Prehistoric Sounds

1978’s Prehistoric Sounds feels like a huge shift for The Saints, at first blush, until you remember that their songs were always grounded, somehow, in soul and R&B – they’ve just taken their collective foot off the distortion pedal this time. Lead songwriter Ed Kuepper is stretching out here, the songs slower and more exploratory, though the Otis Redding and Aretha Franklin covers might be the best signs of what’s at play here. It was a salutary ending for The Saints’ first and best line-up, which imploded soon after the album’s release.