Yes, the Donkeys are from Southern California. San Diego, to be precise. That much is clear just a few notes into their second album, , a sort of retro SoCal prospecting that yields mostly fool's gold. The Donkeys have suitably dusty harmonies, guitar licks homesteading in the Bakersfield exurbs, drumbeats that play close to the chest, and laconic tempos seemingly induced by lifestyle THC intake-- all of which recall a diverse range of past artists: the International Submarine Band, -era Byrds, the Flying Burrito Brothers, and even Gram Parsons solo. Okay, there's a little Dead in there, and the singing drummer calls forth associations to a band whose name I've promised myself I would never type again.