I talk a lot about music and what pisses me of most is when so-called musicdevotees are giving you the answer that today’s music is lost, that there’s nothing good to be found these days. Music might have been on the dole for some period (I guess that were the days when everyone wanted to be the next Nirvana) but with bands like Interpol and Editors (whether you like them or not) there is again a respect for the great wavemusic from the 80’s.
And so it happened that on my CDplayer landed the album “Desolation” by Luxury Stranger and from the very first note it felt like you were listening to some unreleased bonustracks from “Pornography” by The Cure.
That having said, I even am sure that this Nottingham-based trio think such references are flattering as they themselves are coming up with The Chameleons as their main influence. Have you read that well? That means songs with an edge, songs that are more than just a song…songs that are like some coffee you drank and you still feel the effect from after some hours.
Every bit about this band is worth mentioning.
The vocals from singer Simon York are as dark as the ones from Ian Curtis without Simon being a copyist, it’s just a voice that grabs you by the neck and it’s damn difficult to throw it off you.
There’s the bassplaying from Chris Ruscoe which reminds you of….well, The Chameleons…but that’s a great thing because every musician on this planet has their influences and all those who say “no” are nothing but liars. And admit it, isn’t it so much more nicer to be influenced by Mark Burgess rather than thinking you’re the next unnoticed son of John Lennon?
And then there are the drumming sounds of Paul Sycamore which are reminiscent of the sound Lol Tolhurst made when The Cure still mattered.
Do I still have to add that Luxury Stranger are a band the world should throw its arms around? For fans of Joy Division, The Chameleons, The Cure or any other great 80’s post-punkband.
http://www.luxurystranger.com
I grant you Luxury Stranger shows promise, but lacks originality. You mention how many tracks seem like bonus songs from Pornography. There is good reason for this as the song Dirt is the very same music track as A Strange Day. Only the words are different and sometimes not even that different. Another track sounds just like Other Voices.
ReplyDeleteI feel Luxury Stranger could benefit from a good songwriter that could move them away from basically adopting tracks from The Cure and others. It is okay to emulate a band you admire, just don't copy them note for note. Curious started as a Cure cover band, but moved away from the exact sound of The Cure. Charlotte's Shadow is a band inspired from Sisters of Mercy, but they don't just play Sisters tracks with different words.
I feel Luxury Stranger gets to much acclaim for their lack of original material. Meanwhile bands like Beryl Beloved and The Raudive go unnoticed when their sound is far more original while still maintaining that edgy, postpunk or deathrock quality of the eighties.