The Vichy Government – Luke Haines Is Dead

The Vichy Government are a band known for their simple but somewhat off-kilter songs. They manage to blend Jamie Manners's cheerfully scathing satire over quietly lo-fi musical landscapes. However, this precarious mix does not always work to the best effect, sometimes sounding lacklustre and lazy rather than meaningful and succinct.

"Luke Haines Is Dead" follows the usual Vichy Government pattern of lyrical story-telling interspersed with slightly smug insights into the human condition, which are most definitely a refreshing change from haphazard indie poetry. However, Manner's' robotic voice becomes wearing and would be lost without the eerie background electronica. The song only interesting towards the end with the repetition of the refrain "Luke Haines Is Dead" against building noise that breaks the uniformity of the previous social musings.  Unfortunately repetition is an aspect not entirely becoming of a song which invokes little emotional response in terms of its listening potential.

Steph Potter