Cloud Mouth

That Ghost Is Always With Me

Written by: PP on 01/10/2011 04:17:05

Chicago-based Cloud Mouth position themselves on the fence between original screamo (skramz) and the ambient nature of postcore, combining the intensity and raw emotion of the former and the beautiful echoing soundscapes of the latter on their latest EP "That Ghost Is Always With Me". It's a decent idea on paper, one that has seen much success with bands like Pianos Become The Teeth and Suis La Lune among others, but the execution is flailing.

On few occasions Cloud Mouth successfully merge emotionally charged passages with intense instrumental dynamics to create a strong contrast between melody and controlled chaos, such as on "Shark Week", where they nicely mix together fragile guitar melodies with echoing screams. But far too often the low production values have pushed the vocals far too much into the background, where they feel more like an afterthought rather than the center of the intense expression they are designed to be in this style of music. It's a fine line between resonating ambiance and a garage-recording, which is crossed often enough to reduce the impact the songs might otherwise have had on the listener. The band is on the right track with the noisy ambience and the emotionally charged soundscape, so all they need to do is to find the right balance between raw production values and a good mix between all instruments and the vocalists, and they'll be a band worth looking into. For the time being, they still need to develop as a band (and as songwriters) before they can be considered to be a contender in the genre.

6

Download: Take Me Out Into The Cold, Shark Week
For the fans of: Pianos Become The Teeth, Suis La Lune, original screamo
Listen: Bandcamp

Release date 27.11.2010
Count Your Lucky Stars

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