After four years of waiting for new music, The Lumineers, an indie folk rock band from Denver, have finally released a long anticipated album. “Cleopatra” features 11 songs as well as a bonus track that tell the stories of life and love that take you on a ride.
Straying away from the light-hearted, fun feel of their first album, “Cleopatra” has taken a more serious turn. The lyrics, dark at times, deliver raw emotions in a way that most songs and artists can’t compete with. Going from the “Ophelia” that has its own take on waiting for a girl that is always on the mind of the audience and the upbeat take on a breakup in “Where Skies are Blue” to “My Eyes” that takes on a more solemn approach of young and naive love. “Promised it all but you lied, you better slow down baby soon. It’s all or nothing to you.”
From their first album, “Ho Hey” was a huge hit and would challenge any artist to create a song to top that, but The Lumineers took this challenge head on and didn’t disappoint. The band members have clearly taken the simpler route for this, and it’s paying off. Rather than getting all of the overly-used bits and fluff that all the top 100 radio hits use, these songs are completely original.
This is the music that would be played in a small little café somewhere or at a bonfire with friends, sipping on iced tea and just having a good time. There is a song for everyone on here, and in my opinion, the best albums have songs that everyone can relate to, to an extent. “Cleopatra,” one of the more upbeat songs with a catchy melody, tells the story of a bitter love story. “I was late for this, late for that, late for the love of my life … When I die alone I’ll be on time.”
“Angela” is one of those slower songs that anyone can get lost in and just sit back and find themselves within the song. “The strangers in this town raise you up just to cut you down.” That line alone, everyone has felt that way at one time or another in the sense of feeling put down. Not many artists can write and perform a song in a way that the listeners can start to sing the lyrics during the first time that they hear it, yet that’s the case for most of the album. Singing, tapping your foot and clapping your hands and to the beat give the entire piece a close to home feel.
The best part about it all is that they aren’t going out to make songs that are fit for the radio. The Lumineers stay true to their style and continue to deliver the raw sounds that the fans have grown to love. At times, sounding like Mumford and Sons with a twist, they’re one of those groups that people can just get lost in the music for hours. This is definitely one of the most profound and intriguing albums released to date. The release of “Cleopatra” has proved that this Colorado trio hasn’t lost the touch.