Brain Police

The Brain Police were one of the relatively few psychedelic groups to emerge from San Diego in the late '60s, recording an unreleased album and single in 1968-1969 before splitting up. They played pretty average, if competent, psychedelic period rock with hard rock and baroque pop influences. In these respects, they were somewhat similar to a band they toured with in the Southwest, Steppenwolf, although the Brain Police had a lighter touch and no hit-worthy songs on the order of "Born to Be Wild" and "Magic Carpet Ride." After recording the unreleased album and failing to land a major-label contract, the frustrated band broke up at a local gig in which they opened for Steppenwolf. This unreleased LP was reissued on CD by Normal/Shadoks, as were songs cut for a 1969 single and poppier 1964-1966 cuts from singles by the Man-Dells and the Other Four (bands that Brain Police songwriters Norman Lombardo and Rick Randle played in prior to 1967).