Say Lou Lou - "Lucid Dreaming"

When twin sisters Elektra and Miranda Kilbey-Jansson sing together on this record, at times it can be a thing of spectral grace. Their voices dip and wrap around each other, letting the sibilance softly glisten in dreamy reverb. Their harmonies are crisp. They never really overdo it with vocal acrobatics, they just steadily deliver. I really dig how their voices sound and combine on ‘Lucid Dreaming’. If only the songs were as strong as their obvious vocal abilities...
On my first few listens, I felt that this album was one that would reveal itself after a few spins. It has all the elements of a great synth-pop record, but instead, it sadly left me feeling like I was missing something. Or, more to the point, the group did. The twins say they write openly and neither of their personal lives are off limits. That may very well be true, but their lyrics across the whole record are a little too arbitrary. On previous single ‘Julian’, for example, the narrative is a rather clunky tale of getting across the border under the cover of night, presumably with the titular character.
One track stands out. ‘Games For Girls’ is a catchy, up-tempo disco tune, for which Say Lou Lou enlisted the help of Norwegian producer Lindstrom. It’s by far the best track on the record and having the Norse man involved on this track was most definitely a good move for the groove. The rest of the record, for the most part, is quite a downbeat affair. Recent single ‘Nothing But A Heartbeat’ treads some dubious Ellie Goulding-style territory.
Say Lou Lou have a record to be remembered in them. But they need the songs to make it...

Key Track - 'Games for Girls'