A few weeks back I unintentionally caught the Lazy Colts supporting a far less together band, and from the moment Lacey Cole, and co. hopped onto the stage, I was in a stupor. Their distinct use of foreign, and cinematic sounds, along with Cole’s eloquent phrasing, and magnetising movements, made for the best show I’ve witnessed in months.
Lazy Colts are a cinematic alt-folk dream, filled to the brim with 5 of Sydney’s best musicians and their debut LP Trojan is all the proof we need.
I left wondering if the same triumphant show of emotion would be conveyed when condensed, and on record. Their debut LP Trojan was my opportunity to find out, and I had my mind made up as soon as Slackjaw began its journey through my earphones.
With haunting keys, and devastatingly stark lyricism “Slackjaw, night sweat, rhinestone secrets, no time for answers once the blood has soaked through. Naked, and hidden, two times forbidden but I see the sirens in my review.” It quickly became clear that their compositions can shift from grand film score reveries to The War on Drugs-esque, angst filled heart crushers in a single move, and Cole’s penchant for allowing the hurt to seep through every edge of each track was made even clearer with Twenty Two.
Twenty Two is not just any song. It’s a slither of mastery. It’s not often that I throw that term around, but the lyricism, “I waited twenty two years just to give ya, everything I once thought I’d keep for myself. But now that I’m here and you say you don’t want it, darling you say it, and you say it as if I’d go give it to somebody else” along with the resonating keys, hints of violin, and light lingering beats, when laid upon Cole’s vocals, is an experience within an experience.
This is a track that’s worthy of worming its way into copious soundtracks, and playlists alike. Although the song’s premise is being carefree, youthful, and having the ability not to fall too deep into love’s trap, it manages to tuck itself into a bed of textures, and force an array of thoughts, and feelings up.
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These Sydneysiders are beyond an average band, they’ve managed to create something that blisters on the mind, and etches each lyric deep down in the feels.
Their debut album is an unflinching testament to how strong they are as a group. Every track is tight, and every word sung rolls off the tongue and pitches a solitary tent in the brain. Any doubts I had about their ability to capture the same energy on record, as they did live have been thrown out the window, and swept away with the wind.
Lazy Colts have successfully captured their sound, and executed it seamlessly on Trojan. A record for the ages, and quite possibly the best Australian record of 2016.
