Cuthbert & The NightWalkers - Love Needs Us

Wed 31st Oct, 2007 in Music Reviews

Love Needs Us
Cuthbert & The Night Walkers
ABC Music/Warner Music Australia

Twee indie pop is just one of those genres that seems to churn out the same sounds, lyrics and feelings over and over, so much so the artist performing it can sometimes be beside the point. But the problem with writing off an entire genre is that you deprive yourself of moments of sheer beauty and excellence, albums that manage to appeal to more than just the core and convince haters to give it a shot. Love Needs Us is one of those albums.

Apparently unafraid of being considered cute or exploring the odd in-joke (the liner notes include a story about the island of Bongo Pongo), the band show why it’s always a good idea to write what you know on “Newtown (_La La La_)”. A song about moving out, missing home and hating Sunday shifts, the call-and-response backing vocals, lightly distorted guitars and Cuthbert’s confident delivery make the song a special, happy groove.

Neither afraid of lifting the tempo or taking its time, Love Needs Us shifts gears up and down throughout, sometimes from song to song, but still feels cohesive. After Newtown, Backstage at a Play twitters along like sunlight through a leafy tree before settling into its second half, the subdued Love Song for a Play, one of those subtle ballads that manages to stay both genuinely touching and lyrically entertaining.

Speaking of which, Cuthbert’s lyrical style is universally idiosyncratic; lyrics about fast food, writing songs and Sydney suburbs transcend local appeal, sounding especially great picked out by Australian accent that shows itself occasionally, often backed by what sounds like a schoolgirl choir carrying gentle, rich melodies for everybody.

The strength of this album seems to lie in its earnestness. The songs are pretty songs, sometimes about writing pretty songs, and it seems to work. Anybody who can slip universality into songs this personal and construct an album so synergetic and varied has a gift. Songs like Telephone and the album’s best cut, amazing folk ditty Maggie’s Health, will no doubt slip into a few iPod play lists before the year is out, and deservedly so – but it’s in the context of the album that they shine the most.

Thanking “everyone who was there” in the liner notes, it’s evident this is a personal album written for and about certain people. That should certainly not dictate that this album is an in-joke though; like a happy Australian Arcade Fire or a folkier Polyphonic Spree, Cuthbert & the Night Walkers are definitely guests you want in your home, and who knows – maybe you’ll be there next time.