The Luck of Eden Hall :: Butterfly Revolutions, Vol. 1

This is what ‘pop’ music should be: honeyed, thick, creamy and packing stones. Everyone who should know, knows pop disintegrated into empty calorie pabulum a long, long time ago and I for one need nourishment from my food. Butterfly Revolutions Vol. 1, the new outing from Chicago’s The Luck of Eden Hall proves that you can not only have your cake (with lots of frosting) and eat it too, but that you can get more than a cheap sugar rush out of it to keep going. I’m a firm believer that cream doesn’t rise to the top; shit floats. I’m happy to say that LOEH prove me wrong. Relentlessly filled to the brim with top-shelf psych-pop nuggets calling to mind a myriad of touchstones from The Beatles through to The Bevis Frond, LOEH have such a firm grasp on their ingredients that Butterfly is never half-baked, in approach or execution. Nobody really wants low-fat dessert; that never satisfies. So, LOEH keep the the fuzz on the peach with melodies that flow like syrup; it may just crystal more than it rocks if that makes sense. In my book, crystals are worth more.

Opener Chrysalide sets the bar high. Relentlessly ornate and paisley, it sets Butterfly firmly on track with the mission clear, and in their hands, fully reachable. Velvet and Corduroy follows suit, a mission statement if there ever was one; a mission of molasses that never stagnates into stale treading water retro treacle. LOEH’s buttery psych is churned with enough of the old and new to give a full-bodied taste that should appeal to traditionalists as well as those who want some more modern leanings (All Her Seasick Parties) in the mix. Mellowed out Jupiter and Pretty Little Things hit a touching sentimentality without getting maudlin; LOEH aren’t applying the frosting so thick it’s impenetrable, or so over done it’s nauseating in the richness of it all.

Butterfly Revolutions almost screams (if butterflies scream…I think they do…) for a Thesaurus…shimmering, sun-drenched, multi-colored…the title about says it all, contrasting something as elusive and fluttering as a butterfly with a word that hints at power as well at what you should do with this record; put it through some revolutions. LOEH have cooked up a lip-smacking layered sonic cake, and it’s clear there was some drinking in the kitchen again…pop the cap off your lava lamp and take a swig.

It tastes good, and it’s good for you.

Velvet and Corduroy :: The Luck of Eden Hall :: Butterfly Revolutions, Vol. 1 (2011, LOEH)