“Thing of the Past”
Vetiver, $14.98

I entered a world of discovery when I purchased “Thing of the Past,” the latest release by indie-folk band Vetiver: I never realized how influential Norman Greenbaum was to his contemporaries; vetiver is a type of grass; I’ve never even heard of half the artists covered on this album; and I learned that, despite my never having heard of Vetiver, this is the group’s third studio album.

After listening to a lot of the band’s work, I’d decided that it decently pulls off the sound of guitar folk from the late ’60s and early ’70s. My first thought was Harry Nilsson coupled with Roger Miller and, finally, sprinkled with a bit of Neil Young. Then I realized that “Thing of the Past” is entirely composed of covers of songs from the exact era to which I was attributing Vetiver’s sound.

As far as I can tell — for much of the record — I may as well be listening to a Simon & Garfunkel album, except one that’s not quite so frequently depressing. This idea is especially supported on “Roll on Babe,” the mellow and breezy cover of Derroll Adams’ 1975 tune, and on “Standin’,” a cover of a Townes Van Zandt 1972 release.

Vetiver’s covers span a pretty decent range of styles within the genre, from the dreamy, lilting melody of Biff Rose’s “To Baby” to the Delta blues party that is Hawkwind’s “Hurry on Sundown.” Other offerings include Norman Greenbaum’s jam band-ish “Hook & Ladder,” Ian Matthews’ country-esque “Road to Ronderlin” and the anemic cousin to the Doors’ “Roadhouse Blues” that is Michael Hurley’s “Blue Driver,” that’s very good, albeit simple.

These days, these sorts of songs are so standard and familiar, they often come off sounding bland and uninspired. But Vetiver pulls it off so well, it keeps me listening.