Luke Sutherland
Having loved the music of Luke Sutherland in his previous incarnations, Long Fin Killie especially, and devouring his novel Jelly Roll in one sitting, I was disappointed that I had allowed myself to lose touch with his musical career of late.
Thankfully, Rock Action labelmates, and kings of shoegaze, the mighty Swervedriver reacquainted me recently with Sutherland’s latest and, in my opinion his best, band, with Rev Magnetic providing the main support on their tour supporting Future Ruins.
Rock Action
I should take a moment to pause here and complement Rock Action on a quite phenomenal roster providing some of my favourite albums of last year and also 2019 to date – Swervedriver, Rev Magnetic, Twilight Sad, Katheryn Joseph, Aidan Moffat & RM Hubbert, Sacred Paws to name a few – and of course label founders the mighty Mogwai themselves.
Following the stunning support set at the gig, I made my way home with the Versus Universe vinyl in my sweaty mitts. I couldn’t wait to get home, slip the shiny black disc out of its dust cover, wait for the needle to hit the groove and listen in awe and wonderment to the glorious sounds and textures coming from the speakers. Of course, I was not disappointed, the direction he has taken with his latest musical adventure is nothing short of exquisite.
The Power of Music
I adore the power of music has over me, the ability to provoke intense feelings, impelling and inducing overwhelming emotional reactions. Versus Universe is an album that triggered such reactions in me, moving me to such an extent that at one point I felt tears on my face. The intense beauty of this off-kilter story-telling concept album and the coming together of all the various parts creates an overall aural effect that is overwhelming at points.
Versus Universe
Versus Universe isn’t a party album. At times the album demands full concentration from every fibre of your being, Sutherlands diaphanous vocals whispered to such an extent over delicate instrumentation. Vocal duties are shared throughout between Sutherland and the angelic Audrey Bizouerne, while touching and sometimes oblique spoken word performances supplement their gossamer tones.
Elsewhere the music stimulates a commanding force. A veritable wall-of-sound, layering dissonant guitars, thunderous bass and crashing drums. Add to this, striking synthesiser sounds, and electric violin and you have a melting pot of cacophonous proportions building to glorious ear-melting crescendos to juxtapose the quieter more delicate moments and muted tones. Sequencers along with the impactful use of autotune, accompanied by affecting heart-rending lyrics and divine vocals add to the already overflowing atmospheric beauty created by the indubitably talented quartet.
Versus Universe is a supreme triumph of other-worldly proportions. If heaven existed, this album is the blissed-out mellifluous music the angels would make.