Pan Astral's latest album, Mary Can Dream, features chief songwriter and visual artist Gabriel Otto and co-creator Ryan Burnett of Signal Path as well as new members Kipp Koren, Tad Lusk and Mike Smith. On the new album layers of etherial guitars and synths float above driving bass and drums to make this a unique collection of songs. Mary Can Dream is a high-energy elaboration on their ambient debut self-titled album. It also features stunning performances by American sitarist and Ravi Shankar disciple Paul Livingstone and Lotus guitarist Mike Rempel, who add to the band’s already highly contagious and dance-inspiring sound.

 

Mary Can Dream showcases Otto's unique voice and incredible vocal range. He draws influence from Genesis, Animal Collective, and early nineties rock and roll, but his vocal performance combined with Lusk’s virtuosic guitar work stamps the album with a sound all it’s own. The sometimes abstract and always provocative lyrics mirror the poetry and prose of nineteenth-century beat poets and South American writers, as they are socially conscious and emotionally fueled. Otto's powerful vocals soar just barely above Koren’s bass and Smith’s drums with heartfelt inflection, telling stories ranging from a child’s wish to fly to the sun to a bipolar temp worker’s inner thoughts. On Mary Can Dream, Pan Astral pushes harder dance beat and bring the vocals to the forefront while retaining their abstract ambient style.

 

After sharing the stage with “Walk the Moon” in March, the band has gained new notoriety and momentum and are hyped to be on the cusp of introducing their best work yet to their fans on a “pay-what-you-want” basis. Mary Can Dream will be available at 12 a.m. on June 9th through online sources including Bandcamp and Topspin and the band will be celebrating the album release that evening in Denver, CO at Cervantes’ Other Side with special guests Mike Rempel (Lotus), Chuck Morris (Lotus), featuring co-songwriter Ryan Burnett (Signal Path). There will be CD and t-shirt giveaways throughout the evening, starting with a free disc to the first 25 who enter.

 

Pan Astral is now offering a free digital download of their 2010 self-titled debut album here for a limited time to help promote the upcoming show.