New York’s hottest new nightclub is Cathedral Bells. They’ve got everything; beeps, boops, goth
jazzercising, the bullseye in the middle of the Venn Diagram of musical interests between Claire
Standish and Allison Reynolds, and of course the Psychic Capital of the World. So what are we
talking about here? Just go listen to the dang thing.
Cathedral Bells is the shoegaze project of Matthew Messore and David Carey hailing from
Cassadaga, Florida. Their self-titled EP dropped February 1st on Good Eye Records and this thing is just crackling with kinetic energy. Messore says the album was written during a period in which he returned to his hometown and it centers on themes of isolation and space. These songs are the perfect encapsulation of the happy//sad formula, the lyrics touching on Messore’s stated themes and the music...the MUSIC! Cathedral Bells have really placed themselves atop the pedestal of
music to play while Robert Smith rides the exercise bike. “Homebody” is the single that
preceded this EP and for good reason. The song is an absolute bop; driving drums, the perfect
synth tones, this is music for walking in the cold while the sun shines on your face.
For me the standout track here is “A Passing Phase”, the lyrics are a gut punch of poetry, when
Messore sings “give me something to hold onto” you feel you’re soul reaching, connecting with
these feelings, existing with Messore’s spirit on some ethereal plane. The instrumentation is
superb too, the bassline is such an earworm and the synths not only pair so well with it, but also
help to create the environment of isolation Messore is conveying through his lyrics.
In the movie To the Wonder, Marina and Neil return to Oklahoma after falling in love in Paris
and Marina, a Ukranian, begins to feel isolated in this rural environment. Very much removed
from family, country, and comfort, Malick is able to portray the intense feelings of isolation and
doubt through sweeping landscape imagery as well as minimal dialogue. It’s somewhat hard to
put isolation into relatable words, hell even Malick had trouble with it, but with this EP, Cathedral
Bells are showing us a potential road map in how to express these feelings... and dance our
asses off while doing it.
RIYL: Goth Jazzercising (the activity I have no idea if this is a band), DIIV, Slowdive
Favorite Tracks: A Passing Phase, Homebody
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Written by Ira Mason (@spookEguy420_69)