Chicago, Illinois was the address of this enigmatic band that cut one album before dissolving into the depths of even further obscurity. Initially distributed by the Capitol label in 1969, Forever Is A Dream bleeds with ambition and adventure, implying Food was not exactly aspiring to be mainstream pop stars.
Although the triple influences of the Beatles’ Sgt. Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band, the Jimi Hendrix Experience’s Are You Experienced and Love’s Forever Changes are imbued throughout the disc, there’s enough novel curves and ideas going on here that make Food sound quite original.
Presenting an intriguing union of classical music and acid rock, Forever Is A Dream (Ascension Records) obviously dispenses an array of multiple moods. At times, a sleepy, spaced out vibe helms the proceedings, while other moments capture Food cranking the volume up as high as it can go and urgently wailing away. In print, such descriptions may seem too disjointed and extreme, but Food manages to bring it all together in a singular collection that keeps the listener interested.
The vocals suit the heavy and haunting material well, as they are animated, intense and can almost be defined as operatic. Blistering guitar aerobics dance around elegant string arrangements and soulful horns, and the melodies are attractively unconventional. Designed of rhythms and movements that sweep, push, pull and float, Forever Is A Dream flourishes with challenging performances. No doubt difficult to categorize at the hour it was recorded, the album, in hindsight, definitely projected a progressive rock mindset.
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