Review: Cloud Nothings, The Shadow I Remember

The Shadow I Remember is something of a time capsule for the prolific indie-rock band Cloud Nothings. Though the album is just now falling into our laps, the band finished the recording over a year ago during a grueling week in the studio with famed producer Steve Albini. Like many bands, the quartet was forced to delay the release of the album due to the pandemic. With that album in the vault and touring postponed indefinitely, the band played the hand they were dealt by doing what they do best: putting out music by the truckloads. By the summer of 2020, Cloud Nothings’ seemed to have moved on with the surprise release of The Black Hole Understands, a bright, indie-pop project available only on Bandcamp. If that wasn’t enough, singer and guitarist Dylan Baldi teamed up with drummer Jayson Gerycz to drop an improvisational jazz album called After Commodore Perry Service Plaza (which was probably more fun to record than it was to listen to, but still). These releases and experiments left fans of the group to wonder what sounds The Shadow I Remember would behold.

Thankfully, the free-jazz record wasn’t an indication of the direction that Cloud Nothings was headed. Instead, The Shadow I Remember is the logical follow-up to their excellent, rough-around-the-edges 2018 LP, Last Building Burning. While that album had the band approaching their punk-influenced sound with savage intensity, The Shadow I Remember injects a bit of power-pop back into the formula. The result is 11-tracks of air-tight indie rock that balances the light-shredding and mechanical precision of Dinosaur Jr. with the pop-sensibility of the Buzzcocks and the lo-fi sensitivity of Four Minute Mile-era Get Up Kids.

The Shadow I Remember is more melodic than Last Building Burning, but don’t call it a cooldown. Though its hooks are mighty, Cloud Nothings’ latest album is bursting with energy and raucous noise, especially in its second half. “It’s Love” starts off with a quiet guitar arpeggio before erupting into galloping drums and a boisterous guitar solo: “It’s a hard life,” barks Baldi over the chorus, sounding more like an ‘80s hardcore vocalist than an indie-rock singer. Jayson Gerycz’s drum fills explode with speed and accuracy, so even when the band is aiming for a sing-a-long on songs like “Open Rain,” the energy is palpable enough to make you want to jump out of your skin.

Occasionally, the album’s clean and noisy tones compete for attention. While “Nothing Without You” has one of the catchiest guitar riffs on the record, the song’s crystal-clear back-up vocals don’t sound quite right in the mix, temporarily removing you from the album’s gritty aesthetic. However, these clashes between styles are few and far between, and only spoil the fun on occasion. Most of the time, The Shadow I Remember is pedal-to-the-metal indie-pop that’s begging to be performed at unhealthy decimal levels to a crowded, vaccinated nightclub audience. Since we’re not there quite yet, it’s at least a hopeful reminder of the good times yet to come.

Listen to The Shadow I Remember on Bandcamp below.