❉ This album will take you on a nocturnal fantasy through unknown worlds, writes Ange Chan.
“Nights in North Sentinel has its usual smattering of collaborators ghosting in and out of the album including Kelli Ali (ex-Sneaker Pimps) and Blaine L Reininger (Tuxedomoon) who adds a serious touch to the intensity to the European-influenced track After the Storm… Cult With No Name show once again that really are in a class of their own, and whilst inevitably drawing influences from forebears, have developed a unique sound which is unlike any other.”
Less than two years since Mediaburn was released, London-based electro duo Cult With No Name are back with their recently-released new album, Nights in North Sentinel, the band’s tenth album to date in a fifteen-year career. Opting to wanting to move towards a synth-based sound, the album will take you on a nocturnal fantasy through unknown worlds, returning you back to Earth having experienced something life enhancing.
Nights in North Sentinel has its usual smattering of collaborators ghosting in and out of the album including Kelli Ali (ex-Sneaker Pimps) and Blaine L Reininger (Tuxedomoon) who adds a serious touch to the intensity to the European-influenced track After the Storm.
The opening track All Those Things I Admire is a smooth piece of electro magic, easing you into what’s to come. Keyboard genius Jon Boux demonstrates his skills to magnificent effect. Noa’s Arc becomes a little more pacey, but Erik Stein’s smooth, Ferry-esque vocals are reassuringly familiar, making it feel like the music has always been part of your psyche.
The Automatic Day is an ethereal joy. Somewhat somnambulant in vibe but with mellifluous layers to take you on a fantastical journey. Fight or Flight takes you on a gentle transition to exotic foreign lands, perhaps on a magic carpet where you can marvel at the lands and seas below, in almost Disneyeque wonder. The album continues its synth-based night-time torch journey with You’re All I’ve Ever Needed and After the Storm.
(Some Things Are) Better on Groups is a beautiful song, its lyrics ruminating about how the synth scene has generated lasting friendships with people who understand your vibe and where you are coming from. The following track, the dancefloor-friendly Home Again, picks up the pace, but still manages to ooze the smooth, as its comforting vocals and delicious melodies effortlessly slip deep into your consciousness.
Bulletproof slows the pace down once more, with a strong accompaniment to the melancholic, deepfelt lyrics. It’s almost movie soundtrack-like in its delivery, giving the listener all the feels. Emotionally charged in every way, this song will stay with you a long time after you have listened to the album. This Means War lightens the mood, and once again you’re snapped out of the darkness into the light, with a faster-paced track.
The eponymously-titled Cult With No Name is a gorgeous elegy encompassing everything they are about; smooth, intelligent, and well-formed, and the album draws to a close with Ruins, a gentle track with gutsy substance, which delivers the same rich vein of soundscapes offered on this remarkable album offering. Cult With No Name show once again that really are in a class of their own, and whilst inevitably drawing influences from forebears, have developed a unique sound which is unlike any other.
Packaged in a Brutalist style die-cut box with the usual additions we’ve come to expect from Cult With No Name’s superlative packaging, there’s a poster/lyric sheet, sticker, and codes for both vocal and instrumental versions of the album, along with a ‘build-your-own’ jewel case kit, all expertly designed by Leigh from Bit-Phalanx. All in all, you really feel like you’re purchasing something of value to be loved and treasured.
❉ Cult With No Name – ‘Nights In North Sentinel’ was released July 30, 2021 and is available as a (Compact Disc + Digital Album) and Digital Album (Streaming + Download) via Bandcamp: https://cultwithnoname.bandcamp.com/album/nights-in-north-sentinel
❉ Ange Chan is a Freelance Writer, having produced two novels and six volumes of poetry. A prominent contributor to Me and the Starman (now available by Cult Ink on Amazon) and lifelong lover of music, Ange is also We Are Cult’s Social Media Administrator.
