Clean Cut Kid ‘A Crisis Of Faith At The Death Of A Loved One’ Album Review
Alt-rock quartet Clean Cut Kid have released their new self-produced album A Crisis Of Faith At The Death Of A Loved One today, breaking down the personal stages of grief against a backdrop of intricately layered production in 30 minutes of indie-folk bliss.
Every track on the album is awash with the warm retro sound of analaog tape, which when paired with the underlying themes of melancholy within the lyrics, string arrangements and chord progressions creates a moving and certainly memorable listening experience.
Highlight Death Narrative opens into a folk-soaked psychedelic territory that distinctively characterises songwriter Michael Halls’ unique production abilities, decoying us from reality with a hypnotic sound made more effective as the track pans from ear to ear (most enjoyed with headphones). A sweet ascending chord progression leads into the first reveal of the trademark Clean Cut Kid harmonies before a beautifully climatic cello line brings the song to an end.
Scattered between tracks are subtle atmospheric sounds from the live room recordings. An intimate gesture, inviting us further into the bands creative space inhabited by Evelyn Halls on vocals, cello and keys, Gareth Bullock on bass, Ross Higginson on drums and Emily Lomas on additional vocals.
By revealing the tick of a metronome or the quiet clicks of their home studio, we experience a transition from a lo-fi sound into something much bigger, distinguishing this album from other self-produced works of its kind.
Holy Ghost is a welcome change of pace introducing a driving drum beat around playful lyrics “God is a lad in a toga”. A lively rhythm section delivers an outro with brief hints of a modern-day Graceland.
A staccato style cello and guitar rhythym underneath a floating ethereal vocal arrangement results in an abstract ‘wall of sound’ effect in What We Wouldn’t Give before Halls breaks down the barrier between listeners again inviting us into his creative process for the making of vocal delight Black suit. Halls explains the placements and rhythms of parts, pointing out counter-bass lines and a baroque-esque guitar part explaining it “doesn’t matter where they all go” as the rest of the track “fades in”. Sounds easier said than done.
A Crisis Of Faith… is a delight from start to finish, a tender insight into the pain of losing a loved one swept up into a transcendent, sonic journey that knows no limits. Or maybe that’s still the outro to Hellven playing over…
If you want to hear the album live, you can catch Clean Cut Kid on the ‘Window Tour’ this Winter. Tickets are available from their website.
A Crisis Of Faith At The Death Of A Loved One is available to stream now on Spotify and Apple Music and on limited edition coke-bottle green vinyl.
Follow @cleancutkidmusic on Instagram for updates.
Naomi Campbell
