Search - Lovecraft :: Valley of the Moon

Gone is the psychedelia

Joseph L. Kolb | harris, mn USA | 07/14/2008

(3 out of 5 stars)

"well i can't agree with the previous two reviews and think they over-hyped this cd. gone is the old classic organ sound of the past. this is pretty much a straight-up rock & roll cd with lots, and let me emphasize lots of harmonies. that's way i'm only going 3 stars. i like harmony once in a while, backup vocals are a nice addition, but every song is overkill for me. so, if you like classic rock & roll with tons of harmonies, this is a good cd. if not, then skip, and stick to their first two releases, which i consider their best, especially "II"."

TOTALLY OBSCURE BUT GREAT!!

Michael Chiaro | Lodi,New Jersey | 06/17/2008

(5 out of 5 stars)

"This is a comeback to the review posted on ALL MUSIC, a usually reliable venue for info on albums. How anyone could give this less than a minimum of 4 stars is amazing! This is one of the lost classics of the 60's/70's era, but first, a little background. The original HP Lovecraft produced two fine but uneven psych/folk lps in the sixties. The band split but drummer Michael Tezga retained the name,regrouped as Lovecraft with himself being the only original member.The resulting and only album,VALLEY OF THE MOON, is a MASTERPIECE!! The stylistic connection between the 2 versions is the stunning vocal harmonies. Lovecraft leans toward a more mature folk rock mix,tempered by a touch of funk. There are no throwaways here, just 11 fabulous songs, one better than the next. The arrangements are uniformly excellent, bolstered by superb playing from Tezga, guitarist Jim Donlinger, bassist Michael Been, and multi-instrumentalist Marty Grebb, formerly of the Buckinghams & Aorta,and soon after,the Fabulous Rhinestones. ALL MUSIC's review tags Tezga with overplaying but THIS ISN'T CREAM!!;his playing is crisp and strong, and he drives each track along. The lyrics date the music, several take the "let's live in peace and love each other" route, and that's fine with me. I saw the original group live: they were excellent. I never saw the Mark II version but I bet they were stunning. At the time of its release, VALLEY was pretty much ignored, with little or no airplay or reviews. This is probably due to the fact that no one gave the new version creditabilty, as they were a different group.A pity really, as this music really deserved an audience. I am thrilled to FINALLY have this on cd. Wounded Bird deserves many thanks, especially for the fine,punchy digital transfer. If you love classic rock but never heard this, do yourself a favor: buy this and revel in its glory!"

Pass the HP

Michael L. Knapp | Placerville, CA United States | 06/27/2008

(4 out of 5 stars)

"The original HP Lovecraft was a band that was a very different from the other psychedelic bands of the time. Nobody sounded like them. After disbanding and drummer Michael working with the excellent Bangor Flying Circus, Edwards & Tegza reformed a version of HP Lovecraft with new members. They were outstanding and most people couldn't tell the difference in concert. When they signed to Reprise and began recording the new album, Edwards quit leaving only Michael Tegza from the original band. They decided to soldier on with the new album after dropping the HP from their name. Valley of the Moon doesn't sound much like the 2 HP Lovercraft (3 if you count the excellent Live). I bought it when it came out & didn't like it very much feeling like they were just treading on the name, a feeling that reinforced by the release of an album by yet another version of the band on Mercury Records that was in a word awful. My copy of Valley of the Moon sat for years until at a time I was broke & couldn't afford anything new I decided to listen to some records I didn't like when I bought them. When I listened to this I couldn't believe I hadn't liked it. Every song was outstanding -tight musicianship, great vocals & just plain good songs. Wish there had been some bonus tracks on the CD release but I'm happy to finally be able to replace my very well-worn vinyl copy. Hope other's will discover this forgotten classic Now if I could only find a new copy of the Bengal Flying Circus album, which actually sounds a lot more like the HP Lovecraft albums, I'd be happy."