Album Review: Son Lux - Lanterns

Son Lux
Lanterns
Rating: Yeah Daddy Make Me Want It

Ryan Lott, who performs under the name Son Lux, is obviously fascinated with the tension created between use of electronic and more organic instruments. His first couple of releases straddled the line between the worlds of artists like Owen Pallett, Radiohead, James Blake, and Wild Beasts; never quite finding the right mix of the two. Lanterns, his third record, is perhaps the best culmination of his talents so far, showing that collaborations with Sufjan Stevens have given him new focus and purpose in his recordings. Alternating between interior leaning tracks and more maximalist cuts, Lanterns is a fascinating listen that, while not always reaching the heights it aspires to, shows that is heading in the right direction. Lanterns, while not exactly a concept record of sorts, definitely has a series of themes running through it, ostensibly a collection of tracks about not feeling quite one with the world and wishing for something different. But in this world, getting what you want doesn't necessarily mean being happy with the ultimate decision.

Launching the record with a chorus of voices, samples, and ukulele, "Alternate World," is a somber meditation on how hard this world is to live in, and wanting to move on. Lott plaintively sings "tear me away from this fight/tear me away/take me to an/alternate world/alternate age/alternate life." There is a beautiful interplay between the subtle electronics and beats with strings and ukulele.



Album highlight "Lost It To Trying" erupts out of the gate next, stealing a bit from Sujan's The Age of Adz, with its haunting mix of horns, woodwinds, blistering percussion, and electronic elements. While all the elements feel like they are spinning out of control, Lott is somehow able to keep it all in check, trying to figure out his place in the world, wondering if they "Give in and get out/We rise in the dying."



The record moves along its path of knowledge and discovery up through the final tracks, with our protagonist reaching the point where he, and his lover/partner wants to "Leave the wasting world behind us/We will make it out alive/Leave the waiting world behind us/We will not look back this time" on the penultimate track "Plan Our Escape," before subtly moving into the final track "Lanterns Lit," where he is now alone, haven't not made the leap realizing there is more to this world, but seeing that his lover/partner has left this life he sets out to truly live, singing, "And with all your grief in my arms/I will labor by singing light/I'll keep my lanterns lit."



This push and pull between succumbing to the stresses and harshness of this world and seeking solace in something else is mirrored throughout the record by Lott's choices of more minimalist electronic flavored tracks and the maximalist tracks that almost overflow with outsized arrangements. Some of the best tracks, for me, are the electronic leaning ones, such as the menacing "Ransom," with its steady bassline throb, that is kept in check by a steady rise of strings;



and the dark, alt-R&B influence of "Easy," which strains above a whisper and keeps you in its masterful thrall.



The album is a bit front loaded with its best tracks, with the back half straining a little under the weight it of all. I felt that the track "Enough of Our Machines" should have been the one track that tied everything together, but its meandering mix of organic instrumentation never really rose to anything memorable, its latter attempt to intertwine electronics in the mix was maddeningly incohesive, and the lyrics faded into the background rather than creating the emotive context necessary for the leap at the end.



While these small missteps took a little bit away from the overall feel of the record, they were not enough to truly derail the effort. There is enough on Lanterns to show that Lott is almost where he is ready to give us a classic work. It is heartening to see him at least shooting for the stars, when so many others are all too willing to play it safe.

Rating Scale:

Chilfos: masterpiece; coolest thing I've heard in ages.

Woof Daddy: excellent; just a hair away from being a masterpiece.

Grrrr: very good; will definitely be considered for my top releases of the year.

Yeah Daddy Make Me Want It: good; definitely invites further listens and piques one's interest for more material.

Meh: not horrible, but certainly not great; could have either been polished, trimmed, or re-thought.

Jeez Lady: what the hell happened? Just plain bad. They should hang their heads in shame and be forced to listen to Lady Gaga ad nauseam as penance.

Tragicistani: so bad, armed villagers with pitchforks and torches should run the artist out of the country for inflicting this abomination on the human race.