The Savings And Loan – Lit Out
The Savings and Loan with their debut album Today I Need Light have slowly and gently burrowed a hole in my skull and inserted themselves in my frontal lobe. The Scottish duo craft a haunting brand of burning, melodic folk that sneaks up on you. It's not in your face and it's not so laid back it's ignorable. It's just as deep as a chasm and takes some serious spelunking to make your way through.
That being said "Lit Out" stood out to me immediately. The interplay of the rhythm section is a thing of beauty. The bass and piano lines weave in and out of each other – each dragging an emotion out of the pit of your stomach. When Martin Donnelly's sultry voice starts ringing in your eardrums and laying out his own damaged state, the hook is in.
The track prods along mysteriously until 2 minutes in when somewhere in the distance, like it's the warning sound of danger approaching, drumsticks start tapping together. I can't really explain why such a simple sound struck twice every measure fits the song so perfectly and changes my perception so wholly, but dammit it's good.
Pick up Today I Need Light from Song, By Toad Records or Amazon for a digital version.