Founded by Louisville musician Ryan Patterson and including Kayhan Vaziri and Carter Wilson, power trio COLISEUM have grown to become one of today’s quintessential contemporary punk bands. Successfully melding progressive musicianship, hardcore fervor, and vital social awareness into one constantly evolving artistic vision.
Midwestern post-punk luminaries Coliseum are slated to drop their highly anticipated new album Anxiety’s Kiss on May 5th via the venerable Deathwish Inc. (Deafheaven, Touche Amore, Converge, etc.). Anxiety’s Kiss is arguably the trio’s most experimental album to date, an energized amalgamation of cathartic post-punk, frenetic underground rock, post-gothic ambience, and punk ethos that is easily the most realized representation of the bands’ melodic ebb and flow to date. The stylistic diversity of the album falls together harmoniously under the powerful production of esteemed engineer and collaborator J. Robbins (Jawbox, Burning Airlines), presenting a cohesive musical and lyrical rumination on humanity, love and lust spread across ten captivating songs.
Going on 12 years as contemporary underground rock influencers, Coliseum have creatively adapted throughout the years driven by the artistic vision of founder and bandleader Ryan Patterson, here again flanked by bassist Kayhan Vaziri and drummer Carter Wilson, who both now share songwriting duties in the band. Aside from broadening the band’s stylistic palette, the album also introduces some novelties for the group; “Comedown” is the first track to not feature Patterson on guitar, “Sunlight in a Snowstorm” is the most bracingly melodic the band have ever sounded, meanwhile the album’s lead single “We Are The Water”, the video for which makes its debut today via SPIN, kicks off with a buzzing keyboard melody before Coliseum’s patent barnstorming charge kicks in.
“Anxiety’s Kiss” CD/LP/Digital in stores May 5th, 2015. Pre-order now: DW Store: http://bit.ly/dw_storeBandcamp: http://bit.ly/1N4EQZd | iTunes: http://geni.us/anxkss | Amazon: http://geni.us/1ojl | Google Play: http://bit.ly/1y1sRmv
Over the last decade Coliseum have released music on a host of labels including; Temporary Residence, Relapse, Level Plane, Auxiliary (Ryan’s own label), and Deathwish.
“Anxiety’s Kiss” is the new album from Coliseum, recorded at The Magpie Cage by producer/engineer J. Robbins (Jawbox, Burning Airlines). “Anxiety’s Kiss” is a hook-laden maturation of the Coliseum sound. Nods to their early D-Beat leanings are there, but it is their willingness to embrace Post-Punk melody and explore the space between notes that make “Anxiety’s Kiss” so alluring. Confidently growing within the punk world, without ever leaving it behind.
“We Are The Water” kicks things off with a synth-driven stomp while lyrically serving as a poignant social awakening and call for human empathy. Amidst a tangle and twang of melody, “Course Correction” and “Wrong/Goodbye” then emerge to tackle the ripe subjects of class division and police brutality. “Drums & Amplifiers” picks up pace, taking on those who reflect on their punk past rather than absorb the spirit that still charges the air around us. It’s not all social and subcultural commentary though. The dizzying “Dark Light Of Seduction” and sultry “Sharp Fangs, Pale Flesh” (where J. Robbins guests performing the BulBul Tarang) are darkly provocative narratives about the power of lust and love. In soul and tone, they both interject an emotional underbelly to it all. Robbins also adds bass on “Comedown”, an industrial-tinged romp led by Vaziri’s baritone guitar and Wilson’s booming toms. Coincidentally, it is also the first Coliseum song ever recorded to not feature Patterson on guitar. “Sunlight in a Snowstorm” is the band at their most melodic, with a snow-covered New York City as its lyrical backdrop. The high beam lit, cinematic noir of “Driver at Dusk” and infectious, fuzzed-out “Escape Yr Skull” lastly descend to close out the album. A flawless, yin and yang pairing that is Coliseum at the peak of their experimental and anthemic powers.
