It’s make or break time for arguably one of the biggest breakout bands from the UK over the past few years. The Struts will release their long-awaited sophomore record sometime this summer. Will the group be able to shake the stigma of the sophomore jinx? If the first two singles are any indication of what’s to come, that shouldn’t be the case.
Frontman Luke Spiller was recently quoted discussing the direction of the highly anticipated release. “We were very much aware that even though the band has lived with the first album and the songs that come with it for quite a while, for everyone else, it’s relatively fresh,” says Spiller. He continues, “So I felt like it was really important to make this second album somewhat depart from the first one. Not a departure musically, I didn’t want to go completely left. I think it’s important to give people more of what they fall in love with.”
“One Night Only” was released late last year and “Body Talks” was just released last week. Both are strong athematic songs that continue the band’s quest to bring back all the best attributes of ’70s arena rock, but is the world ready for them? Interscope is certainly taking a gamble with a four-year space between albums here, and I can’t imagine the band would agree with this timing, but that’s the price one pays for being part of the major label machine.
Then again, the stars seem to be aligning perfectly as the band is queued up for the opening slot on the Foo Fighters summer stadium tour. While that certainly doesn’t guarantee the future success of the group, especially since the record will not be out yet, it does set the stage for what could be a breakout year for the band.
Interestingly enough, this is one of those bands that is seemingly more popular in the States than in their home country. How that’s possible I have no idea. I will tell you that this is one of the best live band’s that I’ve ever seen before and that their performances are electrifying. I saw the group last year at the Electric Ballroom for the first time, and they were great. I was invited back to see them earlier this week at Koko, fresh off the main stage at Download, and they were even better.
The crowds go crazy over these guys and their throwback style of music made famous by the Stones and Queen. This is a new generation carrying the torch while putting their spin on a familiar sound and no one does it better. Not Greta Van Fleet, not Tyler Bryant & the Shakedown, who are great rock bands in their respect, but The Struts are the undisputed kings at the moment, and it is their time to shine.
Koko seemed to be quite a small venue for The Struts, then again who knows when the fans will be able to see them in such a gorgeous, intimate space within the next year. These guys had the crowd hanging on every single note delivering one banger after another. Spiller and company looked so confident in their performance that it seemed natural. It’s the sign of a band that lives and breathes the rock ‘n’ roll lifestyle and one where the fans can see right through the bullshit if it’s not authentic.
It’s clear that The Struts know precisely what their fans want and they continue to overdeliver with their over the top performances. The only question that’s left to answer is what does the record launch look like for the UK? It would be great to see Interscope borrow a page or two from the Malcolm McLaren playbook for the Sex Pistols: big, bold, controversial, newsworthy, and scene-stealing.
It’s a tall order but with two singles on the market already, selling an album is going to take a campaign launch designed to go viral very quickly and remind the UK that The Struts are a band that should be celebrated with an full album and not one or two songs.
