Lupen Crook - Halloween

  by Jamie Rowland

published: 18 / 10 / 2005

Label: Tap 'n' Tin
Format: 7"

intro

Impressive, suitably spooky second single from Medway-based songsmith Lupen Crook

Following up his EP ‘Flowers Fresh From Road Kill’, Medway songsmith Lupen Crook returns with the suitably spooky ‘Halloween’. The two new songs on this, while keeping Crook’s distinctive sound, are more theatrical than those on ‘Petals…’, and are layered up with backing vocals and an eerie string section. ‘Halloween’ could easily fit in with the songs found in Tim Burton’s spooky animation, ‘The Nightmare Before Christmas’, sounding both dark and enjoyable at the same time. Crook himself sounds like Neil Young, with the kind of strained high pitch voice that people either love or hate. The B side, ‘Phantom, My Friend and You’, is another gothic ballad, this time piano based. Lyrics about "spooks" and "goons" keep the Halloween theme running, though the actual idea behind the song is anyone’s guess; something to do with class and race differences possibly? In any case, it’s a great song, effortlessly flowing between sweet-sounding verses and a powerful, aggressive chorus. With ‘Halloween’, Lupen Crook shows his first release to have been a mere blueprint, a sketch of his true vision, and although this new single expands on and refines his sound, I have a feeling it’s just a second draft, and that there’s a lot more development still to come. I can hardly wait.

Track Listing:-

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