‘We Only Stayed Together For The Kids’ may be more drawing-room than kitchen sink, but the drama builds along with the pressure, until it well and truly blows the lid off the happy families façade. Dissatisfaction surges up and over the limits of self-control - tempers and suburban myths explode to the surface and boil over like a pan of frothing milk.
The pace gathers momentum, as the classic indie sound unfolds. Melodic guitars and a thumping rhythm section combine emotion with the backlash, as despair becomes resentment and then anger, the drums hammering the point home as psychotic fury roars through the key changes.
The question/answer structure of the lyrics dip and soar through a wide vocal range with an observational clarity that complements the merging together of a thousand tunes before it resurrects itself, thanks to a kamikaze off-beat brought down with a barrage of sporadic guitar fire. The middle eight draws the final sharp intake of breath before the synthesiser kitsch tells us how these lads dress, but though the beat is submerged in the end, their influences are burned into the sound, scorching the original feel just a little.
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Backed with ‘The Secret Public’, a synth-driven slow burner that features brass and further underlines the LUXEMBOURG’s ability to whip up a storm in any port, the record’s impact will depend on how far back your memories stretch.
I find this release ultimately in favour of the short-term – but powerful though this emotional rollercoaster ride is, there is danger of it being lost forever beneath a frenzied tidal wave of band cross-referencing.
www.luxembourgband.com
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