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'The start is the hardest part...'
The Lucksmiths are perhaps the most under rated purveyors of perfect pop music
of all time. The sighs and the swoons of their three minute tableaux replicate
the hopes and dreams that we all see shattered every time we dare to fall in
love; they parallel the anxious moments of anticipation that we endure each time
we allow ourselves those fleeting triumphs of life. With each and every one of
these moments, the start is always the hardest part, as soon as we get moving it
just flows naturally, we know it.
'A Hiccup in your Happiness' is a four track EP which soothes and sways, it
sashays and sweeps between euphoria and disappointment, the songs are riddled
with opportunity, hope, triumph and loss, they are labelled with self-belief and
self-doubt in equal measure, they are, in essence a recollection of a rare summer
spent living, loving and learning.
The title track opens delicately and swiftly metamorphoses into a stomping dizzy
romp of three parts pop, two parts northern soul all thrown together with a shot
of tequila to drown the sorrows. Strings sweep and the brass section cuts
swathes through the luscious sound scape that provides the defined foundations
for a tale of distance, loss and failed memories.
From MaCaulay Station (apparently one of the less salubrious stops on
Melbournes rail network) and Rue Something are both keen acoustic thrums,
with explicitly essential melancholic vocal lines that suit the mood perfectly.
Closing this record is To Absent Votes, again, acoustic lead, this tale
of polling night in the outback town of Lake Cargellio captures again the hopes
and desires of the ordinary man. How The Lucksmiths communicate with their peers
is to be admired, they speak for and with the common people, it's impossible not
to identify with this, it's implausible to think that you wouldn't be moved by
the sentiments expressed within, that and a killer harmonica line make this the
best single of the year so far.
Like all the best singles Hiccup in your Happiness is over all too soon
and leaves you begging for more. As I hit the play button over and over again,
the simplistic majesty of these songs becomes more and more apparent.
Viva ordinariness.
Johnny Mac.
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