'Loene Carmen sits in an intangible, magical, rarefied space, somewhere between Tom Waits and Dolly Parton' Australian Stage
'It’s always been about the voice...beauty and danger, knowing and innocence, sex and longing, and love – both sacred and profane... Loene Carmen’s individual mix of torch blues, gothic country, with occasional outbreaks of smoky nightclub has seduced many who hear it. She sings it, you believe her. And that’s enough.' Drum Media
'Carmen can imbue her musical narratives with a glistening visual quality that renders the average comparable work a dull monotone text in comparison…the beauty of the French chanteuse and the intensity of the Dirty Three. It Walks Like Love is more than a record – it’s an intense, passionate and periodically confronting statement. You can almost see and feel the love walking beside you.' Beat
'Carmen’s voice saunters all silk and smoke …a magnetically absorbing album…' Fasterlouder.com
‘…sensual noir narratives…cinematic…’ Daily Telegraph
‘Intoxicating’ Music Australia Guide
‘ …striking, smoky and suggestive …Completely compelling.’ Kluster
‘… would have Serge Gainsbourg chasing her down any Parisienne street… It Walks Like Love is like a sun-bleached, neon-soaked dusty road trip, stopping at every sleazy smoky roadhouse, cheap hotel and dirty diner on the way. J Mag
Songs are drawn from dreams (the surreal allure of 'Rugged Love and Thin Air'), from the past (the wayward young mother’s prayer 'Devil’s Lullabye' and the aching late night simplicity of 'Sunday Night' ) and ride into the future with the ‘frighteningly catchy’ radio single 'Mimic The Rain' and the hypnotic rise and fall of the anthemic 'Another Man'. 'Oh Apollo!' offers up southern fried soul charm and wry balladry gets a workout on the sublime honky tonk piano driven 'Gauloises Blue' and the ragged torch country of 'Cheap Glue'. 'Flames vs Lightning' offers ‘a glorious release’ with its firework bursts of distorto guitar, while the rolling folk tale of 'Thirty Records' will break any vinyl collector’s heart. Carmen’s trademark atmospheric guitar playing is a perfect foil for her dusky singing. The band surround her with sensitivity and a tough, at times violent intensity, sparkling with hooks and riffs. There is a higher voltage and emotional depth at play in this collection of songs, adding to Carmen’s body of work that has already left fans and critics at a loss to describe her ...