Gotta love the dusty corner where you come across those “one and done” bands. Especially in Germany, where the krautrock reaction to the rise of the American and UK rock scenes spawned any number of bands reaching to find a musical expression that embraced the rise of that country’s youth. Orange Peel may have taken a safer path with their self-titled album – this is very much indebted to the aforementioned scenes – but when it’s done this well, who really cares? I guess the listeners did, which is why despite opening for Deep Purple and getting packaged with other great (but tiny) German psych/rock acts, Orange Peel the album became another casualty of the “one and done” phenomenon. Too bad, because I really like the vibes on this one.

The album jumps right into the deep end with the opening track, the 18-minute “You Can’t Change Them All” and trust me: you need to suffer through the oddly dissonant and faltering 45 seconds of meandering keyboard and drums. It’s a ruse, because the band then gels into a slow shuffle, with Ralph Wiltheiß’s organ suddenly spring to life. As the song slowly turns into the heavy psych rock jam it was born to be, the guitar playing of Leslie Link comes into sharp focus, giving off some great Jimi Hendrix vibes as he solos back and forth with Wiltheiß. The other clear standout (for better or worse) are the vocals from Peter Bischof. They’re very loud and clear, with a timbre that admittedly takes a little getting used to. Some folks may bounce off it, but I came to appreciate how distinct he sounds when compared against a lot of bland vocalists of the day.

Going by the original album’s track listing (my reissue from the sadly now defunct Long Hair intersperses two bonus tracks in the album sequence we’ll get to at the end) next up is the brief and funky rocker “Faces That I Used To Know” and it is super tasty, just getting in, laying down some sweet riffing and solos and getting out before anyone knows what happened. There’s some early Cream and pre-MKII Deep Purple in its sound, and Orange Peel make it their own. It’s a similar thing with their cover of “Tobacco Road”, a song I always knew was a cover because the only version I’ve ever known until now was the David Lee Roth version on Eat ‘Em And Smile. I love it; it always feels like it’s on the brink of collapse, Bischof sounds fantastic vocally, letting the rasp in his voice come out in the song’s bigger moments, while the added percussion bounces around the soundstage like a ball.

Orange Peel closes with another epic rocker, the 10-minute “We Still Try To Change” and I really wish the band had found some traction to keep moving and release more. I really love Link’s guitar playing, and that heavy organ sound Wiltheiß gets is phenomenal. Alas, all that’s left is an early single, “I Got No Time” backed with “Searching For A Better Place to Hide.” They’re solid tracks, with a rougher production and a less distinctive vocal from former singer Michael Winzkowski. If you’re digging Orange Peel (and you should), you can check out the singles here.