Comadre - Comadre

01. Color Blind
02. Cold Rain
03. King Worm
04. Summercide
05. The Moon
06. Drag Blood
07. Must Be Nice
08. Storyteller
09. Hack
10. Untitled
11. Binge
12. Date Night

3-4 years can be a long time in music, and it certainly feels like a long time since Comadre released the fantastic 'Wolf Ticket' EP back in 2009. I loved that record when it came out and I had heard in 2012 that they were working on new music, and they released an excellent teaser for this album in the shape of the 'Cold Rain' single, but to be honest I had pretty much forgotten about them until Adam sent me a link to their new record. For anyone unfamiliar with their sound, they can often be tough to describe.. they tend to get lumped in with a lot of hardcore and screamo bands but they have a more punk sound, especially in the vocal delivery. If you liked 'Wolf Ticket', their split with Trainwreck a few years before that and indeed 'Cold Rain' then you will love what you hear on this eponymous release, as it really does sound like a culmination of their previous efforts whilst also managing to sound like they've progressed over the space of a few short years. My occasional reservation with this relentless style of screamo/punk is that it can often grow stale over the course of a full-length. Bands release fantastic 7"s and splits, but can't replicate and maintain that energy and excitement over the course of 10 songs or more. Comadre, to their credit, have successfully avoided that pitfall on this record. While the first two tracks ('Color Blind' and the aforementioned 'Cold Rain') come storming in at under 2 minutes each and make it seem very business as usual, Comadre change the pace slightly on the third track, the excellent 'King Worm'. It still clocks in at under 2 minutes but has a fantastic groove and melody to it, and backing vocals that bring to mind Nick Cave at times - and while the vocals are screamed for the most part, the music is definitely not hardcore, no crushing riffs or pounding drums here, just an excellent amalgamation of instruments that keep the tempo and groove nicely - great stuff. This is maintained throughout the entire album, with 'Summercide' and 'The Moon' being highlights for me. 'Drag Blood' is one of the longer tracks at 03:09 and again shows the bands diversity among their hardcore peers with what appears to be a trumpet or trombone employed in the early stages, which totally works, and excellent lyrics like "and now y eyes look like they're fucking the sun" helping to provide another standout track. Coming from the Bay Area, I'm not sure if these guys would ever bring themselves to the UK to play some shows, but if they ever do I imagine they're fantastic live - I hope I get the chance to find out!

Reviewed by Gary.

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