L.A.’s Levitation Room put out their Headspace (Greenway Records) last fall and took the scenic route through all the microbiomes of mid-to-late 60s psychedelia, although they skipped Altamont to spend more time at Monterey Pop. But now without access to any outside studios (or outside … anything?) they’ve retreated to a more fundamental format. “Quarantine” is the understated acoustic coda Headspace never had, the contemporary reincaration of those mellow moments on so many underrated little-band-on-big-label psych LPs. Even the heaviest shredders liked to make a little space for something soft sometimes, and there couldn’t be a better time for this sort of indoors mood.

So here’s Levitation Room’s singer/founder Julian Porte with a song he describes—with a staggering degree of self-awareness—as Jackson C. Frank with a little melancholy Dylan harmonica, and that’s exactly what’s he’s made. Of course, Frank’s “Blues Run The Game” is about running through the world to escape the blues and these days there is no escape, which is the central sentiment of this (and probably any) song called “Quarantine.” (Also: somebody should do a cover of “Solitary Confinment” one of these endless days.) Says Julian:

“I wrote this song a few weeks back in a corner of my room about the sudden feeling of isolation in these strange times we’re going through and recorded it shortly after, in the living room of my apartment. It’s probably the most honest song I’ve ever written.”

“Quarantine” is out now and available at all the usual virtual spots—scan through them here. Lyrics below!

The sun is shinin’
With no sign of life on the streets
‘Cus yesterdays gone
And tomorrow seems obsolete
And as I rise to my feet
I feel so confined
‘Cus the new report is telling me
I’ve got to stay inside

I sit by my window
And wait for my first meal at noon
And each day is spent
In the loneliness of my room
Where my safety is kept
And the air is locked in tight
And the glow of my tv screen
Lights up my night

But don’t touch the door
The world isn’t safe anymore
Keep your hands clean
While you’re stuck in Quarantine

There’s a silence that speaks
With a voice that worries my mind
And there’s no use in checking the clock
To ration my time
And there’s a lady I know who lives
On the other side of town
And I’m wondering if she’s okay
And safe and sound

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