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Let Yourself Be So God Damn Huge: New Cloudkicker Is Now Real

It’s new Cloudkicker! That’s always a glorious occasion for fans of Ben Sharp’s distinct signature. Woum is the name of the new album and it seems to

8 years ago

It’s new Cloudkicker! That’s always a glorious occasion for fans of Ben Sharp’s distinct signature. Woum is the name of the new album and it seems to be both a return and a progression for one of the blog’s favorite artists: it features the dreams and expanse of his earlier releases, specifically the one referenced in the title of the post, but with an added…warmth, closeness, intimacy? The production makes it feel like you’re standing in the room with Ben playing/recording. Especially distinct is the bass, serving perhaps to ground the whole thing and thus make it a bit different than more ethereal works we’ve seen from him. Head on over the jump for your first taste and some musings.

“Plurals” is a really good choice to explain what I was saying above. The guitar that opens it is certainly morose and nostalgic but its sound is a lot more direct. The same can be said for the drums that quickly accompany it. It doesn’t really feel raw as such but closer, more present and encompassing. Things might have changed but a lot here is familiar. The album is name your price, the release is digital only and the whole thing just has that Cloudkicker feeling, although some of it is toned down and pulled back.

Which reminds me of the article we ran on legacies. It’s pretty clear that Sharp has a very unique and strong legacy; we kind of knew what to expect from this album but even with the changes enacted, we can still recognize it immediately. Sharp is perhaps a great example of how to best utilize this attribute: it allows him to do things like Woum, to go forward, backwards, sideways with his music while still relying on a trustworthy fan base. And that’s great since we’re happy to follow him around and receive taste after taste of his great talent.

-EK

Eden Kupermintz

Published 8 years ago