Love And Rockets Announce 'Hot Trip To Heaven' Reissue

04-19-2023

Album art

(Reybee) Forming in 1985 after the first split of their band Bauhaus, Love And Rockets is the seminal, groundbreaking trio of Daniel Ash, David J, and Kevin Haskins which provided a clean slate and an opportunity to plumb the depths of imagination and influences.

On June 9th, Beggars Arkive continues their reissue series with the expanded vinyl edition of Hot Trip To Heaven. Additional titles will be announced soon.

2023 has seen the release and immediate sell-out of a limited edition box set containing Love and Rockets six Beggars Banquet albums on colored vinyl, the announcement of the first Love And Rockets show in 15 years at Cruel World Festival in Pasadena followed by additional dates (tour dates below), and the continued reissuing of their six Beggars albums. Vinyl reissues of Seventh Dream Of Teenage Heaven and Express came out in January and Earth, Sun, Moon and Love and Rockets (self-titled) come out on April 28th.

The band's fifth album Hot Trip To Heaven was strikingly different from anything previous and has a diverse range of influences from twisted lounge jazz to ambient trance. With additional vocals by the celebrated Egyptian-Belgian singer Natacha Atlas, the album's world music influences are evident. New York Magazine said it was "hypnotic, glistening, dark and crashing." and in 1994, The album was ahead of its time, pre-dating the electronic music revolution by a few years. Citing Primal Scream's Screamadelica, Underworld's Dubnobasswithmyheadman, The Orb and Aphex Twin as prime touchstones, Hot Trip To Heaven spawned two singles; the hypnotic "This Heaven" and the sprawling "Body and Soul".

Named after the underground comic by the Hernandez brothers, Love And Rockets made seven records over the course of thirteen years. They announced themselves to the world with their radically unique take on the classic Temptations song "Ball Of Confusion." This debut proved that they were going to be a force to contend with. It became a huge seller and a popular club hit in the US and Canada, where it also went gold. It marked the beginning of a career that would span an impressive 14 years and 7 albums.

The legacy of the band has only grown, with more people realizing the extent of their influence, and generations of new fans discovering them. The list of artists who cite their influence is impressive: The Flaming Lips, The Dandy Warhols, A Place To Bury Strangers, Jane's Addiction, Black Rebel Motorcycle Club, Beck, Maynard Keenan, Dubfire and the Pixies.