H.P. Lovecraft – H.P. Lovecraft II VG/G+

A swirling descent into lysergic dreamspace, H.P. Lovecraft II deepens the Chicago band’s fusion of West Coast psychedelia, folk-rock mysticism, and literary dread. Released in 1968, this sophomore album refines the eerie atmospherics of their debut, trading some of its garage rawness for richer textures and more expansive arrangements. The result is a haunting, ambitious suite that evokes the spectral landscapes of its namesake author—not through horror tropes, but through mood, melody, and a sense of cosmic melancholy.

Opening with “Spin, Spin, Spin,” the album immediately signals its shift toward folkier terrain, with fingerpicked guitar and vocal harmonies reminiscent of Jefferson Airplane or early Byrds. But the band’s signature darkness remains: “At the Mountains of Madness” is a centerpiece, blending minor-key progressions, organ swells, and cryptic lyrics into a slow-building invocation. “Electrollentando” and “Mobius Trip” stretch into more experimental territory, layering spoken word, jazz inflections, and studio effects into a kind of psychedelic séance.

Dave Michaels’ classically trained baritone and keyboard work anchor the album’s more ornate passages, while George Edwards’ guitar and vocals lend a grounded, earthy counterpoint. The production—lush but never slick—allows the band’s dynamic shifts to breathe, from hushed introspection to full-blown acid rock crescendos.

Though H.P. Lovecraft disbanded shortly after this release, II stands as a cult classic: a twilight record that captures the uneasy beauty of late-’60s psychedelia at its most literary and introspective.