Music Spotlight - Love Outside Andromeda

One morning last week as I drove to work, I (as usual) had my iPod plugged into my car stereo, and I was listening to a song by Love Outside Andromeda, an Australian alternative/indie rock band. I found myself thinking, while listening to the song, How could she have ever recorded this without bawling the whole way through? Because it is such a beautiful, emotive song, and every time I hear it I want to cry.

The song was called "Past Tense (But A Prayer Nonetheless)", and there's a video of a live version here on YouTube, which really doesn't do justice to the studio version.

I often find myself thinking this about LOA's work, but never before have I written about it! Here I am doing so now, and I thought maybe I'd make this the start of a bit of a series (but with no actual schedule, because I have more than enough schedules in my life and I'd need to put this one in my Outlook calendar too, if I was going to remember it). Maybe this will end up being the only entry I ever do in this so-called series, or maybe not. Only time will tell. For now, a little bit of info about LOA, or Love Outside Andromeda, a great and little-known Aussie band.

The band is led by Sianna Lee, who has recently launched her solo career with a debut album. I've only heard one song from that, but I have both of LOA's albums and they are amongst my favourites for sure. You can see all LOA's releases here.

I think Sianna Lee is a great songwriter, and maybe she doesn't have the most phenomenal voice in the world but there's something real about her vocals that I really love. The band's debut album, self-titled Love Outside Andromeda, is full of great songs that would have made excellent singles. The opening track "Tongue Like A Tether" is a real rocker, but the album also features quiet beauties like "If You Really Want So Little From Me" and the magnificent "Boxcutter, Baby". It's a fabulous album for lovers of alternative rock, and I highly recommend it. The band's follow-up effort, Longing Was A Safe Place To Hide, was maybe a little less commercially viable, though I think "Measuring Tape" should have been a smash hit. The song I was listening to in my car that morning was from this second album.

You can buy their work from their website (where you can see how ridiculously expensive CDs, like books, are in Australia), or else on iTunes. I'd recommend Amazon, but I just checked it out and the only copies I see on there are even more expensive imports.

And finally, because I am Last.fm-obsessed, here is LOA's page on that site. :D

P.S. The reaction I had to this song, and that I have to other songs in a similar way, made me think about those writers who cry while writing particularly harrowing scenes. So far I haven't ever been one of those writers, but I can totally imagine how it would be that way for some.

P.P.S. Just editing to add that right now, LOA are at #29 on my Last.fm charts, with 448 listens.