Oso Oso follow up 2019’s smash ‘Basking in the Glow’ and 2022’s ‘Sore Thumb’ with ‘Life Till Bones’ – a collection of 10 songs that find Jade Lilitri looking back over past loves and experiences with fondness and frustration.
‘Many Ways’ opens the album with what might rank as the most famous and special three words: ‘I love you’. This is followed by cherished, long-lost memories – ‘Do you remember when you used to have fun?’ – and a declaration or desire to ‘pull that trigger’. All within 90 seconds. Bouncing drums and a jaunty bass line signal the intro to ‘The Country Club’, another bittersweet song that finds Jade facing up to his own mistakes: ‘I’ve got a lot to apologize for’. This is delivered against a sound that falls between twangy, heart-on-sleeve Wilco and the breezy 70s-tinged power pop of The Lemon Twigs.
‘That’s What Time Does’ finds Jade asking for a little more in return from someone after throwing himself into their arms: ‘I can’t be happy every day. I won’t always know what to say’. This self-deprecating and nostalgic awareness follows through on ‘Stoke’ (a song we sincerely hope is named after the city in the Potteries) as he recalls melancholy memories – ‘I bite my tongue just to feel something’ – against a hypnotic wall of guitar hooks.
‘Dog Without Its Bark’ reminded us of Ben Kweller’s ‘Sha Sha’ with its pining slacker pop stylings – ‘tell me what it is that I’m running from’ – while ‘Seesaw’ offers an acoustic rest bite as Jade’s steely determination takes over: ‘I’ll find my way out’. The penultimate ‘Skippy’ is a celebration of the joys of love, from the physical side of ‘I like the way that you know me, the way that you hold me’ to little private moments like seeing your partner’s socks on the floor while sharing a bed – all completed by a sensual falsetto.
‘Other Peoples Stories’ wraps up the album in short and sharp fashion – think Guided by Voices – as Jade reminds the subject ‘I’m always a call away’ and how ‘I can’t fall in love if it’s not with you’… ‘Life Till Bones’ is a raw and emotional snapshot that ultimately celebrates the power of every element of love, lust and memory.
Oso Oso – ‘That’s What Time Does’
