Album number four from Chilean psych-pop act
the Holydrug Couple sees the duo moving into more melodic, though still defiantly cerebral, territory. The project of multi-instrumentalist and mastermind
Ives Sepulveda and drummer
Manuel Parra,
the Holydrug Couple has been a mainstay of the
Sacred Bones label since 2011, veering in style from the swirling lo-fi psych of 2013's
Noctuary to the sleek synth-led tones of 2015's Europop-inspired
Moonlust. Moving away from some of the more ambient aspects of 2017's dreamy
Soundtrack for Pantanal,
Hyper Super Mega is, according to the band, modeled more on the classic pop constructions of masters like
the Beatles and
Beach Boys, albeit fed through the wonky
Holydrug filter. A thick, blown-out feeling pervades most of the record, which mixes a harsh D.I.Y. patina with tuneful arrangements that might come across as breezy in a less affected guise. With its pervasive synth-bass and syrupy falsetto, "Waterfalls" pours down in a smoky haze while closer "Mercury Lake" loops on and on in a technicolor fug before surging to its conclusion in a barrage of tidal overdrive. As a whole,
Hyper Super Mega is more experimental and textural than pop, which is in keeping with the band's history. ~ Timothy Monger
