Description
Like Unto Lambs is the sixth full-length album by the American alternative rock band Luxury, independently released in May 2024. The album was recorded periodically over 2022 and 2023 by Matt Goldman at his studio Glow In the Dark in Atlanta, Georgia, and in Nashville, Tennessee; at Shh! The Boys Are Sleeping in Tyler, Texas; and at The Office in Beaufort, South Carolina. Produced by Matt Goldman with Luxury. Luxury is Jamey Bozeman, Glenn Black, Matt Hinton, Chris Foley, and Lee Bozeman.
I still remember the day I bought Luxury’s Amazing and Thank You. My friend Kevin and I were perusing the music section of our local Family Christian Bookstore (or maybe it was a Lemstone) circa 1995, when anything bearing the Tooth & Nail logo was an insta-purchase for me. But even so, I was unprepared for the Georgia outfit’s sound.
Amazing and Thank You was loud, messy, and chaotic, but also undeniably pretty and even a bit fey thanks to Lee Bozeman’s croon and some surprisingly sensual lyrics. I didn’t know quite what to make of it, and truth be told, I still don’t – which only makes it all the more intriguing. Since then, Luxury have established themselves as one of the best indie-rock bands on Christendom’s periphery, not because of their productivity – they’ve only released six albums in the last three decades – but because each album makes for a rich, raucous, and rewarding listen.
Like Unto Lambs may be Luxury’s shortest album to date, its nine songs barely passing thirty-seven minutes, but it’s no less full or complete than its predecessors; there’s nothing lacking in its relative brevity. As always, Luxury adhere to quality over quantity, and these are high-quality songs to be sure.
Their trademark blend of triple-guitar assaults, Bozeman’s croon, and Glenn Black’s unhinged drumming is still in full effect on «Maker/Wheel Within a Wheel», «Fur/Ticker Tape», and «The Necklace/Make a Gesture, Start a Fight» - and still charged and bracing. But they also employ melancholy piano arrangements on the dreamy, wistful «Oakleigh Woods/The Ghosts at Night» and somber atmospherics on «The Rainbow/A Second Act».
For all of its sonic diversity, though – I can’t even count how many times I’ve listened to these songs, and yet, I swear I’m still hearing new details – Like Unto Lambs feels very much of a piece. That’s due to Bozeman’s inimitable voice, which sounds as effortless now as it did back in 1995, and lyrics that are simultaneously obtuse, cryptic, direct, and poignant.
«Maker/Wheel Within a Wheel» starts off with a drug-addicted friend, only to become a plea to seek and find rest amidst slashing guitar chords. «One of Those Things/The Temple» pokes at modern beauty standards and body image. “Is there something wrong with your body?/ Maybe you’ve never been told/ Sometimes they want to help/ But their help is the one thing that kills you the most,” Bozeman sings, while bemoaning that “the kids are on their own” and sighing that “it’s just one of those things” – as if admitting that messed up views of the human body are just one of the many ills that plague us.
Which flows nicely into the lament that is «Fur/Ticker Tape» (my favorite song here). Against crashing drums and moody synths, Bozeman wonders “what is left to dream” as he looks at headlines suggesting that we’re sinking into hell’s lowest circles. Nevertheless, God – “the one who tore the curtain top to bottom” – keeps breaking in. Even as Bozeman acknowledges “Oh, the ticker tape speaks to me, ‘In this world there is misery,’ ” he’s still able to sing “With this world, let me make my peace.” (On a personal note, that simple phrase has become something of a prayer for me these days, especially as we head into a highly contentious election season.)
Bozeman’s perspective is undoubtedly shaped by his calling as an Eastern Orthodox priest. (In case you didn’t know, three of Luxury’s members are in the priesthood, and another member was a religion professor. Which are some true rock ‘n roll bonafides.) There’s an undeniable spiritual aspect to Luxury’s music, one that seems like it should be at odds with the band’s punk roots (Fugazi, Rites of Spring, The Nation of Ulysses). But Luxury takes all of these things – theologically piquant lyrics, classic alternative stylings, punk rock fervor – and combines them into a glorious, consistent whole. Which means that thirty-plus years into their existence, Luxury sound as vital as ever. [Jason Morehead, Opus, May 17, 2024]
> Apple Music (https://music.apple.com/us/album/like-unto-lambs/1747770681)
CD tracklist:
01. Maker (Wheel Within A Wheel) – 3:48
02. One Of Those Things (The Temple) – 5:01
03. Fur (Ticker Tape) – 4:10
04. The Necklace (Make A Gesture, Start A Fight) – 5:25
05. Oakleigh Woods (The Ghosts At Night) – 4:32
06. All Amusement (So Close To Tears) – 3:53
07. How To Act In The World (Eat Your Heart Out) – 3:48
08. The Wilderness (The Color of Gold) – 3:43
09. The Rainbow (A Second Act) – 3:04
Note: Released on both 12-inch vinyl LP and CD. Available at Bandcamp: https://luxury.bandcamp.com/album/like-unto-lambs
TrueTunes, June 17, 2024. This 45RPM episode features a look back at over 30 years of the music of a relatively obscure but critically acclaimed indie rock band, Luxury. We will go back to the beginning, when the band was known as The Shroud, playing with jangly punk abandon at their college in Toccoa, Georgia. We launched this podcast five years ago – when Luxury reconvened to record and release Trophies, their first new album in a decade. We’ve talked about that album since then several times (and you’ll hear about it on the main show), but this flashback fills the rest of the story and sets the stage for the conversation about their latest album, Like Unto Lambs.
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