
Earlier this month, Cathedral Bells announced their upcoming album Everything At Once, the follow up to 2021’s stunning release Ether. The “shoegaze-by-way-of-bedroom-pop” project is led by Orlando, Florida-based artist Matt Messore, who writes, records, and produces everything on his own; live, he’s accompanied by Griffin Marthe, Miguel Pais, and Jordan Bermudez. Overall, Messore’s sound is lush and otherworldly, a perfect mix of crystalline synth and crepuscular flourishes (imagine tendrils of smoke preserved in a rough-cut diamond – that’s what Cathedral Bells are to me).
The album’s latest single “All Under The Sky,” released last week, at once hearkens back to the icy, gauzy dark wave of Ether (and Sensory Overload, the debut from Messore’s coldwave solo project, Midi Memory) as well as points us in a slightly more expansive direction in terms of tone and feeling; and, if I may be so bold, it is, perhaps, one of the best singles they have ever released, due, in part, to this perfect balance. It is direct and bold right at the outset, with sharp, jangly, post-punk-esque guitar; later, it’s perfectly layered with celestial-like synth and gorgeously frantic percussion. Messore’s vocals are impassioned, patient, and inquisitive, but not without a sense of dire urgency; during the chorus, true to the track’s name, it sounds like he’s singing in the middle of a meteor shower, the rogue stars shooting across the sky like emergency flares.
Everything At Once is out 5/19 via Born Losers Records. Pre-order it here.
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photo courtesy of artist