Spiritual Songs For Lovers To Sing

LUH, short for Lost Under Heaven, is Ellery Roberts, frontman of WU LYF (R.I.P.), and his girlfriend Ebony Horn, an audiovisual artist based in Amsterdam. WU LYF swept up the indie world in 2011 with their singular album, Go Tell Fire to the Mountain. Ellery’s raw, inimitable growl set the tone for a new anthem to the wild fury of youth. Spiritual Songs for Lovers to Sing definitely takes a lot of influence from WU LYF’s distinctive heavy pop, but ups the grandiosity with lush strings and synths, cavernous reverb, and layers and layers of sounds. Fans of Mew and colossally dreamy prog rock will enjoy.

RIYL Mew, Liima, WU LYF, heavy pop
Favorites: 1, 2, 4, 9 (FCC), 12
FCC: 6, 9, 11

1. (2:57) * I&I—Sharp keyboards, abrasive vocals, background synth. Vocals consist of words Ellery says which are then repeated by Ebony. Song gets more and more grand as it unfolds.
2. (4:16) *** Unites—Begins with prominent bass and a string melody. Outsized, golden synths come in mid-way. Insane, anthemic build from 2:20 to the end. Very WU LYF in its untamed fury. Bloody amazing.
3. (4:30) Beneath the Concrete—Upbeat and lush with heavy drums. Arena rock? Reminds me a lot of WU LYF's “Spitting Blood”. Gets kind of jazzy at 1:42. The ending is very “We Boys” by WU LYF. Oh how I miss that band.
4. (4:25) ** Future Blues—Solo guitar and Ebony’s melancholically declarative vocal delivery. Very different from much of the heavy pop-style tracks on the record. Ellery’s voice enters three minutes in.
5. (5:24) Someday Come—Mid-tempo, synthy track featuring Ellery’s vocals and some strings. Grandiose.
6. (6:21) $ORO—FCC: f***. Autotuned vocals! Synthesizer! Pounding percussion from 4:00 to the end. Heavy pop, T-Pain style.
7. (4:56) Here Our Moment Ends—Maudlin strings and synths. Ellery’s vocals, desperately clinging on to “some hope to put [his] kerosene heart into”. Acoustic guitar in last 1.5 minutes. Really cool lyrics—the CD case has the lyrics printed on them, definitely give them a look.
8. (5:43) Loyalty—Bluesy guitars and Ellery’s vocals. Over-the-top strings happen. Synths also happen.
9. (4:50) *** Lost Under Heaven—FCC: b*******. Angry distorted electric guitars and drumming. Raging. Ooooo gets very heavy pop at 0:51. Last 40 seconds are ambient. Awesome track but save it for safe harbor.
10. (5:36) First Eye to the New Sky—Some autotune with the vocals, though not as egregiously as in track 6. Strummed and solo electric guitar with tons of reverb. Very grand.
11. (5:18) Lament—FCC: f***. Piano, synths, heavy rumbling percussion, and Ellery’s vocals. The final adrenaline rush.
12. (5:12) *** The Great Longing—Acoustic guitars, meandering piano cuts, and double-tracked vocals that are a duet between Ellery and Ebony. Reminds me of London Grammar. Lovely.