I an generally against bands that self-title a record later in their career. I’m not saying you have to make your first record eponymous, but if you don’t, you’ve missed your chance. If your fans have to call your record “The White Album” or “The Black Album” or “The Avocado Album” that should tell you that you have missed your chance. At this point you’re just confusing everyone.
Fortunately, a badly timed album title does not a bad album make, as this next review confirms.
Disc 1854 is…Self-Titled
Artist: Lucius
Year of Release: 2025
What’s up with the Cover? This feels like an appropriate time to note that I am uncomfortable around dogs. Not just big scary dogs either, like I imagine this one is. Even small well-behaved dogs have a disconcerting trait – their slavish devotion. It’s off-putting. Make me earn your respect, dog!
Inside this album there is a fold-out poster of the band, all white and red and looking like a seventies art-school horror film. Why couldn’t this be the cover, Lucius? Why?
How I Came To Know It: I was already a Lucius fan. Their 2022 album “Second Nature” has somehow eluded me so far, but I was able to find this one a bit easier, and snapped it up at my local record store.
How It Stacks Up: I have four Lucius albums so far. Despite the crime of delayed eponymy I noted in the intro this album lands at #3.
Ratings: 3 stars but almost 4
While I liked 2022’s “Second Nature” it is their self-titled follow up that sees Lucius fully recovering their form. This record sees the band delivering their smoothest and grooviest record yet.
By the same token, it is also much less experimental than previous efforts and sees the band staying to a more mainstream lane. This is not a criticism, because the lane travelled here is candy to the ear. And if these melodies sound effortless and straightforward, then I would remind you that writing melodies that sound like that is hard.
As ever, whether the songs are dressed up with production or stripped down to their basic elements, the secret to every Lucius album are the co-lead vocals of Jess Wolfe and Holly Laessig. The two of them blend their two instruments into a single sonic experience. You’d think they were twins the way they match tone, but nope – they’re just really good.
Fifteen or so years into their career they still sound youthful and vibrant as ever. They’ve settled into their sound like a comfy chair, and it feels like they are singing in a “don’t have to prove a thing” way that removes any strain from the experience. Easy, breezy and thoroughly relaxing for the soul.
If these songs were angst-ridden dirges that might be a problem, but the vibe here is a chill groove. Feeling laid back is the order of the day.
That said, there is a dance club quality to many of the songs, just not a frantic bust-a-move kind of dance club. More the sultry swing-n’-sway kind. Maybe an artful upward slide of palms on hips that lifts the hemline of your dress an inch or two; sexy but still tasteful. A club where the lights don’t flash so much as shift colours to the tempo of the music. A club where people are overdressed and drink Manhattans, but you forgive them because everyone look so goddamned fabulous.
The album’s production pairs well with this low-light glow, featuring lots of echo and ambient warmth, embracing and reassuring you. Even on songs like “Stranger Danger” which rely heavily on synthesizers, things still feel stripped down and vulnerable, but never stark.
My only quibble about this record is that for a band that creates such lovely melodies, Lucius can sometimes decide to let the production try to solve their ending rather than resolve them. The songs spiral upward, adding layer after layer of sound in place of a natural finish to the song. Done well it feels dreamlike, but sometimes I wanted a bit more resolution from the tune itself.
A minor quibble on a record that had me feeling relaxed and comforted from the opening notes. I didn’t feel challenged by the music or the lyrics, but I did feel the love, and sometimes love is all you need. That, and maybe an album title.
Best tracks: Final Days, Gold Rush, Mad Love, Stranger Danger, Hallways, Old Tape
No comments:
Post a Comment