While listening to Hooverphonic?s “The Magnificent Tree,” one almost feels drifted off to some existential plain of higher being.

The grooves are so mellow, you just want grab a cup of coffee and snap your fingers together at the end of a song with the other beatniks in their cushy inflatable chairs. The lead singer floats through the songs with such a haunting voice that you swear you?ve heard it in a dream before, except you can?t remember which. Although the songs are short and sweet, they definitely linger around in your mind for awhile, even after you?ve managed to turn the CD player off.

The influences of the band members radiantly shine through this fairytale album, as you can tell on tracks five and seven, “The Magnificent Tree,” and “Frosted Flake Wood.”

The band originally started out as two gents, Alex Callier and Raymond Geerts, from Belgium who were creating music from their then musical muses, Portishead and Massive Attack, but felt that something enchanting was lacking in their musical genius; a female vocalist.

Enter Liesje Sadonius. She stuck around the scene for awhile until all their popularity on film soundtracks, including “Stealing Beauty,” became too overwhelming for her and she split. Her replacement, Geike Arnaert, proved to be just as good if not better in filling her two-sizes-too-big of shoes.

The band has gone through a lot since 1997 when they first came together, but they are becoming a brighter star on the stage than most other bands from a very small country.

“The Magnificent Tree” is out now on Epic Records, so be sure and pick up a copy today.