A short-lived project from garage-psych mastermind
Ty Segall, the Traditional Fools existed during a brief window after the breakup of his early group
the Epsilons and before his solo career took hold. The Traditional Fools played a cheerfully lo-fi cocktail of old-school punk, '60s garage rock, and reverb-drenched surf music. The group featured
Segall on guitar and vocals,
Andrew Luttrell on bass, and David Fox on drums. The combo played some live dates, and dropped a four-song 7" EP on
Chocolate Covered Records in 2007. They also released a limited-edition cassette-only project, Live at Wizard Mountain, that same year. The Traditional Fools recorded their first and only studio album, a self-titled affair released by
In the Red, in 2008. However, while the group played occasional reunion shows, for practical purposes they disbanded not long after the album appeared. Given the impressive arc of
Segall's career, there's been a lingering interest in the Traditional Fools' joyous and chaotic attack among fans and collectors. In 2016,
In the Red rewarded them with a compilation, Fools Gold, which included the rare
Chocolate Covered EP as well as 13 previously unreleased tracks. ~ Mark Deming, Rovi