Lush – Gala

4AD

Well this is (excuse the pun) luuuuushhhhhh!! As anniversary celebrations go, 4AD have pulled out all the stops for Gala, especially where the deluxe vinyl is concerned.

The gravitas of the original Vaughan Oliver artwork subtly amplified. Each artwork’s reverse, lounging in a silvery sheen. The band logo flickering in a hologram of colours, those hand-tinted geisha shots everywhere (fed by Miki Berenyi’s Japanese heritage) and faithful to the original release hiding on the inside too. The scratchy abstracts and blurry streaks fitting well with that roughened glamour of those early years. Girly harmonics glistening in heavy shimmer and pillowing percussives.

Gala still feels very summery to me, the staring at the sun splintering of “Sweetness And Light” — that over driven roar that just erupts, released on a daisy-chain sparkle, something the sun-kissed cursives of “Sunbathing” heightens, scuttered in stormy subtleties. The bright-eyed bleed and steady kick of “Breeze” dipping gorgon-headed into a saturated sea of effects gorgeousness, tightly wound round some wickedly catchy refrains.

Lush really felt like they were giving pop a refreshing shot in the arm. The heady effervescence of “Deluxe” that opens the Mad Love EP furthering this impression. Quickly replaced by the bristling razor-wired little girl-lost tornado that is “Leaves Me Cold”, the gauzed gallop of “Downer” that Emma Anderson and Miki harmonically burn, cruising dreamily over the jangle. Lastly, the beautiful lullabying quality of “Thoughtforms” stealing the show, all torchlit and crackly, the line “All the colours talk to me” never failing to meld its sweet mystery.

But I’ve got to say Scar is the EP that does it for me, started my journey with this band back when my hair was less grey, its oozy demo-like qualities setting the mood. The serrating sensuality of “Baby Talk” dialling up the (harm)ony – opening things up with a pissed-off edginess, the pogo-popping punklet that is “Second Sight” sharing a similar spark, all coupled by the spiteful bite of “Bitter”. The beguiling blush of “Scarlet” and the strummed youthful magnificence of this EP’s version of “Thoughtforms” upping the romantic glisten, for the sky-staring softness of “Ethereal” to steal you away completely on silky crimsonesques.

Harking back to how music used to be consumed in teasing seven-inch form, whetting your appetite for the LP main meal, the “Hey Hey Helen” / “Scarlet” addition to the package sees Lush massively improving on an old ABBA song (so much so, it feels like their own) and Robin Guthrie’s remix of “Scarlet” on the flip, indulgently spangled in a bubblegum of preset pebblings and feathery loops. A nice little extra that wins me over with every play.

A band’s first steps captured in glorious detail, Gala is something to treasure.

-Michael Rodham-Heaps-