Across three albums, New York’s Cymbals Eat Guitars have perfected a tangled form of rock that’s drawn comparisons to Modest Mouse. Their songs are odd, winding things, perfectly matched to Joseph D’Agostino’s lyrics. His ordinary tales of suburban life feel extraordinary, thanks in part to Cymbals’ dramatic music.
The band takes a more direct route on its new single “Wish,” but it’s just as tightly-wound. “Wish” borrows some Springsteen grandeur (Cymbals’ Jersey roots practically demand it) and grafts it to a strutting Bowie beat for a ’70s fever dream of regret and wailing sax. D’Agostino’s voice takes some getting used to, but that rasp is a fitting sound with the band exploding all around him. “You say the same blood runs through us /Me, though, I maintain that I’m different,” he sings in the chorus, and in his shaking hands, it’s more of a plea than a conviction.
“Wish” appears on Pretty Years, out September 16 via Sinderlyn.
–Art Levy
