3 out of 5

Produced by: Tom Fox, Dave Gill (engineered by), John Morand (remastered by)

Label: spinART Records

II & III has always listened like a stepping stone album to me.  Starting with that title, which is like an inability to decide if it’s one album or two, and continuing to the songs, none of which emerge as stylistically as defined – in CVB’s non-style style – as the slacker surfer college rawk of their debut or the psychedelia Americana on the self-titled followup, the latter of which was released the same year… further cementing the feeling like this disc was an attempt to record excess exuberance, and perhaps not fully considered as a front to back experience…  Even the art, lacking in extra punctuations of color or an interesting offset to its plaintive image, has a sort of placeholder vibe to it.

Which isn’t the same thing as the disc being without merit: it’s maybe the most consistent record CVB put out prior to Key Lime Pie, it’s just that the sound they mostly settle on for that consistency is in the midrange of their stylistic melange: easy-going jams with dashes of something extra here and there.  This laid back vibe worked in a more DIY fashion on Telephone Free Landslide Victory; II & III is an easy-going come down from that weed-smoked high, with definite catchy melodies (Cowboys From Hollywood), some notes of Lowery-tinged seriousness (Sad Lover’s Waltz), and typical silliness ((Don’t You Go To) Goleta).

The 2004 expanded version is jam-packed with worthwhile bonuses in the form of alternate takes and extra songs, and though it’s mostly of the same tempo and template as what was released on the original disc, extending the jam session isn’t a bad thing, giving the songs more room to breathe and leaving a lasting impression.  …At least until you move on to a different CVB album.