The Dark Romantics

Some Midnight Kissin’ (Lujo)
by Scott Hefflon

This one floors me. Not since popping in the debut of some unknown band called Muse have I been so floored by an unhyped debut release. Usually, something this solid is bragged about for a year, and before it comes out, the kind of music fans who spend their time on boards posting why they’re so much smarter and in the know than everyone else have already argued about it and practically ruined the initial impact of it or anything else worth discovering. Too much access too early is sometimes a bad thing, in the wrong hands.

The Dark Romantics rule. Practically every song will darkly win you over, locked in tight and classy, no boy band posing, no cheesy playing up the blonde hotties in the band, the falsetto gooses are tasteful, not a crutch, and the singer has the ability to swallow words like Marilyn Manson and belt it out like Robert Plant, without sounding like he’s copying either. In other words, he makes everything his own, like those giants did. I’m going to put this next to The Anniversary’s Your Majesty and Muse’s Absolution as an end-to-end perfect beauty I’ll be listening to for years to come.
(www.lujorecords.com)