reasonable to assume that if something wasn’t working toward the benefit of the album, it would be discarded. Over repeat listens, John Garcia begins to give that impression — not of being a confessional, exactly, in the way that some “solo albums” are, but of being carefully constructed selections chosen to represent this singer and his songwriting process.

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A track from Hermano‘s much-maligned and in my opinion underrated third album, …Into the Exam Room. Of course, John Garcia is all over the place these days because of the Kyuss Lives! semi-reunion, but this one was a request from Slevin on the forum — the only request, in fact (big Friday night as it is) — so I figured it was the least I could do. Good song either way. I think that record caught a lot of flack for not being Kyuss, but taken for what it was and under the theory that, hey, maybe it wasn’t trying to be, there were still a few good rockers on there. Letting the kids sing at the end, though: always a mistake.

I’m in Connecticut for the weekend and it’s cold as hell up here in the insulation-free cottage, but no question it’s worth it, even though I have to spend pretty much all of tomorrow and Sunday doing homework. Next Wednesday, I fly out to attend Roadburn in The Netherlands, so there’s a shit-ton of stuff I need to take care of before I do that, and working late Monday is out because of class and Tuesday because I’m trying out for a new band (fingers crossed that I don’t suck). Basically, if I wasn’t here, I’d probably be at the office, and between the two, I’ll take Connecticut anytime. Expect a Buried Treasure from Red Scroll Records in the near future.

In the meantime, though, that’s gonna do it for me. I’ll do my best to get posts up on the regular Monday/Tuesday-type thing, and if I can I’ll even get a new interview up before I fly out (that’s a definite maybe), but from Wednesday on, it’s gonna be all Roadburn around here, and I can’t wait. Last year was a blast and I know 2011’s going to be even better. If you’re going, I hope to see you there. And if not, I hope to thrill with pictures, video and probably way too much text about it so you get there before the world ends.

But there’s plenty to do before then, so stick around next week, and until Monday, I hope you have a great and safe weekend. Enjoy the Hermano if you haven’t already.

Among the league of Kyuss offspring (Queens of the Stone Age, Brant Bjork‘s solo stuff, Mondo Generator, Slo Burn, Unida, and so on), John Garcia‘s work with Hermano usually gets the shaft in terms of appreciation. We all know it’s not ever going to be Kyuss again until Josh Homme decides it is, and I think since Hermano are playing desert rock, they’re too often saddled with unrealistic expectations. Is it really fair to say to someone, “Hey buddy, write ‘Supa Scoopa and Mighty Scoop’ or you suck?” I humbly submit it is not.

True, Hermano‘s second record, 2005’s Dare I Say, which was released on MeteorCity, was mediocre at best with some successes and some flops, song-wise, but anyone who overlooked the nigh-spiritual desert introspection of 2007’s …Into the Exam Room simply missed out. “Kentucky,” “Hard Working Wall,” “Our Desert Home,” and others not only showed the songwriting capability of the band — because Hermano is a band and not just the John Garcia Show — but a growth and maturation of the desert rock style that many acts choose to ignore. 1995 was almost 15 years ago. Get over it already (this from the guy who’s trying to convince his wife to plan a trip to The Netherlands to see Goatsnake at Roadburn 2010).

Give Hermano another shot. Here’s a live video for “Exam Room” from Paris in 2007. Pretty much the whole …Into the Exam Room record is on the YouzTubes, so it’s not like you need to shell out cash or anything to hear it.