Australian post-punk five-piece A. Swayze and the Ghosts – songwriters Andrew Swayze (vocals), Ben von Fürstenburg (guitar, synthesizer) and Zac Blain (drums), with Kieran Daly (guitar) and Joe Berry (bass) – are back with their sophomore full-length Let’s Live A Life Better Than This, one that deserves a big soundsystem. The duality of the album title is expressed in powerful lyrics (“It’s a sick kinda world // But it’s a beautiful life”), but even more so in the rousing and grooving music that invites escapist dancing. The ten original songs come across like an electrifying autumn storm, which lands firmly with opening track Tell You All The Time, swells to hurricane force – via the disturbing but catchy three minutes of He Is Dead (“Wasn’t it John Lennon who said … // Fuck John Lennon // He Is dead”) – in floor-burners Sick Kinda WRLD (an awesome dance hit for the ages) and Cool Cucumber (reminiscent of LCD Soundsystem), continues to an impressive wall of noise in Friends (heartfelt and personal), to finally settle down in the ballad Puppy Baby, after which a final aftershock follows with the impressive closer Before I Left. It’s a breathtaking experience.
Let’s Live A Life Better Than This, self-produced, is out now digitally and on vinyl LP.