Cerulean--No Sense In Waiting

There’s no sense in waiting until the end of this review to say it, these guys are good. Borrowing their name from an Ocean Blue album and taking their sound from influences like Echo and the Bunnymen, The Chameleons, and Catherine Wheel, Cerulean packs a punch in their third LP.

Their intro piece "Quiet Release" roars into a rich chorus early that lets you know right away what you’re in for. Cerulean blends post-punk with pop and even adds in a bit of dreamy shoegaze. The album’s namesake song features all of these genres, moving along with a fast-paced and pop melody, and ending with a Hendrix-meets-My Bloody Valentine solo. In addition, "Here Is Hoping" could fit in right at home on a U2 album with its ambient guitar pieces. With well placed climaxes and wonderful melodies, its hard not to move along to the beat.

While candy for the ear, Cerulean’s lyrics are a tad repetitive, with remorseful tones that at times edge in on lecturing, "Did you notice that all of your friends had given up and settled down did you notice at all? / And their failures were swallowed up, chewed on, and never ever said aloud because truth don’t belong." It goes on like this, and while some songs are motivational and try at being inspiring, Cerulean generally lacks any lyrical depth.

This is not a fatal blow though, and thankfully vocalist Rick Bolander is hard to understand at times, and as a result his voice just becomes another instrument in the blend. Cerulean takes the best of shoegaze and punk and incorporates it into a pop-able package that’s easy on the ear and gets you moving.

(Published at ComfortComes.com)