THE DELINES
Mr Luck & Ms Doom (Decor)
As frontman of Portland alt-country outfit Richmond Fontaine, Willy Vlautin caught the ear of music fans who wanted grittiness and realism within the framework of guitars which harkened back to the Replacements, True Believers and R.E.M. Upon disbanding the group after 20 years in 2014, Vlautin formed The Delines – a mellower, country-soul styled project, with Amy Boone’s vocals adding seductiveness and innocence. Yet the songs, all composed by Vlautin, retain Richmond Fontaine’s weariness.
Mr Luck & Ms Doom, The Delines’ fifth album and arguably their best to date, features their stalwart lineup of Boone, Vlautin, Cory Gray on horns and keyboards, and two further ex-Richmond Fontaine members in drummers Sean Oldham and bassist Freddy Trujillo. It’s a record of romantic misfits and small-time grifters who live out of suitcases and cars, can’t seem to settle down, but hope that in the next town will be the score that saves them.
Vlautin’s lyrics paint a world of couples that win and lose at the game of love and relationships: the title track, which kicks off this album, is probably Vlautin’s most straight-up attempt at a romantic song with a happy ending, so it’s fitting that the record sees its release on Valentine’s Day.
words COLIN PALMER
