Big Tear

Safe and Sound

let go

Apple

Sydney indie rock three-piece Crystal Cities are back, this time with the title track and second single from their forthcoming 3rd LP, I Should Have Known That This Was War. The song reveals a more experimental approach to the band’s songwriting this time around, both in terms of instrumentation and arrangement. Geoff Rana’s first lyrics echo this sentiment of change also, “Hold my cigarette, yeah, I think I need a break from the same old song and dance”.

The synth pads underlying the track create a spacey, cosmic bed which instantly take the listener somewhere they’ve never been whilst listening to a Crystal Cities track. Rana delivers the verse vocals with swagger before the song opens up into a spacious and uplifting chorus. The track then takes a Bowie-esque turn, relaxing into an almost free-time bridge where a haunting theremin-sounding synth provides most of the harmonic support. 

"It is a song about the polarising experience of life; when the universe and all the things that encompass it seem to coalesce in such a way that life appears to be your ally, but then quickly turns and appears to become your enemy; when life seems to gracefully surrender to your will, but then in an instant throws everything it has at you. It’s about the unexpected wins and losses that life can deliver at any given moment. The song takes some unexpected twists and turns to reflect this sentiment."
⁣- Geoff Rana (vocals/guitar/keys)

Lead vocalist and guitarist/keyboardist Geoff Rana has been spending days on end in his self-made studio where he’s been writing, producing and engineering the band’s latest material.

While the band’s previous effort - their sophomore album Hold Me Close Hold Me Tight - was an exercise in hard-hitting alternative rock that could rattle a live audience, the band’s third LP, I Should Have Known That This Was War, feels more explorative and colourful (at least from the two singles released from the band thus far, the first being “Love Don’t Live Here Anymore”). 

This new single happens to be the last Crystal Cities song previous drummer Daniel Conte performs on, with new drummer Neel Shukla taking over the drumming duties for the remainder of the tracks on the upcoming album.

Long-time Crystal Cities collaborator Paul Lani (David Bowie, Prince) was once again tapped to handle mixing and mastering duties for the recording.

SInce the band’s formation in 2016 they have released a highly praised EP - Who’s Gonna Save Us Now (2017) - and two critically acclaimed albums - Under The Cold Light of the Moon (2019) and Hold Me Close Hold Me Tight (2021). There is no scheduled release date for the band’s forthcoming third album. 

The band consists of Geoff Rana (lead vocals, guitar, keys), Jared King (Bass, backing vocals), and newest member, Neel Shukla (Drums).

I Should Have Known That This Was War

Lyrics by Marie Fjeldsted
Music by Marie Fjeldsted + Linus Valdemar
Drums by Anders Haaning
Bass by Lasse Vistisen
Backing vocals by Sebastian Autzen
Produced by Marie Fjeldsted + Linus Valdemar
Mixed by Linus Valdemar
Mastered by Brian Mørk
Released on Celebration Records
With support from KODA Kultur

Never Lost, Never Won

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oK90gqxcFds&ab_channel=FirstFloorCollective

Watch the official video ! ^

Nothing Lasts

Artwork: Iris Legendre
www.irislegendre.com/

Co-production: Mark Gage

Lyrics:
Locking eyes with a foe in a floral blue dress
A grin, a name, a weight in the glance, a whirl of ideas
Civilised in person, raw in retreat
Upbahpbahpbahpbahp-biased to ever stop hinting a spark

Distressed sermon, free rogue vermin
Do you wonder? Leave distance?
Hope you feel the parting breath

I’m searching the depths of a faith long lost
All aboard the loco motive, fear not losing track

Any arrow in the heart, just to feel it
Shock of pain into a darkness, numbness

Arrow

Artwork: Iris Legendre
www.irislegendre.com/

Co-production: Mark Gage

Big Tear

Pitou

Related tracks