Luke Spiller Is Still Chasing the Feeling

Most people know Luke Spiller as the flamboyant, larger than life frontman of The Struts, a band built on big hooks, theatrical stagecraft, and the type of rock and roll showmanship that feels increasingly rare in modern music.

But Live & In Love, his upcoming live solo release, captures something different.

This is not Luke Spiller trying to outsize the room. It is Luke Spiller letting the room come closer.

Recorded during the final shows of his intimate solo tour at The Sun Rose in Los Angeles, Live & In Love presents songs from his debut solo album, Love Will Probably Kill Me Before Cigarettes and Wine, in a stripped down setting. Gone are the massive arrangements, 20 piece strings, and widescreen production. In their place are piano, acoustic guitar, voices, stories, silence, and the kind of emotional tension that only happens when an artist has nowhere to hide.

In our Vinyl Latte interview, Spiller explained that the project began as a way to commemorate the one year anniversary of his debut solo album and thank the fans who supported it. The road to that album was not easy. He described it as a “labor of love” and shared that he was dropped by his label about a week after it came out. Still, the tour became something special because it existed almost entirely for the love of the songs.

That may be why Live & In Love feels less like a standard live album and more like a preserved moment.

"What makes this record so special is it’s a moment in time where you have a collection of people that are doing it for the absolute love of it."
- Luke Spiller

Spiller admitted he does not expect to repeat this type of tour again. The lineup, the timing, the circumstances, the small venues, and even the way the musicians traveled between shows all gave it a “proper old school” feeling. Ten shows in roughly eleven days. Two SUVs. No massive production safety net. Just the songs and the people committed to bringing them to life.

That intimacy is the point.

For fans used to seeing Spiller command large stages with The Struts, this record reveals another side of his performance. He spoke openly about how different it feels to sing in a quiet room where every breath, inflection, and lyric can be heard. In that setting, the performance becomes less about constant elevation and more about range, restraint, and connection.

One of the emotional centerpieces of the conversation was “She’s Just Like California.” Spiller said that every night, the audience would begin singing the main hook back to him, turning the song into a shared moment. The track also carries personal weight because his mother encouraged him to finish it after hearing an early demo. For Spiller, the live reaction became proof that sometimes an artist can overlook something meaningful until someone else helps them see it.

The interview also revealed how important this solo chapter has been to his creative life. Spiller said making the solo album helped clear space in his head and, in a way, saved his creative brain. Before that, he had been trying to force certain ideas into The Struts that may not have belonged there. Once he had a place to explore those instincts on his own, he found himself excited to write for the band again.

That matters because The Struts are not slowing down. Spiller shared that the band has finished recording a new 10 track album, and he personally brought five of those songs to the group. He also revealed that he has already recorded another solo EP and has recently been inspired by shoegaze style rock, even floating the possibility of a new project in that direction.

For a fan, that is the kind of answer that makes this interview feel like more than album promotion. It sounds like an artist in motion.

There are also three new songs on Live & In Love, which makes the release more than a live document of previously released material. One of those songs, “When I Die, Will I Miss Living,” had not even been recorded when someone connected to Chicago Med heard it live and reached out about placing it in the show. Spiller eventually recorded it, and the song appeared in the season finale.

Again, the lesson seems to be instinct.

Throughout the conversation, Spiller kept returning to that idea. Trust the gut. Follow the creative pull. Do the thing even when there are plenty of reasons not to.

For vinyl listeners, Live & In Love also feels intentionally physical. Spiller said he wants people to sit with it, flip the record, and experience it as a full journey rather than simply pulling one or two tracks into a playlist. That approach feels perfectly aligned with what makes live albums, and vinyl itself, special. They ask for time. They reward attention.

When asked what he would hope someone might discover from this record decades from now, without knowing anything about Luke Spiller or The Struts, his answer was simple but revealing. He hoped they would feel inspired, and that they would hear songs with real personal depth that do not have to be musically boring. They can be intimate and still feel epic.

That may be the best way to describe Live & In Love.

It is intimate, but not small.

It is personal, but still theatrical in spirit.

It shows a frontman known for commanding the biggest rooms finding power in the quietest ones.

“I really encourage people… to sort of give it that time where you have it physically and you sit down and you can just soak it up, flip it over and go on that journey.”
- Luke Spiller

Live & In Love is expected in July 2026 as an Experience Vinyl exclusive, with preorders available on vinyl and CD. Experience Vinyl lists the release as part of its Luke Spiller Presents Live & In Love preorder collection, while Spiller’s official site points fans to preorder the 180 gram audiophile 2 LP edition and CD.

Watch the full Vinyl Latte interview with Luke Spiller here:

Preorder Live & In Love here:

Vinyl: https://experiencevinyl.com/products/luke-spiller-presents-live-in-love-180-gram-audiophile-2-vinyl-lps

CD: https://experiencevinyl.com/products/luke-spiller-presents-live-in-love-compact-disc