Rebellion has begun for LUGOSi.
Celebrating its tenth anniversary this year, the band led by Fabien Claes (guitar/piano), Adrian Verdier (guitar), Arthur Bercovitz (bass/keyboards), Lucas Joly (drums), and Pieriv Ruys (vocals) unveils its second album, The Scars, which blends personal themes with political commentary.
David Fritz-Goeppinger, their photographer, also contributes vocals.
The album opens with the short but quickly intense Matches, which clearly showcases its somewhat chaotic, defiant riffs while Pieriv screams at the top of his lungs, perfectly aligning with the blend of post-hardcore and noisier elements. The few softer passages allow us to catch our breath before charging forward again, eventually leading into Kate Whispers where the violence is paired with a touch of intoxicating, haunting melancholy, reflected in both the abrasive guitars and the more sensitive vocal parts. There are also some backing vocals to amplify the intensity of the screams, just as on The Fire, which takes a more prog-oriented direction, offering successive waves of aggression followed by gentleness before the return of heavy sounds, culminating in a chaotic final featuring Patrick Shiroishi (The Armed) on saxophone. Another Downer gives us a brief moment of respite before unleashing the beasts once more, continually weaving in dissonant elements to amplify its raw rage, and the intensity builds up to that minimalist break only to explode even more powerfully before giving way to I Must Be Fine and its quite melodious intro. It’s impossible not to get swept up in the slow but palpable intensity of this track, but once the flame is lit, nothing can extinguish it, and the band makes it a point to keep it burning at every turn before A Taste for Chaos takes over, ironically offering a fairly controlled sound, even when the vocalist lets loose. The hypnotic harmonics return in full force on Ghosts of Christmas Past, a rather intriguing track that ultimately proves to be one of the most direct at times, rooted in energetic hardcore foundations upon which the musicians weave their fury. There’s still a brief lull before a gentler final, but then violence returns in a rather raw form with And Nothing Hurt, allowing the band to rev up the machine every time they ease off slightly, ensuring a wild crowd at their future live shows. The album concludes with the aptly titled Everything Ends, a track that also straddles the line between visceral aggression and increasingly light tones bordering on Shoegaze, accompanied by Paloma Ferlet’s guitar and then a brass section that carries the song through to its final moments.
LUGOSi’s musical personality is as ever-changing as its convictions are strong, and while The Scars is clearly not the most accessible album of the year, it is undoubtedly one of the most visceral, granting the five musicians a rare creative freedom.
80/100
