Anyone familiar with Luke Haines will know that his albums and projects are unpredictable. Typically, after Peter Buck bought one of Luke’s paintings of Lou Reed, the two ended up working on the ‘Beat Poetry For Survivalists’ album. With tales of rocket science, magick and Bigfoot, it’s an acquired taste. I loved it, and this time around, after last year’s excellent ‘Setting The Dogs On The Post Punk Postman’, Haines and Buck reunite in a more solid, band format. Luke seems to mainly be playing acoustic, Buck does his thing, weaving through Luke’s soundscapes, while Scott McCaughey plays bass and mellotron and Linda Pitmon is on drums.

That said, these are clearly Luke’s songs and vision. Psychedelic paranoia abounds from the off, with ‘The British Army On L.S.D’, woozily stating “with my bare hands I’ll chop down this tree”. ‘The Skies Are Full Of Insane Machines’ builds the tension, while ‘Sunstroke’ lets you breathe, a slower acoustic track, with Luke’s now expected recorders. ‘Revolutions’ gets groovy to thoughts of past empires, 45 rpms and bloody revolutions. It’s catchier than it sounds! Although the album is more experimental overall than the previous two, Luke always brings enough tunes to sweeten the darker moments.

Speaking of which, ‘Won’t Get Out Of Bed’ comes on like an alternative Burt Bacharach. You may already have heard it, along with ‘Psychedelic Sitar Casual’, which could be an Auteurs riff, unsurprisingly. I always look forward to a new Luke Haines album, you never know what you’re going to get, but it’s always good. Maybe I’m overthinking, but it sounds a little less ‘English’ than ‘Setting…’. I wonder if it was already written before they started playing together? Any chance of an interview, Luke? Let’s hope so.

The quality doesn’t drop, whether it’s ‘Subterranean Earth Stomp’ with a wonky, glitter beat or ‘The First Time I Met God’, with acoustic and E-bow, with God dressed as a Teddy Boy. ‘(Exit Space) All The Kids Are Super Bummed Out’ starts like an alien choir, taking us on a far-out seven minute journey. The tablas are out for the hypnotic ‘Iranian Embassy Siege’, there’s tales of ‘Flying People’ (excellent drumming), and the jazzy ‘Diary Of A Crap Artist’. ‘Waiting For The UFOs’ is a fitting place to end this trip, man. There is more, but I’m off for another listen. It’s an album that benefits from headphones, for your undivided attention. Luke Haines has done it again.

*Tune into Boogaloo Radio, Fridays 12-2pm GMT for Luke Haines (Righteous In The Afternoon)

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Author: Martin Chamarette