Durutti Column

After debut album The Return of the Durutti Column was released, Vini Reilly decided to record its follow-up himself on a four-track cassette deck at home. Teaming up with drummer and fellow Manchester native Bruce Mitchell, the second Durutti Column album LC (named after Lotta Continua, a far-left radical Italian group) was another inspired musical collaboration. 
Though self-produced, the album retained traces of Reilly’s earlier work with Martin Hannett. This second set of evocative electric guitar compositions features a melding of Reilly’s urbane, contemplative style with Mitchell’s crisp, deliberate drumming. LC opens with “Sketch for Dawn (1)”, incorporating Reilly’s unadorned spoken / sung vocals. The duo syncs up perfectly on album highlights such as the up-tempo “Jacqueline,” the intimate “Messidor,” and “The Missing Boy,” a tribute to Reilly’s friend Ian Curtis of Joy Division. 
As equally powerful and in some ways better than the Durutti Column’s debut, LC expands on the emotional promise of that album by continuing to transcend genre while offering a more song-oriented and accessible take on an increasingly unique approach to composition. It’s an understated and inspiring masterpiece from the pre-shoegaze guitar maestro.