The debut album from Melbourne-based artist Lukey2Legs, Truth radiates with a spacious and dynamic art-pop sound. Its sweeping arrangements and emotive vocals create an atmosphere that feels both immersive and immediate, moving gracefully between grandeur and intimacy. From the driving rock energy of “Lion in Me” to ballads that ache with yearning, the album captures a striking balance of power and vulnerability.
The album’s introduction brings forth a consuming soundscape, ideal for outdoor meditation as a chiming bell and animal sounds traverse into a hypnotic mantra. “Just listen. Breathe,” the vocals appear. The ensuing “Find Myself” moves from that jungle-like setting into a solemn piano-set introspection. The lyrical soul-searching, to find oneself, expands into a gorgeously inviting array of pit-pattering percussion and glimpses of strings — warming and caressing in their interplay with the understated piano. The textured instrumentation and swelling vocal power remind, tonally, at points of Radiohead’s more emotive, art-pop material.
“Orange Sugar” continues the eclectic atmospheric and melodic pull, here weaving classical guitar stylings amidst serene vocal immersion. “I like the taste of orange sugar,” the woozy vocals enthrall during the track’s chorus, touting a smoky and enticing allure throughout. A more anthemic spirit shines on “Lion in Me,” consuming with further explorations of self as the production navigates seamlessly from snappy dance-friendly rhythms to a melodically soaring guitar solo. “Darling you’re on my mind, all the goddamn time,” Lukey2Legs’ vocals admit during this rock-forward sequence, sating in its progressions from the bass-heavy initial infectiousness.
Another stylish delight, “All for Me” crafts a Lynchian cinematic realm in its finger-snapping, bass-y intrigue, and moody strings. An ardent vocal push and bouncing keys propel the track into an expressive captivation, with elongated vocals and chamber-pop mystique taking hold there, and reminding fondly of a cross between The Auteurs and Tom Waits. The subsequent “Purple Dreams” ventures with a comparable late-night rock appeal, incorporating a psychedelic charm in the “meet you in the clouds” vocal beckoning — bolstered later by heartrending strings and clanging piano, developing cohesively from hazy guitars into this more symphonic, vulnerable aesthetical showcase.
The spacey synth and lush piano interplay within “I’m Getting By” make for another standout production; the lyrics continue to project desire in the “all I needed to feel fine” longing, a theme apparent throughout the album. Meanwhile, the outro plays as a reprise of sorts to the intro, concluding the album with peaceful contemplation and coming-down. Truth ultimately affirms Lukey2Legs as a distinctive new voice, with lushly layered production and a vocal presence that fuels a sound both sweeping and intimate — showing a sound poised to resonate well beyond Australia, and into audiences in the U.S. and Canada.
