Connect with us

Hi, what are you looking for?

Post-Punk

The Bleak World of Cold Showers “Matter of Choice”

To get post-punk right in 2015, you need the right blend of cynical indifference to go with a personality that sets you apart from your peers. Hailing from California, Cold Showers continues their five year journey into the dark and smokey corners of the night and further polish their dark, dream-like sound. If you want a Joy Division tribute band, go cruise your local hipster bar and they will show up sooner or later – and I already own Siouxsie’s entire discography, so good on impersonators of Ms. Sioux. This bands pulls from a wider range of influences; guitars are often not the focal point of the songs, but just another color added. Guitars offset the synths, giving the intensity of post-punk a cloud of smoke from black lipstick-stained clove cigarettes. Synths fill up most of the space, but these guys never come across as just button-pushers. In the odd purgatory of not being overly dramatic enough for dark-wave, the danceable underbelly of the songs takes most of the punk out of the equation. Cold and detached, they drone on with the downtrodden as they explore the frailties of human interaction. This exploration is narrated in a very deadpan baritone. By the third song, you will agree that this album is best listened to with sunglasses on at night.

 

 

From the echo of the guitar’s western re-verb on “Crowds,” to the nostalgic flare of the 80s that is “Heaven Can Wait,” they indulge in the past without coming across as blatantly retro. They hide their sharply-written hooks in the darkness, and it keeps you returning to the songs. If you want to say they have pop tendencies, than it is done in an even more obtuse fashion than pre-MTV The Cure. If these guys ever cross over into a more mainstream indie rock audience, then it’s happening on their own terms, as they have no radio aspirations to pander to. Lyrically, their subject matter remains on the dark side of sex, drugs and rock ‘n roll. The topics are not from a decadent, “we came here to party” place, but as self-medication to deal with the oppressive world around them. On the bass-driven “Undone,” the singer declares that he is never coming down – an anthem for kids everywhere who find themselves peeling their noses off mirrors as the sun rises. The”redux” of the song “Crowds” is not a re-mix, but approaches the song from another direction, with saxophone haunting the dense shadows this song now casts. If David Lynch needs to cast a band for another seedy bar scene when he re-visits Twin Peaks next year, then this band should fit the bill. Each spin of this album, draws you in further to its addictive throb. If you are a fan of dark indie rock or dark wave ranging from Interpol to Night Sins to War On Drugs, this should scratch your itch for for dark grooves with an attitude.

 

Written By

Wil spouts his thoughts and theories on metal / goth/ post-punk/ and darker indie rock on blogs like Abysmal Hymns,No Clean Singing, Geekinthings, Treblezine etc... He is very passionate about horror movies, comic books, the occult and Morrissey , though David Bowie will live on in his heart forever

Relapse DF 92123
Sentient 51423

You May Also Like

New Wave

In my half-eyed doomscrolling the other night, I came across some footage of a leather-clad badboy on a motorcycle under the grain of a...

Noise Rock

Generating their cacophonous sound in their namesake town of Turin, Northern Italy’s The Turin Horse is set to release their new album Unsavory Impurities...

Interviews

Fotocrime's Ryan Michael Patterson discusses the development of his southern post-punk project's music, touring, and shares a new music video.

Post-Punk

At one time named L.A.’s best punk band by L.A. Weekly, dark avant-garde post-punk band EGRETS ON ERGOT are still serving bizarre sorcery to...

Copyright © 2020 CVLT Nation.