Lungs and Limbs did not plan on releasing an album in the middle of a global crisis, but it’s hard to think of a better soundtrack to self-isolate to than the alt-pop quartet’s recently released full-length record, Great Goodbye.
The record follows the group’s 2016 EP, Big Bang. In that time, the quartet—made up of Karina Rousseau (vocals, guitar), Nick Tudor (guitar, vocals, synth), Kristen Power (synth, vocals) and Matt Power (drums)—have matured, faced personal and professional changes and are now channeling those emotions into Great Goodbye.
“I don’t want to say it’s a negative album, but it’s definitely a reflection of feeling worn out by the reality of human society,” Rousseau says. “The timing of having the album come out and having all this happen with the pandemic felt apropos.”
“I think the world is at a point where we have to say, one way or the other, goodbye to the way everything has been,” Tudor says. “I don’t know what that looks like on the other side, but I don’t think it’s possible for the world to continue plodding along and for us to expect things to work out.”
“It’s an acknowledgment, too, of appreciating what we do have while we have it, not knowing what the future looks like,” Rousseau says.
Lungs and Limbs’ signature electro-pop sound has also matured, with layered synths and electric guitar riffs interweaving themselves into melodic backdrops for Rousseau’s ethereal vocals.
“We start with a simple idea, or beat, or guitar part; and Karina writes lyrics post writing the melodies, so there’s a lot of weird sounds during the demo process until we get a theme,” Tudor—who also engineered the record—says.
Kristen Power also reveals that the demos always have a cheese-related element in the title to help the band remember which demo is which.
Despite all the electronic elements in the music, the band stresses the human element, noting that the tracks are played live and 80 percent of the synthesizers on the record are made by instruments, not the computer.
Now that the album is out and everyone is stuck at home, Lungs and Limbs are doing what most bands are doing; trying to figure out how to move forward.
“I make all sorts of crazy ideas for the future in my head,” Tudor says. “I’ve run every simulation, from good to bad, and so many seem equally likely.”
Great Goodbye is available online now at lungsandlimbs.com.
