I just found about NYC’s The Orion Experience and now it seems that life prior to this discovery was perhaps a bit more dull and unexciting than I had realized. Their 2006 debut album Cosmicandy throws a whole lot of uber cool sounds into the hopper – Blondie era-disco riffs, Chumbawumba-esque anthemic group singing, some Grouplove loose rock n’ roll – and a consistent, clever political and social commentary. It’s all good. Really good. But my hands-down fave on the record is the ELO meets New Pornographers rave up “The Cult of Dionysus.” The song is a rush of hooky adrenaline, constantly shifting its attack, from stripped back guitars to dueling vocals to a full-on wall-of-sound assault. Then there’s the understated bridge, where everything drops out to acoustic guitars and sweet sweet vocals that slowly build back up to a driving climax. It’s an instant repeat-play kind of tune. The band have a few equally good albums sprinkled over the past 15 years, a pleasant solo EP from group leader Orion Simprini, and some appealing brand new material coming out right now. But you’re gonna want to start here, with this song and this album. For poprock fans, it’s a guaranteed good time.

The Orion Experience have plenty of internet real estate but start with Bandcamp – that’s where the music is.