Artwork: Kate St Claire
biography
Luxembourg
were:
David Shah vocals
Alex Potterill keyboards
Rob Britton guitar
Jon Bacon bass
Steve Brummell drums
David Barnett bass (2007-08)
2000. End of a century (it’s nothing special). Frontman extraordinaire
David and pop-Eno-wannabe Alex had been circling one another in various
projects for some time, occasionally sharing a stage to devastating
effect.
A little later, Steve lent his rhythmic skills to the pair, effortlessly
complementing the unique chemistry already formed. Next to sign up was
Jon: defender of the righteous and unholy by day, fearsomely louche
bass creature by night.
The foursome placed an advert for a guitar player influenced by The
Magnetic Fields and Suede. Rob claims he was given the job when the
only other applicant decided his guitar was too heavy to carry to the
rehearsal room, but the rest of the band say they took Rob on because
of the glorious riffs spilling out of his amp. Thus, after a long and
arduous labour, Luxembourg was born.
Immediately the band began writing new material, their collective tastes
fusing to create something shiny and fresh. They decamped to a damp
studio by the Thames and forged the Progress and Resistance demo EPs
in quick succession, an eclectic pile-up of ideas that inspired infatuation
and confusion in equal measure.
As the
fervour around Luxembourg began to grow, word spread of their ability
to deliver an unrivalled live experience. They were fast becoming the
underground band with the overground-sized fanbase. Encouraged by the
reaction of fanzines and journalists, Luxembourg threw themselves into
a relentess onslaught of gigs. Each of these performances presented
a band on top of their game, with the magical intuition that comes from
knowing you're right.
With the next demo EP, Tourist Information (featuring the pounding Success
Is Never Enough together with the mechanical snarl of Let Us Have It),
the boys pushed the boat out even further. Signifying both a step up
in ambition, and the embracing of a more aggressive sound, Luxembourg
had found their place.
One night
in 2003, as David was walking home he was collared by Joe of Angular
Records. They both agreed that the label’s forthcoming compilation,
The New Cross, would be incomplete without a Luxembourg song. Featuring
the likes of Bloc Party and Art Brut, critics adored the comp and it
was made album of the week by NME. Hot on its heels came the second
Angular collection, with Lux holding their own in the esteemed company
of The Long Blondes, The Boyfriends and many more.
Meanwhile, fans Katie and Lisa Miller had become so excited about the
band that they decided to set up their own label, Dogbox Records, to
release a bona fide Lux single. What The Housewives Don't Tell You was
launched in September 2004, garnering a rabidly enthusiastic reaction
from all corners of the indie press. Welding the lyrical nous of Jarvis
to a rock grind worthy of the Pixies, with a dash of PSB for good measure,
the single and its b-sides firmly established Luxembourg as a force
to be reckoned with.
The band now regularly packed out venues in London and beyond, often playing for far longer than their alloted time as a loose coalition of fans clamoured for ever more. Responding to demand from fans for the early demos to be made available again, Dogbox brought out an album-length Luxembourg retrospective, Best Kept Secret: Demos & Rarities 2001-2004. It was lovingly received, and gave the band their first appearance in a national newspaper.
2005 saw a second single, Luxembourg vs Great Britain, a masterclass in swooning elegance and teeth-bared confrontationalism. Reviewers once again lined up to garland the band in superlatives as, day by day, it became increasingly clear that Luxembourg were in possession of an idea that's time had come.
Following in the footsteps of Brett Anderson and co., Luxembourg were invited to Cambridge to headline the 2006 Downing College Spring Ball, where they gave the most visceral performance ever seen inside a marquee.
Having
established themselves as tastemakers by bringing Luxembourg into the
public domain, Dogbox Records’ next move was to showcase no less
than 16 underground pop acts on the Blue Skies Up compilation CD. A
brand new Lux track, Not My Number, appeared on this critically-adored
album alongside contributions from the likes of Swimmer One, Robots
In Disguise, Morton Valence and The Lodger.
In June 2006, Luxembourg served up the dizzying We Only Stayed Together
For The Kids single – a frenzied paean to suburban desperation
– and received their most glowing notices to date. The band’s
live shows continued to become ever more essential, characterised by
sweat-drenched adoration and orgasmic noise.
Luxembourg are poised to release a new single, Sick Of DIY. It’s quite simply the finest three minutes of aural heaven since man first bashed rock with bone. The long-awaited debut album, Front, is out in October, and rumour has it that it’s a stone cold classic. Clear a place at the top of those end-of-decade polls now.
Changing lives and saving music every time they grace a stage, Luxembourg are here to seduce you. Why even try to resist?