Licorice Roots - Licorice Root Orchestra (2024)

That’s what “Licorice Roots Orchestra” by Raymond Listen sounds like.

If you tilt your head at the appropriate angle, you will hear the best parts of Marc Bolan, Donovan, and the Beatles. Or maybe just a massively talented fan refracting those things, but when you’re just waking up, who can tell?

Raymond Listen, as the band was originally known, was formed in the early 1990’s by singer/songwriter/pianist Edward Moyse, when he moved from rural Wellsboro in Northern Pennsylvania to Newark, Delaware and asked Dave Milsom to form a band with him. Milsom quickly took up the drums. Gradually, they added Dave Silverman (flute/glockenspiel/keyboards) and Kim Benner (finger cymbals). There was a fertile music scene percolating in Delaware, including peers like Jimmy Crouse, Zen Guerrilla, Smashing Orange, and Carnal Ghia, some of whom Raymond Listen shared stages with in 1991 and 1992. If you wanted to see a national touring act, you probably had to go to Philadelphia, but there was something going on.


In 1992, Raymond Listen started recording at Noise New York, with studio owner and legendary scenester gadfly (Mark) Kramer. His business was in transition, and sessions quickly moved to his new facility Noise New Jersey. The recordings that became “Licorice Root Orchestra” went so well that Kramer offered to release the results on Shimmy-Disc.

A brief refresher course for those of you who didn’t live through the indie-rock boom of the 1980’s/1990’s: Kramer is an artist/producer/collaborator/label head who worked with a dizzying array of artists, including Galaxie 500, The Butthole Surfers, Ween, Penn Gillette, John Zorn, Jad Fair, Daniel Johnston, Low, King Missile, Bongwater, Gwar, Boredoms, Jon Spencer, Yo La Tengo, and many, many more. Shimmy-Disc was his label, and it was known as much for the outsize and outsider personalities he collected (and personified) as for his deft and clever production style.

The label was no commercial powerhouse, but it had an outsized cultural footprint. People paid attention to Kramer and Shimmy-Disc. In a world where punk and indie rock had recently upended the established commercial order, small labels were potential breeding grounds for the next thing, and Shimmy-Disc was high on the New York City list.

Probably as a result of Shimmy-Disc’s reach, the album was widely reviewed, and reviews were ecstatic. Melody Maker called it “Seismic” and hailed it as “a delicate work of weird genius.” NME called it “magical and childlike.” CMJ said “infused with the essence of Pet Sounds without sounding derivative.” Sassy magazine issued them their coveted “Cute Band Alert.” None of this seems to have contributed to much in the way of airplay or sales.

A short tour in Spring, 1994 took them to Chicago, Milwaukee, St. Louis, Louisville, and two different cities in West Virginia. They played some regional shows with Dogbowl, a few scattered shows in New York City, and gradually changed their name from “Raymond Listen” to “Licorice Roots Orchestra.” A second album was recorded at Noise New Jersey, but disagreements between Moyse and Kramer over mixing and production resulted in the band leaving the label, and Moyse taking over the producer role for their subsequent recordings. They made and released 6 more excellent, lower-profile albums, the most recent one of which came out in 2009.

How could such a beautiful, unique piece of work come out in the midst of a creative boom time, and go mostly unheard? My theory is: It was too nice. People were looking for snark, angst, neurosis, and despair in their indie rock music in 1993, and Raymond Listen offered peace and serenity. Grace doesn’t win a battle with a jackhammer.

Now RidingEasy comes to the rescue. If you ever loved the dreamier side of the Flaming Lips, the idea of Elephant 6, or a great afternoon nap, here’s your chance. This is why the world needs record collectors. Licorice Roots Orchestra is, on its own terms, a masterpiece. Good night.

---Geoffrey Weiss, Los Angeles, 2024