Smooth, melodic & tinged with humour, the new EP from Australian artist T Truman is a woozy blend of modern indie and 70’s glam pop and rock.
Whilst he might be known for being a member of indie heavyweights The Vaccines, and their side project Halloweens, Timothy Lanham has added another string to his bow with the second EP under his solo project, T Truman.
Luxury Star begins with ‘Vanity Jones’, a kaleidoscopic display of dizzying synths and sky-high harmonies, before the catchy hooks of ‘Isabelle’ take the listener through the candidness (and downright awkwardness) of the friendzone: “I wanna love ya but I’m like your brother / I don’t wanna live that way anymore”.
Released as a single earlier this year, ‘The Entertainer’ is a bustling piano-led track anchored by lush vocals, as Truman lays bare his feelings regarding creative processes and the anxieties around it. Commenting on the new track, he said: “Entertainer is an honest commentary on creative trials when the pressure to stand out confuses the goal of making meaningful art. Sometimes your own projections get in the way of useful work ethic and it’s not any easy place to get out of… ‘cornered like a wild animal’ was a lyric that although somewhat exaggerative sums up the feeling accurately.”
Title track ‘Luxury Star’ brings the mood back up, with soaring instrumentals and stunning vocal harmonies. EP close ‘Self Doubt’ is a softer, piano-heavy ballad. It centres around doubt in the creative process, and yourself, and proves to be musically captivating as well as complex in its insight around the creative process (as well as the doubts we all feel at some point). It may be tinged with worries about not being enough, but it proves to be the perfect end to the EP as it draws you in and makes you want more.
T Truman might not be a name everyone knows but it is a name everyone should get familiar with. Stylised and brilliantly produced, this EP is proof he’s an artist we need to take notice of.
photo credit: Timothy Heinrich
