Cedars quite enjoy vaulting between darkness and light in their music, and in the new single “Empire,” they just might have delivered the most balanced cocktail of the two so far. The first element noticeable in this track is its superbly excessive melodic backdrop and gritty bassline, the latter of which is a component of a boisterous beat that only gets more vicious as we go along with the band’s throttling play. There’s a pop song structure being put to good use here, but it’s noisy and rather abrasive, as if to deliberately contradict one aesthetic with another just as recognizable to the serious audiophile and casual listener the same.
While the track itself is a juggernaut in every way, the concept behind “Empire” is a cinematic beat unto its own drum. There aren’t a lot of props here, but there is an emotional edge to the narrative introduced through the multi-interpretive presence of an almost electronic fuzz that overwhelmingly adds a different dimension to what the song might mean. The production style is polished and ready for any mainstream audience to take a peek at it, which is something else I didn’t think I would be seeing in this release given the reputation this band’s scene has at the moment.
When you mix the imagery in the lyrics, rhythm of the instrumentation, and even the efficiency of the arrangement on its own, everything adds up to a brooding industrial rock beat-down that feels a little more personal than anything else this band has released on a widespread level. They’re trying to be vulnerable and exposed here, not only through words but through the depth of their songwriting, which isn’t something I can say I’ve seen a lot of within the output of their neighbors around the underground this past year.
I usually wouldn’t go for a song with as heavy a synth element as this one is sporting, but when it works as well as it does for Cedars, it’s rather hard to deem the aesthetic it affords the music anything other than brilliant. Sometimes you have to think outside of the box even when you’re already considered one of the misfits, and in the case of “Empire,” we’re getting a look at a band that doesn’t have any limitations – or hesitations – when it comes to experimenting with the parameters of their sound. They’re still growing, and they’re exploiting that growth process quite properly in this release.
You don’t have to be a particularly big indie rock fan to appreciate the sound Cedars are cultivating as their own in 2023, but if you’re someone who likes something outside the box, their new single “Empire” is a track that you’re going to fancy. While they aren’t the most experimental outfit in the world, this is a band that knows their roots and wants to respect the credibility of their influences, and that alone makes them a notable act every music fan should be keeping on their radar heading into this summer.
Garth Thomas