After a 4 year hiatus, Cults have triumphantly returned with an album perfect for the season. Offering does an excellent job of maintaining a sense of familiarity in sound while also bringing in new elements to the pieces that just plain work. The band, made up of Madeline Follin and Brian Oblivion, say that Offering‘s emotional focus is more about “being a normal human being because we never experienced that.” Both Follin and Oblivion dropped out of school and almost immediately began venturing out into the music world, meaning they lived a great deal of their early 20s on the road. During the hiatus, they took the time to get back to “normalcy” and continued their creative process in writing music.
Going over the album, some standout tracks include “Offering”, “I Took Your Picture”, “Good Religion”, “Nothing is Written”, and “Clear From Far Away”. Influenced by bands like The Cure and The Motels, the resonating theme is optimism in the face of trial. The instrumentation on the album is stellar. Excellent riffs are intertwined with lovingly crafted keys and drums. Of the songs listed, they are all more or less perfect for dancing around in your room with the sound all the way up (as shown in their music video for “I Took Your Picture”). However, that’s not to say the album doesn’t have its slower moments. Through those more reflective points of the album, the listener can take the time to reminisce on the process of renewal through growth.
If it isn’t obvious, Offering is an amazing album. A lot of time and energy was put into production, and it shines through in every listen. Check it out for yourself!
Recommended If You Like: Sleigh Bells, Wild Nothing, Tennis
Recommended Tracks: 1 (Offering), 6 (Good Religion), 8 (Nothing Is Written), 9 (Talk In Circles)
Do Not Play: N/A
Written by Savannah Adams on 10/19/2017