LOVEJOY’s ‘…And It’s Love!’ Don’t you dare call it a comeback. This is album of the year material.

THE kitchen sink drama of The Kinks, the open-heart lyrical surgery of Nick Cave, and a soothing quality reminiscent of the Cocteau Twins combine perfectly to make LOVEJOY’s ‘…And It’s Love!’ a more than worthy contender for 2024’s album of the year.

LOVEJOY’s formidable reputation was forged over a decade ago, a band providing sophisticated indie music, a string of singles and albums mainly recorded on Santa Barbara’s Matinee Recordings.

But the devasting loss of long-time friend, confidante and collaborator Keith Girdler (Blueboy) in 2007, led to an extended sabbatical from Lovejoy founder and frontman DICK PREECE, until 2022 when a decision was taken to return to the studio.

The result? An eleven-track concept album. Introspective. A powerful, mature collection of life lessons, losses and love. Has it been done before? Yes. Has it been done as eloquently, as profound, as this? No.

There’s darkness and sorrow, but also a number of welcome, albeit razor thin, shards of light providing hope. A deeply personal album of huge consequence, the evidence points towards the completion of ‘…And It’s Love!’ being an intense, cathartic experience for the songwriter.

“It really was,” he said. “This was the first record I’ve made in a long time and from the outset I wanted it to be a cohesive set of songs. I suppose it’s written with a perspective of experience of life, as well as semi-sequentially linking together a number of important autobiographical events.

“I wanted to ask the question ‘what would I want my younger self to know?’ or what advice would I give my younger self following these experiences? That’s why the last two or three songs are particularly reflective – they’re coming to a realisation and a conclusion about what’s important to me and probably a lot of people. As a songwriter with ‘quite a lot of life experience,’ thinking about what’s important to me and what I wanted to say, the most important thing I can think of is that life is really all about the important people and connections we have, past and present. Without other people, we’re not really very much at all in our own right.

“It’s weird. Sometimes something or someone can seem like a small detail or bit player, but in time they become pivotal, or at least significant. I guess the album, being mostly autobiographical, links to people who are obviously important in my life – family, close friends, loved ones. The ‘break up’ that happens in ‘Regency Square’ involves someone who is a ‘bit player’ in the big scheme of my life, but who also by way of the narrative, turned into someone more significant because of the way my life moved on from that time.

“But I hope the album isn’t viewed as a swansong – I hope it is a comeback and one that leads to another, better album! I read an interview with Bobby Bluebell and he said something about how we don’t become worse musicians or songwriters as we get older, we get better and more experienced, and I’m channelling that thought.

“This album explores how love’s presence, or its absence, defines every meaningful aspect of our lives. That we struggle sometimes to define what love is, in the many forms it takes, is neither here nor there. The big moments from beginning to end are shaped by love of one kind or another, and this is our take on some of those moments.”

And perhaps the release of the album highlights the capacity to write so openly, and in such detail, about heartbreak only arrives with maturity, and first-hand experience of loss and heartbreak?

“It seems obvious, doesn’t it? But I hadn’t articulated it to myself before. Every major life event and memory usually is linked to an aspect of love of some kind, be it positive or negative. It came to me as part of looking back and thinking about significant events, while trying to put a thread of ideas together for the album.

“I didn’t want it to become an album of romantic love songs. I developed a narrative of pivotal moments from young adulthood to older adulthood that linked some key events, including some harder life experiences such as loss and bereavement. It dawned on me that in the end, important stuff is all linked to love. Alan McGee’s ‘Miss You’ which was one of the first songs I recorded, was a kind of catalyst for this idea. Beautifully melancholic.”

‘.​.​.​And It’s Love!’ includes collaborations from past label mate Keris Howard (Brighter, Trembling Blue Stars, Harper Lee), long-time Lovejoy co-vocalist Ally Board, with added support, encouragement and endorsement from former Creation Records’ boss Alan McGee, and Edward Ball (TVPs, The Times), who both provided sleeve notes.

“When I began recording again, I started with the two cover versions that appear on the album, these were recorded for a couple of tribute projects yet to be released. I sent them to Alan and Ed, the songwriters, to check they were ok with them coming out, and they were so helpful and supportive.

“Alan said my version is better than the Biff Bang Pow! one, which I’m not sure is right, but I’m extremely flattered!  He said it captures the melancholy in the way it was intended. He also sent a previously unrecorded and unreleased Biff Bang Pow! song and encouraged me to record it. Hopefully he’ll perform on it.  We’ve become good friends, and we are planning to write some music together, so maybe the next Lovejoy record will feature songs from this collaboration.”

Given some of Preece’s influences, OMD, The Jam, Human League, The Sex Pistols, and The Jesus and Mary Chain, perhaps there’s no surprise to discover a late ‘80s sound drifting in and out of ‘.​.​.​And It’s Love!’, but there’s also more than enough of the ‘here and now’ to help produce a wonderfully, captivating, diverse album. Echoes of Terry Hall’s ‘Colourfield’ look on from the shadows, while title track ‘…And It’s Love!’ hints at a previously undiscovered genre, one I’m claiming as ‘Kraftwerk Calypso.’

“Love it! I think it’s been described somewhere as an album that feels familiar but is also refreshingly new, and of course my songwriting is shaped by the past influences I have so there will be that familiar chord progression or synth sound here and there, but working at the studio our remit was to think big in terms of not making a retro album, even if it is a concept one. But instead to keep looking forwards and using ideas from records we love to try and produce something new. For example, on the title track we mimicked the guitar sound from The Smiths ‘How Soon Is Now’ butas an influence, not to replicate it.

“With regards to the Terry Hall comparison, it’s not something anyone has said before, but I’ll take it. I enjoyed the first Colourfield album. I’m also one of the minority of people that enjoyed the Terry, Blair and Anouchka album.”

Notoriously self-deprecating, Preece has previously spoken of being troubled by the fear of failure, the perennial musicians curse. A tough cross to bear, but has he finally found a way to turn this to his advantage?

“It was an interview I read with a celebrity chef and weird though it is, it resonated. There are different motivations for people to try to achieve their goals. I have terrible imposter syndrome in my professional life as well as my musical life. I’m the kind of person who is driven not by the glory of success, but by that fear of failure. That sounds negative, but it’s all about what motivates you, so it can be seen in a positive way, and if one achieves the desired outcome as a result, is it not all just part of the process of striving for perfection? Which is obviously unattainable, but that’s another story.”

New songs are currently being crafted for the ‘…And It’s Love!’  follow up, but do we prepare ourselves for another deep, meaningful collection of tunes, or is there something lighter on the horizon?

“I just don’t know yet. This album had a big theme to it, and I was really pleased with the way it came together. I want to do more and better, but I need to be able to find the right theme. How do you find a better theme than experiences around love? Maybe, without being evangelical, it’s something to do with the fragility of life and the importance of striving to make the world a better place while we are here, even in very small ways.

“I’m not religious, but as I get older I feel more of a need to try and be the best version of myself.”

FURTHER INFO: Stories • Instagram & …And It’s Love! | Lovejoy (bandcamp.com)