Toronto – If you have ever wondered what band consisting of low tempo chilled out pop sounds fronted by an female English headmaster sounds like, then wonder no more, for Black Box Recorder is your salvation. Formed in the late 90s by Auteurs leader Luke Haines and John Moore (of JAMC), the duo needed a female vocalist and recruited Sarah Nixey, some backing vocalist from somewhere. With Nixey’s sultry voice, Black Box Recorder had moderate success with the three albums they released, Nixey and Moore got married and then divorced and as of right now, the band is on hiatus.
As with all of Luke Haines bands, Black Box Recorder featured sharp lyrics in their songs, and commented on many issues and all things English. The first single, “Child Psychology” was banned from being played for the line “”Life is unfair/Kill yourself or get over it.” Other lyrical themes include growing up, pop culture and history.
Black Box Recorder is one of my favorite bands – they have strong lyrics and a very mellow poppy kinda sound. If I had to recommend an album, I would definitely the second album – The Facts of Life. “The Facts of Life” is one of my most listened to albums ever, it’s simple, it’s melancholy and Sarah Nixey pretty much speaks through out the album instead of sings, but it all works and many people agree (according to metacritic).
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