With a title like THE PRESIDENT OF THE LSD GOLF CLUB, you'd hope for something psychedelic, possibly surreal from Hooverphonic, and what we get is good, but more of a throwback to their trip-hop roots (with a new shade of shoegazing, for extra flavor). 'Stranger,' for instance, has a woozy warmth that eschews the pop of their earlier albums, while the spoken word on '50 Watt' has a slightly different texture than what has come before (even if it slips back into synth-pop for the chorus). There's a bit of rock growl on 'Expedition Impossible,' as well, and the romance of 'Circles' and 'Billie.' There are definite missteps too: 'The Eclipse Song' puts a harpsichord in service of a middling-rock track.
But the dreaminess of 'Black Marble Tiles' drowns out the naffness elsewhere, thankfully. It's time to tee up and take another tab. The new CD of Hooverphonic. The President of the LSD Golf Club is the sixth studio album album by the Belgian band Hooverphonic. As announced, it has become a great piece of work. Hooverphonic starts to sound mature, capable of filling the international scene of trip-hop.
The first number 'Stranger' is a strong melodic song, incorporating a great intimistic piano solo. '50 Watt' starts with a nice bass sound (thanks Alex!) and has a nice beat throughout the song.
The Magnificent Tree Wiki
'Expedition Impossible' on the other hand is stronger and somewhat more aggressive - with an old fashion guitar sound in the background and a 'hoover' like organ. 'Circles' does remind me of Siouxie & the Banshees. 'Gentle Storm' is next and does hit my strings, also. 'The Eclipse Song' is a mix of 'I do not know what', but sounds a bit Beatle-ish, thus not too surprising.
Which is not the case for 'Billie'. A great intro, again nice bass lines and that beautiful voice of Geike Arnaert. Followed by 'Back Marble Tiles', more psychedelic, again with an intimate sound, relaxed and easy, which is also the case of 'Strictly Out of Phase' (with quite a lot of minor and sus b-mol keys). The last song is 'Bohemian Laughter' and is again more aggressive, without leaving the psychedelic touch of the whole album.The President of the LSD Golf Club is a great asset for the Belgian music scene, greatly produced, nice songs, extremely well developed sound.
Hopefully Hooverphonic will continue in this line. Strongly recommended!
Originally intended to be released as the The Magnificent Tree Hooverphonic’s sixth album was finally titled The President of the LSD Golf Club. The album itself is different compared to their previous work, recorded with live musicians and the use of the mellotron (keyboard). Psychedelic/progressive rock with their well-known dream pop and trip hop marks their new move into the music. Their flawless mixture of these different styles is great in every aspect. The progressivity of the different songs gives you the feeling to be back in the late ‘60s, early ‘70s. An adventure which keeps you active every minute of the day and the final album with long-time vocalist Geike Arnaert.The President of the LSD Golf Club is available as a limited edition of 1.500 individually numbered copies on coloured (silver & black swirled) vinyl.