Philly band, Cold Cave, released their debut album on Matador records this week. Love Comes Close is an album that has emerged from the collaborations of Wesley Eisold (formerly of hardcore bands Give Up the Ghost and Some Girls), Dominick Fernow (of Prurient), Caralee McElroy (formerly of Xiu Xiu), and Max G. Morton (co-head of Heartworm Press). The band was originally the solo project of Wesley Eisold that began with a few thrift store Casio synthesizers. Cold Cave has grown to four members and the band is having a remarkably productive year in 2009.
Love Comes Close gathers its strength from the dichotomy of sunny Pop and gloomy Goth tones utilized throughout each track. Post-Punk influence is very evident, especially through the heavy use of synthesizers and Eisold’s deep, haunting vocals recall Joy Division’s Ian Curtis. The album’s first track “Cebe and Me” is full of eerie, murmuring voices, only to be dramatically contrasted by the New Order-esque dance beat of the album’s title track, “Love Comes Close”. The album is full of these emotional transitions, ranging from a brooding, ethereal mood to a catchy, New Wave sensibility. These atmospheric changes create an album which sounds detached yet remains emotionally striking through its glimmers of pop hooks. Love Comes Close is a fascinating exercise in electronic pop that fits in well with recent albums like The XX’s XX and Cut Copy’s In Ghost Colours without sounding generic.
Track Listing:
1. Cebe and Me
2. Love Comes Close
3. Life Magazine
4. The Laurels of Erotomania
5. Heaven Was Full
6. The Trees Grew Emotions and Died
7. Hello Rats
8. Youth and Lust
9. I.C.D.K.
Cold Cave - band site / matador records / myspace
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