Search - Ludus :: The Damage

Linder Sterling, will you marry me?

Lypo Suck | Hades, United States | 05/17/2002

(4 out of 5 stars)

"Centered around guitarist Ian Devine and vocalist/artist Linder Sterling, Mancunian oddballs Ludus went through several phases, all documented on this comp. Earlier recordings feature an odd combination of Banshee-esque post-punk and Pere Ubu-Beefheart-Minutemen free-jazz skronk. The beats, pounded busily on roto toms and cymbals, flutter around the actual tempo, while Devine's guitar spits shards of shrapnel, occasionally coming down to earth to wring out a catchy, at times even pretty, jazz-inflected melody. Songs shift gears at whim, going from spastic pop-punk to dissonant chaos to slinky groove, punctuated by obtuse guitar mingling with jazzy sax. Singing in a smooth, sophisticated, intelligent croon, Sterling could erupt into primal scream yelping or sexual moaning without warning. The lyrics go beyond mere feminist diatribes, playing with feminine imagery and gender roles in innovative and controversial ways. Songs like "My Cherry is in Sherry" and "I Can't Swim I Have Nightmares" typify this heady mix of intellect and chaos.



After a while Ludus began to temper the insanity, favoring more control while approaching a skewed form of beauty. Brilliantly crafted songs like "See the Keyhole," "The Escape Artist," and "Mirror, Mirror" display a newfound melodicism, hinting at what other, considerably more conventional jazz-pop artists like Everything but the Girl, Weekend, and Vic Godard were doing.



Next they threw all sense of pop convention out the window with their 1st full-length "Danger Came Smiling," an album so atonal, abstract, and formless it makes "Trout Mask Replica" sound Top 40, and helped to seal their fate as one of the most commercially unviable bands of the post-punk era.



Ludus then pulled another 180 and created their poppiest effort yet with the Sordide Sentimental 7". The addition of Magazine synth-whiz Dave Formula, combined with a new drummer playing disco beats, smoothed out the sound. "Breaking the Rules" and "Little Girls" saw Ludus playing tuneful, danceable, melodic pop. The combination of Sterling's commanding but gorgeous voice (singing against prescribed gender roles and playing with S&M) and the group's newfound pop sensibilities was a promising new development.



Next they concocted their prettiest batch of songs with the "Nue Au Soleil" EP. The title track - a cover of the scandalous Bardot tune - had Ludus playing breezy, lush, lounge-pop a la EBTG or Dislocation Dance. However, the rhythmic insanity of "She She," showed they'd still retained their demented streak. The pretty "Let Me Go Where My Pictures Go" continues in the disco-pop vein. A brilliant, catchy, successful cross-over approaching Sade and predating Stereolab's similar loungy forays.



I give this comp 4 out of 5 stars because the 3 live tracks are horribly mixed, and an infinitely better studio version of "Mirror, Mirror" exists. But overall, this is a good starting place for neophytes, especially as it focuses on the superior poppier material."