CLOUD NOTHINGS
Cloud Nothings
(Carpark)
By the sound of things, you’d never guess that Dylan Baldi — the 19-year-old Westlake native who records as Cloud Nothings — made his full-length debut in a real studio. After recording a series of low-fi singles and a buzzed-about EP in his parents’ basement, Baldi spent a few weeks in a Baltimore studio making Cloud Nothings. And it sounds a lot like his earlier records: no polish, no gloss, and few signs that the album wasn’t laid down in one whirlwind half-hour session. The 11-song Cloud Nothings (which whizzes by in 27 minutes) is part Guided by Voices low-fi fuzz, part Wavves DYI indie pop, both filtered through a hyperactive teen who has a lot to say and not much time to say it in. “Understand It All” and “Should Have” are indie-rock spurts that nearly rupture under the pressure of Baldi’s restlessness. There’s more fury (the rapid-fire “Not Important” is almost punk) and pop (“Forget You All the Time” could be a lost indie-rock gem from the ’80s) than before. And more discipline. It’s the sound of Cleveland’s best one-man band finding his voice. —Michael Gallucci
