Echobelly
Lustra
Epic
It’s been a few years since I first discovered Echobelly, with their album Everybody’s Got One. That first record, while hardly breaking new ground, was a solid pop act surrounding the lyrics and vocals of the band enigmatic singer, Sonya Mandan. The records that have followed have progressively lost the edge of their debut. That aside, I had high hopes for the band’s latest, Lustra. Unfortunately, those hope were soon dashed as I discovered the new record manages to muff the strongest facet of the band, Sonya Mandan. Much of the vocal track is buried beneath ponderous guitar work. The clean lines of the band’s best songs, like “Give Her a Gun,” “Go Away,” and “Insomniac,” here are disappointingly muddy. Try as I might, I can’t help but find Lustra a major disappointment and bore. Epic, 550 Madison, 22nd Floor, New York, NY 10022-3211
