A grand comeback

music review

Wesley Schultz (lead vocals) and Jeremiah Fraites (drums, percussion) started writing and performing together in New Jersey in 2002.

In 2010, cellist and vocalist Neyla Pekarek joined the band. However, success eluded them for nearly a decade. And then the band’s self-titled debut album released in 2012 became a resounding success. Their song ‘Ho Hey’ became an anthem and brought them into the limelight.

Four years after their debut album, The Lumineers, the folk rock band from Denver, Colorado, has now come out with their sophomore album, Cleopatra. Their sound template incorporates the piano strokes, tambourine thumps and hand-claps.

The opening song, ‘Sleep on the floor’, is an adventurous song, with a driving rock beat where a man exhorts his woman to “Pack yourself a toothbrush dear/ Pack yourself a favourite blouse/ Take a withdrawal slip, take all of your savings out/ ’Cause if we don’t leave this town/ We might never make it out.” While ‘Ophelia’ is a bluesy but upbeat song, the title track ‘Cleopatra’ tells the story of a woman who has experienced tragedy in her life.

‘Gun Song’ is about a man discovering his father’s pistol after he died. ‘Angela’ is the story of a woman who left her small town to pursue bigger things, but now returns to a man she loves and a place she can call home. It has infectious hand-claps. ‘Long Way From Home’ tells a sad story about a man who shares a hospital room with a man dying of a terminal disease. The closing song, ‘Patience’, is a soft piano instrumental. Indeed, patience pays, and confident in their musicianship, The Lumineers have arrived.