Banchee -

Banchee was an American East Coast psych-rock band that released a self-titled album on Atlantic in 1969, followed by Thinkin’ on Polydor in 1971.

Members: Peter Alongi (lead guitar, vocals), Michael Gregory Marino (bass, vocals), Jose “Joey” Miguel DeJesus (rhythm guitar, vocals), Victor William Digilio (drums), Fernando Luis Roman (percussion, vocals, 1971), Johnny Pacheco (percussion)

Background

Banchee sprung from The Peepl, a Brooklyn garage band that included drummer Victor DiGilio and guitarists Jose Miguel DeJesus and Peter Alongi. They teamed with bassist Michael Gregory Marino and shifted from covers to originals under the Banchee name. Early sets at Café Wha?, a Greenwich Village club, helped establish the band and attract an offer from Atlantic Records.

Banchee

Banchee released their self-titled debut albums in October 1969 on Atlantic.

“The Night Is Calling” sets a bright surface with close vocal harmony, picked guitar, and small chime accents that feed a clear chorus lift. On “Train of Life,” a chugging riff suggests rail motion before calmer passages give way to odd meter and denser accents in a knotted pulse. Elsewhere, “As Me Thinks” rides a boisterous rhythm with synchronized vocals set against a clipped offbeat pulse. With horn and string parts in the arrangement, “Follow a Dream” drops to a softer tempo and spreads the harmony into a hushed cadence.

“Beautifully Day” centers the fullest vocal stack, with four-part harmony laid over a light guitar bed and a rising chorus line. Later, “Evolmia” cuts across with sharp-turn verses, broken meter, and a heavier riff that splits the track into tense rhythmic cells. On “I Just Don’t Know,” the band holds a steadier midtempo beat while the guitars thicken the center with a blunt riff and tougher bass line. Near the close, “Hands of a Clock” works a march pulse around a stop-start figure, then opens into a long blues-jazz solo passage. The closer “Tom’s Island” ends the set on a harder repeated riff that gathers force through the second half and extends into a longer instrumental passage.

A1. “The Night Is Calling” (3:27) — Alongi
A2. “Train of Life” (3:18) — Marino
A3. “As Me Thinks” (3:05) — DeJesus
A4. “Follow a Dream” (4:21) — DeJesus
A5. “Beautifully Day” (5:07) — Alongi

B1. “Evolmia” (3:18) — DeJesus, DiGilio
B2. “I Just Don’t Know” (3:17) — Alongi
B3. “Hands of a Clock” (4:14) — Marino
B4. “Tom’s Island” (8:39) — Alongi

Sessions occurred at Associated Recording Studios in New York City with engineer Warren Schatz and co-producer Stephen Schlaks.

Alongi drew the Banchee cover. Original copies featured a lyric insert and back-cover liner notes by DiGilio.

Atlantic lifted “Train of Life” as a single (b/w “I Just Don’t Know”). Banchee played local bills with Blood, Sweat & Tears and Rhinoceros, but didn’t secure a national booking agency. Between albums, they expanded to a quintet with percussionist Fernando Luis Roman and moved from Atlantic to Polydor.

Thinkin’

Banchee released their second album, Thinkin’, in August 1971 on Polydor.

“John Doe” opens with a ticking vocal line over a continuously rolling rhythm and wah-wah guitar, then exits through a jazz-tinged solo over a bounding backbeat. “Willya” runs at a hasty clip, with harmonized lead lines cut by repeated solo breaks and a tight jam pulse. “3/4 Song” bends the meter into a lopsided shape, then firms the section with a more settled chorus line.

The title track stacks more harmony over a forceful backbeat, then ends on a harder percussion break and a broad chorus crest. “Searcher’s Life” holds a more direct song form, with vocal blend up front and a fiery closing solo. “Iceberg” lowers the temperature with a melancholy pace, subdued lift, and an earnest guitar line at the close. “Children of the Universe” opens in a quieter register, then surges forward with breathless vocals, harmonic bursts, and short guitar drops at the end of each sung phrase. At nearly nine minutes, “38” splits its length between a blues-led first half and a harder second section, then closes on a repetitive chorus and a piercing solo passage.

A1. “John Doe” (4:30) — DeJesus
A2. “Willya” (3:30) — DeJesus
A3. “3/4 Song” (3:20) — Alongi
A4. “Thinkin’” (4:05) — DeJesus

B1. “Searcher’s Life” (3:11) — Alongi
B2. “Iceberg” (3:48) — DeJesus
B3. “Children of the Universe” (3:12) — DeJesus
B4. “38” (8:58) — DeJesus

Banchee self-produced Thinkin’ at Electric Lady Studios in New York with engineers Dave Palmer and Ralph Moss.

Michael Kanarek designed the cover, which shows a ruined stone castle and round tower set on a rocky rise under a cloud-thick sky, with white bands of mist crossing the walls and foreground brush. A small mounted figure and white horse stand near the gate beneath a black flag, while the Thinkin’ title curls across the upper left corner..

In Germany, Polydor lifted “John Doe” as a single (b/w “Children of the Universe”).

Discography: