The word “love” is arguably one of the most iconic and frequently used words in the history of rock and roll music. Songwriters have turned to love to explore passion, heartbreak, unity, longing, and just about every emotion in between. It is no surprise that so many unforgettable songs have been built around this one simple word. This list celebrates ten great songs with “love” in the title, each coming at the subject from a different place. # 10 – The Look Of Love – Diana Krall Few songs exude elegance and intimacy quite like Diana Krall’s rendition of “The
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Parisian post-hardcore band, LUGOSi is all set to release their sophomore album The Scars this month, and to lay their collective hearts bare for all to hear. To do so they shatter the expectations a listener may have when confronted by the genre tag and load these nine new tunes with all manner of influences from punk to hardcore, and from mathcore to experimental jazz and noise.
Debut record, Inconsolable, landed in 2022 and quickly found the band sharing stages with Svalbard, The Armed and Sick of It All among others, yet for this second record, the band have looked to delve deeper into their world view and the individual’s place therein.
Matches opens The Scars with a hard-edged punk attitude and a mathcore level of utter madness. Raw emotion lives in every lyric and in every driving rhythm. The turmoil is interrupted momentarily by the inclusion of a gentle, jazz passage, closing with a cascading multi-tracked vocal finale. All four members of the band contribute vocals and the layering gives a haunting effect. A Taste of Chaos follows in a similar vein, but with less wild variation and with more compulsive, driving rhythms.
Edgy guitars from Fabien Claes and Adrian Verdier give Kate Whispers an alternative feel, the switches in genre creating a morose composition without ever allowing the listener to get comfortable in one sound. It’s heart-breaking in its rawness and would be in danger of collapse were it not for bassist Arthur Bercovitz and drummer Lucas Joly combining to lay a solid foundation.
Arthur’s bass leads the charging assault that is The Fire and it boot-to-the-face raging intensity. Vocals become narration and The Armed’s Patrick Shirosishi provides a searing solo as the coda.
Mental health issues have always played a significant role in LUGOSi’s work and The Scars locks two of its central tracks to consider the issues from divergent angles. Another Downer is another raw, aggressive tune, raging as though doing so drowns out the noise of the condition; is there anything to be read into the lapping water vibes of the track’s outro section? That’s in the ear of the beholder, I suppose. That outro forms the bridge to I Must Be Fine, this time looking at the condition from an interior point of view. The more restrained music gives an intimate peek into the mindset of the protagonist, who is constantly trying to reassure themselves through the titular mantra. There are areas of this one where the attempted placation meets the exterior reality in a tumultuous whirlwind and noise.
And not content with looking at mental health, The Scars closes with a trio of tunes about the nature of mortality, exhaustion and feelings of powerlessness. Ghosts of Christmas Past seems to go through more musical changes than the other tracks on offer, but the sound palette is broad because the subject matter is. Blending many of the genre arrows in LUGOSi’s musical quiver it seeks to address the idea of accepting the inevitability of death. …And Nothing Hurt concerns itself with exhaustion and uses gaps in the music to great effect to represent such a thing through sound.
Closer Everything Ends is largely instrumental with quiet narration being placed low in the mix, brass instruments can be heard in the final moments of the record, bringing it to an intimate close.
The Scars is admittedly a strongly political record, the band make no bones about it, but those politics aren’t thrust into the listeners face, rather are there to be found if looked for. As a musical platter it occupies the same ground as Converge, Birds in a Row and The Armed. Maybe not quiet at the Dillinger Escape Plan level of sonic insanity but give LUGOSi time and they’ll likely get there.
There is something super fresh about tbh’s JUST KIDS. The LA project introduces a youthful, effortlessly cool energy that feels immediate without sounding overly manufactured. The track has a strong sense of attitude and personality, with a catchy, contemporary approach that makes its central feeling easy to connect with. There’s a looseness to the performance that works in its favour, giving JUST KIDS the feel of something happening naturally rather than being overly polished into submission.
As a song about youth, it captures that restless space between innocence and growing up, while keeping the overall mood light, modern and approachable. tbh describe themselves simply as “your favorite LA boy band,” and JUST KIDS certainly embraces that youthful identity. A fresh, catchy introduction to an artist with plenty of room to develop their own sound.
Nathaniel Stewart’s Spend Some Time is an intimate, emotionally direct song built around the simple power of personal storytelling. There is an understated quality to the track that allows Stewart’s vocal delivery and lyrics to remain at the centre, giving the song a sincere, conversational feel. Rather than reaching for unnecessary drama, Spend Some Time draws its strength from its honesty, turning a personal experience into something listeners can easily connect with.
The song’s organic character and reflective mood create a sense of closeness, as if Stewart is sharing a story rather than simply performing it. Its appeal is perhaps best reflected in the strong response it has received from listeners, having surpassed half a million Spotify streams and prompted personal messages from strangers. Spend Some Time is a warm and genuine piece of songwriting where vulnerability becomes its greatest strength.
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Ollie Lishman and The Melody Men’s Club Checker is a sleek, high-energy club cut built around a relentless dancefloor pulse. The production leans into driving electronic rhythms and a stripped-back, functional groove, giving the track an immediate sense of movement and late-night momentum. There is a confident, no-nonsense quality to the arrangement, with rhythmic details and vocal elements working together to keep the energy locked in rather than distracting from the beat. Released through HARD Recs, Club Checker feels designed for the darker, more physical side of the club, where repetition becomes hypnotic and the groove does the heavy lifting. A direct and energetic collaboration that prioritizes rhythm, impact and dancefloor effectiveness.
With the continuing release of great new music, sometimes it is refreshing to get away from the editor’s keyboard, take a step back from the walls of MetalTalk Towers and immerse myself in something that is just great music. One band that we have not covered before and that I have been enthralled by over the last couple of years is Coastal Fire Dept.
I first came across them with the single Gentleman. If you do nothing more than watch this video below, I will be more than happy.
Gentleman has a wonderfully addictive guitar riff and, as a whole piece, defines the great sound the three-piece Coastal Fire Dept. have. It is the repeated refrain of the lyrics that pushes it forward into memorable territory.
There was something so satisfying in that first listen. Simple is not the right word, as this is no throwaway track, but sat in the kitchen over a bottle of MetalTalk Moldovan Merlot, the four-time repeated opening lyric, “She’s getting dressed,” had me immediately engaged.
You have drummer Ozzy Austin walking around Guernsey in a long coat and stick, doffing his hat at passers-by, while clips of the band playing toy instruments at the Bridge at St Sampson’s is wonderfully cheesy.
With Ozzy occasionally taking a sip from his hip flask, he enters the charity shop towards the end and finds a shot glass that takes his fancy. He decides to buy it after giving it an in-shop test with the contents of said flask, obviously.
The song has a serious side too. “I was fed up with hearing about men’s predatory and unacceptable behaviour towards women in my community,” guitarist/vocalist Ollie Goddard said at the song release. “I was angry about it and wanted to remind guys to be a Gentleman when they are around a girl. What better way than shouting it out loud.”
Gentleman proved to be a great intro to the band. For me, Crank followed. Driven by the bass of Saad Frihmat, this is a juicy track, and I love the layered guitars here. Cry Your Heart Out is up there too. Only 900 views on YouTube is undeserved, as the track builds an emotional layer which gets enhanced when the guitar solo kicks in.
Regret is another top-quality watch/listen. Great guitar riff, awesome chorus. The video is also a great watch, with the toy robot getting a bit wasted. You can only imagine the laughs they had making this film in their local pub.
You Make Me Feel Like Someone Else runs back six years in the discography of Coastal Fire Dept. Great video and a song that hits hard. It has parts that have made me wave my arms and sing along, travelling up an escalator on the way to a gig.
So where am I going with this? Well, this is some of the band’s music on YouTube that I have been red-wining to in the kitchen. Some of the topics are certainly not celebratory, but this band has tunes that make it easy to become invested in.
Coastal Fire Dept. released their new album, Bonfire Of Favoured Egos, earlier this month, and the single Everything’s Dead is out now too.
“Everything’s Dead is us staring at the rot,” Ollie Goddard said. “The shops are quiet, the conversations happen through screens, and it feels like nobody’s really looking out for each other anymore. We’re not offering answers. We’re just saying it out loud.”
And they do it in that great Coastal Fire Dept. style too. The videos the band turns out are compelling, and the one for Everything’s Dead is no exception. Married with a great punk-edged song, this might be about the decay of human society, but the song is delivered in the usual tantalising style.
So the music is not complex to follow. We’re not talking about the intricacies of Power Metal or Symphonic Metal.
But that is what I love about this band’s music. The ability to switch off a bit from MetalTalk and just enjoy some time with this band is time very well spent. A busman’s holiday, if you like.
Now, to get a download of the new album Bonfire Of Favoured Egos and investigate more. I need a T-shirt too. And more MetalTalk Moldovan Merlot and, like a Gentleman, I shall top up the wife’s glass first. Cheers.
