Columbus, OH experimental rockers Psychedelic Horseshit have undoubtedly made a colossal mark on the modern American underground scene with their stunning new record, Laced. Like Black Dice (and, to go even further, Sonic Youth), Psychedelic Horseshit explore the possibilities of repetition within noise, but with a tremendous sense of playful wonder and calypso-like rhythms. In the tradition of Beck (no doubt a huge influence), they fashion an amalgam of different styles (namely acoustic folk, electronic, noise, shoegaze, psychedelic, and ambient) to create a wonderfully potent, original sound that simultaneously sounds accessible and detached. They can expertly create, and subsequently abandon, sonic textures of sound, thwarting the listener’s expectations by taking rhythms and melodies to an entirely different territory from where they originated. And frontman Matt Whitehurst spews out deadpan lyrics (“I don’t need to prove that I am always thinking / I’d rather be quite stupid in my tropical vision”) with a stoner, Lou Reed-like delivery. But what makes this record truly great is not the endlessly fascinating sound, nor is it the quality of the musicianship; it’s the surprising versatility of the songwriting. Psychedelic Horseshit are wholly capable of swirling, Eno-esque ambient drone (“Automatic Writing”), shoegaze (“Revolution Wavers”), and dense noise freak-outs (“I Hate the Beach”, “Laced”) just as well as they are of romantic dreaminess (“Dead On Arrival”), shimmering pop melodies (“Time of Day”), and even folk ditties (“Another Side”). A truly compelling record that demands numerous listens. Check this one out.
Download Laced here.
Rating: 3.5 out of 4
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