When somebody finally gets around to making a documentary on North Jersey slacker rock from the late 00’s a quarter-century from now, I hope they will get in touch with Big Troubles bassist Luka Usmiani and ask him to contribute a track for the exit music. Luka, who sings and strums under solo moniker No Demons Here, makes music to span time to — perhaps in the way that Vince Gallo once wanted to “span time” with Christina Ricci on screen, but probably more in the vein of looking back a bit jadedly over a span of time already lived. By some miracle of nature, Luka’s 21-year-old vocal chords sound like they’ve already passed through all the late nights and shattered dreams lived by Calvin Johnson, Jandek, and Daniel Johnston combined. “Every Second Darker” is not always in tune; it falls into place as if it didn’t really care whether it did or not, like something a dad might write in a fit of nostalgia for his rock n’ roll days when he’s drunk in the den after the kids have left the nest. Music that is timid in its sloppiness usually just sounds lifeless; music that confident in its sloppiness stirs us with the sloppiness of the heart.
No Demons Here, “Every Second Darker”
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