Photo by Tom Tuong
Hooveriii have release their new album Water For The Frogs, today, April 9 via The Reverberation Appreciation Society. Having originally been born as a solo drum machine project by Bert Hoover, Hooveriii (pronounced "Hoover Three") has now evolved into it's true final form - a six member band adept at creating their own brand of psychedelic space rock. Influenced by Iggy’s The Idiot, Bowie’s Berlin records, and Soft Machine, Water For The Frogs sees the band creating their own version of prog rock, circa 2021. Leading to today’s release Hooveriii have shared 3 tracks off Water For The Frogs - “Cindy, “Control,” and “Erasure” - which have been picked up from the likes of NPR and Brooklyn Vegan, among others.
“Putting the studio’s 70’s Eventide Harmonizer to good use the end result are the seven tracks found on Water For The Frogs, each one ripe with enough sonic layers that listeners will find something new to discover with each spin.” - New Noise
"(‘Control’) sounds like an immediate space-rock classic that will hypnotize you into submission" - Buzzbands LA
“nostalgic psych sounds” - MXDWN
“a masterful little gem of Progressive-Psych circa 2021 coupled with great songwriting and a Krautrock vibe.” - With Guitars
“Get lost in the swaggering new single ‘Control’...laced with sultry synth color and entangled by fuzzy and formidable bass shading, (it) is a sonically expansive stoner rock track. Bert Hoover croons unpretentiously with effortless dynamic range, vocally skating on a kaleidoscopic landscape of beefy tone reminiscent of Queens of the Stone Age jamming with Stereolab." - Glide
"LA band Hooveriii taps into the importance of prioritizing the right things with their new psychedelic rock single ‘Control." - Aupium
"’Control’ pulses along on a chugging rhythm slashed by thick ropes of guitar and pillowed organ plumes." - Raven Sings The Blues
"'Erasure' is a full throttle pounder of a song. Transmissions from space, fierce tom tom explosions, psyche washed out vox with mirroring chord progs and massive, massive guitars. Inspirations are amazing things. This track pummels and the ending sounds that feel like a mental breakdown via a horn section in someone's rattled mind is amazing as a coda to the rush that came before." - American Pancake
"Diabolical cabals jamming with supernatural stamina, Hooveriii’s brazen psychedelic waves crash over crunched stunts with punchy lunges, converging dervishes colliding in writhing outbursts with jazzy backing from nimble rhythms and incandescent presence." - Maximum Ink
More on Hooveriii + Water For The Frogs:
Having originally been born as a solo drum machine project by Bert Hoover, Hooveriii (pronounced "Hoover Three") has now evolved into it's true final form - a six member band adept at creating their own brand of psychedelic space rock. And after almost a decade in, the band is set to release their sophomore album and debut for The Reverberation Appreciation Society, Water For The Frogs. Influenced by Iggy’s The Idiot, Bowie’s Berlin records, and Soft Machine, the LP sees the band creating their own version of prog rock, circa 2021.
In 2019, Hooveriii took their live show to Europe for the first time. Bert Hoover shares, “seeing all the old cities and beautiful landscapes while becoming closer as a band had a huge impact on this album. A lot of our favorite music came from the Krautrock scene in Germany from the late 60's-70's, and when we had a day off in Furth, Germany, we spent most of it writing the record,” he continues, “we were able to rehearse in an old German bunker that has been converted to rehearsal space. It definitely had a strange energy that helped give this album light.”
Returning to their homebase of Los Angeles and spurred by the imminent departure of Hooveriii’s longtime drummer Shaughnessey Starr, the band went back to Station House in Echo Park, CA to once again work with the in-house engineer and producer Mark Rains. Putting the studio’s 70's Eventide Harmonizer to good use the end result are the 7 tracks found on Water For The Frogs . Each one ripe with enough sonic layers that listeners will find something new to discover with each spin. This LP also marks the first time that the band has recorded all brand-new material -- their debut album consisted of tracks that Hoover had previously recorded and released on cassette tapes.
Hoover says, “as a band we don't really have a solid creative process. I think consistency is the enemy and I believe we work pretty well when we wing it.” This ethos comes to life with album opener the observational “Cindy,” which evolved out of the band jamming in the studio. First single “Control” is Hoover's self-examination into priorities and he notes, “LA can be very discouraging when people prioritize image and lifestyle over their art. I think anyone can be guilty of this. LA is a cool fucking city and it's really easy to get caught up in the web. If you spend too much time looking in the mirror, you'll never leave your house.” Water For The Frogs closes with “Gone,” which is the most personal song on the record and touches on the themes of drifting deeper inside yourself and getting lost. "Hang Em’ High'' takes a lot of inspiration from 70's Japanese psych bands like Far East Family Band and Flower Travelin' Band - both of whom were writing songs about Hiroshima. Hoover states, “I wanted to emulate that energy but also not be aggressively political.” The band also recorded their take of Lou Reed’s “Shooting Star” and note, “The original song is very manic and scattered but at its core it's a really great pop song. We decided to deconstruct it and make it a ballad. Pump some VU/Blade Runner energy into it. Our version had a pretty warm reception at the shows so we decided to add it to the LP. There's no guitar on this recording. It's synth, bass, sax and drums with Casey Sullivan on the harmonies.”
With the release of Water For The Frogs the band has no plans to sit back and relax -- they can’t wait to get back into the studio emulating bands that get to release multiple albums a year and tour constantly. “That sounds like a dream,” Hoover says, “playing live is when we get to have fun. Some songs end up changing, growing new arms and legs. Learning how to walk on their own.”
Hooverii is Bert Hoover (guitar and vocals), Gabe Flores (lead guitar and vocals), Kaz Mirblouk (bass and synths), James Novick (synths), Casey Sullivan (vocals and synths) and Owen Barret (drums).
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