Melbourne-based experimentalist duo Lover have released their 3rd EP, ‘Life In Secret” – and it’s an increasingly experimental adventure that evolves from track to track.
‘Faith’ – A slow-burning intro with a great guitar tone and some nicely panned rhythmic hits. Spacious and relaxed, the vocal shimmers and reverberates from a distance. I loved the subtle emphasis on certain syllables and the creative fills and variations sprinkled throughout the track.
‘Bones’ – I loved the way everything feels tightly wound in this song, like a coiled spring. That is, except the vocal, which floats along like silk. Wait until you hear the strangely glitchy, home-made sound that forms the solo around halfway. Warm, flowing melodies are the order of the day here, all held together with a clockwork backbone. This song is about the past, and feelings of angst upon leaving family back home:
I think time’s up in December
It has me cold to the bone
Century’s a long time watch it
You can let it slip I’m told
The band say ‘Bones’ is a bit of an anomaly on the EP as it was the only song that started on an acoustic guitar with no effects. To me, though, the finished song has a wealth of musical flourishes and fits perfectly into the EP’s journey.
‘Stellar’ – Things start to get a bit more experimental with crazy, alien-like sounds. A huge kick punches its way through the mix. Each sound is processed and manipulated so that it feels totally unique and individual. The delicate vocal stretches words, covering each bar like a warm blanket as the song tells an intense tale of devotion and despair:
My love, my stellar babe
You are my stellar star
If I fade away
Cannot take the shame
I live to die
‘Get/the/Scene’ – Phasing vocals swirl around like ghosts in a blender, and hints of words gently cross our path. This felt almost ambient in places, and the changes in atmosphere and energy really worked – it feels like 3 songs wrapped into one. Full of expression and invention – I wish that final section with the beat had been extended into its own, stand-alone track! The final motif is repeated 13 times, and this lyric will feature in the final track too (together with an eerily similar melody):
Get the scene, my Love
‘Locket//’ – Blending seamlessly into the final track, this is a beautifully atmospheric song with a slow-rolling groove. The processed vocal pad in the intro is wonderfully dark and wouldn’t be out of place in a drum and bass track. The layering in the track worked so well – there are snippets and morsels of sound in every nook and cranny. The arrangement is fluid, winding along like a country path into weird and wonderful places. The band is in full creative flow here – and I loved having no idea what was going to happen next.
If you listen to this EP as a whole, it feels like the band is ushering you along their path of experimentation. Like slowly slipping into a lucid dream, the flow-of-consciousness arrangements never seem to settle, leaving you free to roam among their intricate soundscapes.
With ‘Life In Secret’, Lover showcase their adventurous songwriting to ever greater degrees, and by the end, their musical fingerprint is impossible to miss.
Written by Grubby
