LADYGUNN REVIEWS: JUNE ALBUM RELEASES

A quick preview of four album releases in June 2013 that you need to hear!
reviews by / LOGAN BRENDT
 



LENKA / SHADOWS
Skipalong Records
release date: June 4, 2013
Australian singer–songwriter Lenka has always been a charmer, so it’s no surprise that her third album, Shadows, is a charm. Perfect and sweet, her voice is quaint like powdered sugar, sprinkled over the jovial spirit of relaxed rhythms and twinkling sounds. The opening track “Nothing Here But Love” mimics a visual of pink roses and flowering crabapple trees, perfect for a June release. Over a ballroom waltz shuffle, subtle claps lead the way on “Heart to the Party” and heartache blooms on “Honeybee” in a way that gives you hope for another day. Shadows succeeds in matching the magnetism of her previously celebrated track “The Show” off of her debut and proves that there’s no question that Lenka is a genuine pop princess.

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BIG DEAL / JUNE GLOOM
Mute Records
release date: June 4, 2013
The second album by the London-based duo comprised of Alice Costelloe and Kacey Underwood live up to their namesake. Aptly titled, June Gloom catches interest with its glistening, splintered Jesus and Mary Chain fuzz guitar riffs and emotive lyrical paintings. Even though the album is rich in slowed down rock tracks, a vital spirit is injected into songs like “Swapping Spit”, “Dream Machines”, and “Teradactol”. If you are sucker for the male/female vocal interplay from the likes of The Pixies, Sonic Youth, and X, Big Deal deliver the goods. Check out the “Velouria”-esque “In Your Car”.

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BEACH DAY / TRIP TRAP ATTACK
Kanine Records
release date: June 18, 2013
Surfing along the 60s girl group throwback, Beach Day’s debut is a bona fide necessity for the summer. Jangly guitars and classic rhythms abound. Singer Kimmy Drake has a voice that rivals any other frontwoman in the genre as she endearingly squeals on “Stay” and howls on “We’ve Gotta Go”. The delicately punk aura on “Little Weird” will have you on your feet while “Come Back to Me” is the backdrop for a lonely Friday night when your object of affection has shut you down. And in an unexpected way, “Wasting All My Time” becomes a perceptive reminder that in life, you have to go with the flow and not waste all of your time on something you have “no control of”. It seems that unexpected advice and fun just come naturally to Beach Day.

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LOU DOILLON / PLACES
Verve Records
release date: June 18, 2013
Already the daughter of icon Jane Birkin, Jacques Doillon, and the step-daughter of Serge Gainsbourg, the full-length debut by Lou Doillon has the French singer-songwriter stepping into her own legacy. Doillon’s rich and low-pitched, alluringly hazy voice fits the role of storyteller in an effortless manner. She is frank in her lyrics, especially on the stunning “Jealousy” which is a ballad exploring the depths of that emotion. The dashing “One Day After Another” narrates across the march of a drum while “Defiant” is steady and adorned with soul and glamorous elegance. Places is a welcomed departure from our EDM saturated musical climate.

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