I’m still trying to figure out what it is that Ty Segall does that captures exactly what I’m looking for in a rock album. Despite his myriad incarnations and permutations, from the Sabbath stomp of bands like Fuzz to his Eno-esque limitations on albums like First Taste or his more out there collaborations with White Fence and Brian Chippendale 0f Lightning Bolt, there’s just something there that resonates in me. Nothing’s changed with Freckle, both the album and the new collaboration with Corey Madden of Color Green. Whether or not Freckle the band is a one-shot deal, I’m all in for its blend of psychedelic pop and guitar rock worship.

I’m not familiar with Madden or Color Green, but Freckle most definitely feels like a Ty Segall record. Most of the vocals belong to Segall, although on opener “Paranoid” Madden comes in with some ridiculously low vocal harmonies that are a delight. Musically the album is heavily focused on acoustic guitars, but to call this a mellow record would be a mistake. The rhythms are mostly acoustic to be sure, but when the solos come in, they are suitably blazing and filled with the clipped fuzz you’d expect from Segall. Segall’s drums are fantastic, benefitting from a really robust and clear production. One thing I’ve really come to appreciate over the course of his discography is how much better the production has gotten without sacrificing his overall aesthetic.

At just under a half hour the album comes and goes in a flash, with “Paranoid” and its follow-up “For The Last Time” being the longest tracks on the album. More meditative, “For The Last Time” has some sparse keyboards adding ghostlike ambience to Segall’s falsetto and some harmonized lead work. “I Don’t Know What I Need” has a great rolling funky blues figure with the bass really prominent, and “Who’s Sitting On The Moon” finally giving Madden’s voice a place in the spotlight. It’s accompanied by some sweet George Harrison guitar work and vocal harmonies very reminiscent of the Beatles, even as the music itself rests firmly in Seagall’s sonic manipulation of all his influences.

Single “Taraval” is a great indicator of everything the duo bring to the album, this time the acoustic guitars really standing out. I think Segall has a great head for pop, and his songwriting and arrangements really take advantage of that 70s AM gold while putting his own spin on it. So you can move from sweet acoustic pop to funky blues to swaggering glam in the span of about four minutes and not have it sound so jarring. The suitably titled “Heavy” is another late album example of this, with the glam rock turned up to 11 in between some funky pop and almost progressive rock licks that end each verse.

Freckle ends with “That’s All We Wrote”, one of four short instrumentals that tie the album together. But to my ears, rather than being half-formed (and half-baked to some) ideas to add out the album, those brief interludes add to the overall cohesion of the album. It’s an album that I consistently flip and play again when it ends, and it’s given me not only a new band to check out in Color Green, but even more anticipation for Segall, as he’s already announced a new solo album coming in May.

Bring it on.