Album Review: “Attack On Memory” by Cloud Nothings

8.5/10

[MUST-HAVE]

Audio: “Stay Useless”

Audio: “No Future, No Past”

“There’s almost nothing on there that isn’t a first take kind of thing.” That’s what Dylan Baldi, Cloud Nothings’ creator and front man, said about recording Attack On Memory, as noted in Consequence of Sound’s interview with him. The Steve Albini-produced record is a departure from Cloud Nothings’ self-titled full length, but in doing so, creates a new frontier for Baldi and his newly-formed band to explore. More aggressive and emotionally-driven than their previous efforts, Attack On Memory is like a sledgehammer to the fucking dome by these Cleveland youngsters—and I mean this in the most endearing of ways.

Last year’s self-titled effort showcased Baldi under the light of proper studio recording, which opened a whole new window for the project to crawl through. Though Cloud Nothings sounded raw while maintaining pop-sensibility, many of the tracks sounded somewhat recycled, and, dare I say, corny. Nevertheless, Cloud Nothings became a favorite of mine, and it reached our Honorable Mentions of 2011 list. So what was the driving force of Cloud Nothings’ newfound aggro sound? In addition to Baldi’s ever-expanding vision for his musically-inclined crew, producer Steve Albini forced the band to become more direct—more in your fucking face. With the help of Albini, Attack On Memory is a wonderfully cohesive amalgamation of punk, pop, and a dash of dissonant hardcore. With Albini, Baldi took a leap of faith and recorded this album live with his touring band, who are now officially a part of Cloud Nothings, to capture the sort of sound that features enticingly jagged angles. It’s raw, uncooked, and abrasive, but in a sense that is absolutely invigorating.

From the first few notes of album-opener “No Future/No Past”, it’s evident that Cloud Nothings have added a splash of slow, churning dissonance to their already exciting arsenal. But this chameleon of a group displays its perfectly adaptable persona as the opener turns from a quiet, steady rumble into a boundlessly bellowing—almost anthemic—piece. With each repeating stanza, Baldi and his band drive the decibel meter to unparalleled levels, ensuring your memory of this band from last year’s Cloud Nothings will dissipate.

Another standout feature about Attack On Memory are the strides Baldi has made in terms of being comfortable with his music. This new confidence is evident throughout the album as Baldi and company toy with different genres, providing a sonic smorgasbord. The nearly-nine-minute “Wasted Days” shows the band at its most brilliant, where hardcore influences a là In/Casino/Out-era At The Drive-In don’t go unnoticed; here, Cloud Nothings’ control of trills, feedback, and atonal bends culminate in Baldi’s musical/emotional purging as he viciously howls, “I thought I would be more than this.” Furthering the notion of comfort and confidence, tracks like “Fall In”, “Stay Useless”, and “Cut You” follow more of a pop-punk paradigm, once again shifting the identity of this band on numerous occasions within a 34-minute span. Hell, there’s even an instrumental (“Separation”)—a type of song that no one thought a band like Cloud Nothings would be capable of doing, but they did it, and they did it damn well.

Aside from the impressive progression Cloud Nothings has made in their sound, however, a vital feature of this album is the wonderfully menacing vocals and lyricism of Baldi. For the first time, you’ll be able to hear Baldi torching his vocal chords as he roars dejectedly-centered lyrics like “I need time to stop moving/ I need time to stay useless.” There is a particular bravado that Baldi has in Attack On Memory that wasn’t seen in previous efforts. It may just be that he’s getting older and consequentially more comfortable with his voice, but there’s a certain unknown catalyst that seems to be driving Baldi’s newly found tone. Whether it’s something personal or just a necessary evolution, his vocals have been passionately reinvigorated.

This being only Cloud Nothings’ second proper full-length, one would imagine only minor differences between this and their last effort. But as Attack On Memory goes to prove, Baldi was straight-up pissed with the idea of his project being pigeon-holed into—sometimes trite—categories. Fearlessness best describes this album, but, thankfully, not in a reckless sense. It’s a tightly packed LP with little-to-no loose ends, and it showcases this band’s growing sense of self-assurance. Through their latest effort, Cloud Nothings have ingrained new perceptions of themselves into the minds of critics and listeners alike: they are simply not to be fucked with.

—AR