Mark Lanegan Band – Somebody’s Knocking – Album Review
by Killian Laher

Mark Lanegan Band | Button Factory – 17th Dec‎

Mark Lanegan has upped his productivity levels in recent years, this latest album arrives two years on from Gargoyle, and he has collaborated since then with Duke Garwood and Not Waving.

The electro influence is strong across the album.  Opener Disbelief Suspension sounds at first like a standard Lanegan solo rocker, but then you notice the 70s disco synths that pulse through it, and recent single Stitch It Up.  An Eastern influence permeates Letter Never Sent and Night Flight to Kabul.

The more interesting tracks here are when Lanegan gives up more control to the electronics, such as moody crawl Dark Disco Jag.  On the other hand, on Penthouse High and She Loved You, Lanegan and co fully embrace a kind of disco feel, with a hint of Gary Numan.

In recent years Lanegan has drank deep from the post-punk well.  Bruised rocker Gazing from the Shore fits this mould well, while Playing Nero is another installment in his recent series of attempts to channel Joy Division’s Atmosphere.  This latter style suits him well, and he also evokes that band’s more uptempo material on Name and Number.  Longtime fans of Lanegan’s more stripped back material will find solace in Paper Hat, and final track Two Bells Ringing at Once, where Lanegan shows his seldom seen sensitive side.

There’s a lot of music to digest here with 14 tracks, and there isn’t really a standout song.  But the music is inventive and unpredictable, and this album won’t disappoint any of his fans.

Track List –

1. Disbelief Suspension
2. Letter Never Sent
3. Night Flight to Kabul
4. Dark Disco Jag
5. Gazing from the Shore
6. Stitch It Up
7. Playing Nero
8. Penthouse High
9. Paper Hat
10. Name and Number
11. War Horse
12. Radio Silence
13. She Loved You
14. Two Bells Ringing at Once

Night Flight to Kabul