Her high-toned vocals complement the sparkly ’50s-style guitar tunes they lay on, though on tracks like “Always Forever,” they remind me of an excited girl talking to a dog (“Hi, puppy!”).
Review: Cults – Static
National Music Reviews
Cults
Static
Columbia
Street: 10.15
Cults = Best Coast + Beach House
Cults are really just sugary girl-pop with a tiny taste of punk. “I Know” is a time-waster intro that sounds like the choir girls at the First Church of Brian Wilson, but it’s a nice lead-in for ear-parasite “I Can Hardly Make You Mine,” in which vocals from Madeline Follin are almost too penetrating and bring to mind Cyndi Lauper’s chart-topper, “Girls Just Wanna Have Fun.” Her high-toned vocals complement the sparkly ’50s-style guitar tunes they lay on, though on tracks like “Always Forever,” they remind me of an excited girl talking to a dog (“Hi, puppy!”). Oddly, though, it gets my tail wagging. Mellow tracks like “High Road” and “So Far” are stylish and cool, and make me think of a hifalutin fashion show I’d never be invited to. All in all, Static is well balanced and has catchy-as-hell melodies, but it won’t be in my regular listening rotation. –CJ Morgan
Static
Columbia
Street: 10.15
Cults = Best Coast + Beach House
Cults are really just sugary girl-pop with a tiny taste of punk. “I Know” is a time-waster intro that sounds like the choir girls at the First Church of Brian Wilson, but it’s a nice lead-in for ear-parasite “I Can Hardly Make You Mine,” in which vocals from Madeline Follin are almost too penetrating and bring to mind Cyndi Lauper’s chart-topper, “Girls Just Wanna Have Fun.” Her high-toned vocals complement the sparkly ’50s-style guitar tunes they lay on, though on tracks like “Always Forever,” they remind me of an excited girl talking to a dog (“Hi, puppy!”). Oddly, though, it gets my tail wagging. Mellow tracks like “High Road” and “So Far” are stylish and cool, and make me think of a hifalutin fashion show I’d never be invited to. All in all, Static is well balanced and has catchy-as-hell melodies, but it won’t be in my regular listening rotation. –CJ Morgan
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