A Closer Listen
Welcome back, Catholics! In 2017, the Charleston, South Carolina post-rock/math rock band launched with a bright sound, wide eyes and a future filled with promise. They released a single, then a split EP, then a half-hour album, amusingly titled Guilt. And then the pandemic happened, crushing their tour and festival plans, sending original members flying in all different directions, leaving only guitarist-composer Tyler Beall to pick up the pieces. Fortunately new friends came along – a lot of new friends – and the band was able to return, preserving the “extra” elements of strings and brass that made the band stand out in the first place. Tyler hasn’t sounded this happy since his debut track; one might say he’s been revived, like a certain person who is also important to Catholics in general. Fans of Human Pyramids definitely should be checking this out, and if the bands lived closer, we’d suggest they tour together.
It all starts with a fifteen-second “Requiem Mass,” which may refer to the end of one phase and the beginning of another. If only all masses were this short! Then the guitars and drums arrive, and the mood is lifted in an instant. A section of military snares speeds up while the guitars slow down, an appealing contrast that creates space for a shy glockenspiel to enter the room. Now everyone slows down; now everyone speeds up. Someone is clapping their hands in rhythm. These may be the loosest Catholics we’ve ever met, experimenting with wild time signatures in “Variations on a Rigid Musical Theme.” And no confession in sight! A straight line can be drawn between the sonic experimentation and the hope of innovation in the institution; someone has to lead the way.
The title “Now That We’re All Here We’re Not All There” recalls J. Geils Band’s final album, You’re Gettin’ Even While I’m Gettin’ Odd, the only album they recorded with a different singer. Musical breakups can really do a number on a band. So why not bring a trumpet? That’s exactly what Catholics does (do?) here. When the trumpet enters at the tail end of even more time signature shifts, the tone shimmies from System of a Down to Chicago, no easy trick. And then everything gets really happy, like a parade, and there’s a loud group “Woo!”, similar to the single word on Endless Dive’s Falltime. Hold on, was that a meow and purr? Oh, of course, it’s “Mewsong”!
By this time, we’re ready for anything, so the solo piano of “Ø” is right on brand. Birds chirp in the background, making that cat hungry. We’re hungry too: hungry for more of this high-energy math rock. Fortunately a new split effort is arriving later this year as Catholics team up with Prinze Jr. Now that the band is back, we’d call this the antonym of void. (Richard Allen)
Sun Feb 02 00:01:58 GMT 2025