THE HOLYDRUG COUPLE - Moonlust

Over the last decade the psychedelic front has seen new faces and new creative sources take turns in the spotlight, with a dreamlike awakening sweeping through underground music from the Netherlands to Japan, taking in territories less accustomed to coverage in the specialist press along the way.

Alongside Föllakzoid, The Holydrug Couple are the other Chilean band on the Sacred Bones roster: more inclined toward psychedelia than the kraut-space rock of their aforementioned countrymen, theirs is a soft, romantic take on the golden age of 60s and 70s music, at times naive yet thoroughly engaging.

"Moonlust" is the band's third album, polished to a shine like a dress put in a shop window to catch the eye - or rather, oops... the distracted ear. It's a sampler of pleasant citations and harmonic naiveties that bring a smile and occasionally spark mild enthusiasm. There's no track on "Moonlust" that could be called unpleasant or insignificant; but excessively monochromatic and lacking in variation or flair, the twelve tracks unfold like a nature documentary: always pleasant and engaging, but something you've already seen and heard before. That's not necessarily a bad thing, but beyond friendly praise there's nothing here to shout about, even if the Chileans' gentle, delicate approach to the material does hold up to repeated listens.

With an ear tuned to made in Europe psychedelia, The Holydrug Couple opt for a Francophone strain of dream-pop, nodding to Serge Gainsbourg ("If I Could Find You (Eternity)") and Air; even the song titles ("French Movie Theme") betray this cultural fascination (Chile is home to over five hundred thousand people of French descent), and it's impossible not to think of French eroticism while listening to the synth orgy of "U Don't Wake Up".

Ives Sepúlveda's band nonetheless stays anchored to a very specific vision of the psychedelic territory it inhabits: the emotional surge of "Concorde" and the synth-surfing mood of "Atlantic Postcard" are stimulating and refreshing, the single "Dreamy" winks at indie-rock with proper substance, and the brief rock foray of "Light Or Night" is convincing enough (complete with a fine solo), but "Moonlust" remains a pleasant interlude best enjoyed in small doses. Then again, music is sometimes also made of lighter, more carefree moments, and The Holydrug Couple remain reliable companions for a day trip spent recalling the good times of an era gone by.

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26/06/2015