THE SECOND album from LUMP - singer-songwriter Laura Marling, and Mike Lindsay of folktronica band Tunng - is, as Marling says, about “desires running wild”.
Through “the agony and the fantasy” of what we want, and what we actually need, Marling examines climate change, misogyny, and responsibility - whether political (“this is the new love, killing the white dove, just for the story” - ‘Animal ) or personal - in a way that is pointed, while remaining extremely subtle - poetic reflection, not didactic lecture.
Subtly is the key to this album. It displays a considerable diversity - electro-pop, folk flourishes, indie-rock guitars, string instruments, stately piano, an Alan Stivell-like instrumental in ‘Hair On The Pillow’, and ‘Paradise’, which sounds like the long lost soundtrack to a late night sci-fi show from the 1970s.
'‘We Cannot Resist’ is the best electro-pop single the 1980s never had'
Animal’s cohesiveness comes through the duo's commitment to subtlety and minimalism - Lindsay’s compositions and arrangements allows room for each instrument to breathe, not a note is wasted, nothing is overdone, everything is as stripped back as possible. Marling’s vocals are stately, yet restrained. She is calm and aloof, yet empathetic; a wry observer, yet not an unconcerned one.
Amid the weight of the album’s themes, there is always time to dance. ‘Animal’ has an infectious groove and pulse, ‘Climb Every Wall’ boasts a grandstanding chorus, while the inspired ‘We Cannot Resist’ is the best electro-pop single the 1980s never had.
And there is room for some optimism. Closing track ‘Phantom Limb’, built around a deliberately wonky alternative-rock guitar riff, concludes with Marling intoning “We have some work to do”, implying there may still be time.
