Following the sudden demise of his former band, The Capulets, Stuart McLamb says he packed up his things one drunken night and moved from Raleigh to Winston-Salem, North Carolina to pursue a problematic relationship, and begin his next musical endeavor under the somewhat ironic moniker of The Love Language. McLamb's story may sound dangerously clichéd, but his music is anything but trite.
From weather references, to dancing ghosts, to images of candles flickering out, McLamb finds creative ways to subtly express feelings of love and loss. In "Night Dogs," for instance, he sings of "the sunrise that never came through the clouds," a rainstorm, and the transition from summer to autumn. The forecast for The Love Language isn't entirely bleak, however. Though love and heartache abound on The Love Language, McLamb is neither guilty of romanticizing the past nor projecting bitterly into the future. Instead, he candidly recalls the low points of love — the "violent fights," mistakes, and lies-- from behind a veil of dreamy reverb, jangly guitars, and peppy tambourine beats that seem to cushion the blow rendered by McLamb's lyrics.
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