March 10, 2017 by A.S. Van Dorston

Circumstances sure are different from when I wrote “Colour Haze: Kings of Stoner/Psych Rock Mountain” in 2011. Still huffing the fumes of one now appears to be their career peak, All (2008), I was slavering for their next album, which took four long years to complete. The expansive double album She Said (2012) finally came out, and it was great. However, I did hope the band would also fulfill the promise of the sparkling psychedelic songwriting that All overflowed with. Bandleader Stefan Koglek did evolve and experiment, but more with loosely structured dabblings with Middle-Eastern structures and even modern classical music on To The Highest Gods We Know (2014). That album was unceremoniously released somewhat unexpectedly at the end of the year. Distribution was slow, so the album pretty much slipped under radars and missed out on year-end lists. Relatively brief (41:57) for a Colour Haze album, it wasn’t what I expected for their next step in their progression, more of an exploratory excursion. But it was still one of my favorites of the year, because Colour Haze are awesome, dammit.

In Her Garden also surprised me. In fact, I didn’t know about it until a couple weeks after it’s March 10 release date. It doesn’t help that it’s not going to be distributed in the U.S. until May. I just don’t see that discrepancy benefiting anyone. Anyway, here it is, at 73 minutes, it’s their third longest album after She Said and what some fans consider their peak, Los Sounds de Krauts (2003). While “Black Lily” sounds like typical Colour Haze, if a bit slightly rougher hewn, “Magnolia” introduces keyboards, the kind of vintage Hammond (courtesy of Jan Fassbender) you’d hear on old jazz fusion records. They resurface on “Lavatera” and “Islands,” and while Koglek has always had a bit of a jazzy flair, the music pretty much sticks to the Colour Haze’s psych jam script rather than doing Bitches Brew.

“Sdg I,” “Sdg II” and “Sdg III” are brief interludes of experimental pieces ranging from modern classical chamber music, to electronica to sitars. They are interesting palate cleansers, but it would be more interesting if their were incorporated into full-blown songs. The woodwinds and horns do reappear at the end of “Labyrinthe,” which is a nice touch. Strings also make an appearance on “Lotus.” For the most part, Koglek sticks to what he does best, expansive, jammy psychedelic rock with serpentine guitar lines and sweet, fuzzy tones. The sound seems to have a more up-front live feel, as you can almost imagine the wind sweeping in from the Tyrrhennian Sea onto the sandy hills in Sardinia, Koglek’s favorite place to play via Duna Jam. Unless I can make it to one of those performances in Europe, I’m resigned to only hearing their recordings. Last year they were scheduled to play Psycho Las Vegas, and I had a hotel booked and was all set to go, until they canceled at the last minute. Until then, this latest album is a welcome treat. | Buy