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REVIEWS Bob
Harris, BBC Radio - 'Glam Girl'
This is good stuff. Good drumming, all very tight. I'm trying to think who it reminds me off. The Clash maybe. The production's really well-crafted as well. Obviously a lot of thought has gone in as to how they want the song to sound. Not every band bothers with such attention to detail. Nightshift
magazine - 'Strange' Kicking in with the opening riff from The Clash's 'London's Burning', Luma ChromaÕs second single quickly sets off on a lightweight glamstomp through SupergrassÕs Glitter pop. Seemingly existing somewhere between Pink Floyd's 'Arnold Layne', SweetÕs 'Blockbuster' and the birth of Britpop, 'Strange' reminds us rather a lot of late-90s hopefuls Young Offenders who tried something extremely similar. Luma Chroma's confident strain of chunky, glammish new wave always seems to carry the nostalgic aroma of long-lost episodes of Top of the Pops from some missing year in the 1970s. As such they do sound retro but some part of them remains forever young. Nightshift
magazine - Luma Chroma live at
The Point, ItÕs always good to see a band make an effort, particularly when itÕs only in front of a couple of dozen mates. Shows the fans you care about their value for money. So for tonightÕs gig Luma Chroma have turned the Point stage into a mini forest-cum-vineyard (real trees too, none of yer plastic rubbish). TheyÕve also installed a TV set stage front with a camera pointed at the drummer so that even though the poor fellowÕs stuck at the back behind all the foliage you can see every moment of skin-bashing action. Oh, and theyÕve also got those two mud-caked loonies off the Natrel Plus advert to cavort about in a vaguely pagan kind of way whilst managing to avoid any embarrassing displays of the wrong body parts. So, top marks for visual entertainment, what of the music? For those who donÕt know, Luma Chroma used to be Dreamweaver, part 60s folk-rock revivalists, part punk rockers, fronted by a fellow who looks like the missing Dr Who. Now there are glimpses of The Who and The Kinks amongst the snatches of The ClashÕs ÔLondonÕs BurningÕ, but they still find room for a couple of Jefferson Airplane covers, just as with their old incarnation. With new single ÔA Shot From Ma GunÕ Luma Chroma are showing signs of stretching themselves beyond their local band confines at last, but you feel they may still be hunting for that spark of magic that will carry them the distance. For now though, they remain a band with some grasp on the idea of showmanship, and for that alone they deserve a little credit. Nightshift
magazine - 'A
Shot From Ma Gun' Barges in, subtle as a lump hammer in a china shop, being beastly and jostling the resident 60s-style tunes with a bit of new wave attitude and a muscle-bound bassline that might feasibly have been borrowed from The Jam. 'A Shot From Ma Gun' has hints of The Who about it with a clipped funk edge. Rather good in its bolshy way, almost verging on metal in its angrier moments while the doubled-up vocals remind us a wee bit of Love & Rockets (ace Bauhaus spin-off who did rather well in America even though no-one gave a toss about them over here). Luma Chroma are carrying on from where they left off in their earlier incarnation, Dreamweaver, taking basic 60s ideas and stabbing them with big shiny modern production techniques, notably on the jaunty 'Melancholy Mood', but they canÕt resist bashing it all about a bit like on 'Alpha To Omega'. Basically the only band this month that you could possibly imagine turning up on Top of the Pops in anything like the near future. So worth keeping an eye on. OxfordBands.com
- 'A
Shot From Ma Gun' Starting out with a sound like The Who with a 70's twist of Ocean Colour Scene, Luma Chroma rush headlong through a song tinged with memorabilia from the Rock and Pop past. If you closed your eyes for a second you could be in the studio of Top of the Pops with kaftans and flares flowing. There's sounds of The Kinks and The Beatles in there too, in small flecked pieces. And I'm sure I heard the theme tune to The Prisoner. Trying to sound angry but never quite getting there. Luma Chroma make a happy pop rocking tune, but I would like to hear a much more tougher edge to their sound. BBCi
- 'A Shot From Ma Gun' In their previous life as Dreamweaver, this three-piece opted for Beatles-inspired pop with a folk tinge. It didn't set them apart from other like-minded people on Cowley Road. A Shot From Ma Gun is no metamorphosis into the new Metallica, but this is harder-edged than previous efforts. Luma Chroma now make for a more interesting pot of Muse-like angst, The Beatles and even Kingmaker, where the drummer's concerned. A Shot From Ma Gun, the song, rambles in parts, but has a good breakdown in the middle and singer Ayd's Lennon-esque voice finds its spiritual home in a studio in Brighton. Melancholy Mood is a weak link but final track Alpha to Omega is Luma Chroma at their best - teasing and using their muso skills to unselfish effect. Nightshift
magazine - 'Ghost Writing' Oooooh that makes us mad. TheyÕve only gone and forgotten to rewind the tape. Guess weÕll have to do it for them. Life can be so hard sometimes. Like trying to make sense of stuff like this. Is it art? Is it arse? Maybe itÕs just some crazy students having, yÕknow, a bit of a laugh at our expense. The first track is, indeed, toss of the highest order - a randomly strummed Rickenbacker wandering around under some random vocal samples, trying to be spiritual when really itÕs just boring. Things take a definite turn for the better on second track, 'Afraid', which is all doomy atmospheric distorted guitars and sinister laughter in a vaguely Throbbing Gristle vein. 'In the City' goes for the heavy breathing angle by which time weÕve rather warmed to the whole idea. Doubtless theyÕll go and spoil it for us now by revealing that they were taking the piss after all. Nightshift
magazine - 'The Life and Times of Jackie Jenkins' Best demo of the month simply by dint of having a bit of life to it and a couple of cute pop songs. There are occasions when Dreamweaver sound like they should go full-pelt for the 60s tribute thing, so authentic is their approximation of Jefferson Airplane - they'd make a killing. Still, better that than yet another dreary pile of white boy blues via Oasis. This is all summery harmonies and folky psychedelia by way of T'Airplane and the Mamas and Papas, even a bit of the Monkees creeping in there. 'Life & Times of Jackie Jenkins' is a jolly old romp, packed with Beatles harmonies and the spirit of California '69, while 'Archetype' is a soft-focus ballad that floats closer to Simon & Garfunkel territory. Nothing wrong with a bit of retro chic, and you really should hear their version of 'White Rabbit'. Nightshift
magazine - 'Suzy in the Sun' Ah, the gentle shimmer of a 12-string Rickenbacker. Takes me back to a time before I was even born. To the point where The Byrds wrote 'Eight Miles High' in fact, which lead track on this five song EP, 'Suzy In the Sun', occasionally threatens to turn into. No bad thing really, I'm all up for a bit of bubbly surf pop and three-part harmonies. Especially when it sounds a wee bit like the theme tune to 'Stingray'. Or is it Joe 90? Never can quite remember. Anyway, it's jolly and buoyant and canters along chirpily enough, and there's even the obligatory 'Ooh la la la' backing vocals.
For more information, email us: beatnoir@lumachroma.com |
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