Big Deal Lights Out

  full reviewuser ratings (6) 
Tracklist:
1. Distant Neighborhood
2. Chair
3. Cool Like Kurt
4. Swoon
5. Homework
6. Talk [Explicit]
7. With The World At My Feet
8. Locked Up
9. Summer Cold
10.Visions
11.Seraphine
12.Pi


Release Date: 01/24/2012

user rating
3.2
good
Chart.

recommended by reviewer
Lemuria Get Better
She and Him Volume One
The Civil Wars Barton Hollow


  
3.5
great
Statrick Pickles CONTRIBUTOR (61 Reviews)

January 24th, 2012 | 8 replies | 1,242 views

Summary: They're also two really attractive people.

2 of 2 thought this review was well written

It's been nearly thirty-five years since Olivia Newton-John and John Travolta graced listeners and viewers alike with their silver-screen performance of 'You're the One That I Want' on the 1978 film version of Grease; and while the overabundance of black spandex and flagrant expressions of desire seem more than a little cheesy in a modern viewing of the scene, the cutesy duet is wholly iconic in its own right. This isn't to say that these tinsel-town lovebirds were the first to cash in on on the poppy pastiche afforded by the boy/girl combo; the jig is as old as pop music itself, they just so happened to make a statement of it. Hence, it's pretty easy to see why so many couples have tried to follow in their wake since, ranging from Ross and Richie's 'Endless Love' to Jay-Z and Beyonce's relationship in general; and, on a lesser-known scale, manifest in such modern groups as Lemuria or appropriately-named She & Him. Point is, if you're going to play the indie girl / melancholic boy card in 2012, you damn well better do it right.

Most fortunately for we expectant listeners, England's Big Deal is a duo that absolutely does it right. The story behind how Londoner Alice Costelloe came to meet Kacey Underwood is, in itself, the perfect grounds for so endearing a partnership to forge, with a maternal run-in and some chance-happy guitar lessons eventually bringing the two together in their joint musical endeavors. Alas, Underwood's West-Coast upbringing and preoccupation with 70's rock chanced to pair up with Costelloe's Beach Boys-inspired pop sensibilities, and, a mere eighteen months later, came to fruition on debut full-length Lights Out.

Where Lights Out truly shines is in its ability to portray the duo's perfect chemistry via fascinatingly stripped down songs. Costelloe and Underwood's unabashed, unfiltered, and truly unflinching sincerity compels the listener to become lost in the nostalgic but ever-present drift. 'Locked Up' is but one example of just how well-suited the two are to make music together, with a lone distant guitar yielding to the duo's on-point voices and building into the final lyric of "I'm a mess / I'm a wreck / But you wouldn't know 'cause I'm at my best when with you." Or take 'Talk', the quintessential confessional of cavernous secrets and unprofessed feelings between lovers - the track recalls the insecurity of relationships with incredible accuracy, honesty, and accessibility.

Sure, Lights Out may fall short where a general lack of resources causes it to falter - be it in the voids scattered throughout the record from the non-existence of a drummer, or in the monotonous and repetitive finales of a few select tracks. Still, the couple offer up an end product with all the indications of their model chemistry - both in friendship and in euphonious pursuits - and provide a more-than-competent follow up to their 2011 EP that had wide-eyed critics in high anticipation.

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Comments:Add a Comment 
iFghtffyrdmns
Contributing Reviewer
January 24th 2012



6989 Comments

Album Rating: 3.5

This was just officially released in the US today and you should give it a listen.

Also posted:
http://muzikdizcovery.com

Music Video for 'Chair':
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rW5j3z0AMhk&context=C338e035ADOEgsToPDskImAJpJqbHB1KlCYGZsEjoY


zweeep.

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Digging: Spraynard - Funtitled

Horsehammer
January 24th 2012



550 Comments


good review as always

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CaptainDooRight
January 24th 2012



4957 Comments


"They're also two really attractive people."

If I want attractive I turn to porn. Is this good music or what? If so, put that in your summary.

Digging: Wintersun - Time

iFghtffyrdmns
Contributing Reviewer
January 24th 2012



6989 Comments

Album Rating: 3.5

^hahahaha

based on your pie chart, perhaps not.

AliW1993
January 24th 2012



5773 Comments

Album Rating: 3

Good review as ever Eric, I found this to be fairly nondescript, though.

Digging: The Walkmen - Heaven

Digging: The Walkmen - Heaven

Irving
Contributing Reviewer
January 24th 2012



5796 Comments


Review did its job, but IMHO what this review really needs is about two more lines describing individual songs; this is really all we get:

Where Lights Out truly shines is in its ability to portray the duo's perfect chemistry via fascinatingly stripped down songs. Costelloe and Underwood's unabashed, unfiltered, and truly unflinching sincerity compels the listener to become lost in the nostalgic but ever-present drift. 'Locked Up' is but one example of just how well-suited the two are to make music together, with a lone distant guitar yielding to the duo's on-point voices and building into the final lyric of "I'm a mess / I'm a wreck / But you wouldn't know 'cause I'm at my best when with you." Or take 'Talk', the quintessential confessional of cavernous secrets and unprofessed feelings between lovers - the track recalls the insecurity of relationships with incredible accuracy, honesty, and accessibility.

The rest is just grounding and backing information. My humble two cents.

Digging: My Bloody Valentine - Loveless

Digging: My Bloody Valentine - Loveless

iFghtffyrdmns
Contributing Reviewer
January 24th 2012



6989 Comments

Album Rating: 3.5

uh well yeah Irv don't you know that music reviewing in general is just a guise to talk about how good John Travolta looked in his black Spandex in Grease?

You're absolutely right, and as always I appreciate the constructive criticism. cheers

Irving
Contributing Reviewer
January 25th 2012



5796 Comments


uh well yeah Irv don't you know that music reviewing in general is just a guise to talk about how good John Travolta looked in his black Spandex in Grease?

I apologize - my mistake. I stand corrected.

And you forgot Bruce Willis btw.



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