The Bees (known as "A Band of Bees" in America, owing to a rights conflict over their name) started out as the duo (they would eventually become a sextet) of Paul Butler and Aaron Fletcher, both of whom hailed from the Isle of Wight. The group’s debut album, Sunshine Hit Me, reflected their interests and listening, melding '60s freakbeat and psychedelic sensibilities with '70s power pop. The band released Free the Bees in 2004 and Octopus in 2007 to universal critical acclaim. For all of their seeming '60s influences, the group comes off as startlingly contemporary, just willing to reach back to artists and styles they admire when it suits them and the music at hand. ~ Bruce Eder