Italian duo Luton exist in a place where modern classical, sound design and film scores intersect. Lush, melancholic, and a little bit off kilter, their music feels right at home on Lost Tribe Sound, alongside William Ryan Fritch’s bombastic orchestrations and the hypnotic pastoral acoustic guitar of Western Skies Motel.
The melancholy comes from the strings, though Luton also engage in electronic washes of sound, abstract percussive flourishes, classical guitar, Russian zither, piano, electric bass and guitars, e-bow, various pedals and even some field recordings. The strings, woodwind and brass come courtesy of the Luton Sinfonietta Orchestra. It’s the combination of the orchestral elements with particularly some of the electronic textures that is so fascinating. There’s a loose unfolding beauty to the music that feels live and ever evolving. You never quite know what will happen next, yet it always feels thoughtful and considered – which is remarkable when considering Black Box Animals is the duos debut.
It’s an album that takes time. There’s depth to the textures, and the duos ability to mine the melody within the drone and seamlessly switch between the orchestral semi classical sounds and more electronic textures displays with a certain audacious artistry that’s going to be fascinating to watch as the duos relationship develops.
