Review Summary: laid back indie: pulse edition
Who doesn’t love an aptly named band? Cloud Cafe trade in floatily fuzzy indie, perhaps best described as a more comfortable and comforting Wednesday or Great Grandpa. The Amsterdam-based outfit’s first full length
Gift Horse is as inoffensively enjoyable as it is captivating: in spite of focusing on laid-back melodies and crafting a light, cosy atmosphere, songs frequently boast excellent hooks that are bound to linger like a cloud in the Dutch September sky.
Opening duo “Honey” and “Perfection Salad” convincingly establish the band’s vision and showcase their ability to construct deeply addictive choruses from seemingly random words. Every melody is equal parts lethargic and energetic: mellow vocals are contrasted by gently crunchy riffs, wrapped in production that manages to spotlight all the sparkly little nuances. This contrast is best embodied in the highlight “Completely Here”, one of the most energetic moments on
Gift Horse. The song bursts with character, continuously shifting gears before erupting into a wonderfully constructed chorus of fuzz pop perfection. Similarly, the all-too-brief penultimate “The Ride Home” packs a serious nostalgic punch and packages what could have been a climax to an entirely different song as its own, rather mesmerising thing.
Admittedly, that’s about as adventurous as
Gift Horse gets: this is a comfort album, and a very good one at that. Moreover, it’s a great starting point for Cloud Cafe as it functions as a great display of raw talent and hopefully allows the band to be pushed into some more expansive territories in the future. For now, there are eleven highly enjoyable songs on
Gift Horse, and I recommend you give them a listen.
