LSD and the Search for God brings shoegaze to San Luis Obispo
San Francisco’s LSD and the Search for God visited San Luis Obispo on April 11 for a night of mesmeric vocal harmonies and reverberating guitar riffs. Alongside JJUUJJUU, the two bands crafted a dreamlike sonic landscape in SLO Brew Rock’s Rod & Hammer Rock venue.
Coining the name from a novel written by William Braden, LSD and the Search for God formed in 2005 when guitarists Chris Fifield and Andy Liszet met and collaborated with Mind Expansion Records.
With additional original members Sophia Campbell, Caleb Rush and Scott Eberhardt, their debut self-titled EP was released on January 16, 2007, long after the glory days of ‘90s shoegaze. Still, the band is acknowledged as a pioneer in the genre for their washed-out production style. The blend of male and female vocals paired with heavy fuzz distinguished LSD and the Search for God from other bands reaching mainstream success for riding the waves of the indie rock revival.
After a long hiatus, LSD and the Search for God presented their sophomore EP “Heaven Is a Place” in 2016. The group performed at select venues following its release and kept a low profile on social media until 2023 when they joined Panchiko and Horse Jumper of Love on a U.S.A tour.
Now nearly two decades old, the band has played at festivals such as Psyched Fest, Levitation and Spaace Caamp. In partnership with (((folkYEAH!))), a Northern California event curator and presenter, LSD and the Search for God and JJUUJJUU played in San Luis Obispo and San Francisco last week before putting a pause on tour life.
In a recent interview with Jai of J Interviews, Liszt shared that the band has enjoyed playing new songs live. Though they scrapped a number of demo tracks from 2019, current members Fifield, Zaied Ali, Frank Campbell and Christy England are in the process of rerecording and putting out new material.
Along with the new tracks, the band is committed to playing fan favorites such as “This Time” and “Backwards” during their sets. As their San Luis Obispo show came to a close, LSD and the Search for God played their breakout hit “Starting Over” which came across as an emotion-filled conversation between vocalists Liszet and England as they harmonized on opposite sides of the stage.
The track, which now has 24 million streams on Spotify despite its release in 2007, is an indication of the present shoegaze revival and how the 30-year-old sub-genre is here to stay in this generation.
