Gone are the days of the Lumineers' pop-standards and monosyllabic earworms. The Lumineers have always had a knack for narrative songwriting. The mania exhibited by Gloria and Donna reappears in Jimmy's pressured speech. At first, "Gloria" sounds misplaced, but in actuality, the song aptly depicts the psychological contours associated with addiction. © 1999-2020 PopMatters.com. On their third album, cleverly titled “III,” The Lumineers continue their tradition of storytelling on a much more ambitious, personal scale. As such, the Lumineers offer a thoughtful and compassionate portrait of addiction's cycle. The Lumineers’ latest record “III” is an ambitious third offering that has been rolling out in chapter-like EPs since May. Gone are the days of the Lumineers' pop-standards and monosyllabic earworms. There is no emotional reprieve in III. From just listening to the album, some listeners might be able to mitigate the weight of the Spark's addiction. Both women are defined by periods of mania followed by inactivity, all extenuated by heavy drinking and dangerous behavior. The jingly chords and catchy lyrics are unlike the rest of the album's bleak and minor-chord driven music. facebook The album ends with the track "Salt and the Sea" avowing addiction as a disease rather than a problem of will. 20 Virginia Tech, Michael Mutersbaugh remembered for generosity, optimism, Five observations from Duke men's basketball's first half against Virginia Tech, Duke reports 34 new positive COVID-19 tests for students, 28 for faculty and staff out of 10,287 total, Duke alum to lead Biden's COVID-19 response. Whereas the lyrics don't fully capture Gloria's psychology, the video depicts the character suffering from a similar mental illness as her mother's. This theme continued with their second album in 2016, which was partly inspired by an eccentric taxi driver, the titular “Cleopatra,” whose life story had a profound effect on the band’s lead singer Wesley Schultz. The subsequent "Life in the City" and "Gloria" shifts the lens to Donna's daughter Gloria Sparks. In the song “Leader of the Landslide,” he describes how Gloria “drank the whole bottle, forgot my name; all I ever wanted was a mother for the first time,” coming to the angry conclusion that “maybe when she's dead and gone I'll get some sleep.”, In the album’s third chapter, the cycle comes full circle: just as Gloria’s alcoholism ruined her relationship with her kids, her son Jimmy lets his alcoholism stand between his relationship with his son, Junior. One of the best album contenders for 2019. The video, which screened as a whole at the Toronto International Film Festival, is fearless and authentic. It’s simple, yet complex, lyrics are very touching and clever, music is top notch, you cannot skip a song. All rights reserved.PopMatters is wholly independent, women-owned and operated. The Lumineers III Editorial Reviews Two-time GRAMMY-nominated band The Lumineers are back with their third album, III, a cinematic piece presented as a narrative in three chapters, with each one centering on one main character. The Lumineers III — the band obviously likes their album titles short and to the point — maintains the group’s fondness for providing hushed melodies that quietly build, billow and then conclude with majesty and grace. Both Gloria and Donna embody the intricacies of struggling with illness while fully illustrating the repercussions of alcohol dependency. The independent news organization of Duke University. The album concludes with the narrative of Jimmy Sparks, Gloria's son, and Junior's father. The complexity associated with addiction and those suffering from the disease is so vast, lesser musicians would shy away from undertaking the subject. Photo: Danny Clinch / Courtesy of the artist, The Beatles 'Let It Be': So Good They Ruined It for Everyone - PopMatters ›, The Lumineers - North American Tour 2020 ›, The Lumineers (@thelumineers) | Twitter ›, The Lumineers (@thelumineers) • Instagram photos and videos ›, Elvis Costello Gets Dark and Brooding on 'Hey Clockface', Popular Culture Is Eating Its History and OMD Are Not Complaining, Shanghai Restoration Project Offer Innovative Alternate Reality on 'Brave New World Symphony', Maxwell Stern Gives Us a Warm Car in Frigid Winter with 'Impossible Sum', Susan Alcorn's 'Pedernal' Is a Chamber Jazz/Americana Blend, MetalMatters: The Best Metal Albums of December 2020. When Gloria is succumbing to her addiction, infant Jimmy is often depicted crawling through the house alone or sitting next to his mother's incapacitated body. Songwriters Wesley Schultz and Jeremiah Fraites tell the story in three chapters following three generations of one family all within the folksy and poetic tone that makes them The Lumineers. This multigenerational tale of woe follows a family that is, at its core, extremely dysfunctional. III really captures that pain and struggle in a way that’s not negative, but rather empathetic and realistic at the same time. It’s a musical, artistic puzzle and short movie, all packaged into one. III and the accompanying music video are culturally important points of contact with the realities of addiction. It’s an amazing record! Many stunning songs from their self-titled first album, which projected them into the center of the indie music scene in 2012 with the hit single “Ho Hey,” are stories at their core. Music Reviews: III by The Lumineers released in 2019 via Decca Records. The album is accompanied by a short film, scenes from which also double as music videos. The Lumineers have told their own story in “III,” a 10-track concept album composed of three chapters that follows the … Share Tweet. 22. It’s evident how much thought, effort, and creativity went into creating this album. That said, most of the songs maintain a decidedly hollow-eyed sound, one that requires the listener to lean in and patiently wait for the songs to reach a crescendo. The numeric title carries a double meaning: the album is a song cycle told in three parts, with the first two available as a digital EP prior to the September 2019 release of III. Genres: Folk Pop, Folk Rock, Americana. T he Lumineers’ third full-length studio album, aptly titled III, is as much of a cinematic masterpiece as it is a masterpiece of an album. The Lumineers have told their own story in "III," a 10-track concept album composed of three chapters that follows the fictitious Sparks family. Press Enter to view the items in your shopping bag or Press Enter to the... 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