Unlimited Streaming
Listen to this album in high quality now on our apps
Start my trial period and start listening to this albumEnjoy this album on Qobuz apps with your subscription
SubscribeEnjoy this album on Qobuz apps with your subscription
Digital Download
Purchase and download this album in a wide variety of formats depending on your needs.
The Lilac Time return with their first album of all new material in eight years, and their first since primary songwriter Stephen Duffy and bandmate Claire Worrall were married, with the life-affirming and aptly titled No Sad Songs. Replete with tunes about love, weddings, and romantic inspiration ("All I want is what you bring me/Christmas Eve as a child"), it's clear Duffy is in a more optimistic frame of mind here than on 2003's melancholic and crisis-themed Keep Going. Combined with a positive, even grateful outlook, the album's instrumentation consisting of mostly acoustic instruments, including all manner of stringed ones, makes for an at once dignified and down-to-earth indie pop spin. "The First Song of Spring" kicks things off with a simple tempo count followed by elegant, slow-building drama -- there are strings, timpani, guitar, pedal steel (by former bandmate Melvin Duffy), banjo, drum kit, and more -- but it's very controlled if orchestral, and still remarkably intimate in sound and message: "Have I told you that I love you...today?" The folkier, guitar-based, and equally sweet "She Writes a Symphony" talks of starting a family and commands without sarcasm, "Don't let your wings get in the way." Love is in the air, and most of the album follows in kind. "A Cat on the Long Wave" has minor chords and lyrics of ghosts and mystery, so not every song is swept up in proclamations of devotion, however, it's more like a dream or meditation than anything to contradict the album's title. Duffy isn't pushing boundaries on this record but is still writing really proficient songs. The most interesting track in an unconventional way is Nick Duffy's quasi-instrumental "Rag Tag & Bobtail" with rhythmic banjo, drums, sighing pedal steel, and complex time signatures. There's no need for longtime fans to pine for the Lilac Time's earlier material here; No Sad Songs is a quintessentially solid and affective offering from the band, and with the continued rise of indie folk stylings well into the 21st century, the Nick Drake-inspired approach they've been loyal to since the '80s might not be embraced by the masses but should at least find itself in fashion.
© Marcy Donelson /TiVo
You are currently listening to samples.
Listen to over 100 million songs with an unlimited streaming plan.
Listen to this playlist and more than 100 million songs with our unlimited streaming plans.
From €13,50/month
Copyright Control, MusicPublisher - John Paterno, Producer - Stephen Duffy, Producer, Drums, Guitar, Vocals, Bass, ComposerLyricist - Melvin Duffy, Pedal Steel Guitar - The Lilac Time, MainArtist - BMG Rights Management (UK) Limited, MusicPublisher - Nick Duffy, Producer, Accordion, Banjo, Bouzouki - Claire Duffy, Producer, Keyboards, Vocals, Strings, ComposerLyricist
(C) 2015 POETICA (P) 2015 POETICA
John Paterno, Producer - Stephen Duffy, Producer, Drums, Guitar, Vocals, Bass, ComposerLyricist - Melvin Duffy, Pedal Steel Guitar - The Lilac Time, MainArtist - BMG Rights Management (UK) Limited, MusicPublisher - Nick Duffy, Producer, Accordion, Banjo, Bouzouki - Claire Duffy, Producer, Keyboards, Vocals, Strings
(C) 2015 POETICA (P) 2015 POETICA
John Paterno, Producer - Stephen Duffy, Producer, Drums, Guitar, Vocals, Bass, ComposerLyricist - Melvin Duffy, Pedal Steel Guitar - The Lilac Time, MainArtist - BMG Rights Management (UK) Limited, MusicPublisher - Nick Duffy, Producer, Accordion, Banjo, Bouzouki - Claire Duffy, Producer, Keyboards, Vocals, Strings
(C) 2015 POETICA (P) 2015 POETICA
John Paterno, Producer - Stephen Duffy, Producer, Drums, Guitar, Vocals, Bass, ComposerLyricist - Melvin Duffy, Pedal Steel Guitar - The Lilac Time, MainArtist - BMG Rights Management (UK) Limited, MusicPublisher - Nick Duffy, Producer, Accordion, Banjo, Bouzouki - Claire Duffy, Producer, Keyboards, Vocals, Strings
(C) 2015 POETICA (P) 2015 POETICA
John Paterno, Producer - Stephen Duffy, Producer, Drums, Guitar, Vocals, Bass, ComposerLyricist - Melvin Duffy, Pedal Steel Guitar - The Lilac Time, MainArtist - BMG Rights Management (UK) Limited, MusicPublisher - Nick Duffy, Producer, Accordion, Banjo, Bouzouki - Claire Duffy, Producer, Keyboards, Vocals, Strings
(C) 2015 POETICA (P) 2015 POETICA
