In a few days, Cloud Nothings will be awarded temporary relief from an extensive tour schedule before taking their aggressive brand of indie rock overseas in May.
There were signs of fatigue in Dylan Baldi’s voice, laid barren against the raw backdrop of the entirety of their game-changing Attack on Memory, but last night at the Grog Shop marked Cloud Nothings’ sold-out homecoming show after a remarkable start to the year.
In addition to landing on the charts, Attack on Memory has deservedly garnered accolades from practically everybody. It bears shades of Slint, Silkworm, and Wipers, all the while retaining the youthful exuberance previously demonstrated on Baldi’s slew of releases over the past few years.
With Steve Albini at the helm, the naked intensity of the band's brash sound was fully fleshed out in the studio. Onstage, Baldi and crew shook up the album arrangement, stretching out what was once a 34-minute affair into 40-odd minutes.
Not the biggest leap – these aren’t prog-rock numbers – but, more than anything, their new direction affords them the opportunity to play it loose.
“Wasted Days,” in particular, seemed to grow excess limbs at every possible point, branching outward as if to represent indie rock’s entire tree of life since the dawn of time … or at least since “Youth of America.”
