Luna - 'Luna Live' (Beggars Banquet)
4/5
By: Stephen Potter
The death of Galaxy 500 meant shit to most people, but was a time of mourning for me 'cos they had a fragile beauty unmatched before or since. And, in Dean Wareham, a guitar God was present, who could wring a tune outta the same, few scued chords time and time again, layering a solo of fractured notes that always sang to my soul. But their demise was lessened by the birth of Dean's new band, Luna.
The voice lowered, the pop and tempo got turned up, and it was good: in a different, almost as life-affirming way. It wasn't until I saw them live that it really hit home, though. The intense yet light touch of the tunes finally made me give an inner scream, 'Aghh f**k,' as the smile broke out and I jigged my thing, lost in my world of music. The rest of the crowd responded in a similar way - no one could speak while they played, grinning from ear to ear until the last note of a song rang out and it was then that the wild applause and hollering would start. The band fed off it, giving every following tune that bit extra: controlled, skilled musicians, loving every second of their chosen craft.
The live LP tries to catch this, but usually fails, either bad sound or outta tune guitars/vocals let 'em down, but 'Luna Live' gives yer a slightly rawer band kicking back and enjoying themselves, taking tracks from the last ten years, even throwing in '4th of July' for the old Galaxy fans. The sound is loud 'n' crisp, the guitars riff 'n' wah, give the odd squeal, then come back down to that gentle melody and voice that has been soothing dark days for half my life. For fans and newcomers alike.
Artists in this article: Luna
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