It has been five years since UK alternative/progressive rockers Cauls delighted and impressed with their EP simply called 2. It turns out it has been a time which almost saw the band call it a day just as it was beginning to make a major impact on the UK music scene. Thankfully they pulled out of the nose dive and after a line-up change found the energy and inspiration to go again. That thankfulness even more pronounced now with the release of their debut album Recherché.
An atmospheric, provocative, and continually rousing blend of alternative/progressive and post rock with earthier post hardcore intensity, the band’s sound and release has evolved into a fire of imagination and enterprise. You would expect and hope each release outshines the last and pushes things on again, something which does not always happen as we all know, but Cauls have taken a big leap in building on the success of that last EP. Recherché is a compelling web of sound and suggestion fuelled by melodic and harmonic elegance and driven by a climate of rousing and often aggressive atmospheric imagination.
From the short instrumental flight of opener De Novo Quincunx, the quintet of Michael Marwood, Chris McManus, Graham Morris, Douglas Redfern, and Kye Walker entice and involve ears and imagination with increasing creative drama. That first piece is a slow developing mist of sonic calm and darker intrigue, guitars gently entangling as darker hues occasionally moan; it all leading to the instantly kinetic presence of Peace Paean. Around the ever impressing vocals of Marwood, a relative calm while engaging guitar woven tendrils smoulders and builds into a more boisterous roar. Descriptive melodies continue to entice and flame in the rousing breakouts, adding to the bolder fire of the song and its captivating Mars Volta meets Muse like landscape.
The track is pure captivation, sparking a keen intrigue and appetite for what is to follow; that adventure soon in full flight through firstly Radio Johanne / Said Molineux. From its initial low key peace with an alluring tingle of melody, the track also simmers and grows in presence and intensity, building into an unpredictable web of sonic and melodic imagination punctured by the adventurous jabs of McManus’ beats. With at times a resemblance to the raw tenacity of At the Drive In, the song consumes ears with fiery charm and rousing energy before the first part of the three-track Wide Opus Abyss awakens in ears.
Amusia is a secret smog full of suggestive essences and evocative sounds as it blossoms into the corporeal body of Vapours. Rhythms quickly provide a bold spine for its harmonic and sonic flames to erupt and unite around the striking draw of Marwood’s voice and the combined prowess of Redfern and Walker alongside the poetic finesse of Morris’ guitar. It is a resourceful blaze which eventually becomes Tide and Bye, an even more agitated yet controlled melodic clamour sharing Radiohead/ Far like spices in its eventful recipe.
The technical sprightliness of COQ8 dances eagerly in ears before mellowing into a reflective serenade. It is a plaintive cry though carrying its own instinctive tempest, a highly strung excitement bringing fiery exchanges of textures and band around the thoughtful vocal led calms. Its second part, Retentive Anamnesis adds greater volatility to that scorching heart, providing a fibrous sonic weave to its wired atmosphere and pleasure for ears and thoughts.
Épée brings things to a close, strolling in with bass and guitars merging dark and surf rock like hues in its tranquil swing before things bubble and boil around ear captivating vocals. Jazzy and sultry yet melancholic, romancing and seducing with a boldness exploring a diversity of rigour, the track is just mesmeric and another fresh detour in the album’s diverse soundscape.
Cauls are back with a whole new heart to create and a sound which grabs that intent with adventure and beauty, Recherché offering surprises and provocative enticements at every turn. We can only sigh with relief that the band did not buckle to that feeling of bringing things to an end.
Recherché is out now @ https://cauls.bandcamp.com/
https://www.facebook.com/Caulsband/
Pete RingMaster 09/05/2017
Copyright RingMaster: MyFreeCopyright
Its strong presence and persuasion is followed by that of Bury Your Friends, the song from a melancholically melodic start erupting into a metal coaxed rock ‘n’ roll tempest. Its body and tone is irritable, its swing ultimately infectious but constantly feeling like it could turn on the listener at any time even in its calmer and fierce pop scented passages. It is a striking track, a bigger outburst of the band’s new creative prowess matched in power and thrills by recent single Fracture. Riffs and grooves lead with antagonism, rhythms barely taking an ounce of venom from their punch as melodies and vocal harmonies subsequently escape from a brooding storm never far away. Richly enjoyable when first unveiled last August, it seems to have just grown in temptation and stature; blazing superbly from within Hope with greater attributes being found with every outing.
Sinking From Within swiftly uncages a rhythmic proposal which demands attention next, the growling air of Rhys Kirby’s bass in league with the eagerly swung beats of Joe Lanigan. It is a formidable enticing as inviting as it is predacious and the lead into another potent blend of rapacious intensity and melody honed angst. There is a touch of Billy Talent to the song at times mixing in with further unexpected moments of Hunter Kill Hunter invention as once more expectations are evaded by the excellent track.
Youth instantly engages with hardy beats and a senses grasping web of grooves. Cast by Karum Cooper, they wind around ears with melodic suggestiveness growing a funky nature as the growling bassline of Lewis Pilcher and the swinging rhythms of drummer Jim Richardson collude with the vocals of Katie McConnell. She has an expressiveness and emotion to her voice, backed in strength by Cooper, which pulls you into the song where the band shows their imaginative enterprise. The track does not exactly leap out from the speakers but rather creeps up on the appetite for a lingering tempting that incites a need for closer involvement.
Continuing to switch between its increasingly imaginative stages the song is ultimately a powerful and pleasing start to the release and soon matched by Distractions. Its gentler melodic opening paves the way for a tantalising mix of Douglas’ clean vocals and a web of guitar enterprise speared by the shadowy yet flirtatious nature of the bass. With a lighter climate throughout compared to the tempestuous air of its predecessor, the song is a radiant tempting with keys and melodies as suggestive as the emotion lining the eventful song.
It is a craft and prowess which applies to all songs within the release to be fair, the following Darkest Hour swift confirmation as a great growling bassline from Kerton and the merciless swings of drummer Connor Tate link up with the harmonious delivery of Paterson and the emotive melodies which embrace ears. A fiery solo only adds to the imposing yet captivating drama shaping the song, again each minute a cauldron of enterprise breeding new adventures with every encounter.