The second album from the indie duo Cults may just be their best album yet. Although the album Static is now four years old, it’s worth a listen for those interested in discovering hidden musical gems.

Evolution of Sound

Cults has moved on from their “60s girl group” sound and developed a new sound that gives Static a rock-vibe. The monologues spoken in their debut album (self-titled album, Cults) are gone as well as the samples of the cult leader Jim Jones and vibes of the Jonestown massacre. The “Wall of Sound” recording technique, popularized by 1960’s hitmaker Phil Spector and a prominent part of their first album, has evolved into a more modern sound. However, Static still maintains a hint of that 60s vibe. It’s pretty easy to notice the difference between the two albums. Static is more “drummy” in a way that it makes the album seem almost danceable. The guitars are very strong as well. It’s one of the major keys in the album unlike their first album where guitars seemed to give extra sound to each song. They’re different but alike in a few ways and it’s kind of easy to tell if you listen to the production of each song. 

Song Walkthrough

“I Know” is the opening song of the album and is probably the song that gives the album, as a whole, that aesthetic that Cults desires for Static.

“I Can Hardly Make You Mine” starts and is already an upbeat song for the album. The drums and guitars are heavy on this track. It almost seems as though this song was recorded in the 70s.

“Always Forever” arrives and is probably the love song of the album. The drums give the song a pop-friendly vibe that makes it perfect for slow dancing. The distorted production in the background provide the vibe of the album. One would say it’s creepy, but it’s also amazing.

“High Road” is the most popular song on the album. It’s production is psychedelic (like most of the album). The drums make up most of the song. Again, it has a dark vibe but it fits perfectly.

“Were Before” plays right after High Road and it seems that Cults went on with the drums as the main beat of the song. The soft, mellow production is calming at the same time when the drums play. Towards the end of the song is when things speed up and get loud. For the end of the song, Cults give their all to make it sound intense and strong, which they achieved.

“So Far” is the track where the acoustic guitars play a big part for the song. The production seems sad, but yet still happy and upbeat. There’s also a 50s vibe in the song due to the background production and melody. It all fits together perfectly.

“Keep Your Head Up” is straight from the 70s. Not really, but the opening of the song makes it seem like it was. The chorus introduces the iconic drum into the rest of the song. It’s dreamy to the point you could fall asleep to it.

“TV Dream” is the 8th track on Static and pure psychedelic. The beginning of the song is soft and deep that extends until the end of the song. It’s the shortest song on the album and it looks as though Cults wanted it to be the mellowest song on the album.

“We’ve Got It” starts and is back to the common sound of Static. The drums? Check. The guitars? Check. Everything you would expect of Cults would be in this song. There’s a 60s vibe that you can hear play through out the song. The strings (it most likely is) at the end of the song give a nice, smooth closing to the song.

“Shine A Light” starts with the strings that left off in We’ve Got It, but soon the distorted sounds come back and give the song an almost child-like sound. The drums soon start playing for the verses of the song and they play fast. There’s a 50s vibe to the background production which gives the song it’s aesthetic.

“No Hope” is the last track on the Static and starts with the common distorted voices as well as the off-sounding sounds. Some parts of the song are very loud in a way that makes that part of the song the most intense (like the chorus). The end of the song slows down a bit and the piano gives the song a vintage sound as well at the guitar.

Lyrical Range

The lyrics of Static vary from sad, to happy, to concerned or just plain love lyrics. During the making of Static, Brian Oblivion and Madeline Follin (Cults), were having relationship problems. They broke up before they made the sophomore album, but of course, they were still having some problems. Who doesn’t? With that being said, Madeline Follin based the lyrics of the album from their relationship. I imagine that it must have been hard for them because it did seem like a lot of pressure on them. The production may also reflect the sadness of their breakup. They spent a year and a half producing and writing the album so it was probably, most likely, kind of a bad time. They produced such great music in Static so I guess all the trouble and problems payed off.

Was Static a sophomore slump?

Mostly everybody has heard of the term “sophomore slump” and has their own sophomore slump of an album. Some people may think Static was a sophomore slump and some people may not. I am one of those people who think Static was not a sophomore slump and here are some reasons.

Their debut album was great but I think Static was a bit better and more enjoyable. The first album was full of 60s inspired songs with their very own twist on each song, but the second album was full of more production and sounds. The drums, for one, were absolutely amazing and played very well throughout the album. The extra production also gave each song that rock-psychedelic vibe and I loved it.

The idea of an artist or band sticking to the same old sound may sound great, but it’s also fun to switch it up a little. That’s exactly what Cults did on their sophomore album. They kept the vibe and transformed into a new modern, more rock-like sound.