Gilded Creatures - Nobody's Watching

Gilded Creatures

Nobody's Watching
self-released; 2015

3.8 out of 5

By Mike Przygoda

Nobody’s Watching is a strong debut from alternative rock trio Gilded Creatures. The passion that runs through the music and the performance is tangible giving a sense of immediacy to some smart arrangements. There’s a definite Modest Mouse influence throughout the EP as well as the ear-bleeding guitar vibe of The Joy Formidable.

The first half of the EP has some catchy choruses and interesting arrangements but suffers from some timing issues in the performance from the band. “Armistice” has some Arcade Fire-esque vocals that sometimes dip into Dave Grohl territory, which is an interesting introduction.  

There’s a clever guitar breakdown near the end. “The Eye Of The Storm” has some great synths and a head nodding rock groove that’s so catchy it throws the listener a bit when it gets off. That being said, the emotional aspect of the performance definitely forgives some of the inconsistencies.   

“Under The Harvest Sky” closes the EP with some loud shoegaze rock, a catchy wordless chorus, some bluesy George Harrison a la My Bloody Valentine licks, and a reflection on the passage of time.   The entire EP in fact is an interesting meditation on moments in time going from the end of summer to five years come and gone.  There’s definitely a maturation in the approach by the time the EP ends.

The second half of the EP is where the band really takes off. “The Color Of Gold” is the best track on the album, name checking the band over recollections of a moment of possible hope. Multi-tracked crunchy guitars drive the emotion of the song over the pounding drums. “Fault Lines” follows with an interesting blend of rapid vocals in the verse and long held out notes in the chorus that culminate in a growl. There’s also an interesting timbre in the blend between the synth and guitar melody that contrasts with the grungy drive.

Tweaking the first two songs would bring them up to the level of the final three songs of this EP and make the ending feel more cathartic.   The band is clever and has some great ideas going for them.   If the songwriting and performances continue in the direction that they are going, it definitely is an excellent invitation to want to hear a full album from the group.

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