It's been already almost 10 years since Lucy Kruger started releasing albums with her band as Lucy Kruger & the Lost Boys and she proves that she has innumerable layers of artisticness and pure talent within herself. The albums are released so frequently one can lose track of Kruger's discography, but that's ok. I can assure you, they are only getting better and better.
The characteristic minimalism the artist nurtures evolves with every release, at least that's how I see it: it's not as rough and lone electric guitar-heavy, less of the dark blues vibe and more towards softer, dreamier art pop music. In some places even bordering with ambient pop's soundscape-y unintelligibleness of the backgrounds. It may be softer but it's certainly not much lighter: the darker shade of dreamy is the signature skill of Kruger's music and, first of all, lyrics which play the lead role in every song on this and any other release. And those can be extremely poignant and uneasy.
But the thing I love about this music is how effortlessly it combines the ethereally catchy parts with artsy, slightly less approachable in form, very often within one composition too. That's why Ambient Heat is definitely my favourite here: the short lyrical phrases that create a mosaic of fear and existential uncertainty contrast the beautifully executed chorus that contrasts the ambient pop formless parts. I could hardly not love this one.
Pale Bloom costs 9 EUR.
Check: Ambient Heat
Country: RSA/Germany
Genre: dreamy art rock
Label: Unique Records/Schubert Music
