Photo Credit: Ronan Park
LUCIA & THE BEST BOYS
ANNOUNCE DEBUT ALBUM
BURNING CASTLES
DUE 29 SEPTEMBER VIA COMMUNION
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“A soundscape that recalls early Eurhythmics, with Fairfull’s extraordinarily resonant and vibrato-rich vocals – think Cher, Alison Moyet and Annie Lennox – leading the charge.”
– Sunday Times Culture
“Their big, operatic take on grunge-rock is polished, overwhelming and powerful.”
– i-D
“Textured, intelligent pop music that elevates itself above the rank and file.”
– Dork
Hot on the heels of two captivating, sold out headline shows in London and Glasgow, Lucia & The Best Boys has announced details of her anticipated debut album Burning Castles, due 29th September via Communion.
With the news comes a strutting, 80’s leaning new single, ‘So Sweet I Could Die’, on which Lucia explores the push-pull of obsessive, drama-filled relationships. “‘So Sweet I Could Die’ is a gritty tale of a relationship that swings between the highest of highs and the lowest of lows,” she explains.
“The kind of romance where one minute you feel like you are in the depths of hell, then swimming in a pool of undeniable love the next. We sometimes find ourselves in relationships where this feels like the norm, but it’s a fine line between intense passion and a bond that can completely drain you.”
Listen to ‘So Sweet I Could Die’
Pre-save / Pre-order Burning Castles
The new cut follows recent single ‘When You Dress Up’ in solidifying Lucia & The Best Boys as one of Scotland’s most exciting new artists. Praised by critics and tastemakers alike, from Sunday Times Culture, i-D and Dork through to Elton John, who championed Lucia on his Apple Music ‘Rocket Hour’ show, her captivating persona and sharp, intellectual songwriting is fast becoming a force to be reckoned with.
Burning Castles is the debut album that Lucia has been eager to make. With themes that span womanhood (“Love Yourself, “Waiting On You”), misogyny in the music industry (“When You Dress Up”), and the emotional whiplash of unhealthy love (“So Sweet I Could Die”, “Haunt You Back” “Care”), the album unfurls like a secret diary reimagined with the benefit of hindsight and experience.
“This album has been bubbling under the surface for a long time,” Lucia explains. “It’s a build up of everything that I’ve experienced as a woman over the past seven years… Some of which I’ve written about in the past, but now I’m older, have a completely different, clearer understanding of and want to reword or rephrase. It’s also about the confidence that I’ve found over that time.”
Borne out of Glasgow’s underground punk scene, Lucia & the Best Boys’ debut EPs Cheap Talk, Eternity and the State of Things saw her quickly garner praise from the likes of NME, DIY and Clash, with multiple plays on BBC Radio 1 and BBC Radio 6, plus UK tours with Dream Wife and Wolf Alice.
Her Scottish roots remain a key part of Lucia’s identity throughout Burning Castles. Named after a huge tumbledown castle behind her childhood home, the album’s artwork was shot on the banks of Loch Lomond, with Lucia wearing a leather kilt from Edinburgh-based designer Joey D.
Lucia also has an impressive fashion and modelling background, having worked with everyone from Alexander McQueen and Valentino to Charles Jeffery. For Lucia, this has only fuelled the band’s creative, experimental and hands-on spirit, with the two worlds frequently colliding. “I’ve realised that taking everything I love and genuinely care about and combining it into the world of the album is what’s going to make it the most unique and honest,” she says.
Burning Castles – Tracklisting:
1 – Butterflies
2 – When You Dress Up
3 – So Sweet I Could Die
4 – Angels Cry Too
5 – Care
6 – Love Yourself
7 – Burning Castles
8 – Hurt Somebody You Love
9 – Haunt You Back
10 – Waiting On You Now
11 – Favourite Thing To Lose
2023 Live Dates:
9th July – TRNSMT, Glasgow
13th November – Dublin – The Grand Social
14th November – Manchester – Yes Bar
16th November – Nottingham – The Bodega
17th November – Bristol – The Exchange
21st November – London – Lafayette
22nd November – Leeds – Hyde park Book Club
23rd November – Glasgow – SWG3
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