Cold Cave - Love Comes Close [Album]

Matador

November 25, 2009, 10:57 PM

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Wesley Eisold, formerly the singer for hardcore bands Some Girls and Give Up The Ghost started Cold Cave as a solo project playing with vintage synths, effects pedals and programmed beats. After a series of 12” releases and with additional live members and collaborators Caralee McElroy (ex-Xiu Xiu), and Dominick Fernow (Prurient), Cold Cave now delivers its debut album on Matador Records.

Imagine a parallel history where Ian Curtis didn’t commit suicide, simply left Joy Division and then rejoined “Confusion”-era New Order in New York as they started working with Arthur Baker? Well “Love Comes Close” is a partial soundtrack to this imaginary tale mixing glacial post-punk, dark industrial synth music and dance floor-friendly electro-pop. Often in the same song. It’s a potent mix and if I do mention New Order too frequently don’t assume it means Cold Cave hasn’t carved out its own signature sound. It most certainly has.

The album starts with ‘Cebe and Me’ (many of the titles are obscure and/or suggest classical literary allusion: ‘The Laurels of Erotomania’ anyone?) which is three and a half minutes of dense and somehow tuneful industrial juddering noise. It is followed by title – and standout - track ‘Love Comes Close’ which marries the opening of New Order’s ‘Temptation’ (tinny strummed guitars and rattling drum machine beats) with Eisold’s deep, gothic intoning vocals. Even the lyrics remind me a little of Joy Division / New Order: “Everyday’s changing will remain the same / silhouettes shy as rain runs the drain / everyday decay debases the dream / the ghosts that will haunt you are not what they seem.” The sheer pop dance-ability of the music beautifully counterpoints Eisold’s doom-laden voice and lyrics, and stops it being the gloom-fest it sounds as though it should be.

Elsewhere ‘Life Magazine’ is a glam-disco-stomp with squiggly synths, lush echoing female vocals and even some la-la-la-ing. The aforementioned ‘The Laurels of Erotomania’ is very Depeche Mode: dark single-finger-playing synth-pop with sweet-and-sinister, whispered vocals. Continuing the 80s references ‘Youth and Lust’ reminds me of synth-art-rockers Visage, especially with its deadpan female spoken word section. And on a more contemporary note the interweaving boy / girl vocals on ‘The Trees Grew Emotions And Died’ recalls a grime-y version of The XX, if they’d upped the volume, lost the cool restraint and employed huge squally guitars over an insistent marching drum pattern.

Although referencing early decades “Love Comes Close” feels very fresh, very now - and despite those odd song titles, it is not pretentious or a difficult or abrasive listen. In a relatively short existence, Cold Cave has created a distinct sound-world, an atmospheric and compelling American take on gloomy euro-synth pop, beefed up with industrial noise and beats. It does more than "comes close" - it ultimately leaves those New Order comparisons far behind.