Moving to America hasn’t made Luke Sital-Singh less English. If anything, it’s done just the opposite and Dressing Like a Stranger, his first long-player since moving to the states, is a testament to a man and his music, which seems to live outside of time and place. What he has crafted is something quite exceptional. Written and recorded during the pandemic, it’s important for what it isn’t, which would be a Covid-19 playlist. Instead of songs coming out of the hysteria of that moment, he has chosen to create something more personal, a record that deals with concerns more universal. Yet they are built from experiences we can relate to regardless of a date on the calendar.
It may be hard to believe there are problems with living in California, but for an Englishman, you’re suddenly “Dressing Like a Stranger.” The essential question for Sital-Singh is, “… how I had changed or not changed since moving to LA. Have I changed, or do I just wear different clothes because it’s hot?” It’s a valid question and one that actually has a multitude of answers. The guitar has changed; the main instrument is now a rubber-bridge guitar he bought on arrival. That particular sound created a new backing for these songs. The guitar sounds different, as do the concerns.
When he sings, “I’ve been walking through my mind this morning/ But I don’t recognize these winding roads/ All the buildings feel small and there’s nobody in them/ Is there no hope at all of getting home?” But where is home at this point? “Dressing Like a Stranger” leaves that in question. Yet musically, the song has a remarkable blend of instruments, especially when the synth comes in and takes the song into territory that’s not clearly delineated.
There’s a snap to the bass drum on “Blind Missiles”, suggesting that perhaps the pathways are understood, even though that’s not the case. It’s a folk-rock version of “Ball of Confusion” for millennials and beyond. “Still can’t help falling head over heels/ Keep my distance/ Don’t get dragged under the wheels.” As the song progresses, Sital-Singh realizes things may be even worse than he initially realized, “Oh, what a world/ How it beautifully lies/ Oh, what a world/ It’s getting harder to try/ So far apart in the blink of an eye.” The question becomes, how do we survive in the current era of polarization?
For an atheist, Sital-Singh understands the fundamental questions that confound many today. While his guitar fills the screen, this picture has a lot of flourishes going on in the background. On Me and God, he sings, “Me and God have been laughing again/ It’s always funny reading passages/ But he’s quiet at least half the time/ And I’m left with unread messages.” And when the two sing, the songs are about “glory and pain,” yet Sital-Singh prefers the instrumental hymns. Perhaps the most significant message we can take from this song is that even if we don’t believe, we still need to listen.
The songs of Luke Sital-Singh resonate because he chooses to sing about those moments that are universal. Having spent the better part of three years as a stranger in a very strange land, while he may be Dressing Like a Stranger, he is the same man he’s always been. The clothes may have changed, but the singer/songwriter remains a talented observer of the human condition.
Pre-Order/Save Dressing Like a Stranger: https://lukesital-singh.ffm.to/dressinglikeastranger-album
LUKE SITAL-SINGH LIVE:
Supporting Passenger:
August 24 Dublin, Vicar Street
August 25 Belfast, Ulster Hall
August 27 Amsterdam, AFAS Live
August 28 Cologne, Carlswerk Victoria
August 30 Barcelona, Razzmatazz
August 31 Madrid, Sala La Riviera
September 2 Paris, Le Trianon
September 3 Brussels, Cirque Royal – Koninklijk Circus
September 6 Milan, Fabrique
September 7 Munich, TonHalle München
September 9 Zurich, Volkshaus
September 11 Vienna, Globe Wien
September 12 Krakow, Klub Studio
September 14 Berlin, Astra Kulturhaus
September 15 Hamburg, Fabrik
September 18 Copenhagen, VEGA
September 20 Gothenburg, Trädgår‘n
September 21 Oslo, Sentrum Scene
UK Headline Tour:
September 25 Bristol The Fleece
September 26 Southampton 1865
September 27 Brighton Green Door Store
September 29 Cambridge The Portland Arms
September 30 Sheffield The Leadmill
October 3 Manchester YES – The Pink Room
October 4 Leeds Brudenell Social Club
October 6 Newcastle Cluny 2
October 8 Birmingham Dead Wax
October 9 London Lafayette
https://www.lukesitalsingh.com/