The band Gothic Tropic is really Cecilia Della Peruti. And Cecilia is both an amazing guitarist and an effective vocalist. The new album from Gothic Tropic, Fast Or Feast, is out tomorrow and it is a truly superb melding of New Wave influences with bright, modern production. I was totally surprised by how much I enjoyed this one on first listen.
On tunes like "How Life Works", Della Peruti channels late-period Altered Images and imagines Clare Grogran crooning over something more supple like Eighties King Crimson hooks. The effect is at once clever and buoyant. On a number like "Your Soul", the sound is closer to Kate Bush with a sleek sheen under the vocals like late Eighties-era New Order singles, while the superb "Stronger" offers up catchy indie-pop that suggests a smarter, sharper Katy Perry-kind of approach. On the down-tempo "Teenage Behavior", Della Peruti coos over a smooth melody and the result is something that's nearly mainstream even if it remains a bit alt-rock, while the subtle "Cry Like A Man" is effortlessly appealing, like an American version of Rose Elinor Dougall's recent material.
Fast Or Feast by Gothic Tropic is exceptionally well-crafted indie that manages to bridge a few genres and styles with ease. That it's so hard to easily compare to a lot of what's out there these days should be read as an indication of how fresh and unique this album seems to me. Cecilia Della Peruti is offering up some really lovely and catchy tunes here and I am now firmly a fan of Gothic Tropic.
[Photo: Ryan Aylsworth]