Colour Revolt - The Cradle Review

Following the release of their debut, the Oxford, Miss., band the Colour Revolt were dropped by local label Fat Possum, and three of the five members bolted. The remaining musicians, Jesse Coppenbarger and Sean Kirkpatrick, recruited a new group and recorded The Cradle, so titled to suggest a new beginning. Coppenbarger recounts the whole ordeal on opener "8 Years", in which he sends dispatches from low-level indie touring: sharing stages with Q and Not U, watching lesbians make out on the mechanical bull, endless treks between shows, and pointless nights of drinking, playing, and puking. This cautionary tale is by turns anguished and ridiculous, insightful and unbelievable, and the band makes it sound like a violent venting of disappointments, regrets, and recriminations. Avoiding the easy romance of the road, Coppenbarger refuses to glorify the Colour Revolt self-destruction, instead wondering why the hell they even bothered. What did those eight years bring them, except the opportunity to do it all again?

With its ballsy cynicism and Coppenbarger's disgruntled performance, "8 Years" not only represents the Colour Revolt at their absolute best, but it introduces a band that would appear to have risen stronger and more strident from its own ashes. Sadly, that appearance is deceiving, and The Cradle never lives up to that first impression. Instead, Revolt 2.0 settle back down to being a workmanlike blog-rock band. The guitars reach for indie-rock transcendence but never grasp it, and Coppenbarger's self-questioning rants become self-absorbed groans. As a songwriter, he ignores the rigors of band life and assays the type of vague lyrics that signify import without ever delivering. His pseudo-profundities might make Interpol scratch their heads: "If love is blind, where's your harness?" he poses on the molasses ballad "Everything Is the Same", "If love is seen, where's your illness?"...full text Chances are most of you have never heard of Colour Revolt. And really, at this point, it’s not all that surprising, as they’ve managed to stay under the radar in the most fascinating of ways. Were it not for my happening upon them some years ago opening for Brand New (Brand New’s first tour back after their 3 year hiatus), I may very well have missed them, too. At that point, they had only a 6 song self-released EP to offer, but their live show was enough to convince me that they were going to be an important band. Melodically bombastic, thoroughly passionate, and mired in the sounds of the swamp and of the South, The Cradle finds the band at a crossroads while maintaining all of the qualities that make them the undeniably influential band they’ve become.

It’s been some time since Colour Revolt released their last effort and first full-length, Plunder, Beg, and Curse, and in that time, the band had come desperately close to dissolving and disbanding. After countless tours of varying success, some with bands as notable as Brand New and Manchester Orchestra, the band’s future was in question. Vocalist/guitarist/lyricist Jesse Coppenbarger forged on, writing some of the bands most honestly ruminative songs. The album’s opening track “8 Years” is a compilation of experiences both he and the band endured, and casts an interesting light on the formation and duration of the band. Along with guitarist/vocalist Sean Kirkpatrick, Coppenbarger comprises the two remaining original members, lending an important and necessary sense of continuity to the album. Drenched in quietly dissonant guitars and what I would consider their trademark vocal harmonizing, both Coppenbarger and Kirkpatrick have constructed an album that could only be the product of the band.

Post-rock anthem “The Cradle,” is a great throwback to early-to-mid 90’s grunge, while maintaining Colour Revolt’s inimitable and unmistakable Southern influences. While it’s strange not to say Southern “rock” influences, that is undeniably the case. There’s no doubt that this is a band and group of individuals that were born and raised in the South, though at no point does the trademark riff-heavy sound of the South dominate the album....full text This isn’t going to be a full review of Colour Revolt’s latest offering The Cradle, as I really haven’t had enough time with the recording, and if you’ve spent any time with the band’s work, you understand that it’s work that requires a lengthy, patient listen that is more often than not, completely rewarding. It’s rich, layered, textural intensity both musically and lyrically, and The Cradle adheres to this equation while shedding some old skin in the process. After a dramatic shift in lineup, losing 3 of the members of the band to more stable realities in life, founding members Jesse Coppenbarger and Sean Kirkpatrick forge on as the heart and soul of Colour Revolt. The resilience of these two shines well on the album, which still encompasses the complex energy of the past, while the sonic rages are reeled in and their energy dispersed much more dynamically and musically diverse.

I for one, am thrilled that Coppenbarger and Kirkpatrick weathered the storm and continue on as Colour Revolt, as these guys were made for making music. Great rock music to be specific. God knows we can always use more great rock music in our lives.

The Cradle is legal now. Go get yourself some....full text