‘Bad Luck’ very nearly didn’t happen. After a number of setbacks, a failed UK tour and money leaking out of every ear, the band basically pulled the plug. They had the ideas and the plan but their ‘bad luck’ had sucked the life out of them. They were done. And then they announced they weren’t done and would release a new album anyway. That album is ‘Bad Luck’, released independently and a departure from the band’s ultra aggressive sound of previous records and EPs. The dynamics are still there and Jerry Jones’ vocals are still as unique as ever as he delivers in shouts, screams and his normal spoken word-esque style. But there’s something different here making this even less accessible and instant than the band have been in the past. And that’s saying something.
Still, ‘Bad Luck’ is a grower and a good record. Trophy Scars have never been one to produce a carbon copy of whatever is big or ‘scene’ and this release just sounds totally different to everything else doing the rounds right now. ‘El Cowboy Rojo’ is a great song, mixing up all kinds of different styles to come up with something fresh and exciting. ‘Anna Lucia’ is one of the more instant tracks and, as with most of the songs, flows almost seemlessly into the next. That’s one thing Trophy Scars have always been majestic at – making their albums sound like albums and not a collection of songs strewn together at random. You cannot listen to the Trophy Scars experience without putting track 1 on and not stopping until the very end. A lot of the tracks here are 6-minutes or longer so this is really a listening experience as opposed to a ‘going out’ record. You have to be in the mood to listen to Trophy Scars, but if you are then you’ll get a lot out of it. ‘Nola’ is a realy good song, as is ‘Toronto’ but as they’re both long old tracks you need to be ready for it.
I’ve been a fan of the band for a while and I have to admit that even though I’ve given this record a severe listening to for quite some time now, ‘Alphabet. Alphabets’ is still slightly the better record for me. I have no doubt ‘Bad Luck’ is a grower and it’s still a great record, mainly for its intensity as much as anything, but I don’t think it’s quite as good as their previous work. But it’s still something I’d well recommend you check out.