Cults – Cults

Cults – Cults
Columbia: 2011

A year ago, Cults duo Brian Oblivion and Madeline Follin attended New York University. They make music in their spare time. Like any smart indie band, they put up their music on Bandcamp. Strangers noticed their 3-song EP. The EP was good and so it spread. The simple law of good music: the reach of your music is relative to its goodness. Columbia Records noticed this, too. Now they sign the checks. Technically—this isn’t indie music. It’s pop. Damn good pop.

This album is simple, clever and dripping in hooks. We’re not listening to cookie cutter lyrics—meaningless dribble, or supermarket soundtracks. It’s simple by way of design, the kind that folds creases onto your brain. It’s relatable. There is room for self projection. It is what Motown producers built an empire on—KISS (keep it simple stupid).

As thought a time machine was necessary, Cults borrows architectural techniques from 50s pop, like Buddy Holly, who shines through, glowing between the sonic melodies throughout the album. The song “Most Wanted” paints a picture of a woman, chained to her faults, singing “my mother told me you reap what you sow.” A swing in the voice dresses this young women in a poodle skirt and pony tails. Of course she’s beautiful.

But the grooves on this album don’t all follow the same upbeat line. The keys melody on “Bad Things” could very well be the sound of a hammer driving a nail into a coffin. It’s the dark shade that compliments this album’s mostly upbeat, jukebox sound. “Bad things happen to the people you love…you find yourself praying to the heaven above. But honesty I’ve never had much sympathy because those bad things always end up coming for me.” This is the blues. This is the darker side of pop. It’s what sets this album apart.

4 out of 5

Cults – ‘The Curse’ from Bowlegs on Vimeo.