About three years removed from 2020’s critically praised and celebrated technicolor, Covet decided to take some risks and challenge themselves to explore new ideas on catharsis. With incredibly talented new bassist and drummer, Brandon Dove and Jessica Burdeux respectively, they continue to delve into a multitude of different gear, soundscapes, melodies and rhythms.
This is Covet’s shortest project to date at around twenty-eight minutes, it is particularly noticeable as their previous release clocked in closer to the fifty-minute mark. catharsis is separated into eight tracks that flow into one another seamlessly, leaning into the ideology of using music as an art form of escapism. Conceptually, Young has stated that, in a way, she’s attempting to establish a journey through different worlds and characters using melodies, tones and textures, with the songs almost acting as their own themes or motifs.
The attempt to diversify their sound somewhat is immediately noticeable on album opener ‘coronal’, a slower paced, more deliberate track. With layered and vocoder processed vocals feeling like they’re being sung in slow motion, sitting atop slightly fuzzed, smooth and dreamy lead guitar melodies, fluid bass lines and accented precision drumming. ‘coronal’ is saturated in shoegaze vibes, setting the stage for something a little different for Covet’s third time around.
That isn’t to say it is a night and day difference between catharsis and prior releases; lead single ‘firebird’ feels more akin to Covet’s traditional sound as Young demonstrates her virtuoso status with some phenomenal guitar work, whether in the chord structures, melodies or solos featured throughout. The bass acts as an incredibly strong lock between harmonising or directly following the guitar melodies and keeping a steady rhythmic bond with the drums bouncy, joyous math rock rhythms with just a dusting of swing to them.
“Young demonstrates her virtuoso status with some phenomenal guitar work”
It’s true throughout the album as a whole, while each track features their own unique aspects, this still feels and sounds like the next step in Covet’s journey. Establishing notable moments of extra instrumentation, whether from synthesisers, piano or strings and then exploring them further later down the line. Young’s use of polyphony in the over-dubbed guitar lines and additional melodies complimenting one another are generously showcased throughout, the melodic and rhythmic interplay between the all three musicians is present in one form or another.
While these subtle details can be tantalising, the true substance can be found in the performances of all three musicians and the vast variance of guitar and bass tones on offer across all eight tracks as they dynamically progress. Some tracks may share tonal similarities at one point or another, there is always some variance such as ‘merlin’ opening with both the guitar and bass permeated with flange effects or the heavy use of fuzz and distortion in ‘bronco’.
The seamless nature of the track flow is particularly noticeable between ‘interlude’ and ‘smolder’. The former is exactly as the title states, an elegantly constructed interlude just after the mid point of the album, featuring Young showcasing her talent as a pianist as well as a guitarist. ‘interlude’ closes with a prominent, yet simplistic violin melody that loops and stutters as it erodes into ‘smolder’. This then starts with a lead guitar tone doused in reverb, playing off the same violin melody from ‘interlude’ before the rest of the band erupts. Violin is then featured throughout the rest of ‘smolder’ and even rearing its head through ‘merlin’ and ‘lovespell’, dotted at the edges of the mix and used for textural layering.
“[t]he true substance can be found in the performances of all three musicians and the vast variance of guitar and bass tones on offer”
Speaking of which, album closer ‘lovespell’ is a highlight, featuring Alex Rose of Minus The Bear, providing the first appearance of a saxophone on a Covet album. Light layers of synthesis are used to thicken the background throughout, the guitar and bass melodies mirroring each other. This leads into a bridge, the drum rhythms syncopated with the guitars and bass rhythms, building the anticipation of the arrival of the saxophone solo. Rose plays off Young’s guitar melody almost having moments of call and response between each other, taking turns in the spotlight before the focus is back on the band as a whole. Rose continues performing for the remainder of the track before one final layered saxophone melody ends the album on an unresolved chord progression. This feels like its almost willing the listener to let the album repeat ad infinitum.
Covet always manage to impress from a performance and songwriting perspective, as to be expected from a musical collective of such strong technical calibre. The only real problem with catharsis, if you can even call it a problem, is there isn’t more of it to enjoy. How they’ve managed to pack so much substance and quality into such a short time span is equally as engrossing as the performances themselves. catharsis easily allows you to stick on a pair of headphones and get entirely lost within the journey through catchy songwriting and memorable soundscapes, not focussed on the destination whatsoever, if only for a brief time.