THE 2nd COMING – Evaluations (2026, LP, Guerssen) 

RELEASE INFO:

Label: Guerssen Records

Format: LP, Album, Limited Edition, Black Vinyl

Format: LP, Album, Limited Edition, Colored Vinyl, 100 copies

Format: CD, Album, Limited Edition, Jewel case

Release Date: 19 June 2026

There are records that deserve to be heard, and then there are records that seem almost impossible to believe they existed at all. Recorded in Jacksonville, Florida, in April 1969 and then buried for decades, “Evaluations” by The 2nd Coming is one of those extraordinary lost chapters of American psychedelic rock history. What makes the story even more remarkable is the cast of musicians involved: Larry “Rhino” Reinhardt on guitar, who would later join Iron Butterfly and co-found Captain Beyond, Reese Wynans on organ, Richard “Hombre” Price on bass, and a twin-drummer attack featuring Monty Young and John Meeks. These were musicians operating at a fascinating crossroads, where the heavy psychedelic language of Hendrix, Cream and the late-’60s underground was beginning to mutate into something looser, heavier and unmistakably American.

The roots of The 2nd Coming lie in the vibrant Florida scene surrounding Sarasota, Bradenton and Jacksonville, where musicians who would later become associated with the birth of Southern Rock were experimenting with extended jams, heavy blues and psychedelic improvisation. The band’s connections with The Allman Brothers Band story make the recordings even more historically fascinating, but “Evaluations” should not be approached simply as a footnote to that history. The music stands on its own: raw, powerful, exploratory and full of the spontaneous energy of a band caught at precisely the moment when Psychedelic Rock was beginning to transform.

Shelved because the band could not settle the studio bill and eventually forgotten in the original master tapes, “Evaluations” remained unheard for decades until its rediscovery in the late 1990s. Now finally released by Guerssen Records, this long-lost recording offers much more than archival curiosity. It captures a pivotal moment in American music — the missing link where Heavy Psych, Blues Rock, and improvisational experimentation were already pointing towards the Southern jam sound that would soon reshape the American rock landscape.

The LP version of “Evaluations” contains 8 tracks while the CD edition includes 2 bonus tracks. “Evaluation” opens the album with hot organ keys blending beautifully with shimmering guitar, immediately creating a hypnotic psychedelic atmosphere enriched by heavier touches and strong, expressive vocals. “Medulla Oblangata” follows with an incredible rhythmic psychedelic mood, wrapped in a dark, almost sinister atmosphere that inevitably brings The Doors to mind. The darkness continues with “Back Where You Belong”, where improvised-sounding keyboards meet an intense Blues feeling, turning the track into a powerful Heavy Blues-Rock workout. “No Pretty Colors” slows everything down into a smoky, late-night haze, a dark and mind-bending psychedelic piece that constantly flirts with the Blues. “Made Me Love” raises the intensity again, with organ and electric guitar seemingly engaging in a full-blown psychedelic orgy over a steady, Bluesy rhythm section, while the almost stoned vocals create the perfect mood for an extended jam. “Shufflebored” introduces a fascinating dark, jazzy, and Bluesy rhythm, gradually becoming more openly Blues-Rock oriented as the track develops. The “For What It’s Worth/Season of The Witch” medley is another highlight, beginning as a cool psychedelic-blended interpretation with a strong Blues pulse before slowly drifting into “Season of the Witch”, where the scorching organ, burning bass, and hypnotic atmosphere create a beautifully melting psychedelic experience. “Roller” is exactly what its title promises: a psychedelic boogie-woogie roller, lysergically trippy and completely Heavy-on-Acid, with wonderfully stoned vocals and lyrics riding a deep Blues groove. The bonus material takes us directly into the band’s live environment, beginning with “Funk in 5/4”, a heavy psychedelic jam filled with Bluesy improvisational energy and the spontaneous feel of a live performance. Finally, “Shoot That Load Boogie (Live 1969)” stretches across an impressive 17:35, becoming a long, hazy, and slightly blurred psychedelic Boogie jam that may not offer pristine sound quality, but preserves something far more valuable: a unique sonic artifact of The 2nd Coming in full flight, with the extended format giving the drummer plenty of room to shine. Together, these recordings capture a band operating at the explosive intersection of Heavy Psych, Blues, improvisation and the emerging Southern jam tradition.

“Evaluations” is far more than a long-lost psychedelic album finally rescued from the archives. It captures a crucial moment when Heavy Psych, Blues Rock and extended improvisation were beginning to evolve into the Southern sound that would soon reshape American rock. Raw, heavy, soulful and gloriously jam-oriented, The 2nd Coming’s music sounds like a band standing at the edge of something much bigger. More than half a century later, “Evaluations” finally allows us to hear what that future sounded like before it had a name. Dig! TimeLord Michalis 

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