Maybe it was the intense competition of the times or the vagaries of youth, but a fair number of British indie bands in the 1980s released a single or two, garnered acclaim from the music press, and then split up before even releasing a proper album. The Wild Swans, the Train Set, and East Village are a few that come to mind.
The Loft are another. Famously one of the first signings to the Creation label, they released the jangle-pop classic single “Why Does the Rain?” and recorded a well-received BBC radio session in 1984. “Up the Hill and Down the Slope” followed the next year, and then they split, before “shoegaze” was so much as a twinkle in Creation’s eye.
The Loft’s former members went on to form other short-lived bands, including the Weather Prophets and the Caretaker Race, and vocalist/guitarist/primary songwriter Pete Astor maintained a relatively steady musical career as a solo artist. The original four Loft members (Astor, guitarist Andy Strickland, bassist Bill Prince, and drummer Dave Morgan) reunited unexpectedly in 2006 and have been playing intermittently ever since. More than 40 years after initially forming, the Loft have released their debut album.
Everything Changes Everything Stays the Same finds the band in a unique, rather peculiar place: They weren’t around long enough to really establish a “signature sound”, yet their name is associated with a specific time and place (and, in Creation, a record label) that come with their own implications and expectations.
In a sense, this setup works in the Loft’s favor. They don’t have to worry about measuring up or sounding like a tribute to themselves. At the same time, the vintage guitar sounds and indie melodies of Everything Changes Everything Stays the Same come with a built-in grace and authenticity. When they claim, “I don’t want to feel good tomorrow / Want to feel good now”, it’s not out hedonism so much as pragmatic reckoning.
Nothing in these ten songs panders to or even references current musical trends or fashion; the Loft haven’t hooked up with a contemporary indie-cred producer or a moonlighting electronica guru. Instead, Sean Read, who helmed the last couple of Astor solo albums, runs the boards. Read simply lets the jangle-fest unfold, allowing these old friends to do their thing with a minimum of interference. Crucially, the one allowance to modern times is the richness and fullness of the sound, which is in direct contrast to the treble-heavy, often claustrophobic feel of the classic indie era.
This suppleness allows the unassuming charms of tracks like the glistening singalong “Feel Good Now” or chugging, country-tinged “Ten Years” to unfold of their own accord. Astor’s crooning tenor hasn’t changed and is as agreeable and fluid as ever. Strickland’s emphatic backing vocals add depth and underscore the melodies, sometimes recalling Tallulah-era Go-Betweens.
Astor’s songwriting is varied enough to keep the group from slipping into auto-jangle. The loping “Storytime” has an air of oppression before the chorus takes it airborne. “Funny how completely different things happen but feel exactly the same / Switch on the gaslight”, Astor sings. The juxtaposition between mordant lyrics and euphoric melody fits like an old pair of shoes. “Greensward Days”, meanwhile, is as delightfully wistful as anything from relative youngsters like Real Estate and Beach Fossils.
Perhaps not surprisingly, Everything Changes Everything Stays the Same sags a bit in the middle before the world-weary “This Machine” sends things off with a near-noisy coda. If anything, the record could use a bit more of this type of edge, which the Loft shouldn’t shy away from in future efforts.
Hopefully, those efforts will be forthcoming. Everything Changes Everything Stays the Same is a remarkably accomplished, confident debut, yet one that suggests there is still more of the story to be told. The phrase “brand new old-fashioned” has rarely been more apt, and it’s to their credit that the Loft mostly capture the best of both worlds.