Leipzig-based Producer Lexer returns to Lane 8’s label This Never Happened with his third studio album ‘The First Last Day’, released on 28th October.
An album two years in the making, ‘The First Last Day’ contains an abundance of contradicting themes – a conflict that reflects how Lexer felt when making the album. The project reflects the balance that Lexer found between daily struggles and the beauty found when getting outdoors into nature. A labour of love that both grounded and inspired him to find new sources of inspiration, Lexer notes: “There was no reinvention here, but rather the old Lexer coming through with inspiration coming from everywhere. It inspires me to be able to share my emotions with people you don’t know and probably never will know, and to get through difficult or good times together through my music”.
‘The First Last Day’ exemplifies how Lexer’s sound has evolved up to now; an agglomeration of melodic and deep house, with elements of a harder dynamic techno sound and electronica. The evidence of this dance-floor-ready sound is shown with his 40+ live dates from this year already, with ten more dates set before the year is out.
‘The First Last Day’ includes a plethora of talented singer-songwriters. The opening track ‘The Lonely Mile’, is a first-time track collaboration with Luke Coulson. Clearly a meant-to-be match, Lexer recalls Luke nailing the lyrics in one attempt and the track coming together effortlessly. Luke’s ambiguous lyrics, which he says are his intentional song-writing style, add another layer of deepness to the melancholic dance track.
The voice behind Lexer’s 2015 ‘Til Dawn’ hit, Audrey Janssens, makes her welcome return for her third collaboration with Lexer, as the lead album single. ‘Little Friend’ features the unique tones of Australian-based Miller Roberts. Already dominating the indie music world, UK-based IDER impress with their first-ever dance track collaboration on ‘This World’.
The final vocal collaboration on the album is the penultimate track ‘Never Said Goodbye’ with singer Jens Kuross, who previously featured on Lane 8’s ‘Brightest Lights’ album. For Jens, the introspective track is about asking questions and reflecting on what could have been… “It describes the reality of swimming in the uncertainty of a moment. What is more important when finding the balance between living in the moment but not living in the past for too long?”
Lexer said: “I am incredibly grateful that we have survived this and can now look forward again. Now it’s time for me to share ‘The First Last Day’, as we start in this new world”.
