Dank Crevasse

Ever since Ian Curtis shuffled off this mortal coil (4AD pun intended), gobs of acts have attempted to recreate his chilly post-punk aesthetic. The latest contenders, Cold Cave, go Curtis one further, aping the style of both Joy Division and that seminal band's successor, New Order. On Cold Cave's debut LP, Love Comes Close, Philadelphia-based multi-instrumentalist Wesley Eisold throws together the former band's mopey groaning, thudding bass, and spiky guitar with the latter group's dancey electronic beats and thick, distorted keyboards. His lyrics similarly revel in love and catastrophe, as when he moans, "Look outside, world is exploding/ Stay inside, still never knowing/ Taking cover with each other/ Sleeping off a century of hope" on the title tune. Although Eisold, who used to play in hardcore outfit Some Girls, started Cold Cave as a solo project, he's since added ex-Xiu Xiu member Caralee McElroy, and her vocals add a welcomed lightness to the proceedings. (Her presence also makes sense, considering how Eisold originally wanted the group's recordings to sound like '80s synth-pop act Yaz … crossed with '90s guitar- and angst-heavy band My Dad Is Dead.) Matador Records just reissued Love Comes Close, perhaps because label honcho Gerard Cosley always wanted to have a Power, Corruption, and Lies (New Order’s second release) of his own. One listen to Love Comes Close, and it's hard to blame him.

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• Wesley Eisold
• Ian Curtis
• Caralee McElroy
• Punk Rock
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