On Stage: Cymbals Eat Guitars

On their latest album Lose, Cymbals Eat Guitars came up with more focused songs that are more easy to get into. Their older songs did sometimes have more adventure but could also lack direction. The new album also is their most personal one, with emotional songs that both sound dramatic and powerful. Time to go see them play.

Cymbals Eat Guitars at Bitterzoet Amsterdam, January 20 2015



The cosy Bitterzoet venue has filled up nicely, because it is a free concert for the Paradiso "indiestadpas" holders (like myself), a pass that allows you to see over 50 selected indie concerts for under thirty euros. This is good news for the band, although it also makes this a restless crowd with lots of chatting, something that seems to be inevitable nowadays.

It may be difficult for some to get into the music of the foursome or to fully appreciate and grasp it. But the band proves they can play a tight set that is interesting enough to entertain a crowd for more than an hour. Especially the songs of the new album, which is the largest part of their set list, are convincing and singer Joe D'Agostino is performing them with lots of heart. He gives the songs the right amount of emotion and credibility that the personal songs need.



The small stage of Bitterzoet makes him the one in the spot light and from my perspective the other members are either hidden or in the dark. It is typical though for this band, where D'Agostino is the driving force. His way of singing, where he uses quite a bit of air and sometimes he's screaming his lyrics, may put off some people, but is what actually adds drama and power to the songs.

'XR' and 'Jackson' sound even better this way and prove to be their best songs. The new songs sometimes even have sing along verses and you can imagine that they will work great in larger venues and on festivals. But the contrast with the somewhat unfocused older material can be quite big though. The band comes back for an encore at the end of their one hour set and D'Agostino closes in style all by himself with a wonderful version of 'Child Bride'. Too bad some people around me are too busy catching up with their friends or checking their Facebook account.



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Cymbals Eat Guitars Are Getting Close And Personal

The New York collective Cymbals Eat Guitars likes to ignore the usual conventions. For every record, the band around Joseph D'Agostino, is getting off the beaten track that they created themselves. For their previous record, Lenses Alien, this resulted in a whirlwind of styles full of unexpected twists and changes. It wasn't easy on the listener, but it definitely was a wonderful journey.

Cymbals Eat Guitars - Lose

For Lose D'Agostino stays closer to himself and is drawing from his own experiences, with the passing of a dear friend at the end of his teenage years as a common theme. It is somewhat superfluous to state that it turned into his most personal work. You can tell this from the compositions, since the madness from its predecessor is mostly omitted. Lose is much darker, sharper and therefore more intense. This becomes clear especially in 'XR' which sounds like an Irish punk folk song and where D'Agostini is telling about the tragic loss of his buddy: "The songs we never wrote/They float above and below me". 'Warning' is quite a heavy song as well where they are going at it aggressively.

Fortunately this doesn't mean that everything that made Lenses Alien such a pleasant experience has gone overboard. Halfway we find 'Laramie' that starts out slow with falsetto vocals, but then is picking up the tempo and ends in a nice jam. 'Jackson' has the same approach, which makes the song more exuberant with screaming guitar solos and harmonies that will propel the song while D'Agostino sings "I don’t wanna die". The characteristic voice of the singer may not be to everyone's liking, since his shrill vocals may not be appreciated by all. He proves to be a skilled song writer once again though and is opening up completely this time.

It turns Lose into a surprising record once more, that will show yet another side of the band. You do miss the quirkiness of the previous record, the inventive variations and sudden eruptions, that made you play the record over and over again. But this time it is easier on the listener, which could make Cymbals Eat Guitars more appealing to a larger audience.



This review has been published on Festivalinfo in Dutch over here.

Listen to 'Lose' on Spotify.



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Cymbals Eat Guitars Impress Again

Two years ago Cymbals Eat Guitars released their début Why There Are Mountains. It made clear right away that the band have lots of potential. The well received album was full of bombastic songs that were all over the place. They weren't afraid to experiment and were looking for adventure all the time. Now there's the follow up Lenses Alien, that continues where they left off. The foursome fronted by Joseph D'Agostino are showing still to be full of ambition and this album has plenty of energy as well.

