Black Diamond Bay - We Are Lovers

While Black Diamond Bay may consider themselves an electro-folk outfit (not entirely surprising given their name is the title of a Bob Dylan song), ‘We Are Lovers’ is more like loungey Italo-disco. The song’s arrangement is minimalist, mainly driven by a funk-tinged guitar riff and house-styled percussion. The chorus sees the instrumentation joined by kitschy synths that try to reach for euro-disco euphoria. Lead singer, Agne Motieciute’s breathy vocals are a dead ringer for Roísín Murphy circa her Moloko days. It all feels very European and you could imagine it being played in some “chic” bar.

In fact, the song sounds like it takes more than a couple of cues from Murphy’s ‘Overpowered’ album, particularly its title track. The songs both take an introspective look at being totally in love with someone. The rest of the world is seemingly non-existent. These songs are about the experience of love or attraction. While the sparseness of ‘We Are Lovers’ replicates the erotic claustrophobia that two people would feel in the middle of the dancefloor together under the cover of darkness, it merely paints a picture. ‘Overpowered’, on the other hand, takes you on a journey into your own body and highlights how futile we are to our bodies’ chemistries. It actually makes you feel blissfully enveloped. Herein lies the point of distinction – ‘We Are Lovers’ doesn’t make you feel anything to the extent that it should.

It might be unfair to compare a relatively new up-and-coming band with an artist like Murphy, who would no doubt have had access to an assortment of studio wizardry to create ‘Overpowered’. However, the similarities between songs warrant the comparison and ultimately the strength of a track like ‘Overpowered’ comes from the songwriting, not just the production. By comparison ‘We Are Lovers’ feels limp. It is by no means a terrible song, but given the subject matter you really have to engage a listener’s senses, an area where this song falls short.