Albums

Album Review: Clouds

[Album: We Are Above You]
[Label: Hydra Head]

Led by Adam McGrath of Cave In fame, Clouds’ modestly titled ‘Legendary Demo’ got some pretty good reviews when it appeared last year. Can this, the bands’ first full length, build on that introduction?

Well, from the moment the first chunk of guitar bursts forth from your speakers, you’ll be saying “yes”. Starting with a slow, single guitar that’s about as thick and sleazy as I’ve heard, you can tell from that opening riff that this is going to be a big fun rock album – and the rest of it pretty much lives up to the foreword. There are lots of influences in there - there are punky bits, poppy bits and stonery bits – but at its heart, it’s riff rock. The guitars are right there in your face, with everything else standing in a line behind them (even the vocals take a back seat, and they’re really good). Obviously, that means the success of the album rides on the strength of the riffs, so thank your sky-being of choice that these guys know what they’re doing. Whatever style they’re appropriating, they put their own twist on it and thrash it out until the amps start crying.

The chorus riff to ‘Year Zero’ is all but perfect – simple, huge, and catchy as Hell. It only took one listen to get it stuck in my head for hours. It’s not all balls-to-the-wall guitars though. ‘The Bad Seat’ has honky-tonk piano alongside it, something repeated in a couple of other places to great effect. They aren’t afraid to mellow things out a bit either. ‘Glass House Rocks’ is Beatles-esque psychedelia, with nonchalant and clean lead vocals, and ‘Slow Day’ has a slow section where the bass takes over and the guitars lay off the overdrive a little bit, almost sounding like some of the more ethereal Mastodon or Mars Volta tracks with the winding verse guitar and echo-laden vocals. That song marks the middle of the album, and acts as a nice interlude from all the rocking before throwing you straight back into the mighty riffery.

The recording is deliberately lo-fi, and it suits the band to a tee. Despite the monstrous guitar sound, you can still hear everything if you listen closely (or better still, turn the volume up). The bass sound should be a future reference for anyone making this type of album; clear and throbbing, with no fret or string noise, and just enough grit to make your sub wobble with joy. Beautiful. There’s some great production ideas too - the joyful handclaps on the last chorus of ‘Heisenberg Says’ is brilliant. A lot of the vocals, particularly in the first half of the album, are sung in two-part harmony. It’s a nice effect, especially as both parts are as memorable as each other. The lead is yelled more than sung, but it is in tune. It reminds me of Neil Fallon from Clutch, only a touch more unhinged.

When I read that the guitarist from Cave In was involved in this band, I had high hopes. Well, the music wasn’t quite what I was expecting, but its damn good fun. Good, raucous rock music, with enough variation and memorable riffs to make it worth listening to again and again. There are a few glimpses of Cave In though, which will make it familiar to their fans – another point in this CD’s favour. This really isn’t something I’d normally pay any attention to, but boy am I glad I got the chance to review it. This is just about everything a rock album should be.

For Fans Of: Clutch, Cave In, Young Heart Attack

Band Link:
Clouds

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