“The biggest undercurrent on this album is letting go of societal pressure.” With that statement, singer/guitarist Nicole ‘Lux’ Fermie provides a handy hook line for describing the debut album she has recorded as LuxJury with drummer, Howey Gill. It charts her experiences of love, sexuality and gender after coming out as queer. Over the course of its eleven songs, ‘Giving Up’ captures the joyful beginnings of relationships, and heartbreak as they end. Sonically, it is an adventurous record, dabbling with an array of styles and moods which make its best moments exhilarating.
From its title alone, it is clear that ‘Poly-Amerie’ will be a bold introduction to the record. A grand orchestrated ballad pitched between John Barry and Lee Hazlewood with bursts of distorted guitar, in its mischievous chorus Fermie sings, “you’re the only one for me / Poly-Amerie… until I find / someone else.” There is a playful tone to its depiction of open relationships and a cult where skin is the new currency but it also acknowledges the heartache of being cast aside.
The sassy ‘Both Teams’ combines beats, horns and bells and is one of a pair of songs that captures the spirit of Cibo Matto. Written about someone at work that Fermie had fallen in love with, even though that person had a boyfriend, it touches on the difficulties for queer women in broaching the sexuality of other people of the same gender. The opening sample of an American friend saying, “she’s literally not gay” and the references to fantasy give it a sitcomish element but there is turmoil revealed in the lines, “I can break myself to fix you / (couldn’t fix you if I tried to.)” Beginning with wild trumpet squalls, ‘Snacks (I Could Love You)’ uses chopped-up drums and samples to propel its tale of rebound relationships. It reflects on the damage done by such encounters (“so we’d break some people’s hearts to mend our own / cuz we’d rather fall apart than die alone.”)
Written on acoustic guitar and adorned with a country lilt, ‘Can You Want It’ is about Fermie’s first queer love and how desire is most potent when a relationship remains purely in the realm of imagination. Underpinned by a looped, disorienting fairground-like sample, ‘History of the Body’ reflects on how most of the women she has been with had experienced sexual trauma. Understandably, her voice sounds at its most vulnerable on this song.
Even though ‘Hot Mess’ was the first single to be released from the album, it is the least exciting track on the album. It wears the influence of ‘Rumours’ era Fleetwood Mac, a record that has deservedly shed the vilification it received in punk times but has now become such a ubiquitous influence on modern music as to have become worn out again.
‘Couples Therapy’ tackles staleness within a relationship while indulging in fantasies about the new girl at work and thoughts about “spreading her on a table like butter.” Zach Torino’s keys give the song a deep, soulful quality. With a similar theme, ‘Thief’ is a lushly orchestrated tune with gospel backing vocals and a wild sax solo from George Moon. Its chorus proclaims, “I would give it all up / for the newness / for the skin” and in its epic proportions demonstrates that ‘Giving Up’ is at its best at its biggest and boldest.
While there is a narrative thread that runs through ‘Giving Up’, the styles and moods shift between tracks, illustrated by the difference between ‘Opaque & Hollow’ and ‘Orphans’. The former utilises doo-wop backing vocals and whirring organ to create a fresh sounding critique of someone with a trust fund she knew living in London who identifies as an artist while really living the life of a socialite. The latter sees her envisaging a worst-case scenario (that was not realised) in coming out to conservative parents to backing from minimalist guitar while her voice sounds at its most quietly raw and emotional.
The album ends with ‘I’m This Time’ which sees Fermie reflecting on self-sabotage and constantly seeking new thrills. However, there is defiance as she repeats the final words, “I’m taking matters in my own hands”, although the ominous synth backing makes it sound more doubt filled than affirmative.
‘Giving Up’ is an album that embraces risk-taking. It celebrates adventure, openness and desire while acknowledging the consequences. Those themes are reflected in its music. Fermie flits between vocal and musical styles with a voracious thrill for newness. Ultimately, the record’s successes vastly outnumber the occasional moments that fall flat and the peaks are significantly greater than the lows.
LuxJury: Giving Up – Out 27 March 2026 (Bella Union)
I was editor of the long-running fanzine, Plane Truth, and have subsequently written for a number of publications. While the zine was known for championing the most angular independent sounds, performing in recent years with a community samba percussion band helped to broaden my tastes so that in 2021 I am far more likely to be celebrating an eclectic mix of sounds and enthusing about Made Kuti, Anthony Joseph, Little Simz and the Soul Jazz Cuban compilations as well as Pom Poko and Richard Dawson.
