Album Review: Cloud Nothings - Attack on Memory

Cloud Nothings’ rise to indie fame followed a pretty familiar trajectory.  In 2009 front man Dylan Baldi recorded a bunch of songs on his laptop using substandard equipment whilst a student at Cleveland’s Case Western University.  What began as a way to pass the time soon grew to be much more after Baldi released these rough basement recordings online and received a good amount of buzz.  Soon after this a deal with Baltimore’s Carpark Records was signed and two LP’s, October 2010’s Turning On and a self-titled joint in January 2011. 

Baldi and his mates are back with a new slate of songs, and a generally polished sound.  The rudimentary lo-fi aesthetic that classified much of Cloud Nothings’ early work is, for the most part, scrubbed away.  Thankfully this cleaner sound is an overall improvement for the band.  Baldi’s brand of punk and garage infused bangers are catchier than ever, his sometimes wailing screams crackling at the upper end of the vocal register.  On Attack on Memory he seems much more confident and willing to be the center of attention, this is heard most readily on "Our Plans", the standout of the whole bunch.

Throughout the record Cloud Nothings busy themselves with building simple, straightforward instrumental foundations that pack a serious wallop in the hook department.  Baldi has a knack for making songs that worm their way into the listener’s head and stay there, and now that a professional studio finish has been applied it’s even more intoxicating.  The heaviest hitters include opening track "No Future/No Past", "Fall In" and the guitar shredding "No Sentiment". 

In some cases, the loss of lo-fi can mark a downturn in a band’s output, but this doesn’t seem to be the case here.  Cloud Nothings were lo-fi out of necessity, Baldi making due with what he had available to him, but now, with a proper set up his songs are able to soar even higher.  Attack on Memory is a great way to start 2012, featuring some seriously good hooks and some seriously face-melting riffs.

Grade: A-

Cloud Nothings - No Future/No Past by Carpark Records

~Steve Dobek