Julian Cope no longer exists in the world of the pop music grind. He walked away, established his own record label and now offers his musical missives without any commercial considerations or product compromises. What you hear is what he meant. Which means plenty of psychedelic guitars, Mellotrons, garage rock keyboards, Iggy Pop to Black Sabbath to Krautrock rhythms, and lyrics that tell stories much more involved than the average pop song. Black Sheep is Cope’s 2008 release where he searches through history to find the outsiders who formed and influenced modern culture (Jesus Christ, St. Paul). It’s an ambitious concept and not one to follow too literally or else you’ll miss the sheer joy that drives the music. Despite his heady concerns, Cope is still a garage punk at heart and his raw, passionate vocals meet with a no nonsense band to form the perfect circle. The gears grind in glorious, heated excitement from the first stirring piano notes of “Come the Revolution” through the passionate wind of “It’s Too Late to Turn Back Now” to the shameless pop lift of “Psychedelic Odin.”  Inspired throughout.