Cymbals Eat Guitars - Lenses Alien (Ronald Says 8 out of 10)

And they don't waste any time. They open with the eight and a half minute epos 'Rifle Eyesight (Proper Name)' right from the start. The track almost isn't a song any more. It's full of twists, loud guitar explosions and more relaxed parts. The noisy middle is exploding before the band eases down and goes back into the theme. What a way to start. After that it hardly settles down, but it stays interesting above all. The album's title has been derived from the lyrics of the opening song:

Betrayers of children exposed by distortions
His property swelling Lenses Alien

Yes, it's hard work lyrics wise and often you need to look up the words of the song. Not that it's very helpful all the time.

No song is following a standard pattern. There are always changes in tempo, a psychedelic intermezzo or it suddenly changes into an eruption of noise and guitars. Even 'Wavelengths', that starts like a normal ballad, has sudden twists. Just like 'Shore Points' that seems to play like a nice indie rock song, but then shows a different face. In short: they are all very dynamic and layered songs. But it never feels strained in any case.

Cymbals Eat Guitars managed to produce another impressive piece of art. In their logical follow up to their début they are deepening their sound and are trying to push the envelope even more. This seems to be running off the rails now and then, but eventually they are able to keep things together cleverly. It's definitely not an easy record with catchy songs or nice sing-alongs. No, this is hard work for the listener. But that repay itself with almost fourty minutes of total joy.

This review has been published on ROAR E-Zine in Dutch over here.

Listen to 'Lenses Alien' on Spotify

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Album Reviews: What's In A Name?

Some bands are more creative when it comes to their band name instead of their music. This time the short reviews include some interesting bands with even more interesting names and album titles for that matter: El Pino & The Volunteers, Cymbals Eat Guitars, Bombay Bicycle Club and The Phenomenal Hand Clap Band to name a few.

El Pino & The Volunteers - The Long-Lost Art Of Becoming Invisible (Ronald Says 8 out of 10)
Nice second album by this Dutch band on the Excelsior label. Fits the Dutch alternative scene very well and do that in a good way. Lost some band members but got some good replacements. Seems like another band that can fill up the gap Johan leaves.



Bombay Bicycle Club - I had The Blues But I Shook Them Loose (Ronald Says 7 out of 10)
New indie rock heroes on the block's debut album. Got lots of exposure and even a bit of a hype. But it's really not that good to be getting that much attention. It's not bad don't get me wrong but it's indie rock as we know it.



Sweethead - Sweethead (Ronald Says 7 out of 10)
Another Queens of the Stone Age member to release an album with a different band this time it's guitarist Troy van Leeuwen. Together with singer Serrina Sims and two member of the Mark Lanegan Band they bring dirty rock with some rough edges. Nothing special but it's a decent album. The blonde Sims with her 'femme fatale' looks could make the difference though.



Cymbals Eat Guitars - Why There Are Mountains (Ronald Says 7 out of 10)
Catchy indie rock tunes with psychedelic synth. Walls of noise are followed by dreamy sound scapes. Most songs do seem to follow the same recipe making the record a bit long-winded.



Steel Panther - Feel The Steel (Ronald Says 7 out of 10)
Is it Bon Jovi being the dirty? Or some other rock band from the States with explicit lyrics? Is that guy singing what I think he is? Yes, this is Steel Panther a parody heavy metal band. But they do it in a pretty convincing way. Good for a few laughs and still enjoyable if you're into this.



A Place To Bury Strangers - Exploding Head (Ronald Says 6 out of 10)
Lots of noise but not exciting enough to stay interesting. In the end you keep thinking how much better things could've been.



The Phenomenal Handclap Band - The Phenomenal Handclap Band (Ronald Says 6 out of 10)
Mix of psychedelica and disco. Pretty nice dancable songs but gets pretty old before the record's over.
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