The full title of Courting’s third album is Lust for Life, Or: ‘How To Thread The Needle And Come Out The Other Side To Tell The Story’. You can expect that a mouthful of an album name has the concept to match, and Lust For Life (we’ll call it that from here on out) covers the climactic arc of a fast romance that didn’t quite pan out as expected. It’s the story of a dreamy romance colliding head-on with reality, seeing a relationship through rose-colored lenses and ignoring the warning signs of doom.
Lust for Life is a shorter album, at under 30 minutes, but Courting does a fantastic job shoehorning in many textures to make the album feel like a fully fleshed-out journey. The album starts with a frenzied orchestra layering over itself, a personification of the rush of love at first sight. This turns into a hyperpop track that also sounds like hard dubstep, a conceptual build to the third track “Pause at You.” This dance-punk-inspired track contains the first introduction of fully audible lyrics. It’s high-energy, feels like a party, and, although I hate this term, has that “indie sleaze” signature sound with mentions of chain smoking and hanging out against walls. Lyrics like “I’ll see you around” further implicates the cool-guy aesthetics that are being upheld (maybe by both parties) during first encounters.
In “Namcy,” Courting continue the energy, sharing the whirl of a new romance. But early signs of confusion in defining the relationship already emanate (“Irish Good…oh” and “Irish Goodbye”) . “Eleven Sent (This Time)” seems like the conscious effort to treat this love interest differently as feelings get more serious. The relationship is starting to be idealized, using words like “could” and “can” and referencing events that haven’t yet happened. The song has a a hopeful sound, while staying laid back. There’s a beautiful instrumentation that builds towards the end of the song, painting the picture of an embellished, vivid vision of the future. “After You” is then introduced, an immediate energy of longing comes through in the progressive guitars at the start of the track and the more distant vocals. The repeated chorus “can we split off in groups of two” is the next established taste of realization, a desperation for alone time.
The title track, “Lust For Life,” is the album’s longest, unfolding as a somber reflection on the realization of an impending expiration date in the relationship. The meandering opening mirrors their effort to extend the time they have left together: “I hope that we stay out tonight.” The closing song “Likely place for them to be” revisits the initial melody introduced by the frenzied orchestra in track one, this time played by an electric guitar. The repeated mantra of “it’s over” makes it clear that there’s no going back. Screams of frustration, a noisy drum solo, and the return of the frenzied orchestra, all join forces at the end of the album to create a cacophony of frustrated acceptance.
Lust for Life is the story of a frenzied, short-lived romance that descends into the pitfalls of an idealized relationship. Courting have delved into new corners of their musical palette, crafting a fully conceptual album peppered with flirtations across a range of genres and production styles.
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