The United States of America – The United States of America (1968)

A1. “The American Metaphysical Circus”

A multi-layered overture of collaged source material: ragtime piano, two parade bands, and a calliope in stereo drift, intercut with dissonant electronic tones. Moskowitz enters with eerie vocal modulations that gradually become processed beyond recognition. The track collapses into a drunken reprise of its opening motifs.

A2. “Hard Coming Love”

Built around screeching distorted violin, hyper-amplified organ, and a dry rhythm section. Moskowitz delivers clipped, aggressive vocals through sonic disruption; the pacing is taut and confrontational.

A3. “Cloud Song”

Moskowitz sings over drifting textures and ambient spaces with slow, vaporous pacing. The track maintains a suspended character, shaped by text lifted from A.A. Milne.

A4. “The Garden of Earthly Delights”

Dense with electronic ornamentation and sharp percussive attacks. Moskowitz channels a forceful presence over shifting intervals. Lyrically tied to themes of temptation and loss.

A5. “I Won’t Leave My Wooden Wife for You, Sugar”

Byrd takes lead vocals in a tongue-in-cheek Americana sendup. A Dixieland-style opening gives way to a midsection detour through a marching band coda, all delivered with processed, detuned accompaniment.

B1. “Where Is Yesterday”

Opens with Latin choral phrasing modeled after Gregorian chant. The arrangement slowly adds distorted violin and a late-arriving rhythm section. The harmonic structure remains static, drawing tension from texture.

B2. “Coming Down”

Harpsichord and bass underpin Moskowitz’s shifting vocal lines, while unidentifiable electronics whirl across channels. The track veers between moods, refusing a consistent structure.

B3. “Love Song for the Dead Ché”

Sparse and mournful, with hushed delivery. The arrangement is subdued, leaving space for ambivalence in tone between reverence and distance.

B4. “Stranded in Time”

String quartet backing Marron’s lead vocal in an overtly Beatles-derived arrangement. Byrd later dismissed it as a weak imitation of “Eleanor Rigby”.

B5. “The American Way of Love”

A three-part suite shifting from mock-theatrical delivery to satirical surf pop before folding in tape-spliced fragments from previous tracks. The ending juxtaposes grotesque circus imagery with nostalgic slogans and sound collage, ending the record in fragmented self-reference.