Homemade Headtrip

Drawn from the ashes of two popular Cedar Rapids veteran outfits (Greener and Bohemian Soul Tribe), Homemade Headtrip currently boasts a six-piece lineup, but over the course of the two-plus years it took to write and record "Happy Street," drummer Ben Franklin and keyboardist Paul Hala departed to join Public Property, drummer Greg McCoy came and went, and PP's Andy Parrott and Matt Grundstad also tracked through their kitchen.

Nassor Cooper and multi-instrumentalist Matthew Maybanks (who possess airy, near-sibling-like tenor pipes) swap lead and backing vocal chores.

Essentially a bright and breezy jam band, Homemade Headtrip offers original tunes that incorporate dashes of blue-eyed soul ("Stand In Line"), bossa nova ("So Socko"), fun-in-the-sun island music, light jazz fusion and, on three of their strongest melodies ("Midwestern Arms," "Taking My Time" and "Drama King"), the kind of easy-rolling, piano-driven highway grooves that made Bruce Hornsby an alt-/jam/pop mainstay.

The musicianship is sturdy and locked-in (special kudos to Adam Gill's propulsive, lyrical bass-lines), and interplay should develop rapidly as the lineup coalesces.

As it stands, "Happy Street" is an ace soundtrack for a warm, sunny day.

(Homemade Headtrip will host a CD-release party beginning at 8 p.m. Saturday night at The Q Bar, 211 Iowa Ave. The Trollies open.)

-- Jim Musser
- Iowa City Press Citizen

Homemade Headtrip
Happy Street
Kent Williams (Little Village Magazine)

Homemade Headtrip is a 6 piece band from Cedar Rapids, but their music comes from a place much harder to locate.Their songs vary from the Soul-Jazz of "Here We Are" to the Calypso influenced "Happy Street" to the guitar driven Allman Brothers-esque "Midwestern Arms". Their most likely habitat in Iowa City is The Yacht Club and their audience overlaps groups like Euforquestra and The Gglitch. They have a listing on Jambase but their CD is thankfully free of the endless deedle-deedle noodling so dear to the hearts of baked twirlers who are still mourning the death of Jerry.
A CD called "Happy Street with a cover image of milk and cookies on a white background is your first clue that these guys inhabit a decidedly comfy, wam musical space. Being a bitter old bastard I tend to mistrust this much shiny happiness in one place. The title track which begins with a young girl singing about "happy feet on your legs" and mentions gumdrop cars started with cookie keys is not a complete bath in saccharine but it comes close. More to my taste are tracks like "More2Life" which is up tempo, jazzy and dominated by intricate percussion. I also like the poppy "YesHippie" which combines a bouncy back beat with some tricky chord changes reminiscent of XTC. The chorus for "YesHippie" is close to perfect, combining an unexpected key change with nice vocal harmonies.
What I like most here is the quality of the musicianship-and their preference for brisk tempos. Homemade Headtrip is nothing if not tight. The drums and percussion crackle with energy. The song "Meshbereen" starts out with a nice open drum break, no doubt soon to be stolen by a hip hop producer. But while I am sure "Happy Street" will be just the thing for many listeners, this much positivity and major chords in one place doesn't do it for me. And I would never tell them to them to change a thing actually -- Homemade Headtrip writes musically intereasting songs and performs them with engaging energy. They're a perfect match for their audience and there is nothing at all wrong with that. They hit a certain sweet spot that is just a bit to sweet for me. But hey , bitter old bastard here, remember?
I will say that I listened to the CD several times through without feeling like finding a hippie to murder, which is more than I can say for Dave Matthews or late period Grateful Dead for example. Reviewing "Happy Street feels a bit like breaking up with a nice girl -- "It's not you, guys, It's me. Still I'd heartily recommend this CD for anyone who likes their music eclectic, technichally adept and well, happy. - Little Village Magazine

By Eric Clark
The Gazette
After listening to Homemade Headtrip’s debut album, ‘‘Happy Street,’’ it’s obvious ‘‘American Idol’’ beat-boxer Blake Lewis isn’t the only person out there who still digs Jamiroquai.
Lewis performed that U.K. band’s biggest hit, ‘‘Virtual Insanity,’’ on the Feb. 27 episode of ‘‘Idol’’ — which, coincidentally, was the same week Homemade Headtrip’s Jamiroquai-influenced ‘‘Happy Street’’ was released. The Cedar Rapidsbased band, born from the ashes of defunct local acts Greener and Bohemian Soul Tribe, consists of Nassor Cooper (vocals), Matthew Maybanks (vocals/guitar), Jeremy Hay (guitar), Adam Gill (bass), Forrest Stowe (piano/keyboards), Ben Franklin (percussion) and Brian Cooper (drums).
Hailing from Ames, Waterloo, Cedar Falls and Cedar Rapids, these folks spent two and a half years creating ‘‘Happy Street,’’ an album that’s as deliciously appetizing as the milk and cookies that adorn its cover.
‘‘Here We Are’’ sticks closest to Jamiroquai’s template, with Cooper’s soulfully smooth vocals skimming over a danceable mix of funky-yet-restrained music, highlighted by a keyboardled instrumental breakdown. Homemade Headtrip also pulls influences from poppy jam band Rusted Root on the album’s cheerful title track, as well as ‘‘Summerteeth’’-era Wilco on ‘‘Midwestern Arms’’ and piano punk Ben Folds on the narrative-oriented ‘‘Drama King.’’
‘‘Happy Street’’ is an impressive debut, especially for a local band, and now we’ll have to see if Homemade Headtrip can make something of it - Cedar Rapids Gazette