Mistletone

“What a view from my small window” … drawn from the sometimes enchanting space between dreaming and waking, Small Window started life as a small poem written on a plane, and now it is the sublime opening track to Passerby, the forthcoming album by Luluc; aka Brooklyn-via-Melbourne duo, Zoë Randell and Steve Hassett.

This superb album will be released on CD, vinyl and download on Mistletone Records via Inertia on July 11, and via Sub Pop on July 14 (Europe) and July 15 (North America).

Pre-order the LP or CD version of Passerby via Mistletone mail order, and we will send you a lithograph art print signed by the band (while supplies last).

• “How they manage to make plaintive music sound so gorgeous is anyone’s guess. The National’s Aaron Dessner co-produces, and takes the band somewhere very special” – DOUBLE J RADIO (BEST NEW MUSIC)

Luluc’s Passerby is a gorgeously crafted 10-track album full of beautiful, slow-burning melodies and delicate harmonies, which drip out of their mouths like honey. The attention to detail is unmistakable, and highlights like “Reverie On Norfolk Street” and “Early Night” are as haunting as they are hummable. Like Dear Hamlyn, unadorned guitars and voices make up the bulk of the dreamy sound, though the power of the added instrumentation can’t be overstated, with well-placed piano, percussion, double bass, sax, trumpet, trombone, and more adding color to the cosmopolitan atmosphere. Band favorites like Simon and Garfunkel and Gillian Welch (and, of course, Nick Drake) can be felt throughout Passerby, while the poignant restraint aligns them well with labelmates Low.

Lyrically, traveling and observing the world around her—windows show up on the album a few times—set the scene of Passerby, which finds Randell embracing new experiences that further enhance her appreciation of familiar people and places. Some characters in her poetry are real while others are imagined, but all of her emotionally charged words ring true with universal themes of love, longing, and loss. Though it would seem difficult to follow up an album as personal and thematically focused as Dear Hamlyn, Randell wasn’t fazed by the challenge. Besides, her dad can still be found all over Passerby, both directly—check out “Gold On The Leaves,” “Star,” and the title track—and in spirit.

The album was co-produced by the band and The National’s Aaron Dessner, who invited members of The National’s touring band as well as guys who have played with Bon Iver, Beirut, and Sufjan Stevens. Dessner himself contributed heavily to Passerby, adding guitar, bass, percussion, piano, synths, and harmonium. In essence, he became the unofficial third member of Luluc, and together they worked diligently to make sure their collective vision became a reality.

“Steve and I have similar intuitive taste,” says Randell. “We work together so confidently and compatibly that it was kind of remarkable how well Aaron was able to fit in. He really felt like part of our creative brain.”

And lest you think this matchup was one and done, the bond was further strengthened when Luluc recently opened a string of dates with The National in Australia and New Zealand. And there’s more: Hassett can be heard singing backup on “Lean,” The National’s entry on the Hunger Games: Catching Fire soundtrack.

With the release of Passerby, it appears that the stars have aligned for Luluc. They may have taken the long road to get here, but everything Randell and Hassett do ends up feeling perfectly timed.

“None of it seemed particularly slow for us,” says Randell. “We were never going to put the record out until the songs were recorded the way they needed to be. This was about getting the music right and the songs right, and making sure that they’d found their proper voice.”

The wait is over. The world is ready to hear Luluc quiet and clear.