John Paterno, Producer - Stephen Duffy, Producer, Drums, Guitar, Vocals, Bass, ComposerLyricist - Melvin Duffy, Pedal Steel Guitar - The Lilac Time, MainArtist - BMG Rights Management (UK) Limited, MusicPublisher - Nick Duffy, Producer, Accordion, Banjo, Bouzouki - Claire Duffy, Producer, Keyboards, Vocals, Strings
(C) 2015 POETICA (P) 2015 POETICA
John Paterno, Producer - Stephen Duffy, Producer, Drums, Guitar, Vocals, Bass, ComposerLyricist - Melvin Duffy, Pedal Steel Guitar - The Lilac Time, MainArtist - BMG Rights Management (UK) Limited, MusicPublisher - Nick Duffy, Producer, Accordion, Banjo, Bouzouki - Claire Duffy, Producer, Keyboards, Vocals, Strings
(C) 2015 POETICA (P) 2015 POETICA
John Paterno, Producer - Stephen Duffy, Producer, Drums, Guitar, Vocals, Bass, ComposerLyricist - Melvin Duffy, Pedal Steel Guitar - The Lilac Time, MainArtist - BMG Rights Management (UK) Limited, MusicPublisher - Nick Duffy, Producer, Accordion, Banjo, Bouzouki - Claire Duffy, Producer, Keyboards, Vocals, Strings
(C) 2015 POETICA (P) 2015 POETICA
Copyright Control, MusicPublisher - John Paterno, Producer - Stephen Duffy, Producer, Drums, Guitar, Vocals, Bass - Melvin Duffy, Pedal Steel Guitar - The Lilac Time, MainArtist - Nick Duffy, Composer, Producer, Accordion, Banjo, Bouzouki - Claire Duffy, Producer, Keyboards, Vocals, Strings
(C) 2015 POETICA (P) 2015 POETICA
John Paterno, Producer - Stephen Duffy, Producer, Drums, Guitar, Vocals, Bass, ComposerLyricist - Melvin Duffy, Pedal Steel Guitar - The Lilac Time, MainArtist - BMG Rights Management (UK) Limited, MusicPublisher - Nick Duffy, Producer, Accordion, Banjo, Bouzouki - Claire Duffy, Producer, Keyboards, Vocals, Strings
(C) 2015 POETICA (P) 2015 POETICA
Album review
The Lilac Time return with their first album of all new material in eight years, and their first since primary songwriter Stephen Duffy and bandmate Claire Worrall were married, with the life-affirming and aptly titled No Sad Songs. Replete with tunes about love, weddings, and romantic inspiration ("All I want is what you bring me/Christmas Eve as a child"), it's clear Duffy is in a more optimistic frame of mind here than on 2003's melancholic and crisis-themed Keep Going. Combined with a positive, even grateful outlook, the album's instrumentation consisting of mostly acoustic instruments, including all manner of stringed ones, makes for an at once dignified and down-to-earth indie pop spin. "The First Song of Spring" kicks things off with a simple tempo count followed by elegant, slow-building drama -- there are strings, timpani, guitar, pedal steel (by former bandmate Melvin Duffy), banjo, drum kit, and more -- but it's very controlled if orchestral, and still remarkably intimate in sound and message: "Have I told you that I love you...today?" The folkier, guitar-based, and equally sweet "She Writes a Symphony" talks of starting a family and commands without sarcasm, "Don't let your wings get in the way." Love is in the air, and most of the album follows in kind. "A Cat on the Long Wave" has minor chords and lyrics of ghosts and mystery, so not every song is swept up in proclamations of devotion, however, it's more like a dream or meditation than anything to contradict the album's title. Duffy isn't pushing boundaries on this record but is still writing really proficient songs. The most interesting track in an unconventional way is Nick Duffy's quasi-instrumental "Rag Tag & Bobtail" with rhythmic banjo, drums, sighing pedal steel, and complex time signatures. There's no need for longtime fans to pine for the Lilac Time's earlier material here; No Sad Songs is a quintessentially solid and affective offering from the band, and with the continued rise of indie folk stylings well into the 21st century, the Nick Drake-inspired approach they've been loyal to since the '80s might not be embraced by the masses but should at least find itself in fashion.
© Marcy Donelson /TiVo
About the album
- 1 disc(s) - 10 track(s)
- Total length: 00:40:04
- Main artists: The Lilac Time
- Composer: Various Composers
- Label: POETICA
- Genre: Pop/Rock Pop
(C) 2015 POETICA (P) 2015 POETICA
Improve album informationWhy buy on Qobuz...
-
Stream or download your music
Buy an album or an individual track. Or listen to our entire catalogue with our high-quality unlimited streaming subscriptions.
-
Zero DRM
The downloaded files belong to you, without any usage limit. You can download them as many times as you like.
-
Choose the format best suited for you
Download your purchases in a wide variety of formats (FLAC, ALAC, WAV, AIFF...) depending on your needs.
-
Listen to your purchases on our apps
Download the Qobuz apps for smartphones, tablets and computers, and listen to your purchases wherever you go.