If you’re a fan of Indie-Pop Rock with a ‘Dream Rock’ feel then Sydney’s Crystal Cities are a band to lookout for.
Their debut LP opens with a snatch of a Pop-Centred Echo and the Bunnymen, smooth melodies, electronica and an uncanny ear for a great tune. ‘If I don’t Make the Morning’ has a summery smoothness that is sometimes all that you need as well as a catchiness that is undeniable.
‘Under the Cold Light of the Moon’ which follows has a more pronounced drive and those same dreamy vocals, whilst ‘Could You Love Me Again’ takes a more electronic path, picking out the notes from the sky and drifting away.
After a well-received EP and a brief two-year ‘disappearance’ the album takes that feel and sound and picks up where ‘Who’s Gonna Save Us Now’ left off. Indeed the album’s other five tracks are just as riveting with ‘I Hear a Cold Wind Calling’ adding more gentle mysteries and a bit of grunt; ‘Carve our Names in the Sun’ creating a hypnotic mood; and ‘Between You and Me’ layering grittier guitar with those same smooth sounds.
The album ends with two of the best here ‘The Wolves They Will Come’ and the final word ‘You Were the last to Know’ which just wrap it all up nicely. If you want to chill on a lazy weekend, this is the soundtrack to get you through all the way to that Monday jolt of coffee. The trip to record at Abbey Road Studios has paid off with a mature and essential indie dream pop-rock sound.