"L.A. Times"

Travis remain true to themselves on their new album

Matured, but still with plenty of youthful energy: Scottish melancholy rockers Travis.

(Bild: Steve Gullick)

Travis are celebrating an important anniversary this year. It's been 25 years since the Scots became famous with the album "The Man Who" and the hit single "Why Does It Always Rain On Me?". With their melancholic, sometimes somewhat one-sided sound in the eyes of their critics, they never made the big breakthrough like Oasis or Blur. However, the band from Glasgow has a loyal fan base, especially in their British homeland, and regularly delivers new music.

"L.A. Times" is the name of the new album, Travis' tenth overall. The cover is adorned with a photo of the band members in front of the Californian metropolis skyline. Frontman Fran Healey has lived in Los Angeles for years and owns a recording studio on the edge of Skid Row. The district is known for its high population of homeless people, one of the highest in the USA.

Social contrasts
The title song, in which Healy speaks rather than sings, is based on the picture he sees every day in Skid Row. "People live here who literally have nothing," the singer told the British magazine "NME", "and then there's a canary yellow Lamborghini driving through with a guy sitting in it with his arm hanging out. He had some jewels on his hand." This social contrast provided Healy with thematic inspiration.

The band line-up has remained constant since their first single "All I Want to Do Is Rock" from 1996, which received little attention at the time. In addition to main songwriter Healy, who currently looks a bit like a nerdy mixture of Keith Flint and Pumuckl with his orange spiky hair, guitarist Andy Dunlop, bassist Dougie Payne and drummer Neil Primrose are also on board.

Special song
The first single release "Gaslight" is a real earworm. The song is about psychological violence and manipulation - and is surprisingly atmospheric, especially in comparison to other Travis songs. On the Scots' current tour supporting US superstars The Killers, the moody song stood out in particular because Travis' setlist was otherwise predominantly slow, quiet and melancholy.

Apart from "Gaslight", however, the quartet remains true to its warm, emotional sound on "L.A. Times" and takes it easy. Gentle indie pop ("Bus") meets soulful acoustic guitar folk with Radiohead influences ("Live It All Again" is about Healy's failed marriage) and psychedelic folk pop ("I Hope That You Spontaneously Combust"). In the poignant "Alive", Healy comes to terms with the death from cancer of music video director Ringan Ledge, with whom he was friends. In contrast, "The River", a song about being a father, is almost stormy.

Memories of the past
The cover photo, shot by photographer and long-time Travis collaborator Stefan Ruiz, is not coincidentally reminiscent of the album covers of the two successful albums "The Man Who" and "The Invisible Band". According to Healy, who turned 50 during the production of the album, "L.A. Times" is her most personal album since 1999 - and also reminds us of it in terms of sound. Almost 30 years after their first single, Travis still sound unmistakably like Travis.