Album Review: Nothing – Tired of Tomorrow
2 min read
With the band members’ histories in post-hardcore bands, even with the violent criminal history of frontman Domenic Palermo before the release of their debut album Guilty of Everything, it’s no surprise that Nothing treaded the line into hardcore territory on that album, despite largely covering it in trappings of shoegaze and dream pop. While it didn’t have an entirely unique sound, it made for an interesting album that managed to dip its toes into a few different pools of potential listeners. This is where their follow-up album Tired of Tomorrow comes in.
The album follows a similar track stylistically, focusing on their shoegaze side—something instantly noticeable on the opening track Fever Queen—but often incorporating hardcore elements into the music as well. They exhibit some indie rock leanings on the likes of Vertigo Flowers, but with moments like ACD (Abcessive Compulsive Disorder) acting as a major call back to their hardcore days. Unfortunately, the music on Tired of Tomorrow isn’t really engaging. The draw of the songs comes from their lyrics, between the references to a recent brain injury for Palermo on Vertigo Flowers to the more generic, pessimistic lyrics that coat the majority of the album. It’s somewhat ironic given the pushed back nature of the vocals obscuring the lyrics, but they do provide most of the album’s merit. The album’s only instantly striking song comes in the form of the title track, stripping back literally everything and focusing solely on Palermo’s vocals alongside a piano and strings. The acoustic setting is radically different from the rest of the album, but contains a spark that the rest of is sorely lacking.
Fans of hardcore and shoegaze music will surely find something to enjoy on Tired of Tomorrow, but on a grand scale the album ends up falling rather short. Those willing to dive into the lyrics will draw more worth from the album, and there are some truly dark moments that could make for something grand; a sad irony considering the drowned out vocals. While the concept behind Nothing’s music is intriguing, Tired of Tomorrow unfortunately doesn’t leave much of a lasting impact.
