EP Review: LibraLibra – Hail Mary

With an infectious rhythm section that is accompanied by dance beats, garage punk-infiltrated broken guitars, vocals that veer from searing emotional drama to camp self-parody and a constant experimentation in their sound that is intertwined with pristine pop hooks, it is impossible to pin LibraLibra‘s sound down, but it’s not hard to pinpoint the reassuring and inclusive feeling that permeates their music. The “Hail Mary” EP features the first results of their recent work with production luminary SPACE. Fresh from producing two of the most impactful British albums of the last few years with Idles, SPACE was apparently immediately taken with LibraLibra’s vibrant world and invited them into the studio to develop the tracks that would become the “Hail Mary” EP.

There is nothing predictable about this, the gentle and subtle opening synth strains of part one of the title track may lead you to suspect that “Hail Mary” is an EP of atmospheric 4AD influenced indie, that impression lasts for precisely for one minute and 21 seconds before ‘Lonely Girl‘ kicks up the decibels and drags you onto the dancefloor. ‘Rock Band‘ keeps the funk but not surprisingly brings a slightly harder edge to their sound before the irresistible lead single ‘Juicy Lucy‘ channels the 90’s rage of acts like Daisy Chainsaw and focuses it into a floor filling sub three minute package. The second instalment of the EP’s title track brings the pace down once more and leads into the closing track, the haunting torch ballad ‘Listerine‘.

To say that the “Hail Mary” EP is an eclectic affair would be an understatement, I suspect that each member of “Hail Mary” brings their own influence and style to bear in the writing and recording process given the diversity that’s on offer across the six tracks that comprise their debut EP. Of course such eclecticism is almost always a double edged sword, will you like all of the “Hail Mary” EP? I doubt it, will you find something on here to cherish? probably.

LibraLibra will release the “Hail Mary” EP via LibraLibra Records on August 14th