Dylan Baldi has been working under the moniker of Cloud Nothings for six years now and in that time he has formulated a recipe for a sound that leans heavily upon a nihilistic, indignant punk-rock. Tangled guitars rest upon tumbles of rhythm that gives his sound swathes of confidence and typically, underlying moments of angst. Life Without Sound finds Baldi hit a cleaner note on his sound for the majority with John Goodmanson (Death Cab For Cutie, Sleater-Kinney) on production duties.

Baldi claims this album is developed to inspire and inspire is exactly what it does, for the main part. Opener, ‘Up to the Surface’ begins with arpeggio-based guitar patterns and piano that loosely hit upon the sound of The Smashing Pumpkins circa Mellon Collie. Sounds revolve around Baldi’s strained voice which adds layers of sincerity to the progression in the song. When Baldi says the album was made to inspire, a lot of it seems to be demonstrated in how songs transform in a cathartic fashion.

Second track, ‘Things Are Right With You’ explodes in a fashion similar to Beach Slang – Baldi’s vocals find more melody than expressed on the opener but, with Jayson Gerycz’s riveting drumming, they find the same furious message. ‘Internal World’ uses a similar method, it rolls out with chunky power chords and harsh drums that match Baldi’s snarls toe-for-toe. The chorus of the song perhaps finds one of the highlights of Life Without Sound proving that the band can tie singalong segments within their gnarled tone.

‘Darkened Rings’ shows Cloud Nothings at arguably their most frantic and experimental in terms of rhythm. Time signatures move freely as the band move to perhaps their most ‘hardcore’ of sounds on the album. It never really works though, what should be intricate guitar playing gets lost in layers of feedback and Baldi’s rising volume in yelping his lyrics. By this point you long for some change in pace too; it feels although it is tumbling down a hill into the abyss of pop-punk – a change in dynamic would be welcomed here but you are deprived of any respite.

‘Enter Entirely’ does slow the proceedings down and suggests the band have an ability to mature their sound when required. The more quaint of songwriting lies here, when Baldi shows that Cloud Nothings are more than just a teen-US band jamming in a garage – a trap that their sound occasionally falls into. Versatility suits them well and as guitars howl in bends, the notes are perhaps easier to recognise as opposed to the mess of distortion and percussion that ‘Sight Unseen’ exists within.

The first single to be released from Life Without Sound, ‘Modern Act’ begins with a slightly different flavour showing the band at – dare I say it – their most ‘indie’. Guitars are slightly more jangly and Baldi’s voice finds a tone between the soft and aggressive. In doing so, his lyrics find much more clarity and the rhetorical questions that lay within the pre-chorus act as a marvellous call-to-arms, something fans will surely find room to bellow along with: “Do you know what it's like / To be out and alive? / To say you're doing alright / Yeah, you're doing just fine?”

‘Strange Year’ could do with being a little softer in its nature with Baldi’s vocals desperately struggling to get louder in the mix. It’s easy to appreciate what they were aiming for in regards to the sound but it struggles to get the message across; the messy lo-fi sound isn’t shown elsewhere on the record so when it rears its head here, it feels misplaced at best or unfinished at worst. ‘Realize My Fate’ pulls the curtains down on the album. It begins with a post-punk, Wire-esque fuel but similarly to the previous song, it feels as if it is trying to assert a new sound way too late in the album.

Life Without Sound occasionally shows some of Cloud Nothings’ finest work but perhaps over ambition gets the better of them occasionally. The sounds become confused leading to an immature overall impression. The album seems to get confused in what it aims for, sometimes lo-fi, sometimes pop-punk, sometimes post-punk, Baldi seems to be fighting with new sounds which is applaudable but he never really finds the important dynamic in pace and volume. It could have been great had it had more focus on one genre rather than attempting to cover a range.
Tom Churchill

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