Lemuria - Pebble

The cover of this album is a simple black & white photo of the two main members of Lemuria who have withstood the many comings and goings of their bass players. Who will be the next third member of the group, and will they have staying power? The simplicity of the cover reflects who they are as a group, but does not begin to touch on who they are when performing live.

This was a much anticipated release for me personally after I listened to "Get Better " from one of our local libraries and just couldn't wait to get it rolling out my speakers. As the track "Gravity" began, there were moments of disappointment while waiting for the kick where this band would take their music to the next level and it happened 2:32 seconds later, when "Wise People" came on and made me a believer.

Bridge 9 Records seems to have been a good fit for Lemuria after all. They have allowed the band to continue with the style that they have built without pushing them to combine into a more dramatic, hard-edge style. This is exactly what Lemuria needed in order to advance their career and get their message out. "Ribcage" relies on the bass line to drive the song while the guitar gives off a swirling and spinning feeling.
"Ribcage" should have been the opening track because it is definitely a great continuation from "Get Better ." "Different Girls" is lyrically another writer contemplation, which is what makes Lemuria work. Internal investigation into the word play has always allowed the listeners to enter into a song, allowing it to become part of their own lives. Lemuria does this better than most bands coming out of Buffalo these days. Each song after "Ribcage" should have appeared in this order, but earlier on the album.

Musically, they have stayed within the realms of what has worked for them so far. There are moments that the listener would really enjoy if they just broke out a bit and assimilated something new. They stayed just a little too safe in this sense and did not attempt to show the listener that they had more to present. I have always been on the encouraging side toward giving the listener a bit more than what they bargained for when they purchase a new CD.

When their songs play within the rotation of my music player, they are uniquely distinctive and the production is that of which only what Lemuria and Doug White could produce. The sound is solid, but we can only hope that if they come out with a third disc, they will take a bit of a chance on expanding.