On More Than This, The Luka State’s follow up to their 2021 debut LP, the band has clearly not let up on any of the intensity. The guitars are louder; the drums hit harder and the vocals more intense. A prime example can be heard in the fiery screams in the breakdown of “Oxygen Thief”: “If you’ve got a fucking problem, I’ll rip you a-fucking-part.” And yes, it does come off as almost comical at times (see the sentence before), but mostly works in favor of the band.
“This new record was written at a time when we were feeling very claustrophobic because the world was shutting down,” says frontman Conrad Ellis. “We were closed in and frustrated. I lived on my own and was writing constantly 24/7; all we had was each other, so we just jumped in headfirst to see where the music took us. It was our only form of escapism.”
Elsewhere, on “Movies,” the closing track of the record, the British band play an uncharacteristic acoustic number and offers their most vulnerable lyrics (“I want nothing more than being yours forever”). However, the band is at its best when they find the middle ground between scorched earth intensity and their most earnest moments, like on the infectious, melodic, straight-ahead rock number “Stick Around” or the driving “Matter Of Fact.”
The band pulled in Dan Austin to produce the album, a man not immune to working with intense bands having produced for Biffy Clyro and You Me At Six and Pixies, among others.
