After releasing albums in 2013, 2014, 2015 and 2016, St. Pete rock band Luxury Mane is back with some new music being flown under the album title, The Secret Empire of Florida UK.
"This is part one of a two-part Lux Mane LP to be released on vinyl sometime in the near future," frontman Billy Summer told CL. One of the Lux boys, Aaron Kyle Nelson, switched from bass to guitar, and another member moved to Brooklyn, so Summer, 46, and Nelson have been working on new music that's getting collected under the Florida UK umbrella.
"It seemed stingy not to share it with the people. These are all hits," Summer said, adding that he expects about four more jams to be added to the effort. "Pure power-pop, soft-rock genius hits. That's pretty much what we have here."
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Summer's playful boasts are always made in a deprecating manner, but the claims hardly ever turn out to be exaggerations. The seven tracks Luxury Mane has shared on this latest outing are all dripping in the kind of immaculate tone that Summer has become notorious for. The sound is especially dreamy on "I Can Almost See The Don," where a little wordplay is deployed in describing that great-big pink hotel on Gulf Boulevard.
To celebrate, the band has booked a pair of release dates on both sides of the body of water that separates Tampa from St. Pete. The first is on Friday, June 8 at The Hub in downtown Tampa, and the second is on Saturday, June 9 at Green Bench Brewing Co. in St. Petersburg. Jensen Serf Company — a young, rarely seen band that's openly cited Summer as an influence — opens the Tampa show along with MTVH1N1, while noise-pop duo Blestian and Tampa indie-rock outfit Vetnough play support on the St. Pete concert. Both shows are free to attend, but only the Green Bench gig is all-ages.
"We're glad to do one show at the dirty Hub for the adults and one for the families and kids and the dirty adults of St. Pete. Should be a well rounded bi-Bay hoedown," Summer said. Additional members are flying in, and it'll be the first time Luxury Mane plays as a four-piece. "The band will finally sound as it does on record, which is huge, lush, ambient, angular and awesome."
When pressed for a reason for why he released was he's describing as a partial album, Summer did share that he's spent 2017 battling cancer, which may have played into why he "prematurely" released some of the music.
"Maybe I was a little afraid of, you know, death… I wouldn’t want the three people that dig us to be denied those fresh jams," he said. "It’s been awful and super weird but I’ve still managed to be really productive. It’s just seven songs, don’t make an album, I have more but was nervous, you know. I’m less nervous. I still look good. Hopefully this is the last round of chemotherapy. Truly the worst!"
Listen to The Secret Empire of Florida UK — and get information on the shows — below.
Luxury Mane Album Release Shows
w/Jensen Serf Company/MTVH1N1 | FRIDAY, June 8. 9 p.m. No cover | The Hub, 719 N. Franklin St., Tampa | 813- 229-1553 | facebook.com
w/Blestian/Vetnough | SATURDAY, June 9, 8 p.m. No cover | Green Bench Brewing Co., 1133 Baum Ave N, Saint Petersburg | 727-800-9836 | facebook.com
This article appears in May 24-31, 2018.
