Unashamedly pop in temperament LOTUS LULLABY nevertheless look to alternative genres for inspiration. Hailing from Cork and comprising of Gavin Dunne on lead vocals, Dylan Fitzgerald on guitar, John Coman on drums and Connor Ryan on bass they call their blended sound ‘Collisionism’: i.e. taking different sounds and “making them collide into a joyous explosion of sound”. It’s a nice sentiment but I clearly remember Jesus Jones professing similar aspirations with their debut ‘Liquidizer’ many moons ago.
There are actually some other parallels with Jesus Jones beyond the declared aesthetic. Like Jesus Jones they like crunching guitars mixed with electronica set within high energy production values. The differences can be traced back to the simple chronological fact that bands like Nirvana and Radiohead emerged after Jesus Jones disappeared off the scene. Therefore ‘Starting Line’ is a cross between ‘The Bends’ and QOTSA but with that all important pop element. ‘Breakaway’ has more of an 80s vibe to it but also contains hints of Green Day. Best track ‘Count To Three’ is just a pure blast and could be the one great pop song Ian Broudie failed to write for The Lightning Seeds. On the aptly titled ‘Slowdown’ the band try for an alt-ballad and end up with something with less lustre in comparison to the previous efforts, although the Radiohead influence is still welcome. There’s also an unnamed 8 minute opus on the CD which kind of reminds me of ‘Mirror Moves’ era Psychedlic Furs for the downtempo Ibiza generation.
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Dunne has a good voice –with some similarities to Richard Butler but without the arched cynicism - and a well defined ear for a catchy tune.
In fact with repeated plays LOTUS LULLABY sound like a band that need to be signed up by someone p.d.q.
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