Music Monday – CLEOPATRA

      19 Comments on Music Monday – CLEOPATRA

Some of you may know this, but others may not. I used to work with today’s Music Monday band for a few years. We don’t need to go into the details or anything, I share this mostly as an anecdote and history behind a few of my opinions on the new album…

MM cleo

The new album…the long awaited new album…

I’ve heard the band play the same songs since 2009 (some 2010 and some 2011, but you catch my drift). The songs from their original album weren’t new, just newly recorded, so I was interested to hear what would come, what songs would be on this new album.

First out was “Ophelia” and it was catchy…I don’t get the video, but the song is in line with the band you’ve come to know.

Then I heard “Angela”…the lyrics are deeper but it’s filled with “ho!” reminding you of the classic “Hey Ho!”

And then there’s “Cleopatra,” the title track from the album and I found myself pulled into these lyrics…

But I was late for this, late for that, late for the love of my life

And when I die alone, when I die alone, when I die I’ll be on time

It felt like a bit of the band that I knew many years ago. A review I read last week called the album “dark” and sure, it is darker than what many may know, but maybe because I knew the guys behind it, I knew many of the stories that played into some of the songs, I knew the emotions that were being dealt with for years that I’m not surprised and I still hear the same band and sounds that I knew then.

But I should tell you this isn’t an album full of new songs. On the contrary, there are many I’ve known for 7 years now, like “Gun Song” which I first heard while standing in a bar in New York City when I heard the band for the very first time. Or “Sleep on The Floor” which was a favorite back in my LA days when they first wrote it. I was interested to hear how these songs sound now and this is where I must be honest and say they aren’t the same. They were missing a bit of the energy and climactic moment I remember both having, especially “Sleep On The Floor.” It’s not to say they’re bad because they aren’t, but they’re different.

The deluxe version has a few other songs from back in the day, like “White Lie” and “Everyone Requires a Plan.”

Overall? I think it’s worth a listen or two, or three, but know it’s another side of The Lumineers than you may be used to.


19 thoughts on “Music Monday – CLEOPATRA”

  6. Charlotte

    !!!!!

    DUDE. We’re like weirdly in sync today. I honestly had no idea they had an album out and now I’m obsessed with all of these songs (Ophelia is very pretty). They are from a neighboring town and my friend went to school with them — AND they’ll be playing in Amsterdam in a few weeks, when my bf and I will be there 🙂 Cool right?

    Hope you have a great week and thanks so much for this share 🙂
    Charlotte recently posted…The Haves and the Want-MoresMy Profile

        1. Katie Post author

          They sure are! I was working with them back in those days and upon the move to CO. I also got terribly lost in that area before I met them and when I left their house after our first tour, I spotted the pizza shop I had to stop at for directions. Small world. (Also in the days before smart phones and when GPS devices weren’t quite so common. haha)

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