De Lux

Inspired by the late-'70s and early-'80s era that birthed post-punk and post-disco -- and seemingly a fair portion of the like-minded DFA label roster, from LCD Soundsystem to Holy Ghost! -- De Lux is a duo consisting of Sean Guerin and Isaac Franco. Mixing vintage dance grooves with similarly time-tested synthesizer sounds, De Lux make dance music that feels organic while steeped in electronics, as the vocals and lyrics contribute an idiosyncratic warmth. Though the duo was still finding their voice on their debut, 2014's Voyage, they strengthened their music as well as their lyrical stance on 2018's More Disco Songs About Love, and they experimented with a more intuitive production style for 2022's Do You Need a Release?, recorded live to tape with their road band helping out.

Based in Los Angeles, Guerin and Franco debuted in late 2013 with a five-track EP released through a partnership with ScionAV. Led by "Better at Making Time," the EP also contained a remix by Visitors (aka Sal Principato of Liquid Liquid and Dennis Kane). In April 2014, De Lux released their debut album, Voyage, on Innovative Leisure. The set contained several new songs, along with "Better at Making Time" and another EP highlight, "Love Is a Phase." Just over a year later, the duo returned with Generation, a darker set of songs influenced by the music of ESG and Can and the uninhibited lyrics of Karen Finley. With a renewed focus on reliable beats and vocal melody, More Disco Songs About Love followed in early 2018, also on Innovative Leisure. De Lux changed up their working methods for their fourth album, 2022's Do You Need a Release? Rather than isolating themselves in their work space and handling all the instrumentation themselves, Guerin and Franco chose to record live in the studio with their touring band backing them up, giving the material a more organic sound that boosted the pop accents of the music while adding the tension and excitement of a stage performance. Do You Need a Release? was released by Innovative Leisure in September 2022. ~ Andy Kellman, Rovi