The second full-length from Cloudmouth, Dark Energy, was released today and is coupled with a show over at The East Room featuring a host of great bands. We debuted the track “Nice Looking Mountain” on Episode 107 of the WOTT Music podcast and we’re happy to report that the entire album stands up as a worthwhile listening endeavor.
To be clear, Cloudmouth is fighting an uphill battle. Lead vocalist Kyle Numann has somewhat of a baritone vocal delivery and the band mixes a lot of styles together. You’re just as likely to find an accordion backing a funeral dirge as you are a synthesizer underlying a whipping acoustic guitar. This makes for an enjoyably diverse listen but it can be a hurdle for a new listener as there’s no directly digestable genre to toss them into.
Tracks like “Shall Not Be Named” and the aforementioned “Nice Looking Mountain” are good entry points for the more accessible pop-rock style songs but it’d be a shame to skip over “Don’t Make Me Watch“, a song ostensibly about death told via bopping 70’s style and riffing bass, or “Tree Song“, a downright pleasant contemplation on.. death.
While there’s a lot to digest here stylistically and lyrically, it’s clearly a band that has refined and expanded their sound. Sit with this one for a bit and be pleased.