Mike Wolf (Time Out New York 5.12.01) review of Parlor Tricks and Porch Favorites
The Tower Recordings' Pat Gubler, a.k.a. P.G. Six, is one of the more significant personalities in the NYC area's modern psychedelic-folk scene, a small but fertile community that includes Hall of Fame, as well as Gubler's somewhat dormant group, and a cadre of orbiting musicians and artists. Like most of his comrades, Gubler loves both the lilting folk melodies of the sound's old guard (such as Pentangle and the Incredible String Band) and the droning sensibility of today's free-music set. But it seems dismissive to say that Gubler indulges both interests on Parlor Tricks and Porch Favorites, his full-length debut, when you consider the neatly casual manner in which he connects melody, ringing noise and a distinct feeling of otherness that seems borne of a Scottish forest. The whole thing is warm, plain and lovely. Aided only by percussionist, producer and Tower Recordings cohort Tim Barnes, Gubler picks and plucks a variety of stringed instruments (guitars mostly, but also pianos and harps) like a more pensive John Fahey. His fingering is expressive enough to keep the more austere moments, like the first five minutes of the bluesy "Quiet Fan for SK," from retreating to the background, and the song eventually unfurls in a panoply of shimmering electric guitar tones. The hauntingly pretty "The Fallen Leaves That Jewel the Ground," dedicated to two deceased relatives, is awash in an enveloping sense of soft drama. Parlor Tricks isn't just a collection of guitar ruminations, though. Gubler's remarkably velvety vocals on "When I Was a Young Man" and "Go Your Way" weave snaking patterns in the best Scottish folk-song tradition, and "The Shepherd" moves that sound toward soft rock, with a satisfyingly buzzed electric guitar shadowing the melody. With all of P.G. Six's tricks working in harmony, the record is sure to be a favorite among the standout psychedelic music coming from these parts lately.